Posted on 07/26/2013 7:56:13 PM PDT by marshmallow
Fatima, Harissa, Damascus, Samalut, Assiut, Zeitun and many other places where the Virgin appeared are the destination of incessant pilgrimages from Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Iran. Pilgrims in search of physical but also spiritual healing; spontaneous and mystical prayer and not the schematic and formal verses of official Islam. The iconoclast Salafists destroy places of pilgrimage every year. But the devotion to Mary is growing, also fueled by the stories of the Koran. The spiritual dialogue between Christians and Muslims is much more promising than cultural, theological or political dialogue.
Beirut (AsiaNews) - Each year millions of Muslims come on pilgrimage to the Catholic Marian shrines. Not only to the major shrines such as Fatima in Portugal or Harissa in Lebanon, but also to Egypt, Syria, Iran. Muslims - especially Muslim women - go to give thanks to the Madonna or great Christian saints, like St. Charbel or St. George.
In the eyes of many Westerners these gestures seem ridiculous or false: they speak of apparitions, of prayers, but then there are massacres, killings, violence in the name of religion!
Like it or not, the religious phenomenon is alive in Latin America, in Africa, in Asia. When you see millions of Hindus go to bathe in the dirty water of the sacred river it may seem like a ridiculous thing. Yet for those who do it is an act of purification, of prayer. The West is tolerant and benevolent towards other religions, but its attitude towards Christians is increasingly hypercritical. The West is not post-Hindu, post-Islam. It is only post-Christian!
The point is that in the West, the supernatural is considered outdated, it is branded as mythology, illusion, instead the West is forever denouncing the difficulties that neither miracles nor pilgrimages can erase.
But in the rest of the world the spiritual.....
(Excerpt) Read more at asianews.it ...
There are many existing, public, scientifically-verified miracles associated with the Catholic Church, yet nothing comparable associated with Protestantism.
This could explain the hostility that some non-Catholics have toward Christ's miracles, regardless of their knowledge of the facts.
Eucharistic Miracle of Lanciano
Shroud of Turin
Incorrupt bodies of the saints
Tilma of Juan Diego
Blood of St. Januarius
This could explain the hostility that some non-Catholics have toward Christ’s miracles, regardless of their knowledge of the facts.
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“Hostility,” indeed. We are quite familiar with and greatly love Christ’s miracles that are attested to in the pages of Scripture.
None of the events or phenomena listed in your list of “miracles” are supported by Scriptures, so I am under no compunction to believe them.
Actually, I am skeptical of most of them, and generally find them a distraction from the Gospel.
The Tilma of San Diego, for example, is not going to get anyone into heaven... sorry to break it to you.
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church reading at paragraph 411: "Mary benefited first of all and uniquely from Christ’s victory over sin: she was preserved from all stain of original sin and by a special grace of God committed no sin of any kind during her whole earthly life. The problem is, that is not Biblical! (Here is the link to the Catechism. Please feel free to search for paragraph 411 for yourself. Catechism of the Catholic Church )
Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."
Revelation 15:4 says, "Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? For thou only art holy."
Romans 3:10 says, "There is none righteous, no, not one."
In Luke 1:47, Mary says, "And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior." IF she is sinless, why does she need a Saviour?
I believe you are right. I wonder what they will do if they learn the truth about her and her baby boy. Maybe the Christmas song should be translated into their native tongue and given away for free.
Since these books were not part of the Scriptures of Jesus day and He is not recorded as referencing any of them in His Words, why did the Roman church decide to then add these books to the Bible? Doesn't the Book of Revelation admonish the addition of or subtraction of any of the words contained?
You talk of 'man-made traditions'. How about the infallibility of the Pope? How did that work with Pope Stephen VI (896–897) or Pope John XII (955–964), who gave land to a mistress, murdered several people, and was killed by a man who caught him in bed with his wife. How about Pope Benedict IX (1032–1044, 1045, 1047–1048), who "sold" the Papacy and held homosexual orgies in the Lateran palace? What about Pope Boniface VIII (1294–1303) or Pope Urban VI (1378–1389), who complained that he did not hear enough screaming when Cardinals who had conspired against him were tortured? How about Pope Alexander VI (1492–1503), a Borgia, who sired at least seven children with an uncertain number of women? How about the Medici popes, Pope Leo X (1513–1521) and Pope Clement VII (1523–1534)?
Is it any wonder that Father Luther wanted reformation? With 'infallible' Popes like those noted above, how can one believe that such a doctrine is NOT man made?
Is God infallible? Of course! The Holy Spirit will guide the church universal however, those who will not submit to the leading of the Holy Spirit will falter! The RC church is no more or no less capable of faltering than any other church because it is a man made organization susceptible to all the lies that the Deciever can throw at its leaders. THIS is why we ALL must yield to the Bible and the leading of the Holy Spirit. In ALL things, including what you may feel is the Holy Spirit, test it to scripture, NOT to the traditions of man!
The Birth of John the Baptist Foretold
5 [c]In the days of Herod, king of Judea, there was a priest named ZECHARIAH ,[d] of the division of Abi′jah; and he had a wife of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was ELIZABETH. 6 And THEY were BOTH RIGHTEOUS BEFORE GOD, WALKING in ALL THE COMMANDMENTS and ORDINANCES of the Lord BLAMELESS.
Who said Mary was worshipped. She isn’t. Venerated and we ask her to pray for us, but that’s it.
Worshipped are God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.
Got that?
When I start hearing of reports that these Muslim spiritual miracle seekers that go to Marian shrines are turning from Islam and become followers and believers in Jesus Christ, then it might peak my interest. Jesus said more blessed are those who see not, yet believe. We are not to seek after signs. That is why only by faith is it possible to please God.
Are you trying that again? What do you mean by "Luther's Bible"? Martin Luther's German translation of the Bible omitted NONE of the books that Catholics have in their Catholic Bible. When are FRoman Catholics gonna remember that? Here's the link, once again http://tquid.sharpens.org/Luther_%20canon.htm#a2
And as for sola Scriptura - which is NOT "The Bible alone" - Luther taught the same thing the early church fathers did which was the same thing the Apostles did which was the same thing Jesus did. Holy Scripture - because it is Divinely-inspired (God breathed) stands apart from ALL other writings as THE rule of the Christian faith. If a doctrine called essential to the faith cannot be backed up by Scripture, it doesn't belong in the rule of faith. It is really no more complicated than that. What it doesn't mean is that Christians can ONLY read the Bible to learn about the faith at the exclusion of all other writings.
For someone who bemoans ignorance, I'd expect a better understanding of these basic facts - they've certainly been mentioned enough times.
Amen!
ALL have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. All means ALL.
So how do you explain them being blameless in Luke? I am all ears.
explain All in the Parents walking blameless in All in Luke. Thank you
Well does " All" mean all in Luke too. The Holy Word of God? I am all ears.
Not to me. It seems consistent with paganism. It probably only seems strange to Catholics.
Got to have hope that at least the SEEDS for faith in Jesus have been planted.
There are differences between the two.
Actually, Logitech and this story is right on the money. Christians in the West are completely ignorant of the pagan and idolatry in third world Catholic churches. I've spent a number of years aboard and saw first hand the idolatry that goes on. It is (almost) laughable at the smugness of Catholics here who try to rationalize these pagan feelings into doctrinal understanding and justify (or ignore) this behavior in order to support the "Church". No matter what the cost.
Catholicism is nothing more than a cult and this is what underscores it. It's just that western Catholics can't face this fact and bury themselves within the bubble of a splendor Vatican building and the cuteness of the "Popemobile". After all, it's fun and the pageantry gives an air of respectability.
Yet the RC Church has NOW a Pope who is teaching right out from the Bible.
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