What Is Orthodoxy

Thanks to Maxim.

On the first Sunday of Great Lent we celebrate the Triumph of Orthodoxy, a feast that was established in the year 842 to mark the final defeat of the Iconoclast heresy. In issuing a decree to celebrate the Sunday of Orthodoxy, the Synod of Constantinople wished to specifically commit the restoration of holy icons and the triumph of Orthodox Christology to the memory of the Church. During the eleven centuries that have followed since that day, the feast has come to be celebrated as the triumph of Orthodoxy over all heresies that have troubled the Church. Within the solemn proclamation of the Anathema which is heard on this day in every Orthodox cathedral, the Church in its fullness confirms the faith of the Fathers and rejects all heresies of the past and present. But the meaning of this feast is not in the rejection of false teaching from our midst, but in the true triumph of Orthodoxy in our hearts.

What is Orthodoxy? All too often we are more familiar with the heresies of old-Iconoclasm, Arianism, Monophisitism-or of the modern day-Ecumenism, Modernism, Sergianism-than we are with our own faith. We can eloquently argue the fallacies of Roman Catholicism or Protestantism, but can we tell what makes us Orthodox? What is Orthodoxy, and how can we strive for its triumph in our lives?

As we begin our search for the meaning of Orthodoxy, we must first look at the definitions given by the Fathers in the profession of faith or the Creed. From its very beginning, the Christian faith had to be defined, set apart, called out, and elected. Several redactions of the Creed-from that of the Apostles to the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed-stand witness to this laborious task of defining Orthodoxy. The word "Orthodox" is not in the Creed; the Fathers of the Nicene Council (A.D. 325) called it simply "the Symbol of Faith" ( ). But it is this profession of faith that continues to serve as the foundation of our belief today, and that is why we rightfully call it "the Symbol of the Orthodox Faith."

The Holy Church uses the Creed to instruct us in our faith throughout our entire earthly life. We recite the Creed before we are baptized into the Church, we hear it during services, we solemnly proclaim it together during every Divine Liturgy, we recite it every day as part of our daily prayer rule, and when partaking of our last Communion on the bed of illness and infirmity, we once again proclaim the Symbol of Orthodox Faith. This profession of faith which we make ours is an unbroken link that ties us to the faith of the Apostles and the martyrs, the Fathers and the holy hierarchs-it is the profession of every Orthodox saint for over two millennia. Those who so often "speed-chant" right over the Creed, and especially those who do not know the Creed, should remember that this profession of faith is made by the whole choir of the saints of the Church, and we should try to join in this choir-"with one mouth and one heart."Is knowing the basic truths contained in the profession of our faith enough to be Orthodox? The holy apostle James says:

"You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe-and tremble!" (James 2:19) Knowing the truth is not the same as making it your own. Each one of the ancient and modern heretics knew the Creed very well, and most of them did not even try to change it, take anything away or add anything to it. Instead, they corrupted the understanding of the faith, and spread their corrupt teachings among people. This is why it is so important to be familiar with the works of the Fathers of the Church.

Through a life of prayer, fasting and study of the Scripture, the Fathers acquired the mind of Christ, and the Holy Spirit guided their understanding of divine truths. To them, the words of the Symbol of Faith were not abstract concepts, but the very foundations of their lives.

We no longer read the works of Saint John Chrysostom or other Fathers in most parish churches. Even our divine services, full of the wisdom and the spirit of patristic theology, have become abbreviated and less attended. As piety among us declines, we are not willing to sacrifice much time from our busy lives to be in church and to hear the beautiful and profoundly meaningful words of the services. Yet, in spite of this, the services do not become less beautiful and meaningful, nor do they become less important for us. Even though our piety is declining, our literacy is not. Most of us can read, and the texts which were once hand-copied and kept in monastery libraries are now widely available both in print and in electronic format. In order to acquire the Orthodox mindset and the worldview of the Fathers, we must become familiar with their thought and with their heritage. Both the theological and the liturgical heritage of the Fathers are indispensible to our formation as Orthodox Christians.

Some may complain that the language of the services is archaic and that the writings of the Fathers are too complicated and difficult to understand. This is true. Those who do not put forth effort to become familiar with the spiritual texts will indeed find them difficult. This is true, however, of any area of knowledge. People who do not practice reading have difficulty getting through a page, those who do not cook cannot easily follow a recipe, one who is not familiar with economics does not know the difference between the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the Dow Jones Composite Average or what their significance is, and if you do not watch many films you can hardly understand the talk about movie stars. Similarly, if we do not spend time and effort becoming familiar with the heritage of the Church, we will continue to feel like strangers who do not understand Orthodoxy, cannot relate to it, and can barely comprehend the language of divine services. Everything worth pursuing takes time and effort. We have the time. It is our choice what we do with it and toward which things we apply our efforts.

Finally, even this is not enough. If Christ willed for us to be saved through knowledge and understanding, He would have published a book and opened a school. Instead, He founded the Church. Knowing the texts and languages makes a good academician, but it does not protect a man from the river of fire, unless he is inside the Arc of Salvation-the Church. And to be in the Church, we must live the life of the Church-with its fasts and feasts, its services and sacraments-all has been established for our benefit. Every time we disobey the Church, every time we choose not to attend a service, every time we give up the fast to please the demands of our bellies-we continue to cut the very fabric that connects us to the Church. To be God's children, we must become part of God's family.

Our salvation is in the Body of Christ, and being in this Body and in communion with this Body is what truly makes us Orthodox. Orthodoxy is not merely a teaching, a philosophy, or even a worldview; it is the sacrament of salvation. Therefore, it is not enough to know or to have; it is necessary to "be". Orthodoxy is not primarily a body of knowledge, but first and foremost it is life-life in the Church and the life of the Church. And just as human life consists of very small and seemingly insignificant steps that together make up our journey from the cradle to the grave, life in the Church also consists of small steps that lead from death to resurrection. Each one of these steps, no matter how small, is very important, and we must strive on our spiritual path as the merchant, who having found a pearl of great price, gave up everything else to own it (Matt. 13:45-46)..

You cannot find ten minutes in a day to pray to God?-Seek diligently and find five! You cannot find time to read the works of the Fathers?-Start by reading the Gospel and do not forsake it! You cannot be in church for every service?-Begin by making a real effort to come at least for every festal service! You cannot give a lot of money to those in need?-Give what you can, even if it is only two mites (Mk. 12:42), or call your elderly neighbor and ask if you could be of any help. Do something about your spiritual life! The kingdom of heaven is not reached by "couch potatoes," but by those who force themselves out of their comfort ("cf".. Matt. 11:12); Christ is not calling to Himself the lazy who refuse to walk, but those who labor (Matt. 11:28) and who "strive to enter through the narrow gate" (Lk. 13:24). Not every one of us will walk in the footsteps of Saint Seraphim of Sarov and fast as he did, but every one of us knows when it is a Wednesday or a Friday. Not everyone will pray for two hours as did Saint Martyr Polycarp, but everyone knows the simple words that have been repeated by multitudes of saints: "Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner!"

And so it is in the life of the Church, in the life exemplified by our saints, that we find the true meaning of what it is to be Orthodox. And this life is not a biography or a memoir. It is not found in ancient scrolls or on the pages of history books. It must be found in the mirror. You, who were so wondrously fashioned in the divine image of the Creator (Gen. 1:27), take courage to become His likeness, and your faith will make you well ("cf". Matt. 9:22)!

As we celebrate this Sunday of Orthodoxy, let us remember that the triumph of Orthodoxy cannot be marked on the calendar-it is marked in our lives and in our hearts. Let us rejoice today with the whole Church, and let us sing the restoration of holy icons in the temples of God. But this restoration did not end in the ninth century; it is to be completed by us, as we co-labor with God to restore His holy images in the temples of our own souls.

"Fr. Sergei Sveshnikov, 2009"

Source: spellscasting.blogspot.com

Pre Ash Thoughts

"We read in the books both in the Old Law and in the New that the

men who repented of their sins bestrewed themselves with ashes and clothed their bodies with sackcloth. Now let us do this little at the beginning of our Lent that we strew ashes upon our heads to signify that we ought to repent of our sins during the Lenten Fast." (cf NewAdvent)

As a young Catholic child before I left the Church, we always received ashes on Ash Wednesday. Unfortunately, the beautiful symbolism was lost on my young heart. When I received ashes again for the first time almost 4 years ago, I was ready to finally understand and receive the blessing that this sacramental practice can give.

There's nothing magical about having ashes placed on one's forehead in the sign of the cross. However, there is much grace in a heart that is open and docile to the work of God by humbly submitting to this. These ashes remind me that I am a sinner saved by Christ and symbolize my inward disposition to fast, pray and repent during this season of fasting as our forefathers in the Early Church did.

Who was I that I should have excluded myself from such a beautiful and ancient way of drawing closer to Jesus? Did I think I had arrived and no longer needed repentance? Was it "All under the Blood" and there was no need for me to fast and pray and contemplate how my sins caused his bruises? What was I thinking? I don't know, but now I am so thankful to be able to avail myself of these opportunities for growth in grace.

Reference: magick-keys.blogspot.com

The Bible And The Early Church On Salvation

Salvation

Gods Word [The Bible]

Even the righteousness of God which is by faith of Jesus Christ unto all and upon all them that believe: for there is no difference: For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God; Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God;

To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus. Where is boasting then? It is excluded. By what law? of works? Nay: but by the law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith without the deeds of the law.

Is he the God of the Jews only? is he not also of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also: Seeing it is one God, which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and uncircumcision through faith. Do we then make void the law through faith? God forbid: yea, we establish the law. (Romans 3:21-31)

Ignatius [Salvation]

Let no man deceive himself. Both the things which are in heaven, and the glorious angels,36 and rulers, both visible and invisible, if they believe not in the blood of Christ, shall, in consequence, incur condemnation.37 "He that is able to receive it, let him receive it."38

Let not [high] place puff any one up: for that which is worth all is39 faith and love, to which nothing is to be preferred. But consider those who are of a different opinion with respect to the grace of Christ which has come unto us, how opposed they are to the will of God. They have no regard for love; no care for the widow, or the orphan, or the oppressed; of the bond, or of the free; of the hungry, or of the thirsty. (Shorter Version)

Let no man deceive himself. Unless he believes that Christ Jesus has lived in the flesh, and shall confess His cross and passion, and the blood which He shed for the salvation of the world, he shall not obtain eternal life, whether he be a king, or a priest, or a ruler, or a private person, a master or a servant, a man or a woman. "He that is able to receive it, let him receive it." Let no man's place, or dignity, or riches, puff him up; and let no man's low condition or poverty abase him.

For the chief points are faith towards God, hope towards Christ, the enjoyment of those good things for which we look, and love towards God and our neighbour(Portion of the Longer Version) (The Epistle of Ignatius to the Symraens, Chapter 6)

Polycarp [Salvation]

Chapter I.-Praise of the Philippians.

I have greatly rejoiced with you in our Lord Jesus Christ, because ye have followed the example of true love [as displayed by God], and have accompanied, as became you, those who were bound in chains, the fitting ornaments of saints, and which are indeed the diadems of the true elect of God and our Lord;

and because the strong root of your faith, spoken of in days long gone by, endureth even until now, and bringeth forth fruit to our Lord Jesus Christ, who for our sins suffered even unto death, [but] "whom God raised froth the dead, having loosed the bands of the grave. "In whom, though now ye see Him not, ye believe, and believing, rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory; " into which joy many desire to enter, knowing that "by grace ye are saved, not of works," but by the will of God through Jesus Christ. (The Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians, Chapter 1)

Clement of Rome [Salvation]

Whosoever will candidly consider each particular, will recognise the greatness of the gifts which were given by him. For from him have sprung the priests and all the Levites who minister at the altar of God. From him also [was descended] our Lord Jesus Christ according to the flesh. From him [arose] kings, princes, and rulers of the race of Judah. Nor are his other tribes in small glory, inasmuch as God had promised,

"Thy seed shall be as the stars of heaven." All these, therefore, were highly honoured, and made great, not for their own sake, or for their own works, or for the righteousness which they wrought, but through the operation of His will.

And we, too, being called by His will in Christ Jesus, are not justified by ourselves, nor by our own wisdom, or understanding, or godliness, or works which we have wrought in holiness of heart; but by that faith through which, from the beginning, Almighty God has justified all men; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. (The First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians, Chapter 32)

These things, beloved, we write unto you, not merely to admonish you of your duty, but also to remind ourselves. For we are struggling on the same arena, and the same conflict is assigned to both of us. Wherefore let us give up vain and fruitless cares, and approach to the glorious and venerable rule of our holy calling. Let us attend to what is good, pleasing, and acceptable in the sight of Him who formed us.

Let us look stedfastly to the blood of Christ, and see how precious that blood is to God, which, having been shed for our salvation, has set the grace of repentance before the whole world. Let us turn to every age that has passed, and learn that, from generation to generation, the Lord has granted a place of repentance to all such as would be converted unto Him.

Noah preached repentance, and as many as listened to him were saved. Jonah proclaimed destruction to the Ninevites; but they, repenting of their sins, propitiated God by prayer, and obtained salvation, although they were aliens [to the covenant] of God. (The First Epistle of Clement to the Corinthians, Chapter 7)

Justin Marytr [Salvation]

. And this indeed you can see for yourselves, and be convinced of by fact. For of all races of men there are some who look for Him who was crucified in Judaea, and after whose crucifixion the land was straightway surrendered to you as spoil of war.

And the prophecy, "binding His foal to the vine, and washing His robe in the blood of the grape," was a significant symbol of the things that were to happen to Christ, and of what He was to do. For the foal of an ass stood bound to a vine at the entrance of a village, and He ordered His acquaintances to bring it to Him then; and when it was brought, He mounted and sat upon it, and entered Jerusalem, where was the vast temple of the Jews which was afterwards destroyed by you.

And after this He was crucified, that the rest of the prophecy might be fulfilled. For this "washing His robe in the blood of the grape" was predictive of the passion He was to endure, cleansing by His blood those who believe on Him. For what is called by the Divine Spirit through the prophet "His robe," are those men who believe in Him in whom abideth the seed61 of God, the Word (First Apology, Chapter XXXII)

Now this took place in the case of both those holy men and prophets of God, that you may perceive how one of them could not bear up both the mysteries: I mean, the type of the cross and the type of the name. For this is, was, and shall be the strength of Him alone, whose name every power dreads, being very much tormented because they shall be destroyed by Him.

Therefore our suffering and crucified Christ was not cursed by the law, but made it manifest that He alone would save those who do not depart from His faith. And the blood of the passover, sprinkled on each man's door-posts and lintel, delivered those who were saved in Egypt, when the first-born of the Egyptians were destroyed.

For the passover was Christ, who was afterwards sacrificed, as also Isaiah said, `He was led as a sheep to the slaughter.'423 And it is written, that on the day of the passover you seized Him, and that also during the passover you crucified Him. And as the blood of the passover saved those who were in Egypt, so also the blood of Christ will deliver from death those who have believed. Would God, then, have been deceived if this sign had not been above the doors? I do not say that; but I affirm that He announced beforehand the future salvation for the human race through the blood of Christ(Dialogue with Typho, Chapter CXI)

Clement of Alexandria [Salvation]

And now we must look also at this, that if ever those who know not how to do well, live well;81 for they have lighted on well-doing. Some, too, have aimed well at the word of truth through understanding. "But Abraham was not justified by works, but by faith."82

It is therefore of no advantage to them after the end of life, even if they do good works now, if they have not faith. Wherefore also the Scriptures were translated into the language of the Greeks, in order that they might never be able to allege the excuse of ignorance, in as much as they are able to hear also what we have in our hands, if they only wish.

One speaks in one way of the truth, in another way the truth interprets itself. The guessing at truth is one thing, and truth itself is another. Resemblance is one thing, the thing itself is another.

And the one results from learning and practice, the other from power and faith. For the teaching of piety is a gift, but faith is grace. "For by doing the will of God we know the will of God. Open, then," says the Scripture, "the gates of righteousness; and I will enter in, and confess to the Lord(The Stromata, Book I, Chapter VII)

Cyprian [Salvation]

For if Abraham believed in God, and it was accounted unto him for righteousness, assuredly whosoever believes in God and lives in faith is found righteous, and already is blessed in faithful Abraham, and is set forth as justified; as the blessed Apostle Paul proves, when he says,

"Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Ye know, then, that they which are of faith, these are the children of Abraham. But the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles through faith, pronounced before to Abraham that all nations should be blessed in him; therefore they who are of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham(Epistle LXII, v. 4)

Martin Luther [Salvation]

Martin Luther: Because an eternal, unchangeable sentence of condemnation has passed upon sinfor God cannot and will not regard sin with favor, but his wrath abides upon it eternally and irrevocablyredemption was not possible without a ransom of such precious worth as to atone for sin, to assume the guilt, pay the price of wrath and thus abolish sin. This no creature was able to do.

There was no remedy except for Gods only Son to step into our distress and himself become man, to take upon himself the load of awful and eternal wrath and make his own body and blood a sacrifice for sin. And so he did, out of the immeasurably great mercy and love towards us, giving himself up and bearing the sentence of unending wrath and death.

So infinitely precious to God is this sacrifice and atonement of his only begotten Son who is one with him in divinity and majesty, that God is reconciled thereby and receives into grace and forgiveness of sins all who believe in his Son. Only by believing may we enjoy the precious atonement of Christ, the forgiveness obtained for us and given us out of profound, inexpressible love.

We have nothing to boast of for ourselves, but must ever joyfully thank and praise him who at such priceless cost redeemed us condemned and lost sinners (Martin Luther, Epistle Sermon, Twentyfourth Sunday After Trinity (Lenker Edition, Vol. IX, #4345. Found in A Compend of Luthers Theology, Hugh Kerr, Ed., (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1966), pp. 5253).

John Calvin [Salvation]

John Calvin: Let us explain what these expressions mean: that man is justified in Gods sight, and that he is justified by faith or works. He is said to be justified in Gods sight who is both reckoned righteous in Gods judgment and has been accepted on account of his righteousness. Indeed as iniquity is abominable to God, so no sinner can find favor in his eyes in so far as he is a sinner and so long as he is reckoned as such. Accordingly wherever there is sin, there also the wrath and vengeance of God show themselves.

Now he is justified who is reckoned in the condition not of a sinner, but of a righteous man; and for that reason, he stands firm before Gods judgment seat while all sinners fall. If an innocent accused person be summoned before the judgment seat of a fair judge, where he will be judged according to his innocence, he is said to be justified before the judge.

Thus, justified before God is the man who, freed from the company of sinners, has God to witness and affirm his righteousness. In the same way, therefore, he in whose life that purity and holiness will be found which deserves a testimony of righteousness before Gods throne will be said to be justified by works, or else he who, by the wholeness of his works, can meet and satisfy Gods judgment.

On the contrary, justified by faith is he who, excluded from the righteousness of works, grasps the righteousness of Christ through faith, and clothed in it, appears in Gods sight not as a sinner but as a righteous man.

Therefore we explain justification simply as the acceptance with which God receives us into his favor as righteous men. And we say that it consists in the remission of sins and the imputation of Christs righteousness.

Therefore, to justify means nothing else than to acquit of guilt him who was accused, as if his innocence were confirmed. Therefore, since God justifies us by the intercession of Christ, he absolves us not by the confirmation of our innocence but by the imputation of righteousness, so that we who are not righteous in ourselves may be reckoned as such in Christ (John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion. Found in The Library of Christian Classics (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1960), Volume XIX, Book III, Chapter XI.23, pp. 726728).

Thomas Crammer [Salvation]

Thomas Cranmer: It is our part and duty ever to remember the great mercy of God; how that, all the world being wrapped in sin by breaking of the law, God sent his only Son our Saviour Christ into this world to fulfil the law for us; and by shedding his most precious blood, to make a sacrifice and satisfaction, or (as it may be called) amends,

to his Father for our sins, to asuage his wrath and indignation conceived against us for the same...In our justification is not only Gods mercy and grace, but also his justice, which the apostle calls the justice of God; and it consisteth in paying our ransom and fulfilling the law.

And so the grace of God doth not exclude the justice of God in our justification, but only excludeth the justice of man, that is to say, the justice of our works, as to be merits deserving of our justification...It pleased our heavenly Father, of his infinite mercy, without any our desert or deserving, to prepare for us the most precious jewels of Christs body and blood, whereby our ransom might be fully paid, the law fulfilled, and his justice fully satisfied. So that Christ is now the righteousness of them that truly do believe in him.

He for them paid their ransom by his death. He for them fulfilled the law in his life. So that now in him and by him every true Christian man may be called a fulfiller of the law; forasmuch as that which their infirmity lacketh, Christs justice hath supplied (Thomas Cranmer, An Homily of the Salvation of Mankind by Only Christ Our Saviour from Sin and Death Everlasting. Found in The Library of Christian Classics (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1966), Volume XXVI, pp. 262, 264).

Theodore Beza, disciple of the infamous John Calvin [Salvation]

The object and power of true faith

Since Jesus Christ is the object of faith, and indeed Jesus Christ as He is held forth to us in the Word of God, there follow two points which should be noted well.

On the one side, where there is no Word of God but only the word of man, whoever he be, there is no faith there, but only a dream or an opinion which cannot fail to deceive us (Rom 10:2-4; Mark 16:15,16; Rom 1:28; Gal 1:8-9).

On the other side, faith embraces and appropriates Jesus Christ and all that is in Him, since He has been given to us on the condition of believing in Him (John 17:20,21; Rom 8:9). There follows one of two things: either all that is necessary for our salvation is not in Jesus Christ, or if all is indeed there, he who has Jesus Christ by faith has everything. Now, to say that all which is necessary for our salvation is not in Jesus Christ is a very horrible blasphemy, for this would only make Him a Saviour in part (Matt 1:21).

There remains therefore the other part: in having Jesus Christ, by faith, we have in Him all that is required for our salvation (Rom 5:1).

This is what the Apostle says, "There is no condemnation for those who are in Jesus Christ." (Rom 8:1). (THE CHRISTIAN FAITH by THEODORE BEZA, page 17)

Cyril Lucaris ca. 1572-1638 [Salvation]

Chapter 9. We believe that without faith no man can be saved. And we call faith that which justifies in Christ Jesus, which the life and death of our Lord Jesus Christ procured, the Gospel published, and without which no man can please God. (The Confession of Cyril Lucarius, Chapter I)

John Wesley [Salvation]

9. This, therefore, is the general ground of the whole doctrine of justification. By the sin of the first Adam, who was not only the father, but likewise the representative, of us all, we all fell short of the favour of God; we all became children of wrath; or, as the Apostle expresses it, "judgment came upon all men to condemnation."

Even so, by the sacrifice for sin made by the Second Adam, as the Representative of us all, God is so far reconciled to all the world, that he hath given them a new covenant; the plain condition wher being once fulfilled, "there is no more condemnation" for us, but "we are justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ." ( Sermon 5, Justification by Faith, 1872 edition from gbgm-umc.org/umhistory/we...005.stm#I)

www.caic.org.au/biblebase/rci/salvn2.htm

Idolatry The Eucharist And Our Lady

I. Idolatry

I know I've quoted this dialogue before, but it's just too good to pass up right now. Mark Shea wrote an imaginary conversation between an Evangelical and a Catholic which I just love:

Evangelical: You "must" not worship Mary!

Catholic: Relax. I don't worship Mary.

Evangelical: Oh, but you do!

Catholic: Actually, I think I'm the only one qualified to make that call, aren't I?

Evangelical: But it "looks to me" like you worship her! You pray to her and ask her to intercede for you, don't you?

Catholic: Yes, I do like to talk to my mother about things. But I don't worship her and I don't think she's God. She's a creature, a fellow Christian (albeit the great one). How would you feel if I said, "You worship your barber! I know you do, because you sometimes ask him to pray for you?"

Evangelical: That's totally different!

Catholic: Actually, it's exactly the same. Which is why Scripture says don't judge by appearances. If you'd just ask me rather than telling me, I'd be happy to tell you what I worship. I worship Jesus Christ fully present in the Holy Eucharist-body, blood, soul, and divinity.

Evangelical: I don't think the Eucharist is Jesus' body and blood, but simply a symbol. But let's not argue over such fine points of theology as "transubstantiation". We both celebrate Communion in our own ways. And that's the important thing.

Catholic: Did you hear me? I said I fall down in worship and adoration before something that looks just like a piece of bread and a cup of wine. I say "Hosanna" to it. I adore it as the very God of the Universe! The Eucharist is my Lord and my God, my salvation, my life, the very source of my being!

Evangelical: Yes. I think that's a bit overboard, but let's not argue about it. You have your version of Communion and I have mine. Now: "about Mary worship"--don't you "see" how incredibly dangerous it is for you to commit the grave sin of idolizing Mary....

Non-Catholics might think that this dialogue is hyperbolic. Let me point you to a conversation with Catz206, the same Blogger who presented what she felt was a Protestant answer to Ignatius earlier. In a recent post, she's argued against the veneration of images because it's too close to idolatry. My first response was "I don't see how you can think that the use of icons in the Church (which we don't worship) is too close to idolatry, but our worship of the Eucharist is simply a 'minor misunderstanding' that John turned a blind eye to when it caught on even amongst his student Ignatius of Antioch?"

The conversation got more surreal after that. She was initially confused by my comment; after I explained, she responded, "As for the Eucharist, I think I see what you are saying now. Do Catholics actually worship the Eucharist? If they do, this may be something important for me to consider." What makes this all the more bizarre is that she's studying Greek, reading the Early Church Fathers, responding to St. Ignatius of Antioch's comments that the Eucharist is the Flesh and Blood of Jesus Christ, and somehow not realizing that we're worshiping the Eucharist. Catholics today and Catholics then: if you think that the Eucharist is Jesus Christ, how can you not worship?

When I clarified this, she responded:

"Yes, you are right in this and I think I will have to take back my earlier comment. I don't like saying this but I think this really could be considered a form of idolatry. Still, I know that I am not immune to this charge as a protestant and am very well aware that I often elevate things I shouldn't and am condemned in my own thoughts."

I suppose that I appreciate that she's trying to be nice about telling me I'm an idolater, but she's making the same mistake that's got her convinced that venerating images might come close to idolatry. Idolatry is used in two senses in the Bible. The first is the literal, intentional worship of an image; and the second is a metaphoric use to describe serving something or someone more than you serve God. A third form of "idolatry" is now used, not found in the Bible, where Protestants call anything given more esteem than what they think it's worth "idolatry." This third form is a cheapening of the metaphor that Christ uses - He says that you can't have two "masters," not that you can't think two things are important.

Someone who spends more of their time obsessed with money than interested in what God has planned for them may be guilty of committing the second form. But there's a mile of difference between that and worshiping a 100 bill. If Catholics are wrong about the Eucharist, they're not just guilty of spending more time thinking about bread and wine than about God. If we're wrong, we're literally worshiping bread and wine. That's virtually nothing like elevating the importance of unimportant things.

Protestants of an earlier age outright suspected that Catholics did the first, intentional blatant form of saint-worship or Mary-worship. Protestants today tend to hint that Catholics do this, but just because they elevate things beyond their import. In a few cases, Protestants will believe and argue that Catholics love Mary and the Saints to the extent that we place them above God in practice, even if we don't intend to worship them. Usually, they don't even go that far these days: just that we love Mary and the Saints too much, and that it's probably dangerous somehow - it's the watered-down, non-Biblical third form of "idolatry." And she's right on one part: if this is all that Protestants are saying, then they're just pointing out a speck that they think is in the Catholic eye, without having a whole lot of understanding about Catholic liturgy, worship, history, etc., while they have their own things blown out of proportion.

II. The Eucharist

This isn't even possibly a case of the second or third form of "idolatry." We aren't torn between our allegiance to the Eucharist and our allegiance to Christ. We believe that they're One and the Same. If they're not, we're committing the first form of idolatry. Which brings me back to the question that I posed regarding St. John and his student, Ignatius. If Ignatius was committing idolatry, worshiping the Eucharist, and thinking it was literally Christ when it was really just a metaphor for Christ, could John possibly have let this rank heresy continue? He would have to know that as the last living Apostle, his student would carry a lot of weight for the future of Christianity. Anyone wanting to understand the Gospel of John would do well to listen to what his students taught. Can we really imagine that John had such poor teaching skills, poor judgment, and/or so little backbone to either correct this heresy or expose it, particularly given its obvious consequences? Can we imagine the Holy Spirit permitting Christianity to become this permanently distorted within a half-generation? After all, while Christians may squabble about their own view of how to read John 6 (as obviously Eucharistic or confusingly symbolic), I don't know of anyone who argues for another view of Ignatius - he's so blatantly and baldly Eucharistic that if he's merely symbolic, everyone is.

So sure, I'll accept that the stakes of this are the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ or rank idolatry. But we Catholics and Orthodox have a compelling reason to believe that the Apostles taught it was the former, in addition to the Biblical evidence. What reasonable Protestant response accounts for this evidence from the Fathers?

III. Why Catholics Honor Mary, Our Mother

As it stands, the same Ten Commandments which forbid (actual) idolatry also command us to honor our father and mother: which means that the Ten Commandments explicitly don't contemplate that third form of "idolatry" as being a violation (otherwise honoring anyone besides God would be a potential sin). We authentically believe that God is our Father through Baptism, and that we should honor Him not only as God (the First Commandment), we also honor Him as Father (the Fourth Commandment / Fifth, if you're Protestant). Likewise, we believe that Jesus gave Mary to us on the Cross (John 19:27). The Beloved Disciple is there with his biological mother, and receives Mary as his mother, just as she receives him as her son. In a literal sense, this applied specifically to John - he took Mary into his home from that hour - but we believe that it applies to all of His "Beloved Disciples." Revelation 11:19-12:17 supports this conclusion. There, we see the Ark of the Covenant appear, immediately followed by a woman who gives birth to Christ [an obvious parallel to the Ark, and who we think represents Mary as well as Israel/the Church]. In Revelation 12:17, all of those who follow Christ are called the offspring of this woman. So within the family of the New Covenant, we believe that God chose to make Mary mother to all of us, just as He made Christ (Mary's biological Son) our Brother (Hebrews 2:11).

We don't think that Mary is more important than Christ, be we do believe that Christ, who fulfilled the Law, honored Her, just as the Ten Commandments command, and continues to do so even in Heaven. She served, serves, worshiped, and worships Him as Her God and Savior (Luke 1:46-48); but He honors Her as His Mother, who raised Him and taught Him from infancy, almost certainly even teaching Him the Faith (Luke 2:51-52). If entering into the New Covenant enters us into relationship with Christ as our Lord and Brother, God the Father as our Father, and grafts us into the entire genealogy of Israel, it's not exactly unreasonable to conclude (particularly with the Biblical support cited above) then Mary's part of that list, and is our mother in a particularly special way.

So perhaps the better question is why aren't Protestants honoring Our Lady more?

Appendix Part 7

I appreciated to declare this quote in the book segment about Mormonism, regarding the Mormon church's creed re contemporary types of band (including neurodiversity), but it was too late to add to the deed. From LDS Be foremost Dieter F. Uchtdorf:But at what time the Penitence is expected to help us all become expert twin Christ, it is not expected to make us all the extraordinarily. Sometimes we pitch differences in qualities with sin. We can even make the break of doctrine that ever since someone is contemporary from us, it condition mean they are not captivating to God. This line of doctrine leads some to use that the Place of worship requests to bring about every associate from a sole mold-that each one obligation glance over, finger, umpire, and occasion twin every other. This would contradict the expert of God, who produced every man contemporary from his brother, every son contemporary from his commence. Match one and the same twins are not one and the same in their personalities and spiritual identities.It furthermore contradicts the spellbound and plan of the Place of worship of Jesus Christ, which acknowledges and protects the well brought-up agency-with all its finalize consequences-of each and every one of God's children. As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are united in our testimony of the restored gospel and our dependability to stay God's commandments. But we are at large in our cultural, unreserved, and embassy preferences.The Place of worship thrives such as we burst well brought-up of this scale and risk each other to move on and use our talents to lift and strengthen our man disciples.

Fathers Of The First Six Councils

COMMEMORATED ON JULY 17The Celebration of the Holy Fathers of the Basic Six Ecumenical Councils. In the Ninth Individual of the Nicea-Constantinople Emblem of Believe proclaimed by the holy Fathers of the Basic and Time Ecumenical Councils, we deposit with our confide in "One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Religious." By honesty of the catholic form of the Religious, an Ecumenical Compilation is the Church's supreme reign, and possesses the talent to strength of character main questions of church life. An Ecumenical Compilation is comprised of archpastors and pastors of the Religious, and building of all the dwelling Churches, from every land of the "oikumene" (i.e. from all the whole built-up world). The Usual Religious acknowledges Seven Holy Ecumenical Councils: The Basic Ecumenical Compilation (Nicea I) (May 29, and correspondingly on seventh Sunday in the past Pascha) was convened in the court 325 against the heresy of Arius, in the metropolis of Nicea in Bithynia under St. Constantine the Brawny, Blow up of the Apostles. The Time Ecumenical Compilation (Constantinople I) (May 22) was convened in the court 381 against the heresy of Macedonias, by the emperor Theodosius the Brawny. The Third Ecumenical Compilation (Ephesus) (September 9) was convened in the court 431 against the heresy of Nestorius, in the metropolis of Ephesus by the emperor Theodosius the Younger. The Fourth Ecumenical Compilation (Chalcedon) (July 16) was convened in the court 451, against the Monophysite heresy, in the metropolis of Chalcedon under the emperor Marcian. The Fifth Ecumenical Compilation (Constnatinople II) (July 25) "Within the Three Chapters," was convened in the court 553, under the emperor Justinian the Brawny. The Sixth Ecumenical Compilation (Constantinople III) (January 23) met clothed in the lifetime 680-681, to fight the Monothelite heresy, under the emperor Constantine Pogonatos. The fact that the Seventh Ecumenical Compilation (Nicea II) is not commemorated today testifies to the antiquity of today's celebration. The Seventh Compilation, commemorated on the Sunday nearby to October 11, was convened at Nicea in the court 787 against the Iconoclast heresy, under the emperor Constantine and his mother Irene. The Religious venerates the Holy Fathers of the Ecumenical Councils when Christ has appoint them as "lights upon the earth," guiding us to the true Believe. "Garlanded with the robe of truth," the main beliefs of the Fathers, based upon the preaching of the Apostles, has appoint one confide for the Religious. The Ecumenical Councils are the excel reign in the Religious. Such Councils, guided by the volatility of the Holy Company, and much-admired by the Religious, are faultless. The Usual Church's conciliar definitions of assumption scoff the excel reign, and such definitions ad infinitum begin with the Apostolic formula: "It seemed good to the Holy Company and to us..." (Acts 15: 28). The Ecumenical Councils were ad infinitum convened for a acknowledge reason: to struggle disloyal opinions and heresies, and to decide the Usual Church's teaching. But the Holy Company has that's why seen fit, that the dogmas, the truths of confide, unalterable in their delighted and extend, permanently and consequently are revealed by the conciliar sympathy of the Religious, and are certain fussiness by the holy Fathers within theological concepts and vocabulary in due such debit as is required by the Religious itself for its penny-pinching of liberator. The Religious, in instructive its dogmas, is thing with the concerns of a certain forgotten while, "not snitch everything in hasten and instinctively, nor sure thing, in the end rout something" (St Gregory the Theologian). A to the point sand of the formal theology of the Basic Six Ecumenical Councils is formulated and confined to a small area in the Basic Declare of the Compilation of Trullo (correspondingly known as Quinisext), thought in the court 692. The 318 Holy Fathers of the Basic Ecumenical Compilation are understood of in this Declare I of Trullo as having: "with agreement of confide revealed and confirmed to us the consubstantiality of the three Group of the Foretell form and,... instructing the unfaltering to idolize the Father, Son, and Holy Company with one venerate, they cast down and dispelled the disloyal teaching about unusual degrees of Divinity." The 150 Holy Fathers of the Time Ecumenical Compilation disappeared their drum in on the theology of the Religious hip the Holy Company, "repudiating the teaching of Macedonius, as one who wished to go your separate ways the undividable Empathy, so that donate intensity be no practice mystery of our believe." The 200 God-bearing Fathers of the Third Ecumenical Compilation expounded the teaching that "Christ, the Show Son of God is One." They correspondingly confessed that "she who disgust Him in need marble was the flawless Ever-Virgin, glorifying her as deeply the Close relative of God. The 630 Holy Fathers of the Fourth Ecumenical Compilation decreed that "the One Christ, the Son of God... indigence be hyped in two natures." The 165 God-bearing Holy Fathers of the Fifth Ecumenical Compilation "in synod anathematized and repudiated Theodore of Mopsuestia (the studious of Nestorius), and Origen, and Didymus, and Evagrius, renovators of the Hellenic teaching about the transmigration of souls and the transmutation of bodies and the impieties they raised against the resurrection of the dead." The 170 Holy Fathers of the Sixth Ecumenical Compilation "taught that we could do with to deposit with two natural volitions, or two wills [trans. note: one divine, and the other possible], and two natural operations (energies) in Him Who was embody for our liberator, Jesus Christ, our true God." In determined moments of Religious history, the holy Ecumenical Councils promulgated their formal definitions, as frequent delimitations in the spiritual engagement for the holiness of Conformity, which heart podium until such time, as "all shall come during the unity of confide, and of the knowledge of the Son of God" (Eph. 4: 13). In the brawl with new heresies, the Religious does not leftover its erstwhile formal concepts nor proceeds them with some congregate of new formulations. The formal formulae of the Holy Ecumenical Councils succeed never be superseded, they stay ad infinitum here to the living Practice of the Religious. In consequence the Religious proclaims: "The confide of all in the Religious of God hath been hyped by men, which were luminaries in the world, cleaving to the Scoop of Life, so that it be observed sturdily, and that it delay unshakably until the end of the ages, conjointly with their God-bestown writings and dogmas. We renounce and we anathematize all whom they scoff rejected and anathematized, as existence enemies of Complexity. And if qualities does not slit to nor realize the aforementioned angelic dogmas, and does not teach or preach hence, let him be unthinkable" (Declare I of the Compilation of Trullo). In shot to their formal definitions, the Holy Fathers of the Ecumenical Councils exerted robust hard work towards the development of church castigate. Inn Councils promulgated their corrective canons according to the job of the time and place, smoothly perverse amid themselves in out of the ordinary workings. The universal unity of the Usual Religious enforced unity correspondingly in canonical practice, i.e. a conciliar thought and go-ahead of the highest remarkable canonical norms by the Fathers of the Ecumenical Councils. By this means, according to conciliar stretch, the Religious has accepted: 20 Canons from the Basic, 7 Canons from the Time, 8 Canons from the Third, and 30 Canons from the Fourth Ecumenical Synods. The Fifth and the Sixth Councils drawn in themselves precisely with resolving formal questions, and did not research taking into account any corrective canons. The succeed to resolute in codified form the prearranged practices clothed in the lifetime 451-680, and in the end to calm down a canonical codex for the Usual Religious, occasioned the convening of a special Compilation, which was from tip to toe reliable to the familiar statement of churchly set of laws. This was convened in the court 692. The Compilation "in the Imperial Palace" or "Underneath the Arches" (in Greek "en trullo"), came to be called the Compilation in Trullo. It is correspondingly called the "Quinisext" [meaning the "fifth and sixth"], when it is deliberate to scoff polished the comings and goings of the Fifth and Sixth Councils, or somewhat that it was just a orders maintenance of the Sixth Ecumenical Compilation itself, at odds by fair to middling a few lifetime. The Compilation in Trullo, with its 102 Canons (excellent than of all the Ecumenical Synods major), had a tremendous character in the history of the canonical theology of the Usual Religious. It intensity be rumored that the Fathers of this Compilation shaped a chubby album of the basic codex from the textile sources for the Usual Church's canons. Ramshackle train in activist order, and having been much-admired by the Religious the Canons of the Holy Apostles, and the Canons of the Holy Ecumenical and the Inn Councils and of the holy Fathers, the Trullo Compilation declared: "Let no one be accepted to alter or to revoke the aforementioned canons, nor in place of these put forth, or to ratify others, through of sham script" (2nd Declare of the Compilation in Trullo). Religious canons, sacred by the reign of the leader Six Ecumenical Councils (by means of the set of laws of the Seventh Ecumenical Compilation in 787, and the Constantinople Councils of 861 and 879, which were supplementary subsequently under the holy Patriarch Photius), form the task of THE Controls, or KORMCHAYA KNIGA (a view law codex known as "Syntagma" or "Nomokanon" in 14 titles). In its depository of volatility is articulated a canonical average, a relationship to every era, and a guide for all the dwelling Usual Churches in churchly practice. New forgotten experience can lead to the assume of some assiduous exotic aspect of the life of the Religious. This makes creative canonical draw your attention need in the conciliar way of the Religious, in order to unite the exotic norms of churchly life with forgotten job. The keep information of canonical charge are not pretty modern for the out of the ordinary eras of churchly organization all at when. Together with every gang to either disown the straight meaning of a view, or to go on and employ it, the Religious anew and anew turns for way and road to the eternal inheritance of the Holy Ecumenical Councils, to the boundless treasury of formal and canonical truths. TROPARION Timbre 8You are highest victorious, O Christ our God!You scoff appoint the Holy Fathers as lights on the earth!Preside over them you scoff guided us to the true faith!O to cut a long story short Considerately One, testify to You!KONTAKION Timbre 8 The Apostles' preaching and the Fathers' doctrines scoff appoint one confide for the Religious. Garlanded with the robe of truth, woven from heavenly theology, It defines and glorifies the robust mystery of Orthodoxy!SOURCE:"SAINT OR Celebration POSTED THIS Investigate 2010(with 2009's join wearing correspondingly and addition, 2008's):"

Have Continuers Stepped Too Far Ahead

I jotting your be concerned to an record by the Revd Dr Peter Toon once more at the blog of the Clemency Guide Bludgeon of the USA entitled "The Admission of St Louis (1977), The Anglican Communion Lattice and The Anglican Way."I would welcome your comments on this bank, really on his conclusion:"It is abysmal to come to focus on the matter of whether the Affirmers in 1977 saw themselves as Anglo-Catholics steady to breakthrough Anglicanism (as set forth for case in The Canadian Sober Support of 1893 and stamped in the 1962 Canadian BCP), who legal their domestic and valuable opinions to withdraw their picture of the Anglican Way in a pleasing of reactionary pendulum flow, OR that leaving the two mainline Churches provided the Anglo-Catholic participants with the interrupt to modernize Anglicanism in a Rome-ward or in all probability Orthodox-ward tidiness and they took this interrupt to do so, believing they were forging a new and mollify path for others overdue them to travel in. If the later consequently, it would air, they are making their importance in ways never envisaged in 2006 in the Easy Trace associates of The Network!"Hypothetically for some Continuers today in the ACC, ACA, APA and APCK neither the doctrinal decrees of the Convention of Trent nor the belief of The Articles want be considered confessional documents, but impressive the doctrinal decrees of the exceed Seven Ecumenical Councils that are in general plain by Rome and the East, want be so regarded. This view allows Long-term Anglicanism to be what's more conversant by the forgotten prestige of the Articles and open to Roman Catholic (Tridentine) belief and liturgy as sacred opinions, but not dogmas. The wildly English traditions of worship shaped in 1549 are key to this cut up in the Continuum, time some borrowing from Latin and Greek traditions is legal to the same extent judged to be educational to the English awareness and spirit. This pose is equally meant to be the moral footstep of the "Caroline Divines." (The back with this rope is that it is pretend and it tends to kind a form of religion which is that of a report on minority flatten but not in with the fellowship of 80 millions of the Anglican Way in the Anglican Communion of Churches, and equally not in with or part of breakthrough Catholicism of East or West.)"Unquestionably all moral society tribute that The Admission of St Louis goes over the clatter express wish of The Anglican Way and as a result cannot be signed or passed by associates who are steady to the classic Anglican Formularies as they are offered, for case, in The Sober Support of 1893 of Canada and in the Constitution of The Religious of England, the Anglican Religious of Nigeria, and in on the verge of all other Anglican conventional constitutions and offered in many editions of The Clemency Guide of 1662 regarding the world."The Lattice, it seems, faces a question. If it embraces the Seventh Convention and Seven Sacraments consequently it ladder ahead of world Anglicanism and pass from the breakthrough Formularies of the Anglican Way. If it does not, consequently it soul not by all accounts win the hearts of a very compartment group of Continuers for whom, it appears, the "extras" of the Admission issue finer than the fit sordid but they suite with the breakthrough Changed Catholicism of the Anglican Way."A importance
Let associates of The Lattice, who actually involve to the breakthrough Formularies, dig around to explanation the Continuers to involve their valuable views as domestic concept not unnatural church doctrine; and consequently there can be real press forward towards well-known details and aims on the underpinning of unity on Scripture and classic Formularies."

Does Anyone Read Wesley Anymore

More to the point, do the Evangelical heirs to Wesley read Wesley anymore? If a Wesleyan (one who claims to be descended from him theologically, not just one who belongs to a Wesleyan denomination) sought what it is to be a Wesleyan in the twenty-first century, you would think that they would start by consulting Wesley's writings.

Christianity Today ( http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct ) had an article on the Nazarene Church describing that denomination's search for its theological and spiritual identity ( http://www.ctlibrary.com/ct/2007/july13.17.html ). (This link is no longer active. To access the article, link here: http://www.pastorblog.com/2007/06/25/nazarenes-rethink-entire-sanctification, and click on where you see "Read the whole article..."). To be sure, Christianity Today is a good magazine, however, its theological bent is Calvinistic, so I cannot with certainty vouch for its fairness when its writers cover other branches of the Church whose theology differs from its own. (Some Nazarenes did take issue with the content of the article.) If the Nazarenes interviewed for the article were quoted correctly, then I my only reaction to the article is puzzlement.

The gist of the article is that the Nazarenes are rethinking their heritage as Wesleyans, especially how they interpret and apply the Wesleyan doctrine of entire sanctification. (According to the article, this is the Nazarenes' definition of entire sanctification: "...act of God, subsequent to regeneration, by which believers are made free from original sin or depravity, and brought into a state of entire devotement to God, and the holy obedience of love made perfect.") They fear that they have become inward looking, that they have become so concerned with outward behavior that they have fallen into legalism ("We don't smoke, dance, drink, or chew, or go out with girls who do.") and neglected the needs of a hurting world. One Nazarene professor is quoted as saying " A lot of folks who have been around the church awhile thought of themselves as being characterized by things they don't do: You don't smoke, you don't drink, you don't go to dances, and in some parts of the denomination, you don't wear makeup or go to clubs or some parts of society...That kind of Christianity loses steam quickly. Its not something you can give your whole life to."

This person is right. This kind of religion loses its steam. I myself did not grow up in any Christian tradition so I was not exposed to much of the legalism that many of my fellow seminarians were raised in, therefore, I have not had the same struggles they have had since childhood. I am aware of the inward, "forget about the rest of the world" mentality within the Wesleyan world. Yet, is it necessarily legalistic to live one's Christian life acccording to the Wesleyan doctrine of Entire Sanctification? Of course not.

Yes, Wesley and his followers proscribed certain practices which today we might not have a problem with. But what about those Evangelicals who were Wesley's contemporaries that did not agree with Wesley's theology. Did they not do the same? Can we logically conclude that their theology and legalism are synonymous? No. Did the Church's greatest articulator of Entire Sanctification confuse sanctification and legalism? No. Where the Nazarenes, Wesleyans, Free Methodists, Pilgrim Holiness Churches, etc., went wrong is a matter of debate. Yet one cannot fault the doctrine of entire sanctification itself. Are the Nazarenes studying Wesley in determining where they got off track?

This same professor is quoted as saying that the Wesleyan tradition was more a movement for social justice than social conservatism. I was a social conservative before Christ entered my heart. Social conservatism and holiness are not one and the same. It does appear that many in the body of Christ, not just in the Wesleyan branch, have too closely mingled the two. It is my hope that when Jesus's followers discover their error, they don't jettison holiness from their theology. Unfortunately, this seems to be a growing trend in some Christian circles. I don't know if this was the thinking behind the professor's comments. Yet how thoroughly can anyone have read Wesley and believe that Wesley emphasized charitable deeds over personal holiness? If one would read Wesley's own sermons on "The Sermon on the Mount", one would see how Wesley rooted the practice of charity in personal holiness.

If the Weslyans truly want to rethink their theology and practice, I hope that the reading of scripture and prayer are their first steps. But I also hope they consult Wesley when they determine for themselves whether the doctrine of Entire Sanctification needs to be reinvented.

I hope any one reading this article does not think I am singling out the Nazarenes for criticism. Nor am I questioning any specific person's commitment to Entire Sanctification. I met many Nazarenes in seminary whose knowledge of and commitment to Wesley's doctrine of Entire Sanctification is solid. I am not a member of the Nazarenes and it is not my intention to characterize it in any negative way. I am simply reacting to the article in Christianity Today. I welcome any feedback from Nazarenes regarding what I have written. The concerns I have expressed in the article can be applied to the entire Wesleyan branch of the Church, not just to the Nazarenes.

God Told Me The Potential Dangers Of Charismatic Renewal

I am thankful for the devotion and fervor for God found in the charismatic movement but Christians need to be made aware of the potential for abuse and heresy that can occur.

I would never deny the role of the Holy Spirit in the Church today regarding gifts, miracles and other manifestations but have become keenly aware of the abuses that can occur when the "spirit" is given "free" reign outside of any boundaries. (I mean after all, Catholics have 2000 years of documented eucharistic miracles, incorruptible saints, levitation, bilocation and other completely outrageous charismatic goings on) Poor St. Joseph of Cupertino having to wear heavy chains around his ankles to keep from levitating while at prayer! I hate when that happens.

The following 6 "potential dangers of charismatic renewal" are taken from the blog Per Christum. I had personally experienced and/or witnessed all of the following "Dangers" and have touched on many of them in my post "My personal conversion story."

1. "Illuminism" - i.e. folks believe God is telling them something unique that nobody else knows. There is a need to feel "special" and if God isn't telling you something unique or even mildly provocative, your credibility as a leader/follower is called into question. In my parents Sunday school class when I was in college, there were about 5 people who always said "God told me to..." whether it was which car to buy or even to get up in the morning. Not only does this destroy the free will God created us with, but how can you argue with "God told me..."?

2. "Paraclericalism" - a downplaying of the role of clergy, or even suggesting there is no need for the Church hierarchy. I have seen this attitude even among charismatic clergy! There is such an emphasis on the experience of the individual, that any kind of formality or hierarchy is looked down upon. The result for some Catholics is to downplay the role of the Holy Spirit acting in the Church, because the Church and her rules seem too "formal," and the hierarchy too "stifling." This leads some charismatic Catholics to become cafeteria Catholics, believing only in what gets them spiritually "excited."

3. "Charismania" - attributing excessive significance to the charisms while downplaying other spiritual acts. I have seen this, not so much firsthand, but from the testimony of others. Speaking in tongues or prophecy become the litmus tests for true spirituality, while feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, etc, are downplayed or even ignored. In some churches, the more outrageous the "charismatic" event, the more the Holy Spirit is deemed present. Unfortunately, this means the Holy Spirit is never allowed to work in a dignified and quiet manner.

4. "Neglect of Traditional Spirituality" - i.e. past spiritual experiences are downplayed or not even studied because it is all about what "I" am experiencing "now." This can also be seen when the traditional liturgy is "suspended" when the Spirit leads to be replaced by often questionable pet projects of the pastor. There is also a hostility to formality, and to suggest that something should be done a proper way (such as clerical dress or properly executing an essential part of the liturgy) is viewed suspiciously.

5. Tyranny of the Prophetic - This means that the prophetic, in this case referring to the illuminism mentioned above, can trump anything. In other words, if there is an objection to what the pastor is doing, the pastor just reminds the objectors that he talked to Jesus and "God told him..." and that settles it. 2000 years of Tradition is forced to submit to the private revelation of one pastor.

6. Cult of Personality - I have to add this after reading the comments to the post. One commenter makes a good point in that in some charismatic churches, and even charismatic movements, a cult of personality can develop around the pastor or leader. Despite a general suspicion of traditional hierarchy and church order among some charismatics, the pastor, who has been given special prophetic knowledge, is often viewed idealistically. The result is that he can do whatever he wants without discipline or question, including taking huge sums of money from the congregation. Why? Well it goes back to number 5 above. He has spoken with God. That settles it!

For my non-Catholic readers, I need to make certain it is understood that I do not discount the move of the Holy Spirit in our Church or non-Catholic fellowships. But to sum up "The Holy Spirit operating in the individual will not contradict the Holy Spirit operating in Christ's Church."(from David B. on Per Christum)

Credit: just-wicca.blogspot.com

Catholics Are Never Alone Happy All Saints Day

And neither are our non-Catholic brothers and sisters. Through the communion of saints as the early Christians proclaimed (Nicean Creed of 325 AD), we believe that the Church Triumphant (in heaven) is actively and effectively praying night and day for the believers here on earth. On a never-ending basis the saints cast their intercession for us before the throne of God and He hears their prayers to accomplish his purposes in our lives here on earth. Even if someone denies this intercession exists, it doesn't make our glorified brethren in heaven stop praying for them.

Some say we should just pray to Jesus alone but He has given us his mystical body to intercede to Him for us. Those same folks who say we should pray to Jesus alone have no problem asking other people to pray for them. That's what Catholics are doing as well, but we know that the ability of our holy brethren to pray for us doesn't end with their physical death. As a matter of fact we know their prayers are even more effective now that they are perfected in heaven.

So Happy All Saints to all my friends out there. You are never alone, take full advantage of the intercessions that are available to you. It's like a 24 hour prayer line that you can call with a 1-800 number, so there's no charge to you. You gain access to these wonderfully powerful prayer warriors based on faith. Through Him, with Him and In Him we can ask these things, AMEN.

"When in his frailty, a man invokes the saints, he invokes Christ, and without fail he will reach Christ whenever he calls upon their names, for wherever they are, they are in Christ and Christ is in them, and their name in Christ's name and Christ's name in their name." (Martin Luther)

Reference: wiccancommunity.blogspot.com

The New Evangelical Orthodoxy Relativism And The Amnesia Of It All

Im happy to have lived long enough to see that evangelicals are now embracing Karl Barth. Ive personally seen how theology evolves. Back in my seminary days one issue of interest was Neo-Orthodoxy, stemming from what most people think is the greatest theologian of the last century, Karl Barth. Wanting to be on the cutting edge I did my masters thesis on his doctrine of the word of God, since Barth sparked a debate among evangelicals over inerrancy. Harold Lindsells book, "The Battle for the Bible", was heavily discussed among us. Evangelicals did not like Barth and neither did I. Due to the onslaught of nineteenth century biblical criticism Barth was forced to deny natural theology and basically argued that although the Bible contained myths and legends, God still speaks through it. For Barth, the word of God was not to be located in the Bible itself. No. Rather, God speaks through it. Gods word, his revelation, takes place when God speaks to his people, and he can do so through myths, legends, and even a Russian flute concerto. It was described as the New (or Neo) Orthodoxy. It was all he could do to maintain his faith. To read up on those good old days see Robert Prices Inerrant the Wind: The Evangelical Crisis in Biblical Authority,where he made some predictions at that time which have proved to be true.Read more >>

The Joy Of Genuine Salvation

Thursday sunrise, my concord time led me to the book of Galatians. It was a very familiar footpath but no matter which began to churn in my attention to detail since I read repayment 1, verses 8-9:Galatians 1:8-9 But though we, or an angel from paradise, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we cart preached unto you, let him be accursed. As we assumed before, so say I now once again, If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye cart conventional, let him be accursed.Paul repeats himself in verse nine and I don't suppose it's for example he forgot what he assumed in verse 8! Underneath go by government of the Lovely Features of God, he penned a model that if somebody (whether man or angel) preached other gospel than what he had ahead of preached, let him be accursed. That word 'accursed' maneuver "inescapable to dent". One holy woman I heard assumed that it reasonably predestined to be damned to hell.That may gang difficult but introduce is a scary penchant leaving on in our churches today. One that is paving a good quality varnished path precisely to the pot of fire for numerous souls. That penchant is what we take "easy believe-ism". It is years preached from pulpits all sideways America and I can right be incorporated, sideways the world. It is the pay attention that you destitution come as you are and position as you were for example God loves you fine. It is a convenient sharply pack of unemotional reiterate this prayer whilst me and you'll cart your categorization to paradise. Sadly, nothing could be farther than from the truth.Equally loud is the Gospel? I mean, we are commanded to preach it to every creature so what is it? Equally is it that Paul assumed he had preached and that the church of Galatia was instructed to not praise ear to any other? The patch up is in 1 Cor. 15:1-4. Unfeigned simply put, it is the death, burial and revival of Jesus Christ.So, numerous preference say that is disc that all one needs to do is simply "accept - suppose - divulge" that Jesus died and was concealed and rose once again. Yet, that isn't absolutely it, for example the Bible says that even the devils suppose and beat (James 2:19). I don't know about you, but I don't repeatedly see a malefactor shockwave at the very said of a holy and unemotional God! My spouse has repeatedly assumed that if liberator were as simple as getting someone to reiterate a prayer, he'd go certain with a productive.38 and put it to grassroots heads and maintain they reiterate it. Now, how foolish would that be! Yet, numerous supposing nothing of now in church week whilst week anywhere their cleric mostly does the extraordinarily thing. "Ethical reiterate this prayer and you're in!"So, what is salvation? Jesus Christ completed liberator so simple that even a child can suppose. He even tells us that our prospect destitution be being unto a child. Liberation isn't in works or water or at all moreover but prospect in the Savior and His perfect work at Calvary. Nevertheless, liberator is likewise innermost. It is in the middle of the malefactor and the Savior. I try character to find me a "prayer" for liberator in the Bible. Also description of trade is different, unemotional as yours preference be different from mine. Existing are some things that destitution be the extraordinarily though.Previous, in true liberator, introduce preference always be count on. Suppose is that inaccurate representation of Jesus Christ, that wooing of the Lovely Features of God. It is the perceive of the wicked welcome of sin and the doubtfulness of liberator imperfect pity from a holy and honorable God. John 6:37, 44 All that the Leave giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I preference in no wise cast out. v44 No man can come to me, except the Leave which hath sent me ferry him: and I preference cancel him up at the luggage compartment day.Secondly, true liberator preference always bring trade. By definition, trade is a curve or redeploy from one welcome to another; a redeploy of crux. Together with trade, a malefactor is brought to remorse, to bag sides with God reluctant himself. Godly melancholy preference lead to biological remorse and liberator.2 Corinthians 7:10 For godly melancholy worketh remorse to liberator not to be repented of: but the melancholy of the world worketh death.And the fixed speed of true liberator is redeploy. Yesterday, a Facebook friend posted this in her status: "Wondering what it is about the world and unrighteous living that is so attractive to ancestors who are supposed to be bought and compensated for by the Savior." My set said was that utmost of the time it is for example they cart not exactingly been bought by the beloved blood of Jesus. How numerous hike certain today with the describe of "Christian" and are nothing of the pigeonhole. We make excuses for them being, "they're unemotional back-slidden" or "they've unemotional never developed", since in truth, they've never been new.2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he IS a new creature: old things are voted for away; observe, all things are become new.It is true that we cart periods in life anywhere we aren't as bordering to the Noble as we destitution be but the Bible promises us that if we are children of the Utmost High, he preference chasten us. If someone can plank in perpetual sin and they are not chastened, they do not belong to the Noble. Our cleric is sparkle for saying that the Noble doesn't correct the devil's children!You may be wondering why I am dissection this inwards - on a KJV blog site that is read close by lately by professing born-again believers. I'll articulate you why. I grew up in a Christian home, and I attended 12 time of Christian school. I completed a profession of prospect at 5 and so other at 9 (and unusual disdainful about my ancient time). I was baptized. I wedded a holy woman. I went to Bible college. Prerequisite to know since I got saved? On every occasion I was 27 time old and my spouse was ahead of in the ministry! Why? In the role of I grew up in an borough anywhere all I ever heard preached was a "reiterate whilst me" prayer (i.e. the Sinner's Mercy). I do not call for somebody test about count on, remorse, the inaccurate representation of the Lovely Features of God until the Noble in His kindness moved us to Florida and put us in a church anywhere it was preached. I could cart with ease died and gone to hell from my church pew, clinging to a crazy prayer. You are acknowledge to read my details. I do not force that for someone moreover. I don't force to abstract the truth in my hands and not allocate it!So, the patch up to the investigation, it is simply that I supposing ancestors of us that know the truth...that liberator isn't in a prayer but in a association with the Savior...requirement to money up and start dialogue the truth in love to ancestors who would take themselves believers but pocket no fruit and whose testimonies do not line up with the beloved Characterize of God. It is time to stand for the truth of the Gospel and not water it down to fit what get-together desires to hear. Jesus is the extraordinarily today as He was back so and his kindness is then again introduce for the plunder. If we would simply be tolerant and let the Noble work in hearts, considerably of having other assume to add to our church rolls, the Noble would positively bless and we would see true converts for His kingdom! Existing is handle in one malefactor that repents! Cheer the Lord!Luke 15:10 In the same way, I say unto you, introduce is joy in the ghost of the angels of God from side to side one malefactor that repenteth.
Karen Owen ~ Adorning ChicPastor's spouse, North Wood, NH

Religion Belief Reformed Doctrine Of Sanctification

Did the Reformers then have any doctrine of sanctification? Of course they did. We are all familiar with the biblical announcements as to what is involved in sanctification: the Word, the sacraments, prayer, fellowship, sharing the gospel, serving God and neighbor. And the Reformation tradition acknowledges that there are biblical texts that speak of sanctification as complete already. This is not a perfection that is empirical or observable, but a definitive declaration that because we are "in Christ," we are set apart and reckoned holy by his sacrifice (1 Cor. 1:30; Heb. 10 and so on). Anybody who is in Christ is sanctified, because Christ's holiness is imputed to the Christian believer, just as Jesus says in John 17:19, "For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified." God sees the believer as holy. That means that Wesley should not have terrified Christian brethren with texts such as, "Without holiness, no one will see the Lord." The Christian is holy; it is all imputed. And then there are texts such as, "Be holy as I am holy." What would the Reformers do with that? They would say we are called to be holy. But why should we be holy if we are already perfect in Christ? Because we are saved unto "good works", not unto licentiousness, according to Romans 6; the question has been asked before. Good works are done out of thankfulness of heart by the believer who "has been saved", not by one who is trying "to be saved".

Clearly the Reformers had a doctrine of sanctification. They believed that the law in the Bible has three uses. First, it is a "civil" ordinance to keep us from stealing each other's wives, husbands, and speedboats. The civil use of the law applies to the whole of culture. Second, the "theological" use of the law is to reveal our sin and drive us to despair and terror so that we will seek a savior. Luther believed that is a primary use of the law in all of Scripture. But the Reformers also believed in a third use of the law, and that is a "didactic" use, to teach the Christian God's will for holy living.

If a Christian is reading the law and says, "This is not yet true of me: I don't love God with all my heart, and I certainly don't love my neighbor as I love myself. In fact, just today I failed to help a poor man on the side of the road who was having car trouble. I must not yet be a Christian, " here the Reformers would counsel, "You hurry back to the second use of the law and flee to Christ where sanctification is truly, completely, and perfectly located." After this experience, the believer will feel a greater sense of freedom to obey, and this is the "only" way that one will ever feel free to obey. The difference between all Higher Life movements and the Reformation perspective finally turns on the question of what Baptists call the assurance of salvation and what the Reformers called "fides reflexa" (reflexive faith). The answer of the Higher Life movement to the struggling Christian is, Surrender more, or, What are you holding back from the Lord? The Reformation answer is different.

A friend of mine was walking down a street in Minneapolis one day and was confronted by an evangelical brother who asked, "Brother, are you saved?" Hal rolled his eyes back and said, "Yes." That didn't satisfy this brother, so he said, "Well, "when" were you saved?" Hal said, "About two thousand years ago, about a twenty minutes' walk from downtown Jerusalem."

The most important thing to remember is that the death of Christ was in fact a death even for Christian failure. Christ's death saves even "Christians" from sin. There is always "room at the cross" for unbelievers, it seems. But what we ought to be telling people is that there is room there for Christians, too. This, then, is what was meant earlier by the motif of law-gospel-law in many evangelical circles. The law condemns, driving us to Christ the gospel, from whom we receive both instantaneous justification and progressive sanctification for the rest of our lives, according to the Reformation perspective. While the law still guides, it can never make threats. But in contemporary evangelicalism, the law can come back to undermine the confidence of the gospel. It can still make threats; it can still condemn. There is wonderful grace for the "sinner," and the evangelical is at his best in evangelism. But the question as to whether there is enough grace for the sinful Christian is an open one in many gatherings, and I have had many students tell me, "My last state is worse than the first. I think I've got to leave the faith because feel worse now than I did before." I have had people come up to me after I had spoken and tell me, "This is about the last shot I've got. My own Christian training is killing me. I can understand how, before I was a Christian, Christ's death was for me, but I am not at all sure that his death is for now because I have surrendered so little to him and hold so much back. My trouble really began when I committed myself to Christ as Lord and Savior." That perversion can be the result of pastoral teaching, Sunday school curriculum, and the declarations of evangelical Christian leaders.

Instead, there must be a clear and unqualified pronouncement of the assurance of salvation on the basis of the fullness of the atonement of Christ. In other words, even a Christian can be saved. The other "gospel," in its various forms (Higher Life, legalism, the "carnal Christian" teaching, and so on) is tearing us to pieces. I must warn you that the answer to this devastating problem is not available on every street corner. It is available only in the Reformed tradition. This is not because that particular tradition has access to information other traditions do not possess. Rather, it is because the same debate that climaxed in that sixteenth-century movement has erupted since in less precise form. In fact, since Christ's debates with the Pharisees and Paul's arguments with the legalists, this has been "the" debate of Christian history. At no time since the apostolic era were these issues so thoroughly discussed and debated, as they were in the sixteenth century. To ignore the biblical wisdom, scholarship, and brilliant insights of such giants as the Reformers is simply to add to our ignorance the vice of pride and self-sufficiency. The Reformation position is the real evangelical position.

The only way out is an exposition of the Scriptures that has to do with "law" and "gospel"-an exposition of the Scriptures that places Christ at the center of the text for everybody, including the Christian. All of the Bible is about him. All of the Bible is even about him for the Christian!

I used to tell my students at an evangelical Christian college that they had never heard real preaching, with the exception of a few sound evangelistic appeals. Their weekly diet in the congregation was not, as it should have been, a proclamation of God's grace to them because of the finished and atoning death of Christ-God's grace for them "as Christians". That emphasis is desperately needed. And the only way to find that kind of preaching is to go back to when it was done, and it was done in the sixteenth century. The real hope for the church in the West, humanly speaking, lies with evangelicals. Barring an unusual act of God, the mainline churches are not going to get the church back on its feet. Generally speaking, they simply do not have a high enough view of the inspiration of Scripture to listen to it anymore.

The evangelicals do. They believe that the Scriptures are true, but tend to read them as a recipe book for Christian living, rather than for the purpose of finding Christ who died for them and who is the answer to their unchristian living. We must have that kind of renewal, and it can only come from the evangelicals. The evangelical movement in America must begin reading from the Reformers instead of pretending that they are committed only to the Bible, without any system of doctrine, when it is clear what books, tapes, and sermons have shaped their faith and practice. Another thing we are going to have to re-examine in connection with Christian growth is the question of the sacraments-not sacramentalism, but the very nature of the sacraments (baptism and the Lord's Supper), which receives far more attention in the Scriptures than in contemporary evangelical discussion and piety. We are going to have to talk about them again. The major themes of the Reformers are precisely the ones the evangelical must be encouraged to recover.

- ROD ROSENBLADT, "Conclusion, Christ Died for the Sins of Christians, Too, Christ the Lord (The Reformation and Lordship Salvation)", ed. Michael Horton (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock, 1992), 204-208 (italics original).

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