Take a pilgrimage with Steve and Janet Ray!
St. Augustine and St. Paul on Real Bishops
“No man can be a good bishop if he loves his title but not his task.” St. Augustine
May God grant us good Shepherd‘s. May he grant us those willing to be politically-incorrect, willing to be honest with their flock, exposing heresy and sin even if it’s among their own bishops and priests — even if it causes them grief, ostracization and discomfort.
Where are the Shepherds that lay down their lives for the sheep? Where are the shepherds ready stop being politicians and ready to be martyrs?
If they do, they will be amazed at the loyalty, love and devotion the sheep will show them. The sheep will follow such shepherds anywhere!
God bless all the marvelous bishops that grace our Church. I know many of them and I love them dearly. They already heed the words of St. Paul. But there are others who need to take heed…
Acts 20:28–30 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.
I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking [and doing] perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.”
Venerable Fulton J. Sheen “Who is going to save our Church? Not our bishops, not our priests and religious. It is up to you, the people. You have the minds, the eyes, and the ears to save the Church. Your mission is to see that your priests act like priests, your bishops act like bishops.”
Please pray for our shepherds, praise them for what they do, thank them for being a bishop which is a very difficult job, support them.
Bible Riddle: What Am I?
This puzzle was written by a lady in California in 1890 in response to a gentlemen in Philadelphia, who said that he would pay $1,000 to anyone who could write a puzzle that he could not solve. He failed to do so, and paid the lady $1,000 (a great sum at that time).
The answer is one word, five letters long, and appears only four times in the King James version of the Bible. Other translations may use a different word. An eight-year-old boy figured out the puzzle. Can you? Happy hunting.
(Answer Key Below 🙂
God made Adam out of the dust,
But thought it best to make me first.
So I was made before the man,
according to God’s Holy plan.
My whole body God made complete,
without arms, or hands, or feet.
My ways and acts did God control,
but in my body He placed no immortal soul.
A living being I became,
and Adam gave to me a name.
Then from his presence I withdrew,
for this man Adam I never knew.
All my Maker’s laws I do obey,
and from these laws I never stray.
Thousands of me go in fear,
but seldom on the earth appear.
Later, for a purpose God did see,
He placed a living soul in me.
But that soul of mine God had to claim,
and from me took it back again.
And when this soul from me had fled,
I was the same as when first made;
without arms, legs, feet, or soul,
I travel on from pole to pole.
My labors are from day to night,
and to men I once furnished light.
Thousands of people both young and old,
did by my death bright lights behold.
No right or wrong can I conceive;
the Bible and it’s teachings I can’t believe.
The fear of death doesn’t trouble me;
pure happiness I will never see.
And up in Heaven I can never go,
nor in the grave or hell below.
So get your Bible and read with care;
you’ll find my name recorded there.
Answer Key: Check out Genesis 1:21; Job 7:12; Ezekiel 32:2; Matthew 12:40.
What does the word “Catholic” mean? A history of the word “Catholic”
What Does Catholic Mean? A History of the Word “Catholic”
By Steve Ray
As a Protestant, I went to an Evangelical church that changed an important and historical word in the Apostles Creed. Instead of the “holy, catholic Church,” we were the “holy, Christian church.” At the time, I thought nothing of it. There was certainly no evil intent, just a loathing of the Catholic Church and a distinct desire to distance ourselves from its heresy and man-made traditions.
I assumed that early on C
atholics deviated from “biblical Christianity” so they simply invented a new word to describe their new society. Since we Evangelicals were supposedly the ones faithful to the Bible we had no interest in the word catholic since it was found nowhere between the covers of the Bible. It was a biased word loaded with negative baggage so we removed it from the Creed.
I should have asked myself “Where did the word catholic come from, and what does it mean?” Was I right to assume that Roman Catholics invented the word to set themselves apart from biblical Christianity?
A short and interesting investigation will turn up some valuable information. Let’s start with an understanding of doctrinal development and the definition of catholic, then let’s “interview” the very first Christians to see what they thought of the Church and the word catholic and then we will study the Bible itself.
How Doctrines and Words Develop
The development of doctrine is not just a Catholic phenomenon. It is also a fact among Protestants and all religions or theological traditions. Over time, theological words develop to help explain the deeper understanding of the faith.
As Christians ponder the revelation passed on by the apostles and deposited in his Church the Church mulls over God’s Word, thinking deeper and deeper. It is not unlike peeling the layers away from an onion as one goes deeper to the heart. The development of doctrine defines, sharpens, and interprets the deposit of faith.
The Bible is not a theological textbook or a detailed church manual, such as say a catechism or study guide. The Bible’s meaning is not always clear as St. Peter tells us (2 Pet 3:15−16). Thousand of competing Protestant denominations also make this fact apparent as they fail to agree on what the Bible says. It takes the authority of a universal Church and the successors of the apostles to formulate the doctrines of the faith. As an Evangelical, I was naïve enough to think I could recreate the “theological” wheel for myself.
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