Since you don't believe in the Bible...What are Catholic "oral traditions"?

[Bouty]

The Roman Catholic Church does not believe in scripture only but in oral tradition claiming to be handed down by the Apostles. Now can anyone give me those Oral Traditions that the Apostles preached orally in their time, but did not write it? Can anyone show me such oral traditions from Ante-Nicene Fathers’ writings?

 

[Gorgias]

The Roman Catholic Church does not believe in scripture only but in oral tradition claiming to be handed down by the Apostles.

Let’s be fair: the Christian Church held this belief up until the Protestant Reformation.

Now can anyone give me those Oral Traditions that the Apostles preached orally in their time, but did not write it?

Are you asking us to show in writing something never written down? This doesn’t make sense…

Can anyone show me such oral traditions from Ante-Nicene Fathers’ writings?

Sure.

Ignatius to the Philadelphians:

Ignatius:

I therefore did what belonged to me, as a man devoted to unity; adding this also, that where there is diversity of judgment, and wrath, and hatred, God does not dwell. To all them that repent, God grants forgiveness, if they with one consent return to the unity of Christ, and communion with the bishop. I trust to the grace of Jesus Christ, that He will free you from every bond of wickedness. I therefore exhort you that ye do nothing out of strife, but according to the doctrine of Christ. For I have heard some saying, If I do not find the Gospel in the archives, I will not believe it. To such persons I say that my archives are Jesus Christ, to disobey whom is manifest destruction. My authentic archives are His cross, and death, and resurrection, and the faith which bears on these things, by which I desire, through your prayers, to be justified. He who disbelieves the Gospel disbelieves everything along with it. For the archives ought not to be preferred to the Spirit. "It is hard to kick against the pricks; " it is hard to disbelieve Christ; it is hard to reject the preaching of the apostles.

So, what teachings are found here?

• Diversity of judgment [apart from communion with the bishop] is not of God.
• To those who suggest “I will not believe that which is not in Scripture”, the Church says instead that the Gospel is found also in the preaching of the apostles.

 

[Church_Militant]

If you really believe what you have posted then you are very badly misinformed and it’s fortunate that you came in here to get the facts for yourself.

We very seriously do indeed “believe in the Bible” and the church both teaches and preaches it as well as encouraging us to read it for ourselves.

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church

ARTICLE 2
THE TRANSMISSION OF DIVINE REVELATION
74 God “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”:29 that is, of Christ Jesus.30 Christ must be proclaimed to all nations and individuals, so that this revelation may reach to the ends of the earth:

God graciously arranged that the things he had once revealed for the salvation of all peoples should remain in their entirety, throughout the ages, and be transmitted to all generations.31
**
I. THE APOSTOLIC TRADITION**
75 "Christ the Lord, in whom the entire Revelation of the most high God is summed up, commanded the apostles to preach the Gospel, which had been promised beforehand by the prophets, and which he fulfilled in his own person and promulgated with his own lips. In preaching the Gospel, they were to communicate the gifts of God to all men. This Gospel was to be the source of all saving truth and moral discipline."32

In the apostolic preaching. . .
76 In keeping with the Lord’s command, the Gospel was handed on in two ways:

• orally “by the apostles who handed on, by the spoken word of their preaching, by the example they gave, by the institutions they established, what they themselves had received - whether from the lips of Christ, from his way of life and his works, or whether they had learned it at the prompting of the Holy Spirit”;33

• in writing “by those apostles and other men associated with the apostles who, under the inspiration of the same Holy Spirit, committed the message of salvation to writing”.34

If you are sincere and wish to see exactly what the church teaches on this then I suggest that you take the time to carefully read the rest of that section.

 

[Church_Militant]

Oh and also by way of example, let me suggest that you carefully check out my blog article that is a study of exactly what you are asking…ECF discourse …about What Was Authentic Early Christian Worship Really Like?

 

[Mr_Clean]

Do you trust a Church that predates the NT and was living in accordance with what eventually came to be known as the Bible hundreds of years before there was a Bible? Or do you trust a church that took the Bible and carved it up 1500 plus years later and then tries to pass itself off as being the authority concerning the scriptures contained within?

 

[DavidFilmer]

Can anyone show me such oral traditions from Ante-Nicene Fathers’ writings?

OK, you are asking for written traditions by Early Fathers who wrote AFTER the First Council of Nicea (312 AD), but for which we have no written record of BEFORE that Council?

That’s an odd request. I’m not sure why you select this Council as your touchstone. However, it is not a difficult request to fulfill.

This would be essentially like searching the doctrinal index of William Jurgens’ Faith of the Early Fathers for any entries which were first articulated after #650 (the final entry for the First Council of Nicaea). And, since I have this set, I can do this without much difficulty.

NOTE: In the following, I will use the word “articulated” to mean "the first known written record of an otherwise oral teaching."

Jurgens Doctrine #124 (The honoring of sacred images is lawful and pious) was first articulated by St. Basil the Great in his essay, The Holy Spirit (AD 375) [Jurgens #952].

Jurgens Doctrine #141 (God is existence of himself and independently) was first articulated by St. Athanasius in AD 350 (Jurgens #754, in an essay titled “Letter Concerning the Decrees of the Council of Nicaea” - a bit of clarification on the Council).

Jurgens Doctrine #192 (God’s foreknowledge of event in no way destroys or detracts from man’s exercise of free will) was first articulated by Eusebius Pamphilus (Jurgens #663) around 318 AD.

Jurgens Doctrine #330 (In Christ, there are two wills - this is the, ummm, Hypostatic Union - maybe you’ve heard of it) was first articulated by St. Athanasius (AD 365, Jurgens #790). This is also the first time in written history that anyone said these two wills are never contrarily opposed to one another.

Jurgens Doctrine #340 (The man Jesus Christ is not the adoptive but the natural Son of God) was first articulated by St. Athanasius (AD 365, Jurgens #788)

Jurgens Doctrine #341 (Christ is utterly filled with Grace and is holy in every respect) was first articulated by Aphraates the Persian Sage (Jurgens #682) around AD 340.

Jurgens Doctrine #343 (Christ was free of concupiscence [lust]) was first articulated by Pope St. Basil the Great (Jurgens #929) in AD 377.

Jurgens Doctrine #350 (Christ freely suffered and died) was first articulated by St. Cyril of Jersualem (Jurgens #830) in AD 350.

Jurgens Doctrine #506 (The human soul is created by God) was first articulated by Aphraates the Persian Sage (Jurgens #683) around AD 340.

Jurgens Doctrine #542 (The virtues of faith, hope, and charity are infused with first justification) was first articulated by St. Augustine (Jurgens #1452) in AD 418.

Jurgens Doctrine #651 (Without Grace, man can still perform actions which are naturally commendable) was first articulated by St. John Chrysostom (Jurgens #1162) in AD 391.

Jurgens Doctrine #652 (God never demands the impossible) was first articulated by St. John Chrysostom (Jurgens #1220) in AD 403.

Jurgens Doctrine #670 (All the just are able to preserve [in Grace] if they will it) was first articulated by St. John Chrysostom (Jurgens #1117) in AD 392.

Jurgens Doctrine #711 (Grace is freely given) was first articulated by St. Ambrose of Milan (Jurgens #1335a) in AD 390.

Jurgens Doctrine #762 (Man can never in this life be certain of his justification) was first articulated by St. Jerome (Jurgens #1374) in AD 389.

OK, it’s getting late, and I see that I have only covered about half of Jurgens Doctrinal Index. So I’m calling it a night, and believe that I have provided an entirely sufficient reply to the question.

 

[Bouty]

I apologize for not making myself clear. Let me explain really what I mean. I was asking for any oral traditions passing down from the Apostles and was practiced by the early church continued to the Ante-Nicene period. I choose that period because I believe it is much closer to the spring of water.

Many things you claim to be oral traditions, and one is this; “Jurgens Doctrine #124 (The honoring of sacred images is lawful and pious) was first articulated by St. Basil the Great in his essay, The Holy Spirit (AD 375) [Jurgens #952].”

So is that one of the oral tradition mentioned in 2 Thessalonian 2:15 which the early church “HAVE BEEN TAUGHT (past tense?)” by the Apostles and was handed down to those who are much closer to the spring?

Anyway, I have no problem with this one and I quote:

Jurgens Doctrine #330 (In Christ, there are two wills - this is the, ummm, Hypostatic Union - maybe you’ve heard of it) was first articulated by St. Athanasius (AD 365, Jurgens #790). This is also the first time in written history that anyone said these two wills are never contrarily opposed to one another.

Unfortunately, that is not oral tradition. The idea of Hypostatic Union was based on scripture explicitly and implicitly (i.e. written tradition) just like Trinity, and were falls under the process of illumination whereby the Holy Spirit helps those who lives after the Apostles to understand the truths which are already written in the Word of God, right?

According to the Council held in Chalcedon, that (i.e. Hypostatic Union) applies to the nature of Christ Jesus that are inseparable; human and divine nature which I believe has been contradicted by what the Roman Catholic Church believes many centuries later in her doctrine the so called transubstantiation (but not my point here).

To be more specific and understandable, let me use 2 Thess 2:15 to ask from. So what are those oral teachings Paul already taught them, any idea?

 

[Randy_Carson]

The Roman Catholic Church does not believe in scripture only but in oral tradition claiming to be handed down by the Apostles. Now can anyone give me those Oral Traditions that the Apostles preached orally in their time, but did not write it? Can anyone show me such oral traditions from Ante-Nicene Fathers’ writings?

The Catholic Church baptizes infants. Why? Scripture implies that this was done by Paul, but other churches disagree we know which is right? We know by Tradition - what the Apostolic Church taught and did - that was NOT recorded in scripture.

Here’s an example:

Tradition and A Few Good Catholic Men

Tradition is often thought to add to the content of the Gospel, and indeed, there are things that we know from Sacred Tradition that we cannot learn exclusively from Sacred Scripture. This manner of looking at Scripture and Tradition is known as the “Two Source” model, and it is one valid way of understanding the relationship between Scripture and Tradition. However, another model, called the “Two Mode” model, recognizes that Tradition is also properly understood to be another mode of transmission of the one Gospel.

I want to focus here on the Two Mode model, and I would like to offer an excerpt from the movie, A Few Good Men, which illustrates this principal very clearly. In this courtroom scene, Cpl. Barnes is on the witness stand being cross-examined first by the prosecutor, Capt. Ross, and then by the defense attorney, Lt. Kaffee.

---

Capt. Ross: Corporal Barnes, I hold here the Marine Corps Outline for Recruit Training. You’re familiar with this book?
Cpl. Barnes: Yes, sir.
Capt. Ross: You’ve read it?
Cpl. Barnes: Yes, sir.
Capt. Ross: Good. Would you open it up to the chapter that deals with code reds, please?
Cpl. Barnes: Sir?
Capt. Ross: Just flip open to the page of the book that talks about code reds.
Cpl. Barnes: Well, sir code red is a term that we use, I mean, just down at Gitmo, I really don’t think that…
Capt. Ross: Ah, we’re in luck then. “Standard Operating Procedures, Rifle Security Company, Guantanamo Bay Cuba”. Now I assume we’ll find the term code red and its definition in that book. Am I right?
Cpl. Barnes: No, sir.
Capt. Ross: Corporal Barnes, I’m a Marine. Is there no book, no pamphlet or manual, no regulation or set of written orders or instructions that lets me know that, as a Marine, one of my duties is to perform code reds?
Cpl. Barnes: No, sir. No book, sir.
Capt. Ross: No further questions.
[as Ross walks back to his table Kaffee takes the book out of his hand]
Kaffee: Corporal, would you open this book up to the part that says that where the mess hall is?
Cpl. Barnes: Well, Lt Kaffee, that’s not in the book either, sir.
Kaffee: You mean to say the entire time you’ve been at Gitmo you’ve never had a meal?
Cpl. Barnes: No, sir. Three squares a day, sir.
Kaffee: Well, I don’t understand. How did you know where the mess hall was if it wasn’t in this book?
Cpl. Barnes: I guess I just followed the crowd at chow time, sir.
Kaffee: Thanks. No more questions.

+++

Lt. Kaffee powerfully demonstrates the idea that some things in the life of a marine are learned not from a book but from observation of others. In the life of the Church, Catholics refer to this oral form of teaching as Sacred Tradition, and it is every bit as authoritative as the written word because God has authored them both.

When the Apostles taught about whether infants were to be baptized, how the Lord’s Supper was to be celebrated, about confession, weddings and many other things, they did not write an instruction manual. They taught by their actions and their personal example - their living witness - what we are to believe and do.

Jesus quoted scripture but never wrote a word Himself; the Apostles learned exclusively from what He said and what He did. In turn, the Apostles taught their disciples by their oral preaching and teaching, by their personal example, and by their written letters. Finally, the successors of the Apostles, the Bishops of the Catholic Church, continue to teach as Jesus and the Apostles did - from the scriptures, from their manner of life and from their oral teaching.

 

[Bouty]

"If you really believe what you have posted then you are very badly misinformed and it’s fortunate that you came in here to get the facts for yourself.

We very seriously do indeed “believe in the Bible” and the church both teaches and preaches it as well as encouraging us to read it for ourselves."

Thank you so much, because that is what I need to be not very badly misinformed. So, first, does killing heretics or burning them is the will of the Spirit? And is that one of the oral teaching of the Apostles (i.e. unwritten)? If so why does not your church continue such a practice if it is the will of the Spirit? Is the Spirit changes His will?

Secondly, is deleting second commandments is the will of the Spirit and was revealed to the Apostles? I have read that and by the way I also read it in one of the Catechism used for teaching children still being used that no mentioned of the 2nd commandments (long story), but my point is are such practices does not contained in scripture but are handed down orally to the Church?

 

[TimothyH]

The Roman Catholic Church does not believe in scripture only but in oral tradition

Wrong.

 

[rcwitness]

The Roman Catholic Church does not believe in scripture only but in oral tradition claiming to be handed down by the Apostles.

I think this would be called something like Sola Oral Tradition.

The Church considers and Teaches Sacred Scripture to be divine Revelation. There is no higher authority than Sacred Scripture.

The Church Teaches that Sacred Scripture, which was canonized by the Church, is Sacred Tradition. It is not the ONLY Sacred Tradition. St Paul tells us…

2 Thessalonians 2:15

So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter.

 

[smead2942]

The Roman Catholic Church does not believe in scripture only but in oral tradition claiming to be handed down by the Apostles. Now can anyone give me those Oral Traditions that the Apostles preached orally in their time, but did not write it? Can anyone show me such oral traditions from Ante-Nicene Fathers’ writings?

I hope this makes sense.

For the first 350 years of Christianity, there was no Bible. The gnostic and arian heresies were able to use this to their advantage and preach false gospels. In response, the Catholic bishops gathered in Carthage in 397 AD to assemble a definite canon of Sacred Scripture. They chose 27 early Christian writings for the “New Testament” and declared them divinely-inspired, then combined them with the ORIGINAL Old Testament. For the next 1,200 years, the Catholic Church preserved the Bible. Monks dedicated their lives to transcribing the sacred texts, where they were kept safe in churches.

Who gave the Catholic Church the authority to decide on what should be in the Bible? Well, the teaching authority of the Church, called the Magisterium, was established by Christ himself and given to the apostles. This authority was passed down through the laying on of hands, and currently resides with today’s Catholic and Orthodox bishops.

Sacred Tradition is not exclusively oral. For example, we hold many authentic early Church writings, such as those of St. Ignatius of Antioch, a bishop and disciple of the Apostle John, in high esteem. Simply put, Sacred Traditions are those not specifically found in the Bible (since many of them are OLDER than the Bible!) but still considered authoritative by the Magisterium.

**Together, the Magisterium (teaching authority), Sacred Tradition, and Sacred Scripture (Bible) compose the fullness of Christian Truth, found exclusively in Catholicism and Orthodoxy. **

Sola scriptura, or “bible alone”, is not even found in the Bible. Is it not contradictory to believe exclusively in the Bible, when that belief isn’t Biblical?

Pax!

 

[rcwitness]

For the first 350 years of Christianity, there was no Bible.

I agreed with most of your post, but would like to clarify something in this statement. It can be misunderstood some, I think.

We did have Sacred Scripture before the last Apostle John died. Im not positive if it was all of them contained in the canon, but the Church did possess and use the Written Scriptures of the New Testament since their beginning. That was their purpose.

But yes, the canonizing of Scripture was necessary and did not occur until hundreds of years after the Apostles died. This is when problems started to arise as to what was actual Apostolic Tradition, right? So the Church is dependant on Sacred Scripture, not the other way around.

 

[Gorgias]

Thank you so much, because that is what I need to be not very badly misinformed. So, first, does killing heretics or burning them is the will of the Spirit? And is that one of the oral teaching of the Apostles (i.e. unwritten)?

You misunderstand what the Church means by “Sacred Tradition”. It is not the case that every statement from Rome is part of “Sacred Tradition”.

Secondly, is deleting second commandments is the will of the Spirit and was revealed to the Apostles? I have read that and by the way I also read it in one of the Catechism used for teaching children still being used that no mentioned of the 2nd commandments (long story)

Not a terribly long story. Jews, Catholics, and Protestants organize the ten commandments in different ways. See this Wiki article that discusses the various ways different groups organize the Decalogue.

There’s no “deletion” going on here.

 

[SoMissCatholic]

Thank you so much, because that is what I need to be not very badly misinformed. So, first, does killing heretics or burning them is the will of the Spirit? And is that one of the oral teaching of the Apostles (i.e. unwritten)? If so why does not your church continue such a practice if it is the will of the Spirit? Is the Spirit changes His will?

Aside from completely misunderstanding what Sacred Tradition actually is (check out this article for a good explanation) your question is based on the erroneous presumption that “killing heretics or burning them” was ever a practice of the Church to begin with. Please provide some evidence to support this claim.

Secondly, is deleting second commandments is the will of the Spirit and was revealed to the Apostles? I have read that and by the way I also read it in one of the Catechism used for teaching children still being used that no mentioned of the 2nd commandments (long story), but my point is are such practices does not contained in scripture but are handed down orally to the Church?

Ah, this old canard. The Church didn’t delete the second commandment. It includes what you consider to be the second commandment within the first commandment (there is no definitive numbering of the commandments in scripture, and in actuality, there are more than ten of them contained therein). As this CA tract explains (bold emphasis added):

Hiding the Second Commandment?

Another charge sometimes made by Protestants is that the Catholic Church “hides” the second commandment. This is because in Catholic catechisms, the first commandment is often listed as “You shall have no other gods before me” (Ex. 20:3), and the second is listed as “You shall not take the name of the Lord in vain.” (Ex. 20:7). From this, it is argued that Catholics have deleted the prohibition of idolatry to justify their use of religious statues. But this is false. Catholics simply group the commandments differently from most Protestants.

In Exodus 20:2–17, which gives the Ten Commandments, there are actually fourteen imperative statements. To arrive at Ten Commandments, some statements have to be grouped together, and there is more than one way of doing this. Since, in the ancient world, polytheism and idolatry were always united—idolatry being the outward expression of polytheism—the historic Jewish numbering of the Ten Commandments has always grouped together the imperatives “You shall have no other gods before me” (Ex. 20:3) and “You shall not make for yourself a graven image” (Ex. 20:4). The historic Catholic numbering follows the Jewish numbering on this point, as does the historic Lutheran numbering. Martin Luther recognized that the imperatives against polytheism and idolatry are two parts of a single command.

Jews and Christians abbreviate the commandments so that they can be remembered using a summary, ten-point formula. For example, Jews, Catholics, and Protestants typically summarize the Sabbath commandment as, “Remember the Sabbath to keep it holy,” though the commandment’s actual text takes four verses (Ex. 20:8–11).

When the prohibition of polytheism/idolatry is summarized, Jews, Catholics, and Lutherans abbreviate it as “You shall have no other gods before me.” This is no attempt to “hide” the idolatry prohibition (Jews and Lutherans don’t even use statues of saints and angels). It is to make learning the Ten Commandments easier.

The Catholic Church is not dogmatic about how the Ten Commandments are to be numbered, however. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “The division and numbering of the Commandments have varied in the course of history. The present catechism follows the division of the Commandments established by Augustine, which has become traditional in the Catholic Church. It is also that of the Lutheran confession. The Greek Fathers worked out a slightly different division, which is found in the Orthodox Churches and Reformed communities” (CCC 2066).

The different methods of numbering the commandments is also set forth in this Wikipedia article.

Finally, if I may offer a word of advice: instead of asking “gotcha” questions to show Catholics that we’re wrong about what you think we believe, it may serve you better to spend some time learning actual Catholic teaching from actual Catholic sources. There are many excellent resources here at Catholic Answers as well as this excellent, online, searchable version of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

 

[Ignatius]

The Roman Catholic Church does not believe in scripture ?

You are very misinformed. The Catholic Church absolutely believes in Sacred Scripture, In fact, Pope Damasus I first declared which books constitute the New Testament long before some men invented the Doctrines of Protestantism in the 16th century.
The doctrine of inerrancy flows very naturally from the Catholic Church’s teaching that Scripture is the Word of God. The Holy Scripture of the New Testament was declared inerrant by and as a result of the Decree of Pope St. Damasus I at the Council of Rome in 382 A.D.

The Decree of Pope St. Damasus I, Council of Rome. 382 A.D…

ST. DAMASUS 1, POPE, THE DECREE OF DAMASUS:
It is decreed: Now, indeed, we must treat of the divine Scriptures: what the universal Catholic Church accepts and what she must shun.
The list of the Scriptures of the New and Eternal Testament, which the holy and Catholic Church receives: of the Gospels, one book according to Matthew, one book according to Mark, one book according to Luke, one book according to John. The Epistles of the Apostle Paul, fourteen in number: one to the Romans, two to the Corinthians, one to the Ephesians, two to the Thessalonians, one to the Galatians, one to the Philippians, one to the Colossians, two to Timothy, one to Titus one to Philemon, one to the Hebrews. Likewise, one book of the Apocalypse of John. And the Acts of the Apostles, one book. Likewise, the canonical Epistles, seven in number: of the Apostle Peter, two Epistles; of the Apostle James, one Epistle; of the Apostle John, one Epistle; of the other John, a Presbyter, two Epistles; of the Apostle Jude the Zealot, one Epistle. Thus concludes the canon of the New Testament.
Likewise it is decreed: After the announcement of all of these prophetic and evangelic or as well as apostolic writings which we have listed above as Scriptures, on which, by the grace of God, the Catholic Church is founded."

Discerning the Church that Jesus Christ founded:

1. It was built by Jesus Christ himself (Matt 16:18) which means that His church must be about 2000 years old. This face alone eliminates the vast majority of churches.
2. Jesus only built ONE church (Matt 16:18) hence there is only one.
3. The Church which Jesus Christ founded is the one to whom He revealed and which declared and decreed which books are to be contained in the New Testament.
4. Jesus handed His Authority to His Apostles (Mat 28:16-20), therefore His Church must be able to trace it’s chief pastors back in a line of succession to The Apostles.

Do you have any idea when your faith was founded and by whom? You may find this enlightening:

If you are Roman Catholic, Jesus Christ founded your Church in the year A.D. 30.
If you are Lutheran, your religion was founded by Martin Luther, an ex-monk in the Catholic Church, in 1517.
If you belong to the Church of England (Anglican), your religion was founded by King Henry VIII in the year 1534 because the pope would not grant him a divorce with the right to remarry.
If you are a Presbyterian, your religion was founded when John Knox brought the teachings of John Calvin to Scotland in the Year 1560.
If you are Unitarian, your group developed in Europe in the 1500s.
If you are a Congregationalist, your religion branched off Puritanism in the early 1600s in England.
If you are a Baptist, you owe the tenets of your religion to John Smyth, who launched it in Amsterdam in 1607.
If you are a Methodist, your religion was founded by John and Charles Wesley in England in 1744.
If you are an Episcopalian, your religion came from England to the American colonies. It formed a separate religion founded by Samuel Seabury in 1789.
If you are a Mormon (Latter-day Saints), Joseph Smith started your church in Palmyra, N.Y. in 1830.
If you worship with the Salvation Army, your sect began with William Booth in London in 1865.
If you are a Christian Scientist, you look to 1879 as the year your religion was founded by Mary Baker Eddy.
If you are a Jehovah’s Witness, your religion was founded by Charles Taze Russell in Pennsylvania in the 1870s.
If you are Pentecostal, your religion was started in the United States in 1901.
If you are Calvary Chapel, Chuck Smith founded your church in the 1960’s
If you worship in the non-denominational, Evengelical, etc. tradition, your faith tradition goes back to the 1970’s

If you would like to learn more about the teachings of Jesus Christ, please contact the folks at chnetwork.org/. I promise, if you unite yourself to Jesus Christ through His Church, you will experience the great gift the He has promised to those who follow Him. As Jesus said, “He who eats My body and drinks My blood lives in Me and I in him and I will raise him up on the last day.” And He is faithful and sure to keep His promises. Repent, turn to the Gospel and be saved and you will have everlasting life.

Grace and peace be with you.

Your servant in Christ.

 

[sallybutler]

We have oral traditions about how the apostles died. Most non-catholics follow those traditons also.

 

[Michael_Francis]

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