So, I was listening to another debate. This one was called Catholicism meets Calvary Chapel, and it involved a Catholic apologist/ evangelist duo squaring off against two opponents associated with Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa. On the Catholic side, the participants were Tim Staples and Jesse Romero. On the Calvary Chapel side, the names I was able to make out out were Bill Wynne and Rob Yardley.[1] I only caught the first part of it on YouTube, but what I... Read more
As I was scrolling through my Facebook feed the other day, a post about the Marian dogmas with a link to a debate caught my eye. Although it has been some time since I have listened to a theological debate, for whatever reason I clicked on that link, put on my headphones, and started doing some things I needed to get done around the house that day. I am glad I did. The debate was on the... Read more
When discussing the question of whether or not St. Peter ever came to the Eternal City, modern scholars tend to affirm that he did indeed arrive there, and that it was ultimately the location of his martyrdom. This of course is in line with ancient Christian tradition, and it has been the constant belief of the Catholic Church that St. Peter was martyred there. Thus, the Popes are on record from the mid second century on claiming a unique... Read more
Introduction: In the previous post, the Protestant doctrine of the perspicuity of Scripture was laid out, and it was said that the idea is inconsistent with the conception of the material sufficiency of Scripture. As such, it lies outside the boundary of Catholic teaching. It remains in the following post to examine 2 Timothy 3:16 in the context of sufficiency. 2 Timothy 3:16 and Formal Sufficiency: This passage has long been one that many Protestant theologians have leaned... Read more
Introduction: In the previous post, some advancement was made towards answering and juxtaposing the contrary concepts of the material and formal sufficiency of Scripture. It was stated that while the former is a position that could be held by Catholics, the latter is a view closely associated with Sola Scriptura. As such, it is more or less the Protestant view on the authority of Sacred Scripture.[1] Also in the previous post and with the assistance of Catholic... Read more
In a previous post, the question was raised as to whether or not Scripture is sufficient. Although the concept of the sufficiency of Scripture is one that is arguably most associated with the Protestant notion of Sola Scriptura (rejected by the Catholic Church), it was said that Catholics could indeed agree that Scripture is sufficient. This of course presupposes that a distinction be made between what has been called the material sufficiency of Scripture, – a view approximating that... Read more
Introduction: Although there seems to be some variation within contemporary Protestant explanations of their doctrine of Sola Scriptura (Scripture Alone), there is widespread agreement among them as to the assertion that “Sola Scriptura denies that there is any other infallible rule of faith for the church.” This claim runs directly contrary to the belief of the Catholic Church as expressed at Session IV of the Council of Trent (A.D. 1546). A more recent Catholic explanation of the relationship... Read more
“ [2] And all in Moses were baptized, in the cloud, and in the sea: [3] And did all eat the same spiritual food, [4] And all drank the same spiritual drink; (and they drank of the spiritual rock that followed them, and the rock was Christ.)” (1 Cor. 10, DRB). A while back I had an exchange on a Facebook group that hosts debate/dialogue between Protestant, Eastern Orthodox, and Catholic Christians. This particular interaction was with an individual who seemed to fit more into the... Read more
Background: December 8 marks The Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception in the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church. Officially proclaimed in Pius IX’s Ineffabilis Deus in 1854, the dogma reads as follows: “We declare, pronounce, and define that the doctrine which holds that the most Blessed Virgin Mary, in the first instance of her conception, by a singular grace and privilege granted by Almighty God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the... Read more
Introduction: In a previous article, I laid the groundwork for the introduction of a brief citation from Mark of Ephesus’ (d. 1444) First Homily: Refutation of the Latin Chapters Concerning Purgatorial Fire. There also was given some brief biographical information on the Metropolitan of Ephesus, and a general context of the text that will be analyzed in the present post. As previously indicated, Mark is answering a Latin probe into the Greek understanding of the “middle-state” during preliminary discussions... Read more
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