Catholicism does not focus on the Bible; so why bring up issues that have nothing to do with whether the Bible changed?
nmgauss, Here is a reality check for you; Historically the Bible is a Catholic book.
The new testament was written, copied and collected by Catholic Christians.
The bible we have today was officially and authoritatively determined by the Catholic Church.
For anyone to trust the bible is to trust the infallible authority of the Catholic Church in the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Apart from the Catholic Church we have no bible and we have no other way of knowing which bible books are inspired of God.
For any non-Catholic to quote from the bible, do not have no way of determining which books are inspired or not, unless they accept the teaching authority of the Catholic Church. For these to quote from the bible do so at their own risk of adding, changing, or subtracting from the whole of the bible.
Do Catholics focus on the bible? Attend a Catholic Mass liturgy for three years, and you will have the whole content of the bible not only quoted to you, but taught and defined to you from the apostolic teaching office of the Catholic Church who canonized the bible books.
We do not focus the letter of the page, we focus on the Word of God who is living breathing in our presence resurrected from the dead in Eucharista, when the bible is giving witness to living Word of God. We are never Sola Scriptura Lists, When Catholics are "in Him, with Him and through Him the Word of God made present in both liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. These are all recorded in scripture.
For you to say the bible changed, is to make the false claim that God has changed, when God is the Word.
Your false view does not survive the scrutiny of the laity, how do you pretend your false view could survive the above theological undertakings from our theologians and Magisterium who teach that God is never subject to change.
The Bible is only the starting point. After the Bible comes all the councils and writings of the Saints that have been influenced Catholicism over the centuries.
There is no bible to start with, without the Catholic Church, which existed first before the bible was canonized by the Catholic Church, and She exists before the new testament letters are written.
The Saints are converts into the body of Christ (Catholic Church), you have this backwards. The Church councils canonized the bible and confirmed the bible books as inspired of God. You are mistaken the councils do not come after the bible, they are before the canonization of the bible books.
So has Catholicism changed? Yes, otherwise all the councils were a waste of time.
Why do you keep introducing new subjects to your false theory of the bible has changed, now you redirect the OP to “Catholicism changed”? You are falling victim to your demise and false assertions of the subject not focusing on the topic of the bible has changed.
Wrong again, Catholicism has not changed. The Church councils in order to confirm and define what the Catholic Church already believes in order to prevent the Catholic Church from changing or falling into heresy, for example the bible books to use in Her liturgies.
The Church councils to defeat heretics and heresies and bind and loose them from the Christians faith revealed in Her faith doctrines, which the councils developed their maturity in defending them and defines Her doctrine with clarification from what is already in practice since apostolic times. A Rock the Catholic Church is not subject to change from Her revealed apostolic doctrines.
Look around you, the Catholic Church is the only living institution that has survived every age since apostolic times. All other kingdoms, secular powers have been subjected to change and elimination from the earth.
Even the Jews today have given official recognition that the Catholic Church was founded upon Peter by Jesus of Nazareth.
Did you know history records that all of the Apostolic sees from the apostles fell in and out heresy at one time or another, except the Apostolic see of Peter who has remained “Rock” unchanged since apostolic times. The bishop of Rome which the Pope resides in the chair of Peter is the only apostolic see that has survived every age unchanged and has never subjected the chair of Peter into heresy or heretical teachings.
Also, the writings of famous Catholic theologians since the time of St. John and St. Paul are meaningless.
These never are meaningless to Catholics, for they give witness to what we believe today unchanged from them. The councils confirm their teachings they never change them.
Any discussion of issues other than those pertaining to changes in the Bible are a waste of time in this thread.
Trying to disprove the bible changed, and the Catholic Church changed is useless, because you are basically trying to prove that God is subject to change, when God is never subject to Change who reveals His divine revelations and teachings to His mystical body from which we get the whole of the bible the Catholic Church.
Peace be with you