The question is intertwined.
The scriptures are, in way, self-authoritative, not waiting for a church body to make them so. And they were recognized as such much earlier than many realize. For example, in I Timothy 5:18, Paul says, “for the scripture says, ‘You shall not muzzle an ox when it is treading out the grain,’ and, “The laborer deserves his wages.”
Well the first quote is from the book of Deuteronomy in the Old Testament, but the second quote is from the book of Luke in the New Testament (Luke 10:7), indicating that the book of Luke was already regarded as Scripture. Again, in II Peter 3:15b-16, Peter writes: “So also our beloved brother Paul wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, speaking of this as he does in all his letters. There are some things in them hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other scriptures.” In other words, at the time that Peter was writing, the writings of Paul were regarded as Scripture.
(next post, on the beginning of the church)
Excellent article again.
Yes, I did actually read it all. :)
Hope to read it again after my trip...
And the significance of the answer would be?
Are you Orthodox Christian?
Please share with us.
I found the article intriguing.
Perhaps, I have more orthodox leanings than I realized.
Long but good. I’ll have to come back and read the parts I skipped.
It is constructive coversation that is so much needed.
Interesting Stuff! I will read later going to Mass.
Thank you again for your recent posts. It is good to have robust and well argued Orthodox presence on this forum.
I have watched recently a number of programs which posed questions regarding the NT, such as, who wrote the gospels, when were they written and which were chosen and which were rejected.
One program discounted the nativity stories and said that the authors contrived some things in order to boost their claim that Jesus is the Messiah.
So, whom do we trust? How do we know that what we have is what God wants us to have? Like the author, I was intrigued by the fact that so many books were excluded and how the eventual canon was declared.
I found my questions answered and so place my trust in the Church. I trust the authority that Scripture says Christ gave His Church.
This will of course be rejected by those who think the last thing that Jesus did before the Ascension was to hand several bound copies of the King James Version of the Bible (with all of His quotes in red text) to the Apostles to use as their only reference to His teachings.
He simply said (and I'm paraphrasing), "As for me, I preach Christ crucified."
At least I think it was Paul that said that. I confess I don't read or study The Bible nearly as much as I should.
But I have a question for you that I've always wanted to ask a Jewish person.
Obviously, Jews do not believe Jesus is The Messiah but they do believe a Messiah is coming.
My question is this: How do Jews expect The Messiah to be treated and what sort of signs do they expect to see and hear that will convince that The Messiah is The Messiah?
Again, I'm not a Bible scholar, but I've just generally accepted what I've been told over the years. Namely, that all the prophecies in The Old Testament concerning the coming of The Messiah, were fulfilled with the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
Am I wrong? Will The Messiah that Jews believe is yet to come be born the way Jesus was born? Will He live the way Jesus lived? Will He did the way Jesus died? Will He be resurrected the way Jesus was resurrected?
Feel free to begin a new thread if you find it necessary. I'm not trying to hijack this one. It's just that I've always wondered about this but I've never had the nerve to ask.
The very idea that God created and gave some particular people, who are members of a particular organization the keys to the kingdom is repugnant to all that He taught. Every individual holds their own set of keys and is the master of their own destiny, not anyone else's. It was Peter's faith in God Jesus/God spoke of, that's something Bernstein's organisation desires to take away from folks, to be replaced by faith in their own special and priveledged group of men.
The New Testamnet Gospels are the only fixed reference that was given by God directly and written by those that knew Him. All else is to be compared to those Gospels, including what ANY particular man, or organization says. You either have faith in what God says, or faith in what some other man says. That requires judgments and decisions to be made, by individuals, which are the essence of the keys.
Bernstein's intent is to replace the reference of the New Testament Gospels, with the various references provided by a particular organization of men. One that claims exclusive powers given from God, including those that are and have always been God's alone.