New Evangelists Monthly #60 December 2017
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December 2017 New Evangelists Monthly - December 2017 New Evangelists Monthly - December 2017 Forward ...about this eBook Is Jesus God? Catholicism and Adventism by Stephen Korsman "Progressive" Catholics Are Heterodox Catholics BIG C CATHOLICS by Matthew Coffin Psalm 67 ~ God's All-Inclusive Embrace Pauca Verba by Fr. Stephen Morris Talking to God A Spiritual Journey by David Wong Had I Really Forgiven the Bullies? Or Did I Have More Work to Do? by Virginia Lieto Introduction to Spiritual Starvation The Mission of Saint Thorlak Rosary for the Purification of the Church The Shield of Faith by Frank Rega Soup With Us Still by John Schroeder Digging Deeper, Growing in Virtue Through Fiction Carolyn Astfalk, Author by Carolyn Astfalk Dumping the Junk: A Lesson From Fitness to Faith Martin Family Moments by Colleen Martin Standing Firm in the Face of Suffering Creo en Dios! by Susan Stabile Brokenness and the Power of an Embrace The Frank Friar by Fr. Nicholas Blackwell Finding a New Beautiful in Postpartum Under Thy Roof by Kirby Hoberg St. Philip's: The Gift of Conversion JOY Alive in our hearts by Nancy Ward Defending Catholicism: Confession by Scott Smith Of Casablanca, Cinema, and Coming of Age Clinging to Onions Twelve Tips for a Holier Advent Season Jean M. Heimann by Jean Heimann 10 Ways to Prepare During Advent Lord, Make Me a Saint by Jamie Jo The Power To Heal Shifting My Perspective by Claire McGarry America, One Last Chance, Revisited Renew The Church! by Thomas and Deborah Richard Living in a Connected World by Tony Agnesi God Willing Sunflower Sojourn by Lianna Mueller Good and Faithful Servant Theologyisaverb by Elizabeth Reardon On Being Conformed into Christ's Image Bartimaeus' Quiet Place by Bartimaeus Timeo Unfolding John 1:1-5 (Origin Stories) Third Place Project by Mike Landry Is Private Property an Evil? Practical Distributism by David Cooney Is Private Property an Evil? Practical Distributism by David Cooney We've Forgotten How Great It Is To Be a Catholic Woman joy of nine9 by Melanie Jean Juneau Risk-Takers versus Care-Takers: The Parable of the Talents Christ's Faithful Witness by Lawrence and Susan Fox Advent Grace to Paint by Sister Maresa Lilley Mystery of the Magi: The Quest to Identify the Three Wise Men Plot Line and Sinker (Ellen Gable, Author) by Ellen Gable Hrkach No Wives Allowed On the Road to Damascus by Robert Collins Understanding and discernment as well as LOVE versus LAW In the Breaking of the Bread by Fr. Gilles Surprenant Disorders, Decisions A Catholic Citizen in America by Brian Gill Going Back on my Promise / An Answer Quiet Consecration by Leslie Klinger The Problems of Misinterpretation If I Might Interject Will I in imitation of Francis Xavier keep on keeping on or will I give in and give up at the slightest sign of trouble? A JESUIT'S BLOG by Fr. Errol Fernandes Persevere The Contemplative Catholic Convert by Rich Maffeo From Toy Town With Love by David Torkington Crosses or Toothpicks Harvesting The Fruits of Contemplation by Michael Seagriff Entirely Catholic Walking the Path by Christian Miraglia Christ the King and Sins of Omission Real Life Rosary by Jim Hahn OPINION: The Pope and His Audiences on the Mass Re: Pictures At Mass Servimus unum Deum by Julian Barkin St. Teresa of Calcutta and The Miraculous Medal by Tom Perna by Tom Perna That's Not How It Works casual theology by Tom Ponchak What's Deepest in Us: Three for All Souls Day Mere Observations by Jeff Walker When A Jigsaw Puzzle Teaches Much about Life A Moment From De Sales by Fr. Richard DeLillio Always Thankful by Kim Padan Prayer Matters: Praying for the Dead From the Pulpit of my Life by Ruth Ann Pilney I watched in awe as the priest stepped into the sandals of Christ. It Makes Sense to Me by Larry Peterson Advent -- a Time of Sacrifice and Fasting? Catholic Conundrum by Christina Nagy | Next | Contents | Forward New Evangelists Monthly is an informal, dynamic, crowd-sourced “meta- magazine” showcasing the best posts faithful Catholic bloggers publish each month. Here you will find many different, but faithfully Catholic viewpoints, insights and perspectives. Contributing authors submit their very best piece from the prior month between subsequent first and second Saturdays. Readers are welcome to visit anytime, even while contributions are still being accepted for a new issue. Back issues are available in the archive. eBook editions such as this are available within a few days following submission deadlines (the second Saturday of each month). eBook formats include .mobi for Kindle users, .epub for most other eBook readers and .pdf for everyone else. For the latest edition of New Evangelists Monthly, or for more information about this New Evangelization initiative, visit us at: NewEvangelists.org COPYRIGHT NOTICE: Regardless of where you enjoy New Evangelists Monthly, either online or in this format, note that copyright is exclusively retained by the respective contributing authors. If you wish to use or redistribute any of their content, please contact them directly for licensing information. | Contents | | Next | Contents | Previous | Is Jesus God? [at Catholicism and Adventism] Russian Jewelled Icon of Christ Pantocrator Adventists believe some strange things. Some Adventists believe even stranger things. There’s a small but vocal group within Adventism that denies the divinity of Jesus Christ, a core teaching of biblical Christianity. Some other groups like the Jehovah’s Witnesses and Christadelphians teach this too. Some of the early Adventists were Trinitarians, while others were Arians. Ellen White was in the former camp, but she made a few strange statements: “The man Christ Jesus was not the Lord God Almighty, yet Christ and the Father are one.” – Lift Him Up, p. 235.3 – SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 5, p. 1129.7 – Ms 140, 1903 (September 27, 1903) par. 28 A few sentences before, context indicates that this is a mistake on Ellen’s part: “Equal with the Father, honored and adored by the angels, in our behalf Christ humbled Himself …” – ibid She clearly fell in the Trinitarian camp: “Sin could be resisted and overcome only through the mighty agency of the Third Person of the Godhead” – The Desire of Ages, p. 671.2 “This Saviour was the brightness of His Father’s glory and the express image of His person. He possessed divine majesty, perfection, and excellence. He was equal with God.” – Testimonies for the Church, vol. 2, p. 200.1 “Another dangerous error, is the doctrine that denies the divinity of Christ …” – The Great Controversy 1888, p. 524.2 Some Adventists, such as Ellen White and Doug Batchelor, even think that the Trinity could have been destroyed if Jesus had sinned. See the Armchair Theologian for more on that. But some Adventists think otherwise, and ignore some of her “inspired” teachings. So, in this post series, we’re going to look at the biblical evidence that Jesus Christ is indeed fully God, just as God the Father is God. The evidence falls into three main categories: 1. That Jesus is God 2. That Jesus is the God of the Old Testament 3. That Jesus can be prayed to and worshipped as God Category 1 will be discussed in this post, category 2 in the second post, and category 3 in the last post. Before we begin, I should point out that in many places, the Bible appears to speak of Jesus as subordinate to the Father. Those who try to deny Jesus’ divinity use these passages to prove that he cannot be equal to the Father. Don’t confuse verses that address Jesus as a human with those that address his divinity, and pit them against each other. I am not going to try to show that Jesus was human – that he was is obvious. Through this and the subsequent post, I will human – that he was is obvious. Through this and the subsequent post, I will show that Jesus is God. The only way to make sense of both is to fully accept both Jesus’ humanity and his divinity, and interpret the apparently conflicting passages in this context, in the context of the Incarnation, in the context of what must by necessity happen if an infinite God takes on a limited human form. All passages from the Bible are quoted from the King James Version, unless otherwise stated. My Lord and my God John 20:28 is one of the clearest and most undeniable verses calling Jesus God. John 20:27-28 – Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God. Thomas called Jesus “My Lord and my God“. One of the best arguments against this being a proof of Jesus’ divinity is the claim that Thomas wasn’t addressing Jesus with these words, but was rather just exclaiming something like “Oh my God!” as if to say in amazement, “Wow” or “Holy cow!” or “Well tickle me pink!” This, however, falls apart when one looks at the precise grammar and wording used, which actually provides a double emphasis on the fact that Thomas was saying this to Jesus, and that he was addressing Jesus with these words. Look closely at this screen capture from BibleHub.com: Two things tell us that Thomas was calling Jesus his Lord and God. First, Thomas replies TO HIM. Thomas is addressing Jesus. He’s not just saying something out loud – he’s talking TO Jesus.