You briefly mentioned concerns you have with the cause of Mary as Co-Redemptrix or Mediatrix. Would love to hear more about them if you are so inclined, perhaps even going into some depth if that works for you.
I recently read the June 20, 1866 Holy Office’s Instruction Number 1293, which reads, in part:
“Etsi Romani Pontifices nihil intentatum re liquerint quo servitutem ubique gentium abolerent, iisdemque praecipue acceptum referri debeat quod iam a pluribus saeculis nulli apud plurimas christianorum gentes servi habeantur; tamen servitus ipsa per se et absolute considerata iuri naturali et divino minime repugnat, pluresque adesse possunt iusti servitutis tituli quos videre est apud probatos theologos sacrorumque canonum interpretes.”
I am wondering how this can be reconciled with the later teaching of the magisterium that slavery is inherently evil.
The quotes says: “Although the Roman Pontiffs did not leave any intention in the matter of abolishing slavery everywhere among the nations, and it should be particularly reported to them that they have accepted that for several centuries no one has had slaves among the majority of Christian nations; nevertheless, servitude itself in itself and considered absolute is in no way inconsistent with natural and divine right, and there may be many titles of just servitude which are to be seen among the approved theologians and interpreters of the sacred canons.”
This text distinguishes between slavery and other types of servitude, such as a paid servant of a household. See Avery Dulles’ article on slavery and intrinsic evil in First Things.
Pope Leo XIII: “This zeal of the Church for liberating the slaves has not languished with the passage of time; on the contrary, the more it bore fruit, the more eagerly it glowed. There are incontestable historical documents which attest to that fact, documents which commended to posterity the names of many of Our predecessors. Among them Saint Gregory the Great, Hadrian I, Alexander III, Innocent III, Gregory IX, Pius II, Leo X, Paul III, Urban VIII, Benedict XIV, Pius VII, and Gregory XVI stand out. They applied every effort to eliminate the institution of slavery wherever it existed. They also took care lest the seeds of slavery return to those places from which this evil institution had been cut away.”
In Jeremiah chap. 34, God punishes Jerusalem for making slaves out of their indentured servants:
{34:15} And today you converted, and you did what is right in my eyes, so that you proclaimed liberty, each one to his friend. And you entered into a pact in my sight, in the house in which and over which my name is invoked.
{34:16} But now you have turned back, and you have stained my name. For you have led back again, each one his man servant, and each one his woman servant, whom you had released so that they would be free and under their own authority. And you have subjugated them, so that they would be your servants and handmaids.”
{34:17} Because of this, thus says the Lord: “You have not heeded me, though you proclaimed liberty, each one to his brother and each one to his friend. Behold, I am proclaiming a liberty for you, says the Lord, to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine. And I will cause you to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth.
In a short clip on “The Chosen” that I have come across on Youtube Shorts, Jesus says to the Pharisee, “I am the Law of Moses”. This is a common trend when scrolling through the short videos that Youtube puts out. Is this a true statement about Jesus in what he says in Catholicism? Thank you and God Bless.
Jesus never says “I am the law of Moses” in the Bible. And it is not a theologically correct statement. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Jesus is the Son of God. Portraying Jesus as saying that He is the law of Moses would seem to reduce Jesus to something Moses introduced and had some authority over as a type of judge. Jesus is the Word of God, but in a much greater sense than the portion of Scripture called the law of Moses.
Thank you for the clarity, Ron. I greatly appreciate your help in solving this puzzling phrase that is not found in any of the Catholic websites nor any sites that commented on “The Chosen”.
I almost forgot, I had not seen “The Chosen” before and I keep hearing this around Catholic circles that they saw it and that other prominent Catholics saw the series as well. Is this an okay series/film to view or to be avoided? I know now after you have answered from my first question I feel that there might be other errors and confusions throughout the series. They say that it has 4 seasons. Thank you again. God Bless.
I have not seen it. It is probably OK as long as you realize that they have taken some liberties with the material, so it can be viewed as inspirational, but not doctrinal.
How much worse do things have to get in the World for God to intervene? Another Good Friday, another year. I especially grieve for the youth in the World with their addictions to social media on their smart phones. The corruption of the youth on easy access to adult content on smart phones is unprecedented. Congress is barely starting to address it.
I tried commenting once but I’m not sure it went through, so I’m asking again just in case.
Is it accurate to refer to non-Catholics, including non-Christians and atheists, who are saved by baptism of desire or blood as Catholics? Are only Catholics, implicit and explicit Catholics, saved?
One more question: what is the relationship between individual salvation and the corporate salvation of the Church as the spotless bride of Christ?
Is it accurate to refer to non-Catholics, including non-Christians and atheists, who are saved by baptism of desire or blood as Catholics?
* No. Those persons are formally Catholics who are explicit members of the Catholic Church. Those incorporated into the Church by the non-formal baptisms of desire or blood are not Catholic or Christian. Protestants and Orthodox, are formally Christians, but not Catholics; they are our separated brethren.
Are only Catholics, implicit and explicit Catholics, saved?
* See above. An implicit member of the Church is not Catholic or Christian, although catechumenates, who already believe in Christ and His Church may be considered Christians or Catholic Christians, due to explicit desire and participation in formal preparations to be baptized with water.
* Only those persons are saved who are implicit or explicit members of the Church AND who die in a state of grace. Implicit members may certainly include various kinds of non-Christians.
One more question: what is the relationship between individual salvation and the corporate salvation of the Church as the spotless bride of Christ?
* The Church is indefectible, and so it cannot be the case that the Church fails to be saved. Already, the Church Triumphant is in Heaven, and the Church Penitent is in Purgatory (and all who go to Purgatory necessarily will go to Heaven). Individual salvation is not certain, but the salvation of the Church as the body of Christ is certain.
* However, being a member of the Christian Church formally, does not guarantee salvation, as some formal members fall out of the state of grace by actual mortal sin; they must repent and return to the state of grace to be saved.
The CPDV — my conservative Catholic translation of the Bible, from the Latin Vulgate into English, is available at Amazon.com in Kindle format and online here.
You briefly mentioned concerns you have with the cause of Mary as Co-Redemptrix or Mediatrix. Would love to hear more about them if you are so inclined, perhaps even going into some depth if that works for you.
Here are some articles I wrote many years ago:
https://catholicplanet.com/CMA/index.htm
Thank you for answering my previous question.
I recently read the June 20, 1866 Holy Office’s Instruction Number 1293, which reads, in part:
“Etsi Romani Pontifices nihil intentatum re liquerint quo servitutem ubique gentium abolerent, iisdemque praecipue acceptum referri debeat quod iam a pluribus saeculis nulli apud plurimas christianorum gentes servi habeantur; tamen servitus ipsa per se et absolute considerata iuri naturali et divino minime repugnat, pluresque adesse possunt iusti servitutis tituli quos videre est apud probatos theologos sacrorumque canonum interpretes.”
I am wondering how this can be reconciled with the later teaching of the magisterium that slavery is inherently evil.
Thank you.
The quotes says: “Although the Roman Pontiffs did not leave any intention in the matter of abolishing slavery everywhere among the nations, and it should be particularly reported to them that they have accepted that for several centuries no one has had slaves among the majority of Christian nations; nevertheless, servitude itself in itself and considered absolute is in no way inconsistent with natural and divine right, and there may be many titles of just servitude which are to be seen among the approved theologians and interpreters of the sacred canons.”
This text distinguishes between slavery and other types of servitude, such as a paid servant of a household. See Avery Dulles’ article on slavery and intrinsic evil in First Things.
Pope Leo XIII: “This zeal of the Church for liberating the slaves has not languished with the passage of time; on the contrary, the more it bore fruit, the more eagerly it glowed. There are incontestable historical documents which attest to that fact, documents which commended to posterity the names of many of Our predecessors. Among them Saint Gregory the Great, Hadrian I, Alexander III, Innocent III, Gregory IX, Pius II, Leo X, Paul III, Urban VIII, Benedict XIV, Pius VII, and Gregory XVI stand out. They applied every effort to eliminate the institution of slavery wherever it existed. They also took care lest the seeds of slavery return to those places from which this evil institution had been cut away.”
In Jeremiah chap. 34, God punishes Jerusalem for making slaves out of their indentured servants:
{34:15} And today you converted, and you did what is right in my eyes, so that you proclaimed liberty, each one to his friend. And you entered into a pact in my sight, in the house in which and over which my name is invoked.
{34:16} But now you have turned back, and you have stained my name. For you have led back again, each one his man servant, and each one his woman servant, whom you had released so that they would be free and under their own authority. And you have subjugated them, so that they would be your servants and handmaids.”
{34:17} Because of this, thus says the Lord: “You have not heeded me, though you proclaimed liberty, each one to his brother and each one to his friend. Behold, I am proclaiming a liberty for you, says the Lord, to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine. And I will cause you to be removed to all the kingdoms of the earth.
In a short clip on “The Chosen” that I have come across on Youtube Shorts, Jesus says to the Pharisee, “I am the Law of Moses”. This is a common trend when scrolling through the short videos that Youtube puts out. Is this a true statement about Jesus in what he says in Catholicism? Thank you and God Bless.
Jesus never says “I am the law of Moses” in the Bible. And it is not a theologically correct statement. Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Jesus is the Son of God. Portraying Jesus as saying that He is the law of Moses would seem to reduce Jesus to something Moses introduced and had some authority over as a type of judge. Jesus is the Word of God, but in a much greater sense than the portion of Scripture called the law of Moses.
Thank you for the clarity, Ron. I greatly appreciate your help in solving this puzzling phrase that is not found in any of the Catholic websites nor any sites that commented on “The Chosen”.
I almost forgot, I had not seen “The Chosen” before and I keep hearing this around Catholic circles that they saw it and that other prominent Catholics saw the series as well. Is this an okay series/film to view or to be avoided? I know now after you have answered from my first question I feel that there might be other errors and confusions throughout the series. They say that it has 4 seasons. Thank you again. God Bless.
I have not seen it. It is probably OK as long as you realize that they have taken some liberties with the material, so it can be viewed as inspirational, but not doctrinal.
Sounds great. Thank you very much, Ron. Have a Blessed Holy Saturday and a Blessed Easter. God Bless!
How much worse do things have to get in the World for God to intervene? Another Good Friday, another year. I especially grieve for the youth in the World with their addictions to social media on their smart phones. The corruption of the youth on easy access to adult content on smart phones is unprecedented. Congress is barely starting to address it.
I just don’t know. Maybe the tribulation begins, and the Warning and Miracle occur some years in.
I tried commenting once but I’m not sure it went through, so I’m asking again just in case.
Is it accurate to refer to non-Catholics, including non-Christians and atheists, who are saved by baptism of desire or blood as Catholics? Are only Catholics, implicit and explicit Catholics, saved?
One more question: what is the relationship between individual salvation and the corporate salvation of the Church as the spotless bride of Christ?
Thank you.
Is it accurate to refer to non-Catholics, including non-Christians and atheists, who are saved by baptism of desire or blood as Catholics?
* No. Those persons are formally Catholics who are explicit members of the Catholic Church. Those incorporated into the Church by the non-formal baptisms of desire or blood are not Catholic or Christian. Protestants and Orthodox, are formally Christians, but not Catholics; they are our separated brethren.
Are only Catholics, implicit and explicit Catholics, saved?
* See above. An implicit member of the Church is not Catholic or Christian, although catechumenates, who already believe in Christ and His Church may be considered Christians or Catholic Christians, due to explicit desire and participation in formal preparations to be baptized with water.
* Only those persons are saved who are implicit or explicit members of the Church AND who die in a state of grace. Implicit members may certainly include various kinds of non-Christians.
One more question: what is the relationship between individual salvation and the corporate salvation of the Church as the spotless bride of Christ?
* The Church is indefectible, and so it cannot be the case that the Church fails to be saved. Already, the Church Triumphant is in Heaven, and the Church Penitent is in Purgatory (and all who go to Purgatory necessarily will go to Heaven). Individual salvation is not certain, but the salvation of the Church as the body of Christ is certain.
* However, being a member of the Christian Church formally, does not guarantee salvation, as some formal members fall out of the state of grace by actual mortal sin; they must repent and return to the state of grace to be saved.