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Locked on 04/24/2022 5:40:39 AM PDT by Religion Moderator, reason:
Childishness |
Posted on 03/06/2022 11:16:06 AM PST by CharlesOConnell
A man commits a serious crime, then he gets released. He has "paid his debt to society". But wait a minute, he's only ready for the half-way house. He's unlikely to get a prestigious job in his new prison suit coat, or any job at all; he has civil impediments, he can't vote or hold certain offices. His crime was serious enough that he won't be presumed to have been completely rehabilitated until he performs a notable service to society, or at least spends many years on the straight and narrow, so that his crime can be truly overlooked or forgotten.
In Catholic faith, your "debt to society" is paid by Jesus Christ on Calvary. It's called "eternal punishment", without Christ it keeps you from going to heaven. Supposing that you do take advantage of His sacrifice, you're truly sorry, have a firm purpose of amendment, if you relapse, you go again for forgiveness (to the Sacrament of Confession).
But your sin leaves a strong trace at another layer of impurity called "temporal punishment due to sin", like the civil impediments facing the half-way house prisoner. Because "nothing impure can enter heaven", there is a place or a state, a condition of purification to render you fit for heaven after Christ has finally saved you from hell. The Catholic Church calls it purgatory.
(Where is it in the bible? Where is the word Trinity in the bible? Where does it say that you only need a personal relationship with Jesus Christ? Many valid principles aren't stated explicitly in the bible, but it does say to "hold fast to the traditions you have learned, whether by word or by letter", because much of the Gospel wasn't written down, as Jesus only wrote in the sand, the majority of the Gospel was taught from word to ear to people who couldn't afford expensive books, the exceptions were what tended to get written down. But the implication that there is a purgatory, is contained in the bible--see the comments.)
The ex-con can receive a pardon or commutation of his probation from a Governor, if he performs some heroic deed, saving numerous lives, or, like Chuck Colson, performs a long-lasting, valuable community service helping numerous people who can't help themselves.
In the Catholic Church there are 2 ways for the residual, temporal effects due to sin to be expiated: suffering in this life, or after life, undergoing purifying suffering along with other people who will finally be saved, but have to suffer for long without the vision of God--that is what causes them their pain.
Their suffering isn't meritorious enough to grant their release, the saints in heaven and those on earth suffering and practicing virtue can pray for the suffering souls in purgatory. In no way is their release by slow transfer of suffering or practice of virtue, "buying heaven". It's a long, excruciating process.
How the misunderstanding arose that Catholics think they can buy their way into heaven, is involved with history more than 500 years old. For a millennium of Christendom between roughly 410 and 1410, there was a Medieval civilization with harmony between faith and government.
Many small farmers would cluster around the manor house of a military lord who would protect them, in exchange for a certain fixed obligation of labor and agricultural produce. In most cases, those "serfs" had much more leisure than factory workers of the industrial revolution; there were a large number of holy days without work, and except for planting and harvesting, there were long stretches of idle time.
Another large sector of the economy surrounded monasteries, where the monks developed most of the farming practices that stabilized the serfs and their manorial lords. The monks who worked those monastic lands were sworn to poverty, so that monasteries built up large accumulations of economic value over decades and centuries of labor.
At the beginning, when lands were being cleared and put into production there weren't prominent town fairs ruled by merchants and bankers. Money wasn't used for sustenance, not even much barter occurred, life was mostly agrarian.
Charity was woven into the economy of monasteries. It was estimated that you only need travel 12 miles in medieval England between monasteries, where you could get a meal and minimal lodging for free, based on need. And the charity was also spiritual, including the ancient Catholic principle of prayer for the dead, which is biblical. (See "prayer for the dead" in the original King James Bible in the comment.)
There were foundations and benefices for praying for the dead, that allowed a person of means to support monasteries' charitable works, and in proportional response the monks would pray for the souls of the donors.
It happened at the close of the middle ages, that militarily strong nobles cast their eyes on the labor value accumulated by the poverty-sworn monks of the monasteries, which those nobles perceived as monetary wealth, especially where gold and jewels had been donated by the devout to adorn churches.
(Protestant writer William Cobbett wrote in his 1824 "A History of the Protestant Reformation in England and Ireland", an anecdote, that an incredibly valuable, hand illustrated bible was stripped of it's bejeweled, gold cover, the much more valuable hand-illumined manuscript, thrown in the mud and trampled by horses hooves by raiders suppressing the monasteries in Henry VIII's England.)
A new religion growing up around this seizure of monastic lands and valuables, that sought to discredit the Catholic Church, spread the black legend that the "sale of indulgences" was abusive. But this was very exceptional. Today the stipend of a Mass said for the dead is $10.
For this representative of Satan tries to convince the world that his master has more power over the temporal realm that no human can permanently escape from the power of sin by Christ ovecoming it and saving the person once and for all time. Thet Satanic ambassador has his/her own religion, that contradicts the Gospel of Jesus' servants. That ambassador says that a human cannot know of the salvation from the penalty and the power of sin in this world. But the truly Spirit-possessed Christ-owned child of God knows better and cannot be cnvinced otherwise.
We all saved persons know about that, don't we. You're not one of us, are you?
Placemarker
Remember, in the 1611 King James the Apocrypha was in those original additions but they were never considered scripture, they were considered history because the Jews considered them history. The Jews never thought they were scripture either.
The representatives of Satan try to convince the world that OSAS is biblical doctrine, and that God doesn’t require obedience to his commandments (law) after past sins are forgiven by His grace. Nope, you can continue in, or later go back to, a life of sin AND YOU STILL GET AN E TICKET TO HEAVEN (even though the bible clearly says otherwise)
They also try to convince the world that they will totally miss the Antichrist and Mark of the Beast. And even if they don’t get caught up in the PTR, they will get a second chance at salvation when the AC shows up. To them it sounds like a win-win. Satan says Gotcha.
You’re not one of them, are you?
The right to bear arms is specifically stated in the 2nd Amendment as a right.
Beyond that statement there is nothing more to say.
What is the last sin YOU committed?
Have you REPENTED for it?
Have you run out of straw yet?
as far as I know
CAn't have that; can we!!
Galatians 2:21
“I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose.”
Cast your straw upon the water, for in many days, a man may appear created from it.
***
Time for a musical number!
La la la~
Mister Strawman, give me a break.
Just shut that pie-hole, for goodness’ sake.
Do you think I’m stupid or that I’ve been drinking?
No one is convinced by this; what are you thinking?!
Strawman, I can’t stand it when
You say it over and over again!
How much can a person take?
Mister Strawman, give me a break!
Let me repeat to you my little song in response to that post.
Ahem.
Mister Strawman, give me a break.
Just shut that pie-hole for goodness’ sake.
Do you think I’m stupid or that I’ve been drinking?
No one is convinced by this; what are you thinking?!
Strawman, I can’t stand it when
You say it over and over again!
How much can a person take?
Mister Strawman, give me a break!
Genesis 2 kjv
1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them.
2 And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made.
3 And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it he had rested from all his work which God created and made.
Galatians 2:21
“I do not nullify the grace of God; for if justification were through the law, then Christ died to no purpose.”
Good thing you and I both agree
All you now have to do is to convince the Galatians.
Well; just the foolish ones.
Good thing you and I both agree
***
You must have a very different definition of ‘grace,’ to call it the exact opposite of what the actual definition is.
not sure what your point is.
alrighty then!
you must not pay attention
I see...
7 Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. 8 Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” 9 So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.” 11 Clearly no one who relies on the law is justified before God, because “the righteous will live by faith.” 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, it says, “The person who does these things will live by them.” 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.” 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
see post 493
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