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Here is what the blessed Cyprian wrote in respect to the authority, centrality and necessity of the Bishop: 3. But with respect to what you have said, that  priests  should be lowly, because both the Lord and His  apostles  were lowly; both all the brethren and  Gentiles  also well  know  and  love  my humility; and you also  knew  and loved it while you were still in the  Church , and were in communion with me. But which of us is far from humility: I, who daily serve the bre

Monepiscopacy, also called monarchical episcopate, refers to a single bishop chosen to preside and rule over the church with a college of presbyters and deacons. The evidence shows that this was an early and widespread practice of the universal church. In fact, a strong case can be made that this structure was already in place during the lifetime of the Apostles, or at least around the time that John the Apostle was alive and wrote his Apocalypse (ca. 90-95 A.D.). I share som

The oldest extant written mention of the term Catholic, as applied to the Church, is found in one of the letters of the holy martyr St. Ignatius, who was a disciple of the Apostles and the Bishop of Rome: Chapter 8. Let nothing be done without the bishop See that you all follow the  bishop , even as  Jesus Christ  does the  Father , and the  presbytery  as you would the  apostles ; and reverence the  deacons , as being the institution of  God . Let no man do anything connecte

The following is taken from St. Irenaeus’ Adversus haereses , Book III. All emphasis will be mine. Chapter 3   A refutation of the heretics, from the fact that, in the various Churches, a perpetual succession of bishops was kept up. 1. It is within the power of all, therefore, in every  Church , who may wish to see the  truth , to contemplate clearly the tradition of the  apostles  manifested throughout the whole world; and we are in a position to reckon up those who were by

St. Irenaeus was the Bishop of Lyons, France and died as a holy martyr for Christ. He was discipled by another Bishop named Polycarp, who himself was martyred for Christ at the age of 86 and was personally trained by Apostles such as John.   Here is what this second century apologist wrote in respect to the proclamation of the faith by the Apostles of our Lord: Chapter 1  The apostles did not commence to preach the Gospel, or to place anything on record, until they were endow

I quote from Tertullian’s The Prescription Against Heretics , where he appealed to the Bishops taught and appointed by the holy Apostles to expose the heresies being spread by false teachers and so-called Christians. All emphasis will be mine. Chapter 31. Truth First, Falsehood Afterwards, as Its Perversion. Christ’s Parable Puts the Sowing of the Good Seed Before the Useless Tares. Let me return, however, from this digression to discuss the priority of  truth , and the compa

I quote a part of St. Jerome’s De Viris Illustribus (Illustrious Men) , in which he writes in respect to some of the most influential Christians that ever lived, starting with specific Apostles of our Lord. The details he gives about their lives, works and even deaths are truly remarkable and humbling. What makes his work all the more interesting is that he even mentions the Jewish historian Flavius Josephus and Philo the Alexandrian, claiming that Philo actually met St. Pete

Here’s what St. Jerome wrote to the Luciferians in respect to the authority of unwritten traditions and apostolic succession in proving and preserving Christian doctrines and the correct meaning of Scripture. All emphasis will be mine: 8. L. Thirsty men in their dreams eagerly gulp down the water of the stream, and the more they drink the thirstier they are. In the same way you appear to me to have searched everywhere for arguments against the point I raised, and yet to be as

I will be quoting from Jewish believer Dr. David H. Stern’s translation of the Holy Bible (Complete Jewish Bible [CJB]) and his Jewish commentary on the [N]ew [T]estament in respect to the NT’s references to faith, specifically to the faith ( pistis ) of Jesus Christ. Stern’s rendering and commentary on these texts confirm that the Greek term for faith is more than mental assent. As Stern demonstrates, biblical faith is in reality faithfulness to God which in turn means being

THE SON OF GOD IS SLAIN! In the Deutero-canonical writings, there is a remarkable prophecy of God’s righteous Son being hated and put to death by his enemies:   “Let us lie in wait for the righteous man , because he is inconvenient to us and opposes our actions; he reproaches us for sins against the law, and accuses us of sins against our training. He professes to have knowledge of God, and calls himself a childof the Lord ( paida Kyriou ) . He became to us a reproof of our t

There are two remarkable statements in the apocryphal writing 2 Esdras, which confirm Jesus’ Divinity and Messianic status. They show that Jesus did indeed make himself out to be God by carrying out the very functions, which even the so-called Apocrypha ascribe to God. Israel Rejects YHWH their God According to 2 Esdras, God is fed up with his people and threatens to leave their house desolate, i.e., that their temple and land would be destroyed. This is because Israel has no

In this post I will quote two less known references from the Deutero-canonical writings, called “Apocrypha” by Protestants, which clearly point to the Lord Jesus Christ.    BARUCH The following is from a book attributed to Jeremiah’s scribe Baruch (Berechiah), which speaks of God appearing on earth to mankind: “This is our God ( ho theos hemon ) , and there shall none other be accounted of in comparison of him He hath found out all the way of knowledge ( epistemes ) , and hat

The book of 3 Maccabees ascribes specific titles and functions that belong uniquely to God: “ Lord, Lord ( Kyrie , Kyrie ), king of the heavens and sovereign of all creation ( despota pases ktiseos ) , holy among the holy ones, the only ruler ( monarche ) , almighty, give attention to us who are suffering grievously from an impious and profane man, puffed up in his audacity and power. For you, the creator of all things ( ta panta ) and the governor of all, are a just   ruler

In this post I will provide further evidence that saving faith according to the Holy Bible is defined as faithfulness to the Lord Jesus. I will use Christ’s own faithfulness as an example. For instance, note how the following versions rendering a key text that is often employed in discussions on justification: “namely, the righteousness of God through the faithfulness of Jesus Christ ( pisteos Iesou Christou ) for all who believe. For there is no distinction,” Romans 3:22 Ne

In this article I will provide further evidence that Paul, and by extension the NT, teach(es) that people are saved/justified their faithfulness to God. I will employ the Apostle’s example of Abraham to prove my case. Here’s what he wrote: “Thus Abraham “believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.”” Galatians 3:6 Revised Standard Version ( RSV ) What many folks don’t realize is that Paul is echoing what is found in the book of Maccabees: “Now the days drew near

In his commentary on 1 Cor. 10:20, the Swiss Reformer John Calvin believed that the blessed Apostle borrowed the language of the following verse from the deutero-canonical writing Baruch: “For you provoked the one who made you by sacrificing to demons and not to God.” Baruch 4:7 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE) Here’s what he wrote: Some, however, understand the term demons here as meaning the imaginary deities of the Gentiles, agreeably to their common w

The Muratorian Canon refers to a fragment that mentions a list of the books that the 2 nd  century churches deemed to be authoritative and canonical. Since it is dated at approximately at 170 AD it becomes a very important witness to the canon accepted by the church at large. All emphasis will be mine: The Muratorian Fragment is the oldest known list of New Testament books. It was discovered by Ludovico Antonio Muratori in a manuscript in the Ambrosian Library in Milan, and p

In this post I share some of the earliest surviving evidence for the authorship of the Gospel. In one of the references, I quote Irenaeus who was a disciple of Polycarp, who himself was a disciple of the Apostles such as the Apostle John. This is significant since it provides an unbroken historical chain that goes back to the very eyewitnesses of the Lord Jesus Christ. All emphasis will be mine. The Muratorian Fragment c. 170 AD The Muratorian Fragment is the oldest known lis

In this article I will quote rabbinic sources to prove that when in Genesis 3:8 it is stated that Adam and Eve heard YHVH’s Voice walking, that this Voice was not simply the sound of God walking through the Garden. Rather, the rabbis admitted that God’s Voice was the Divine Presence ( Shekhinah ) who was appearing and manifesting himself to Adam and Eve. Note what the renowned medieval rabbinic scholar Rashi stated: 8  And they heard the voice of the Lord God going in the gar

I quote from the English translation of Targum Neofiti 1: Genesis (The Aramaic Bible 1A) , translated with Apparatus and Notes by Martin McNamara, M.S.C, and published by The Liturgical Press in 1992. All emphasis will be mine. CHAPTER 1 1. From the beginning 1 with wisdom a   the Memra 2  of the Lord b3   created and perfected the heavens and the earth. 2. And the earth was waste 4 and unformed c desolate of man d5   and beast, empty of plant cultivation and of trees , and d