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”.
This comes from St. Gregory’s Oration 25. All emphasis will be mine. Define our piety by teaching the knowledge of: One God, unbegotten, the Father; and One begotten Lord, his Son, referred to as “God” when he is mentioned separately, but “Lord” when he is named together with the Father—the first on account of the [divine]…
What a rich and important topic. St. Irenaeus of Lyons stands as one of the most powerful early witnesses to the primacy of Rome, and his testimony deserves to be understood in full — both its weight and its context. 🏛️ St. Irenaeus of Lyons on the Papacy Who Was Irenaeus? St. Irenaeus (c. 130–202…
Free Grace Theology (FGT) — associated with figures like Zane Hodges and the Grace Evangelical Society claims to honor the Bible, but when held up to the full light of Scripture and Sacred Tradition, it falls short in several serious ways, and we’re going to prove it how it contradicts the Bible also! What Free…
This excerpt is taken from St. Athanasius who claims that the language adopted by Nicaea to describe the Son’s essential equality with the Father isn’t new but quite ancient, going back to at least 130 years earlier. Athanasius exposed the Arian heretics by appealing to an unbroken chain of Apostolic succession of Bishops to prove…
David Kimchi, also known as RaDaK, was a medieval rabbinic commentator and philosopher who lived from 1160–1235 AD. In this post I will quote from his commentary in regards to a few OT texts that are either Messianic or have a direct bearing on Christian exegesis of OT verses, such as Psalm 2:12. Radak on…
I share the following article on St. Maximus the Confessor from CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Maximus of Constantinople. St. Maximus of Constantinople Known as the Theologian and as Maximus Confessor, born at Constantinople about 580; died in exile 13 August, 662. He is one of the chief names in the Monothelite controversy one of the chief doctors of the theology of the Incarnation and of ascetic mysticism, and…
In this post I will be quoting from Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture: The Gospel of John, by Francis Martin and William M. Wright IV, published by BakerAcademic, a division of Baker Publishing Group, Grand Rapids, Michigan, and published in 2015. All emphasis will be mine. Authorship The Gospel does not explicitly name its author,…
Another Arian Bites the Dust According to John’s Gospel, the prophet Isaiah saw Jesus Christ in his prehuman existence as YHWH of Hosts seated on his heavenly throne: “Jesus replied, ‘The light is with you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. The one who…
The land of Illyricum
In this post I will be looking at two OT texts, which the early Christians saw as foreshadowing Christ’s crucifixion. These early writers employed these particular verses as prophesying or prefiguring Christ’s death on a cross. First Prophecy I begin with the following reference from the Jeremiah: “and I am as a lamb or a…
In this article I will quote the relevant verses from both the Old and New Testaments where Israel is either said to be Sodom and Gomorrah, or even worse than them. I will further show how God also warns that Israel’s punishment will be much more severe and worse than that which he inflicted upon…
In this post I will be looking at two OT texts, which the early Christians saw as foreshadowing Christ’s crucifixion. These early writers employed these particular verses as prophesying or prefiguring Christ’s death on a cross. First Prophecy I begin with the following reference from the Jeremiah: “and I am as…
I share some of the many statements from St. John Chrysostom, one of the greatest saints biblical exegetes of the Church, affirming the primacy of Peter. These citations attest that Chrysostom held to Peter being the Rock and Leaders of the universal Church, having been given a preeminence over the rest of the holy Apostles…
Muslim apologist Sami Zaatari has jumped on the so-called “Christian” unitarian bandwagon by rehashing the same old worn out arguments and objections of these heretics against the true historic Christian faith which is based on the accurate interpretation of the Holy Bible. In one of his articles, Zaatari appeals to the unitarian interpretation of Psalm…
Examining Psalm 110:1 A look at Its Implications on God being a Multi-Personal Being and upon the Deity of Christ Christians often appeal to Psalm 110:1 to prove that the Hebrew Bible teaches that Yahweh is multi-Personal, that there is more than one Person who is Yahweh God, and that the Messiah is God. The…
In this post I quote the commentary of Mar Ishodad of Merv (Mari Ishoʿdaḏ Maruzaya), who was the bishop of Hdatta (circa 850 AD), which is near current-day Mosul, Iraq. Ishodad is considered a very important and prominent theologian of the Assyrian Church of the East, who wrote some very influential commentaries on the Syriac version of the Holy…
The Relationship between God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit Now, having established that there is only ONE God but also that there are three persons who are shown to be this one God, we are faced with the question of how these three persons are ‘related’. There have been different ‘models’ and ideas for…
Does the Bible Say, That the Holy Spirit Is God? Before we look at the interrelationship of God, the Father, God, the Son, and God, the Holy Spirit, we have to quickly establish that the Holy Spirit is God. I think, if you could follow and accept the reasoning in the earlier parts, there should…
This lengthy extract from St. Optatus is taken from Optatus of Milevis, Against the Donatists (1917) Book 2. pp. 57-119. His statements affirm that the Roman Church is the See of Peter, and the grounds of unity which makes the Church one and universal. He further argues that to deviate or break communion from it is to…
The argument is: Arguments against Dyophysites: Premise 1) Ens and unum are strictly convertible; whatever is, is one, and whatever is one, is. Unity adds nothing positive to being, but is the privation of internal division Premise 2) Numerical unity is that mode of unity which is both undivided in itself and divided from every…
God’s Glory equated with His Praise and Honor Another indication that Jesus shares in the glory of God is that he receives the very honor and praise which only God is supposed to receive. According to the book of Isaiah, Yahweh says that he will not share his glory and praise with any other so-called…
It may surprise Christians to discover that Martin Luther candidly admitted that the Catholic Church traces itself back to the Apostles, that it genuinely has Apostolic Succession, despite having (in Luther’s erroneous view) corrupted itself throughout time. Here is Luther in his own words: Today the pope and his crowd cry out against us that…
The following quote is taken from Josephus’ The War of the Jews 5:5, translated by William Whiston. He states that the Divine Name consists of 4 vowels. All emphasis is mine. ז. ובני משפחת הכהֻנה, אשר לא יכלו לשָׁרֵת בקֹדש מפני מום אשר בבשרם, היו באים לפנים מן הקלעים עם אחיהם הכשרים ומקבלים את חלקי הזבחים…
In this post I will be quoting from two English translations of the Syriac translation of the Holy Bible, which is called the Peshitta. I cite this particular ancient version for the express purpose of showing that the Aramaic term for God, namely Alah/Alaha, is used for both the Father and the Son. I will also use…
The Aramaic Bible, commonly referred to as the Peshitta, employs a unique word MarYah, which some authorities believe is a compound phrase consisting of Aramaic Mar (“Lord”) and the shortened form of the Tetragrammaton or the divine name yod-heh-vav-heh, namely, Yah. If this is so then the term literally means “The Lord Yah,” or “The Lord Jehovah.” What makes this all the…
The Views of Scholars and Apologists It probably wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the consensus of NT scholarship agrees that according to John 12:41, the inspired Evangelist believed that Isaiah actually saw the prehuman Christ in Isaiah 6 when the prophet beheld Yahweh’s glory in a vision. Here are some of the comments which affirm…
I am going to revisit the Apostle John’s claim that Isaiah beheld the visible glory of Christ when the Lord Jesus appeared to the prophet in his prehuman existence as Jehovah of Hosts seated on the throne. I am referring to the following text from the inspired Evangelist: “‘Believe in the light while you have…
Every time anyone goes against Christianity shoot themselves on the foot. It started from the cross.
The late Dr. Gleason L. Archer addressed the issue of Ahaziah’s reign and age, since 2 Kings. 8:26 states he was 22 whereas 2 Chronicles 22:2 states he was 42. When did Ahaziah ben Jehoram become king? 2 Kings 8:25 says that Ahaziah son of Jehoram of Judah became king in the twelfth year of…
In this article I will reference statements from some of the greatest theologians, apologists, scholars, bishops and/or sons to show that the unanimous belief of the universal Church was that Peter was the chief and head of all the holy and blessed Apostles. Epistle of Clement to James Epistle of Clement to James Chapter I.-Peter’s…
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 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…
The following post is taken from Catholic Answers: https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/defending-the-filioque. Tim Staples Filioque is Latin for “and the Son” and refers to the part of the Nicene Creed wherein Christians declare the Holy Spirit “proceeds from the Father and the Son.” The Orthodox—along with Eastern Catholic Churches—do not recite this part of the Creed. More important for our purpose,…
The following post is taken from Catholic Answers: https://www.catholic.com/tract/filioque. The Western Church commonly uses a version of the Nicene creed which has the Latin word filioque (“and the Son”) added after the declaration that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father. Scripture reveals that the Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. The external relationships of the…
Saint Augustine of Hippo on Filioque
The purpose of this short post is to demonstrate how both ancient and post-Christian versions and commentaries from both Jews and Christians interpreted Isaiah 42:1. All emphasis will be mine. LXX “Jacob is my servant, I will help him: Israel is my chosen, my soul has accepted him; I have put my Spirit…
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