Just You Wite, ‘Enry ‘Iggins!
In our sleepy Texas town we have a strongly anti-Catholic man who routinely pays for a 5-by-7 inch advertisement in the local paper to denounce our faith. Over the past several years, I’ve met with him, debated over the telephone, and often replied by mail to his very mistaken beliefs.
I thought you might enjoy how little he thinks of your scholarship after I gave him a copy of the tract “Once Saved, Always Saved?” In his words, “Karl Keeting (his spelling) needs to do a lot more studying of Scripture before he writes anymore on that subject.”
His letter replies to my gentle “chastisement” of his latest errors about the doctrine of purgatory and salvation by faith/works. In it, he “enlightended” me that the problem with the letter of James is that James is dealing with the balance of faith and works from man’s point of view instead of from God’s as Peter explained in Acts 15:8–9. He also removed my veil of ignorance and instructed me that “Christians, even bad Christians, go to heaven at death.”
And I’ll bet you didn’t know that the reason Protestants don’t hold the disputed seven books as inspired is: “If the seven books that the church holds as inspired are really inspired, then why didn’t the Jews add them in before Jesus was born? If they are really inspired as the Catholic Church claims, then why didn’t Jesus, the Son of God, add them in while he was here on earth?” (I had explained a bit about the Septuagint and how this was the Scripture of Jesus’ day, but he may never have heard of this Greek word before.)
I wish to thank you for your study and influence in my life. If anyone would have told me ten years ago, that I’d be an apologist for the Catholic faith—Nuts! But by the grace of God, here I am. Catholic Answers is an important resource for me in dealing with many people. You know them by name—Mormon, JWs, Church of Christ, Baptists, Lutherans, Episcopalians. I leave it up to God to convert them. I merely attempt to show scriptural roots for our beliefs. At the Houston Promise Keepers event this spring, some of my separated brothers thanked me for not “hammering on them” for not being Catholic. I explained that they were mistaken. For as soon as we get to all the pagans, we’ll be back for them.
Michael Sicard
Bay City, Texas
Too Late Have I Dated Thee, O Gospels!
I have just read an exciting book by Carsten Peter Thiede, Rekindling the Word: In Search of Gospel Truth about the early dating of the entire New Testament. It was dismissed in a single paragraph by Timothy Luke Johnston in his book on “the historical Christ.” I wonder if it is not in the range of your apostolate to do a study on this, especially since it is being avoided so assiduously by the theologians of note. It seems to me that the foundations of our faith would be greatly strengthened by such a study. I have Jean Carmignac’s book on the subject (Birth of the Synoptic Gospels), and John A. T. Robinson wrote tellingly about it before he died, also. It goes against the grain of scholars who are determined to make the New Testament occur in the second and third generation and thus permit so much speculation as to give credence to the Jesus Seminar.
Anne Lassiter
Austin, Texas
Editor’s reply: I discussed Thiede’s book in “No Apology From the New Apologists” (This Rock, May 1997). His thesis remains speculative, and I think Carmignac’s writings (and those of Claude Tresmontant) provide, at the moment, a stronger case for early dating of the Gospels.
As Received . . .
this is a letter to all of you, stupid people who believe in god. we really hate you, and so, we’re not going to loose more of our time with you. See you at hell!
Anonymous
Via the Internet
Punched by a Priest
Once again I went to Mass in a new church. And once again I was met with unauthorized changes in the liturgy! This church is beautiful and has not been destroyed by renovation. Music was much better than most parishes. And the celebrating priest seemed to be a man of faith and some personal gifts. He gave a decent sermon (though, too soft for my tastes, considering the radical nature of our Lord’s words in today’s Gospel). Yet this priest did not genuflect at the words of consecration—neither between nor after—but gave a very slight bow of the head.
At the Eucharistic rite he prayed, “Happy are we who are called to the banquet of the Lamb”—a slight change but unauthorized, and actually changing the meaning of the prayer, removing its eschatological dimension. (It is “Happy are those who are called to his supper”—only the Lord knows who are his, and we here present could indeed be “eating and drinking unto judgment!”).
The Eucharistic ministers were communicated along with the priest (effectively removing them from the option of receiving on the tongue) and not communicated afterwards by the priest. Here the rubrics seem to be ignored in favor of some imaginary insult to receiving the Eucharist first by the priest. Eucharistic ministers were more numerous than needed (and one gentleman was in shorts!).
Sigh! Where can one go anymore to not be subjected to arbitrary changes like these? These were not major, perhaps, but haven’t popes and bishops asked for fidelity? Didn’t Vatican II make it clear that no changes can be made unless duly authorized. And, yes, I’ve seen some of these things done at Masses presided over by bishops!
The state of liturgy in our country is so sad really. No wonder so many seek a reform of the reform!
I did make my concerns known to the priest. He actually seemed receptive. Not too long ago, I did the same to another priest who had changed far more, including the words of institution, and he actually threatened me and gave me a punch in my chest! I presume he is not well and needs prayer. But I was surprised by the graciousness of the priest today and hopefully my comments will be taken into consideration. The new springtide? It can’t come soon enough!
Gerard Serafin Bugge
Baltimore, Maryland
Future Bishop Material
I am a seminarian about to be ordained a deacon for the diocese of Lansing. I visited your site for the first time today and wish to thank you for the awesome work you do for Christ and his holy Bride, the Church. I have read Catholicism and Fundamentalism by Karl Keating and am grateful for the work you do. Please be assured of my prayers.
Joseph J. Krupp
Lansing, Michigan
Making An End Run
Re the question on page 41 in the October 1997 issue, on the parish that does not prepare children for the sacrament of penance before First Communion, I would like to add a few practical notes.
My parish is doing the same thing. I spoke to the priest, who refused to reconsider the position. After Vatican II, there was “experimentation,” which involved just what’s happening at these parishes. In the early seventies, these “experiments” were to cease. Penance is to precede Eucharist. I was in a quandary; what could I do?
Well, I decided to prepare my daughters myself to go to confession before their First Communion. Parents are the primary educators of their children. The graces we receive in the sacrament of marriage equip us for that job.
Both experiences were very positive. In each case, we wrote a respectful letter to our priest, informing him of what we were doing. He was cooperative. This is an option that more and more families are choosing as a way of conforming to the Church’s teaching and yet remaining active in their parish.
I hope this will be of help to anyone in the same position.
Diane Kendrick
Spring Hill, Tennessee
Doing It Our Way
As my parish in is an area of the country in which approximately ninety percent of the inhabitants are baptized Catholics, we do more outreach to our own non-practicing members, simply because there are more of them numerically than there are Protestant or unchurched people. We have had a relatively good success rate among our own, and we still have about ten converts from Protestantism a year, because we try to be welcoming to non-Catholics.
Someone who wrote to This Rock some months ago said that, in his forty-three years, he had “never had Jesus Christ shared with me by a Roman Catholic.” He probably has but did not recognize it. Especially in the United States, Catholics were trained to share their faith in a more low-key, subtle way than were Evangelicals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Mormons. Until the 1960s most Catholics in this country felt the stigma of being second-class citizens because of their religion. My parents’ generation remembered Al Smith’s campaign and burning crosses. Their grandparents’ generation remembered churches being burned. We were taught to be cautious.
Pre-Vatican II Catholics were taught how to defend their beliefs but not how to proselytize like some groups did. That was left to convert-making priests and public apologists. The main thing the sisters and priests of that era taught us to do was to witness to Christ and his Church by our good example. Between 1945 and 1965 that good example brought hundreds of thousands of people into the Church annually. Numerous books and pamphlets (available in church pamphlet racks) were given to non-Catholics who expressed some interest.
Since the close of the Second Vatican Council and the crisis of the last thirty years, much of the Church’s focus has been internal rather than external. Due to problems in catechesis, many Catholics are unable to articulate what they believe and why. This is another reason why Catholics do not seem to be reaching out to others.
In the meantime, what my parish is doing for evangelization is also our main apostolate: Catholic education. We sacrifice to contribute over a million dollars annually toward local Catholic schools, keeping tuition for parents reasonably low. At our schools we do not teach our students to confront or proselytize, but we do teach them to live lives in dedication to Christ and his Church, and we re-emphasize in our catechesis what we believe and why.
Rev. Edward C. Petty
Dyersville, Iowa
The Lost Generation
Thank you for an intelligent and interesting magazine. It is most helpful. I am twenty-eight years old. Unfortunately for most of my generation the Catholic faith has been presented in a horrible diluted fashion, making it quite unpalatable. Your magazine is making it easier to be able to defend the Church’s position on various fronts.
Laura Schmidt
Cleveland, Ohio
Thanks from India
I cannot thank you enough for publishing my appeal for Catholic literature, which you were kind enough to insert in your publication. The response has been tremendous. Generous Catholics from the U. S., Australia, Spain, and even Israel have responded to our appeal, and excellent Catholic magazines have been pouring in and doing much good.
I have written and thanked each and every donor of these magazines. However, some of them have obliterated their names and addresses so I could not thank them. I want to assure all that we at the Family of Faith Foundation are constantly praying for them and their needs.
We have been giving out this literature freely, and we know it is doing tremendous good. Many have written back and told us that they now know the truth and beauty of the Catholic faith started by Jesus. Thank you once again.
Kevin L. Fernandes
Bombay, India
Anti-Mumbo-Jumbo-Ist
I myself am not Catholic (don’t roll your eyes yet); however, as I read more and more writings from a Catholic perspective the greater appreciation I have for there beliefs. I have been a Thomas Merton fan for some time, and reading his works helped me to start to have an open mind and at least listen to what Catholics had to say—not even they could be all wrong, right? I just finished reading the tract “The Case of the Sinning Minister.” I really appreciated that it points out that the Bible doesn’t support any sort of “accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior” mumbo-jumbo. I don’t get a very good response (insert head in sand) when I point that out to folks. This sort of dialogue is quite valuable, I am glad that I stumbled into you Web site.
Larry Blevins
Via the Internet
Top Ten List
I would like to share my views with This Rock readers. I’ve read it now for one solid year, and here’s what I think:
1. I’m not even sure why or how this magazine started coming to me. I suspect a dearly beloved brother in Christ ordered it.
2. I’m a Christian. Period. Not a Catholic, not a Baptist, not a Methodist, or any other name.
3. Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ alone, died to bring forgiveness to me and any who would believe in him.
4. No man, from the first-called apostle to now, none whatsoever, can assure me salvation. Only Christ, period.
5. Man, in one way or another, has bickered over the meaning of the Bible for a long, long time. Maybe the point was lost, and mankind continues to bicker just for the sake of bickering. (The point is, God, in his total power and knowledge, loves every single one of us, sinners and saints.)
6. Whether Jew, Gentile, Protestant, Catholic, or “other,” we all need to set our eyes on him and forget about the garbage. Christ died so that we may obtain something we’re not worthy of . . . no, not one of us.
7. Jesus Christ, the only perfect man, told us to love one another. Does that mean my family . . . your family . . . the old guy down the street . . . the weird old lady with the cats . . . the young guy who plays music too loud . . . that young girl whose skirt is too short . . . the man with the tattoos? Yep. Everyone. Who cares what the Greek word is? Could you fulfill it, even if it only means loving people on your block? Doubtful, huh?
8. How many of us (I’m serious, now) can say that they hit the nail, drove it into Christ’s body on the day he was crucified? I was not alive then, but I’m guilty. Are you? Thank God, he forgives!
9. Does it really matter, in the end, if your soul is lost over bickering or discussion or debate, or where the comma goes, or what the Hebrew really meant? As long as the point is being made, isn’t that the point?
10. I am not the judge, praise God for that! I’m a simple convicted fellow, an ex-drug dealer probably responsible for several deaths. However, I am a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17), and the work that Christ has started, he will finish (Phil. 1:16).
Let’s forget the Church for one minute and ask ourselves, where is Christ? That’s where his Church is. I was released from prison November 16. I can’t afford another subscription, but I’d enjoy another year. I like This Rock.
Todd Colucci
Des Moines, Iowa
Editor’s reply: Much of what you say a Catholic can agree with heartily, but your final line points to a weakness that influences your whole position: You diminish the Church that Christ established, and you implicitly deny it the authority that he in fact gave to it. You thus can decry the “bickering” about the meaning of the Bible, but you don’t have a solution to it. You have no way to point to a definitive interpretation, because for you there is no definitive interpreter. You end up having to ignore the problem, which in turn leads to other problems. Many of your instincts are right, but you need to submit yourself to the authority the Church. Only in that way will you be submitting yourself fully to Christ’s authority.
Admittedly, many people don’t see the need for this. For them the essence of Christianity is an attitude, not an institution. They sense a rivalry between the two, when in fact there is no rivalry but a dependency. With you they say, “Let’s forget the Church.” But to do that is, in the long run, to forget Christ.