It is perilously easy to read your own practices and assumptions back into the history of the Church. This anachronistic impulse is universal, and much of the time it is merely funny and endearing, but when it is elevated to the point of dogma, and insisted upon as a religious duty, the problems that result …
Authority and Apostolic Succession
A number of years ago I had a number of friends who maintained that the way to argue with me was to answer yes to the first question, and then to stoutly say no thereafter. I mention this because I am about to attempt something that I think our Roman Catholic friends might want to …
The Real Action Is Elsewhere
Jesus told the parable of two sons who were told to go work in the vineyard. One said he would go and did not. The other said he would not go, and then went. “Which one was obedient?” Jesus asked. The recent posts that I have offered on Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy have certainly …
Loyalty As Grace
In a recent debate with an atheist, I was asked why I was a Christian. I replied that it was because my mother had spanked me. But I admit that this needs to be filled out a bit, and when we do, we will discover that the explanation is releveant to our discussions over the …
Becoming Hindu In Beverly Hills
I recently heard a very nice gentleman give his testimony about his pilgrimage from various forms of evangelical Protestantism to Eastern Orthodoxy. He was obviously sincere, intelligent, well-read, and spiritually hungry for God, but I was really concerned about the central hinge in his argument. Before getting to that, I am listing this post under …
Textual Shoulder Rub
Some people have trouble understanding what actually happened at the Second Council of Nicea, a key point in church history, at which time a new ecclesiastical office was created. It became apparent to our fathers in the faith that Deuteronomy 5:8-10 was far too tight, and rather than try to correct the problem in the …
All Over the Map
One of the problems that Protestants, Catholics, and Orthodox share is the problem of ignorance of patristic literature. Because of this ignorance, the subject (which is theologically and theoretically important to RCs and EOs) can be used to cudgel (of course in a friendly way) those Protestants for whom the subject does not rise to …
Corporate Testimony
Tim Enloe has raised a very good point about the care that Protestant apologists should take in representing the Catholic faith to others. In short, we ought never to maintain that official Roman Catholic teaching affirms what it plainly denies, or vice versa. In other words, apologetics ought never be a battle with a straw …
Theology With the Chambermaid
I am not sure I can do full justice to the questions about Roman Catholicism (from Tim and Kurt), but I will have a whack at it. The distinction between the magisterial doctrine of sola Sciptura and the modern, individualistic solo Scriptura is, in my thinking, straightforward. Solo Scriptura maintains that the Bible is the …
Heavenly Prayer Requests
This is the beginning of an answer to Kurt’s question about Mary. And, as is the case with many doctrinal issues, the real issue is found at the level of the presuppositions. The question really is not whether the Roman church has a nuanced position on Mary that acknowledges that Christ is a “unique” mediator. …