Rev. Dustin ParkerWords, words, words-don't give me words............
I have noticed that certain words are like a red rag to a bull for some Christians-mention Mary, the Church, the Saints and you unleash a barrage of abuse and invective from certain quarters that make you think you had gone down with the Bubonic Plague or J K Rowling's Spattergoit.
Why is that some Christians get uptight about these matters? In the Gospel according to St Luke, chapter one, we are told that ALL generations will call Mary blessed, in various places in his Epistles, St Paul tells us that we are called to be Saints and Our Lord famously told us that He would be build His Church and the Gates of Hell would not prevail against it.
So why do we get into such a state about these things? They do seem so straightfoward in the light of Holy Scripture, surely all we need to do is follow the teaching of Holy Scripture? One group of Christians-one of the most vocal but probably less numerical groups-like to define themselves as 'Bible believing Christians'-so why the issue?
I suspect it is because it is not case of being 'Bible believing'-after all Holy Scripture is at the heart of the Christian faith-it is a case of 'Bible interpreting'. The Bible is central to what we believe as Christians, there is no question of that, but how I interpret it begins to mark out which part of the Faith I worship in.
Beyond that we then begin to use how we interpret scripture as a measure of the other person's spirituality. In the Old Testament Book of Judges, there is a story of two of the Israelite tribes at war with each other. One of the tribes siezes control of a ford and as people wanted to cross, each traveller was asked to say the word 'shibboleth'. If they pronounced it incorrectly-ie with a diiffernt accent, the one of the opposing tribe-they were taken and killed.
Do I venerate Mary the Mother of God? Yes I do. Does that make me a better or worse Christian? I dont know, all I know is that one day I will stand before the Throne of God and answer for my life. The Church has sought to teach me the Christian way and it is my job to respond appropriately. Does that offend you? If it does, I am sorry, that is the way I have been taught. I still worship the Undivided Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I believe in the Incarnation and that Christ died for my sins. I wonder if you have Church practices I might raise my eyebrows at? Can you explain their origins in Scripture? I hope so.
Why is that some Christians get uptight about these matters? In the Gospel according to St Luke, chapter one, we are told that ALL generations will call Mary blessed, in various places in his Epistles, St Paul tells us that we are called to be Saints and Our Lord famously told us that He would be build His Church and the Gates of Hell would not prevail against it.
So why do we get into such a state about these things? They do seem so straightfoward in the light of Holy Scripture, surely all we need to do is follow the teaching of Holy Scripture? One group of Christians-one of the most vocal but probably less numerical groups-like to define themselves as 'Bible believing Christians'-so why the issue?
I suspect it is because it is not case of being 'Bible believing'-after all Holy Scripture is at the heart of the Christian faith-it is a case of 'Bible interpreting'. The Bible is central to what we believe as Christians, there is no question of that, but how I interpret it begins to mark out which part of the Faith I worship in.
Beyond that we then begin to use how we interpret scripture as a measure of the other person's spirituality. In the Old Testament Book of Judges, there is a story of two of the Israelite tribes at war with each other. One of the tribes siezes control of a ford and as people wanted to cross, each traveller was asked to say the word 'shibboleth'. If they pronounced it incorrectly-ie with a diiffernt accent, the one of the opposing tribe-they were taken and killed.
Do I venerate Mary the Mother of God? Yes I do. Does that make me a better or worse Christian? I dont know, all I know is that one day I will stand before the Throne of God and answer for my life. The Church has sought to teach me the Christian way and it is my job to respond appropriately. Does that offend you? If it does, I am sorry, that is the way I have been taught. I still worship the Undivided Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I believe in the Incarnation and that Christ died for my sins. I wonder if you have Church practices I might raise my eyebrows at? Can you explain their origins in Scripture? I hope so.
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1. The divinity of Christ is unquestionable therefore Jesus could not have been the son of Mary only the son of God. Here's why. If Jesus was blood related to Mary he would have assumed the original sin of man from Adams fall.
2. The Bible is clear in that Jesus Christ never recognizes addresses Mary as his mother only as woman. If there's another scriptural verse that says otherwise in a non catholic bible KJV etc then please share it with me.
3. The Catholic church promotes that you come to Christ through Mary. This is avaiable as part of there cannon and I can provide those links if you wish. the Bible is clear that salvation is through Christ alone.
I'm absolutely positive that your a good Christian. I just ask that you do some research into your religion and see if it stands up to the Bible and what Christ taught.
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Is It True? A Deeper Look Into Conspiracy Theories
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Heretic Hunters
1. The divinity of Christ is unquestionable therefore Jesus could not have been the son of Mary only the son of God. Here's why. If Jesus was blood related to Mary he would have assumed the original sin of man from Adams fall.
2. The Bible is clear in that Jesus Christ never recognizes addresses Mary as his mother only as woman. If there's another scriptural verse that says otherwise in a non catholic bible KJV etc then please share it with me.
3. The Catholic church promotes that you come to Christ through Mary. This is avaiable as part of there cannon and I can provide those links if you wish. the Bible is clear that salvation is through Christ alone.
I'm absolutely positive that your a good Christian. I just ask that you do some research into your religion and see if it stands up to the Bible and what Christ taught.
Orthodox Christian
I am not a Catholic, I am Orthodox-if you read my earlier postings I do give a brief spiritual history of myself.
Thank you for calling me a 'good Christian' however Scripture is clear that there is none good but God, it is only by prayer and fasting-the way we lay aside all the weights and sins that do so easily beset us that we can achieve anything like godliness but even then we fail God's perfect standards. In the Orthodox service of Vespers (the evening service) there is one line in particular which I have difficulty praying "Vouchsafe O Lord to keep me this night from sin." It is certainly my desire, only God knows if I achieve it.
Can I ask, are you a Christian? You seem to imply that Christ was not born of the Virgin Mary. That fact is central to the Christian faith, that the Second Person of the Holy Trinity was incarnate by the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man.
You ask me to do some research into my religion-I do that anyway-and I am clear that it does stand up to the teachings of Holy Scripture. Indeed I will put my cards on the table and say, having had the chance to study various Christian groups over the years, my feeling is that the Orthodox Church is the most scriptual of them all.
In XC
Paul
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