Posted on 03/12/2016 9:36:07 AM PST by Salvation
Perpetual virginity
3/9/2016
Question: I am a lifelong and devout Catholic and have always considered Mary to be ever virgin. But recently, I read in my Bible that Joseph had no relations with Mary “before” she bore a son (Mt 1:25). Now, I wonder if our belief does not contradict the Bible.— Eugene DeClue, Festus, Missouri
Answer: The Greek word “heos,” which your citation renders “before,” is more accurately translated “until,” which can be ambiguous without a wider context of time. It is true, in English, the usual sense of “until” is that I am doing or not doing something now “until” something changes, and then I start doing or not doing it. However, this is not always the case, even in Scripture.
If I say to you, “God bless you until we meet again.” I do not mean that after we meet again God’s blessing will cease or turn to curses. In this case, “until” is merely being used to refer to an indefinite period of time which may or may not ever occur. Surely, I hope we meet again, but it is possible we will not, so go with God’s blessings, whatever the case.
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In Scripture, too, we encounter “until” being used merely to indicate an indefinite period whose conditions may or may not be met. Thus, we read, “And Michal the daughter of Saul had no child until the day of her death” (2 Sam 6:23). Of course, this should not be taken to mean that she started having children after she died. If I say to you in English that Christ “must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet” (1 Cor 15:25), I do not mean his everlasting kingdom will actually end thereafter.
While “until” often suggests a future change of state, it does not necessarily mean that the change happens — or even can happen. Context is important. It is the same in Greek, where heos, or heos hou, require context to more fully understand what is being affirmed.
The teaching of the perpetual virginity of Mary does not rise or fall on one word, rather, a body of evidence from other sources such as: Mary’s question to the angel as to how a betrothed virgin would conceive; Jesus entrusting Mary to the care of a non-blood relative at this death; and also the long witness of ancient Tradition.
Christians were not preparing for the Resurrection 40 days before it happened.
And yet Catholics expect us to believe that Jesus and His disciples participated in the eucharist, the sacrifice of Christ on the cross before Jesus even went to the cross. That they participated in a sacrifice that had not yet happened.
Go figure. The disconnect is astounding.
Jesus death? or His resurrection?
Why would a Catholic need to 'prepare', when they drink blood and eat godly meat every time they enter one of their chosen churches?
Then why the big fuss over him?
After all; the 10 have gone on to their reward; why not quit complaining about your pope?
After all; it's been said, many times on FR by Catholics, that the pope can change NOTHING about theology or morals; why have him?
1 Samuel 8:4-9
4 So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. 5 They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.”
6 But when they said, “Give us a king to lead us,” this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the Lord. 7 And the Lord told him: “Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king. 8 As they have done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they are doing to you. 9 Now listen to them; but warn them solemnly and let them know what the king who will reign over them will claim as his rights.”
Yup.
http://catholicsensibility.blogspot.com/2006/09/singing-charles-wesleys-hymns-one-but.html
(Remember folks; Catholics do NOT worship MAry!!
I am a member of a WESLEYAN church.
Things are a bit different there.
For some reason the words in Psalm 22:7-8 are on my mind this morning.
How many times will the phrase, Hail Mary, Mother of GOD be uttered in all of these celebrations?
Details...
De debble is in dem!
This has happened to some extent in catholicsm already through the "titles" conferred upon her by catholicism.
Co-redemtrix, mediatrix, mediatrix of all graces, mother of the church. And there's a whole lot more besides these.
It is noted catholics reject the clear teaching of the Word that Jesus had siblings. Some have rejected this because the Word doesn't say that on such and such date Joseph and Mary had sexual relations and nine months later a child was born.
It should be noted that there is ZERO support in Scripture for any of the titles that have been conferred upon her, yet catholics will go to the mat in defending these. The various popes have all signed off on these titles.
All these titles do is take away the focus from Christ and the Holy Spirit and replace it with the focus being on Mary.
OH?
Which PROT bible were you using?
By now, the readers of this tract should have made the connection that paganism has infiltrated the contemporary "Christian" churches, and further study indicates that this paganism came in by way of the Roman Catholic System.The truth is that Easter has nothing whatsoever to do with the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
We also know that Easter can be as much as three weeks away from the Passover, because the pagan holiday is always set as the first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox.
The true Passover and pagan Easter sometimes coincide, but in some years, they are a great distance apart.
Actually, if the things Catholics will be doing next week have their true origins in the Mystery cults then such activities are powerfully relevant. A religion fashioned to look like Christianity but having roots int he pagan feastivals, rites, and observed holidays can have such a hold on the human psyche that opening the eyes to actual Truth becomes, well, near impossible. For the carnally minded will not perceive spiritual things unless God opens their minds to His Truth.
One last thought for you: satan has been trying, ever since the Garden, to anticipate and derail the redemption of humankind. In every generation since the crucifixion, satan has had someone ready to step forward as anti-Christ, just in case the Rapture happens in that generation. Following the Rapture of the spiritual ekklesia, satan has plans for the remaining humans, so not knowing the day or hour, he has to keep a dead soul ready. Folks who are living a lie, celebrating all the vagaries of an institutional religion originating in paganism but being assured that they are of the one true church will be the easiest to have swallow the great lie, the strong delusion which will follow the Rapture of Christ's Church, His Body, His Bride. Don't miss the Rapture departure.
KJV
How many times will the phrase, Hail Mary, Mother of GOD be uttered in all of these celebrations?
Do you intentionally mix the terms in the prayer, or do you really not know that it is Holy Mary, mother of God?
The prayer is:
Hail Mary, full of grace
the Lord is with thee
Blessed art thou among women
Blessed is the fruit of thy womb Jesus
Holy Mary, mother of God
Pray for us sinners
Now and at the hour of our death
Amen
The Hail Mary is never said during Mass. Unless I missed any, the only mention of the mother of Jesus in the Scripture readings is:
25 Now there stood by the cross of Jesus his mother, and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Cleophas, and Mary Magdalene. 26 When Jesus therefore saw his mother, and the disciple standing by, whom he loved, he saith unto his mother, Woman, behold thy son! 27 Then saith he to the disciple, Behold thy mother! And from that hour that disciple took her unto his own home.mention Mary phrase will not be uttered at all. John 19:25-27 KJV
The readings mention the other Marys more often than they mention His mother.
But to answer your question, I know of at least one mention of Holy Mary, mother of God; in the Litany of Saints during the Easter Vigil.
Does the following description from classroom.synonym.com accurately describe the differences?
Wesleyan Church vs. Methodist Church
Methodism traces its roots to the teaching of an 18th-century Anglican priest named John Wesley. The movement, which focused on a methodical study of the Bible, personal holiness and social consciousness, spread within the Church of England before becoming a separate denomination shortly before Wesley’s death in 1791. The Wesleyan Church is one of several branches of Methodism that parted ways with mainline Methodists in the mid-19th century, due to disagreements regarding the nature of sanctification — the process by which people become more holy and Christ-like.
Disagreements about Holiness
In the mid-1800s, some Methodists came to believe that the church had become lax in its teachings about holiness. The new “Methodist-Holiness” movement taught that people could become completely perfected in love and holiness through a crisis experience known as “entire sanctification.” These “holiness” groups first worked within Methodist churches, but later splintered off to form their own denominations. The Wesleyan Church was the first such denomination to formally declare belief in entire sanctification. The Wesleyan’s Church’s website defines sanctification as “God’s work of making believers pure in heart, holy in character, and empowered with the Spirit of Jesus for witness and service.”
Approach to the Bible
Bible study has always played an important role in all forms of Methodism. Most mainline Methodists — including the two largest Methodist denominations, the United Methodist Church and the Methodist Church of Great Britain — believe that the Bible must be interpreted in light of tradition, human experience and reason. Wesleyans hold the Bible to be inerrant — completely without error — and to contain everything people need in order to be saved.
Theological Diversity
Both Wesleyan and Methodist churches consider themselves diverse. Wesleyan churches generally hold to an evangelical interpretation of biblical teachings. This leads them to be conservative on a number of theological and social issues. Mainline Methodists tend to be more diverse in their theology, spanning the full spectrum from liberal to conservative thought. In describing this range of thought, the United Methodist’s statement of belief includes an oft-quoted maxim of John Wesley’s: “As to all opinions which do not strike at the root of Christianity, we think and let think.”
Ecumenical Movement
The ecumenical movement seeks to re-unify Christianity by improving relations between various denominations. The World Council of Churches is the largest expression of the ecumenical movement. Mainline Methodist denominations embrace the ecumenical movement and are affiliated with the World Council of Churches. The Methodist Church of Great Britain has signed agreements with the Anglican Communion to work towards this unity. The United Methodist Church’s Ecumenical Commitments states that they have “entered into serious interfaith encounters and explorations between Christians and adherents of other living faiths of the world.” The Wesleyan Church maintains ties with other Methodist churches through the World Methodist Council and with other evangelical denominations through the National Association of Evangelicals. Unlike mainline Methodist denominations, the Wesleyan Church is not a member of the World Council of Churches.
http://classroom.synonym.com/wesleyan-church-vs-methodist-church-7572.html
Maybe you should get Gal 3:1-6 on your mind instead.
May the whole chapter for that matter.
The Holy Spirit must have smiled upon me. I inadvertently transposed the numbers and read Galatians 1:3, and I wish this blessing upon you:
grace be to you and peace from God the Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ,
As I wrote, your writings are not very relevant to what we will be doing next week. For most Christians, Easter is the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
“…Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day:” - Luke 24:46
That is probably in the Catholic Bible but if it is it may be worded differently.
Old Testament prophets were preparing for the resurrection of Jesus for thousands of years.
I don't think they were “lent” the term “lent”
Paul wrote to the Galatians, Gal 4:10 You are observing days, months, seasons, and years. 11 I am afraid for you! I don’t want my work for you to have been wasted!
The Galatians had lapsed back into celebrating the feasts and days of Baal, which was derived from the cult of Nimrod through the religion established by his mother and widow, Semiramis!
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