Showing posts with label Bible. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Bible. Show all posts
Thursday, April 11, 2013
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Monday, November 14, 2011
The Bible, Inerrancy and Faith
In my post Biblical Inerrancy and The Challenge of Faith I talk about how hard it is for us to have faith and truly *believe* that certain things did in fact happen in the Bible. There are some Catholics and Christians who assert that God did not punish the Amelakites and command Samuel to commit genocide in 1 Samuel 15 but that it is more of a fable which tells a lesson. I know there are certain passages in the Bible where figurative language can be applied, such as in the case of the Creation Story and the number of days it took God to create the universe and all that is living but I am not sure how someone would apply a figurative meaning to the scripture in Samuel.
Some people are so certain that God would have never ordered genocide. But then, what about Noah and the Flood? Moses and the Red Sea when he saved the Israelites? Uza and the Ark of the Covenant? Are we to assume that these things didn't happen in scripture?
The kind of thinking that rejects God's very words and twists the words very meaning is contrary to Church teaching with regards to inerrancy and scripture.
Pope Pius XII in his encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu stated:
"...Later on, this solemn definition of Catholic doctrine, which claims for these books in their entirety and with all parts a divine authority such as must enjoy immunity from any error whatsoever, was contradicted by certain Catholic writers who dared to restrict the truth of Sacred Scripture to matters of faith and morals alone, and to consider the remainder, touching matters of the physical or historical order as obiter dicta and having (according to them) no connection whatsoever with faith. Those errors found their condemnation in the encyclical Providentissimus Deus..."
Pope Leo XIII in his encyclical Providentissimus Deus stated:
"It is absolutely wrong and forbidden, either to narrow inspiration to certain parts only of Holy Scripture, or to admit that the sacred writer has erred. The system of those who restrict inspiration to things of faith and morals cannot be tolerated. AU 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
"By supernatural power He (the Holy Spirit) so moved and impelled them (the sacred writers) to write - He was so present to them - that the things which He ordered, and those only, they first rightly understood, then willed faithfully to write down, and finally expressed in apt words and with infallible truth."
In Dei Verbum the Church makes it know that we as faithful Catholics are supposed to believe this "Since everything asserted by the inspired authors or sacred writers must be held to be asserted by the Holy Spirit, it follows that the books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching solidly, faithfully and without error that truth which God wanted put into the sacred writings for the sake of our salvation"
It is evident what the Church has taught throughout history with regards to Scripture being asserted by the Holy Spirit and it is without error.
Some people are so certain that God would have never ordered genocide. But then, what about Noah and the Flood? Moses and the Red Sea when he saved the Israelites? Uza and the Ark of the Covenant? Are we to assume that these things didn't happen in scripture?
The kind of thinking that rejects God's very words and twists the words very meaning is contrary to Church teaching with regards to inerrancy and scripture.
Pope Pius XII in his encyclical Divino Afflante Spiritu stated:
"...Later on, this solemn definition of Catholic doctrine, which claims for these books in their entirety and with all parts a divine authority such as must enjoy immunity from any error whatsoever, was contradicted by certain Catholic writers who dared to restrict the truth of Sacred Scripture to matters of faith and morals alone, and to consider the remainder, touching matters of the physical or historical order as obiter dicta and having (according to them) no connection whatsoever with faith. Those errors found their condemnation in the encyclical Providentissimus Deus..."
Pope Leo XIII in his encyclical Providentissimus Deus stated:
"It is absolutely wrong and forbidden, either to narrow inspiration to certain parts only of Holy Scripture, or to admit that the sacred writer has erred. The system of those who restrict inspiration to things of faith and morals cannot be tolerated. AU 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
"By supernatural power He (the Holy Spirit) so moved and impelled them (the sacred writers) to write - He was so present to them - that the things which He ordered, and those only, they first rightly understood, then willed faithfully to write down, and finally expressed in apt words and with infallible truth."
In Dei Verbum the Church makes it know that we as faithful Catholics are supposed to believe this "Since everything asserted by the inspired authors or sacred writers must be held to be asserted by the Holy Spirit, it follows that the books of Scripture must be acknowledged as teaching solidly, faithfully and without error that truth which God wanted put into the sacred writings for the sake of our salvation"
It is evident what the Church has taught throughout history with regards to Scripture being asserted by the Holy Spirit and it is without error.
Labels:
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Dei Verbum,
Divino Afflante Spiritu,
faith,
inerrancy,
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Providentissimus Deus,
scripture
Tuesday, November 8, 2011
Biblical Deck of Cards
I found this on The American Catholic: The story about a soldier using a deck of cards as a mnemonic device to remind himself of the Bible, set in the video above in the Vietnam War, goes back to 1778. Versions of the story have been set in the American Revolution, the Civil War, World War II, Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan.
H/T The American Catholic
Labels:
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Egyptian soldiers,
war
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
What Catholic Health Care Truly Means
Dr. Patrick Lee, a professor at FUS, has written a great article on the importance of Catholic health care. Jesus performed a number of miracles such as in John 5:1 when he healed an infirmed man at Bethesda and in Luke 8: 43-48 Jesus healed the woman who was hemorrhaging. Catholic health care follows in Jesus' example, caring for both the patient's soul and body. Our Catholic hospitals must continue to follow the Way of Jesus today along with refusing to give in to the temptation of evil in which societal "norms" call for today.
From Legatus:
From Legatus:
While there are no Catholic restaurants or Catholic grocery stores, there are specifically Catholic hospitals, clinics, hospices and nursing homes. Why? Catholic health stems from how Jesus conducted his public ministry. He not only preached and forgave sins, but he cured, restoring sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, and speech to the mute.
Jesus cured lepers, the lame, and even raised the dead. Moreover, Jesus commanded his disciples to “heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers” (Mt 10:8) and promised them divine assistance in this work (Jn 14:12). So, in serving the sick and caring for the dying, Christians are fulfilling an apostolate, not just a job. The Church is the Body of Christ, the extension of Christ in space and time; and so healing physical sickness, injuries, and caring for the dying constitute part of the Church’s specific mission. Continued
Friday, March 11, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
Is it Ever Morally Licit to Lie?
Is it ever morally licit to lie? As Christians we are taught that it is never okay to lie but is that really true? We know that in the scriptures Jesus tells us that telling a lie is a sin but does he ever let us know that telling a lie is morally acceptable or even considered good in God's eyes? For instance if a person is a part of a sting operation, such as the type that Lila Rose has been participating in, is it morally permissible to lie in order to catch a criminal? Is it morally permissible for a person to lie in order to save a person's life, like those who lied to Nazis during World World II? Do you think lying in these types of circumstances will harm your soul? Or do you think that God would look upon you with favor since you saved or at least were trying to save an individual's life? Even though lying may be acceptable in these circumstances do you think that taking part in confession would be in order? Here are a couple Bible passages which show individuals lying for good reason:
Exodus 1: 15-20
Since in one passage God was kind to the midwives, people multiplied and the other passage shows how Rahab believes in God and is delivered when Jericho is attacked one might conclude that it is morally licit to lie in some circumstances, albeit not the norm.
Exodus 1: 15-20
15 The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, whose names were Shiphrah and Puah, 16 “When you are helping the Hebrew women during childbirth on the delivery stool, if you see that the baby is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, let her live.” 17 The midwives, however, feared God and did not do what the king of Egypt had told them to do; they let the boys live. 18 Then the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and asked them, “Why have you done this? Why have you let the boys live?”
19 The midwives answered Pharaoh, “Hebrew women are not like Egyptian women; they are vigorous and give birth before the midwives arrive.”
20 So God was kind to the midwives and the people increased and became even more numerous. 21 And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families of their own.
Joshua 2:2-14
2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.”
4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” 6 (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) 7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. 10 We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
12 “Now then, please swear to me by the LORD that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.”
14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don’t tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the LORD gives us the land.”
Labels:
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Friday, November 19, 2010
The Story of Jonah as Told by the CUTEST Little Girl
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cutest little girl,
Godtube,
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story of Jonah
Friday, November 5, 2010
Bible Study: Jesus on Paying Taxes
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