Originally Posted by approaching_arm
Hi Timonator,
I am a Protestant who is also an adjunct faculty member at a Roman Catholic graduate school of theology. (I teach Aquinas’s philosophy to Dominicans.) So I’m in a unique position to answer your question.
There is a venerable tradition of interpretation in classical Protestantism according to which the pope is the Antichrist. This claim has surprisingly strong Biblical support, and I just published a book in which I explain and defend the claim. (If you’re interested, it is entitled Approaching Armageddon: Disaster, War and Persecution. You’d be especially interested in chapters 3, 4 and 5.) Either way, historical Protestants believed that the Catholic Church is and was a real Christian church, but they also believed that it was a sin to be a member of this church due to its backsliding from the truth. It seems that later Protestants were unable to understand how the pope could be the Antichrist and the Roman Catholic Church could be a real church.
I agree with the classical Protestant position. The pope is the Antichrist and we shouldn’t be members of the Catholic Church. Nevertheless, it is a Christian church with a valid baptism.
First a note about Dan’s teaching: He teaches philosophy; which if I understand it correctly deals with the “Science of Critical Thinking.” So he ought to be effective in this role. He’s not after-all teaching Neophyte Catholics?
I’m not yet sure if Dan really beleives what he is saying; [he is after all, a teacher] which by the way is not a reference to past or our Present Supreme Pontiff. It seems to me to be prophsey to be filled sometime in the future?
The issues I have with his position are two:
- The Credibility of God’s Actions
- The Credibility of God’s Inspired word…The Bible.
God can be described as “All and every GOOD thing PERFECTED.” God can only “be Good”, but God can and dos permit evil. Again gthere are two reasons for this:
- ALWAYS for the Glorification of God
- For the possible sanctification of one or some. POSSIBLE, here being the key word.
Because of the Incarnation; the Passion and Death, and the REASONS for the Ressurection; and of immense significane; the Catholic Eucharist; wherein Christ REALLY and Truly remains in our Midst; one cannot question the Love of God for humanity; for God’s overwhelming Desire to be is a personal realtionship with us; and the fact that God is the CC [in a real sense] and neither can abandon Her, or it’s teachings on Faith Beliefs and Morals. God has given abundant evidence of this FACT.
Now as form the WORD of God: **John 1: 1-5 ** “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.
[4] In him was life, and the life was the light of men. **The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” ** And this is but the introduction to THEE Singular truth.
**2nd. Tim. 3:16 **"2Tim.3:16 “All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,”
Matt.16:19 “I
Jesus’ perfect God] will give you **[Did; Have; Done] ** the keys of the kingdom of heaven,
ALL OF THEM] and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”
So access to heaven in the very Power of and From God is Given to Peter; the CC; and successors [Mt. 28:19-20]. … Jn. 20:19-22 "On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being shut where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ***“Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I send you.” ***[22] And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. "
So just as Jesus came in the name of the “Thee Father and with His Power,” so too now the Church Led by Peter and the Apostles are similarly empowered and COMMANDED.
**John 14: 16-17 ** And I will pray the Father, and he will give you another Counselor,
to be with you for ever,Again :did and DONE!] even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him; you know him,
for he dwells with you, and will be in you."
In **Mt. 28:20 **Jesus promises [a perfect God can’t lie] to remain "forever with the Church to Guide and Protect her Truts and Teachings]… John.17:15 to 19 " “I do not pray that thou shouldst take them out of the world, but that thou shouldst keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. *Sanctify them in the truth; thy word is truth. * **As thou didst send me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. **[19] **And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be consecrated in truth.” **
No other Faith, no other Church, no other Church leader has the very Presence of Christ to protect and Guide Him WHEN officially teaching of Faith-Beleif issues and or Morals; they simply cannot be; absolutely impossible to be in error.
From all of this [more but limited space], one can conclude that God remains in Charge!
Dan’s opinions are simply andONLY that: Dan’s opinions
God Bless you Dan!
Pat
