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MARY'S VIRGINITYThe Bible gives us many ways whereby we can clearly identify the Messiah. One of these ways is called a "sign" and is specifically linked to his miraculous birth. In the Book of Isaiah we read: Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel (Isa. 7:14, KJV). Along with many other Scriptures, that passage clearly points us to the Lord Jesus, the Anointed One, who was born of a "virgin". But even among those who agree that Mary was a virgin, at that...

Interpreting The Bible And Later Sources On The Eucharist I want to make a couple of points that aren't often emphasized, or even mentioned at all, in discussions about John 6 and the eucharist. - When John 6 is discussed in relation to the eucharist, the discussion often begins with the comments on the bread of Heaven in verse 31, verse 35, or somewhere else later in the passage. But we should keep the earlier context in mind. Given the contrast that Jesus sets up in John 6:26-29, in which resting in faith in Him is contrasted with the...

If priests indeed have the exclusive power to change finite bread and wine into the body and blood of the infinite Christ, and, if indeed, consuming His body and blood is necessary for salvation, then the whole world must become Catholic to escape the wrath of God. On the other hand, if Jesus was speaking in figurative language, then this teaching becomes the most blasphemous and deceptive hoax any religion could impose on its people. There is no middle ground. (Eat My Flesh and Drink My Blood. by Mike Gendron)“There is no indication in the biblical accounts of the Last...

Never Thirst - Taking Jesus "Literally" can be Fatal Roman Catholics like to try to claim that they are just taking Jesus "literally" when they interpret "this is my body" to mean that what was in Jesus' hands was not bread but his physical body [FN1]. Three passages in John help to illustrate the problem with that approach: John 4, John 6, and John 7.  In the first, Jesus refers metaphorically to living water, in the second Jesus refers to himself as food and drink, and in the third Jesus offers drink to those who thirst. In John 4, Jesus...

His new doctrine: Downgrade ties to Israel and the Saudis while letting Iran fill the vacuum left by U.S. retreat.

The assault on doctrine continues as Rome disintegrates. Vatican Radio: "It is not 'cold doctrine' that brings joy, but faith, and the hope of meeting Jesus. He who cannot rejoice is an unhappy believer: that’s what Pope Francis said in his homily at Thursday morning’s Mass in Santa Marta in the Vatican: Abraham’s joy upon hearing that as God promised, he may become a father inspired Pope Francis’ reflection Thursday. Commenting on the day’s readings, Pope Francis remarked that Abraham is old, as well as his wife Sara, but he believes and opens 'his heart to hope' and is 'full...

(Photo: BishopBootkoski.jpg) Story Highlights Patricia Jannuzzi was suspended by Immaculata High School two weeks ago after her personal Facebook post on the gay 'agenda' went viral. A conservative Catholic group is running radio ads defending the teacher. The Diocese of Metuchen says no decision has been made whether to rehire the teacher. SOMERVILLE – A longtime Catholic school teacher suspended from her job after celebrities drew attention to her anti-gay posts on Facebook has become a cause célèbre among a growing number of conservatives rushing to her defense. And the controversy shows no signs of slowing down as questions...

…….and I must say, he does so perfectly. Via Vox Cantoris, the highly influential Fr. Tom Rosica, whose career has really taken off since March 2013, had this to say about how doctrine can evolve. It is as good an encapsulation of the modernist mindset as I have seen: Will this Pope re-write controversial Church doctrines? No. But that isn’t how doctrine changes. Doctrine changes when pastoral contexts shift and new insights emerge such that particularly doctrinal formulations no longer mediate the saving message of God’s transforming love. Doctrine changes when the Church has leaders and teachers who are not...

Will there be a rapture? Is it pre-tribulational? I believe the answer is an emphatic 'yes' to both questions. Here are some key points: 1. For starters, I want to address the small, but growing minority of Christians who emphatically state that the rapture isn't even in the Bible. Now I believe it is one thing to hold to various views as to the timing of the rapture event, but no rapture at all? I believe that this belief is thoroughly nonsensical. The argument often takes shape the same way that Jehovah's Witnesses will say that the Bible doesn't teach...

Idolatry by J. C. Ryle (1816-1900)   This updated and revised manuscript is copyrighted Ó1998 by Tony Capoccia.  All rights reserved.   "Flee from idolatry" (1 Corinthians 10:14)   Our text for today may seem at first to be hardly needed in our country.  In an age of education and intelligence, we might almost fancy it is waste of time to tell us to "flee from idolatry."   I am bold to say that this is a great mistake.  I believe that we have come to a time when the subject of idolatry demands a thorough and searching investigation. ...

Preface: This is an extensive examination of the Roman Catholic sacrament of Eucharist (which means thanksgiving) as regards the doctrine of the “Real Presence.” This deals with the question as to whether Scripture teaches that Jesus is literally and wholly present—body and blood, soul and divinity—under the appearances of bread and wine by transubstantiation of the elements of bread and wine. And by which believers thereby receive life in themselves. Or whether, consistent with other examples of figurative language and teaching, the elements are representations of Christ, and that eating and drinking Christ in John 6 refers to receiving and...

"in purgatory the souls of those 'who died in the charity of God and truly repentant, but who had not made satisfaction with adequate penance for their sins and omissions,' are cleansed after death with punishments designed to purge away their debt." - Second Vatican Council, "Sacred Liturgy", "Apostolic Constitution on the Revision of Indulgences", no. 3 "For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in order that He might bring us to God" - 1 Peter 3:18 The Roman Catholic Church teaches that Christians may have to suffer in Purgatory before going to...

Sungenis Claims: "the Church did not receive any divine revelation on the nature of Purgatory" In a recent (2009) response to Dr. White, Robert Sungenis made some interesting admissions regarding the absence of knowledge of what Purgatory is in Roman Catholic theology: Since the Church did not receive any divine revelation on the nature of Purgatory, and since the Church declined to make any official statements on its nature, it is only natural that people of different eras are going to come to different views of what precisely constitutes the Purgatorial experience. ... we have not settled on the nature...

French publishing house Fayard is publishing a book with an interview with one of the most impressive Cardinals in the College, the recently-named Prefect for Divine Worship, Cardinal Robert Sarah. "Either God or Nothing" (Dieu ou rien) has the very interesting subtitle "Entretien sur la foi" (Conversation on faith), which certainly calls to mind the groundbreaking book-interview of another Cardinal published three decades ago -- Rapporto sulla fede (Report on the Faith, published in English as... The Ratzinger Report). From its presentation by French magazine Famille Chrétienne, we find the following remarkable extract of Cardinal Sarah's words on a...

HELL by R.C. Sproul We have often heard statements such as “War is hell” or “I went through hell.” These expressions are, of course, not taken literally. Rather, they reflect our tendency to use the word hell as a descriptive term for the most ghastly human experience possible. Yet no human experience in this world is actually comparable to hell. If we try to imagine the worst of all possible suffering in the here and now we have not yet stretched our imaginations to reach the dreadful reality of hell.Hell is trivialized when it is used as a common curse...

There aren't many subjects Catholic apologists like to discuss more than the eucharist. Even if their arguments about the papacy are refuted, even if the evidence they cite for the Immaculate Conception, Purgatory, and other doctrines isn't convincing, they still think they have a strong argument in the doctrine of the eucharist. They'll quote John 6 and the passages of scripture about the Last Supper. They'll quote centuries of church fathers referring to the eucharist as a sacrifice and referring to Jesus being present in the elements of the eucharist. They'll point out that even Protestants like Martin Luther have...

============================================= . The Accounting of Simon Peter's Six Denials of Christ ============================================= Abstract: Harmonizing the Scripture passages concerning Peter's denial of Jesus at the time of His pre-crucifixion trial shows that Peter denied Christ six times, not three as some insist. These were predicted by Jesus to His disciples the night before He was executed. The denials occurred in groups of three, each group marked by a cockcrow. The denials were Peter's responses, twice to a doorkeeper maidservant, and once each to another maidservant, to a subordinate of the high priest conducting the trial, to a group of other menservants,...

The mother of Bo Morrison, who was killed by a Slinger man when Morrison hid in the man's house while fleeing from an underage drinking party, has filed a lawsuit against the man and his insurance company. Washington County District Attorney Mark Bensen declined to charge the homeowner, Adam Kind, with a crime in the March 2012 incident, finding Kind acted in self-defense. The incident prompted numerous protests about "the castle doctrine," adopted by legislators the previous year, but Bensen said Kind would have been cleared even without the law's extra presumptions in favor of residents using deadly force in...

The poisonous and destructive fruits of godless men abound everywhere today. These fatal fruits are the results of the outworking of UNRIGHTEOUSNESS and LAWLESSNESS in an individuals life (Gal. 5: 19-21, 6:7). Yet today the world with great zeal protects, defends, guards and will decimate any who seek to challenge their godless and lawless deeds (John 15:18, 17:14, 1 John 3:13). This world fully embraces and condones all of these destructive actions in its never ending quest to rid the world of RIGHTNESS and LIGHT in their delusional quest for a world of peace and a Christ-less utopia (John 3:19-21)....

The Church spends a good deal of money on the education of priests and religious. From seminary or convent formation to continuing education workshops and retreats, the faithful, of course, bear the cost. In justice, what do the faithful receive in return? The cost of seminary education is considerable. Room, board and tuition, I’m told, is now something like $40,000 a year per seminarian. That amount is charged to the diocese; it does not include the various gifts and grants seminaries receive, and it is comparable to the overall cost of private college. Over a typical five-year formation period, the...