Posted on 05/18/2007 6:16:16 AM PDT by Reo
A pity...God’s going to miss you...
Hey, I just thought it was a thoughtful article.......
Sometimes I wonder if these Catholic Bishops really like us converts coming in with all our expectations of orthodoxy.
I don't know this man's personal story, but he probably realised that the Scriptures were given authority by the Church in the first place.
After all, he had already accepted the Churches authority by accepting the Gospels and Acts as Scripture.
He had all ready accepted the Churches authority in NOT accepting the 'Babylonian Gospel', the 'Aquarian Gospel' and any number of gnostic accounts of the life of Christ as Scripture.
Or perhaps his path was completely different - he read Scripture and realised that he needed to eat the Body and drink the Blood of our Lord, Jesus Christ.
I wish a warm welcome to this man, and may God continue to bless him.
Actually, I think the article is misleading. The hostile reaction was greater and more vicious than suggested here and the ETS executive committee statement itself evaded the real issues and invented pseudo-issues. Beckwith graciously resigned rather than make a stink. The ETS statement itself illustrates how misinformation still dominates the evangelical side of things—even for those who consider themselves irenic about these matters. The totally out-to-lunch misinformation propagated by James White and John Macarthur are another matter altogether.
This piece strikes me as damage control and rose-tinted propaganda. Yes, the reaction could have been far more hostile and vicious, but no, it was not anywhere close to as nicey-nicey as this article implies. I speak as one who has followed the various threads quite closely. The ETS has not exactly covered itself in glory in the way it handled this.
They ought to call his show "Catholicism Straight Up." Prospective viewers be warned Father Corapi pulls no punches, and since I have a strong suspicion that the good Father has been in a brawl or twenty in his life, some of those punches can be rather potent.
And here we go...
That is a complete mischaracterization of Catholic teaching. We honor Mary; we do not worship her -- otherwise we would be breaking the very first commandment. If we really did worship Mary, why then would we deny it? Did you ever think about that? It is amazing that myths like "Catholics worship Mary" still exist. Nor do we believe that Mary or any of the saints is omniscient or omnipresent. We believe that the they can hear our prayer requests not because they are omniscient or omnipresent (which they are not) but because they are joined to Christ in the immaterial realm, where space and time do not exist. Do you think that that "great cloud of witnesses" referred to in Hebrews 12:1 can only see one side of the earth at a time? If so, you are mistakenly imposing the limitations of the material world on your conception of the immaterial world. Please try to avoid attacking mischaracterizations and misrepresentations of what Catholics believe.
-A8
You could be right, but even if not completely true, I enjoyed the story. Call me a sucker for a good story, true, half true or not true at all. lol (as long as it does not have anything to do with national security or bashing conservatives. Both of which MSM does repeatedly).
How? Here's how - because Jesus told Peter, the first Pope,
"And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Jesus gave that authority to Peter - not to everyone who chooses to interpret Scripture as they see fit.
If you are convinced that God has ordained the global triumph of evil, then those with a happier eschatology must look compromised at best, apostate at worst. If you are indeed looking for and expecting the worst, you will see the "woman on the beast" as the Roman Catholic church, for example, rather than as an apostate Israel that crucified God's Son and pledged allegiance to Caesar.
Folks who embrace a creedal orthodoxy have a lot more in common with each other than they do with the "roll your own" American approach that insists on re-inventing square wheels year after year.
He is not what most people think of when they think of a Catholic priest. If you don't want to hear the truth don't watch Fr. Corapi. He's not into touchy-feely.
Such arrogance, professing to know the will of God.
I've seen this same quietism in a close family member, who is a Jehovah's Witness (I don't know if quietism is a particular feature of that group, but the 'Dispensational premillenialism' is certainly there)
I made the same journey you did. My relationship with Jesus did not really click until I heard it preached in a small country Baptist church by a simple country preacher. Catholicism never made sense to me - but I respect anyone who is sincere in their relationship with Jesus. My salvation experience actually occurred when I was still a Catholic, but I did not realize it until I heard it in Baptist terms. Made me realize that salvation is nothing more or less than a true, heartfelt commitment to serving Jesus - this can happen no matter what denomination you belong to, and no matter what other extraneous beliefs you tack on (and may not necessarily occur in any of them). Different denominations exist because we all understand the world around us and the loving God who made us in different ways - none is necessarily any better than any other (as long as it’s through Jesus). Even some of the wackier beliefs, such as you see with the LDS folks, cannot interfere with true commitment to serving Jesus (and thus salvation and membership in the Body of Christ). I thus expect to share eternity with a lot of folks that some here would consider heretics.
What judgement would that be?
Oh I have, not to open a can of worms, but as a Catholic, I’ve been attacked by Evangelicals.. the most amusing of them being the popular refrain that Catholics aren’t Christians.... which I find most amusing on its face, but disturbing on its ignorance.
Discuss the issues all you want, but do NOT make it personal.
I am sure you were nicer and respectfuly than I would have been if I was ever told that. Watch out for anyone who dared. I would be banned for life on this site for sure, but it would be worth it to blast the anonymous fool for sure!!!!!
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