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Slogan/motto:
Gaudium de veritate (Latin, "Delight in the truth")
Reputation:
JESUS & HIS CHURCH ARE ONE -
January 31st, 2012, 03:55 PM
JESUS & HIS CHURCH ARE ONE
by Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan
It’s one of my favorite works of art: The Conversion of Saul by Caravaggio. There it is, meekly on display in the corner of the Church of Santa Maria del Popolo in Rome. Saul, the raging persecutor of the followers of Jesus, literally “knocked off his high horse” by the radiance of Jesus, the “light of the world,” transformed into a passionate apostle of Christ and His new Church, whom we now venerate as St. Paul.
And what question does Jesus bellow out to the shocked Saul?
“Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”
Parse that very carefully. Saul, of course, has been harassing the Church, killing the followers of Jesus.
Yet, note well: Jesus does not inquire, “Why are you persecuting my Church” or “my people” or “my followers.”
No! The Lord asks, “Why are you persecuting ME?” [Ac. 9:4].
Get it? The Lord is saying, “You hurt my Church, you hurt me. The Church and I are one” [cf. Lk. 10:16]...
Jesus Christ and His Church are one.
Now, that’s a revealed truth that needs repeating today.
What we’ve got now, if the scholarly research is accurate—and I’m afraid it is—is a growing tendency to split Christ from His Church. More and more seem to be claiming such things as:
“Oh, I’ve got faith. I just don’t need the Church.”
“Faith is great; religion stinks.”
“I believe. I just don’t want to belong.”
“I got Jesus. Why bother with the Church?”
“I pray how and when I want. What’s the big deal about the Mass and Church on Sunday?”
St. Paul would take exception. So would Jesus.
When God chose Israel he selected not a person but a people. Faith in God is communal by its very nature.
Like our Jewish neighbors, we Catholics have always believed that God chooses us and gives us the supernatural gift of faith. It’s not that we decide our faith. You bet, we freely decide how firmly and generously we will live out our faith, but we are “born into” a Church. Faith is a gift from God given us on the day of our baptism into His Church.
Just like we’re “born into” a natural family. We are a member of a human family. That family is often flawed and imperfect. In fact, there are times when we’re angry at it and might even drift away from family events. But, family membership is in our blood.
So it is with our spiritual family, the Church. Oh, we may get upset with her to be sure; we may even drift away from her. But, she never leaves us. The Church is in our supernatural DNA.
Jonathan D. Fitzgerald, writing last week in the Wall Street Journal about the viral video “Why I Hate Religion, But Love Jesus,” concludes with this cogent thought:
“Stating that religions build churches at the expense of the poor…turns a blind eye to the single greatest charitable institution on the planet. Blaming religion for wars ignores the fact that the greatest mass murderers in the 20th century—indeed in all of history—killed for nonreligious reasons. And advocating for a kind of Christianity that is free of the ‘bondage’ of religion opens the door to dangerous theological anarchy that is all too common among young evangelicals and absolutely antithetical to biblical Christianity.”
Speaking of Jesus and His Church, the acclaimed French theologian Henri de Lubac exclaimed, “For what would I ever know of Him without Her.”
Never give up on your family.
Never give up on Jesus.
Never quit His Church.
For, as St. Paul learned the hard way, Jesus and His Church are one.
"There is much that could be said about the 'Jesus=good; Church=bad' falsehood (one that I used to embrace as a Fundamentalist), but I'll just note here that the big issue, as Abp. Dolan notes, is ecclesiology. If you don't properly grasp the nature and mission of the Church, mistakes and errors big, small, and always damaging are sure to follow."
"The very tradition, teaching, & faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning was preached by the Apostles & preserved by the Fathers. On this the Church was founded..." ~ St. Athanasius (4th cent.)
Slogan/motto:
Gaudium de veritate (Latin, "Delight in the truth")
Reputation:
February 2nd, 2012, 02:23 PM
Wow. No Protestant has a meaningful reply to this. Score!
Catholics are welcome to add their thoughts as well.
Gaudium de veritate,
Cruciform
+T+
"The very tradition, teaching, & faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning was preached by the Apostles & preserved by the Fathers. On this the Church was founded..." ~ St. Athanasius (4th cent.)
Protestants agree that Jesus and His Church are one. We never left His Church, we left your church.
Galatians 5:22-23 (New International Version)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Slogan/motto:
Gaudium de veritate (Latin, "Delight in the truth")
Reputation:
February 2nd, 2012, 03:03 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by HisServant
I need to find a good 'DO NOT FEED THE TROLL' picture to post at the beginning of any thread Cruciform posts to warn others.
You're projecting again. So far, the only troll on this thread is you. If you have nothing substantive to offer here, don't bother posting.
Gaudium de veritate,
Cruciform
+T+
"The very tradition, teaching, & faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning was preached by the Apostles & preserved by the Fathers. On this the Church was founded..." ~ St. Athanasius (4th cent.)
Slogan/motto:
Gaudium de veritate (Latin, "Delight in the truth")
Reputation:
February 2nd, 2012, 02:59 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by CabinetMaker
Protestants agree that Jesus and His Church are one. We never left His Church, we left your church.
It follows then, that you left that historic and hierarchical Church founded by Jesus Christ himself in 33 A.D. Your affirmation of the ancient Christian heresy of Ecclesial Deism is well known.
Gaudium de veritate,
Cruciform
+T+
"The very tradition, teaching, & faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning was preached by the Apostles & preserved by the Fathers. On this the Church was founded..." ~ St. Athanasius (4th cent.)
Last edited by Cruciform; February 3rd, 2012 at 03:50 PM.
It follows then, that you left that historic and hierarchical Church founded by Jesus Christ himself in 33 A.D. Your affirmation of the ancient Christian heresy of Ecclesial Deism is well known.
Gaudium de veritate,
Cruciform
+T+
Already answered in post #3.
Galatians 5:22-23 (New International Version)
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Slogan/motto:
Gaudium de veritate (Latin, "Delight in the truth")
Reputation:
February 2nd, 2012, 03:04 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by CabinetMaker
Already answered in post #4.
Already answered (Post #7).
Gaudium de veritate,
Cruciform
+T+
"The very tradition, teaching, & faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning was preached by the Apostles & preserved by the Fathers. On this the Church was founded..." ~ St. Athanasius (4th cent.)
Slogan/motto:
Gaudium de veritate (Latin, "Delight in the truth")
Reputation:
February 11th, 2012, 03:09 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by TruthSetsFree
there is only ONE Church and protestants left it... starting with the great excommunicated heretic Luther. all "churches" that came after Luther have been man made. that is not to say they are all bad or anything...but whenever they disagree w/ the RCC, they are wrong
"The very tradition, teaching, & faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning was preached by the Apostles & preserved by the Fathers. On this the Church was founded..." ~ St. Athanasius (4th cent.)
If the RCC is the one true church, then why do they violate the scriptures by forbidding men to marry, commanding them to abstain from meats, and worship someone other than God himself ie. the Virgin Mary?
"Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer."
Sometimes the hardest thing and the right thing are the same.
Wow. No Protestant has a meaningful reply to this. Score!
Catholics are welcome to add their thoughts as well.
Gaudium de veritate,
Cruciform
+T+
Does this mean you have a four piece God now?
Psalm 1[/color] and Job 28:28
Rev 22:14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
Joh 4:23 "But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers.
Slogan/motto:
Gaudium de veritate (Latin, "Delight in the truth")
Reputation:
February 27th, 2012, 10:08 PM
Quote:
Originally Posted by keypurr
Does this mean you have a four piece God now?
Like yourself, I have no idea what in the world you're talking about.
Gaudium de veritate,
Cruciform
+T+
"The very tradition, teaching, & faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning was preached by the Apostles & preserved by the Fathers. On this the Church was founded..." ~ St. Athanasius (4th cent.)
JESUS & HIS CHURCH ARE ONE -
January 31st, 2012, 03:55 PM
What's new? 
~ J Vernon McGee Ro 3:23, 5:8, 6:23, 10:9, 10:13.
Hybrid Mode
