Why does the Church object?

[JaneFrances]

Jesus told us not to call another man father, because it was dangerous to be called father and dangerous to call another man father.

Scripture does not tell us that Jesus told his disciples not to call another man father “because it was dangerous.” This is not in Scripture. This is your personal interpretation.

This is what Scripture says:

1Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: 2"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat. 3So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. 4They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
5"Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries[a] wide and the tassels on their garments long; 6they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; 7they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’

8"But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. 9And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven. 10Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ.** 11The greatest among you will be your servant. 12For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

13"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.[c]

15"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are. . . .**

Nowhere in this passage does Jesus say that being called “father” is dangerous, in and of itself. Instead, He is very explicit. His words are a warning about abuse of power and position. He warns his followers to not abuse their power and position thorugh his seven “woes.”

To be called father one can start to think he is superior.

To be called “a Christian” can cause one to start to think he is superior. Any form of distinction can cause one to separate himself from a group and, therefore, think himself better than those who do not bear that same distinction. This arguement does not make your case.

Calling one father, one might start believing them superior, and believing he is right about God and stop asking Jesus, who is our father.

It has been asked over and over here already. . .You have not responded. DO YOU CALL YOUR BIOLOGICAL FATHER, YOUR “FATHER”? IF YOU HAVE EVER TOLD A LIE WITH YOUR TONGUE, HAVE YOU CUT IT OUT? IF YOU HAVE EVER LOOKED AT SOMETHING AND SINNED BECAUSE OF IT, ARE YOUR EYES PLUCKED OUT?

If you continue to take Jesus’ words so literally, you must see that your arguement reaches far beyond this topic of calling another man “father.”

Also, elsewhere in Scripture, Jesus gives his 12 Apostles “thrones.” (see Matthew 19:28, Luke 22:30). Thrones are a symbol of power, position, and, in a sense, superiority. When giving his Apostles this power, Jesus said:

Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. (Matthew 19:28)

In this sense, the Apostles (and their successors) are “superior” in that they sit on thrones and sit in judgement. They are not “superior” in dignity as human beings, but Christ himself gives them positions above (superior to) others.

Your arguement, then, falls short of the whole Gospel message.

You know I mentioned other area where the Catholic Church doesn’t teach the Word of God and it seems calling a man father is the area everyone is so eager to defend.

We have been eager to defend it, because it was one of your first offensive strikes. If you meant for this dicussion to take another direction, you should have been more discerning in your original post.

Also, it is, relatively, one of the easiest anti-Catholic claims to defend. At this time, your only defenses have been: “Paul could have been wrong,” personal revelation, and inconsistent interpretation.

For all those who say Protestants don’t have the complete Bible well I am not a protestant and I use a Catholic Bible, and also read the King James.

To echo previous posts to this affect. . .What exactly are you?

If you are not Protestant, why do you use Protestant texts and arguements?

 

[ferdie]

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Jesus told us not to call another man father, because it was dangerous to be called father and dangerous to call another man father. To be called father one can start to think he is superior. Calling one father, one might start believing them superior, and believing he is right about God and stop asking Jesus, who is our father.

 

[KathyH]

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[KathyH]

Scripture does not tell us that Jesus told his disciples not to call another man father “because it was dangerous.” This is not in Scripture. This is your personal interpretation.

This is what Scripture says:

Nowhere in this passage does Jesus say that being called “father” is dangerous, in and of itself. Instead, He is very explicit. His words are a warning about abuse of power and position. He warns his followers to not abuse their power and position thorugh his seven “woes.”

To be called “a Christian” can cause one to start to think he is superior. Any form of distinction can cause one to separate himself from a group and, therefore, think himself better than those who do not bear that same distinction. This arguement does not make your case.

It has been asked over and over here already. . .You have not responded. DO YOU CALL YOUR BIOLOGICAL FATHER, YOUR “FATHER”? IF YOU HAVE EVER TOLD A LIE WITH YOUR TONGUE, HAVE YOU CUT IT OUT? IF YOU HAVE EVER LOOKED AT SOMETHING AND SINNED BECAUSE OF IT, ARE YOUR EYES PLUCKED OUT?

If you continue to take Jesus’ words so literally, you must see that your arguement reaches far beyond this topic of calling another man “father.”

Also, elsewhere in Scripture, Jesus gives his 12 Apostles “thrones.” (see Matthew 19:28, Luke 22:30). Thrones are a symbol of power, position, and, in a sense, superiority. When giving his Apostles this power, Jesus said:

In this sense, the Apostles (and their successors) are “superior” in that they sit on thrones and sit in judgement. They are not “superior” in dignity as human beings, but Christ himself gives them positions above (superior to) others.

Your arguement, then, falls short of the whole Gospel message.

We have been eager to defend it, because it was one of your first offensive strikes. If you meant for this dicussion to take another direction, you should have been more discerning in your original post.

Also, it is, relatively, one of the easiest anti-Catholic claims to defend. At this time, your only defenses have been: “Paul could have been wrong,” personal revelation, and inconsistent interpretation.

To echo previous posts to this affect. . .What exactly are you?

If you are not Protestant, why do you use Protestant texts and arguements?

I am a Christian. I follow Jesus. Why do I use protestant arguments, well my arguments are not protestant. I am just pointing out areas where the Catholic Church is in error, and many people in the Christian world have also seen those errors. The Catholic Church keeps defending them instead of changing.

 

[KathyH]

Yet you still do not explain why you feel you are more Spirit filled and understand Christ’s directive better than Paul and others in the New testament were since they CLEARLY used and refered to themselves and others as spiritual Fathers.

You stated before that maybe Paul was mistaken. There is no maybe about it. Either you are right and Paul was wrong. Or you are wrong and do not understand what Christ was teaching and Paul did understand.

Which is it?

Was Paul wrong or are you?

I have Jesus’ word on my side. If I follow the Word of God how can I be wrong? Jesus said do not call any man father!!!

 

[KathyH]

I agree with that, but you seem to be changing the subject.

What did I say that had anything to do with that?

Just because Jesus said or did something doesn’t give us the right to do the same.

 

[KathyH]

If Paul was wrong, then the other authors of the Bible MIGHT have also been wrong and Jesus MIGHT have been mis-quoted about calling nobody “father”.

You should have read what I wrote more carefully. I never said any of Paul’s teachings were false or wrong. I said when Paul called himself father that didn’t constitute a teaching. He wasn’t telling anyone to call him father, or that we should call anyone other than God, father.

 

[alexaustralia]

I have Jesus’ word on my side. If I follow the Word of God how can I be wrong? Jesus said do not call any man father!!!

What is the reason for this?
If I were to take the word “father/teacher” and change its meaning to mean “playing music brilliantly” … would Jesus have a problem with us using the word “father/teacher”…you will most likely say NO as I have disassociated the ACTION that corresponded to that word.

Ok then what you must be insinuating then is that what Jesus has a problem with is in the very ACT of fatherhood/teaching. That is people should refrain from acting in any way that reassembles a father/teacher figure…Can you see any problems with that? How is society meant to function without the older generation teaching the new? How are we meant to continue as a species if men cannot father children?

You have only two options with your interpretation of that passage

1. The word irrespective of its meaning is at fault according to Jesus
2. The very act the word represents is at fault according to Jesus

Which one of these options do you select 1or 2?

 

[ferdie]

KathyH, on whose authority are you judging what is right and wrong in matters of faith and morals? And how do you know that you have that authority?

(John 14:26) “but the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I have said to you.”

Christ is talking to the Apostles on that quote, the people who will teach us, not to us individually.
St. John even tells us to test the Spirit**;**
"Do not trust any and every Spirit, my friends: test the spirits to see whether they are from God; for amongst those who have gone out into the world there are many prophets, falsely inspired." (1John 4,1)

And St. John even tells us how to test the spirits:
"We (the church) belong to God, and a man who knows God listens to us, while he who does not belong to God refuses us a hearing. That is how we distinguish the spirit of truth from the spirit of error." ( 1 John 4, 6)

Jesus told the Apostles to preach, and the Apostles obeyed our Lord. They preached and is still preaching to us thru the appointed, and unbroken succession of Bishops.They were never commanded to write the bible us we know it today as our sole instruction in matters of faith and morals.

 

[Milliardo]

I said when Paul called himself father that didn’t constitute a teaching. He wasn’t telling anyone to call him father, or that we should call anyone other than God, father.

I’ll reiterate my point: clearly when he said he is their father in faith, he was telling them to call him father; nothing could be more plainer than that. When I tell my son to call me father, I am teaching him to look up to me as father. Similarly then when Paul said he is a father in faith, he is teaching his audience to look at him as such. So in effect it is conditioning his audience then, or teaching them, to see him as a father in faith.

 

[MariaG]

Yet you still do not explain why you feel you are more Spirit filled and understand Christ’s directive better than Paul and others in the New testament were since they CLEARLY used and refered to themselves and others as spiritual Fathers.

You stated before that maybe Paul was mistaken. There is no maybe about it. Either you are right and Paul was wrong. Or you are wrong and do not understand what Christ was teaching and Paul did understand.

Which is it?

Was Paul wrong or are you?

I have Jesus’ word on my side. If I follow the Word of God how can I be wrong? Jesus said do not call any man father!!!

And Yet Paul and others as recorded in Scripture did just that. So you are in fact NOT following ALL of His word, and by ignoring some scripture in favor of others you have a faulty understanding of God’s will.

I ask you again, do you believe that you are more spirit filled than those who God inspired to write scripture?

While you will not come out and say it, you are saying that the Paul and others were WRONG and taught contrary to Christ.

If that is true, although you use a CAtholic Bible, how can you trust anything that was not uttered by Christ Himself? How can you trust scripture at all if God allowed such a mistake to be recorded in His inspired word.

I warn you Kathy, pick and choose to believe that the Holy Spirit can show you what is right in Scripture and what is wrong, that you are more righteous and Spirit filled than the apostles themselves at your own peril.

It is quite clear that the apostles did not understand Christ’s words as you do. I also have enough faith in God to believe that He would never allow false teachings to be recorded in His Holy Word.

May God keep you safe while you walk this dangerous and pride filled path you have chosen. May He soon show you the danger and error of thinking you know more than His chosen apostles as recorded in His inspired word.

Maria

 

[ferdie]

KathyH, you said:

I have Jesus’ word on my side. If I follow the Word of God how can I be wrong? Jesus said do not call any man father!!!

When you prepare a banquet, do not invite your friends or brethren (Luke 14, 12)

Give to every person who asks of you (Luke 6, 30)

Then, if I your Lord and Master have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet (John13, 14)

Do you follow Jesus on these things too? If not why not?

 

[valient_Lucy]

Jesus told us not to call another man father, because it was dangerous to be called father and dangerous to call another man father. To be called father one can start to think he is superior. Calling one father, one might start believing them superior, and believing he is right about God and stop asking Jesus, who is our father.
.

Actually, Jesus is NOT our Father. God the Father is our Father, Jesus is our Elder Brother.
Charles Spurgeon, a VERY anti Catholic Protestant minister, said, "We are very interested in what the Holy Spirit says to us, but we don’t really care what he says to other people. What makes you think that the Holy Spirit speaks exclusively to you, and that everyone else is being mislead? How do you know that it is they who are wrong, and not you?
Think about this; when you read the Bible, you are submitting to the teachings of Paul. How do you know that he is being lead by the Holy Spirit, and not being mistaken?
Even when you read the Gospels, you are dependent upon the teachings of others. Jesus did not write the Gospels, Jesus left us know first hand record about Himself. Rather, the Gospels were written by four different men, each for different audiences, and each with their own messages. Every time you read the Bible, you are choosing to trust that what Matthew, or any of the other Evangelists, said. You are getting their interpretation of what Jesus said and did, not straight journalism. How do you know that the Holy Spirit guided them correctly in what they chose to write down, and in the interpretation they chose to give the events? What if they simply made mistakes and got the information, and their interpretation, completly wrong?
To attempt to cut yourself off from other Christians is completly unbiblical. Paul told the Church that the Body of Christ had need of each other. A foot cannot seperate itself from the rest of the Body and expect to survive. He also says that every member of the Body is given different gifts, and one of those gifts is teaching. A Christian cannot, in good conscience, ignore those who have been given those gifts.

You know I mentioned other area where the Catholic Church doesn’t teach the Word of God and it seems calling a man father is the area everyone is so eager to defend.

I think you’ll find that the Catholics on this board are eager to defend ALL areas of Catholic doctrine, since they are true. But, if you don’t believe me, try mentioning the Eucharist or papal infallibillity or apostolic succession. See what happens.

 

[KathyH]

Actually, Jesus is NOT our Father. God the Father is our Father, Jesus is our Elder Brother.
Charles Spurgeon, a VERY anti Catholic Protestant minister, said, "We are very interested in what the Holy Spirit says to us, but we don’t really care what he says to other people. What makes you think that the Holy Spirit speaks exclusively to you, and that everyone else is being mislead? How do you know that it is they who are wrong, and not you?
Think about this; when you read the Bible, you are submitting to the teachings of Paul. How do you know that he is being lead by the Holy Spirit, and not being mistaken?
Even when you read the Gospels, you are dependent upon the teachings of others. Jesus did not write the Gospels, Jesus left us know first hand record about Himself. Rather, the Gospels were written by four different men, each for different audiences, and each with their own messages. Every time you read the Bible, you are choosing to trust that what Matthew, or any of the other Evangelists, said. You are getting their interpretation of what Jesus said and did, not straight journalism. How do you know that the Holy Spirit guided them correctly in what they chose to write down, and in the interpretation they chose to give the events? What if they simply made mistakes and got the information, and their interpretation, completly wrong?
To attempt to cut yourself off from other Christians is completly unbiblical. Paul told the Church that the Body of Christ had need of each other. A foot cannot seperate itself from the rest of the Body and expect to survive. He also says that every member of the Body is given different gifts, and one of those gifts is teaching. A Christian cannot, in good conscience, ignore those who have been given those gifts.

I think you’ll find that the Catholics on this board are eager to defend ALL areas of Catholic doctrine, since they are true. But, if you don’t believe me, try mentioning the Eucharist or papal infallibillity or apostolic succession. See what happens.

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one and the one God is our Father, Jesus is not my big brother, he is my God! The Bible is the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit was given to us: (John 14:26) “but the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I have said to you.”

(1 Corinthians 2:10-16) “These are the very things that God has revealed to us through the Spirit, for the Spirit reaches the depts. Of everything, even the depths of God. After all, the depths of a man can only be known by his own spirit, not by any other man, and in the same way the depths of God can only be known by the Spirit of God. Now instead of the spirit of the world, we have received the Spirit that comes from God, to teach us to understand the gifts that he has given us. Therefore we teach, not in the way in which philosophy is taught, but in the way that the Spirit teaches us: we teach spiritual things spiritually. A spiritual man, on the other hand, is able to judge the value of everything and his own value in not to be judged by other men. As scripture says;’ Who can know the mind of the Lord, so who can teach him?’ But we are those who have the mind of Christ.”

So if the Holy Spirit is teaching us, does it matter what we read, in the Bible, will we not be taught what we should know?

One way to know if it is truly the Holy Spirit teaching us, is to make sure what you are being taught is scriptural. So if the Holy Spirit says: do not kill, love your enemy, and the Bible says the same the same thing, one can be sure it was the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit isn’t going to teach us something that goes against the Word of God.

 

[KathyH]

KathyH, you said:

When you prepare a banquet, do not invite your friends or brethren (Luke 14, 12)

Give to every person who asks of you (Luke 6, 30)

Then, if I your Lord and Master have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet (John13, 14)

Do you follow Jesus on these things too? If not why not?

Yes

 

[KathyH]

I’ll reiterate my point: clearly when he said he is their father in faith, he was telling them to call him father; nothing could be more plainer than that. When I tell my son to call me father, I am teaching him to look up to me as father. Similarly then when Paul said he is a father in faith, he is teaching his audience to look at him as such. So in effect it is conditioning his audience then, or teaching them, to see him as a father in faith.

Show me in scripture where anyone ever addressed Paul as father. When Peter talked about Paul did he say father Paul, or when Paul talked about Peter did Paul say father Peter?

 

[KathyH]

The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are one and the one God is our Father, Jesus is not my big brother, he is my God! The Bible is the Word of God, and the Holy Spirit was given to us: (John 14:26) “but the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and remind you of all I have said to you.”

(1 Corinthians 2:10-16) “These are the very things that God has revealed to us through the Spirit, for the Spirit reaches the depts. Of everything, even the depths of God. After all, the depths of a man can only be known by his own spirit, not by any other man, and in the same way the depths of God can only be known by the Spirit of God. Now instead of the spirit of the world, we have received the Spirit that comes from God, to teach us to understand the gifts that he has given us. Therefore we teach, not in the way in which philosophy is taught, but in the way that the Spirit teaches us: we teach spiritual things spiritually. A spiritual man, on the other hand, is able to judge the value of everything and his own value in not to be judged by other men. As scripture says;’ Who can know the mind of the Lord, so who can teach him?’ But we are those who have the mind of Christ.”

So if the Holy Spirit is teaching us, does it matter what we read, in the Bible, will we not be taught what we should know?

One way to know if it is truly the Holy Spirit teaching us, is to make sure what you are being taught is scriptural. So if the Holy Spirit says: do not kill, love your enemy, and the Bible says the same the same thing, one can be sure it was the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit isn’t going to teach us something that goes against the Word of God.

(Matthew 12:48-50) “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers? And stretching out his hand towards his disciples he said, ‘Here are my mother and my brothers. Anyone who does the will of my father in heaven, he in my brother and sister and mother.” Yes in the sense that we are close to him if we do the will of the father in heaven he is our brother, but was he talking literally? How many mothers could he have?

 

[Lukelion]

KathyH, you said:

When you prepare a banquet, do not invite your friends or brethren (Luke 14, 12)

Give to every person who asks of you (Luke 6, 30)

Then, if I your Lord and Master have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet (John13, 14)

Do you follow Jesus on these things too? If not why not?

Yes

I would like to take this opportunity to ask you for a new car, and millions of dollars in small bills.

I get the feeling the replies the good folks are making on this discussion are not even being considered.

Lukelion

 

[valient_Lucy]

I’m curious about your opinion of two passages from Acts.
26Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Go south to the road—the desert road—that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” 27So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian[a]eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship, 28and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet. 29The Spirit told Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.”
30Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. “Do you understand what you are reading?” Philip asked.

31"How can I," he said, “unless someone explains it to me?” So he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

32The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture:
“He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before the shearer is silent,
so he did not open his mouth.
33In his humiliation he was deprived of justice.
Who can speak of his descendants?
For his life was taken from the earth.”**

34The eunuch asked Philip, “Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?” 35Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

36As they traveled along the road, they came to some water and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. Why shouldn’t I be baptized?”[c] 38And he gave orders to stop the chariot. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water and Philip baptized him. 39When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord suddenly took Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him again, but went on his way rejoicing. 40Philip, however, appeared at Azotus and traveled about, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he reached Caesarea.

My question is, why didn’t the Holy Spirit just tell the eunich what the passage meant? Why did He bring Phillip to the eunich?**

 

[valient_Lucy]

Second passage:
1Some men came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. 3The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the brothers very glad. 4When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.
5Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.”

6The apostles and elders met to consider this question. 7After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. 9He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? 11No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

12The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the miraculous signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. 13When they finished, James spoke up: “Brothers, listen to me. 14Simon[a] has described to us how God at first showed his concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself. 15The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:
16” ‘After this I will return
and rebuild David’s fallen tent.
Its ruins I will rebuild,
and I will restore it,
17that the remnant of men may seek the Lord,
and all the Gentiles who bear my name,
says the Lord, who does these things’**
18that have been known for ages.[c]

19"It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. 21For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath."

The Council’s Letter to Gentile Believers
22Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, two men who were leaders among the brothers. 23With them they sent the following letter: The apostles and elders, your brothers, To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia: Greetings. 24We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. 25So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things. Farewell.
30The men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. 31The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. 32Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers. 33After spending some time there, they were sent off by the brothers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them.[d] 35But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.

My question is, if all of the Christians were guided by the Holy Spirit, why not simply let them make up their own minds about what they should be required to do? Why did they ask the elders and the Apostles to decide what was appropriate and what was not? And why did the Apostles feel the need to force their conclusions on everyone else, by sending letters to the Christians to tell them what they should and should not do? And why did the Christians at the time feel they needed the Apostles’ guidance on this matter?**