This is a bit heavier than my usual posts here, but it answers an important question that Protestant apologists have posed to me and other Catholic converts: Was I only drawn to the Catholic Church because its claims to authority offered an “easy out” to the difficulties of weighing Scripture and doctrine for myself? Paralysis …
Tag Archives: tradition
Some Early Testimonies to the Authority of Apostolic Tradition
Part of an ongoing discussion at Reformation500. As I’ve been arguing, I think Protestants, in thinking about “Tradition,” fail to see the forest for the trees. You (and I presume these historians) are looking for “traditions,” “hidden doctrines,” something concretely novel or different from the Word of God in Scripture — but given that, according …
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A Note on “Hebrew Roots” or “Messianic” Christianity
(Here is a note that originated as a comment to a friend on Facebook, voicing my concerns about something I’ve never spoken about here before: “Hebrew Roots” Christianity or “Messianic Judaism.”) I have mixed feelings about the Messianic and “Hebrew Roots” movements. (I don’t know if it’s fair to lump those together or not. I …
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Defending Sola Scriptura: A Challenge
(I’m going to attempt to write the post I tried to write yesterday before I lost it to a tangent.) Recently I’ve been talking to Protestants, especially those who present themselves as being of an apologetic bent, and asking them to defend the principles of the Reformation. St. Peter exhorts us to “always be prepared …
Mary and the Living Tradition of the Church
[This originated as a response to a comment on my own blog, but I thought it might be worth sharing with everyone.] Well, even the language you are using exhibits that you are misunderstanding the Church’s teachings about Mary. And I can relate, because these are some of the same misunderstandings and objections I had. …
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What Sacred Tradition Is and Is Not: 7 Answers to Common Misconceptions
This started out as a response to someone’s blog, but I got carried away. Here are some answers to some common misunderstandings regarding the Sacred Tradition of the Catholic Church, especially with reference to the Protestant doctrine of sola scriptura. Pardon me for just dumping it here with so little introduction or conclusion, but I …
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Going to the source: Some light on the Assumption of Mary from Munificentissimus Deus
I don’t have a lot of time for an update today, and am in no mood for argument; but this is an important day: the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the celebration of our Blessed Mother being assumed body and soul into heaven at the end of her earthly life, as …
Missing Information: The Historical Limitations of Sola Scriptura
(This little essay originated as a comment in another blog just now, and I thought it might be worth sharing.) As a historian — and this is one of the things that led me to Catholicism — I feel like it’s a fallacy of the doctrine of sola scriptura to presume that we have all …
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Sacrament and Schism: The Media of Grace and Our Separated Brethren
Here’s the beginning of something I’ve been pondering for a while now (or really the last post may have been the beginning). I’m going to try to be a little more brief than I usually am, both for your sake and mine. The ministry of the Roman Catholic Church to her people is focused in …
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The Outpouring of Divine Mercy: A thought on the Work of God among all Christians
Hello, dear friends. I’m still around. I’m continuing to struggle with some things — not least of all a real terror of a paper — but I think the sun is beginning to shine through the clouds, and I hope, I pray, that I’ll soon be able to return to you on a more regular basis. I …
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