The Synod on the Family held in Rome last October has drawn the attention of Catholics once more to issues of divorce, remarriage, homosexuality and other hot-button issues. It has…
Have you ever wondered how in the world the early Christians endured such suffering at the hands of their persecutors — and with joy?
What was their secret?
Read More The Secret of the Early Martyrs
We Catholics do something that most Protestants think is quite strange: we pray to saints. That is, we plead the intercession of Christians who have died and gone to heaven before us (and angels, too). Our separated brethren often see this as unbiblical — a disservice to God. The objecting Protestant typically holds that this practice attributes to mere creatures what should only be attributed to the Creator – the ability to intercede for others before God. It is also seen as communicating with dead people, an abomination(Deut 18:11). In objection they quote the bolded portion of the following passage:
“First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity. This is right and is acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God; there is also one mediator between God and humankind, Christ Jesus…” (2 Tim 2:1-5 RSV)
How would you respond?
One day at work, a woman inquired about my religious background. I told her I was Catholic. She immediately responded by “warning” me about a couple things, including that God has commanded his people, “Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image…[and] Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them…” She bluntly pointed out that this is exactly what Catholics do and completed her untimely analysis by reminding me that God has strictly forbidden such idolatrous actions. She was a Jehovah’s Witness. I patiently listened, half-stunned and half-disappointed that I didn’t have time to engage her about this rather weak objection to Catholicism. Has anything like this ever happened to you?
Johnny: What do you think about abortion?
Jenny: I don’t even want to get into it. It’s too complicated.
Almost five years ago I re-committed my life to Jesus Christ after a powerful experience in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and returned to the Catholic Church after a several years of absence and skepticism.
One afternoon, not long after my re-version to Catholicism, I found myself in a conversation trying to defend Catholic tradition and in particular, the papacy, to an evangelical Protestant friend. I failed miserably. Although I was still filled with a kind of “new convert zeal” I just couldn’t find the words to answer his questions and objections sufficiently on the spot. It was a deflating experience.
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