On the Need for Authority

One thing that always strikes me about protestants is that they claim to believe in Sola Scriptura.  They say that the Bible is the sole source of revelation.

Unfortunately, that presents problems.  First, it is all roughly two thousand years old or older.  Things were written in Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic, about events that happened in a culture that is vastly different than our culture today.  To even begin to study the Bible in a true "Sola Scriptura" fashion, you need to know biblical Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic.  You also need a vast understanding of the ancient Near East culture, history, geography, etc.  Thus, to even BEGIN to rely solely upon Scripture, you need vast amounts of contextual information for the words to even make sense.

Why do you need to know all of this?  Translation is, to some degree, always interpreting from the source language to the target language.  To eliminate bias from translators, one must go to the source language.  Then, a mere mechanical translation sometimes makes little sense to the reader.  How long is a cubit?  How much is a shekel worth?  How can you stuff a camel through the eye of a needle?  As much as is possible, any student of Scripture needs to be aware of these things.  Many translations, despite attempting to be unbiased, still do not immediately make sense without the context, anyway.  Furthermore, one has to consider the type of literature that the passage comes from.  It could be poetry, history, proverbial, legal; it could be a letter, or apocalyptic literature.  There is thought that certain books of the Old Testament are fables, stories used to illustrate certain eternal truths.

All of this effort is simply to get the literal meaning of Scripture.  Above and beyond that are the many varied spiritual interpretations, foreshadowing, typography, cross references, numerology, etc.

Ultimately, if you say that scripture alone is the sole source of revelation, you are spending an awful lot of time and effort reinventing the wheel.  You will also get things wrong, so it'll likely be a lopsided, inefficient wheel at that.

Let's get down to the brass tacks.  People disagree on everything even when it is specific.  When something is vague or open to interpretation, multiply that by a thousand.

We even see disagreement on doctrine among the early Christian peoples.  In Acts 15, the so-called Judaisers were insisting that Pagan converts follow the Judaic law in its entirety.  Others disagreed.  It was such a serious disagreement that it threatened in the Church's infancy to split the Church even then.

How did they handle the dispute?  Did they say to each other, "You know, this doesn't really matter.  Can we just agree to disagree, as long as we follow Christ?"  No, they did not.  Instead, here's what DID happen.  The apostles and presbyters assembled together from the whole Church, discussed the matter, prayed, and came to a definitive decision.  Note that the Holy Spirit worked through this seemingly prosaic and human form of resolution (Acts 15:28).  All were to abide by the decision.  The Judaisers did not go off and start their own splinter group, but submitted to the authority of this council.

This event provided the prototype for all further disputes within the Church, whether they be moral or theological.  The fruits were greater understanding of God's Revelation and a chance to practice humility and compassion.  The greatest fruit, however, was that a signpost was planted, guiding men on the narrow and difficult road, and helping them avoid the wide and easy road to perdition.  Each new council, each new proclamation, guides the weary traveller higher up, borne by the strength of the Lord, so that he might avoid pitfalls on his journey.  In a very practical way, these decisions make straight the paths of the Lord so that we might run swiftly into His loving arms as a good and faithful servant.

This Sums up so well what I feel about Catholicism

"...The more complicated seems the coincidence, the less it can be a coincidence. If snowflakes fell in the shape, say, of the heart of Midlothian, it might be an accident. But if snowflakes fell in the exact shape of the maze at Hampton Court, I think one might call it a miracle. It is exactly as of such a miracle that I have since come to feel of the philosophy of Christianity. The complication of our modern world proves the truth of the creed more perfectly than any of the plain problems of the ages of faith. It was in Notting Hill and Battersea that I began to see that Christianity was true. This is why the faith has that elaboration of doctrines and details which so much distresses those who admire Christianity without believing in it. When once one believes in a creed, one is proud of its complexity, as scientists are proud of the complexity of science. It shows how rich it is in discoveries. If it is right at all, it is a compliment to say that it’s elaborately right. A stick might fit a hole or a stone a hollow by accident. But a key and a lock are both complex. And if a key fits a lock, you know it is the right key.

But this involved accuracy of the thing makes it very difficult to do what I now have to do, to describe this accumulation of truth. It is very hard for a man to defend anything of which he is entirely convinced. It is comparatively easy when he is only partially convinced. He is partially convinced because he has found this or that proof of the thing, and he can expound it. But a man is not really convinced of a philosophic theory when he finds that something proves it. He is only really convinced when he finds that everything proves it. And the more converging reasons he finds pointing to this conviction, the more bewildered he is if asked suddenly to sum them up. Thus, if one asked an ordinary intelligent man, on the spur of the moment, “Why do you prefer civilization to savagery?” he would look wildly round at object after object, and would only be able to answer vaguely, “Why, there is that bookcase . . . and the coals in the coal-scuttle . . . and pianos . . . and policemen.” The whole case for civilization is that the case for it is complex. It has done so many things. But that very multiplicity of proof which ought to make reply overwhelming makes reply impossible." GK Chesterton in Orthodoxy

The Quotesmith continues

"The Christian optimism is based on the fact that we do not fit in to the world. I had tried to be happy by telling myself that man is an animal, like any other which sought its meat from God. But now I really was happy, for I had learnt that man is a monstrosity. I had been right in feeling all things as odd, for I myself was at once worse and better than all things. The optimist’s pleasure was prosaic, for it dwelt on the naturalness of everything; the Christian pleasure was poetic, for it dwelt on the unnaturalness of everything in the light of the supernatural. The modern philosopher had told me again and again that I was in the right place, and I had still felt depressed even in acquiescence. But I had heard that I was in the wrong place, and my soul sang for joy, like a bird in spring. The knowledge found out and illuminated forgotten chambers in the dark house of infancy. I knew now why grass had always seemed to me as queer as the green beard of a giant, and why I could feel homesick at home."

~GK Chesterton in Orthodoxy

Salavation History, Part 2

I lied. This is actually going to be more about Christ's life than post Cross.

The life of Christ is the central event in human history. Gregorian monks rightly reckoned all of history to be judged whether it be Before Christ or Anno Domini (in the year of Our Lord). The common era stuff is for those who wish to deny Christ in history.

First of all, we must tackle the issue of God the Son becoming Man. God could have waved a magic wand and said, "Poof! It's all good!" Jesus' life, death and resurrection is the ultimate revelation of who God is and who Man is. It is the ultimate death-blow to those who would reject the physical world and those who would reject the spiritual world.

God made man in His Image. God then made Himself in man's image in the person of Jesus Christ. His desire for unity was so great that He became united to his Creation.

Jesus was never solely concerned with the spiritual, and never solely concerned with the physical. The two were always bound together. "Your sins are forgiven...Pick up your mat and walk." Jesus taught the crowds, and fed them. He turned water into wine at a wedding. That wine would have been enough to keep my wedding reception guests, all 250 of them, liquored up for a week straight. Literally.

Jesus makes some strange proclamations along the way, though. "You must pick up your cross and follow me." "Can you drink from the cup that I will drink?" "Unless you eat my body and drink my blood, you have no life within you." He holds up bread and says, "This is my body." And likewise, the cup of wine, "This is my blood." The very next day, He is crucified. We claim, then, that this physical crucifixion has spiritual consequences. This spilling of blood of the spotless Lamb of God is the sacrifice which reconciles Man to God.

How does this sacrifice unite us to God? How are we incorporated into this shedding of blood? Those two events, the Last Supper and His death on the Cross are intimately linked. In the Jewish understanding of a day, "night came and morning followed...", these two events were at the beginning and the end of the SAME DAY. They are, in fact, the same event, mystically united. They are literally united by the Word of God. The Last Supper began with a washing. It ended with this proclamation that "This is My Body" and "This is My Blood" and he shared those with his disciples.

The blood that dropped from His side is the same blood that He gave his disciples to drink. The body that hung from the cross is the same body that He gave his disciples to eat. The Word spoke and it was (read Genesis 1 and John 1).

"Do this in memory of me."

On Salvation History, Part 1

The Cross reaches out in four directions into infinity. Its arms reach out and embrace the whole world. Its post goes from the depths of the earth to the highest of heavens. It is the signpost around which all of history, indeed, all of creation itself, revolves. All that came before it prepares the way for it. All that comes after looks back upon it. All of history revolves around the Incarnation, Life, Death and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Adam and Eve were made in the Image and Likeness of God. They were made with bodies and souls. Even at the fall of man, God promises a savior. At the time of Moses, God gave man the law, foreseeing the time when the law is written upon men's hearts through the Cross. The priests offered sacrifice, foreshadowing the sacrifice of the Cross. The prophets drew the people of God into relationship with Him. They admonished their sins and foretold of a savior. The kings ruled over them, foreshadowing their heavenly King.

Jesus was priest, prophet and king. He, the God made man, ruler of all, will come again to judge the living and the dead. He offered Himself in sacrifice as the new high priest, upon which all priesthood is based. This Living Word drew man into union with himself, reading men's hearts, healing their bodies, their minds and their souls.

In all of the Old Testament, and all of the New, we see this strange intermixing of body and soul, of the physical world with the spiritual. We see this in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were made "very good." They were made in "the Image and Likeness of God." Yet, we see that this very good image and likeness of God is both physical and spiritual. One of the most poignant lines before the fall is this: "They were naked without shame." After the fall, we see that they realize their nakedness and cover it. When they sin, they open their bodies to death and decay. Even at the beginning, man is this strange creature with both physical and spiritual natures. Even at the beginning, we see the created union of these natures. Even at the beginning, we see that they affect one another, and that man is incomplete without both body and soul. This understanding of man is essential for any authentic understanding of Christianity.

Salvation History makes no sense without this understanding of man. When Moses meets God in the burning bush, we see God instructing Moses to remove his sandals, because where he is standing is holy ground. We see here that this physical action is united to a spiritual reality. When Elijah confronts the prophets of Baal, he creates an altar, which God Himself consumes with fire. When Samson is born, he is told not to cut his hair, nor drink wine, nor strong drink, as an offering to the Lord. When David sins, his son dies. God takes pains to offer up precise instructions on the tent where His presence is to dwell. He specifies the robes and undergarments that the priests are to wear when offering sacrifice. If God goes through the trouble to specify undergarments, you can see that the physical worlds and spiritual worlds are intimately linked, particularly when it comes to worship.

The ultimate expression of this is in Jesus Christ, the God who became Man. This invisible God willed to become fully man, while remaining fully God. Thus, the person of Jesus ONLY makes sense if the physical world and spiritual world are intimately bound up with one another.

Part 2 will cover salvation history after the Cross.

Vocare

Vocare (to call) -> Vocation is fundamentally a call from God. It is, in essence, a lifelong mission that you are given that you never truly retire from. It fundamentally affects who you are rather than what you do. Essential to this understanding is that God equips those whom he calls. When lived out, a vocation encompasses an irrevocable gift of self. It is giving your life to this calling.

The current understanding of a vocation as a line of work is a flawed idea that your identity and dignity are rooted in what you do. (This is one of the great mistakes of modern feminism.) With it comes the devaluation of those who cannot perform, whether physically (including sexually), mentally, etc. It stems from a utilitarian understanding of the human person. If he cannot contribute to society, if he cannot support himself and/or others, then that person is useless. If you really stop and think about that, it’s a really horrific and self-centered understanding of life.

Instead, a profession should flow naturally from the identity and vocation of the person, rather than vice versa as above. Ultimately, vocation is a calling to which a man gives himself. For husbands and fathers, the income from this profession becomes part of his “gift of self” to his spouse and to his children. Sometimes that unfortunately means that a man must take employment where it is available to keep himself and his family off the street. For those in the religious life, it often means a rigorous life of prayer and preaching or service to fellow man.

It is only the single person, committed to such, that can really begin to call a profession also a vocation. An example might be a researcher who dedicates his whole life to finding a cure for a disease, or a philosopher who eschews conventional life to dedicate it all to the pursuit of wisdom.

Wise Men: Portraits of Manliness?

Well, if you think about it, yes.

Here are three men, astrologers, who are probably used to quite a bit of luxury. They have plenty of money. They're respected in their communities. Going on a long journey is not the first thing that they'd undertake for the most part.

However, they see the most interesting celestial event of their lives. A new star is rising. A new king. It had been ages since such an event had occurred. Did they send servants? Emissaries? No. These men were so moved by the star that they themselves followed it.

They left their life of luxury and honor to travel the wilderness, following a star to Israel. The star did not lead them to Jerusalem. No, it didn't lead them to a major city, but a small village, Bethlehem. It did not lead them to the grand hotel, but a stable. Could the new king really be staying in a stable? Still, they followed.

They found a peasant couple with a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes. He was lying in a manger. He was lying in a feeding trough. Still, they believed. These three wise men, arrayed in fine clothes, offered presents of gold, frankincense and myrrh to this small peasant child.

They believed.

Deep In Mercy, Part 1

What you see over the course of the history of the OT going into the NT is a progressively deeper unveiling of God's identity over time, culminating in the ultimate reveal of who He is in the person of Jesus Christ. It is not any change in God Himself, but God revealed Himself slowly over the course of thousands of years to allow man to grow in his understanding progressively. It is a function of God's mercy that He unveiled Himself so slowly.

If he went *POOF* JESUS! DIE! RISE AGAIN! *POOF*, then mankind would likely reject it altogether, not having the proper cultural and emotional context to understand what is going on or appreciate what is happening.

Furthermore, He revealed Himself in the proper order. He first revealed His Justice, so that we would be able to understand His Mercy. Without an understanding of justice, mercy has no meaning. As one unfolds, the other follows.

The law came about so that man could understand his sin and his need for a savior. The law could not save, but it could instruct man in proper living. Its greatest lesson is how imperfect we all are and how weak we all are. It shows man how much he needs God. We all deserve death. We all deserve Hell. The law made this clear.

Even as God's Justice is being established, His Mercy is apparent, even from the beginning. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God's command, they had to face death in justice. However, God also treats them with mercy. He gives them leather garments to hide their shame. Moreover, Gen 3:15 contains the Protoevangelium, God's foretelling of the triumph over death.

When Abraham pleaded for Sodom and Gomorrah, God showed His Mercy when Abraham asked "If there are only 100, 80, 10, etc. righteous people... will you spare Sodom for the sake of the 100, 80, 10, etc.?" However, it was so completely corrupt that not even Lot's wife had been corrupted by their evildoing. Furthermore, God allowed those who were righteous to escape the doom. Such mercy by a god was unknown and amazing at that time.

There are countless others, and I haven't even gotten through Genesis.

I could go on and on about the countless Mercies that God showed His people and even others who were not "his people" throughout the Old Testament. To paint God in the OT as cruel and heartless is, quite simply, ignorant.

Head of the Household

"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ loved the church and handed himself over for her"
~ Ephesians 5:25

I'm the head of my household. I have to lay down my life for my wife. When I have children, I'll have to lay down my life for them as well. In the past eight months, I've been learning to do that. It hasn't been easy, but my life has a new purpose and meaning that it did not have before. It is my vocation. It is my calling.

Before I met my lovely wife, I had lots of freedom. Boredom, too. I had money; I had lots of time to spend as I wished. I could pretty much go where I wanted or do what I wanted, so long as I showed up 9 to 5 for work. I was miserable. I spent many an hour simply feeling aimless and passionless. I didn't have anyone to live for.

Now, I have a wife, a house and a dog. There are honey-dos, a wife to love and comfort, and a dog to entertain and feed. There are schedules to coordinate, charts to follow, payments to make and precious little free time. But, I have purpose. I'm much happier than I was when I had "freedom."

Live for God. Live your vocation. Live.

Our Lady of Blessed Acceleration

Don't fail us now!

Vote for "Our Lady of Blessed Acceleration" as the patron saint of the Archdiocese of Detroit now!

Finding a Patron Saint for the Archdiocese of Detroit

Holy Spackled Horsehair, Batman!

I love attributing completely random titles to Our Lady every now and again. This was inspired by the Blues Brothers' quote: "Our Lady of Blessed Acceleration, don't fail us now!" To any naysayers, as Queen of Heaven and Earth, these titles do apply. It matters not that it's rather zany.

A few off the top of my head:

• Our Lady, Queen of Programmers and Support Personnel
  
• Mary, Patroness of Dyspeptic Evangelicals
• Our Lady of Snazzy Outfits

I think my wife might like me to pray to Mary under the latter more often.

On a related note, as the title implies, I also enjoy what I'd call "Robin exclamations." Really, all it boils down to is an outrageous exclamation with Batman as direct address thrown in..

• Jumping Jackrabbits, Batman, it's the beast!
• Motherlode monkey turnips, Batman!
• By Jove, Batman, I believe we've apprehended the thief

Think. Post. Enjoy.