{"id":73362,"date":"2023-05-20T09:12:36","date_gmt":"2023-05-20T13:12:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/?p=73362"},"modified":"2023-05-21T15:05:14","modified_gmt":"2023-05-21T19:05:14","slug":"reply-to-hays-catholicism-10","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/2023\/05\/reply-to-hays-catholicism-10.html","title":{"rendered":"Reply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

Conversion Paradigms; Dispensers of Sacraments; Salvation Outside the Church; Catholicism: Bible Totally Inerrant<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The late\u00a0<\/span>Steve Hays<\/a> (1959-2020) was a Calvinist (and anti-Catholic) apologist, who was very active on his blog, called<\/span> Triablogue<\/em>\u00a0<\/a>(now continued by Jason Engwer). His 695-page self-published book,<\/span>\u00a0Catholicism<\/em><\/a> \u2014 a collection of articles from his site \u2014 has graciously been made available for free. On 9 September 2006, knowing full well my history of being condemned and vilified by other anti-Catholics (and his buddies) like James White, Eric Svendsen, and James Swan, Hays was quite \u2014 almost extraordinarily \u2014 charitable towards me.<\/span> He wrote then<\/a>:<\/p>\n

\n

I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever accused him of being a traitor or apostate or infidel. . . . I have nothing to say, one way or the other, regarding his state of grace. But his sincerity is unquestionable. I also don\u2019t dislike him. . . . I don\u2019t think there\u2019s anything malicious about Armstrong\u2014unlike some people who come to mind. In addition, I don\u2019t think I\u2019ve ever said he was unintelligent. For the record, it\u2019s obvious that Armstrong has a quick, nimble mind. . . . The term \u201capostasy\u201d carries with it a heavy presumption that the apostate is a hell-bound reprobate. I think it\u2019s unwarranted to assume that all Catholics or converts to Catholicism are damned.<\/span><\/p>\n

Two-and-a-half years later, starting in April 2009 and up through December 2011 (in the following quotations) his opinion radically changed, and he claimed that I have \u201can evil character,\u201d<\/span> am<\/span> \u201cactually evil,\u201d <\/span>\u201cego-maniac, narcissist,\u201d \u201cidolater,\u201d<\/span> \u201cself-idolater,\u201d \u201chack who pretends to be a professional apologist,\u201d<\/span>\u00a0given to <\/span>\u201cchicanery,\u201d<\/span> one who doesn\u2019t<\/span> \u201cdo any real research,\u201d \u201ca stalwart enemy of the faith . . .\u00a0 no better than [the atheists]<\/span> Richard Dawkins or Christopher Hitchens,\u201d<\/span> with an intent to<\/span> \u201cdestroy faith in God\u2019s word,\u201d \u201cschizophrenic,\u201d \u201cemotionally unhinged,\u201d<\/span> one who<\/span> \u201cdoesn\u2019t trust in the merit of Christ alone for salvation,\u201d<\/span> \u201chas no peace of mind,\u201d \u201ca bipolar solipsist,\u201d \u201csplit-personality,\u201d<\/span> and a<\/span> \u201cbad\u201d<\/span> man. He wasn\u2019t one to mince words! See<\/span> more gory details<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I feel no need whatsoever to reciprocate these silly and sinful insults. I just wanted the record to be known. I\u2019ve always maintained that Hays was a very intelligent man, but habitually a sophist<\/a> in methodology; sincere and well-meaning, but tragically and systematically wrong and misguided regarding Catholicism. That\u2019s what I\u2019m addressing, not the state of his heart and soul (let alone his eternal destiny). It\u2019s a theological discussion. This is one of many<\/em> planned critiques of his book (see<\/span> my reasons why<\/a> I decided to do this). Rather than list them all here, interested readers are directed to the \u201cSteve Hays\u201d section of my<\/span> Anti-Catholicism web page<\/a>, where they will all be listed. My Bible citations are from the RSV. Steve\u2019s words will be in\u00a0<\/span>blue<\/span>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

*****<\/p>\n

[Chapter 3: Competing Paradigms<\/strong>]<\/span><\/p>\n

Paradigm shift<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

Converting from the Protestant faith to the Catholic faith, or vice versa, involves a paradigm-shift. I\u2019m defining a theological paradigm as a comprehensive interpretive grid. A way of viewing, integrating, and simplifying a mass of issues by reference to a particular conceptual scheme. [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

Exactly right.<\/p>\n

One impediment which prevents some Catholics from conversion is that they are used to filtering everything through their theological paradigm, and they can\u2019t imagine an alternative. They don\u2019t know the explanatory power of a Protestant paradigm. They don\u2019t know how it answers the same questions. They don\u2019t think it can answer the same questions. [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

One impediment which prevents some Protestants from conversion to Catholicism is that they are used to filtering everything through their theological paradigm, and they can\u2019t imagine an alternative. They don\u2019t know the explanatory power of a Catholic paradigm. They don\u2019t know how it answers the same questions. They don\u2019t think it can answer the same questions.<\/p>\n

In addition, there\u2019s no one Catholic paradigm. [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

This is where Hays is wrong. He never understood this. There is<\/em> one Catholic paradigm in terms of doctrine<\/em>. It\u2019s called \u201cthe magisterium.\u201d This is what infallibility is about. In practice, individual Catholics comply to more or less degrees (I completely comply, as all<\/em> Catholics should<\/em>, according to the nature of the system). It\u2019s true of all religious groups that there are members of varying degrees of knowledge, moral conformity, commitment, and consistency. Hypocrites, nominal folks, and theological ignoramuses can always be found (including, sadly, massive numbers of these in Catholic circles). But to compare system to system, the \u201cbooks\u201d and confessions and creeds must be consulted. It\u2019s the only honest, objective way to go about that.<\/p>\n

So I\u2019ll be selective and generalize. My analysis deliberately oversimplifies some issues, . . . [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

This sums up the general flaw and shortcoming seen in virtually all of Hays\u2019 anti-Catholic efforts. He doesn\u2019t analyze deeply enough: as suggested in visual terms by the constant annoying \u201clecture notes\u201d \/ \u201coutline\u201d format of his writings. No one was ever more in need of an editor.<\/p>\n

Sometimes we need to see the forest rather than the trees. [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

Sometimes we need to see the trees \u2014 and the DNA of the trees \u2014 rather than the forest.<\/p>\n

We can revisit the trees at a later date.<\/span> [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

But it seems that Hays rarely if ever got<\/em> to that. This make his analyses fundamentally superficial and inadequate. He was capable of much better, so it seems to have been a problem of the will.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s natural for Catholics to use their paradigm as the standard of comparison. They contrast what they deem to be the theoretical advantages of their paradigm with what they deem to be the theoretical disadvantages of the Protestant alternative. [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s natural for Protestants to use their paradigm as the standard of comparison. They contrast what they deem to be the theoretical advantages of their paradigm with what they deem to be the theoretical disadvantages of the Catholic alternative.<\/p>\n

But at one level that begs the question, for unless your theological paradigm is true, it is illegitimate to use it as a yardstick to measure the competition. Even if one paradigm has theoretical advantages compared to another, that\u2019s not the same thing as having factual advantages. [p. 90]<\/span><\/p>\n

I agree. That\u2019s why I think the \u201cstandard of comparison\u201d ought to be the scriptural data and a determination of the consensus teaching of the Church fathers: Bible and history. Now, how we can best compare the two is to have debates: let the outside observer see how a Protestant apologist defends his view from Scripture and history and how a Catholic apologist defends his view from Scripture and history, and then how they counter-reply to each other. This seems to me the fairest and most intelligent way to go about it. Read and compare; determine which view is more in accord with the Bible and Church history, and read from each side\u2019s passionate advocates, not one side with a biased summary of the other. That won\u2019t do.\u00a0 . . . And of course I offer this very thing on my blog, for anyone who is willing to read the dialogues.<\/p>\n

The Catholic priesthood has a monopoly on the sacraments. Valid sacraments depend on validly ordained priests, which in turn depends on apostolic succession. [p. 91]<\/span><\/p>\n

This is largely true, but not wholly. Catholic deacons can baptize, and indeed, anyone<\/em> (who has the right intention and uses a trinitarian formula) can baptize in emergency situations. Deacons can also preside over Catholic wedding ceremonies. And they can because that sacrament doesn\u2019t flow from a priest or a deacon. The bride and groom confer the sacrament of matrimony upon each other<\/em>. Catholics also accept trinitarian baptism among Protestants as a true, regenerative sacrament, and marriage between two lifelong Protestants as sacramental. Hays didn\u2019t do his homework very well regarding this question.<\/p>\n

To be saved, you must be a communicant member of the Roman Catholic church. [p. 91]<\/span><\/p>\n

This is untrue as a blanket statement:<\/p>\n

\n
\n
[T]he \u201cpagan\u201d Cornelius who, the Acts tell us, was \u201can upright and God-fearing man\u201d even before baptism. Gradually, therefore, as it became clear that there were \u201cGod-fearing\u201d people outside the Christian fold, and that some were deprived of their Catholic heritage without fault on their part, the parallel Tradition arose of considering such people open to salvation, although they were not professed Catholics or even necessarily baptized.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n
\n
\n
Ambrose and Augustine paved the way for making these distinctions. By the twelfth century, it was widely assumed that a person can be saved if some \u201cinvincible obstacle stands in the way\u201d of his baptism and entrance into the Church. Thomas Aquinas restated the constant teaching about the general necessity of the Church. But he also conceded that a person may be saved extra sacramentally by a baptism of desire and therefore without actual membership by reason of his at least implicit desire to belong to the Church. (John A. Hardon, S.J., The Catholic Catechism<\/em>\u00a0[Garden City, New York: Doubleday & Co., 1975], 234-236)<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The Catechism of the Catholic Church<\/em> concurs:<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n
818<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0\u201cHowever, one cannot charge with the sin of the separation those who at present are born into these communities [that resulted from such separation] and in them are brought up in the faith of Christ, and the Catholic Church accepts them with respect and affection as brothers . .\u00a0.\u00a0. All who have been justified by faith in Baptism are incorporated into Christ; they therefore have a right to be called Christians, and with good reason are accepted as brothers in the Lord by the children of the Catholic Church.\u201d<\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
819\u00a0<\/b>\u201cFurthermore, many elements of sanctification and of truth\u201d are found outside the visible confines of the Catholic Church: \u201cthe written Word of God; the life of grace; faith, hope, and charity, with the other interior gifts of the Holy Spirit, as well as visible elements.\u201d Christ\u2019s Spirit uses these Churches and ecclesial communities as means of salvation<\/strong><\/em>, whose power derives from the fullness of grace and truth that Christ has entrusted to the Catholic Church. All these blessings come from Christ and lead to him, and are in themselves calls to \u201cCatholic unity.\u201d [italics and bolding are my own]<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
\n
There are certain strands of Catholic tradition that soften that paradigm, viz. invincible ignorance, implicit faith, Limbo. Those stand in tension with the austere inner logic of the primary paradigm. [p. 91]<\/span><\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
They do not<\/em> \u201cstand in tension.\u201d<\/span> They \u201cdo\u201d only granting beforehand the \u201ceither\/or\u201d false dichotomy mentality of many Protestants. Fr. Hardon (ibid<\/em>.) wrote:<\/div>\n
\n
It would be inaccurate, however, to look upon these two traditions as in opposition. They represent the single mystery of the Church as universal sacrament of salvation, which the Church\u2019s magisterium has explained in such a way that what seems to be a contradiction is really a paradox.<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Fr. William G. Most added:<\/div>\n
\n
A diligent search in the Fathers shows a similar situation in regard to \u201cno salvation outside the Church.\u201d We find again two sets of assertions, very often by the same writers. One group of statements speaks very strongly, and almost stringently, about the need of membership; the other group softens this position by taking a remarkably broad view of what membership consists in. . . .<\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
We found restrictive texts in Hermas, St. Justin, St. Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, St. Cyprian, Lactantius, St. Augustine, St. Cyril of Alexandria, and St. Fulgentius. There are also five Magisterium texts that seem restrictive. We found broad texts much more widely. Only three of the above ten Fathers who have restrictive texts lack broad texts: St. Cyprian, Lactantius, and
\nSt. Fulgentius. All others, plus many more, do have them.Broad texts are found in: First Clement, St. Justin, Hermas, Second Clement, St. Irenaeus, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Hegemonius, Arnobius, Eusebius of Caesarea, St. Gregory of Nazianzus, St. John Chrysostom, St. Ambrose, St. Augustine, St. Prosper, St. Nilus, St. Cyril of Alexandria, Theodoret, St. Leo the Great, St. Gregory the Great, Primasius, and St. John Damascene.(\u201cIs There Salvation Outside the Church?\u201d<\/a>)<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The Bible is only infallible in matters concerning salvation. [p. 92]<\/span><\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
This is an inaccurate understanding of the Catholic position:<\/div>\n
\n
For all the books which the Church receives as sacred and canonical are written wholly and entirely, with all their parts, at the dictation of the Holy Ghost; and so far is it from being possible that any error can co-exist with inspiration, that inspiration not only is essentially incompatible with error but excludes and rejects it as absolutely and necessarily, as it is impossible that God Himself, the supreme Truth, can utter that which is not true. . . . It follows that those who maintain that an error is possible in any genuine passage of the sacred writings either pervert the Catholic notion of inspiration or make God the author of such error (Pope Leo XIII, Providentissimus Deus <\/em>[1893], 20-21)<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
Pope St. Pius X in his 1907\u00a0Lamentabili Sane<\/em> [11] condemned the proposition \u201cDivine inspiration does not extend to all of Sacred Scriptures so that it renders its parts, each and every one, free from every error.\u201d<\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
Pope Benedict XV re-affirmed Pope Leo XIII\u2019s teaching in his own encyclical\u00a0Spiritus Paraclitus<\/em> [18] in 1920.<\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
Ven. Pope Pius XII\u2019s 1943 encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu<\/em> also agreed: \u201cFor as the substantial Word of God became like to men in all things, except sin, so the words of God, expressed in human language, are made like to human speech in every respect, except error\u201d [37]. [cf. his encyclical, Humani Generis<\/em> (1950), section 22]<\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
I remember reading\u00a0The Battle for the Bible<\/em><\/a> (1977) by Protestant scholar Harold Lindsell, back in the day (probably early 80s) when I was a fervent evangelical, and his making the point in the book that the Catholic Church had a doctrine of the inspiration and infallibility of Scripture \u2014 including after Vatican II, which changed no doctrines \u2014 that was as \u201chigh\u201d as any Protestant view (it really struck me at the time, and I was delighted to learn of it).<\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
Catholics must rely on fallible reason to arrive at their belief in Rome or defend it. Although they believe that Rome is infallible, that\u2019s a fallible<\/span>
\nbelief in the infallibility of their denomination. A bottom-up process rather than a top-down process. Their conclusion regarding Catholicism is only as good as the fallible reasoning they use to reach that conclusion. Their conclusion is not infallible. They can\u2019t escape the vicissitudes of errable judgment. The destination can\u2019t rise higher than the process. Appeal to infallibility to retroactively validate their faith is illusory. [p. 92]<\/span><\/div>\n
*<\/div>\n
This is a fatally flawed argument known (at least in some Protestant circles) as the \u201cinfallibility regress.\u201d I have refuted it several times:
\n*<\/div>\n
\n

Dialogue on the Logic of Catholic Infallible Authority<\/a>\u00a0[6-4-96]<\/p>\n

Church Authority & Certainty (The \u201cInfallibility Regress\u201d)\u00a0<\/a>[July 2000; some revisions on\u00a012-8-11]<\/p>\n

Ecclesiological Certainty (?) & the \u201cInfallibility Regress\u201d<\/a>\u00a0[5-22-03 and 10-7-08]<\/p>\n

Does Church Infallibility Require Infallible Catholics?<\/a>\u00a0[6-8-10]<\/p>\n

\u201cHow Can we Find a List of Infallible Catholic Doctrines?\u201d<\/a>\u00a0[12-15-18]<\/p>\n

The Protestant paradigm doesn\u2019t rely on historical continuity. It doesn\u2019t depend on a chain of custody. So long as people have access to revealed truth, the Spirit can start or restart the church at any time and any place. [p. 93]<\/span><\/p>\n

Note the almost self-evident absurdity of this statement. I wish I had a dime for every time a Protestant apologist claimed that Protestants weren\u2019t \u201cahistorical.\u201d They resent any indication to the contrary. Then we see a ludicrous expression like this one, by an influential and prolific Calvinist apologist. I\u2019ve been contending for over thirty years that the Protestant Revolution (not \u201cReformation\u201d) was just that: an introduction of novelties; disconnected from Church history in many (not all) ways, and not able to be confirmed by a consensus of the Church fathers. Thanks for the confirmation, Steve! The true Church is indefectible<\/em><\/a>, and as such, it\u2019s nonsensical to talk as if it \u201ccan start or restart . . . at any time and any place.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

***<\/p>\n

\n
\n

Practical Matters<\/em><\/strong>: Perhaps some of my 4,200+ free online articles (the most comprehensive \u201cone-stop\u201d Catholic apologetics site) or\u00a0fifty-one books<\/a>\u00a0have helped you (by God\u2019s grace) to decide to\u00a0become Catholic<\/a>\u00a0or to\u00a0return to the Church<\/a>,\u00a0or better understand some doctrines and\u00a0why<\/em>\u00a0we believe them<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\n

Or you may believe my work is worthy to support for the purpose of apologetics and evangelism in general. If so, please seriously consider a much-needed financial contribution. I\u2019m always in need of more funds: especially\u00a0monthly<\/em>\u00a0support. \u201cThe laborer is worthy of his wages\u201d (1 Tim 5:18, NKJV). 1 December 2021 was my 20th anniversary as a\u00a0full-time Catholic apologist<\/a>,\u00a0and February 2022 marked the 25th anniversary of my blog.<\/p>\n

PayPal donations<\/a>\u00a0are the easiest: just send to my email address: apologistdave@gmail.com. You\u2019ll see the term \u201cCatholic Used Book Service\u201d, which is my old side-business. To learn about the different methods of contributing, including 100% tax deduction, etc., see my page:\u00a0About Catholic Apologist Dave Armstrong \/ Donation Information<\/a>.\u00a0Thanks a million<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0from the bottom of my heart!<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

***<\/p>\n

Photo credit:<\/strong>\u00a0The Whore of Babylon<\/em>\u00a0(workshop of Lucas Cranach): colorized illustration from Martin Luther\u2019s 1534 translation of the Bible<\/span>\u00a0[public domain \/\u00a0Wikimedia Commons<\/a>]<\/p>\n

***<\/p>\n

Summary<\/em>: The late Steve Hays was a Calvinist and anti-Catholic writer and apologist. This is one of my many critiques of Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d: a 695-page self-published volume.<\/p>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Conversion Paradigms; Dispensers of Sacraments; Salvation Outside the Church; Catholicism: Bible Totally Inerrant The late\u00a0Steve Hays (1959-2020) was a Calvinist (and anti-Catholic) apologist, who was very active on his blog, called Triablogue\u00a0(now continued by Jason Engwer). His 695-page self-published book,\u00a0Catholicism \u2014 a collection of articles from his site \u2014 has graciously been made available for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2331,"featured_media":73107,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[231],"tags":[2361,17736,17733,17730,17724,2119],"class_list":["post-73362","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-anti-catholicism","tag-anti-catholicism","tag-calvinist-anti-catholicism","tag-calvinist-steve-hays","tag-critiques-of-catholicism","tag-hays-catholicism","tag-steve-hays"],"yoast_head":"\nReply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10 Reply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Conversion Paradigms; Dispensers of Sacraments; Salvation Outside the Church; Catholicism: Bible Totally Inerrant The late\u00a0Steve Hays (1959-2020) was a The late Steve Hays was a Calvinist and anti-Catholic writer and apologist. This is one of my many critiques of Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d: a 695-page self-published volume.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/2023\/05\/reply-to-hays-catholicism-10.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Reply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10 Reply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Conversion Paradigms; Dispensers of Sacraments; Salvation Outside the Church; Catholicism: Bible Totally Inerrant The late\u00a0Steve Hays (1959-2020) was a The late Steve Hays was a Calvinist and anti-Catholic writer and apologist. 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This is one of my many critiques of Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d: a 695-page self-published volume.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/2023\/05\/reply-to-hays-catholicism-10.html#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/2023\/05\/reply-to-hays-catholicism-10.html\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/2023\/05\/reply-to-hays-catholicism-10.html#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Reply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/\",\"name\":\"Biblical Evidence for Catholicism\",\"description\":\"Catholic biblical apologetics\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/#\/schema\/person\/471eaa20e441eca4bb1ea50393cf632e\",\"name\":\"Dave Armstrong\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/820e6db89734ae7a9e5dac8d498f5ac7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/820e6db89734ae7a9e5dac8d498f5ac7?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Dave Armstrong\"},\"description\":\"Dave Armstrong is a Catholic author and apologist, who has been actively proclaiming and defending Christianity since 1981, and Catholicism in particular since 1991 (full-time since December 2001). Formerly a campus missionary, as a Protestant, Dave was received into the Catholic Church in February 1991, by the late, well-known catechist and theologian, Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave\u2019s articles have appeared in many influential Catholic periodicals, including \\\"This Rock\\\" (now called \\\"Catholic Answers Magazine\\\"), \\\"Envoy Magazine\\\" (Patrick Madrid), \\\"The Catholic Answer,\\\" \\\"The Coming Home Journal,\\\" \\\"Gilbert Magazine\\\" (American Chesterton Society), and \\\"The Latin Mass.\\\" He also writes a featured column for every issue of \\\"The Michigan Catholic\\\": published by the archdiocese of Detroit, and was editor for most of the apologetics tracts published by the St. Paul Street Evangelization apostolate. Dave\u2019s apologetics and writing apostolate was the subject of a feature article in the May 2002 issue of \\\"Envoy Magazine.\\\" He served as the staff moderator at the Internet discussion forum for The Coming Home Network, from 2007-2010. Dave has been interviewed on many nationally syndicated Catholic radio shows, including \\\"Catholic Answers Live\\\" (twice), \\\"Faith and Family Live\\\" (Steve Wood), \\\"Kresta in the Afternoon,\\\" \\\"Son Rise Morning Show,\\\" \\\"Catholic Connection\\\" (Teresa Tomeo), and \\\"The Catholics Next Door.\\\" His large and popular website, \\\"Biblical Evidence for Catholicism,\\\" was online from March 1997 to March 2007, and received the 1998 Catholic Website of the Year award from \\\"Envoy Magazine.\\\" His blog of the same name (now transferred to Patheos), begun in February 2004, contains more than 1,500 papers, at least 500 debates or dialogues, and over 50 distinct \\\"index\\\" web pages. Unsolicited correspondence has indicated many hundreds of conversions (or returns) to the Catholic faith as a result, by God's grace, of these writings. Dave's conversion story was published in the bestselling book \\\"Surprised by Truth\\\" (edited by Patrick Madrid; San Diego: Basilica Press, 1994). Sophia Institute Press has published six of his books: \\\"A Biblical Defense of Catholicism\\\" (Foreword by Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J., 1996 \/ 2003), \\\"The Catholic Verses\\\" (2004), \\\"The One-Minute Apologist\\\" (2007), \\\"Bible Proofs for Catholic Truths\\\" (2009), \\\"The Quotable Newman\\\" (editor: 2012), and \\\"Proving the Catholic Faith is Biblical\\\" (2015). He is co-author (with Dr. Paul Thigpen) of the inserts for \\\"The New Catholic Answer Bible\\\" (Our Sunday Visitor: 2005), and editor for \\\"The Wisdom of Mr. Chesterton: The Very Best Quotes, Quips, and Cracks from the Pen of G. K. Chesterton\\\" (Saint Benedict Press \/ TAN Books: 2009). \\\"100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura\\\" was published by Catholic Answers in May 2012. His \\\"Quotable Wesley\\\" compilation was published by (Protestant \/ Wesleyan publisher) Beacon Hill Press in April 2014. Several of his 49 books are bestsellers in their field. Dave maintains a popular personal Facebook page, a Facebook author page, and has a Twitter account as well. He offers almost all of his books in e-book form on his own Biblical Catholicism site (http:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/), at a permanent deep discount: only $2.99 for ePub, mobi, and AZW, and $1.99 for PDF. His writing has been enthusiastically endorsed or recommended by many leading Catholic apologists, authors, and priests, including Dr. Scott Hahn, Fr. Peter M. J. Stravinskas, Marcus Grodi, Patrick Madrid, Steve Ray, Tim Staples, Devin Rose, Mike Aquilina, Al Kresta, Karl Keating, Fr. Dwight Longenecker, Brandon Vogt, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, and Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave has been happily married to his wife Judy since October 1984. They have three sons and a daughter, and reside in southeast Michigan (metro Detroit).\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/dave.armstrong.798\",\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/@LuxVeritatisApologetics\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/davearmstrong\/author\/davearmstrong\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Reply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10 Reply to Hays\u2019 \u201cCatholicism\u201d #10","description":"Conversion Paradigms; Dispensers of Sacraments; Salvation Outside the Church; Catholicism: Bible Totally Inerrant The late\u00a0Steve Hays (1959-2020) was a The late Steve Hays was a Calvinist and anti-Catholic writer and apologist. 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Formerly a campus missionary, as a Protestant, Dave was received into the Catholic Church in February 1991, by the late, well-known catechist and theologian, Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave\u2019s articles have appeared in many influential Catholic periodicals, including \"This Rock\" (now called \"Catholic Answers Magazine\"), \"Envoy Magazine\" (Patrick Madrid), \"The Catholic Answer,\" \"The Coming Home Journal,\" \"Gilbert Magazine\" (American Chesterton Society), and \"The Latin Mass.\" He also writes a featured column for every issue of \"The Michigan Catholic\": published by the archdiocese of Detroit, and was editor for most of the apologetics tracts published by the St. Paul Street Evangelization apostolate. Dave\u2019s apologetics and writing apostolate was the subject of a feature article in the May 2002 issue of \"Envoy Magazine.\" He served as the staff moderator at the Internet discussion forum for The Coming Home Network, from 2007-2010. Dave has been interviewed on many nationally syndicated Catholic radio shows, including \"Catholic Answers Live\" (twice), \"Faith and Family Live\" (Steve Wood), \"Kresta in the Afternoon,\" \"Son Rise Morning Show,\" \"Catholic Connection\" (Teresa Tomeo), and \"The Catholics Next Door.\" His large and popular website, \"Biblical Evidence for Catholicism,\" was online from March 1997 to March 2007, and received the 1998 Catholic Website of the Year award from \"Envoy Magazine.\" His blog of the same name (now transferred to Patheos), begun in February 2004, contains more than 1,500 papers, at least 500 debates or dialogues, and over 50 distinct \"index\" web pages. Unsolicited correspondence has indicated many hundreds of conversions (or returns) to the Catholic faith as a result, by God's grace, of these writings. Dave's conversion story was published in the bestselling book \"Surprised by Truth\" (edited by Patrick Madrid; San Diego: Basilica Press, 1994). Sophia Institute Press has published six of his books: \"A Biblical Defense of Catholicism\" (Foreword by Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J., 1996 \/ 2003), \"The Catholic Verses\" (2004), \"The One-Minute Apologist\" (2007), \"Bible Proofs for Catholic Truths\" (2009), \"The Quotable Newman\" (editor: 2012), and \"Proving the Catholic Faith is Biblical\" (2015). He is co-author (with Dr. Paul Thigpen) of the inserts for \"The New Catholic Answer Bible\" (Our Sunday Visitor: 2005), and editor for \"The Wisdom of Mr. Chesterton: The Very Best Quotes, Quips, and Cracks from the Pen of G. K. Chesterton\" (Saint Benedict Press \/ TAN Books: 2009). \"100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura\" was published by Catholic Answers in May 2012. His \"Quotable Wesley\" compilation was published by (Protestant \/ Wesleyan publisher) Beacon Hill Press in April 2014. Several of his 49 books are bestsellers in their field. Dave maintains a popular personal Facebook page, a Facebook author page, and has a Twitter account as well. He offers almost all of his books in e-book form on his own Biblical Catholicism site (http:\/\/biblicalcatholicism.com\/), at a permanent deep discount: only $2.99 for ePub, mobi, and AZW, and $1.99 for PDF. His writing has been enthusiastically endorsed or recommended by many leading Catholic apologists, authors, and priests, including Dr. Scott Hahn, Fr. Peter M. J. Stravinskas, Marcus Grodi, Patrick Madrid, Steve Ray, Tim Staples, Devin Rose, Mike Aquilina, Al Kresta, Karl Keating, Fr. Dwight Longenecker, Brandon Vogt, Marcellino D'Ambrosio, and Fr. John A. Hardon, S. J. Dave has been happily married to his wife Judy since October 1984. 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