Does the Catholic Church teach from the Bible?

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Jerome was AGAINST the expanded books… This preface to the Scriptures may serve as a helmeted * introduction to all the books which we turn from Hebrew into Latin, so that we may be assured that what is outside of them must be placed aside among the Apocryphal writings. Wisdom, therefore, which generally bears the name of Solomon, and the book of Jesus the Son of Sirach, and Judith, and Tobias, and the Shepherd [of Hermes?] are not in the canon. The first book of Maccabees is found in Hebrew, but the second is Greek, as can be proved from the very style. --JEROME Prologue to the Books of the Kings<3+

Quote:
Originally Posted by Melchior_
You’re a bit all over the place here, and the formatting makes it difficult to read your posts…

Charismatic Catholics align themselves with the Holy See. They use complete Bibles, Bibles which the Catholic Church compiled and put together. This is historical fact that the Canon was officially established by Pope Damasus in ~380-ish AD. We have letters written by St. Jerome which verify this.

All Catholics have the Holy Spirit. Those involved in the charismatic renewal place an emphasis on the Holy Spirit in a different fashion than others, but is no less and no greater than other Catholics.

In Acts 2:41-42, we find the first converts welcoming Peter’s message, being baptized, devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of the bread and prayers. As Catholics, we follow in their footsteps. We have the apostolic succession, the magisterium of the universal Church which has been entrusted with handing down sacred Tradition intact as received directly from Christ and protected by the Holy Spirit. This brings us back again to the concluding paragraph in Chapter 2 of the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation. Sacred Tradition, Sacred Scripture, and the teaching authority of the Church (magisterium) are “so linked and joined together that one cannot stand without the others, and each in its own way under the action of the Holy Spirit contribute effectively to the salvation of souls.”

St. Hilary, discoursing on the psalms, describes how we experience the first stirring of the Holy Spirit through the Sacrament of Baptism, “as we gain knowledge of prophecy, speech full of wisdom, security in our hope, gifts of healing, and dominion over the devils made subject to us. These gifts, like drops of liquid permeate our inner self, and so beginning little by little produce fruits in abundance.”

St. Ignatius of Antioch called on the holy church in Tralles to regard the clergy as apostles of Jesus Christ. “You will be safe enough as long as you do not let pride go to your head and break away from Jesus Christ and your bishop and the apostolic institutions. To be inside the sanctuary is to be clean; to be outside it, unclean. In other words, nobody’s conscience can be clean if he is acting without the authority of his bishop, clergy, and deacons.”*
 
The clergy are ABSOLUTELY TO BE SEEN as representatives of the apostles. AND SOME OF THEM ARE FALSE–LISTEN TO THE APOSTLES THEMSELVES WHO AGREE WITH JESUS! KNOW THAT WE ARE TO CHECK THE ‘REPRESENTATIVES’! HOW? WITH THE WORD!<3+
WendyDischler said:
Jerome was AGAINST the expanded books… This preface to the Scriptures may serve as a helmeted * introduction to all the books which we turn from Hebrew into Latin, so that we may be assured that what is outside of them must be placed aside among the Apocryphal writings. Wisdom, therefore, which generally bears the name of Solomon, and the book of Jesus the Son of Sirach, and Judith, and Tobias, and the Shepherd [of Hermes?] are not in the canon. The first book of Maccabees is found in Hebrew, but the second is Greek, as can be proved from the very style. --JEROME Prologue to the Books of the Kings<3+

Quote:
Originally Posted by Melchior_
You’re a bit all over the place here, and the formatting makes it difficult to read your posts…

Charismatic Catholics align themselves with the Holy See. They use complete Bibles, Bibles which the Catholic Church compiled and put together. This is historical fact that the Canon was officially established by Pope Damasus in ~380-ish AD. We have letters written by St. Jerome which verify this.

All Catholics have the Holy Spirit. Those involved in the charismatic renewal place an emphasis on the Holy Spirit in a different fashion than others, but is no less and no greater than other Catholics.

In Acts 2:41-42, we find the first converts welcoming Peter’s message, being baptized, devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of the bread and prayers. As Catholics, we follow in their footsteps. We have the apostolic succession, the magisterium of the universal Church which has been entrusted with handing down sacred Tradition intact as received directly from Christ and protected by the Holy Spirit. This brings us back again to the concluding paragraph in Chapter 2 of the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation. Sacred Tradition, Sacred Scripture, and the teaching authority of the Church (magisterium) are “so linked and joined together that one cannot stand without the others, and each in its own way under the action of the Holy Spirit contribute effectively to the salvation of souls.”

St. Hilary, discoursing on the psalms, describes how we experience the first stirring of the Holy Spirit through the Sacrament of Baptism, “as we gain knowledge of prophecy, speech full of wisdom, security in our hope, gifts of healing, and dominion over the devils made subject to us. These gifts, like drops of liquid permeate our inner self, and so beginning little by little produce fruits in abundance.”

St. Ignatius of Antioch called on the holy church in Tralles to regard the clergy as apostles of Jesus Christ. “You will be safe enough as long as you do not let pride go to your head and break away from Jesus Christ and your bishop and the apostolic institutions. To be inside the sanctuary is to be clean; to be outside it, unclean. In other words, nobody’s conscience can be clean if he is acting without the authority of his bishop, clergy, and deacons.”*
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WendyDischler said:
Jerome was AGAINST the expanded books
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Because he thought that the Palestinians of his own day were using the same canon of Scriptures as Jesus and the Apostles - but yet he include the entire Canon of the Old Testament, out of obedience to the Church - thus setting a good example to us all, that we must obey the Church even when we disagree - and then it turns out that, hey, the Church was right, how about that. 🙂

There are many Protestant groups who now use the 46-book Old Testament because they have in recent years discovered that it is in fact the one that Jesus used. 👍
 
jmcrae said:
Because he thought that the Palestinians of his own day were using the same canon of Scriptures as Jesus and the Apostles - but yet he include the entire Canon of the Old Testament, out of obedience to the Church - thus setting a good example to us all, that we must obey the Church even when we disagree - and then it turns out that, hey, the Church was right, how about that. 🙂

There are many Protestant groups who now use the 46-book Old Testament because they have in recent years discovered that it is in fact the one that Jesus used. 👍
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There were 2 groups of Jews in the few centuries before Jesus.
Palestinian Jews spoke mainly Hebrew while the Jews scattered throughout the Roman Empire spoke Greek, a result of the conquest of Alexander the Great.
Palestinian Jews used 4 criteria for including which books to keep in the Jewish canon:
(1) They had to be in harmony with the Pentateuch; (2) They had to be written before the time of Ezra; (3) They had to be written in Hebrew; (4) They had to be written in Palestine.
This eliminated Judith, written in Aramaic; Wisdom and 2 Maccabees written in Greek; 1 Maccabees and Sirach written after Ezra; Baruch written outside Palestine, as well as Tobit and parts of Daniel and Esther.
It is not until the Reformation that the Alexandrine Canon, the Jewish canon of the Greek–Roman tradition from which Jesus Himself quoted was challenged by Christians. The disputed books are called deuterocanon. [Source: Catholic Answer Bible]
 
guanophore said:
I find it presumptuous of you to come to a Catholic forum and instruct Catholics in how to believe and express their faith. “This goes for all Catholics”. Honestly! When did the Sacred college of cardinals announce the death of the Pope, and elect you to replace him?

.
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Since when did the Sacred college of cardinals elect Peter? <3+Wendy Dischler–Postscript: The Rules says not to use Multiple “Quotes” 🙂
 
WendyDischler said:
Since when did the Sacred college of cardinals elect Peter? <3+Wendy Dischler–Postscript: The Rules says not to use Multiple “Quotes” 🙂
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They didn’t, hon – he was appointed. By Jesus. Personally, I take Jesus’ action as authoritative. If you choose not to, that’s your decision.
 
In my humble protestant opinion they draw on it indirectly.

As an Evangelical I believe the only authority of God comes from the Bible which is literal and inerrant. But the Catholic Church also believes in Apostolic Succession, Church doctrine and tradition and law, natural law, doctors of the Church, authority of Jesus, then they’ve got a hierarchy of bishops, theologians, and of course at the top the Pope who can say just about anything within reason.

It’s so complex it makes my mind hurt.
 
mitex said:
In my humble protestant opinion they draw on it indirectly.

As an Evangelical I believe the only authority of God comes from the Bible which is literal and inerrant. But the Catholic Church also believes in Apostolic Succession, Church doctrine and tradition and law, natural law, doctors of the Church, authority of Jesus, then they’ve got a hierarchy of bishops, theologians, and of course at the top the Pope who can say just about anything within reason.

It’s so complex it makes my mind hurt.
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Originally Posted by InJesusItrust
The Catholic Church canonized the Bible. How can the Bible be infallible if the Church that produced it does not have the blessing to infallibly teach? The Bible calls the Church the pillar of truth, and also how did the first Christians worship without a Bible?

How can the Bible be infallible if the Church that produced it does not have the blessing to infallibly teach? The Bible can be infallible–Jesus Says, “The Scripture cannot be broken”–because GOD WROTE IT AND GOD ASSEMBLED IT. “All Scripture is Inspired by God,” THE BIBLE SAYS–GOD SAYS. <3+WENDY DISCHLER–I AGREE WITH YOU AS PER THE LORD
 
“The Bible calls the Church the pillar of truth”… Remember the church is the pillar of Truth–which is JESUS–and NOT the Truth, ITSELF. THE CHURCH UPHOLDS JESUS. JESUS IS THE TRUTH.

THE CHURCH IS BEING PERFECTED, ACCORDING TO THE BIBLE. THE CHURCH IS NOT PERFECT YET–Ephesians 4:11 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;

12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:

13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ…

THE SPIRIT OF GOD IS PERFECT THAT WORKS IN THE CHURCH THROUGH THE GIFTS GIVEN TO THE ABOVE PEOPLE AND THE TRUTH TO BE RECOGNIZED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT IN EACH ONE OF US AS ORIGINALLY BY WHICH WE ARE ANOINTED–1 JOHN 2:27–:

But you have received the Holy Spirit, and he lives within you, so you don’t need anyone to teach you what is true. For the Spirit teaches you everything you need to know, and what he teaches is true–it is not a lie. So just as he has taught you, remain in fellowship with Christ.

<3+

Originally Posted by InJesusItrust
The Catholic Church canonized the Bible. How can the Bible be infallible if the Church that produced it does not have the blessing to infallibly teach? The Bible calls the Church the pillar of truth, and also how did the first Christians worship without a Bible?
 
mitex said:
In my humble protestant opinion they draw on it indirectly.

As an Evangelical I believe the only authority of God comes from the Bible which is literal and inerrant. But the Catholic Church also believes in Apostolic Succession, Church doctrine and tradition and law, natural law, doctors of the Church, authority of Jesus, then they’ve got a hierarchy of bishops, theologians, and of course at the top the Pope who can say just about anything within reason.

It’s so complex it makes my mind hurt.
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Bishop Fulton Sheen spoke eloquently about using the Bible only when trying to evangelize. Different religions have their own sacred books and make the same type of statements. Muslims believe Mohamed received the Koran directly from God’s hand, although he was illiterate. The reality is that the word did not drop out of the sky in written form. It came to us incarnate as man.
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 came to be through Him, and without Him nothing came to be. What came to be through Him was life, and this life was for the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.
And the Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us, and we saw His glory, the glory of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth. (John 1:1-5,14)

One problem with merely looking at the written Word is that different people will read the same words differently, depending on how they emphasize different words within individual sentences. The Apostles spent three years with Jesus, learning directly from Him. What they learned is what Catholics mean when we speak about Tradition, not to be confused with tradition (customs). The Apostles left bishops as their successors, “handing over” to them the authority to teach in their place. This teaching authority is what we mean by the Magisterium. We submit to this authority in the same way that the early Christians submitted to the teaching of the Apostles (see Acts 2:42).
As we individually grow in our understanding of God’s Word, by the help of the Holy Spirit, the Church also develops in its understanding of Christ’s teachings. There is a depth to our Faith that can never be fathomed while the basic tenets are contained within the Apostles Creed.
 
When you mean church do you mean the teaching authority of the bishops, or of the church in the whole? When you speak of the Church in the whole, all those who attend congregationally, or Only Those Who Believe? Do you mean he obeyed THE POPE? Or do you mean he obeyed a MAJORITY RULE? What do you mean? <3+Wendy–THANK YOU!!
jmcrae said:
Because he thought that the Palestinians of his own day were using the same canon of Scriptures as Jesus and the Apostles - but yet he include the entire Canon of the Old Testament, out of obedience to the Church - thus setting a good example to us all, that we must obey the Church even when we disagree - and then it turns out that, hey, the Church was right, how about that. 🙂

There are many Protestant groups who now use the 46-book Old Testament because they have in recent years discovered that it is in fact the one that Jesus used. 👍
Click to expand...
 
WendyDischler said:
When you mean church do you mean the teaching authority of the bishops, or of the church in the whole? When you speak of the Church in the whole, all those who attend congregationally, or Only Those Who Believe? Do you mean he obeyed THE POPE? Or do you mean he obeyed a MAJORITY RULE? What do you mean? <3+Wendy–THANK YOU!!
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I mean that, the Councils of Hippo, Carthage, and Rome (Bishops who were loyal to Rome) discerned the Books of the Bible - both the Old and the New Testaments - and that the Pope ratified their findings, promulgated them to the Church, and employed St. Jerome to create a suitable translation for use at Mass throughout the whole of the known world.
 
I had considered this as well.

I have noticed, after moving from one church to another that some parishes are not as well funded or as well staffed as others. This being said, there is a discrepancy in the quality of the education, though the information is the same. Most CCE teachers I have met are volunteers and thus they have no formal training on how to educate or handle a room full of active wonderful little people! A lot can be missed simply because they are not sure how to communicate to the younger children who may not have an extremely well developed grasp of a concept as abstract as God.

I would highly recommend volunteering your time and (name removed by moderator)ut in the CCE program. It could certainly use some more interested and dedicated volunteers! Also donations of children’s bibles. Maybe you could even start as children’s bible reading book club and make it exciting for the little ones to read from the Bible!
 
The authority from God comes from God Himself, of course! “…the Scripture cannot be broken…” as Jesus Christ Said! That is true. The book ITSELF does a work without any other help AND it MUST be interpreted by the Holy Spirit for the Holy Spirit WROTE it. Many who choose their “private interpretation” are way off on the Godly interpretation. Does God use one scripture to fulfil many intended Purposes? Yes. Is HIS way the way to understand it in any given situation? YES, not our own. Scripture alone WITHOUT Holy Spirit is words on a page that are mixed and matched and “wrested” to the “destruction” of those who are “unlearned,” and “unstable,” according to the apostle Peter, if I am not mistaken–checking… 2 Peter 3:16. Catholics are correct in specifying that Holy Spirit led people are the interpreters of the Bible as Philip was for the Ethiopian eunuch–those among “you who are spiritual,” guide the others; some are carnal, and some are spiritual. There IS a guiding force.

As well, apostles were given authority to “rule the household”; rather, they are stewards, as Jesus said. In that regard, they are to PASS DOWN what the apostles were to pass down. What were they to pass down? The words GOD crystallized as scripture say, “Teaching all that I have commanded you.” WHEN WE SEE that the commands given to us as scripture to check all the rest against have been subverted by the teachings, then we know that things are out of order. We are to agree with THE ORIGINAL CHURCH. Folks get to set up a household SO THAT THEY CAN RUN IT. They are limited, you know. They have that authority, but NOT to hand down THEIR OWN TRADITION.

Bishops–INCLUDING THE POPE–were set in Place by Christ Jesus indirectly through his assigning the apostles to carry on his teaching and their assigning bishops to carry on their teaching! Their teaching ought never to contravene the teaching of Jesus Christ! There IS a hierarchy of passing down from one to another! They made sure that authorized people–who knew the truth–were teaching. There were false apostles… We know that many teachers were teaching their own ideas not handed down from the apostles even from people like Hippolytus who himself separated from the greater body for a time in disgust.

THE TRUTH makes the church. THE CHURCH does not make the truth. “The anointing” which is in us–tells us the truth! God also called people outside the hierarchy who taught without the authority of the apostles on direct authority from God: Paul. <3+Wendy
mitex said:
In my humble protestant opinion they draw on it indirectly.

As an Evangelical I believe the only authority of God comes from the Bible which is literal and inerrant. But the Catholic Church also believes in Apostolic Succession, Church doctrine and tradition and law, natural law, doctors of the Church, authority of Jesus, then they’ve got a hierarchy of bishops, theologians, and of course at the top the Pope who can say just about anything within reason.

It’s so complex it makes my mind hurt.
Click to expand...
 
mitex said:
In my humble protestant opinion they draw on it indirectly.

As an Evangelical I believe the only authority of God comes from the Bible which is literal and inerrant. But the Catholic Church also believes in Apostolic Succession, Church doctrine and tradition and law, natural law, doctors of the Church, authority of Jesus, then they’ve got a hierarchy of bishops, theologians, and of course at the top the Pope who can say just about anything within reason.

It’s so complex it makes my mind hurt.
Click to expand...
I used to think the same thing, that the church had a person that can say just about anything. I am a neophyte to the Catholic church, and believe me I have done my research in just about every direction you can imagine.

Yes, we believe in apostolic succession, but there are many reasons we believe this. Firstly, Jesus said that he would build his church upon this rock (Peter). Peter was the first Pope in effect.

Interestingly, enough, the Bible was written down after the apostolic tradition began, rather than before it. As such, that means that Christianity had to, at one time, be an oral tradition. Thus tradition is immensely important!

I am uncertain if you have ever been to a Catholic Mass, but a huge portion of it, 70% is read directly from the Bible! The texts read are in cycles, but if you were to attend daily as well as Sunday Mass and Holy Days of Obligation you would work your way entirely through the Bible.

I know you believe the Bible is the only authority, but I ask you to find THAT in the Bible? As I said, the Bible was written down after the apostolic succession. Thus, it would be difficult for Jesus to follow an unwritten book.
 
“Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain a better resurrection;” Hebrew 11:35, is an instance of Paul referring to what seems to be in the Deuterocanonical portion of the Septuagint version of the scriptures. This was a story in Maccabees–truly horrific.

Paul said, “Preach the Word, in season, out of season,” 2 Timothy 4:2. The Word they had was the old testament. Obviously, Paul’s telling Timothy to do what he did was the first time Timothy had ever read that, just receiving the Letter! It was not common knowledge, YET, at LEAST IN PRINTED FORM.

Believers had the Word, ALWAYS, handed down from earliest times as it was assembled over the ages as reported within ITSELF–from Moses and from his successors, for instance, from kings/prophets…the very scriptures which Jesus Said Spoke of HIMSELF. “PREACH THE WORD”… Jesus used it to confirm his identify. He always upheld the scriptures.

The first Christians heard the apostles preaching based on the Old Testament as interpreted by THE HOLY SPIRIT–CHRIST HIMSELF. Their preaching HAD to match the holy scriptures, and that is how the Bereans checked the apostles out TO KNOW THEY WERE TRUE.

Many people interpret scriptures different ways. There is only ONE way that is correct, and THAT applicable in many different ways by the Spirit WHO WROTE IT. THE SPIRIT wrote it and inspired men and women to record THE WORD–yes, women as in the mother of King Lemuel who provided the words of the end of Proverbs…

Did Moses have all the words WE have? No. The Word HE gave from GOD said NOT TO ADD TO THE WORD. Did the prophets coming after, whom we have recorded in the Bible, “add” to the Word? NO! THEY transmitted THE WORD OF GOD. THEY did not add to the Word. They GAVE WORD.

Did the people understand it? NO. They missed Christ, WHEN HE CAME. The Word Spoke of him. NO. They missed the POINT–which GOD had always made. DO GOOD TO ONE ANOTHER–THIS IS NOT ABOUT SACRIFICES! Jesus came with THE POINT. They were STILL missing it. THAT is the Bible the Christians had… GOD added to it with the words of the apostles and their fellowworkers such as John Mark and Luke… GOD decides WHAT WILL BE CODIFIED NO MATTER WHAT WE DO. GOD will TODAY guide a believer to read the RIGHT BOOKS THE RIGHT WAY–and that Holy Spirit led person is to LEAD THE CHURCH: “those spiritual among you,” help the rest… As for other helpful books mentioned in the Bible, such as the Book of Jasher and others, or quoted from, such as in the Book of Jude, they are NOT scripture BUT MAY BE USED AS GOD LEADS… THE BIBLE IS ALL YOU NEED–is what the Bible says–AND GOD USES OTHER THINGS–is also what the Bible says…

2 Timothy 3:16-17, "16 All scripture, inspired of God, is profitable to teach, to reprove, to correct, to instruct in justice,

17 That the man of God may be perfect, furnished to every good work."

PERFECT–WITH SCRIPTURE.

Romans 1:“19. Because that which is known of God is manifest in them. For God hath manifested it unto them. 20. For the invisible things of him, from the creation of the world, are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made; his eternal power also, and divinity: so that they are inexcusable.”

GOD USING OTHER THINGS. 🙂

JESUS SAID, “THEY HAVE THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS. LET THEM BELIEVE THEM.” THE OLD TESTAMENT WAS WHAT THEY HAD. JESUS HELD THEM TO IT. "WELL…

Mark 7:9, “And he said to them: ‘Well do you make void the commandment of God, that you may keep your own tradition.’”–DOUAY-RHEIMS BIBLE. They were ignoring the written command read to them every 7 years by the command of Moses to keep their own “housekeeping-rules and extrapolation” AS WE DO TODAY… But the thing is the spirit…not the letter of the law.<3+W

Originally Posted by InJesusItrust
The Catholic Church canonized the Bible. How can the Bible be infallible if the Church that produced it does not have the blessing to infallibly teach? The Bible calls the Church the pillar of truth, and also how did the first Christians worship without a Bible?
 
Thanks, JMCrae. And I am seeing that some speak as if they–speaking foolishly on my own, of course–would expect Jesus to FOLLOW the Bible; rather, he was the SOURCE of the Bible–and still is! There are many books out there–as the Bible said–and not all considered scripture. GOD determines the scripture. Jesus, however, NEVER spoke OUTSIDE the Bible but his teaching, as the teaching of the prophets–he was THE prophet, AFTER ALL–PERFECTLY MESHED WITH WHAT WENT BEFORE AND CONFIRMED IT.

TRUST God and he will make sure you get the Bible needed. He has guided me to translations at different times… “The Church” NEVER takes the Place of God Himself. “Those led by the Spirit of God are the sons of God,” IS WHAT THE BIBLE SAID.

We still are in the position to prove all things WITH LOVE. We are NEVER in the position of blindly accepting the church is who IT SAYS IT IS. THE CHURCH WILL BE PROVED BY THE TRUTH. NOT OTHERWISE. NEVER are we to accept anyone SAYS they are an apostle.

What does the ‘average Joe’ do…

Listen to Jesus.

Which Jesus? HOW do we know the scripture is true? Why not ANOTHER scripture? Why not GNOSTIC scripture? Why trust these ‘Roman Catholics’? ASK GOD.

You know, Jesus said God would answer if you seek the truth. That does not mean unless you have not read the Bible. It WILL work that way. He WILL answer. Matthew 7:“7 Ask, and it shall be given you: seek, and you shall find: knock, and it shall be opened to you. 8 For every one that asketh, receiveth: and he that seeketh, findeth: and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened.” But there is more. Luke 11:9-13 "“And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone?..Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”

Jesus is telling us to ask for the Holy Spirit to find what we need to know.

"“But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you”–John 14:26.<3<3<3+Wendy
jmcrae said:
I mean that, the Councils of Hippo, Carthage, and Rome (Bishops who were loyal to Rome) discerned the Books of the Bible - both the Old and the New Testaments - and that the Pope ratified their findings, promulgated them to the Church, and employed St. Jerome to create a suitable translation for use at Mass throughout the whole of the known world.
Click to expand...
 
mitex said:
In my humble protestant opinion they draw on it indirectly.

As an Evangelical I believe the only authority of God comes from the Bible which is literal and inerrant. But the Catholic Church also believes in Apostolic Succession, Church doctrine and tradition and law, natural law, doctors of the Church, authority of Jesus, then they’ve got a hierarchy of bishops, theologians, and of course at the top the Pope who can say just about anything within reason.

It’s so complex it makes my mind hurt.
Click to expand...
Where did the Bible come from? What authority was there prior to 397 AD??? Was it the Church? Acts 2:42 states that “they devoted themselves to the teaching of the Apostles, and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread, and to the prayers.” Sounds like the Catholic Church, eh?

I can see that some people prefer a more simple approach; but a man and his Bible isn’t enough. Is it? Jesus speaks of His Church in the singular. Read a history book and see what church He’s talking about. In 1 Cor 1:10-11 Paul implores us to not be divided. Who divided us (Christians)? It wasn’t Catholicism that split off… The Catholic Church has a lineage that no other Christian church comes close to. It truly IS the ORIGINAL, REAL DEAL, BONA FIDE, ONE HOLY CATHOLIC and APOSTOLIC.

For my Christian brothers and sisters who wish to learn more about the Church that Jesus founded, you can look at John Salza’s “Scripture Catholic”: scripturecatholic.com/index.html I learned alot from this site. You will too if you look at the evidence with a studious mind, and an open heart.
 
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