The Catholic Defender Responds to Mr. Duckworth

There was an open debate today between Deepertruth's John Benko and Matt Duckworth on the question of Sola Fide and it did not take long before both sides were critical of the other.

Obviously, John Benko was winning the issue on point while Mr. Duckworth began to attack the person.

This would continue until about 12:30 in the morning.  Lets just take a look at the real argument of Mr. Duckworth.

Duckworth, "Your primary problem, John, is a complete inability to sort out what is law and what is gospel, and what is works and what is grace. Roman Catholics have to throw them all in a blender in order to come out with their theology on the other side, and still sound like they have a modicum of Biblical accuracy." 

The Catholic Church does not have to throw works and grace  and the law in a blender, not at all. 
 

GRACE AND JUSTIFICATION
I. JUSTIFICATION
1987 The grace of the Holy Spirit has the power to justify us, that is, to cleanse us from our sins and to communicate to us "the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ" and through Baptism:³⁴

But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves as dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.³⁵

1988 Through the power of the Holy Spirit we take part in Christ's Passion by dying to sin, and in his Resurrection by being born to a new life; we are members of his Body which is the Church, branches grafted onto the vine which is himself:³⁶

[God] gave himself to us through his Spirit. By the participation of the Spirit, we become communicants in the divine nature. . . . For this reason, those in whom the Spirit dwells are divinized.³⁷

1989 The first work of the grace of the Holy Spirit is conversion, effecting justification in accordance with Jesus' proclamation at the beginning of the Gospel: "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."³⁸ Moved by grace, man turns toward God and away from sin, thus accepting forgiveness and righteousness from on high. "Justification is not only the remission of sins, but also the sanctification and renewal of the interior man.³⁹
 
1990 Justification detaches man from sin which contradicts the love of God, and purifies his heart of sin. Justification follows upon God's merciful initiative of offering forgiveness. It reconciles man with God. It frees from the enslavement to sin, and it heals.
1991 Justification is at the same time the acceptance of God's righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ. Righteousness (or "justice") here means the rectitude of divine love. With justification, faith, hope, and charity are poured into our hearts, and obedience to the divine will is granted us.
1992 Justification has been merited for us by the Passion of Christ who offered himself on the cross as a living victim, holy and pleasing to God, and whose blood has become the instrument of atonement for the sins of all men. Justification is conferred in Baptism, the sacrament of faith. It conforms us to the righteousness of God, who makes us inwardly just by the power of his mercy. Its purpose is the glory of God and of Christ, and the gift of eternal life:⁴⁰

But now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from law, although the law and the prophets bear witness to it, the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. For there is no distinction: since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, they are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as an expiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins; it was to prove at the present time that he himself is righteous and that he justifies him who has faith in Jesus.⁴¹

1993 Justification establishes cooperation between God's grace and man's freedom. On man's part it is expressed by the assent of faith to the Word of God, which invites him to conversion, and in the cooperation of charity with the prompting of the Holy Spirit who precedes and preserves his assent:

When God touches man's heart through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, man himself is not inactive while receiving that inspiration, since he could reject it; and yet, without God's grace, he cannot by his own free will move himself toward justice in God's sight.⁴²

1994 Justification is the most excellent work of God's love made manifest in Christ Jesus and granted by the Holy Spirit. It is the opinion of St. Augustine that "the justification of the wicked is a greater work than the creation of heaven and earth," because "heaven and earth will pass away but the salvation and justification of the elect . . . will not pass away."⁴³ He holds also that the justification of sinners surpasses the creation of the angels in justice, in that it bears witness to a greater mercy.

1995 The Holy Spirit is the master of the interior life. By giving birth to the "inner man,"⁴⁴ justification entails the sanctification of his whole being:

Just as you once yielded your members to impurity and to greater and greater iniquity, so now yield your members to righteousness for sanctification. . . . But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the return you get is sanctification and its end, eternal life.⁴⁵

The works of the Law gets you really nowhere, that is the Old Law, but we are given into another law.  The law of grace.  This includes the works that are appointed to the Christian to fulfill from the foundation of the world (Ephesians 2:10).

Duckworth "There will more to follow, as it's going to take some time to untangle your bird's nest of law and gospel, and sort things out a bit when I hopefully get some time later today.

I still retain the floor.

 I’m going to skip several pages of material to the bottom because there is one more essential issue I wanted to address. I hesitate to address it because it is off topic, the very thing I am trying to discourage, but I can’t resist.

John wrote:
[[Matthew 7
15 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves.
16 You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles?
17 In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit.
18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.
19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.
20 Thus you will know them by their fruits.

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven,
but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 22 On that day many
will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons
in your name, and do many deeds of power in your name?’ 23 Then I will declare to them,]]

The primary question here is, what does Christ mean by fruit? The first implication is you will know them by their works."


IV. CHRISTIAN HOLINESS
 
2012 "We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him . . . For those whom he fore knew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the first-born among many brethren. And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified."⁶⁴
2013 "All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity."⁶⁵ All are called to holiness: "Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect."⁶⁶

In order to reach this perfection the faithful should use the strength dealt out to them by Christ's gift, so that . . . doing the will of the Father in everything, they may wholeheartedly devote themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their neighbor. Thus the holiness of the People of God will grow in fruitful abundance, as is clearly shown in the history of the Church through the lives of so many saints.⁶⁷

2014 Spiritual progress tends toward ever more intimate union with Christ. This union is called "mystical" because it participates in the mystery of Christ through the sacraments - "the holy mysteries" - and, in him, in the mystery of the Holy Trinity. God calls us all to this intimate union with him, even if the special graces or extraordinary signs of this mystical life are granted only to some for the sake of manifesting the gratuitous gift given to all.
2015 The way of perfection passes by way of the Cross. There is no holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle.⁶⁸ Spiritual progress entails the ascesis and mortification that gradually lead to living in the peace and joy of the Beatitudes:

He who climbs never stops going from beginning to beginning, through beginnings that have no end. He never stops desiring what he already knows.⁶⁹

2016 The children of our holy mother the Church rightly hope for the grace of final perseverance and the recompense of God their Father for the good works accomplished with his grace in communion with Jesus.⁷⁰ Keeping the same rule of life, believers share the "blessed hope" of those whom the divine mercy gathers into the "holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband."⁷¹
 
IN BRIEF
2017 The grace of the Holy Spirit confers upon us the righteousness of God. Uniting us by faith and Baptism to the Passion and Resurrection of Christ, the Spirit makes us sharers in his life.
2018 Like conversion, justification has two aspects. Moved by grace, man turns toward God and away from sin, and so accepts forgiveness and righteousness from on high.
2019 Justification includes the remission of sins, sanctification, and the renewal of the inner man.
2020 Justification has been merited for us by the Passion of Christ. It is granted us through Baptism. It conforms us to the righteousness of God, who justifies us. It has for its goal the glory of God and of Christ, and the gift of eternal life. It is the most excellent work of God's mercy.

2021 Grace is the help God gives us to respond to our vocation of becoming his adopted sons. It introduces us into the intimacy of the Trinitarian life.
2022 The divine initiative in the work of grace precedes, prepares, and elicits the free response of man. Grace responds to the deepest yearnings of human freedom, calls freedom to cooperate with it, and perfects freedom.
2023 Sanctifying grace is the gratuitous gift of his life that God makes to us; it is infused by the Holy Spirit into the soul to heal it of sin and to sanctify it.
2024 Sanctifying grace makes us "pleasing to God." Charisms, special graces of the Holy Spirit, are oriented to sanctifying grace and are intended for the common good of the Church. God also acts through many actual graces, to be distinguished from habitual grace which is permanent in us.
2025 We can have merit in God's sight only because of God's free plan to associate man with the work of his grace. Merit is to be ascribed in the first place to the grace of God, and secondly to man's collaboration. Man's merit is due to God.
2026 The grace of the Holy Spirit can confer true merit on us, by virtue of our adoptive filiation, and in accordance with God's gratuitous justice. Charity is the principal source of merit in us before God.
2027 No one can merit the initial grace which is at the origin of conversion. Moved by the Holy Spirit, we can merit for ourselves and for others all the graces needed to attain eternal life, as well as necessary temporal goods.

2028 "All Christians . . . are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity" (LG 40 § 2). "Christian perfection has but one limit, that of having none" (St. Gregory of Nyssa, De vita Mos.:PG 44, 300D).
2029 "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me" (Mt 16:24).

Mr. Duckworth, I see nothing here that says anything about throwing " throw them all in a blender in order to come out with their theology on the other side".
I admit that this might be a bit much for you to digest,  but it is important to note that the Catholic Church is well founded on it's doctrines.  Your going to have to do far more than simply make false accusations.

Duckworth If this is true, than Mormons are not false teachers, since they are actually very efficient at charity, caring for the poor, and promoting traditional family values as well as a strong moral fabric in society. Not to mention, verses 21-23 are actually attributing mighty works in Christ’s name to those who are being rejected by Christ.

III. MERIT

You are glorified in the assembly of your Holy Ones, for in crowning their merits you are crowning your own gifts.⁵⁹

2006 The term "merit" refers in general to the recompense owed by a community or a society for the action of one of its members, experienced either as beneficial or harmful, deserving reward or punishment. Merit is relative to the virtue of justice, in conformity with the principle of equality which governs it.
2007 With regard to God, there is no strict right to any merit on the part of man. Between God and us there is an immeasurable inequality, for we have received everything from him, our Creator.
2008 The merit of man before God in the Christian life arises from the fact that God has freely chosen to associate man with the work of his grace. The fatherly action of God is first on his own initiative, and then follows man's free acting through his collaboration, so that the merit of good works is to be attributed in the first place to the grace of God, then to the faithful. Man's merit, moreover, itself is due to God, for his good actions proceed in Christ, from the predispositions and assistance given by the Holy Spirit.

2009 Filial adoption, in making us partakers by grace in the divine nature, can bestow true merit on us as a result of God's gratuitous justice. This is our right by grace, the full right of love, making us "co-heirs" with Christ and worthy of obtaining "the promised inheritance of eternal life."⁶⁰ The merits of our good works are gifts of the divine goodness.⁶¹ "Grace has gone before us; now we are given what is due. . . . Our merits are God's gifts."⁶²
2010 Since the initiative belongs to God in the order of grace, no one can merit the initial grace of forgiveness and justification, at the beginning of conversion. Moved by the Holy Spirit and by charity, we can then merit for ourselves and for others the graces needed for our sanctification, for the increase of grace and charity, and for the attainment of eternal life. Even temporal goods like health and friendship can be merited in accordance with God's wisdom. These graces and goods are the object of Christian prayer. Prayer attends to the grace we need for meritorious actions.

2011 The charity of Christ is the source in us of all our merits before God. Grace, by uniting us to Christ in active love, ensures the supernatural quality of our acts and consequently their merit be
fore God and before men. The saints have always had a lively awareness that their merits were pure grace.

After earth's exile, I hope to go and enjoy you in the fatherland, but I do not want to lay up merits for heaven. I want to work for your love alone. . . . In the evening of this life, I shall appear before you with empty hands, for I do not ask you, Lord, to count my works. All our justice is blemished in your eyes. I wish, then, to be clothed in your own justice and to receive from your love the eternal possession of yourself.⁶³

Doing good in and of itself gets you no where, however, if your following the truth of God and his principles, then doing good works is very important.  You will be held accountable for how you live your life.  We are called to be faithful.  Good works is important in picking up our cross and following him.  To taking care of the widows and orphans is a responsibility.

Duckworth  In a great sense of irony, I actually believe this to be a condemnation of Roman Catholic teaching… in that Christ is condemning those who called on His name and point to their own works as their justification on the last day. It is a condemnation of Mormons too, and every other religion in the world that bases salvation on works done (which is the worldly religion).

Actually, this warning from Jesus in verse 22-23 points to works made by those who were false prophets to include those disciples who perform works of healing and exorcism, but live evil lives. We see this in Deuteronomy18:18-20, "I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their kinsmen, and will put my words into his mouth; he shall tell them all that I command him.  If any man will not listen to my words which he speaks in my name, I myself will make him answer for it.  But if a prophet presumes to speak in my name an oracle that I have not commanded him to speak, or speaks in the name of other gods, he shall die".

Mormans are not a good representative group because any group that proclaims something contrary to the Catholic teaching place themselves in this situation.

Duckworth So that brings us back to the question, what is fruit? What is the context? The context is false prophets… the fruits are their teachings! You will know them by their teaching.

I can accept teaching here, no question about that, but works are also indicated by the evil they do.  

It is very interesting how people attempt to minimize the works of God in our lives.  

We shall know them by their fruits.  Matt, this is how I can know your teaching is false and full of misrepresentations.

What are those works that we are to strive?  

The Corporal Works of Mercy

• Feed the hungry
• Give drink to the thirsty
• Clothe the naked
• Shelter the homeless
• Visit the sick
• Visit the imprisoned
• Bury the dead

The Spiritual Works of Mercy

• Admonish the sinner
• Instruct the ignorant (This and the next work are extremely pertinent categories today, when so many people are confused by what the Church teaches on contraception, abortion, homosexuality, etc.)
• Counsel the doubtful
• Comfort the sorrowful
• Bear wrongs patiently
• Forgive all injuries
• Pray for the living and the dead

These are things that are important for the believer.  This is not the same as the works of the law was in the Old Testament.  We are to be that grace the Lord works in our lives by doing his will.

Duckworth A right handling of God’s Word, of law and gospel, will result in the hearers coming to a genuine repentance and trusting faith in Christ alone for salvation, which is the will of the Father in heaven (v.21)

It is interesting that you say "A right handling of God's Word", you want to make yourself the arbiter  of God's word?  This was given to the Catholic Church by Jesus himself so anyone who proclaims to be a disciple who has no tie to the apostolic Church is self deceived.  The true Gospel of Jesus Christ has to be 2,000 years ago, it cannot be formulated in 1917 or any other man made date.  Then you fall right into (Deuteronomy 18:20, Matthew 7:22-23) placing yourself as a false prophet.

You also speak of the law as to say rightly handling God's law.   "Know this, my brethren. Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger, for the anger of man does not work the righteousness of God. Therefore put away all filthiness and rank growth of wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if any one is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who observes his natural face in a mirror; for he observes himself and goes away and at once forgets what he looks like. But he who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer that forgets but a doer that acts, he shall be blessed in his doing" (James 1:19-25).

The Catholic Faith has been the safeguard of the Word of God from the beginning.  The law of Grace is in effect until the Lord does return and everyone will be held accountable to their works.

Duckworth "A wrongful handling of God’s Word, and a confusion of law and gospel, will result in a different “fruit”; one where the hearers are confident in their own works for salvation, and who are actually deceived into believing they just need to follow Christ “a little better”, or be “obedient enough” to enter heaven. The fruits of this teaching are self righteousness, and the trusting of one’s own works for salvation, as is evidenced in v. 21-23"

On this point, I have no quarrel, I would simply say that you are looking at your own mirror when you direct that erroneously at others.  Grace, faith, and good works together strengthen a rope that will not break.  When you try to unravel the obvious truth behind this rope, you simply weaken yourself and are subject to heresy.

Duckworth "Alright, that’s all for now. I await your response, and would appreciate some focus, instead of trying to lead the conversation down 100 different rabbit trails. Salvation SOLA FIDE is the topic of discussion."

It is very interesting to me to see you say this because your side of the line are masters of using the scatter-gun  technique? If we could really get you to stay focused on a subject that would be great.  I wish we could have had you act this way today as opposed to your name-calling, threats, and insults.  That was your focus today.   

The Late John Gerstner was a Professor of Church History at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary and Knox Theological Seminary once said, "If Protestants were wrong on Sola Fide--and the Catholic Church was right that Justification is by faith and works, I'd be on my knees tomorrow morning outside of the Vatican doing penance".

According to Luther and Calvin this was the article on which the Church stood or fell, Sola Fide was the material principle of the Reformation.
 Consider 1 Corinthians 13:2, "If I have all faith so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing." St. Paul is essentially saying that if you have no love, your faith is in vain.

 This is in total agreement with James 2:14. St James asked the question, "What does it profit, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but has not works. Can his faith save him?"

Duckworth  "We can go ahead and dispense with the insults, condescending remarks, and mad proclamations of victory over sola fide. I’ve already heard them, have already yawned as a result, and am only interested in the content of you addressing my arguments."

Well, unfortunately, this is the best you can do? No wonder you gracefully bowed out of the debate? That again is your right.  It's a shame that you were not able to hold to your own principles.  You can yawn all you want to, Jesus is not yawning, this is no game to him. 

 Duckworth  "I would like to see if anyone was following along or all that work was for naught, so after this is finalized, I would ask Robert to open the thread up for discussion.
Unfortunately, there is probably something like 50,000 + characters of text, that I expect most people, sadly, will not read through. To that end, I would like to ask John F Benko to delete some of the unnecessary banter in the middle and I will delete mine. This cleans the thread up a little for people to hopefully read."

This is all the more why the forum is not ideal for debate.  There are way too many opportunities for people to get misrepresented, sort through the wrestling of the volume of information piling up, it takes the responder a long time to go through it.  Unfortunately, at the end of the day, you were not really interested in debate.  You wanted to go personal.  Personally, I would want my opponent to give their best to the table.  I want those following the debate to be able to get both points of view.  You made this virtually impossible with your personal insults.

Matt Duckworth, I dedicate this song to you. (Editors note-upon learning of Sylvester Stallone's return to his Catholic Faith, Praise the Lord for the return of the prodigals)

A response from Matt Duckworth:

If you want forgiveness for ripping my words out of context and using them to falsely characterize me on your web site, than I forgive you for that. I mean that too, I truly don't hold a grudge. I accept that as part of the hazards and risk of online debating with bloggers. Most people would be quite angry with that but I am not.

There are not many people who follow me, and I am not popular online. I am just another anonymous guy who debates with opposing viewpoints in my SPARE TIME.

If what you say is true, about this "going viral" than my anger has truly turned into amusement. Is there that many people with that much spare time on their hands?

Matt, I took your words and tried to correctly respond to them, I will admit that blogging a debate can be easy to misinterpret a meaning so for that, I can easily say that I'm sorry if I missed your point.

The past couple of days has shown how things can go south very quickly and so it is good to have the opportunity to clarify it and bring it into perspective.

People love a fight, Ali vs Fraiser, Hulk Hogan vs The Ultimate Warrior, the Catholic Defender vs Matt Duckworth.  These things bring excitement out of an ordinary day.

The power of the internet is far reaching that can be used for good or evil.  Here at Deepertruth, we are dedicated to serving Jesus and His Catholic Church which is our foundation.  To "Consecrate yourself to God the Father through the Son, Christ Jesus."

I do want to invite you on a show with me in the future that we can talk this over.  It doesn't have to be a debate, Catholic vs Protestant or anything like that, just two guys getting together about the past couple of days to show respect.  Matt, the ball is back in your court.

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The Catholic Defender: Catholics on the Streets of Dallas

Deepertruth and St. Paul's Street Evangelization teams up in Dallas Texas.

Despite the 100 plus degree heat, it was a great day to share the Catholic Faith.

St Jude has some real advice stating, "Beloved, although I was making every effort to write to you about our common salvation, I now feel a need to write to encourage you to contend for the faith that was once handed down to the holy ones. Keep yourselves in the love of God and wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that leads to eternal life. ON THOSE WHO WAIVER, HAVE MERCY; SAVE OTHERS BY SNATCHING THEM OUT OF THE FIRE; ON OTHERS HAVE MERCY WITH FEAR, ABHORRING EVEN THE OUTER GARMENT STAINED BY THE FLESH" (Jude 3,21). 

Paul Mathers (Local Leader of the St. Paul's Street Evangelization team) writes, "At times we had 2, 3, 4 groups of people walk by our table and we had several different conversations going on at the same time! We gave away 2 or 3 dozen rosaries this day and lots of pamphlets, and copies of Pillar of Fire, Pillar of Truth. It was a good day, although about 100 degrees and little air movement, but at least we had a bit of shade to work under."

This is my favorite picture of the day because it gives an example of everyone being gainfully employed.  We had many people stop and talk with us.

It is amazing how much information is provided in the span of a few hours.  It seems like volumes.

I like the quote from Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta when she encouraged the Church reminding us that it is not our success that is most important, but our faithfulness.  That is so important to note, if we can help one person then this is all worth it.


Jesus Commands the Church to "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, until the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19-20). 
  
Paul Mathers, "This is Sage. Sage is not a Catholic, yet. She said she was exploring the Catholic Faith. I spoke with her for a while and loaded her down with good reading materials. I gave her a card with my name and email. She lives in East Dallas not too far from me. I hope to get together with her to talk at length and get her in RCIA if that is what the Holy Spirit guides her to do. Pray for her conversion."


What a great opportunity to reach people where they are at.  The Lord is calling us to do this kind of work to be his voice out on the street, to be his feet to go where he needs us.  

To be his hands to reach out to those who are searching.  Sometimes this is within our own families.

St. Paul writes, "I, then, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you o live in a manner worthy of the call you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another through love, striving to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace: one body and one Spirit, as you were also called to the one hope of your call; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all"(Ephesians 4:1-5).
  
Paul Mathers "This person was an Agnostic. Tyler, who is moving to Scotland to get his Doctorate in Philosophy, was the perfect person to speak with. Tyler talked with this fellow at length about the existence of God and why we worship him in the Catholic Church."

 Tyler is a recent convert to the Catholic Faith and in the short time since his conversion has been active with St. Paul's Street Evangelization.  Formerly based in a Calvinistic group, his story is really an inspiration.  

This coming Wednesday evening, he will be giving his testimony live on Deepertruth.  

This is a powerful story that will touch your heart.  Many of you might remember the debates we have had in the past with Calvinists.  This is a great story.

St. James echos this teaching, "My brothers, if anyone among you should stray from the truth and someone bring him back, he should know that whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins" (James 5:19-20).

 Paul Mathers "Jeff Hutchins, We are fortunate to have folks like Jeff, who converted from the Church of Christ 5 yrs ago."

Jeff will also appear on Deepertruth this coming Wednesday evening to share his conversion story.  What a night this is to have two dynamite guys who both have inspiring story's to tell.

I have had people ask us to do more conversion stories and here is a great opportunity. 

This work is very important and how great it is knowing that what is happening here is also happening throughout the Country and abroad to other Countries.  This is becoming a great asset for the Church.

1 Corinthians 1:10 commands us, "I urge you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree in what you say, and that there be know divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and purpose".

I had a great time spending the day in Dallas getting the chance to be a part of this great work despite when Paul snaps a picture (lol).

We spoke to many people who were Catholic and was glad to see us out there.  Many are not used to seeing Catholics on the street witnessing for the Catholic Faith.  We got some double looks for sure.

One guy was running past us when he suddenly stopped literally dropping his sunglasses to get a second look.  I picked up his sunglasses for him (lol).

We had people who had left the faith who were surprised to see us and some did stop to talk to us.  It was a great opportunity to plant seeds.  There were many non-Catholic who were glad to see us out there as well.  I encourage you to find where St. Paul's Street Evangelization is setting up near you and get involved.  This will increase your faith.

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I'm back

For me, one thing 2013 has not lacked for is drama, both good and bad. I have, frankly, spent the majority of this year disheveled and overwhelmed and my friends Donald, Margie, Ross, Christie and Dr. Greg have basically carried Deepertruthblog as I crashed from one wave of drama to another.

My Father was called home in February after a long and agonizing battle with cancer. My company did not even have the common decency to send a card. 6 weeks later, that same company laid me off.

The last 4 months have been consumed with finding and starting a job while finding, buying and moving in a house. I am happy to report that God came through in a big way on both fronts. Yesterday's housewarming was as joyous for pure vindication and over-coming as it was for the beautiful house itself. The new lawnmower, weedwacker, ceiling fan and gift cards we received as presents did not hurt either.

So, with humble thanks to my DTB partners, let's look at the latest addition to our best of collection.

Articles:

255. Contraception
256. Lifting up the arms
257. A simple kind of man.
258. Habemus Papum
259. Yes, I was there.
260. The cup of Salvation
261. The SSG Cardenas story
262. Come out of her
263. The Golden cup vs the cup of salvation
264. St. John La Lande
265. The Sabbath Day

Shows:

161. The Contraceptive mentality and NFP
162. Habemus Papum
163. Satanism convert
164. Zealous- Catholic hip-hop
165. Compassion fatigue
166. You gotta get up and try
167. The Father Calloway story
168. David L Gray
169. Pray and fast for Joseph J Farina
170. Steve Ray conversion revisited
171. Sister Mary Teresita

Thanks again to everybody.

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*BEST OF DTB #265* The Catholic Defender: The Sabbath Day

"And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work which he had done. So God blessed the seventh day and hallowed it, because on it God rested from all his work which he had done in creation" (Genesis 2:2-3). This is what the Sabbath (Hebrew Shabbath) means, it means "day of rest".

This does not seem to be a religious ordinance between Adam and Mt. Sinai. The great patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob shows no evidence in keeping the seventh day as a religious ordinance.

Exodus 24:15-18 states, "Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. The glory of the Lord settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it six days; and on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the midst of the cloud. Now the appearance of the glory of the Lord was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. And Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. And Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights."

From this scene we find the offerings for the tabernacle, the Ark of the Covenant, the table for the Bread of the Presence, the Lamp-stand all of which reveals something of the presence of God in their midst. These are key signs of understanding the New Testament, the tabernacle today houses the Eucharist, the Ark of the Covenant is a type of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The Ark contained the 10 Commandments, the rod of Aaron, and a golden pot of manna. These items point to the person of Jesus Christ the Virgin Mary conceived by the power of the Holy spirit.

The Ark of the Covenant was recognized as the Lord's presence among his people, it always went before them when ever it traveled anywhere. It was the center of the worship when it rested in the tabernacle, a forbearance of the Eucharist in the Tabernacle today.

Concerning the Bread for the Tabernacle, Leviticus 24:5-8 states, "And you shall take fine flour, and bake twelve cakes of it; two tenths of an ephah shall be in each cake. And you shall set them in two rows, six in a row, upon the table of pure gold. And you shall put pure frankincense with each row, that it may go with the bread as a memorial portion to be offered by fire to the Lord. Every sabbath day Aaron shall set it in order before the Lord continually on behalf of the people of Israel as a covenant forever."

It is clear that the sabbath day was central to the covenant. Exodus 31:15-16 states, "Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a sabbath of solemn rest, holy to the Lord; of whoever does any work on the sabbath day shall be put to death. Therefore the people of Israel shall keep the sabbath, observing the sabbath throughout their generations, as a perpetual covenant. It is a sign forever between me and the people of Israel that in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.

The bread for the Tabernacle is a sign of the Old Testament Covenant much as the Eucharist is the sign of the New Covenant. This is a type of the Eucharist, a foreshadowing of the Eucharist. The authority of the priesthood of Levi does end and the priesthood of Christ does supersede the Old Testament covenants.

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.”

Israel was warned about the worship of other gods throughout their history, yet we see them falling into pagan worship. Ezekiel 8:15-18 states, "Then he said to me, 'Have you seen this, O son of man? You will see still greater abominations than these.' And he brought me into the inner court of the house of the Lord; and behold, at the door of the temple of the Lord, between the porch and the altar, were about 25 men, with their backs to the temple of the Lord, and their faces toward the east, worshiping the sun toward the east. Then he said to me, 'Have you seen this, O son of man? Is it too slight a thing for the house of Judah to commit here, that they should fill the land with violence, and provoke me further to anger? Lo, they put the branch to their nose'.

There were cultures and pagans who worshiped the sun, this is nothing new, the Egyptians call the sun god "RA", the Babylonians worshiped "Utu or Shamash, the god of the sun. The most notable pagan god worshiped by the Israelites was the god "Baal" which was suppose to be the son of Dagon, the god of the Philistines. All of this broke faith with the Covenant of the Lord.

Because of the peoples unfaithfulness, God allowed them once again to go into bondage, this time was under the Babylonians as they were taken away from their homeland. A scene much like Nazi Germany when the Jews were gathered and collected up and sent to camps, here, the Jews were sent to Babylon.

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).

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).

The Question remains, does the Catholic Church have the God given authority to follow Christ and through Christ worship God on Sunday? Absolutely, as the Passover sacrifice was transformed into the Lord's Supper, so to the sign of the covenant also changed through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Acts 15:28 states, "For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things: that you abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from unchastity." The Catholic Church from the Council of Jerusalem in 49 A.D. took a clear shift from the Law of Moses, from the Old Testament Covenant, to the New Testament law of grace.

The apostolic Church is clear that the sabbath was no longer the worship of God's people, centered on the Covenant made with Abraham. This has been changed by Jesus giving his Apostles the keys to the Kingdom of heaven. Rather, St. Paul, the apostles would go to the Jews and reach out to them, calling them to the New Testament. A converted Jew is a fulfilled Jew, a converted Protestant, is a fulfilled Christian. A practicing faithful Catholic points the way to the fullness of truth.

The Didache states, "But every Lord’s day . . . gather yourselves together and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. But let no one that is at variance with his fellow come together with you, until they be reconciled, that your sacrifice may not be profaned" (Didache 14 [A.D. 70]).

The Letter of Barnabas states, "We keep the eighth day [Sunday] with joyfulness, the day also on which Jesus rose again from the dead" (Letter of Barnabas 15:6–8 [A.D. 74]).

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.”

St Ignatius also around 110 AD, wrote to the Magnesians: "no longer observing the Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord's [Day]". This was recognized as "living according of the Lord's life". St. Ignatius received from the heart and mind the teaching of St. John the Apostle what day the "Lord's Day" referred too! It was the first day of the week, Sunday. The Early Christians recognized Jesus rising on Sunday, broke Bread on Sunday, and the descent of the Holy spirit came upon the Church on Sunday.

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.”

About 140 A.D., St. Justin writes 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.

Those who accuse Constantine for changing the sabbath day to Sunday is just not accurate at all, Constantine simply made Sunday accessible for the Christians who previously worshiped the Lord in secret, in catacombs, caves, and homes.

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.”

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The Catholic Defender: Apologetics

Recently, a friend sent me a request to post an article asking, "I'd like to see you do a post on the issue that same website brings up about a crisis in Catholic apologetics". 

In virtue of our Baptism and confirmation, all Catholics are called to be "Apologists" in some form beginning with parents.

The family is the most important foundation that children are raised. 

The Church is strongest when the family is healthy and children are being taught a clear conscious.  Young people must be grounded in the truth.  This has been a problem the past 30 or 40 years as the family becomes less stable.

Jesus instructs the Church to be that light on a hill so that all may see it.  We are to let our light shine before others.  This must first begin with the Priest.  The Late Pope John Paul II states, "Pastors are duty-bound to educate the lay faithful in understanding how to put into effect that participation in the threefold office of Christ —as priest prophet and king—which they enjoy in virtue of the sacraments of baptism, confirmation and, for spouses, matrimony (cf. , 23).

Hebrews 13:7 states, Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever."  Hebrews 13:17 continues, "Obey your leaders and defer to them, for they keep watch over you and will have to give an account, that they may fulfill their task with joy and not with sorrow, for that would be of no advantage to you."

We need to pray for our priests, they are under attack.  Hebrews 13:18 follows, "Pray for us, for we are confident that we have a clear conscience, wishing to act rightly in every respect."

To the Priests, St. Peter writes, "So I exhort the presbyters among you, as a fellow presbyter and witness to the sufferings of Christ and one who has share in the glory to be revealed.  Tend the flock of God in your midst, overseeing not by constraint but willingly, as God would have it, not for shameful profit but eagerly.  Do not lord it over those assigned to you, but be examples to the flock." (Peter 5:1-3)

Jesus gives a specific warning against those who would preach something contrary to the Catholic Church's doctrine, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but underneath are a ravenous wolves.  By their fruits you will know them." (Matthew 7:15-17)

Today we are seeing false prophets preaching all kinds of things wanting to challenge the teaching of the Church.  From women priestess to gay marriage, from dissent from official teachings of the Church to the cafeteria Catholic.  Those who pick and choose what they accept.  It's like, "Which 8 of the 10 Commandments to you keep?"

When the Late Pope John Paul II spoke of the "Springtime of Evangelization" it was important to activate the laity to witness to the modern world.  This was an important step, but unfortunately, many within the community were not adequately prepared.  Many went out into the world with good intentions, but many were not grounded in the gospel.

In 1212 A.D., a disastrous Crusade known as "The Children's Crusade" composed primarily of children numbering nearly 30,000.  Some argue that the children were really poor wanderers made into an army.  Regardless, the vast majority of these were captured and sold into slavery never to go home again.

The current effort to spread the word of God may not be that drastic, but it is estimated that there are about 20,000,000 fallen away Catholics in the United States.  Fallen Catholics as a group is the second largest group in the United States, second only to practicing Catholics.  They are everywhere from those who are ultra-Traditionalist, to fundamentalist Protestant. 

Pope Benedict XVI also encourages the faithful to utilize the media to promote the gospel.  This is a very important step in apologetics.  This is the basis for Deepertruth, Catholic Answers, Catholics Come Home, Defenders of the Catholic Faith, and others to "contend for the faith".

Consider Ephesians 2:19-20, "So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the holy ones, and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone." Notice that along with the apostles there are prophets.  Who are the prophets.  Technically, this is anyone who proclaims the word of God.  This is done formerly in the Mass as lectors.  But this is also those who preach the word of God out on the street, in the homes, at work, to the world.

Ephesians 4:11-14, "And he gave them some as apostles, others as prophets, others as evangelists, others as pastors and teachers, to equip the holy ones for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the extent of the full stature of Christ, so that we may no longer be infants, tossed by waves and swept along by every wind of teaching arising from human trickery, from their cunning in the interest of deceitful scheming."  Apologetics is to help and support the leaders for the upbuilding of the Church.  This means that the Apologist is to have a firm foundation and grounding of the teaching of the Church.  A right conscience.



Consider the contradiction of Pro-life representatives arrested at Notre Dame while pro-Abortion advocates were given the day.  President Obama spoke to the Graduating Seniors in direct disobedience to the United States Catholic Bishops. 

Something is terribly wrong when you have a "Catholic" representation defending Abortion, arresting Catholics standing up for the life of children.  
Norma McCorvey (Jane Roe, the Plaintiff in the 1973 Supreme Court "Roe V Wade" decision that legalized abortion), Dr. Gregory Thompson (Deepertruth), and Ambassador Alan Keyes were among those arrested.

The Apologist must first seek to follow the Lord by being loyal to the Catholic Church.  That is the most important role.  Anything other than complete obedience to the Teaching Magisterium of the Catholic Church would be a false prophet.  There are many of those who preach in the name of the Progressive, the liberals who seek to break the power of the Church.

I'll never forget the time I was participating in an RCIA Leadership Conference when about half way through it, the organizers brought in a woman to speak.  She was dressed like a deacon and she spoke specific against Pope John Paul II and for the homosexual movement.  I was so upset over this, I'll not forget it.  This is why they did not want any cameras because they wanted no physical record of this.  I filled out what I thought about it and the organizers were not to happy with my analysis of their convention.

Revelation 21: 5-5 states, "The one who sat on the throne said, 'Behold, I make all things new.'  Then he said, 'Write these words down, for they are trustworthy and true.' He said to me, 'They are accomplished.  I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.  To the thirsty I will give a gift from the spring of life-giving water.  The victor will inherit these gifts, and I shall be his God, and he will be my son."

Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said that it is not a matter of being successful, it is a matter of being faithful.  Let us hold fast to the Apostolic Tradition following the teaching of the Church clearly with a faithful heart and sound mind.

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The Catholic Defender: Stand Firm

Today, it seems that there are many attacks upon the faithful Catholic coming from about every angle you can imagine.

The economy is a huge issue that brings on anxiety. We place our faith in the providence of God, that He is in control.

Still, we have many challenges, some might think of as "tests".

Others might see these obstacles as trials and tribulations.

One thing is for sure, economic pressure can cause problems in a marriage.That in itself can cause anxiety.

Another source of attack come from those who push a Secular Humanist philosophy. Our public school system today is tossing out Christian references such as Christmas and Easter. The teaching of immorality in public schools is alarming.

You can't give a Tylenol without parents permission, yet a teenager can get an abortion without informing the parents.

Our Government is trying to force Catholic Hospitals and schools to offer abortion services and enforce that all medical professionals know how to do abortions.

The Obama Care policy would do away with the Hyde Amendment which provides shelter for those who oppose abortion to not have to participate in this deadly procedure.

The Government is also wanting to challenge Catholic teaching on homosexuality taking away any support to Catholic organizations that provide support for communities unless they recognize abortion and homosexual rights.

This is a serious attack on our freedom of Religion from the Government. Another serious infringement of the Government is their denial of Christians basic rights and freedoms.

They want to take Christ out of public life.

Public Schools allow Islam to be taught in many regions of the United States, yet, if you lead a prayer at a football game, they will come after you.

The Media through the movies and music glorify the sexual freedom won as a result of the sexual revolution in the 1960's.

The promotion of homosexuality, the free sex mentality without responsibility has resulted in many divorces and broken families.

Very rarely do we see a movie that presents the Church in a positive way. Every now and then we see one and we need to support those efforts.

Much of the music has been very promiscuous for a long time. All this has an effect on our culture. If you want to know how stable and strong a society is, look at the music. That is a truth.

Another source of attack come from other religious denominations who are typically anti-Catholic.

These believe the Catholic church to be the "Whore of Babylon" and they believe the Pope is the "anti-Christ".

I have spoken before several groups today and most know family members or friends who have abandoned the Catholic Faith for one of these groups.

Some of the problems we face stem from the fact that many are not properly catechized or taught the Catholic Faith.

Many may have Masters degrees on work, but they have about a third grade education when it comes to their faith.

In recent years it has begun to improve as we have many Protestant Ministers who have converted to the Catholic Faith. But we have a long way to go.

This is why deepertruth is so important because our Mission Statement is to know our faith, love our faith and spread our faith.

To bring home the prodigals, to reach out to the lost.

Jesus invites us to take out the boat into deep waters so we can cast our nets to discover the richness of our Holy Catholic Faith (Luke 5:4).

Many of you can identify with what I have been saying, maybe you have other issues you can add. The question is what do we do about it.

1 Corinthians 16:13 says, "Be on your guard, STAND FIRM in the FAITH, be courageous, be strong. Your every act should be done with love".

Galatians 5:1 says, "For freedom Christ set us free; so STAND FIRM and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery".

Philippians 1:27 states, "Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear news of you, that you are STANDING FIRM in one spirit, with one mind struggling together for the faith of the gospel, not intimidated in any way by your opponents".

Philippians 4:1 says, "Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, in this way STAND FIRM in the Lord, beloved".

1 Thessalonians 3:8-9 says, "For we now live, if you STAND FIRM in the Lord. What thanksgiving, then can we render to God for you, for all the joy we feel on your account before our God"?

One of my favorite verses, 2 Thessalonians 2:15 states, "Therefore, brothers, STAND FIRM and hold fast to the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or a letter of ours".

Hebrews 4:14 says "Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast (STAND FIRM) to our confession".

Some might see this next example as a current example, Revelation 2:13 states, "I know that you live where Satan's throne is, and yet you hold fast (STAND FIRM) to my name and have not denied your faith in me, not even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, who was martyred among you, where Satan lives".

There are so many examples that we are to stand firm or hold fast to our faith, even when it is not popular to do so.

There is always hope, 2 Chronicles 7:14 says, "and if my people, upon whom my name has been pronounced, humble themselves and pray, and seek my presence and turn from their evil ways, I will hear them from heaven and pardon their sins and revive their land".

That is what America needs, to bring back the culture of life and family.

An environment that respects Christian outreach and living. We are called to STAND FIRM in the Faith, to be strong and courageous.

To not be placed into bondage, one and united against the sin of our day.

To be strong in defense of our Holy Catholic Faith.

Let us put on the whole Armour of God and be ready to STAND FIRM in the Lord.

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