Gates of hell will not prevail

[mariahloves]

Okay I know it says in the Bible that the gates of hell shall not prevail against God’s church but if it were possible, what would that look like? What would the church look like if the gates of hell could prevail?

I feel EXTREMELY conflicted, disappointed, sad, etc. over this sex abuse stuff and it’s totally getting to me. How has evil not prevailed?

 

[presidentjlh]

The gates of Hell cannot prevail against the Church’s teachings. In other words, her teachings are infallible.

However, Church leaders are still definitely human, and as such, are still like the rest of us in that they sin as well.

 

[Ignatius]

Okay I know it says in the Bible that the gates of hell shall not prevail against God’s church but if it were possible, what would that look like? What would the church look like if the gates of hell could prevail?

I feel EXTREMELY conflicted, disappointed, sad, etc. over this sex abuse stuff and it’s totally getting to me. How has evil not prevailed?

If hell could prevail over The Church, it would destroy her. Therefore, The Church would be no more.
Empires, kingdoms, peoples and nations have all come and gone; but The Church remains. No other institution has existed anywhere near the time of The Church.

 

[Gertabelle]

The scripture says the gates of hell. In other words, the Church is on not on the defensive. It is we who are storming the gates of hell – not the other way around.

Just the :twocents: shared with me by a friend.

Gert

 

[RosalieM]

Hi,
I started a thread in “spirituality” forum asking for suggestions for personal defenses against this.
Then it occured to me that the Church sees things in terms of centuries. This current mess will not prevail against the Church in the very very long run, way after we are gone. In the meantime, as I said in my “personal defense” thread; I’m ignoring it all because if I pay any more attention to it, I risk overwhelming my personal striving for holiness.

 

[UnworthyApostle]

Well, I will let the Bible let you see.

Matthew 7:24-25"a wise man…built his house upon a rock, And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and they beat upon that house, and it fell not, for it was founded on a rock."

Matthew 16:18"And I also say to you, that you are a rock, and upon this rock I will build my church OR house*see 1 Timothy 3:15"

Matthew 23:2-3"Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples,Saying: The scribes and the Pharisees sit on the chair of Moses, so obey what they teach but do not follow their example"

Well, scripture says that a wise man builds his house on rock. Jesus was very wise for building His house, the church, on a rock, Peter and his succesors. Therefore, the winds and rain beat against the House of God, the church, but it will not fall ever. The bishops in communion with the pope sit on the chairs of the Apostles, so we need to obey what they teach, even if their example fail greatly as it has with the sexual abuse. Therefore, we need to keep our faith ,no matter how hard it maybe, and pray for the church. Christ said that His House would not ever be overcome,Christ will keep His promise. Stay faithful, this storm will blow over like the others throughout history have! Amen!

 

[steve_b]

Okay I know it says in the Bible that the gates of hell shall not prevail against God’s church but if it were possible, what would that look like? What would the church look like if the gates of hell could prevail?

I feel EXTREMELY conflicted, disappointed, sad, etc. over this sex abuse stuff and it’s totally getting to me. How has evil not prevailed?

• The abusers committed not only a grave sin but committed a felony as well. Just like anyone who is accused of a felony, they should be investigated and if found guilty, should be punished just like any other felon.
• Get mad at the 1-2% who are guilty. .
• Hell can’t overcome the Church. Jesus gurantees that.

 

[LaSalle]

Okay I know it says in the Bible that the gates of hell shall not prevail against God’s church but if it were possible, what would that look like? What would the church look like if the gates of hell could prevail?

I feel EXTREMELY conflicted, disappointed, sad, etc. over this sex abuse stuff and it’s totally getting to me. How has evil not prevailed?

Chill Maria, this is nothin’! We’ve had popes who had mistresses, children …Priests used to keep wives …

Don’t you think Jesus knew what Judas would do? Of course He did … yet He chose Judas to be among His 12. If you think this scandal is bad, think about how scandalous it must have been for a fledgeling Church of the One True God to have one out of His 12 BETRAY Him!

Jesus chose Judas to show us that people will sin, even those close to Him. In the parable of the weeds in Matthew 13:24 to 30, He told us that weeds and wheat will grow together and that He would NOT pull out the weeds … if these priests don’t repent, they’re like the weeds.

So chill … it’s all part of Jesus’ plan for His One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church!Let’s just ride the storm … we’ve been around for 2000 years … we’ve seen much much worse.

 

[Pons]

Priests used to keep wives …

This is not necessarily a bad thing, since priestly celibacy is only a discipline in the Latin branch of the Catholic church. Eastern Catholics and Orthodox Christians still allow married men to become priests, but once ordained, priests cannot marry and bishops can never marry. Now mistresses, that’s bad.

 

[HereticalTheist]

If hell could prevail over The Church, it would destroy her. Therefore, The Church would be no more.
Empires, kingdoms, peoples and nations have all come and gone; but The Church remains. No other institution has existed anywhere near the time of The Church.

False…the Hindu Mundeshwari Temple in Kaimur, India dates back to 108 A.D. a mere 70 years after the death of Christ. Making it the oldest functioning Hindu Temple. And of course the Vedic Religions (the religions based upon the Rig Vedas, or Sanskrit Scriptures of Hinduism) go back much further to 1100 B.C.E. at the earliest (some think to 1700 B.C.E.)

 

[spockrates]

Okay I know it says in the Bible that the gates of hell shall not prevail against God’s church but if it were possible, what would that look like? What would the church look like if the gates of hell could prevail?

I feel EXTREMELY conflicted, disappointed, sad, etc. over this sex abuse stuff and it’s totally getting to me. How has evil not prevailed?

“I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

(Matthew 16:18, NASB)

The word Jesus used is translated into English as Hades, rather than Hell. Our Lord used a different word for Hell. I think this is an important distinction, please allow me to explain why:

Socrates, in one of Plato’s dialogs, speaks at length about the meaning of the words Gates of Hades. He mentions that in Greek pagan religions, these were the gates through which the disembodied souls entered and never came back. They were the gates to the realm of Hades, who was the god of this underworld and prison of the dead. Few passed through the gates and lived to return to the land of the living. One who managed to return alive was the Greek hero Hercules.

Now when a ancient Greek or Roman heard the words, “He passed through the Gates of Hades,” he immediately understood the phrase to be a familiar idiom for death. By Jesus saying, “The Gates of Hades will not overcome [the Church],” they would have understood Him to be saying the Church will never die, and perhaps even that those in the Church will never pass through the Gates of Hades but will have eternal life.

So you see, the Gates of Hades has, perhaps little to do with sin creeping in and everything to do with the Church continuing to thrive and survive, despite attacks from without or within.