• If you ask me, why I am a Catholic Christian, my answer would be like the one of Saint Augustine’s: “I won’t be a Christian if not for the Catholic Church”.

  • AD 100-700: Beginning to the end of the Patristic era The Protoevangelium of James And Anna made a song to the Lord God, saying: I will sing a song to the Lord my God, for He has looked upon me, and has taken away the reproach of mine enemies; and the Lord has given the…

  • The Greek Fathers Here are a number of ancient experts and what they say it means; each of them is a Greek-speaker from a culture basically identical to that of St. Luke; there are a couple repeats from the previous thread, but from them I give new material, too; the passages are expositions by the…

  • A BIBLICAL CASE FOR MARIAN VENERATION According to the Hebrew Bible, the mother of the Israelite king was given the status of queen mother. In other words, the [O]ld [T]estament shows that it wasn’t the wife of the king that was the queen but rather his mother: “Also he removed Maachah his grandmother from being queen mother, because…

  • The Holy Bible depicts our Lord’s blessed mother as typifying or personifying the nation of Israel by taking language, which is reminiscent to the way the Hebrew Scriptures portray God’s people, and ascribing it to her. For instance, the nation is collectively addressed as the virgin daughter of Zion or the virgin daughter of Judah:…

  • https://www.newadvent.org/summa/1055.htm St. Thomas Aquinas, the Angelic Doctor, devoted extraordinary care to this subject in the Summa Theologiae (Prima Pars, Questions 54–58), and his conclusions remain the touchstone of Catholic thought on the matter. Here is a thorough and ordered exposition: 🕊️ Angelic Knowledge: A Deep Dive I. Angels Are Pure Intellect As purely spiritual beings,…

  • The following is taken from this post: Prayers to Saints in the Pre-Nicene Era – Energetic Procession. It is commonly claimed that the practice of praying to departed saints and to angels is a late development in Christianity, probably post-dating the Council of Nicea. In this post, I will try to argue that prayers to departed…

  • The citations presented here document the widespread belief in the prayers/intercessions of angels and saints for believers on earth. All emphasis will be mine. Shepherd of Hermas (AD 89-145) Chapter 4 I prayed him much that he would explain to me the similitude of the field, and of the master of the vineyard, and of the…

  • Enoch contains a fascinating depiction of the souls of human who were slaughtered, by the instigation of the rebellious angels that taught mankind to make weapons to kill, crying out to the angels of heaven to bring their petitions to God that he might avenge them: [Chapter 8] 1 And Azazel taught men to make swords,…

  • By James Divine. September 4th, 2024 (https://substack.com/inbox/post/148703931?r=4ca6ix&triedRedirect=true). Foreword During the time I wrote this article, a gentleman, a scholar, an author and wordsmith; Dr. James Likoudis passed away. Perhaps asleep is he to us, but in soul; with Our Lord. May this Catholic champion rest in peace. Condolences to his family and friends who survive…

  • The quotes are courtesy of Divine Mercy Apologetics. They prove that St. Gregory Palamas’ position on Muslims is in perfect agreement woth the Catholic Church. Catechism of the Catholic Church #841: “The Church’s relationship with the Muslims. “The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are…

  • St. Gregory mentions a dialogue he had with a group of Turkish Muslims. What makes his comments rather amazing is that he affirms that both the Muslims and himself are calling upon one and the same God, even though these Turks are ignorant of the fact that this God whom they worship is inseparable from…

  • In this post I will be citing extracts from the letters sent by Pope Agatho during the third Council of Constantinople (680-681 AD), which was convened to settle the matter of there being two wills in Christ our Lord.   Pope Agatho not only speaks of Peter’s primacy as the prince of the Apostles, he…

  • SEVENTEEN times the Gospel of John mentions the “hour” of Jesus. In the first half of the book, the “hour” is a highly anticipated moment in the ministry of Jesus that constantly grabs the attention of the reader and drives the narrative forward (Jn 2:4; 4:21; 5:25; 7:30, 8:20). In the second half of the…

  • I post here the commentary of the blessed St. Cyril of Alexandria on John 14:28 where he plainly states that the Father was greater than the Son only because of the Son’s Incarnation and descent to the earth to humble himself by becoming a slave. The saint refutes those heretics who used this verse to…

  • The quotations from St. Augustine are taken from On the Trinity, Book 1. Augustine will cite texts such as 1 John 5:20, where Jesus is called the true God and eternal life, to prove that Christ is one divine Person who operates in/by/through two natures since he is the God-Man. He will explain that Jesus, by virtue of…

  • In this post I will be quoting snippets from John the Damascene’s monumental tome titled, Exposition of the Faith, in regards to his articulation of the Trinity, the Son’s eternal generation, and two natures of Christ. As the readers will readily discern, John’s insights, depth of knowledge, and mastery of the Holy Scriptures are simply remarkable,…

  • Some anti-Trinitarians and/or subordinationists like to use St. Irenaeus’ statements in his refutation to the Gnostics where he states that not even the Son knew the hour to prove that this holy bishop did not affirm the Trinity. They argue that his words show that he was at the very least a subordinationist who did…

  • The quotations from St. Augustine are taken from On the Trinity, Book 1. The beloved saint will show that the words of our Lord Jesus in Mark 13:32 do not imply that the Son was ignorant of the Day or Hour, but that he chose to veil that knowledge for the express purpose of not making it…

  • This post is a continuation of my previous one from blessed St. Hilary of Poitier’s work On the Trinity, Book VII: Hilary: God is the Trinity. Here I provide more quotes from that same section showing how this holy saint confirmed that the phrase “one God” does not refer to or mean the Father, As the citations will prove,…

  • Here I cite from St. Hilary of Poitier’s work On the Trinity, Book VII, where this holy saint affirms that the term God refers the divine Persons who share the same name and nature. All emphasis will be mine. 31. We see how the living Son of the living Father, He Who is God from God,…

  • In this post I will be quoting from the works of another early church father, namely Hilary of Poitiers, in respect to his Trinitarian beliefs. The citations will show that Hilary affirmed that the Son was timelessly begotten, and therefore not a creature, since the Son has been eternally God with the Father. The quotations…

  • In this somewhat lengthy post, I quote the words of another great saint, Hilary of Poitiers, from his writing On the Holy Trinity, Book IV.   This holy saint not only argued that Jesus is that very divine Angel that appeared throughout the OT, he also quoted texts such as Genesis 1, Psalms 45:6-7, Isaiah 45:11-14, Hosea…

  • The excerpts cited here are all taken from Ambrosiaster’s Commentary on the Pauline Epistles: Romans, Translated with Notes, by Theodore S. de Bruyn, with an Introduction by Theodore S. de Bruyn, Stephen A. Cooper, & David G. Hunter. It was published by SBL Press in 2017. All emphasis will be mine.   5.1. The Context…

  • The quotations from St. Augustine are taken from On the Trinity, Book 1. The blessed saint will cite texts such as 1 Timothy 6:13-16 and apply that to the Trinity. In so doing, he identifies the only God of the passage as the Trinity. Augustine also applies 1 John 5:20 to the Son, which describes Christ as…

  • In this post I will quote from a few fathers and saints of the Church whom all believed that the reason the Son honored the Father as his God is because of the Incarnation, as a result of the eternal Word becoming flesh and taking on a human nature. Hippolytus 60. To grasp this divine mystery we…

Creed of the Council of Antioch 325 AD

The following is adapted from this post: Creed of the Antioch Council of 325. All emphasis will be mine.

8. Ἔστιν οὖν ἡ πίστις, ἣ προετέθη ὑπ’ ἀνδρῶν, πνευματικῶν καὶ οὺς αὖθις οὐ δίκαιον νομίφειν κατὰ σάρκα τῆν ἢ νοεῖν, ἀλλὰ ἐν πνεύματι ταῖς τῶν θεοπνεύστων βιβλίων ἁγίαις γραφαῖς συνησκῆσθαι, ἥδε·

πιστεύειν εἰς ἕνα θεὸν πατέρα παντοκράτορα, ἀκατάληπτον, ἄτρεπτον καὶ ἀναλλοίωτον, προνοητὴν καὶ ἡγεμόνα τοῦ παντός, δίκαιον, ἀγαθόν, ποιητὴν οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς καὶ πάντων τῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς, νόμου καὶ προφητῶν καὶ τῆς καινῆς διαθήκης κύριον· 

9. καὶ εἰς ἕνα κύριον ᾿Ιησοῦν Χριστόν, υἱὸν μονογενῆ, γεννηθέντα οὐκ ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος, ἀλλ᾽ ἐκ τοῦ πατρός, οὐχ ὡς ποιητόν, ἀλλ᾽ ὡς γέννημα κυρίως, γεννηθέντα δὲ ἀρρήτως καὶ ἀλέκτως, διότι μόνος ὁ πατὴρ ὁ γεννήσας καὶ ὁ υἱὸς ὁ γεννηθεὶς ἔγνω. “οὐδεὶς γὰρ ἐπιγινώσκει τὸν πατέρα εἶ μὴ ὁ υἱός, ἢ τὸν υἱὸν εἰ μὴ ὁ πατήρᾳ.” τὸν ἀεὶ ὄντα καὶ οὐ πρότερον οὐκ ὄντα. 

10. εἰκόνα γὰρ αὐτὸν μόνον ἐκ τῶν ἁγίων γραφῶν μεμαθήκαμεν, οὗ—δῆλον ὅτι ὡς ἂν παρὰ τοῦ πατρός—ἀγέννητον ὄντα· οὐ θέσει· ἀσεβὲς γὰρ καὶ βλάσφημον τοῦτο λέγειν, ἀλλὰ κυρίως καὶ ἀληθῶς υἱὸν λέγουσιν αὐτὸν αἱ γραφαὶ γεννηθέντα, ὥστε καὶ πιστεύομεν ἄτρεπτον εἶναι καὶ ἀναλλοίωτον αὐτὸν οὐδὲ θελήσει ἢ θέσει γεννηθῆναι ἢ γενέσθαι, ὥστε ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος αὐτὸν εἶναι φαίνεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καθὸ γεννηθῆναι αὐτὸν εἰκός, οὐδ᾽ ὅπερ οὐ θέμις ἐννοεῖν καθ᾽ ὁμοίωσιν ἢ φύσιν ἢ μῖξιν οὐδενὸς τῶν δι’ αὐτοῦ γενομένων,

11. ἀλλὰ διότι ὑπερβαίνει πᾶσαν ἔννοιαν ἢ διάνοιαν ἢ λόγον, ἐκ τοῦ πατρὸς τοῦ ἀγεννήτου γεννηθῆναι αὐτὸν ὁμολογοῦμεν, θεὸν λόγον, φῶς ἀληθινόν, δικαιοσύνην, ᾿Ιησοῦν Χριστόν, πάντων κύριον καὶ σωτῆρα. εἰκὼν γάρ ἐστιν οὐ θελήσεως οὐδ’ ἄλλου τινός, ἀλλ᾽ αὐτῆς τῆς πατρικῆς ὑποστάσεως. οὗτος δ᾽ ὁ υἱὸς θεὸς λόγος καὶ ἐν σαρκὶ ἐκ τῆς θεοτόκου Μαρίας τεχθεὶς καὶ σαρκωθείς, παθὼν καὶ ἀποθανὼν ἀνέστη ἐκ νεκρῶν καὶ ἀνελήφθη εἰς οὐρανόν, κάθηται δὲ ἐν δεξιᾷ τῆς μεγαλοσύνης τῆς ὑψίστης, ἐρχόμενος κρῖναι φῶντας καὶ νεκρούς·

12. ἔτι δὲ ὡς καὶ τὸν σωτῆρα ἡμῶν αἱ ἱεραὶ γραφαὶ διδάσκουσιν καὶ ἕν πνεῦμα πιστεῦσαι, μίαν καθολικὴν ἐκκλησίαν, τὴν νεκρῶν ἀνάστασιν, καὶ κρίσιν ἀνταποδόσεως καθὰ ἔπραξέν τις ἐν σαρκὶ εἴτε ἀγαθὰ εἴτε κακά,

13. ἀναθεματίφοντες ἐκείνους, οἱ λέγουσιν ἢ πιστεύουσιν ἢ κηρύττουσιν τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ κτίσμα ἢ γενητὸν ἢ ποιητὸν καὶ οὐκ ἀληθῶς γέννημα εἶναι ἢ ὅτι ἣν ὅτε οὐκ ἦν—ἡμεῖς γάρ, ὅτι ἦν καὶ ἔστιν καὶ ὅτι φῶς ἐστιν, πιστεύομεν—προσέτι δὲ κἀκείνους οἱ τῇ αὐτεξουσίῳ θελήσει αὐτοῦ ἄτρεπτον εἶναι αὐτὸν ἡγοῦνται, ὥσπερ καὶ οἱ ἐκ τοῦ μὴ ὄντος παράγοντες τὴν γέννησιν καὶ μὴ φύσει ἄτρεπτον κατὰ τὸν πατέρα. εἰκὼν γὰρ ὡς ἐν πᾶσιν, οὕτως καὶ μάλιστα ἐν τῷ δε τοῦ πατρὸς ἐκηρύχθη ὁ σωτὴρ ἡμῶν.

14a. Αὕτη οὖν ἡ πίστις προετέθη καὶ πᾶσα ἡ ἱερὰ σύνοδος συνέθετο καὶ ὡμολόγησε ταύτην εἶναι τὴν ἀποστολικὴν καὶ σωτήριον διδασκαλίαν.

8. This faith has been set down by spiritual men; those who ought not be considered as living or reasoning according to the flesh, because they have been trained by the Spirit in the holy Scriptures found in God-breathed books. Our faith is as follows:

To believe in one God, Father, almighty, incomprehensible, unchangeable and unalterable, administrator and governor of all, just, good, maker of heaven and earth, and all that is in them, the Lord of the Law and the Prophets and the New Testament. 

9. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son, begotten not from nothing, but from the Father; not made, but a genuine offspring. He was begotten inexpressibly and unspeakably, because only the Father who begot and the Son who was begotten know it, “for no one knows the Father except the Son, or the Son except the Father” [Matt 11:27]. 

10. He always exists and never before did he not exist, for we have been taught from the holy Scriptures that he alone is God’s image. He is not unbegotten, for he is clearly begotten of the Father. This status has not been placed upon him; in fact, it would be godless blasphemy to say so. But the scriptures say that he is the real and truly begotten Son, so we believe him to be unchangeable and unalterable. He has not been begotten or come into being merely by the Father’s will, nor has this status been placed upon him, which would make him appear to be from nothing. But he was begotten as was fitting for him, not at all according to the impermissible idea that he resembles, is of similar nature to, or is associated with any of the things that came into existence through him. 

11. But, because this transcends all thought, conception, and expression, we simply confess that he has been begotten from the unbegotten Father, God the Word, true Light, righteousness, Jesus Christ, Lord of all and Savior. He is the image not of the will or of anything else except the actual being (hypostasis) of the Father. This one, the Son, God the Word, was also born in the flesh from Mary the Mother of God and was made flesh. After suffering and dying, he rose from the dead and was taken into heaven, and he sits at the right hand of the Majesty of the Most High. He is coming to judge the living and the dead.  

12. Just as the holy writings teach us to believe in our Savior, so also they teach us to believe in one Spirit, one catholic church, the resurrection of the dead, and the judgment which will pay back to each man according to what he has done in the flesh, whether good or evil. 

13. We anathematize those who say or think or proclaim that the Son of God is a creation; has come into being, or was made, or was not truly begotten; or that there was a time when he did not exist (for we believe that he was and that he is Light); still also those who think he is unchangeable only by his free will [i.e., not according to his essence], as with those who think he did not exist before he was begotten and that he is not unchanging by his nature as the Father is. He has been proclaimed as the Father’s image in every respect, especially in this respect, that he does not change. 

14a. This faith was put forth, and indeed the entire holy synod consented and confessed that this is the apostolic teaching which alone is able to save.


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