Roman Catholicism is an Incredible Religion.
Except for the Apocrypha, the Catholic Bible is identical to mine……….as far as I have seen.
They read the same words from Jesus as I do……
And from Paul and Peter and James and John and Matthew and Luke and others…….
They call a man “Holy Father”
And in a blog entitled Catholic Answers, they justify it by saying…..
“Since we are his holy people, and his people are the Church,
it is fitting that the head of his holy people be called Holy Father
—not because of his own merit, but because Christ died for him and for the Church that he leads on earth.”
And they believe the Holy Father is Infallible with this explanation…
“Infallibility belongs in a special way to the pope as head of the bishops (Matt. 16:17–19; John 21:15–17). As Vatican II remarked, it is a charism the pope “enjoys in virtue of his office, when, as the supreme shepherd and teacher of all the faithful, who confirms his brethren in their faith (Luke 22:32), he proclaims by a definitive act some doctrine of faith or morals. Therefore his definitions, of themselves, and not from the consent of the Church, are justly held irreformable, for they are pronounced with the assistance of the Holy Spirit, an assistance promised to him in blessed Peter.”
These are phenomenal statements!
We read the same book…….the same words………the same truth!!!
Whats missing?
Eldredge gives a great explanation in Walking with God…..
We need God to help us understand his Word.
We can’t separate a walk with God from our reading of Scripture.
The two go hand in hand. Like having a tour guide as you wander the halls of the Louvre.
“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth.
The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him.
But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:15–17).
Too many people approach Scripture without an intimacy with God,
and they either end up frustrated because they’ve gotten so little out of it or,
far worse, amass an intellectual understanding quite apart from any real communion with God. It usually results in religious pride.
Eldredge, John (2010-09-19). Walking with God: Talk to Him. Hear from Him. Really. (pp. 47-48). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
So what is missing?
Eldredge makes it clear…..
The Bible is not a magic book. It doesn’t reveal its treasures simply because you read a passage. It doesn’t make you holy simply because you hold it in high esteem. Many cults use the Bible. Even Satan quotes Scripture (see Luke 4:9–12). We need the Bible and all it has to say to us. Desperately. We also need the Spirit of God to guide us in our reading and study. “All this I have spoken while still with you,” Jesus said, as he was preparing his followers for life after his departure. “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you” (John 14:25–26).
Eldredge, John (2010-09-19). Walking with God: Talk to Him. Hear from Him. Really. (p. 47). Thomas Nelson. Kindle Edition.
So this is not magic, but it is Supernatural……
And the only way I can understand the truth in the book is through the supernatural power of the Holy Spirit
God removed the veil and I understand
And what I believe and interpret is quite different from the Romans……
Who is right?