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Is there an absolute truth that we can depend on?
Email : info@changedbytruth.org
Is the Priest the source of Truth?
" For there is one God and one mediator between God and men,the man Christ Jesus"- The Holy Bible, 1 Timothy 2:5
Absolute truth, therefore cannot be found in an individual, even if that individual is a priest.
I have wondered how this truth can be tied up in a human that is by our very nature and definition, imperfect. Since absolute truth is true all the time and not sometimes, the Catholic Church has already contradicted itself with changing rules. Rules and laws that contradict the Bible are not truth but against the truth.
What does the Catholic church say about Priests?
According to the Council of Trent, whose decrees must be accepted by all Roman Catholics, or else face mortal sin or excommunication, issued this statement about Priests.
"The priest is a man of God, the minister of God...He that despises the priest, despises God; he that hears him hears God. The priest remits sin as God, and that which he calls his body at the alter is adored as God by himself and by the congregation...It is clear that their function is such that none greater can be conceived. Wherefore they are justly called not only angels, but also God, holding as they do among us the power and authority of the immortal God".
This system of earthly priesthood contradicts the Bible and is a deception that is set up to:
1. Keep your prayers away from Jesus (by praying to Mary and saints).
2. By confessing your sins to a priest instead of Jesus.
3. By thinking the priest can forgive sins.
4. And by the sacrifice of the mass.
What does the Bible say about Priests?
The Bible tells us that the office of Priesthood has been closed. In the new testament, God removed the Jewish Priesthood, their Temple, and their sacrifices. No longer were His people allowed to have a system of priests, since Jesus is their Priest. Jesus, hears prayers, forgives sins, and gives eternal life. When Jesus died on the Cross the curtain of the temple was torn in two. "And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. " Matthew 27:50-51.
If you check a study Bible, it will tell you that the "Tearing of the curtain signified Christ's making it possible for believers to go directly into God's presence."
Furthermore, the office of the priest as created by the Catholic church is to be a mediator between God and Man which is contradictory to the Bible. "For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus". 1 Timothy 2:5.
Below is a list of laws put in place by the Catholic Church called the Syllabus of Errors.
THE SYLLABUS OF ERRORS
The Roman Catholic Church is quick to brand other churches as “sects, divisive, and heretical.” It has pronounced curses on all other forms of worship that does not agree with their own pagan doctrine. In 1864, Pope Pius IX, issued the Syllabus of Errors, which under the penalty of mortal sin, all Catholics are expected to obey. Some of these are:
13. No man is free to embrace and profess that religion, which he believes to be true, guided by the light of reason.
17. The eternal salvation of any out of the true church of Christ is not even to be hoped for.
18. Protestantism is not another and diversified form of the one true Christian religion in which it is possible to please God equally as in the Catholic Church.
21. The Church has power to define dogmatically the religion of the Catholic Church to be the only true religion.
24. The Church has the power of employing force and (of exercising) direct and indirect temporal power.
37. No national Church can be instituted in a state of division and separation from the authority of the Roman Pontiff.
42. In legal conflict between Powers (Civil and Ecclesiastical) the Ecclesiastical Law prevails.
45. The direction of Public Schools in which the youth of Christian states are brought up…neither can nor ought to be assumed by the Civil Authority along.
48. Catholics cannot approve of a system of education for youth apart from the Catholic faith, and disjoined from the authority of the Church.
54. Kings and Princes (including, of course, Presidents, Prime Ministers, etc.) are not only not exempt from the jurisdiction of the Church, but are subordinate to the Church in litigated questions of jurisdiction.
55. The Church ought to be in union with the State, and the State with the Church.
57. Philosophical principles, moral science, and civil laws may and must be made to bend to Divine and Ecclesiastical authority.
63. Subjects may not refuse obedience to legitimate princes, much less rise in insurrection against them.
67. The marriage tie is indissoluble by the law of nature; divorce, properly so called, cannot in any case be pronounced by the civil authority.
73. Marriage among Christians cannot be constituted by any civil contract; the marriage contract among Christians must always be a sacrament; and the contract is null if the sacrament does not exist.
77. It is necessary even in the present day that the Catholic religion shall be held as the only religion of the State, to the exclusion of all other forms of worship.
78. Whence it has been unwisely provided by law, in some countries called Catholic, that persons coming to reside therein shall enjoy the free exercise of their religion.
80. The Roman Pontiff cannot and ought not to reconcile himself to, or agree with, Progress, Liberalism, and Modern Civilization.
The statements are from the pope who just six years later established the doctrine of papal infallibility. The Roman Church condemns freedom of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, the separation of church and state, asserts the authority of the church over the state, and of the pope over civil rulers, the right of the church to direct all education, and the right of the church to suppress other faiths.
Every priest in the world takes an oath on the Bible that he believes and will defend the 80 articles of the Syllabus. The question is; “how can anyone at one and the same time be a member of the Roman Catholic Church and a loyal American citizen?
"See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ"- The Holy Bible, Colossians 2:8
Catholics interpret the following Bible quote to designate Peter as the first Pope. Therefore, lets look at this passage and examine it more closely.
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by flesh and blood, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it." Matthew 16:14-18
There is a declaration made by Peter that Jesus is the son of God. That declaration is the foundation message of the Church. Because there is a tendency to read this passage and walk away with the notion that Peter is somehow the foundation of the Church, we need to examine this further.
Let me explain:
17] Jesus replied, Blessed are you Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven
18] And I tell you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church… now what does that mean.
A. Is Jesus saying –Peter is the foundation of church ?
B. I hope not –-- because just 5 verses later – he calls Peter Satan. 23} Jesus said to Peter, get behind me Satan.
(1) Jesus reached behind Peter - and pointed out that Satan was controlling Peter.
• It is not a question of whether we like Peter ---- but I don’t think he is the rock upon which the church is standing.
what’s going on here -- is Jesus is using a play on words – between Peter and Himself.
18] And I tell you that you are Peter… stop there.
A. Peter is derived from Greek word petros,
B. Petros -- means a small stone. Small rock.
And I tell you that you are Peter (small rock), and upon this rock …
A. Rock there is from the Greek word petra.
B. Which meant a ----- great mountainous rock.
So the play on words--- is easy to see.
C. Peter you are a little stone –
D. But the statement you just made. That I am the Christ the Son of the living God
(1) That statement is the foundation – the corner stone upon which I will build my church.
(2) That is the key to unlocking the gates of hell.
(3) The song is not: On Peter solid rock I stand
(4) On Christ ---- the solid rock we stand
The church that Christ builds has a penetrating message
" If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. "- Jesus, The Holy Bible, John 14:23
Does Mary have any part in our salvation? Is she a co redeemer with Christ?
No. The Bible does not give her any special status. In fact quite the opposite. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said "All authority in heaven and on earth has bee given to me". Matthew 28:17-18. Here Jesus is saying that ALL authority has been given to him by God! This authority is not shared with Mary or any of the saints or anyone else. He does not need to confer or take the opinion of anyone else in heaven or on earth. If there is any place where he would want the record to be clear, it would be in his Bible. But, there is no place in the Bible where Jesus even refers to Mary as his mother. This was intentional and done for a reason -- so that no one can be led to think that Jesus is giving her any special status.
She was the vessel used by God but Jesus gave her no special designation. Let’s look at the story of wedding feast where Mary goes to Jesus to tell him they have run out of wine and Jesus responds “Dear woman, why do you involve me?” . . “My time has not yet come.” John 2:4 and Mary defers to Jesus and says “Do whatever He tells you.” John 2:5.
Here was his chance to confirm in public about Mary but he doesn't do it. He simply refers to her as “Dear woman”. The Catholics will also use the Bible quote “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear!. (Luke 1:42) to draw the conclusion that Mary is worthy of our prayers. That is a far stretch to what the Bible says about Jesus and God himself. If we follow this reasoning, then we could use similar verses to justify praying to Abraham, Rebekah, and Issac…
• and he blessed Abram, saying, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High Genesis 14:19
• And they blessed Rebekah and said to her, “Our sister, may you increase to thousands upon thousands. Genesis 24:60
• Isaac planted crops in that land and the same year reaped a hundredfold, because the LORD blessed him
There are many more accounts of people and prophets in the Bible that are told they are blessed by God and that still does not make them deity.
The Bible quote at the top of this page goes further to say “He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own: they belong to the Father who sent me” John 14:24.
Therefore, being in the truth of God’s word and his plan is linked to whether you love Jesus. If you love me he says, you will obey my teaching. I think of another passage of scripture where Jesus is again talking with his disciples and he makes it clear that there is no grey area when it comes to him. “Whoever is not with me is against me” Matthew 12:30. If you are on the fence in this issue, then by default, while you are deliberating, you are in the category of not being with Jesus but against him.
It really is an issue of whom you will chose to worship and whom you will serve. The prophet Joshua said in the old testament: “But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
Joshua 24:15
When we chose to pray to anyone else either on earth or in Heaven besides God, what we have done is chosen for our self an idol in place of God. This goes against the second commandment which says -- You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. Exodus 20:4-6
Catholics will say that they only pray to Mary so she can then speak on our behalf to Jesus and/or God. There simply is no need for that since Jesus says that he and God will make their home with you and there will be the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” John 14:23 We therefore, have a direct connection to God by his Son Jesus. And with regard to the Holy Spirit Jesus says "And I will ask the Father and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever -- the Spirit of truth." John 14:16 There is no need to have Mary or anyone else in Heaven or on the earth to be a mediator between God and man.
“For there is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” 1 Timothy 2:5
The outline below covers in more detail how Mary is viewed in the Catholic church and a biblical response of how Jesus was born of a woman but not be tainted by our human sin.
IMMACULATE CONCEPTION OF MARY
(Pope Plus IX)1854 AD
Mary had been established as “Mother of God in 451, then prayers were directed to her in 600. Now 1200 years later, a pope decided that since she was the Mother of God and Mother of Jesus, she must have been born herself without sin.
The doctrine of the “Immaculate Conception” teaches that Mary herself was born without sin, that from the very first moment of her existence she was free from the taint of the original sin. The original decree that set forth this doctrine was issued by Pope Pius IX, on December 8, 1854 as reads:
• “We declare, pronounce and define that the Most Blessed Virgin Mary, at the first instant of her conception was preserved immaculate from all stain of original sin, by the singular grace and privilege of the Omnipotent God, in virtue of the merits of Jesus Christ, the Savior of mankind, and that this doctrine was revealed by God, and therefore must be believed firmly and constantly by all the faithful.” (From the papal bull, Ineffabilus Deus.)
Ask a Catholic about the Immaculate Conception and most will answer this was about Jesus. But their church teaches different. It is a holdover from the Babylonian teaching of mother and child. The progression has been to move Mary ahead of Jesus and now most view her as co-redeemer. Why do Catholics tolerate this?
Mary knew she needed a Savior, we can see this by reading Luke 1:46 “And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior.”
The Biblical Response to The Virgin Birth.
The Virgin Birth of Mary is not biblical for it puts Mary on an equal footing with Jesus as the Bible tells us “that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
“And to Jacob was born Joseph the husband of Mary, by whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ. (Matt. 1:16)
Stop there and let me give a little Greek lesson.
A. When God - gave us the New Testament – it was originally written in Greek.
B. In the Greek language words are given in genders….
(1) Masculine, Féminine or Neutre.
(2) This is helpful in understanding this passage…
• Because the phrase (of whom) is
• EK HASE in Greek and is Feminine in gender
• Referring not Joseph – but to Mary.
Don’t Miss That: For in verse15, Matthew traces Jesus genealogy -thru the Fathers
A. Abraham. Isaac, Jacob Judah – are mentioned
B. But -------- when He gets to verse 16
(1) He jumps -- over Joseph
(2) And says Jesus was born of Mary!
C In fact, the phrase, (of whom)
• EK in the Greek -- means "Out From" which means Jesus came "out from" ---- Mary!
Say: Why does the genealogy skip over Joseph?
Because: Joseph --- did not impregnate Mary! Joseph had no part – in Jesus’ conception.
a. God took the ovum of Christ – and implanted it in Mary
b. And Joseph’s sperm --- did not contact that Divine seed.
c. Joseph’s sperm --- never penetrated that Divine ovum – never
i. And Scripture --- makes sure we grasp that.
ii. By jumping - over Joseph and pointing only to Mary as one who delivered Jesus.
d. So Mary’s blood --- never entered Jesus. It wasn’t her ovum
e. And Joseph’s blood - never entered Jesus.
If the ovum - that became Jesus had come from Mary –-- it would have had Mary’s blood inside
Jesus would then have had -- human blood in His body.
(1) But the ovum that became Jesus -- did not come from Mary
(2) It was placed inside Mary from God
Beyond that: If Joseph’s sperm had fertilized that egg that came from God, then Joseph’s blood --- would have been passed into the egg and into Jesus' veins
Either way: Jesus would have had sin tainted blood in his veins
• And He would have been --just as cursed with sin … as we are
• Bible says at the moment we’re conceived we’re already infected with sin.
We don't become sinners
We are --- conceived as sinners
Why? Because the:
• Female ovum – has sin tainted blood in it
• Male Sperm ---- has sin tainted blood in it
This defeats two serious erroneous doctrines of the Catholic Church. This is not just a simple doctrinal error; your eternal life is at stake if you fall for this Babylonian teaching of the Catholic Church which teaches:
(1) That the Immaculate Conception was of Mary – No – she was born with sin or God lied.
(2) That Mary is the mother of God. No! She was the vessel used by God.
(3) That we should pray to Mary. No! That makes her an idol.
(4) That Mary can forgive sins. No! Her body is still in the grave.
Mary was blessed of God, but she is not deity. Therefore, the question of whether Mary, or any other being, has the ability to save you is answered once again by Jesus when he says in the book of Revelation "I am the Living One; I was dead, and now look, I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades." Rev 1:18
Jesus is saying that he has the keys, the power and authority and his statement also is saying that since he has the keys, no one else does. Why not go directly to the source of eternal life? Go directly to Jesus! He is waiting for you to have the abundant life that he came to provide for you. "...I have come that they may have life and have it to the full". John 10:10
I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers the prophets and of all who keep the words of this book.Worship God!" - Revelation 22:8-9
Is it ok to pray to Saints or Angels?
There are several Bible passages that prohibit praying to angels and saints in addition to one of the commandments. The concept of praying to saints or angels suggests that God is ok with sharing His glory, which is contradictory to the Bible and is not supported anywhere within the Bible. But also very powerful are the Bible accounts of what God has done when His Glory was stolen.
The first and second commandment of God:
And God spoke all these words: “I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.“You shall have no other gods before me.
“You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments. Exodus 20:2-6
So the commandments prohibit worshiping anything on the earth and anything in Heaven. We are to only worship and pray to God.
The New Testament has the following Bible Passages prohibiting this practice:
“Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you from the prize. Such a person goes into great detail about what he has seen, and his unspiritual mind puffs him up with idle notions. He has lost connection with the Head”. Colossians 2:18-19
Here the Bible is saying that the worship of (Praying to) angels would result in disqualifying you from the prize (your salvation) and that such a person has lost their connection with the Head (God). The consequences of praying to idols is very severe.
The apostle John in the book of Revelation, fell down at the feet of an angel. Read the account of how the angel responded: “I, John am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had been showing them to me. But he said to me, “Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your fellow prophets and with all who keep the words of this book. Worship God!” Revelation 22:8-9
In this case, an angel confirmed the commandment of God. “Don’t do it!” said the angel, “Worship God!”
There is a story in the Bible about King Herod that confirms this Biblical principal. When Jesus was an infant, King Herod had plans to Kill Jesus, does God take care of King Herod at this point? No, instead he instructs Joseph and Mary to leave and take Jesus to Egypt. Then when it is safe God again instructs Joseph, Mary, and Jesus to return to Israel. All this effort when God could simply remove King Herod from the scene in an instant. But he doesn’t. When King Herod's son becomes King, the son does something that results in him being removed immediately by God. Read this passage:
“On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.” Acts 12:21-23
God allowed King Herod to live even when he had plans to kill God’s son Jesus, but when King Herod's son stole the Glory from God, he was taken out of the picture. One might say, that this was someone who was against God, so perhaps that is why he was dealt with so severely? The Bible passage clearly states – “Because Herod did not give praise to God…”.
There is another account where one of God’s chosen servants made an error and God provided a consequence for the situation. Moses, God’s chosen servant to lead the people out of Egypt and into the promised land made a mistake. Even though God approved of and loved Moses he would not let Moses escape the consequence of what seems to be a slip of the tongue. In the desert, God commanded Moses to strike the rock in order to bring forth water for the Jews to drink. Moses stole God’s Glory in front of all Israel and struck the rock saying “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” Num 20:10. *
Notice the word we. God was the One who would bring the water out of the rock. Moses took God’s Glory, and God refused to take away the consequences of that disobedience. He refused to allow Moses to go with Israel into the promised land.
Whether it is an enemy of God or a chosen servant of God he will not allow his Glory to be stolen or shared.
Lastly, the saints and Mary are not omniscient and omnipresent. They can’t hear thousands of prayers, in many different languages from all over the world all at the same time. Only God is omniscient and omnipresent and can be in all places to hear prayers from everyone at the same time and have the authority, wisdom and power to respond and act in your life.
Why not go to Him in the first place?
* From the book: Experiencing God by Henry & Richard Blackaby and Claude King.
While he was speaking, a cloud appeared and enveloped them, and they were afraid as they entered the cloud. A voice came from the cloud, saying, This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him. - Luke 9:34-35
Did Mary really appear to people after her Death?
A young girl in France named Bernadette claimed to see a vision of Mary and convinced many people of her sincerity. Are these
visions real and are they really of Mary?
This vision or reappearing of Mary after her death would need to be evaluated as a miracle. We will look to the scripture but at the outset let’s contrast this vision with how Jesus appeared after his death. This vision of Mary was only visible to Bernadette. No one else was able to see Mary.
When Jesus appeared after his death, he was not invisible to some and visible to others. Jesus had a physical body, challenging Thomas to touch him and on another occasion he ate fish with his disciples. Jesus also appeared to five hundred people, "he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time..." 1 Corinthians 15:6.
When God performs a miracle, he will do so in a way that brings Glory to himself not to someone else. if a miracle happens that causes you to focus on something other than God this should cause alarm bells to go off in your mind.
We need to be careful about miracles as the Bible clearly tells us that false miracles can occur. These are miracles that are not from God.
“The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, and in every sort of evil that deceives those who are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved”. 2 Thesolonians 2:9-10
But what about miracles that may cause something good to happen? If an event takes place that produces what we think is good, it would naturally cause some people to automatically think that it is a miracle of God because God is good and something took place that is good, therefore God must have caused this to come about. Think back to the other section where God vigorously defends his Glory. How he took out king Herod for not giving Glory to God. If something takes place where the Glory goes to someone other than God, watch out. Such things as a statue of Mary that has tears streaming from the face would cause you to focus and perhaps dwell on Mary and that is a deception.
The Bible states that the enemy will cause something good to happen in order to take your focus off God. "And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light." 2 Corinthians 11:14