Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Steve Ray on the rountable

Tonight, Ross and Margie are very pleased to have Catholic apologist Steve Ray on the Catholic Roundtable. 
The program kicks off at 7 PM Eastern time.

If you want to be on the program call 646-595-2071








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Monday, May 28, 2012

*BEST OF DTB #190* The Catholic Defender: In Memory of an Older Brother

Growing up, I didn't really get the chance to get to know my oldest Brother, David.

He was 6 years older than I was and very involved in sports when I was still in grade school. David was a standout wrestler and football player.

I grew up following his footsteps in playing sports, but I never had some of the opportunities he had, especially football.

He was a great football player who had much potential, almost went into pro-football before he joined the Marine Corps.

The Marines changed is life forever. He served in Viet Nam and been in several skirmishes, my Mother spoke of the time he had been lost in the jungle getting separated from his patrol due to a "Firefight".

He had to survive and make his way back while being in enemy territory. That was never easy as you could not light a fire in the bush, you could invite someone you do not want to welcome into your camp. Plus there are alot of traps set out that could kill you in the jungle.

David would survive Viet Nam, but he didn't survive the anti-war climate that was everywhere. When David's enlistment was completed, he began going to a local college trying get his life back in order. Everytime he would drive into town, the local police would always mess with him. They would harass him, reminding me of the movie, "First Blood" with Sylvester Stallone.

David would end up moving away from home (Missouri) going ultimately to Seattle Washington where he began working at a hospital helping the physical therepy department.

After about two years David was planning to get married. Unfortunately, he was killed before the marriage.

The killers were never found but David is not forgotten. His family still remembers and honors his service to this Country and this Memorial Day I want to say this prayer on his behalf:

I saw a soldier kneeling down,
for this was the first quiet place he had found.
He had traveled through jungles, rivers and mud
He'd tasted sweat and shed his blood.

He folded his hands and looked to the sky
I saw his tears, as they welled in his eyes.
He spoke to God, and this is what he said.
"God Bless my men, who now lie dead;

I know not what You have in mind,
but when You judge them, please be kind
when they come before You, they will be poorly dressed
but they'll walk proudly, for they have done their best.

Their boots will be muddy and their clothes all torn
but these clothes they have so proudly worn.
Their hearts will be still and cold inside,
for they have fought their best and did so with pride.

So please take care of them as they pass Your way
the price of freedom they've already paid."

AMEN!



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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

The Catholic Defender: The Position of Joseph

During one of the debates, John was debating George Lujack on the primacy of Peter.

At a certain point I mentioned the biblical foundation in the Old Testament for such a position.

Chiefly Isaiah 22:22 addresses the keys to the Household of David. This is a clear case where the King maintained a Royal Stewart.

I went farther back to the time of Joseph, son of Jacob who had been sold into slavery by his brothers.

The Lord blessed Joseph whiched affected his masters, jailers, those whom helped Joseph in slavery. Then a crisis came to the land of Egypt, the whole Middle East. God's plan was about to be fulfilled.

Joseph was given authority to that of a royal stewart. The language given in Isaiah is clear to what that position held in ancient times: "When he opens, no one shall shut, when he shuts, no one shall open. I will fix him like a peg in a sure spot, to be a place of honor for his family".

Remember, the father of a house has the authority. Lets go back to Joseph, "The Pharaoh said to Joseph, "Since God has made all this known to you, no one can be as wise and discerning as you are. You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people shall dart at your command. Only in respect to the throne shall I out rank you. Herewith, Pharaoh told Joseph, 'I place you in charge of the whole of Egypt".

I am not saying nor did I ever mean that Joseph nor the royal stewart of the houshold of David were to become equal to or greater than the Pharaoh or the Kings of Israel.

St. Peter was given the keys to the Kingdom of Heaven by the "Son of David". This position of Simon, son of Bar-Jonah, would never become greater than his Master, Jesus Christ, but until the Lord returns, this is the Popes position.

George and his followers are claiming the Pope is the false prophet of Revelation 13:11, and if a Catholic stands for the Pope, you become a "foot soldier" for the anti-Christ. Here is an example of their posting:

"DONALD HARTLEY: FOOT SOLDIER FOR THE FALSE PROPHET (CATHOLIC POPE) AND ANTI-CHRIST.

This is a direct quote from Donald Hartley's own mouth and can be verified by listening to it from the attached link and fast forwarding to where Donald speaks. Donald's words begin at minute 98:20 and end at 99:36 of the show. I didn't get a chance to address this and call Donald out on his statements, but am doing so here. I believe that when you read (below) and listen (to Donald's own words), this illustrates where Donald's desire is. Donald demonstrates that he is and will be a willing foot soldier of the end-time false prophet (Catholic pope) and anti-Christ world political leader. Remember, before calling me "crazy" or "paranoid," I didn't say these words or coerce them out of Donald; he said them as he spoke freely, revealing where he will be, against God, when the false prophet (Catholic pope) and anti-Christ rise to global domination.

DONALD HARTLEY:
"You look in the Old Testament and you notice that Joseph was one of the sons of Jacob and he was taken to Egypt ...

... But God through His work actually made Joseph into the PRIME MINISTER of Egypt. I mean nobody could BUY OR SELL OR DO ANYTHING without Joseph's knowledge of it ...

... and you see THE KEYS designate AN OFFICE and so you have A POSITION that is established ...

... and so Jesus when He gives the keys to Simon, son of Bar Jonah ..."

RESPONSE:
A chilling revelation from Donald Hartley.

1. Joseph was made GOVERNOR of Egypt, not PRIME MINISTER (Genesis 42:6).

2. Joseph was 2nd in command to only Pharaoh (Genesis 41:43). This would automatically disqualify the Catholic pope from being 2nd in command as the Catholic pope does not obey the commandments of God, as Joseph did obey the lawful commands of Pharaoh (Joseph never bowed to a graven image idol of Egypt).

3. Joseph was not given any keys by Pharaoh.

4. Joseph foretold of Pharaoh's dreams and He was placed in charge of storing grain and selling the abundance of it when the famine arrived (Genesis 41:56-57). This did not mean that no one could BUY OR SELL OR DO ANYTHING without Joseph's knowledge.

I suppose you take Genesis 41:44 out-of-context. Do you really think that no one could lift their feet (walk) or raise their hands without permission from Joseph? This must be read in context of Genesis 41:43, which makes it clear that Joseph was made a strong political leader of Egypt, that people had to stop what they were doing when he passed and acknowledge him, as they acknowledged Pharaoh.

Here is where your desire will lead to Donald, as prophesied in Revelation. You have shown that you are a willing foot soldier to insure that your Catholic pope (false prophet) becomes as powerful as Scripture foretells that he will become...

REVELATION 13:16-18:
He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that NO ONE MAY BUY OR SELL except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.

Do you have wisdom Donald? The Deeper Truth Debates have shown that you do not."

Ladies and Gentlemen, you can see how dishonest this is. It really is not a debate, but an attack on the foundation of our Faith. I reaffirm what I said at the top of this article. Notice the play on words, "Joseph was made a Governor, not Prime Minister"? Regardless of the title, the position is the same. "You shall be in charge of my palace, and all my people shall dart at your command" implies a position equating the second in command. Governor or Prime Minister, the position and the point is the same. To say that Joseph was only in charge of the food rationing is dishonest.

Notice also the attack on the Pope whom they want you to think the Pope changed the natural law of God. These people are pre-Jerusalem Council (48 A.D.) who want to bring back the 7th day Sabbath not recognizing the New Covenant of Christ. They do not recognize the decision of the Catholic Church at the Council of Jerusalem but rather, they side with the "Hellenist" and the "Nazarenes" who were Jewish Priests who converted to Christianity. They sought to maintain the Law of Moses in the Church which would require Gentile Converts to be circumsized. They do not follow the New Testament, they deny the Trinity, they reject the authority of the Church.

Notice their reference to the Keys that I refered to in Isaiah 22, they denied the keys given to Joseph? The Keys is but an expression, it refers to an office. The Pharaoh "took off his signet ring and put it on Joseph's finger. He had him dressed in robes of fine linen and put a gold chain about his neck. He then had him ride in the chariot of his vizier, and they shouted 'Abrek!' before him." Regardless if we speak of this office through the keys or the signet ring, we are talking about the same office.

Notice one of the duties given to Joseph, it was Joseph, "as governor OF THE COUNTRY (prime minister: a governor in modern understanding would be in charge of a state, or territory), who DISPENSED the RATIONS to ALL the PEOPLE" supports what I said, "I mean nobody could BUY OR SELL OR DO ANYTHING without Joseph's knowledge of it ..." The point being, Joseph served as did the Royal Stewart in the household of David. The real issue is that St. Peter was given the Keys (office) by Jesus Christ. The Bishops wear a ring as a sign of their authority. This tradition is rooted in the Old Testament as I have just demonstraited.

(EDITORS NOTE) In taking another look at George's claim that Joseph was the Governor of Egypt, George has proven again to be his own worst enemy. He litterally dove on his own grenade. The Prime Minister role I was talking about would actually be subordinate to the Governor so thank you George for helping make my position even stronger. St. Peter was appointed by Jesus to be his Royal Stewart or Prime Minister which equates to the role of the Royal Stewart in the household of David.

Now comes the crunch, "Revelation 13:11 states, "Then I saw another beast come up out of the earth; it had two horns like a lamb's but spoke like a dragon". George and Company want you to think this is the Papacy. They want you to think that because the Church celebrates Sunday as the Lord's day and not their Old Testament Covenant, Saturday, that the Catholic Church is the whore of Babylon. Ladies and Gentlemen, this is their foundation. They hold to the Old Testament Covenant. Jesus rose on Sunday, broke Bread on Sunday, the descent of the Holy Spirit came upon the Disciples on Sunday, St. John referred to Sunday as the "Day of the Lord".

Finally, the Pope has no control over the world's market to buy or sell anything. George and his group place this attack upon the Catholic Church, but in truth, the direct opposite is true. It will not be faithful Catholics that are following this false prophet and anti-Christ, it will be those who rebell against the Catholic Faith. Those who renounce God's soverignty in their lives.

Their standard for wisdom is based on a false premise, they ask the question "Do you have wisdom"? I place my soul, my sword, my name, and all I have in the Lord's hands and one day I will stand before him and be held accountable. My hope will be totally in Jesus as I hear him say, "Enter in my Father's house good and faithful servant".


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Monday, May 21, 2012

Attention knuckle-draggers; Thanks for the exposure!

This will be our one and only response to the knuckle dragging neanderthals who purport to be exposing us.

First of all, you can't expose us because we have already exposed you. In our recent series of debates, we made your own George Lujack look like one of those department store monkeys selling peanuts. Well, to be fair, he did most of the work. We have the truth, you don't, we proved it, you couldn't.

Secondly, and maybe more to the point is the fact that for you to expose us, someone would actually have to be following you and reading your incoherent dispensationalist tripe. Outside of a dozen or so members of our group, who joined for the sole purpose of making sport of you, you have a staggering lack of traffic.

We do not have that problem.

So, I would like to thank you for the contribution to our increased exposure. I realize you couldn't do much since you have roughly the same Alexa status as "Trixi, my pet cat" but any assistance you can offer is appreciated. Since we have the truth and we present it well, you can sleep well at night knowing that, through us, you are creating thousands of new Catholics!

God bless you for your contribution!








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Sunday, May 20, 2012

Robin Gibb gone

Popular music lost one of it's most iconic singer/songwriters today with the passing of Robin Gibb. I have long held his song I started a Joke
to be one of the greatest and deepest songs in popular music history. It took me years to understand this song. Man, I am so depressed over this news.

I started a joke
Which started the whole world crying
But I didn't see
That the joke was on me, oh no

I started to cry
Which started the whole world laughing
Oh, if I'd only seen
That the joke was on me

I looked at the skies
Running my hands over my eyes
And I fell out of bed
Hurting my head from things that I'd said

Till I finally died
Which started the whole world living
Oh, if I'd only seen
That the joke was on me

I looked at the skies
Running my hands over my eyes
And I fell out of bed
Hurting my head from things that I'd said

Till I finally died
Which started the whole world living
Oh, if I'd only seen, oh yeah
That the joke was on me, oh no
That the joke was on me, ohh



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The Catholic Defender: The Tree of Life



I was stationed in Germany between October 1986 through October 1989. I actually left Germany and returned to the United States about a month before the Berlin wall was to fall. I loved Germany, it has a rich history, a strong christian foundation.

You can drive the autobahn, the countryside and find crucifixes, statues in the middle of the field, or at some intersection on any street. It is an awesome place to spend a tour of duty. I was attached with a Support unit and I was a squad leader of the "Track Pack".

It was Reforger 1988, it was cold and wet. We had orders for our track ambulance to transport a fake casualty to higher medical support. It was part of training we were conducting with several other units in the field of operations. Anytime we had to move out, we always had to tear down our defensive position.

I had recently been promoted to Sergeant and I was solidly in charge of the "Track Pack" in the Ambulance Platoon. In those days it was always a chore putting up cammo net as it would always get hung up on the track.

There were a million places on the vehicle that always would tangle up. The crew usually would be a two man team consisting of a driver and a TC (someone who would keep an eye out for the driver). It was always demanding especially when you had to break track.

That was always hard work and you have to watch what your doing. I was in really good shape, I would do about 20 chin ups every morning just because I could. I would always max my PT Test in the 19-21 year old age group, not bad for an over 30 guy.

I worked hard to improve the readiness and proficiency of the track pack. It was a cold hard winter this year and the roads had snow and ice on the roads. We had orders to move our track through a village and into a prescribed place for medical support.

I was Troop Commander (TC) of our track and was sitting in the back hatch where it was cold. On our route, we were trying to make a trip down a large hill when the track became like a sled.

My driver lost control of the vehicle as we began to move across the highway. We edged toward the other side of the road and began to turn over when we were saved by a tree.

All we could do was to brace ourselves.

If the track had turned over, we would have plummeted to our death falling down a gorge at least a hundred feet.

When we were fully stopped the track was off the entire right side and the roof of the track had hit a lone tree. This tree was not a large tree, but it certainly stopped the track from rolling down this gorge.

The Driver and I could only position ourselves inside the track bracing ourselves for a terrible end. I remember it like slow motion, we began to flip over to our right when it just stopped right there in mid flip. We literally was sitting with the back of the track tilted against the tree. The right side track was way of the ground.

I opened the back door and our fake casualty who was riding in the back on a litter who came out from the back throwing up as he thought his life was over. It was a site to see as the track was literally on it's way to rolling sideways down this gorge. This was the only tree in the entire area and we hit it dead center. I thanked the Lord for his presence and for the tree!


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A full commentary on the recent Lujack debates

Recently, Deepertruthblog engaged George Lujack in a series of 10 debates as listed below. All the debates were handled by John Benko except the two in Blue that were handled by Donald Hartley
  1. The Trinity (Friday, March 16th, 2012)
  2. Mary's "other children" (Friday, March 23rd, 2012)
  3. The Sabbath day debate (Friday, March 30th, 2012)
  4. The Immaculate conception (Thursday, April 5th 2012)
  5. Sola Scriptura (Thursday, April 19th, 2012)
  6. Sola Fide (Friday, April 20th, 2012)
  7. Alleged Idolatry (Thursday, April 26th, 2012)
  8. Peter is the Rock (Friday, May 4th, 2012)
  9. Papal Infallibility (Friday, May 11th, 2012)
  10. The Eucharist (Friday, May 18th, 2012)
We included the links to each of the 10 debates because we are quite confident that even the most minimally objective person will see that DTB clearly had the better of it. If debates are scored from a pool of 100 points, our side won each debate, by at least a 60-40 split on both style and substance, and at least 7 of them would have to be scored in our favor by at least 80-20, if not better.

Before going through each individual debate, some over arching observations need to be made about what an effective debater is and why George did not ever come close to being one in any of these 10 debates.

 Substance vs Style:
George started each debate at a profound material disadvantage because, in each debate, he was simply and undeniably wrong. He was never able to overcome this disadvantage and effectively counter the arguments presented. He was going up against Scripture and 2000 years of Orthodox history. However, it was still possible for us to lose a debate, or even all 10 of them because the best of substance alone is ineffective unless it is presented in a cogent and digestible manner. In this case, the Catholic advantage on material can be almost totally muted by the complexity of some of these doctrines.

Our position on all 10 of these doctrines is the truth. However, every single one of them is open to misunderstanding if he is more effective at enunciating his position than I am at enunciating mine. Debates are not about the opponents, per se, but about the audience's perception of who presented their arguments more effectively. Many Catholics actually lose debates with non-Catholics because they fail to see and understand this. The danger of talking over the heads of the audience is very real when the Catholic is talking in complicated Theological constructs while his opponent is using effective sound bytes that frame and color the arguments in a way favorable to his side.

A perfect example of this is the propensity of non-Catholics to isolate a particular verse of Scripture out of context and quote that verse as his total argument.

Why do you Catholics call a priest 'father' when Jesus clearly tells us to 'call no man father' in Matthew 23:9?
This can actually be a very effective argument if it is not countered. Of course, it can be countered by examining the context in which it appears.

 1 Then Jesus spoke to the multitudes and to his disciples,   
2 Saying: The scribes and the Pharisees have sitten on the chair of Moses.   
3 All things therefore whatsoever they shall say to you, observe and do: but according to their works do ye not; for they say, and do not.   
4 For they bind heavy and insupportable burdens, and lay them on men's shoulders;
 but with a finger of their own they will not move them.   
5 And all their works they do for to be seen of men. For they make their phylacteries broad, and enlarge their fringes.   
6 And they love the first places at feasts, and the first chairs in the synagogues,  
7 And salutations in the market place, and to be called by men, Rabbi.   
8 But be not you called Rabbi. For one is your master; and all you are brethren.   
9 And call none your father upon earth; for one is your father, who is in heaven.   
10 Neither be ye called masters; for one is you master, Christ.   
11 He that is the greatest among you shall be your servant.
12 And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be humbled: and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.
Here, Jesus addresses three titles, not just one. He talks about calling or being called teacher, master and father in the same context as taking the first seat in the synagogue. Is no one ever to be called teacher? Not even your grade school teacher? Is no one to be called master? Not even a master electrician? Is the first pew at church to always be left empty? Is no one to be called father, even your earthly biological father?

Obviously, this kind of interpretation fails to deal with the true meaning of the passage, which is false exaltation, putting someone on the same level as God.

As for the use of the term 'father', specifically for an earthly religious figure, it occurs more than 150 times in Scripture. Three examples. God, from Heaven tells Moses He is "the God of your fathers" (Exodus 3:15). Jesus calls Abraham our father (John 8:56) and Paul tells us that he became our father through the gospel (1 Corinthians 4:15)


So, this type of argument can be fully countered, if in isolation. However, many anti-catholics are very shrewd in knowing that the counter arguments must be developed. It may take 5 or even 10 minutes to respond to an assertion that takes 5 or 10 seconds to make. Knowing this, anti-catholics will often attempt the parade of horribles (or scatter gun) tactic where they simply unload 10-20 or more assertions at once with the intention of running out the clock by forcing the Catholic to stay on defense for the entire debate.


Here is an example. It matters not that I refute all 18 assertions because, by that time the accuser had already ran away.



Many a Catholic has lost a debate by not being able to counter this tactic. It is usually used in tandem with the piling on tactic (where many adversaries attack you at once) and/or the filibuster tactic (where the opponent tries to talk over you every time you attempt an answer)

George (and a few of his friends) attempted to employ all three of these devices but were ineffective. Anti-Catholics hate debating in a structured, rules enforced environment because they know they cannot win on merit. Their only opportunity to win is with tactics.

Whenever George attempted to use the parade of horribles technique, he muted his own effectiveness because of the sheer rabidness and irrationality of his arguments combined with the staggering number of contradictions. An effective scatter gun litany is one in which 15 or 20 charges might be leveled, with each one sounding reasonable, cogent and plausible. In that case, each argument that the Catholic cannot answer, due to time constraints, is intended to earn points by the impression that the Catholic cannot counter the point meritoriously.

George consistently destroyed his own use of this tactic by making the most absurd and indefensible statements and contradicting himself too many times to number. In the end, he actually strengthened our arguments by making them seem calm, reasoned and rational, contrasted against his wild-eyed, uncontrollable meandering rants that, more often than not, were well adrift of the subject matter.

While the Catholics made our arguments in terms of quoting and exegeting Scripture, pointing to factually documented positions of the early church and appealing to history, linguistics and logic, George followed a consistent pattern of drifting from assertion to assertion, back-peddling, refusing to engage, and launching into the most bizarre name calling and accusation. In a short succession of debates, George referred to Catholics as Goddess worshipers, demon worshipers, Babylonian sun god worshipers, and even Vampires. These types of assertions reduced his own credibility to zero.

Coupled with using false charges and constantly misrepresenting Catholic doctrine, he made our job immensely easier because we were able to stay predominantly on offense. Any objective audience member would not expect, for a second, that we would respond to the assertion that we are demon worshiping vampires.

That George failed to comprehend the monumental level to which he played right into our hands is actually breath-taking. His almost complete inability to counter any of our arguments cogently allowed us to consistently press our advantage and, even the 2 or 3 times where we stumbled early, make up ground quickly and effectively.

George realized very early that he was no match for us in terms of material (even admitting as much in one debate), so he attempted to knock us off our game by constantly amping up the frequency and vileness of his personal attacks and assertions, all to no effect, except to make himself look ever more irrational and desperate.

 In short, by being able to put almost no effective pressure on us, we were able to put relentless pressure on him, forcing him into gaffe after gaffe after gaffe.

Some of these gaffes are the stuff of legend.

In the Trinity debate, George admitted that he believes in two Gods, thus proving himself to be a polytheist in direct opposition to Deuteronomy 6:4 and other such verses.

In the debate on Mary's 'other children', George claimed that Jesus clearly had other brothers then assassinated his own assertion with the loopy claim that Jesus had no biological mother! Obviously this directly counters Romans 1:3 that says Jesus was descended from David, according to the flesh or Galatians 4:4 which says that He was born of woman. In fact, 2 John 1:7 calls anyone who denies the true fleshly humanity of Jesus Christ, an Anti-Christ.

Relying on a curious and abhorrent interpretation of a verse that doesn't even refer to Jesus but to Melchizedek, George actually paints himself into a corner beyond making himself an anti-Christ. For if Jesus has neither a biological father nor mother,as George proclaimed, how on earth could He have brothers?

This is just one classic example of George being hoisted by his own petard. He did this countless times.

In the debate on the Sabbath day, George pointed out an Old Testament reference to a man stoned for picking up sticks on a Sabbath (Numbers 15:32-35) before later stating that He believes that we are still fully under all the aspects of the Mosaic law. You see where I am going with this?

Not only does this clearly counter Romans 6:14-15 that says we are no longer under the Mosaic law, and Colossians 2:16-17 that says that the festivals, new-moons and sabbaths were merely shadows of a later revealed reality, it makes you wonder how many people have been stoned in George's churchfor picking up sticks.

In the debate on the Immaculate Conception, George really stepped in it by suggesting that 'Full of Grace' was a reinterpretation of Kecharitomene in Luke 1:28. When confronted with the fact that the KJV in 1611 was the very first Bible not to translate grace in this verse, even though it translated the root charitoo as grace 96% of the time, he responded that the KJV was the one to be followed because it was translated from Greek and not Latin.

So, let me see if I follow this. The KJV, that was written nearly 16 centuries after Christ died is the original version, while all the versions that existed in the 1200 years prior are re-translations. Included among them are the protestant and proto-protestant Bibles of Wycliffe, Tyndale and Luther. Further, Chaire meams Hail everywhere except Luke 1:28 and charitoo means grace everywhere but Luke1:28. Finally, the Latin Vulgate, the very first Bible, was translated into Latin from Latin, not Greek.

This is the kind of self contradictory idiocy that had George looking much more like a babbling, petulant  adolescent than a serious debater.

Ahh, but there is so much more.It just kept getting better.

In the debate on Sola Scriptura, George could not answer how we have a list of canonized books outside of Church authority. However, his real gaffe was when he was asked to explain how we can know that Matthew's Gospel was written by Matthew, when no where in it, does it say so. He actually answered that he was sure that Matthew must have included a cover letter.

Yes. I am sure he did. Further, his gospel was laser printed on silk laced paper, in color with graphs and a spreadsheet, collated and bound in genuine leather with gold filigree.

Sheesh, what an asinine response.

In the alleged idolatry debate, George claimed he could prove that Catholics not only worship Mary as a goddess, but do so willingly! So George is not merely claiming that he can prove that Marian devotion is material worship, but that he can prove the intellectual and spiritual assent of another person. Only a lunatic would make such a claim.

Obviously, all he ended up proving is that he is out of his mind. George could not even make a cogent argument supporting the first contention, much less the second. His whole contention was that prayer always equals worship, a contention that blew up in his face when the very dictionary definition that he cited gave 4  definitions of prayer that did not concern worship. To put it bluntly, George was humiliated in this debate.

Not to be outdone in his prior lunacy, George revised his position in the next debate. In the debate on the Primacy of Peter, George admitted up front that he had no clue what the Greek Petros Kai Epi Tautee te Petra meant in Matthew 16, countering only that Catholics now worship demons instead of goddesses and all manner of other off topic bile. He even had the temerity to claim that Revelation 9:20 could only refer to the Catholic church because the Jews or Israel had never committed idolatry. Has he ever read the Bible? What about Exodus 32?
7 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Go, get thee down: thy people, which thou hast brought out of the land of  Egypt, hath sinned. 
8 They have quickly strayed from the way which thou didst shew them: and they have made to themselves  a molten calf, and have adored it, and sacrificing victims to it, have said: These are thy gods, O Israel,  that have brought thee out of the land of Egypt. 
Using this same pin-head logic, George claimed that the Catholic church is the whore of babylon even though the scriptures clearly prove that it is Jerusalem
Revelation 17:18 And the woman which thou sawest, is the great city, which hath kingdom over the kings of the earth.
Revelation 18:24 And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth.
Matthew 23:37 Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered together thy children, as the hen doth gather her chickens under her wings, and thou wouldest not?
Luke 13:33 Nevertheless I must walk to day and to morrow, and the day following, because it cannot be that a prophet perish, out of Jerusalem
When you have a man so entranced in Satan's spell that even the plain words of scripture cannot disuade him, what can you say to him. Woe to you George.

In the debate on Papal Infallibility, George actually claimed that God could not give a man the ability to be infallible in certain circumstances without being infallible in all circumstances. Thus, such a person would have to be a god. By this idiotic logic, the men who wrote the 27 books of the New Testament were all gods. Ironic isn't it? George maintains that infallibility is impossible while, to press his case, he cites the infallible scriptures written by those same men?

Not surprisingly, George used slanderous quotes in this debate that he later had to admit he could not substantiate. So, while George falsely claims that we make Peter and his successors gods, he actually does so himself by the logical consequence of his own arguments that the Scriptures, written by Peter, are infallible while saying that only a god can be infrallible.

Wow, Can you imagine what being inside George's head must be like?

Finally, in the debate on the Eucharist, George claimed that the Jews understandably misunderstood Jesus words in John 6. George maintains, in the face of the clear evidence in John 6, 1 Corinthians 10 and 1 Corinthians 11, that the Eucharist was never meant to be taken as the literal flesh and blood of Christ.

Scripture obviously counters that.

John 6:54 Then Jesus said to them: Amen, amen I say unto you: Except you eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you. 
55 He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath everlasting life: and I will raise him up in the  last day.  56 For my flesh is meat indeed: and my blood is drink indeed.

1 Corinthians 11:26 For as often as you shall eat this bread, and drink the chalice, you shall shew the death of the Lord, until he come. 
27 Therefore whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and of the blood of the Lord. 
28 But let a man prove himself: and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of the chalice.  29 For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh judgment to himself, not discerning the body of the Lord.
So, George, who has already testified against himself as a polytheist and an anti-christ and a bearer of false witness, now testifies that has no spiritual life within him. That would be enough except for the next petard by which he has hoisted himself. You see, George claimed that he understands why the Jews (mistakenly by his account) interpreted Jesus words as literal. Yet, Catholics who make the same (allegedly mistaken) interpretation, according to George, only do so because they want to follow Ishtar and a Babylonian Priesthood and worship the sun god, in the form of a wafer. Evel Knieval couldn't make that leap.

Many (Catholics and non-catholics) have pointed out to us that although we clearly went 10-0 in these debates, we really shouldn't celebrate too much because we were debating someone who was not only completely incapable of a cogent argument, but a lunatic and no Christian, by any sense of the word.

I must concede that they have a point.

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Friday, May 18, 2012

*BEST OF DTB #188* Show Notes: The Catholic Defender: The Eucharist





These show notes correspond to this Blog Talk radio debate



I will begin by telling of the Promise God made through the Prophet Jeremiah. To understand this promise, it is important to understand something of this time period. Not far from Jerusalem was a place called “Ramah” very close to Bethlehem.
Ramah would become the staging area for the Jewish slaves taken into captivity to Babylon. The lamentation of the people was heard from heaven and God made this promise.

Jeremiah 31:31-34 says, “"Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, my covenant which they broke, though I was their husband, says the LORD. But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it upon their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. And no longer shall each man teach his neighbor and each his brother, saying, 'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, says the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."

St. Matthew recalls how terrible the lamentation was saying, “A voice was heard in Ramah, wailing and loud lamentation, Rachel weeping for her children; she refused to be consoled, because they were no more” (Matthew 2:18).

King Herod attempted to kill Baby Jesus in Bethlehem and in doing so killed all the baby boys two years old and younger. Bethlehem means “house of bread”.
Matthew 26:28 said "This is the cup of my blood, the blood of the new and everlasting Covenant, it will be shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven, do this in memory of me". Jesus established the covenant of Jeremiah. When you go to Communion, you renew the Covenant with Him.

Heaven gives a very important picture through the prayer of the Angel of Portugal in 1916: “The Angel held a consecrated Host and the chalice, leaving this suspended in the air, the Angel bowed down low before the Eucharist praying these words, "O most Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, I adore you profoundly, I offer you the most precious body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in preparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference by which he is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg the conversion of poor sinners".

I am reminded of some of the Old Testament types: Melchizedek,” king of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High.” This prefigures Jesus Christ who is the King of Heaven who offers this living Bread which comes down from heaven.

The controversy over ‘the breaking of bread’ begins with Jesus and his early followers during Christ’s ‘bread of life’ discourse. Some of his followers began to fall away (John 5:22-59). The Apostles themselves began to question this amongst themselves (John 6:60-70).

Jesus said to them, “Amen, amen, I say to you unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day” (John 6:53-54). (According to Robert Sungenis, "The word used in John 6:54, 56-58, when Jesus says to eat his flesh and drink his blood is an important matter to consider when doing exegesis of the passage. The word to eat, trogo, means to gnaw, crunch, so showing the physical reality, and showing the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist".

Jesus often explained his parables to his disciples. In the case of the breaking of bread, Jesus reaffirms and clarifies his teaching (John 6:53-58). Jesus directly asks the Apostles if they too would like to leave (John 6:67).

Every Believer should respond with St. Peter as he states, “Master, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life….” (John 6:68).

The Bread of life discourse was given on Passover (John 6:4) which was no accident. The Mass would be the fulfillment of the Jewish Passover.

In the days of Moses, manna was God’s provision for food for the Israelites as they wandered in the wilderness. In John 6, however, Jesus claimed to be the true manna, the bread of heaven. With this statement Jesus claimed to be God’s full provision for salvation.

Manna was God’s provision of deliverance from starvation. Jesus is God’s provision of deliverance from damnation. Just as the manna had to be consumed to preserve the lives of the Israelites, so Jesus has to be consumed (fully received by faith) for salvation to be received.

At the words of Jesus, Judas began to break (John 6:64-71), and he broke the night it was given (John 13:21-30). Judas would be the first to leave Mass early.

The Eucharist is the sign of the Lord's Covenant, is the pure offering spoken of by the Prophet Malachi. It is written, "For from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, my name is great among the nations; and everywhere they bring sacrifice to my name, and a pure offering: For great is my name among the nations, says the Lord of hosts.

The Israelites were commanded by God to eat the unleavened bread for seven days which would become a sign as a memorial between the Lord and his people (Exodus 13:9).

The first Passover was instituted by God as a perpetual feast. The Cup of blessing which we bless was the third cup in the Passover meal.

Exodus 35:10 says, “And let every able man among you come and make all that the Lord has commanded: the tabernacle, its tent and its covering….” Consider Hebrews 13:10-14, “We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat. The bodies of the animals whose blood the high priest brings into the sanctuary as a sin offering are burned outside the camp. Therefore, Jesus also suffered outside the gate, to consecrate the people by his own blood. Let us then go to him outside the camp, bearing the reproach that he bore.”

As the Israelite were saved from the Angel of Death by the blood of innocent spotless lambs blood applied on the lintel and two doorposts using a hyssop branch, the spotless Lamb of God was crucified between two thieves shedding his blood on behalf of all the world.

After receiving wine offered on a hyssop branch, Jesus from the cross says ''It is finished" marking the end of the old Covenant and the beginning of the new Covenant.

It was here that Jesus transforms the Passover to the Mass. He received the cup that sealed the end of the Old Covenant, it is finished. The priesthood of Levi is no more. It was destroyed at the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 A.D. Just as Jesus predicted it would. The Catholic Priesthood now serves the tabernacle not holding the burned offering of animals, but the glorified risen Christ, the Eucharist.

From this point on the Mass have become the center of Christian worship. The means by which Gods people can renew the new and everlasting Covenant. From the earliest times, "They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers" (Acts 2:42).

"On the first day of the week when we gathered to break bread...", St. Paul raised Eutychus from the dead, then returned, "broke the bread, and ate; after a long conversation that lasted until daybreak, he departed" (Acts 20:7,11).

I often refer to this scene as the first recorded Midnight Mass! St. Paul refers to the "breaking of bread" and the cup of the "new covenant" saying, "For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes" (1 Corinthians 11:26).

From the very beginning, the Mass (liturgy of the word and the Eucharist) was the center of Christian worship.
1 Corinthians 10:16-17; “the chalice of benediction, which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? And the bread, which we break, is it not the partaking of the body of the Lord?
For we, being many, are one bread, one body, all which partake of one bread.”

St. Paul continues, “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and also the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and of the table of demons”.

It is interesting that St. Paul referred to the cup as the “cup of blessing”! The cup of blessing was the third cup in the Passover meal. The fourth cup Jesus postponed until he was on the cross.

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be answerable for the body and blood of the Lord. Examine yourselves, and only then eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For all who eat and drink without discerning the body, eat and drink judgment against themselves. For this reason many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.

The New Testament Scripture makes clear that the apostles recognized Jesus in the breaking of bread (Luke 24:35). St. Paul wrote that if you didn't recognize Jesus’ body in the breaking of bread, “you bring judgment to yourself” (I Corinthians 11:29). The other apostles were in unison with this teaching (Acts 2:42-47).

The language ties in perfectly with the aforementioned statement of the apostle Paul: "present your bodies as a living sacrifice; holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship" (Romans 12:1).

Jesus said, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and will dine with him, and he with me. I will give the victor the right to sit with me on my throne, as I myself first won the victory and sit with my Father on his throne.”

St. Ignatius of Antioch ordained as Bishop by the Apostle Peter, urged believers to "partake of one Eucharist, for one is the flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ, and one the cup to unite us with His blood.” St. Ignatius also warned the Ephesians that if they “abstain from the Eucharistic Celebration because of their doubts; they will die in their doubts.” During the middle of the second century, St. Justin the Martyr states, “on the day which is called ‘Sunday,’ we have a common assembly….The Eucharistic elements are distributed and consumed.”

This is the teaching of the Catholic Church from the very beginning: In the Eucharist, Jesus Christ is truly present; body, blood, soul and divinity. Jesus instructed the Apostles to proclaim this fact (Matthew 28:16-20).

As the Church grew under persecution during the first three centuries, the pagans thought we were cannibals because of false rumors and misrepresentations that were spread about the Christians. The Mass was done in secret because it was against Roman law.

In the year 258 A. D., Tarcisius, a young boy became the first martyr for the Eucharist. While taking consecrated Hosts to Christians in prison, he was caught and killed by Roman soldiers. They could not open his hands which held the Blessed Sacrament. Our Lord was not desecrated and clearly Tarcisius recognized Jesus in the breaking of bread.

A Eucharistic miracle occurred in early 700 A. D. A priest began to have doubts about the real presence of the Lord in the Eucharist. To show the priest the error of his ways, the Host transformed into flesh and the wine transformed into blood during the moment of consecration.

This act of God is known as ‘The Miracle of Lanciano’ and is kept in the Church of St. Francis, Italy. Millions of pilgrims have traveled to this site to view this now 1300-year old miracle. The Vatican recently ordered an investigation. A number of medical professionals from respected universities such as Turin and Florence spent two years conducting a thorough investigation.
They determined the flesh to be cardiac, i.e., from the heart. Furthermore, rigor mortis had not occurred, implying that the heart tissue was yet living. The examiners called it ‘incorrupt.’ The blood (which had coagulated into five blood clots as the centuries passed) was determined to be in a petrified state, but upon liquefaction of a particle of the blood, tests showed that protein and chemical compounds were wholly present.

The blood type is AB positive, the same type blood discovered on the shroud of Turin, the fabric that served Jesus Christ as His burial cloth. Another unique finding was that the blood revealed it held a feminine characteristic. What is interesting about that point is Jesus had no earthly Father. He got his DNA from His Mother, Mary.

I use to serve as an NCOIC of a Troop Medical Clinic, I was responsible for all the lab, including the drawing of blood for all kinds of testing. I went to our local hospital and ask what happens to the blood when exposed to air.

I found that blood begins to decompose after 15 minutes. Blood in test tubes is only good for a few hours. With refrigeration, blood is good for 30 days. The red blood cells begin to die after this period of time.

The blood and flesh of the ‘Miracle of Lanciano’ has been exposed to the elements for 1300 years, two of those years under intense biochemical observation. There is no natural explanation for ‘The Miracle of Lanciano.’

Some two hundred years after the Lanciano miracle occurred, controversy again appeared. A monk named Ratramnus, in 868 A. D. claimed that the Eucharist could not be the historical Jesus. He believed that it was symbolic rather than corporeal. His teaching was condemned at the Synod of Vercelli.

In 1079, Archdeacon Berenger of Tours favored Ratramnus position, but he later recanted, or repented, to Pope Gregory VII. Other men that would challenge church teaching on the Eucharist prior to the Protestant Reformation were Peter Waldo, founder of the Waldensian heresy, and priests such as John Huss and John Wycliffe.

The latter two were condemned at the Council of Constance in 1415 A. D. During the aftermath of the Protestant Reformation, no one challenged the church on the Eucharist like John Calvin, nor had his impact. Calvin claimed that the Eucharist was merely a memorial and cited Luke 22:19, "do this in memory of me.” His position is held yet today by most fundamental Protestant groups.

The Catholic Church maintains that “in memory” of His death and resurrection, we proclaim the “death of the Lord until He comes” again in glory (I Corinthians 11:26). In our generation, many Catholics appear to have lost faith in the real presence, thus fulfilling the word expressed in I Timothy 4:1-5.

Like the Disciples on the road to Emmaus, the Church has recognized the Lord in the ‘breaking of bread’ for almost 2000 years. It has His protection (Matthew 16:18), His promise (Matthew 28:20, and His Spirit (John 14:15-26).

"Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, 'Sit here while I go over there and pray'. He took along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to feel sorrow and distress. Then he said to them, 'My soul is sorrowful even to death. Remain here and keep watch with me'. He advanced a little and fell prostrate in prayer, saying, 'My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will'. When he returned to his disciples he found them asleep. He said to Peter, 'So you could not keep watch with me for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Matthew 26:36-41).

We are living in a time when many are asleep and will unfortunately undergo the test. Many will fail this test because they are asleep. Sin is dominated in their life. Jesus warns "But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth" (Luke 18:8).

St. Paul encourages us saying, "But you, remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:14).

Pope John Paul II said during his trip to Korea, "It is most fitting that my first stop among the Korean people should be in a church such as this, where the minds and hearts of the faithful are constantly raised up in adoration before Christ in the Most Holy Eucharist" (Seoul Korea, October 7, 1989).

Psalms 119:97-104 states, "How I love your teaching, Lord! I study it all day long. Your command makes me wiser than my foes, for it is always with me. I have more understanding than all my teachers, because I ponder your decrees. I have more insight than my elders, because I observe your precepts. I keep my steps from every evil path, that I may obey your word. From your edicts I do not turn, for you have taught them to me. How sweet to my tongue is your promise, sweeter than honey to my mouth! Through your precepts I gain insight; therefore I hate all false ways".

Ephesians 5:14 says, "Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light".

Vatican II said, "The Eucharist is the source and summit of all preaching of the Gospel", the Catholic Church has the ability to turn the tide for the good that God wants to bestow upon His people. Jesus wants to bless you with great graces.

Philippians 4:4-9 says, "Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice! Your kindness should be known to all. The Lord is near. Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God. Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. Keep on doing what you have learned and received and heard and seen in me. Then the God of peace will be with you".

Every Catholic Church has the opportunity to spend time with the tabernacle; the faithful has the direct source where Jesus is truly present.

The Eucharist is the bread that came down from heaven. Jesus is our thanksgiving!

The prayer of the Angel of Portugal given to the Children of Fatima: "My God, I believe, I adore, I trust and I love you! I beg pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not trust and do not love you".

A true Christian is one who believes that Jesus is alive today in the Blessed Sacrament. Jesus is truly there in the tabernacle.
I have had the opportunity to go to Mass in Latin America, all over the United States, Europe, Korea, the Middle East and no matter where I have been, the Lord's Mass is totally unified with the Church of Rome. From Jesus through his apostles, it has always been this way.

The Church in the early years had to hold Mass in secret for fear of the Jews and then of the Romans. Mass would be held at homes where people would gather. Catacombs and caves were other places that the Christians held Mass. I was in a 2nd/3rd century Catacomb is located in Salzburg Austria. I had the chance to visit this site where the early Christian celebrated Mass.There is a grave site where the Priest, Father Maximus was martyred by the Romans.They still have original utensils and altar used by the Christians when you go up into the Catacomb. I had the chance to go in there and you can feel the reverence of the praise of voices long ago.

About 140 A.D., a convert to the Catholic Faith would write about his experience of the Mass. St. Justin Martyr wrote the following:
No one may share the Eucharist with us unless he believes that what we teach is true, unless he is washed in the regenerating waters of baptism for the remission of his sins, and unless he lives in accordance with the principles given us by Christ.
We do not consume the Eucharistic bread and wine as if it were ordinary food and drink, for we have been taught that as Jesus Christ our Savior became a man of flesh and blood by the power of the Word of God, so also the food that our flesh and blood assimilates for its nourishment becomes the flesh and blood of the incarnate Jesus by the power of his own words contained in the prayer of thanksgiving.
On Sunday we have a common assembly of all our members, whether they live in the city or the outlying districts.
The recollections of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as there is time. When the reader has finished, the president of the assembly speaks to us; he urges everyone to imitate the examples of virtue we have heard in the readings.
Then we all stand up together and pray.
The wealthy, if they wish, may make a contribution, and they themselves decide the amount. The collection is placed in the custody of the president, who uses it to help the orphans and widows and all who for any reason are in distress, whether because they are sick, in prison, or away from home. In a word, he takes care of all who are in need.
We hold our common assembly on Sunday because it is the first day of the week, the day on which God put darkness and chaos to flight and created the world, and because on that same day our savior Jesus Christ rose from the dead. For he was crucified on Friday and on Sunday he appeared to his apostles and disciples and taught them the things that we have passed on for your consideration”.

Jesus Christ is this "pure offering". The sacrifice is the Mass, Jesus offers himself to the Father in an unbloodied sacrifice, a perpetual Sacrament offered continually.
Jesus died only once and for all, but the efficacy of that sacrifice is presented in the Mass.

"Transubstantiation (in Latin, transsubstantiatio, in Greek μετουσίωσις metousiosis) means the change of the substance of host bread and sacramental wine into the substance of the Body and Blood (respectively)[1] of Jesus in the Eucharist, while all that is accessible to the senses (accidents) remains as before".

From the Didache, "Let no one eat or drink of the Eucharist with you except those who have been baptized in the Name of the Lord," for it was in reference to this that the Lord said, "Do not give that which is holy to dogs." Matthew 7:6

St. Ignatius of Antioch wrote, "I desire the bread of GOD, which is the flesh of Jesus Christ".St. Ignatius of Antioch wrote (106 A.D.) "stand aloof from such heretics", because, among other reasons, "they abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they confess not the Eucharist to be the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, which suffered for our sins, and which the Father, of His goodness, raised up again."

St. Justin Martyr wrote (150 A.D.), "Not as common bread and common drink do we receive these; but in like manner as Jesus Christ our Savior, having been made flesh by the Word of God, had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so likewise have we been taught that the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh."

St. Justin Martyr wrote, "Now it is evident, that in this prophecy to the bread which our Christ gave us to eat, in remembrance of His being made flesh for the sake of His believers, for whom also He suffered; and to the cup which He gave us to drink, in remembrance of His own blood, with giving of thanks."

This is the Catholic Church, this is the Kingdom of God on earth, this is the New Testament based from the New and Everlasting Covenant established by our Lord Jesus Christ.

The Virgin Mary appearing at Fatima Portugal echoes Hebrews 13:18, "Pray for us, for we are confident that we have a clear conscience, wishing to act rightly in every respect. I especially ask for your prayers that I may be restored to you very soon". Mary would warn us not to judge a Priest, but to pray for them. There would be Priests that will displease our Lord. They will face judgment and they need our prayers. As we go forward through the Church year, remember to pray and obey our leaders (Hebrews 13:17).


1. Since you do not hold yourself 100% infallible, how can you be sure of your opinion on the Eucharist?
2. Which Council or Pope do you think invented the teaching on the Eucharist?
 3. What does the Covenant mean to you, how do you renew it?
4. Name someone in the second or third century who believed as you believe on the Eucharist?
5. Do you crucify Christ every time you repent, do you take this as sacrificing the Lord on your "Altar"?


On September 16, 2007 while deployed to Iraq, I was preparing a number of Soldiers who were going to receive their first Holy Communion. I wrote this piece:
This morning went very well, but it had a couple of twists! It begins when one of the Candidates arrives with their sponsor. Being cordial, I simply asked him how long he had been in Iraq. He responded that he had been here almost 9 months. I asked him what Mass he went to because I never seen him before.

At this point, he admitted that he had not been to Mass since he got here. I was surprised by that and asked him how he hadn't been to Mass in 9 months, what kind of missions did he do that kept him from going. He admitted he just preferred to sleep in on Sunday.

Considering we have Mass at Division at 10:30 and at Warrior chapel at 13:00 I began to challenge him. I noticed he had no wedding ring, but I asked him if he planned to get married some day. He responded yes! I asked him if he would want to kiss his wife when he got married.

He said all the time. I asked him what he would think if his wife would tell him she would kiss him once a year, on their Wedding anniversary or perhaps on another special day of the year. He looked at me like that would not fly well with him.

Then I told him he was acting like the wife to the Lord. I told him that Matthew 26:28 said "This is the cup of my blood, the blood of the new and everlasting Covenant, it will be shed for you and for all so that sins may be forgiven, do this in memory of me". When you go to Communion, you renew the Covenant with Him.


At this point, Father just entered and I told him he needed to go to Confession. He was very surprised, but he was glad to go with Father. He came back a few minutes later actually feeling much better and glad he went. It was a great moment as it was good for our converts to see.

The other situation occurred when I was reminding those receiving their first communion that the Priest was going to say, "The body of Christ" and they were to respond, "Amen". I then stated that in doing so, you are receiving the actual body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ. That it wasn't symbolic as John Calvin had taught, but it was real.

At this point, I was getting ready to place everyone in line for procession when the Division "Protestant" Chaplain called me into another room and told me to have a seat. As I sat down he asked me what I thought of Jack Chick? I responded to him that Jack Chick is a liar, gave him the example about his story of Alberto Rivera who claimed to be ordained a Catholic Priest in Spain to undermine Protestant churches in Brazil.

I told him that "Christianity Today", a respected Protestant magazine exposed the story as Alberto Rivera was actually in a Protestant seminary in Jamaica, married with two children. Jack Chick is a liar as there are many such examples. Plus he preaches hate towards Catholics.

I then compared it to the Chaplain telling him that if I planted falsehoods about his church carrying bombs in their basements with the purpose of attacking Washington D.C., I'd be doing his religion an injustice.

I don't think the Chaplain expected this kind of response from me. He didn't like my reference to John Calvin, but I did not speak ill of Calvin here, nor did I speak a falsehood about him. I was merely reinforcing the truth of the Gospel and giving the distinction.

I told Father about it later, he said this was the same Protestant Chaplain that was giving him a problem. He was also the same one who tried to make it difficult to pray the rosary and hold a Catholic Bible study.

I think he wants a generic Christianity that has no differences or not distinctions. I thought it was weird, especially since he did this right before Mass causing us to begin late.
In remembering this story, it reminds me of the importance of the Mass that we must be in the state of Grace when we receive the Eucharist.

The Catholic Church maintains that “in memory” of His death and resurrection, we proclaim the “death of the Lord until He comes” again in glory (I Corinthians 11:26). In our generation, many Catholics appear to have lost faith in the real presence, thus fulfilling the word expressed in I Timothy 4:1-5.

Like the Disciples on the road to Emmaus, the Church has recognized the Lord in the ‘breaking of bread’ for almost 2000 years. It has His protection (Matthew 16:18), His promise (Matthew 28:20, and His Spirit (John 14:15-26).

The question of the Eucharist is really a question of belief. Each Christian must choose to believe God, or choose to believe man. Our Lord Jesus Christ claims His presence in the Eucharist. Whom will you believe?

"Then Jesus came with them to a place called Gethsemane, and he said to his disciples, 'Sit here while I go over there and pray'. He took along Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to feel sorrow and distress. Then he said to them, 'My soul is sorrowful even to death. Remain here and keep watch with me'. He advanced a little and fell prostrate in prayer, saying, 'My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet, not as I will, but as you will'. When he returned to his disciples he found them asleep. He said to Peter, 'So you could not keep watch with me for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak" (Matthew 26:36-41).

We are living in a time when many are asleep and will unfortunately undergo the test. Many will fail this test because they are asleep. Sin is dominate in their life. Jesus warns "But when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth" (Luke 18:8).

St. Paul encourages us saying, "But you, remain faithful to what you have learned and believed, because you know from whom you learned it, and that from infancy you have known the sacred scriptures, which are capable of giving you wisdom for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus" (2 Timothy 3:14).

Is this George? George, you need to be careful when you speak against sacred objects and call them graven images!

OPENING STATEMENT:
The Eucharist and the True Meaning of the Body and Blood of Christ
May 18, 2012
By George Lujack
The Catholic Church teaches that when Christ served the bread and wine at His last supper, He did so literally, miraculously transforming the bread and wine into His actual flesh and blood, which was then consumed by the Apostles.
MATTHEW 26:25-26:
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”
MARK 14:22-24:
And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” Then He took the cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, “This is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many.”
LUKE 22:19-20:
And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.”
In reality, the Catholic Church uses what Christ called His New Covenant to establish their Eucharist Doctrine. The self-serving purpose of the Eucharist is to empower the Catholic organization. It is taught that God only works through the Catholic Church and her priests, who have been given sole authority to dispense communion wafers and wine that blessed and are magically transformed to Christ’s actual flesh and blood upon consumption.
In reality, the Eucharist has been set up as a graven image idol in the Catholic Church. They proclaim that the wafer is God, or God is in the wafer. The Catholic Church keeps their flock in spiritual darkness by continually feeding them a wafer as a sacrificial offering for their sins.

The Catholic Church uses communion as a tool to strike fear and servitude into their parishioners. The fear is that if you do not receive your weekly communion - your sins will not be properly cleansed. The servitude is to continually attend mass so that you never miss receiving your wafer for the continual cleansing of your sin.

Is this what Jesus meant, for Christians to literally eat His body, and to literally drink His blood? Did Jesus mean for us to repeatedly sacrifice Himself as a “bloodless” offering? NO!
Bloodless offerings are not respected by the Lord and are completely worthless.
GENESIS 4:3:
And in the process of time it came to pass that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Abel also brought of the firstborn of his flock and of their fat. And the Lord respected Abel and his offering, but He did not respect Cain and his offering. 
The Lord did not respect Cain and his bloodless offering and the Lord does not respect the bloodless offering known as the Eucharist. Why was Cain’s offering and why is the offering known as the Eucharist not acceptable to the Lord? The Lord accepted the blood of animals as a temporary atonement for sin. An offering of fruit, a bloodless sacrifice, was not unacceptable. The Eucharist – another type of bloodless offering is not acceptable. Only blood can be used to atone for sin (Leviticus 1). No blood = no atonement.

Furthermore, sacrificial offerings of clean animals were temporary measures to atone for sin until the blood of Jesus Christ, as a lamb without blemish and without spot, gave His life as the once-and-forever substitute sacrificial offering for mankind (1 Peter 1:19). Jesus permanently paid for the remission of sin, therefore there are to be no more sacrifices or offerings for sin, as sacrificial offerings have been rendered obsolete (Hebrews 10:1-18).

The Catholic Church offers up a man-made communion wafer as a weekly bloodless offering, in the same manner that Cain brought an offering of the fruit of the ground to the Lord. Catholic priests stand ministering daily, offering the same sacrifices that can never take away sin, as Jewish priests had done so before them – Hebrews 10:11.

The Last Supper bread and wine serving WAS NOT meant as the actual sacrificial offering. Christ Himself was the sacrificial offering and the bread and wine served was a symbolic memorial of Christ’s sacrifice.
Jesus proclaimed that He did not come to abolish OT law, but came to fulfill it (Matthew 5:17-19). Therefore, the transubstantiation doctrine – an interpretation that one literally ‘eats’ the body and ‘drinks’ the blood of Christ” is NOT POSSIBLE. Eating human flesh and drinking human blood would either abolish or violate God’s PERPETUAL dietary commandments. It would make Christians that partook literal cannibals and blood drinking vampires.
LEVITICUS 3:17:
It shall be a PERPETUAL statute for your generations throughout all your dwellings, that you shall eat neither fat nor blood.
Jesus never sinned and could never advocate others to sin. Jesus never broke His laws and would never instruct others to do so. Christ was without sin and He did not abolish His laws; therefore the transubstantiation doctrine is proved false.

Does Christ have the power to transform bread into flesh and wine into blood? Absolutely. Christ turned water into wine at the wedding at Cana. But He could not have done so at His Last Supper, as this would have caused His disciples to have sinned. Christ does not lead people to sin and death, but towards truth and life. Peter, long after the Last Supper, stated that He had never eaten anything unclean in Acts 10:14. Peter did not eat human flesh or drink human blood at Christ’s Last Supper.

For those who stubbornly insist that Jesus was speaking literally, consider this; Christ said “This IS My Body; this IS My blood.” Jesus DID NOT say that this bread will BECOME My body and this wine will BECOME My blood after you eat and drink it, as the transubstantiation doctrine maintains. For those who wish to take Christ’s words at His Last Supper as being literal, examine Christ’s words and compare them to the transubstantiation doctrine and see this contradiction for yourself.

There is no scientific evidence that a man-made communion wafer or wine offered in communion is, or transforms, into human flesh and blood in the human digestive tract as the transubstantiation doctrine proclaims.

Jesus said that He is the bread of life (John 6:33,35,48,51). Jesus further illustrates that He is not literal bread, but He is the bread (substance) of God who comes down from heaven and gives life (eternal life) to the world. If anyone eats of THIS BREAD he shall live forever; and the bread that Christ gave is His flesh, which He gave for the life of the world.

JOHN 6:58:
This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.”


Here Jesus proclaims that this bread is Himself, who came down from heaven. It is not physical bread that the fathers of Israel ate, and are now dead. Like the manna, the Eucharist communion wafer is physical bread, something that people eat and will die.

JOHN 6:63:
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.”

Here we have Jesus fully explaining that the bread He speaks of is His Spirit that gives life. Jesus’ words ARE this bread. Jesus’ words ARE spirit and they ARE life. The Eucharist is not this bread. The Eucharist wafer is physical bread that is consumed by the mortal man.

The Eucharist wafer is not Christ’s actual literal flesh. Christ did not “give” this wafer to us, but the Catholic Church ordered these wafers manufactured. The Eucharist wafer did not come down from heaven, but was made in a factory somewhere on earth. This bread that Christ speaks of, cannot be literally eaten, for whoever physically eats the communion wafer, still physically dies.

This once again proves that Catholicism is inconsistent, picking and choosing what Christ said was literal, as they proclaim “This is My body, this is My blood,” as literal, yet they then say Christ didn’t mean those who would partake in the Eucharist would not experience physical death, when Jesus said, “anyone who eats this bread shall never die.” Well, people who do partake in the Eucharist do physically die.

Christ, as the bread of life, did come down from heaven. It is through His laying of His own life down on the cross that He has given us eternal life. To eat this bread, we must literally obey Christ’s words and His commandments.
Jesus was the fulfillment of the Passover and is the New Passover. To celebrate the Passover, a lamb is slain and consumed in remembrance for when the Lord freed the Hebrews from Egyptian bondage. In the original Passover, the blood of a lamb was posted over the doorposts of the Hebrew’s homes, so that the Lord would pass over the homes of the Hebrews when He brought death to the first-born Egyptians. The blood on the doorposts of the Hebrews was a “sign” as described in Exodus 12:13. The blood itself was not what literally saved the Hebrews, but it was a sign to the Lord, and the Lord saved the Hebrews.

In likewise manner, in the Last Supper, the Lord offered bread and wine as a sign or symbol of His New Covenant with man (Matthew 26:26; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20). Jesus said, For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins (Matthew 26:28). “This is My body which is given for you; do this IN REMEMBRANCE of Me” (Luke 22:19) The symbolic meaning of the bread and wine Christ served at His Last Supper is for a “sign” of remembrance of the new covenant that He made for many for the remission of sins. When we celebrate the Last Supper and say grace, we remember the atonement sacrifice Christ made for us. This New Covenant was for the remission of sins, so that Christ would be our Passover lamb. Christ’s actual blood is a sign for God the Father that Christ paid the penalty for our sins, so that God’s judgment will pass over us and we may be granted eternal life.

The Passover was actually a foreshadowing of the New Covenant of the Last Supper. The Passover was to save the physical lives of the Hebrews in physical bondage in Egypt. The New Covenant was to save the eternal lives of all mankind in spiritual bondage to sin. The Passover is to be celebrated as an annual event (Exodus 12), not a weekly mass. Catholicism has replaced God’s Passover holyday with the holiday Easter (in homage to the fertility goddess Ishtar), and substituted the Passover meal of lamb for the unclean swine traditionally served at Easter.  

We cannot consume Christ’s literal flesh and Christ’s literal blood, no matter what some mystical Babylonian-inspired Roman Catholic priest says.

We know Jesus often spoke figuratively, because Jesus said that He spoke in figurative language and the Apostles understood this to be so. Jesus spoke in figurative speech when He said, “This is My body; this is My blood.”
JOHN 16:25:
These things I have spoken to you in FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE; but the time is coming when I will no longer speak to you in FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE, but I will tell you plainly about the Father.
The Apostle Paul commanded that when Christians come together in a church, IT IS NOT TO EAT THE LORD’S SUPPER.
1 CORINTHIANS 11:20:
Therefore when you come together in one place, IT IS NOT TO EAT THE LORD’S SUPPER.
If the purpose of gathering together in a church is not to partake in the Lord’s Supper, how can Catholics maintain that it is? They have repackaged the Last Supper and call it weekly mass and the Eucharist. It is false doctrine and denies Christ’s sacrifice as being sufficient. It is false doctrine, taking their flock away from the truth of the One who died for our sins, once and for all time (Hebrews 10:10), while leading them into servitude of a church that offers a communion wafer idol and a shot wine for the continual sacrifice and cleansing of sins.

REBUTTAL to Opponents likely arguments:


Jesus said “This IS My Body; This IS my flesh! He didn’t say, “This is a symbol of My body; this is a symbol of My flesh.”

Response:
When Jesus spoke symbolically, or in figurative language, He DO NOT preface His statements by saying, “I am now speaking to you symbolically.” This would defeat the purpose of speaking symbolically.

An example of this is…

JOHN 11:11-14:
“Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may wake him up.” Then His disciples said, “Lord, if he sleeps he will get well.” However, Jesus spoke of his death, but they thought that He was speaking about taking rest in sleep. Then Jesus said to them plainly, “Lazarus is dead.

When Jesus spoke symbolically of Lazarus’ death, He said, “Lazarus sleeps.” When He clarified by speaking literally, He plainly said, “Lazarus is dead.” Jesus never prefaced His statements by saying, “I am speaking symbolically here,” or “I am speaking literally now.”


Jesus said that He is the door (John 10:7,9); the Good Shepherd (John 10:11,14), the way the truth and the life (John 14:6). Yet we know that Jesus was symbolically the door to eternal life, the Good Shepherd or caretaker of His sheep - His followers, the way, the truth and the life - His words and teachings are true and give eternal life. Christ said that He is the bread of life. Most non-Catholics do not take His words to mean that He is literal bread, but rather the substance of life.

Why did many of His apostles walk away after Jesus taught to eat His flesh and drink His blood (John 6:66)?

RESPONSE:
1. Some took Christ literally, and wanted nothing to do with the mysticism that many pagan religions had in eating human flesh and blood. They did not understand that Christ was speaking figuratively (John 6:63). They did not understand that Christ was not speaking of actually eating His body, but instead spoke of obeying His words, which are spiritual and give eternal life.

JOHN 6:63:

It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.

2. Those that did understand Christ to be speaking figuratively walked away because they could not understand Him; the meaning of what He was saying was too difficult (John 6:60).

JOHN 6:60:
Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”

If Christ did not want us to literally eat His flesh and drink His blood, then how does one eat the bread or drink the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner (1 Corinthians 11:27,29)?

When someone knows the words and commandments of Christ, yet does not abide by them, does not repent of sin and continues living life as He was before knowing Christ, that person has heard Christ’s words in an unworthy manner. This is the case of many Christians, for example, that are pro-choice.

Scripture says that if you know God’s word you judge and correct yourself through chastening and repentance, so that God will not condemn us with the world (1 Corinthians 11:31-32).

CLOSING STATEMENT:
The Eucharist wafer, supposedly bread, is not like bread at all, but is shaped like a circular flat white potato chip. The Eucharist wafer has been inspired and patterned in reverence to the Babylonian sun god. The Eucharist chip is a man-made manufactured product that has been set up within the Catholic Church system as a graven image idol, as God, to be revered and consumed to receive Christ. The Eucharist is offered up as a continual sacrifice, denying the once and for all eternal sacrifice of our Lord, Yeshua the Messiah – Jesus the Christ (Hebrews 10:10).

Apparently, most Catholics must have lost faith in the literal application of Christ’s words at His Last Supper regarding the Eucharist. An estimated 75% of the reported 1-billion Catholics do not attend weekly mass.

A DEEPER TRUTH

MATTHEW 10:39, 16:25; MARK 8:35; LUKE 9:24, 17:33:
For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it.

Jesus was telling His followers that to be worthy of Him, you must be willing to shed your body and suffer persecution, rather than deny Christ and His teachings. Many Christians in the first century and throughout the ages have been martyred and persecuted rather than deny Christ. In the case of the Catholic Church, many Christians have been persecuted and martyred for upholding and proclaiming the truth of the Scripture, rather than to submit to Catholic Church authority or the Catholic pope.

The Apostle Paul knew of His martyrdom and that He was being poured out as a drink offering, of persecution and death for his testimony in proclaiming Christ - 2 Timothy 4:6.
MATTHEW 10:24:
A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master.
Christians are not above our Master. We must be willing to shed our body and shed our blood, which means must be willing to suffer ridicule, persecution and giving up our lives in martyrdom for the sake of the gospel and Christ.
MATTHEW 26:39:
He went a little farther and fell on His face, prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”
Jesus was speaking figuratively here, as He was not asking the Father to remove His Eucharist cup of wine, but the cup of the blood of sacrifice that He was being asked to spill for the remission of man’s sins.

MATHEW 20:22; MARK 10:38:
Jesus asked His disciples: "Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink..."

I assure you this WAS NOT the Eucharist cup of wine. 

Christ made a covenant with us; to shed His body and blood as a once and for all sacrifice for the remission of sins. We - His servants, are not above Christ - our Master. We must be willing to do the same for the Lord.
Any fool can go to Sunday mass and eat a communion wafer and drink a shot glass of wine. This is not a test of faith and is not what Jesus meant when He said to eat His body and drink His blood. To eat His body and drink His blood is to obey His words and His commandments and to be willing to suffer as Christ suffered; ridicule, persecution and death.

I have presented the true meaning of eating Christ’s flesh and drinking His blood.

To those who wish to continue to participate in the meaningless and fruitless Eucharist ritual, reminds me of a scene from the movie, “The Matrix.” In it, the star character, Neo, was offered a choice between receiving the red pill of truth and the blue pill of continual illusion and deception.

RED PILL OR BLUE PILL?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VQ9Fs2fM20

The blue pill (the Eucharist) is offered by Babylonian-inspired Roman Catholicism; the perverted false counterfeit-Christian religion that has been pulled over your eyes to blind you from the truth. Taking the blue pill (the Eucharist) keeps you a slave; in prison, in bondage to a religious system that most Catholics were born into. The Eucharist, when taken and believed as literal, is cannibalistic, mystical spiritualism, pagan in origin and Satanic. The Eucharist is easy to swallow and many are deceived by it.

The red pill, (the unchangeable truth of Scripture), is sometimes more difficult to swallow, but it is the truth, nothing more. An honest objective study of God’s word will set you free from religious bondage and show you just how deep the rabbit hole (of Catholicism) goes.

The choice is yours. You can keep taking the Eucharist, or you can free yourself from spiritual bondage by accepting the logical truth of Scripture.



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