Misreading James 2:24

A few days ago, the YouTube channel Lutheran Satire (makers of the wonderful "Saint Patrick's Bad Analogies" and "Horus Reads the Internet") released a video in which Martin Luther schools Pope Francis on the proper reading of James 2:24.

James 2:24 has always been a sticky wicket for those who ascribe to the doctrine of justification by faith alone.  It's the one place in the Bible where we find the words "faith alone"... but they are preceded by the words "not by".

Luther's first instinct was to cast doubt the inspiration of the book - calling it "an epistle of straw" and not of true apostolic origin (he was later talked out of it).  But since then, more inventive ways have been found to defuse the troublesome passage.

That's what I want to look at today:

My Upcoming "Reformation" Lecture

I've been asked to give a lecture in Wabash, Indiana regarding the Catholic view of the event known as the Protestant Reformation.

The subjects I will be discussing are:

• The name, "Protestant Reformation"
• Sola Scriptura
• Free Will and Grace
• Sola Fide

Click [HERE] to see the PDF.

My Final Exam for the Class of 2017

This year I decided to subject my Class of 2017 students to the terrors of a final exam.  My aim was to make the questions fair.  Not easy.  Not hard.  But fair.

How many can you answer?

Defusing Pro-Choice Bible Proof-Texts

The other day a friend sent me a clip from the TV show “The Young Pope”.  In it, the Pope discusses the morality of abortion with one of his cardinals.  I could critique the clip all day long, but I want to focus on the Scriptural discussion they have.

Sometimes you’ll run across a person who claims the Bible supports a “Pro-Choice” worldview.  Today I want to run through the three passages which are used to support that claim.

A Roman Take on the Romans Road

The letter to the Romans is commonly viewed as friendly to non-Catholic views on salvation and hostile territory for us Papists.  For instance, the epic story of Martin Luther’s crusade to reform the Church supposedly began with him finding a dusty, long-lost copy of Romans and subsequently rediscovering the true Gospel (tm).

In more recent history, there is a tract which used to be common in Evangelical circles called “The Romans Road”.  It uses selected verses from Paul’s letter to the Romans to spell out their doctrine of salvation and guide a person into become Christian.  But it does this while skipping over large swaths of perfectly good Scripture.

Today I wanted to offer a Catholic take on “The Romans Road”.  One which I believe reflects more accurately the intention of Paul’s letter.

My Bible Quick-Index

Have you ever walked into a exam thinking you were well-prepared... only to quickly realize you weren't ready at all?  That's how one of my high-schoolers felt when she recently went to a non-Catholic Bible Study.

They were challenging some of her on various topics using Bible citations they'd committed to memory.  She found herself only able to give the classic Catholic quotation:

 "But doesn't it say somewhere..."

So today I wanted to share my own crib sheet.  It covers essentially every topic I've ever written about.  The passages which feature an (*) before them denote those which are used against Catholic positions.

Enjoy.

Spreadsheet Form

Printable PDF

Why I Don't Say, "Protestant Reformation"

A while ago I did a post called "Why I Don't Say Non-Denominational".  Well, today I want to continue with that theme and also tie it into the 500th anniversary of the "Protestant Reformation."

I want to discuss three reasons why I - as a Catholic and a person who cares about accuracy - don't say the term "Protestant Reformation".