Simple Catholic Teaching; THE ROCK OF PETER
Why am I a Catholic? Why do I not just 'move on' and join the thousands who form communities of love and forget all this Popery and Truth and Morality? Why am I so 'Negative? Why do I enjoy being unpopular?
In one way it is because having seriously studied the Catholic Faith I am convinced that Christ established a Church that would guard and defend all that he had taught and was indeed the Way, the Truth, and the Light for the salvation of all the world. The teachings of the Church still teach what Christ taught on morality and does not excuse the sin of adultery just because everyone is doing it, not does she accept divorce as part of the human experience for there is nothing that Jesus despised more than Divorce Matthew 10.
I remember asking a couple who were entering the Church why they were doing so. They responded that they wanted to know the Truth. The RCIA will knock that out of you was my thought. What would I have taught that was different? I would have taught them the very basics of the Roman Catholic Faith without which there can be no Church of any consequence, just a group of people crying "Lord, Lord"
"Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build MY church" He was talking to the apostle Simon, the brother of Andrew. But strangely enough Simon was called Peter from then on by the disciples so it is impossible to rule out that Jesus was talking to him specifically. He was making Peter the chief Apostle or as St Paul was later to call him 'Cephas' Then Jesus went on "And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven" Now many have objected that this text is only found in Matthew which is true, but that does not mean it was just a slip of Matthew's pen. The Jews were the ones who would have understood this talk about Keys. When a Jewish King went off to war he left someone in charge to rule in his place, administer Justice, pass necessary legislation, etc. So Peter would hold the keys in the absence of Jesus and since holding the keys was to be important then Peter would appoint someone in his place. So we have had in the Church about 260 Popes. But Jesus went on to explain this holding of the keys. "Whatever you bind upon earth will be bound also in Heaven and whatever you loose upon earth will be loosed also in Heaven" Now this is incredible, Jesus was saying that a mortal man had the power to speak on behalf of him and whatever he said would be agreed in Heaven because it was the truth. It would be impossible for a Peter or his successors to err in their teachings. So the Pope in teaching the things pertaining to the salvation of mankind would be infallible. And this meant that the Church would be infallible.
"I have come into the world to bear witness to the Truth" Jesus told Ponius Pilate. "What is Truth? Pilate sneered back and that seems to be the position of many parts of the Church today which was misled by the Spirit of Vatican 11. But I love the Church and her teachings. I know a child of 12 who once said 'I do not believe in God for if there was One my family would not be in such a mess' Then there is the 16 year old who bust into Church one day and told me she had just phoned her father whom she had never known and all he had done was swear at her. The young girl broken by divorce who goes from one home to another and has lost many of her friends because she is not there. The children in Care who ate taught sex, sexually abused, and as David Cameron says are then put out into the world when adults to live lives of poverty. As the Spirit of Vatian II people ignore their plight as the living experience and pretend they do not exist as a Catholic I know what should be done. The Church should again turn to God and realise that it is a Divine organisation they belong to and not a human one and so answers can be found and not excuses. "Thou are Peter........." There is One Lord, One Faith, and One Baptism.
In one way it is because having seriously studied the Catholic Faith I am convinced that Christ established a Church that would guard and defend all that he had taught and was indeed the Way, the Truth, and the Light for the salvation of all the world. The teachings of the Church still teach what Christ taught on morality and does not excuse the sin of adultery just because everyone is doing it, not does she accept divorce as part of the human experience for there is nothing that Jesus despised more than Divorce Matthew 10.
I remember asking a couple who were entering the Church why they were doing so. They responded that they wanted to know the Truth. The RCIA will knock that out of you was my thought. What would I have taught that was different? I would have taught them the very basics of the Roman Catholic Faith without which there can be no Church of any consequence, just a group of people crying "Lord, Lord"
"Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build MY church" He was talking to the apostle Simon, the brother of Andrew. But strangely enough Simon was called Peter from then on by the disciples so it is impossible to rule out that Jesus was talking to him specifically. He was making Peter the chief Apostle or as St Paul was later to call him 'Cephas' Then Jesus went on "And I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven" Now many have objected that this text is only found in Matthew which is true, but that does not mean it was just a slip of Matthew's pen. The Jews were the ones who would have understood this talk about Keys. When a Jewish King went off to war he left someone in charge to rule in his place, administer Justice, pass necessary legislation, etc. So Peter would hold the keys in the absence of Jesus and since holding the keys was to be important then Peter would appoint someone in his place. So we have had in the Church about 260 Popes. But Jesus went on to explain this holding of the keys. "Whatever you bind upon earth will be bound also in Heaven and whatever you loose upon earth will be loosed also in Heaven" Now this is incredible, Jesus was saying that a mortal man had the power to speak on behalf of him and whatever he said would be agreed in Heaven because it was the truth. It would be impossible for a Peter or his successors to err in their teachings. So the Pope in teaching the things pertaining to the salvation of mankind would be infallible. And this meant that the Church would be infallible.
"I have come into the world to bear witness to the Truth" Jesus told Ponius Pilate. "What is Truth? Pilate sneered back and that seems to be the position of many parts of the Church today which was misled by the Spirit of Vatican 11. But I love the Church and her teachings. I know a child of 12 who once said 'I do not believe in God for if there was One my family would not be in such a mess' Then there is the 16 year old who bust into Church one day and told me she had just phoned her father whom she had never known and all he had done was swear at her. The young girl broken by divorce who goes from one home to another and has lost many of her friends because she is not there. The children in Care who ate taught sex, sexually abused, and as David Cameron says are then put out into the world when adults to live lives of poverty. As the Spirit of Vatian II people ignore their plight as the living experience and pretend they do not exist as a Catholic I know what should be done. The Church should again turn to God and realise that it is a Divine organisation they belong to and not a human one and so answers can be found and not excuses. "Thou are Peter........." There is One Lord, One Faith, and One Baptism.
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