Volume II Contents
Protestants claim that, in the Mass, Catholics are "re-sacrificing" Jesus and denying the "once-for-all" saving power of the Crucifixion. They state that when Jesus said, "It is finished," (John 19: 30) from the cross, he was speaking of his perfect sacrifice, and our redemption. However, St. Paul tells us that our salvation is completed only by the surrection: "...if Christ has not been raised, your faith is in vain; you are still in your sins" (1 Cor. 15: 17). This command of Jesus was not about vocabulary. If it were, the New Testament writers themselves wouldn't have repeatedly used the word 'Father' to refer to human beings. Instead, Jesus was warning us against putting our faith and trust in a human being rather than God. We must never submit our innermost being to anyone other than God himself. Certainly if simply using the word, 'Father,' to refer to a human being were wrong, we would not find it used that way throughout the scripture. But we do: John 17: 11 -- "'I pray not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.'" Acts 17: 30 -- "God has overlooked the times of ignorance, but now he demands that all people everywhere repent because he has established a day on which he will 'judge the world with justice' through a man he has appointed, and he has provided confirmation for all by raising him from the dead." The times of ignorance are over; God has shown us the way through his Son, Jesus Christ. We have no more excuses for not following. Mormons, Adventists and various other non-Catholic groups claim that in the early days after Jesus' Ascension, the Catholic Church apostacized en masse. One problem with this theory is that, if true, Jesus' promise not to let the gates of the netherworld prevail against his Church must have been false. Another problem is that the early Church fathers are actually nearly uniform in their understanding of the faith. When we Catholics pray the Rosary, Protestants accuse us of disobeying Mt. 6:7, which states, "In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words." But the Rosary is scripture-based, and in praying it we are not emulating pagans, but the heavenly hosts: The word, 'graven,' means cut, or chiseled. The Father's commandment against graven images refers to the worship of idols shaped by human hands, in the style of the pagans. It clearly did not mean that all images are inherently evil -- neither statues in churches, nor photos in wallets. In fact, on several occasions God himself specifically directs the Israelites to fashion images of various types. So clearly it is the worship of such images that is an abomination, not the images themselves: Mt. 9: 20 -- "A woman suffering hemorrhages for twelve years came up behind him and touched the tassel on his cloak. She said to herself, 'If only I can touch his cloak, I will be cured'..." The cloak did not have power in its own right, but through the one who was wearing it. The crucifix is a symbol of the Paschal mystery, which tells us that, to share in the victory of the Resurrection, we must unite our suffering with that of the Lord in his Passion. We are reminded -- vividly -- that there is no birth to new life without a death to the old. Many who decide to convert from non-Catholic denominations to Catholicism suffer the most aggressive abuse from family or friends. Jesus of course tells us that following him comes with a price -- and that it's a price we should gladly pay, since he promises us our eternal reward will be immeasurably greater than anything we might suffer on earth. Mt. 18: 10 -- "...do not despise one of these little ones, for I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father." John 3: 13 -- "No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man." 1 Tim. 1: 20 -- "...Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan to be taught how not to blaspheme." 1 Tim. 5: 23 -- "Stop drinking water, but have a little wine for the sake of your stomach..." 1 Cor. 7: 32-34 -- "An unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord. But a married man is anxious about the things of the world, how he may please his wife." St. Paul is definite: For the spiritual person who is able to manage it, celibacy is the preferred mode of living. Gen. 18: 27 -- "Abraham spoke up again... 'I am but dust and ashes.'" Jesus was quite explicit about who he is and why he came. If he was wrong -- or if he was lying -- the temple leaders were totally justified in executing him. For he Jesus draws a clear distinction between himself and the Father, indeed, he refers to himself and the Father in Some teach that Michael the archangel was really Jesus, the second person of the Holy Trinity. This teaching dates back to the early centuries of the Church, when the Arians made the same case. It is based on strained interpretations of a few out-of-context scriptural passages which other scripture contradicts most decisively:
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JESUS' 'ONCE-FOR-ALL' SACRIFICE
Moreover, scriptures tell us that Jesus' sacrifice -- while it is undeniably a "once-for-all" event -- is nonetheless ongoing. Or, perhaps better put, it exists out of time. For it is referred to in present tense in scripture, as is the need for the faithful to sacrifice on an ongoing basis:
Zech. 14: 21 -- "And every pot in Jerusalem and in Judah shall be holy to the Lord of hosts; and all who come to sacrifice shall take them and cook in them."
This extended eschatological passage in Zechariah, beginning with 14: 1, describes "the day of the Lord." It may be interpreted variously as either the end times, or the time after the arrival of the Messiah. Either way, the ongoing sacrifice by the faithful ones is clear in the verse quoted above.
Thus, the once-for-all sacrifice did not cease on the first Good Friday, but continues. Also note the interesting association between the sacrifice and a meal. The Eucharist is clearly prophesied here.
Mal. 1: 11 -- "For from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, my name is great among the nations; And everywhere they bring sacrifice to my name, and a pure offering." Again, the sacrifice by the faithful, through the eternal priesthood of Jesus, is ongoing.
1 John 2: 1-2 -- "...if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous one. He is expiation for our sins, and not for our sins only but
for those of the whole world." St. Paul is referring to the expiation of Christ's sacrifice in the present tense, not the past.
Psalm 110: 4 -- "Like Melchizedek, you are a priest forever." This verse clearly establishes the Last Supper -- and therefore the Mass -- as a sacrifice. Since the Last Supper is the only point that Christ offers bread and wine, the Last Supper, is the sole point of comparison between the two. Which compels us to conclude that Jesus was indeed acting as priest" at the Last Supper, and that his sacrifice is "forever."
This very important verse is echoed in Heb. 5: 6; 5: 10 and 6: 20., 1 Cor. 11: 24 -- "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." In recent centuries, Protestant thinkers have latched onto the word, "remembrance," to bolster their view of the Sacrament of the Eucharist as symbol only. However, when an old friend visits -- in person -- we do a lot of recalling of old times together.
This nostalgic sharing could certainly be
termed a "remembrance." Loved ones can recall the past together more easily than they can apart. So the word "remembrance" implies nothing about the Real Presence, pro or con. Fr. Mitch Pacwa, a popular author and scholar, says that the Greek word
we translate as "remembrance" is a word that occurs very rarely in scripture and, when it does, is almost always associated with sacrifice.
Outside of the context of the Last Supper, the word is found in the New Testament only in Heb. 10: 3, where the "remembrance" is actually equated with the act of carrying out a sacrifice under the Mosaic law: "...in those sacrifices there is only the yearly remembrance of sins..." ,p> In the Old Testament, the word occurs in Lev. 23: 24, where we find it translated as "reminder": "...you shall keep a sabbath rest, with a sacred assembly and with the trumpet blasts as a reminder, you shall then do no sort of work, and you shall offer an oblation to the Lord." Notice the context of sacrifice. And in Num. 10: 10, we see the translation, "reminder," again: "On your days of celebration, your festivals, and your new moon feasts, you shall blow the trumpet over your holocausts and your peace offerings; this will serve as a reminder of you before your God."
Again, the clear reference is to "oblation," or sacrifice. So, if Jesus did not view the Last Supper -- or the Mass -- as a sacrifice, then he chose a very odd word -- this "remembrance" -- to instruct his followers to carry on the tradition. For when he says, "Do this in remembrance of me..." he is making a crystal-clear reference to sacrifice, one that his followers could not have possibly overlooked.
Heb. 8: 1-3 -- "...we have such a high priest, who has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, a minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle that the Lord, not man, set up. Now every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; thus the necessity for this one also to have something to offer." Again, our high priest, Jesus, is offering sacrifice -- present tense -- in
heaven. When a Catholic priest celebrates the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, he and all present are joining in that heavenly sacrifice, with the heavenly hosts, and with Jesus as high priest.
Rev. 5: 6 -- "Then I saw standing in the midst of the throne and the four living creatures and the elders a Lamb that seemed to have been slain." John's timeless vision of heaven includes Jesus' sacrifice -- again, not in past time but in the timeless present.
Scott Hahn, a former Protestant minister who is one of the Catholic Church's most renowned scripture scholars, has observed that the Book of Revelation is the description of the Mass being celebrated in heaven. With its offering of prayers of petition and thanksgiving; its messages of encouragement and admonition to the various communities of the faithful; the Presence of the Lamb who was sacrificed; the prostration, worship and endlessly repeated prayers, it is undeniably a liturgical celebration and sacrifice.
CALL NO MAN 'FATHER'
Lk. 16: 24 -- 'Father Abraham...' in the parable of Lazarus the beggar.
1 Cor. 4: 14-15 -- "I became your father..." Paul himself refers to himself with this word.
Acts 6: 12-15; 7: 1-2 -- Stephen calls scribes 'father'.
Rom. 4: 17-18 -- "...Abraham who is father of all..."
1 Thes. 2: 11 -- "...as a father treats his children..."
1 John 2: 13-14 -- "I write to you, fathers..."
Mt. 23: 8 -- "'As for you, do not be called 'Rabbi.' You have but one teacher, and you are all brothers.'" "Rabbi" means "teacher." The same people who object to priests being called 'Father' don't blink an eye at referring to their Sunday school 'teachers.'
UNITY
Phil. 1: 27-28 -- "Standing firm in one spirit, with one mind struggling together for the faith of the gospel, not ntimidated in any way by your opponents. This is proof to them of destruction, but of your salvation."
Phil. 2: 2 -- "...being of the same mind..."
1 John 2: 19 -- "They went out from us, but they were not really of our number; if they had been, they would have remained with us. Their desertion shows that none of them was of our number." Submission to apostolic authority is an important hallmark of salvation as well as faith.
SCHISM/APOSTASY
Jer. 14: 15-16 -- "Therefore, thus says the Lord: 'Concerning the prophets who prophesy in my name, though I did not send them... by the sword and famine shall these prophets meet their end. The people to whom they prophesy shall be cast out into the streets of Jerusalem by famine and the sword. No one shall bury them, their wives, their sons, or their daughters, for I will pour out upon them their own wickedness.'"
Mk. 13: 21-22 -- "'False messiahs and false prophets will arise and will perform signs and wonders in order to mislead... Be watchful! I have told it all to you beforehand.'"
2 Peter 2: 1-2 -- "...there will be false teachers among you, who will introduce destructive heresies and even deny the Master who ransomed them, bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their licentious ways..."
Mt. 7: 15-20 -- "'Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves.'"
Ezek. 22: 28 -- False prophets: "...pretending to visions that are false and performing lying divinations, saying, 'Thus says the Lord God,' although the Lord has not spoken."
Rev. 2: 15-16 -- "...you also have some people who hold to the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Therefore, repent. Otherwise, I will come to you quickly and wage war against them with the sword of my mouth."
Titus 3: 9 -- Heretics are condemned: "After a first and second warning, break off contact with a heretic, realizing that such a person is perverted and sinful and stands self-condemned."
1 John 2: 19 -- "They went out from us, but they were not really of our number; if they had been, they would have remained with us. Their desertion shows that none of them was of our number." Submission to authority is an important hallmark of faithfulness.
1 John 4: 6 -- "...anyone who knows God listens to us, while anyone who does not belong to God refuses to hear us. This is how we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit."
Dt. 17: 8-12 -- "Any man who has the insolence to refuse to listen to the priest... shall die."
2 Cor. 6: 14-15 -- "Do not be yoked with those who are different, with unbelievers. For what partnership do righteousness and lawlessness have? Or what fellowship does light have with darkness?"
Num. 12: 1-15 -- Miriam rebels: "Is it through Moses alone that the Lord speaks?
Does he not speak through us also?" Miriam is rendered leprous for her sin.
Num. 16: 1-35 -- Account of the revolt of Korah: "They stood before Moses and held an assembly against Moses and Aaron, to whom they said, 'Enough from you! The whole community, all of them, are holy; the Lord is in their midst. Why then should
you set yourselves over the Lord's congregation?' ...So they withdrew from the space around the Dwelling... And fire from the Lord came forth which consumed the two hundred and fifty men..."
Rom. 10: 3 -- "...in their unawareness of the righteousness that comes from God and their attempt to establish their own [righteousness], they did not submit to the righteousness of God."
THE 'GREAT APOSTASY'
If their teachings are non-apostolic, then where are the writings of those who remained firm in the faith and disputed these false teachings? There are no such writings.
Acts 20: 29-30 -- "I know that after my departure savage wolves will come among you, and they will not spare the flock. And from your own group, men will come forward perverting the truth to draw the disciples away after them."
Many point to this passage as a prophecy of 'the great apostasy' of the early Catholic Church. However, in no way does this passage predict the apostasy of the entire early Christian community. For the 'wolves' are said to come 'among' the believers. So many must have remained faithful to Jesus' teachings. Indeed, this prophecy arguably was fulfilled when two Catholic clergymen left the Church to become the two greatest heresiarchs of history -- Arius, and Luther. Both men originated from 'among' the faithful.
Peter 2: 1-2 -- "...there will be false teachers among you, who will introduce destructive heresies and even deny the Master who ransomed them, bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their licentious ways and because of them the way of truth will be reviled."
Again, this cannot be a prophecy of the entire Church apostacizing, since the 'false teachers' will be found 'among you' -- which is to say, among the true community of believers. Thus, the teachers are false, not the community. Again, Arius and Luther would seem to completely qualify as fulfillment of this prophecy.
VAIN REPETITIONS
Rev. 4: 8 -- "Day and night they do not stop exclaiming: 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God almighty, who was, and who is, and who is to come.'" If the angels and saints pray repetitively in heaven, then obviously Jesus was referring not to repetition per se, but to the insincerity and emptiness of the pagans' words.
GRAVEN IMAGES
Ex. 25: 18 -- God directed the Israelites to decorate the ark with images of angels:
"Make two cherubim of beaten gold for the two ends of the propitiatory, fastening them so that one cherub springs direct from each end. The cherubim shall have their wings spread out above..."
Ex. 37: 7-9 -- Two cherubim of beaten gold were made for the two ends of the propitiatory... They were turned toward each other, but with their faces looking toward the propitiatory."
2 Chron. 3: 10-13 -- Statues of two angels were constructed for the temple as well: "For the room of the holy of holies he made two cherubim of carved workmanship which were then overlaid with gold. The wings of the cherubim spanned twenty cubits..." This could never have been permitted if images were condemned in worship.
2 Chron. 4: 4 -- Twelve metal oxen stood in temple: "It rested on twelve oxen, three facing north, three west, three south, and three east, with their haunches all toward the center."
1 Kings 7: 29 -- Figures described in the temple: "On the panels between the frames there were lions, oxen, and cherubim; and on the frames likewise, above and below the lions and oxen, there were wreaths in relief."
1 Kings 6: 23 -- Under his own volition, Solomon had cherubim made for the temple; God did not command it: "In the sanctuary were two cherubim, each ten cubits high, made of olive wood."
Ezek. 41: 17-18 -- "...on every wall on every side in both the inner and outer rooms were carved the figures of cherubim..."
Heb. 9: 5 -- Description of the temple: "Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the place of expiation."
Ex. 26: 31 -- Embroidered images directed for the sanctuary of the ark: "You shall have a veil woven of violet, purple and scarlet yarn, and of fine linen twined, with cherubim embroidered on it."
Num. 21: 8 -- "...the Lord said..., 'Make a saraph and mount it on a pole, and if anyone who has been bitten looks at it, he will recover.' Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole..." This is, prima facie, a violation of
the supposed injunction against fashioning images of creatures, yet God himself commands it. So clearly the literalist interpretation -- that any fashioning of images of creatures is wrong -- must be faulty.
Ps. 138: 2 -- "I bow low toward your holy temple..."
Lev. 19: 30 -- "...reverence my sanctuary. I am the Lord."
John 3: 14-15 -- "And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
Is. 45: 20 -- "They are without knowledge who bear wooden idols and pray to gods that cannot save." It is the worship of false gods that is forbidden, not the simple fashioning of mages.
VENERATION OF RELICS
Acts 19: 11-12 -- Paul's face cloths heal the sick: "...when face cloths or aprons that touched his skin were applied to the sick, their diseases left them..."
2 Kings 13: 21 -- "...when the dead man came in contact with the bones of Elisha, he came back to life and rose to his feet."
Mt. 14: 35-36 -- People brought to him all those who were sick and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak, and as many as touched it were healed."
The earliest detailed account we have of martyrdom outside that of Stephen in Acts 7 is that of Polycarp, in 155 A.D. Even at this early date, we see the believers reverencing the relics of this beloved man: "When the centurion saw the contentiousness caused by the Jews, he confiscated the body and, according to their custom, burned it.
Then, at last, we took up his bones, more precious than costly gems and finer than gold, and put them in a suitable place. The Lord will permit us, when we are able, to assemble there in joy and gladness; and to celebrate the birthday of his martyrdom, both in memory of those who have already engaged in the contest, and for the practice and training of those who have yet to fight" ('The Faith of the Early Fathers,' Vol. 1, Jurgens, p. 31).
Note also the very early practice of celebrating "feast days."
CRUCIFIXES
2 Tim. 2: 11-12 -- "If we have died with him we shall also live with him; if we persevere we shall also reign with him."
Mt. 10: 38 -- "'...whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me.'" Jesus himself reminds us of his cross. Are we to turn away from it, or embrace it?
PERSECUTION
Mt. 5: 11-12 -- "'Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you [falsely] because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.'"
Mt. 10: 21-23 -- "'Brother will hand over brother to death, and the father his child; children will rise up against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by all because of my name, but whoever endures to the end will be saved.'"
Mt. 10: 25 -- "'If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of his household?'"
Mt. 10: 37-39 -- "'Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and whoever does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds
his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.'"
GUARDIAN ANGELS
Ps. 91: 11-12 -- "For God commands the angels to guard you in all your ways. With their hands they shall support you..."
Heb. 1: 13-14 -- "...to which of the angels has he ever said: 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool?' Are they not all ministering spirits sent to serve, for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?"
Ps. 34: 8 -- "The angel of the Lord, who encamps with them, delivers all who fear God."
Dan. 6: 23 -- "My God has sent his angel and closed the lions' mouths so that they have not hurt me."
Acts 5: 19 -- "...during the night, the angel of the Lord opened the doors of the prison, led them out, and said, 'Go and take your place in the temple area, and tell the people everything about this life.'"
HEAVEN CLOSED UNTIL JESUS' SACRIFICE
EXCOMMUNICATION
Mt. 16: 19 -- "Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."
Mt. 18: 17-18 -- "If he refuses to listen even to the church, then treat him as you would a Gentile or a tax collector. Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven..."
1 Cor. 16: 22 -- "If anyone does not love the Lord, let him be accursed."
DIETARY LAWS & ALCOHOL AS SIN
1 Tim. 4: 3 -- "They forbid marriage and require abstinence from foods that God created to be received with thanksgiving..."
Col. 2: 20-23 -- "...why do you submit to regulations as if you were still living in the world? 'Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!' These are all things destined to perish with use; they accord with human precepts and teachings. While they have a semblance of wisdom in rigor of devotion and self-abasement and severity to the body, they are of no value against gratification of the flesh."
The Protestant communities that forbid alcohol consumption claim to uphold the principle of 'sola scriptura.' Yet nowhere do we see the scriptures forbidding altogether the consumption of alcohol. Indeed, as we know, Jesus' first miracle was the transformation of water into wine.
CELIBACY
1 Cor. 7: 29 -- "I tell you, brothers, the time is running out. From now on, let those having wives act as not having them..."
1 Cor. 7: 37-38 -- The one who stands firm in his resolve, however, who is not under compulsion but has power over his own will, and has made up his mind to keep his virgin, will be doing well. So then, the one who marries his virgin does well; the one who does not marry her will do better.
ASH WEDNESDAY/LENTEN DEVOTIONS
Ex. 13: 19 -- "Tamar put ashes on her head and tore the long tunic in which she was clothed..."
Esther 4: 1-3 -- When Mordecai learned all that was happening, he tore his garments, put on sackcloth and ashes..."
Dan. 9: 3 -- "I turned to the Lord God, pleading in earnest prayer, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes. I prayed to the Lord, my God, and confessed..."
Job: 42: 6 -- "Therefore I disown what I have said, and repent in dust and ashes."
Jonah 3: 6-10 -- "When the new reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, laid aside his robe, covered himself with sackcloth and sat in the ashes. Then he had this proclaimed throughout Nineveh... 'Neither man nor beast, neither cattle nor sheep, shall taste anything; they shall not eat, nor shall they drink water... When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out.
Mt. 3: 1-6 -- "In those days, John the Baptist appeared, preaching in the desert of Judea saying, 'Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!'... John wore clothing made of camel's hair and had a leather belt around his waist. His food
was locusts and wild honey..."
Mt. 4: 2 -- "He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry."
Lk. 10: 13 -- "'Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.'"
Mt. 11: 21 -- "'Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would long ago have repented in sackcloth and ashes.'"
THE DIVINITY OF JESUS
said that he received the fullness of truth -- divine power -- from the Father. And he said that only the Father could grasp his perfect essence, just as Jesus alone could grasp the Father's.
John 8: 58 -- Jesus makes his nature clear: "'Amen, amen, I say to you, before Abraham came to be, I AM.'"
Acts 7: 59 -- In scripture, the faithful actually pray to Jesus: "As they were stoning Stephen, he called out, 'Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.'"
1 Cor. 1: 2-3 -- "...to you who have been sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be holy, with all those everywhere who call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus
Christ." St. Paul is definite about whose name the faithful are to call upon.
2 Peter 1: 1 -- "...to those who have received a faith of equal value to ours through the righteousness of our God and savior, Jesus Christ..." Peter could scarcely be more definite.
John 10: 30-33 -- "'The Father and I are one.' The Jews again picked up rocks to stone him. Jesus answered them, 'I have shown you many good works from my Father. For which of these are you trying to stone me?' The Jews answered him,
'We are not stoning you for a good work but for blasphemy. You, a man, are making yourself God.'" The Jews knew the significance of Jesus' statements about his nature. They were absolutely right about his claims. His only possible defense, of course, is that those claims are true.
John 5: 18 -- "For this reason the Jews tried all the more to kill him, because he not only broke the sabbath but he also called God his own father, making himself equal to God."
If Jesus' divinity was nothing more than a blunder by his followers, then why did he not correct the misapprehensions of the temple authorities and thus avoid a wretched and painful death?
Lk. 10: 18 -- "Jesus said, 'I have observed Satan fall like lightning from the sky. Behold, I have given you the power 'to tread upon serpents' and scorpions and upon the full force of the enemy and nothing will harm you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice because the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven.'"
Mt. 11: 27 -- "'All things have been handed over to me by my Father. No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and any one to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.'"
John 14: 6-10 -- "'Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own. The Father who dwells in me is doing his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else, believe because of the works themselves.'"
Acts 20: 28 -- "...you tend the church of God that he acquired with his own blood."
In this passage, "God" is the only possible antecedent of the pronoun, "he." Thus, St. Paul is clearly stating that Jesus is God, for Jesus is the one who shed "his own blood."
John 17: 3 -- Jesus' prayer reveals his true nature: "'Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ. I glorified you on earth by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do. Now
glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory that I had with you before the world began.'"
As evidence of Jesus' divinity, the New Testament writers make explicit parallels between Jesus and various Old Testament texts and prophecies that apply to God.
Here are a few of many such examples:
Ps. 16: 8-11 -- "I keep the Lord always before me; with the Lord at my right, I shall never be shaken..." See Acts 2: 25-28.
Ps. 68: 19 -- "You went up to its lofty height; you took captives, received slaves as tribute..." See Eph. 4: 8.
Joel 3: 5 -- "Then everyone shall be rescued who calls on the name of the Lord..." See Rom. 10: 13.
Is. 6: 10 -- "You are to make the heart of this people sluggish, to dull their ears and close their eyes; Else their eyes will see, their ears hear, their heart understand, and
they will turn and be healed." See John 12: 40.
Is. 45: 23 -- "To me every knee shall bend; by me every tongue shall swear." See Phil. 2: 10-11.
Dt. 10: 17 -- "For the Lord, your God, is God of gods, the Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome..." See Rev. 17:14, 19:16.
THE HOLY TRINITY
the plural, as "we." He is equally definite about the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, whom he promised to send to guide us.
John 14: 23 -- "Jesus answered and said to him, 'Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him. Whoever does not love me does not keep my words; yet the word you hear is not mine but that of the Father who sent me.'" Jesus here refers to himself and the Father in the plural, as "we." There is no clearer distinction than this.
John 17: 3 -- Jesus' prayer reveals the distinction between Father and Son: "'Now this is eternal life, that they should know you, the only true God, and the one whom you sent, Jesus Christ. I glorified you on earth by accomplishing the work that you gave me to do. Now glorify me, Father, with you, with the glory that I had with you before the world began.'"
John 14: 26 -- "'I have told you this while I am with you. The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name -- he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you.'"
John 6: 44 -- "'No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day.'"
Rom. 8: 14 -- "For those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God."
Acts 2: 3-4 -- "Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the holy Spirit and began to speak in different tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to proclaim."
The Holy Spirit is an active agent of inspiration and change, not simply an attitude or a reflection.
JESUS NOT AN ANGEL
Heb. 1: 5-8 -- "For to which of the angels did God ever say: 'You are my son; this day I have begotten you'? Or again: 'I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me'?
And again, when he leads the first-born into the world, he says: 'Let all the angels of God worship him.' Of the angels he says: 'He makes his angels winds and his ministers a fiery flame'; but of the son: 'Your throne, O God, stands forever and ever; and a righteous scepter is the scepter of your kingdom.'" This passage is an altogether explicit response to the ancient error that Jesus was an angel.
Heb. 1: 13 -- "But to which of the angels has he ever said: 'Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool'? Are they not all ministering spirits sent to serve, for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?" Here we have a direct response to the claim that Christ was a mere angel.
Dan. 10: 3 -- "...finally Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me." Michael is only 'one' of many. Jesus, of course, is alone and unique, and John 1 tells us that through him all of creation -- including the angels -- came to be.
Jude 9 -- "Yet the archangel Michael, when he argued with the devil in a dispute over the body of Moses, did not venture to pronounce a reviling judgment upon him but said, 'May the Lord rebuke you!'" Michael refers judgment to God. But unless he is
quoting scripture, Jesus himself never addresses God directly as 'Lord,' for that is a word we creatures use to address our Creator. But Jesus is not a creature, he is 'Lord.'
Col. 1: 16 -- "For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether thrones or dominations or principalities or powers; all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things." Angels, too -- including Lucifer himself -- were created through the Son. How likely is it that Jesus and Satan would duel as equals or near-equals?
Col. 2: 18 -- "Let no one disqualify you, delighting in self-abasement and worship of angels, taking his stand on visions, inflated without reason by his fleshly mind, and not holding closely to the head, from whom the whole body, supported and held together by its ligaments and bonds, achieves the growth that comes from God."
1 Thes. 4:16 -- "For the Lord himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first." This is one of the primary texts used by those who
claim Jesus is an archangel.
However, if Jesus were really an archangel, then "like an archangel" would be the last phrase St. Paul would use to describe the sound of his voice. For who would ever describe an experience of hearing a lion
with the sentence, "It had a roar like a lion"?
Rev. 19: 10 -- "I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, 'Don't! I am a fellow servant of yours and of your brothers who bear witness to Jesus. Worship God.'" The angel here makes a major distinction between himself and the Lord.
He is clearly showing deference to Jesus.
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