"A Humble Servant's Catholic Blog"

“The saying is sure: whoever aspires to the office of bishop desires a noble task. Now a bishop must be above reproach, married only once, temperate, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an apt teacher…(7) Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace and the snare of the devil. Deacons likewise must be serious…(10) And let them first be tested; then, if they prove themselves blameless, let them serve as deacons. Women likewise must be serious…(13) for those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.” (1Tim 3:1-13) “The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers,” (Eph 4:11) “And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. 29 Are all apostles? Are all p...

There are a number of Catholics who have come across fans of Mike Gendron who seem to "know" all about the Catholic Church, and are bold in seeking out Catholics to correct them of “false” beliefs. It’s easy to understand why well-meaning Christians would want to bring their Catholic brethren (if they consider Catholics brethren at all) to the truth of the Gospel. We are ALL called to bring the Gospel to everyone in whatever ways we can. But both Catholics AND other Christians need to understand what Catholics actually believe before taking on such a venture. Otherwise, you get nowhere and even run the risk of bearing false witness, especially if you are relying on folks like Gendron to be your source for information. Here’s what I mean. Below are several examples from Gendron’s latest newsletter (June 2014) where he misrepresents Catholics, the Church, the Pope, etc., in order to make the Church look sinister or evil...even un-Christian. You’ll notice from the link th...

It’s not so uncommon to run into a fundamentalist Christian who celebrates the reformers for leaving the “Roman” Catholic Church and “reforming” it. What IS uncommon, however, is running into a fundamentalist Christian who knows what these “reformers” actually taught and believed. Obviously, not all that they taught would be surprising, and less surprising is the fact that some of them disagreed with one another. But there are a few things that seem to shock some Protestants when they realize what their predecessors believed. I believe the reason it can be shocking is because Protestantism is an ever-changing thing, with no actual authority to draw a line anywhere on any topic, because every person is essentially free to interpret Scripture however they see fit, or however they feel the Spirit is guiding them, regardless of conflict with others. There is no basis at all for any person within Protestantism, including the so-called “Pillars of the Reformation”, to say what is or is not T...

What did the earliest Christians believe about Peter's Primacy and whether his "See" was in Rome?  Why not let them speak for themselves?  Here is just a tidbit for starters: "The blessed Peter, the chosen, the preeminent, the first of the disciples, for whom alone and himself the Savior paid tribute [Mt 17:27], quickly seized and comprehended the saying...” (Clement of Alexandria, Who is the rich man that shall be saved? 21, AD 200) Quoting Mt 16:18-19, Tertulian rebukes , “What kind of man are you, subverting and changing what was the clear intent of the Lord when he himself conferred this upon Peter? Upon YOU, he says, I will build my Church; and I will give to YOU the keys.” ( emphasis in original , Tertullian, Modesty 21, AD 220) Cyprian of Carthage explains likewise as Tertullian and Clement, and emphasizes , “Indeed, the others were also what Peter was [apostles], but a primacy is given to Peter, by which it is made clear that there is one Church a...

As we close the 6-part series on Boettner’s List, we look at several items revolving around the Papacy and things that, on the surface and only seeing what Boettner provides, appear to be scandalous…such as indulgences, forbidding Bibles and “the Cup”...even condemning Public Schools?!?! As before, to keep the length within reason, I’ll let Mr. Ariss’ examinations speak for themselves and add my own comments in blue where I feel more clarification is needed. Everything in black ink, from here on, is quoted directly from Wayne Ariss (with his generous permission…see link in the very first part of this series) with the bolded text being the direct quote from Boettner’s list : “ 12. Title of Pope, or universal bishop, given to Boniface III by emperor Phocas....607 . Boettner apparently wishes to give the impression that the office of Pope was invented by the Byzantine Emperor Phocas in 607, and conferred upon Boniface. The actual facts are not so simplistic. To begin with, the t...

Continuing where we left off in Part 4 we move now to some Church disciplines and touch on the topic of Authority and Sacramental Confession. As before, to keep the length within reason, I’ll let Mr. Ariss’ examinations speak for themselves and add my own comments in blue where I feel more clarification is needed. Everything in black ink, from here on, is quoted directly from Wayne Ariss (with his generous permission…see link in the very first part of this series) with the bolded text being the direct quote from Boettner’s list : “ 21. Fasting on Fridays and during Lent....998 . Fasting on Fridays is mentioned as far back as the Didache (140 AD) [39], thus rendering Boettner more than 800 years off the mark. As for the Lenten fast, Athanasius, writing in his Festal Letters of 331 AD, stated that the faithful should fast for 40 days during Lent [40]. This makes Boettner 667 years off the mark. Canon 69 of the Apostolic Canons, which pre-date 341 AD, admonishes bishops, clergy, a...

Do Non-Catholics really believe and practice "sola Scriptura", the belief that the “Bible alone” is the sole, or final, rule of faith? After a careful look, and asking several non-Catholics to describe what “sola Scriptura” (SS) means (to them, to their faith group, their church…whatever definition they were willing to provide), I don’t think there are ANY Christians who actually believe and practice this…even though they claim to. For example, a Lutheran friend (a member of the LCMS), quoting the Lutheran Confessions, described SS as Scripture being “the only final norm”. He continued, “Tradition is, as a result, not equal to scripture, but accountable to it.” So I asked what happens when two groups of Lutherans come to a disagreement about what Scriptures are saying or allowing for. The answer was that, ultimately, “an Authority in the Church”, interpreting the Lutheran Confessions’ view of what Scripture is saying, “must decide on the proper meaning of Scripture”....

What did the Early Christians Believe? Authority of the Bishop/Presbyters “ Now, therefore, it has been my privilege to see you in the person of your God-inspired bishop, Damas; and in the persons of your worthy presbyters, Bassus and Apollonius; and my fellow-servant, the deacon Zotion. What a delight is his company! For he is subject to the bishop as to the grace of God, and to the presbytery as to the law of Jesus.” (Ignatius of Antioch, 110 AD, Letter to the Magnesians, [2] ) “It becomes you not to presume on the youth of the bishop, but to show him all reverence in consideration of the authority of God the Father: just as even the holy presbyters, so I have heard, do not take advantage of his outwardly youthful appearance, but yield to him in their godly prudence: yet not to him, but to the Father of Jesus Christ, the Bishop of all.” (ibid. [3,1] ) “Take care to do all things in harmony with God, with the bishop presiding in the place of God and with the presby...

What did the Early Christians Believe? Authority of the Bishop “For Jesus Christ, our inseparable life, is the will of the Father, just as the bishops, who have been appointed throughout the world, are the will of Jesus Christ. [4,1] It is fitting, therefore, that you should live in harmony with the will of the bishop – as indeed, you do.” (Ignatius of Antioch, 110 AD, Letter to the Ephesians, [3,2] and [4,1] ) “Let us be careful, then, if we would be submissive to God, not to oppose the bishop.” (ibid. [5,3] ) “ I will [send you further doctrinal explanations] especially if the Lord should reveal to me that all of you to a man, through grace derived from the Name, join in the common meeting in one faith, and in Jesus Christ, who was of the family of David according to the flesh [ see Rom 1:3 ], the Son of Man and the Son of God, so that you give ear to the bishop and to the presbytery with an undivided mind, breaking one Bread, which is the medicine of immortality, the a...