Day of Disclosure - What does the Catholic Church Say about UFO's

"Before  Christ's second coming the Church must pass through a final trial," (CCC 675) What will that trial be?  Only God knows.  But soon the US government will be releasing information on UFO's etc.  There will also be a new movie by Steven Spielberg called Disclosure Day regarding this subject.  Will this be part of the trial, the test God has in store for Christians?  It is important that Catholic's and all Christians be informed about what these "UFO's" might be.  This blog will be a collection of videos and articles regarding this subject.  As always, pray and do your own research.  This is for informational purposes only.  Blessings and peace, Lynn  

+++

CCC 675 The Church's ultimate trial - Before Christ's second coming the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers.(Luke 18:8, Matthew 24:12) The persecution that accompanies her pilgrimage on earth (Luke 21:12,  John 15:19-20) will unveil the "mystery of iniquity" in the form of a religious deception offering men an apparent solution to their problems at the price of apostasy from the truth.  The supreme religious deception is that of the Antichrist, a pseudo-messianism by which man glorifies himself in place of God and of his Messiah come in the flesh." (2 Thess 2:4-12; 1 Thess 5:2-3, 2 John 7; 1 John 2:18, 22) 

1 Timothy 4:3-4 "As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine, nor to occupy themselves with myths and endless genealogies which promote speculations rather than the divine training that is in faith." 

2 Corin 11:3 "But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ." 

Galatians 1:8 "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we preached to you, let him be accursed."  

                           Disclosure Now: What Catholics MUST Know

A few scripture passages and paragraphs from the Catechism that are helpful when decerning this issue.

Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." 

CCC 326 "The Scriptural expression "heaven and earth" means all that exists, creation in its entirety. It also indicates the bond, deep within creation, that both unites heaven and earth and distinguishes the one from the other:  "the earth" is the world of men, while "heaven" or "the heavens" can designate both the firmament and God's own "place", "our Father in heaven" and consequently the "heaven" too which is eschatological glory. Finally, "heaven" refers to the saints and the "place" of the spiritual creatures, the angels, who surround God" 

Genesis 1:27 "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." 

CCC 355 "God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him, male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:27) Man occupies a unique place in creation:  (1) he is "in the image of God"; (2) in his own nature he unites the spiritual and material worlds; (3) he is created "male and female"; (4) God established him in his friendship." 

Romans 5:12 "Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned." 

1 Corn 15:22 "For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. " 

Tobit 8:6 "You made Adam and gave him Eve his wife as a helper and support.  From them the race of mankind has sprung." 

CCC 36 "Our holy mother, the Church, holds and teaches that God, the first principle and last end of all things, can be known with certainty from the created world by the natural light of human reason.  Without this capacity, man would not be ale to welcome God's revelation. Man has this capacity because he is created "in the image of God." (Genesis 1:27)

John 15:15 "No longer do I call you servants for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends for all that I have heard from the Father I have made known to you."  

CCC 65 "In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son."  (Heb 1:1-2) Christ, the Son of God made man, is the Father's one, perfect, and unsurpassable Word.  In him he has said everything; there will be no other word than this one." 

Psalm 115:16 "The heavens are the LORD's heavens, but the earth he has given to the sons of men." 

Sirach 49:16 "Shem and Seth were honored among men, and Adam above every living being in the creation." 

CCC 358 "God created everything for man, but man in turn was created to serve and love God and to offer all creation back to him." 

CCC 293 "Scripture and Tradition never cease to teach and celebrate this fundamental truth:  "The world was made for the glory of God."  St. Bonaventure explains that God created all things "not to increase his glory, but to show it forth and to communicate it," for God has no other reason for creating then his love and goodness:  "Creatures came into existence when the key of love opened his hand." 

CCC 294 "The glory of God consists in the realization of this manifestation and communication of his goodness, for which the world was created.  God made us "to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace,"(Eph 1: 5-6) for "the glory of God is man fully alive; moreover man's life is the vision of God:  if God's revelation through creation has already obtained life for all the beings that dwell on earth, how much more will the Word's manifestation of the Father obtain life for those who see God." The ultimate purpose of creation is that God "who is the creator of all things may at last become 'all in all,' thus simultaneously assuring his own glory and our beatitude." (1 Cor 15:28)

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." 

CCC 2566 "Man is in search of God.  In the act of creation, God calls every being from nothingness into existence.  "Crowned with glory and honor," man is, after the angels, capable of acknowledging "how majestic is the name of the Lord in all the earth." (Psalm 8:1, 5) Even after losing through his sin his likeness to God, man remains an image of his Creator, and retains the desire for the one who calls him into existence.  All religions bear witness to men's essential search for God. (Acts 17:27)

CCC 2567 "God calls man first.  Man may forget his Creator or hide far from his face; he may run after idols or accuse the deity of having abandoned him; yet the living and true God tirelessly calls each person to that mysterious encounter known as prayer.  In prayer, the faithful God's initiative of love always comes first; our own first step is always a response.  As God gradually reveals himself and reveals man to himself, prayer appears as a reciprocal call, a covenant drama.  Through words and actions, this drama engages the heart  It unfolds throughout the whole history of salvation." 

Colossians 1:18 "He is the head of the body, the Church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent."

Ephesians 4: 11 -16 "And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; so that we may no longer be children, tossed back and forth  and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the cunning of men, by their craftiness in deceitful wiles. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by every joint with which it is supplied, when each part is working property, makes bodily growth and upbuilds itself in love." 

CCC 792 "Christ "is the head of the body, the Church." (Col 1:18) He is the principle of creation and redemption.  Raised to the Father's glory, "in everything he is preeminent," (Col 1:18) especially in the Church, through whom he extends his reign over all things." 

CCC 795 "Christ and his Church thus together make up the "whole Christ" (Christus Totus).  The Church is one with Christ.  The saints are acutely aware of this unity:  Let us rejoice then and give thanks that we have become not only Christians, but Christ himself.  Do you understand and grasp, brethren, God's grace toward us?  Marvel and rejoice: we have become Christ.  For if he is the head, we are the members; he and we together are the whole man...The fullness of Christ then is the head and the members.  But what does "head and members" mean? Christ and the Church." (St. Augustine) Our redeemer has shown himself to be one person with the holy Church whom he has taken to himself." (Pope St. Gregory the Great) Head and members from as it were one ad the same mystical person. (St. Thomas Aquinas)"

John 3:29 "He who has the bride is the bridegroom; the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice; therefore this joy of mine is now full."

Mark 2:19 "And Jesus said to them "Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them?  As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast."  

Ephesians 4:4-6 "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope that belongs to your call, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all, who is above all and through all and in all."

CCC 796 The Church is the Bride of Christ - The unity of Christ and the Church, head and members of one Body, also implies the distinction of the two within a personal relationship. This aspect is often expressed by the image of bridegroom and bride.  The theme of Christ as Bridegroom of the Church was prepared for by the prophets and announced by John the Baptists. (John 3:29)  The Lord referred to himself as the "bridegroom." (Mark 2:19) The Apostle speaks of the whole Church and of each of the faithful, members of his Body, as a bride "betrothed" to Christ the Lord so as to become but one spirit with him. (Matt 22:1-14, 25:1-13, 1 Cor 6:15-17, 2 Cor 11:2) The Church is the spotless bride of the Spotless Lamb. (Rev 22.17, Eph 1:4, 5:27) "Christ loved the Church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her." (Eph 5:25-26)  He has joined her with himself in an everlasting covenant and never stops caring or her as for his own body (Eps 5:29)." 

Is the Catholic Church Bible Based?

 

What Happens At A Catholic Mass - The Mass Explained

 

The Catholic Mass Explained 

What is the Church

 

On the Journey Episode 128
What is the Church Part 1

On the Journey Episode 129
 What is the Church Part 2

On the Journey Episode 130
 What is the Church Part 3

On the Journey Episode 131
 What is the Church Part 4

On the Journey Episode 132
What is the Church Part 5

Catholicism and Dispensationalism

This is a multiple part series of videos from On the Journey with Matt, Ken and Kenny which explain Dispensationalism and the Catholic view on this subject.  As always this is a place to start when coming to an understanding of Dispensationalism. I bid you God's truth, and His peace on your journey. 

Catholicism and Dispensationalism, Part I:
 On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Episode 188

From The Late Great Planet Earth to Left Behind and beyond, millions of Christians have subscribed, knowingly or unknowingly, to the conclusions of a theological system known as Dispensationalism, which makes claims not only about the end of the world and the return of Jesus, but also about the nature of covenants in Scripture. Ken Hensley, a former Baptist pastor who came to faith in the 1970's through the witness of Christian friends who were dispensationalists, shares a window into how that shaped his approach to Scripture, and how his perspective on the Bible has developed since those early days. This is the first in an extended series of episodes on Dispensationalism from a Catholic perspective.

NOTES from Part I: 

A general definition of dispensationalism from Ken Hensley - "It is the recognition that salvation history is divided into periods of time called "dispensations" in which God exercises his government over his people and works out his plan of redemption."  In a general sense if this is all that was meant by dispensationalism then all Christians would be dispensationalists as we believe that God deals (governs) his people differently in different periods of time.  For example, God governed his people differently under the Mosaic Covenant and the Abrahamic Covenant.  There were more laws added during the Mosaic time.  Life during the New Covenant is different than the Mosaic Covenant. But this isn't all there is to dispensationalism."   

Ken Hensley breaks down the complex beliefs of dispensationalism into 7 steps. 

Step 1: A person who reads the OT prophets - (especially specific prophecies of Isaiah 2:1-4 and Ezekiel chapters 36 - 40, 37:19 - 22) - that describe a glorious future kingdom that will come after judgment and exile.  After exile a day will come when God will gather his people and bring them back into the land.  He will make a new covenant with them, forgive their sins, raise up David whom will destroy Israel's enemies and take his seat upon the throne in Jerusalem (Ezekiel 37:24-28).  The Temple will be rebuilt (Ezekiel chapters 40 to 48) and the Levitical priesthood reestablished (Ezekiel 44:10-31).  Sacrifices will be offered and the Gentile nations will stream into Jerusalem.

Step 2: When Jesus came the things described by the OT prophets did not happen.  Jesus did not destroy the Romans, he did not take a seat upon the throne in Jerusalem, the Temple described in Ezekiel chapters 40 to 48 did not come into existence.  In fact 40 years after Jesus was crucified (70 AD) the Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple. Instead of the prophecies being fulfilled in Jesus' time, Jesus is rejected, and crucified.  He raised from the dead, ascended into Heaven and on the day of Pentecost the entity called the Church came into existence.   

Step 3: Since the Church, which is the Bride of Christ with no distinction between Jew or Gentile, is not the glorious Jewish kingdom prophesied in the OT it has been concluded by dispensationalists that God postponed the fulfillment of the OT prophecies and instituted something new. God must have two plans, one for Israel and one for the Church.  This would make the Church a kind of "parenthesis" in the time period. This terminology is used frequently by dispensationalists and refers to the Church Age which is the period between Pentecost and the Rapture. It is viewed as an unforeseen "pause" in God's main plan for the nation of Israel. 

Step 4: If the Church Age represents a "parenthesis" for Israel before the prophetic time clock can restart, the Church Age has to come to an end.  This will happen when God Raptures away every believer on earth who are members of the Church.  

Step 5: According to the dispensationalists, once the Church is raptured away, the prophetic time clock for Israel which was paused will start up again and the prophecies from the OT prophets will be fulfilled.  There will be a time of tribulation.  Jesus will destroy Israel's enemy, he will take his seat literally on the throne in Jerusalem, and Gentiles will flock to Jerusalem. 

Step 6:  Dispensationalists believe that the founding of the State of Israel in 1948, nearly 2000 years after the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70 AD, is viewed as a sign that the fulfillment of OT prophecy will shortly come to pass.  We should therefore be prepared for the Rapture at any time.  

When did the idea of Dispensationalism first begin and how did it become a popular thought? Ken Hensley breaks this down as:  The first appearance of dispensationalism, a pre-tribulation rapture theology, was popularized in the 1830's with John Nelson Darby (1800 -1882) and the Plymouth Brethren.  Dwight L. Moody (1837-1899) was instrumental in continuing the popularity of dispensationalism.  The Niagara Bible Conference Movement which began in 1875 was critical in spreading the idea of dispensational premillennialism.  It emphasized the literal interpretation of prophecy and a distinction between Israel and the Church.  In 1909 Cyrus Scofield (1843 - 1921) published his Scofield Reference Study Bible. This bible, with Scofield's own theology promoting dispensationalism, was widely used by Evangelical and Pentecostal churches. In 1924 the Evangelical Theological College was founded.  Today this is known as the Dallas Theological Seminary which continues to train pastors and promote the idea of dispensationalism.  Hal Lindsey's The Late Great Planet Earth published in 1970 brought the idea of dispensationalism to the mainstream American culture.  30 million copies of this book were sold.  Lindsey wrote that the 1947 founding of Israel was the beginning of the fulfillment of the prophecy for Israel becoming a great kingdom with Jesus on the throne in Jerusalem.  The second coming would happen with in a decade (it didn't). The Moral Majority founded in 1979 by Baptist minister Jerry Falwell Sr., continued to push for the support of the State of Israel based on their dispensational understanding of the State of Israel in Biblical prophecy. Between 1995 - 2007 the Left Behind series of 16 books hit Christian books stores. Written by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins these bestselling novels expounded on LaHaye's dispensationalist interpretation of the Bible. 

Keith Mathison's (a prominent American Reformed theologian) Key Tenants of the Dispensation: 

1) God has two distinct programs in history, one for Israel and one for the Church. 
2) The Church doesn't fulfill any of Israel's promises from the OT.
3) The Church Age is a "mystery" and thus no OT prophecies foresaw it.  
4) The present Church Age is a "parenthesis" during which God has temporarily suspended his primary purpose for Israel.
5) The Church Age began at Pentecost and will end in the pre-tribulation Rapture of the Church before God's second coming. 
6) The Church or Bride of Christ consists of those believers saved between the Pentecost and the Rapture. 
7) The Church as the Body of Christ therefore doesn't include OT believers.

Catholicism and Dispensationalism, Part II:
On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Episode 189

In this episode, Ken discusses some of the specific passages of Scripture that were leading him to believe that the central claims of Dispensationalism couldn't hold up to Biblical scrutiny.

NOTES from Part II

Ken Hensley reviews his definition of dispensationalism as being rooted in the literal fulfillment of the OT prophecies regarding the glorious kingdom of Israel.  When Jesus came at his incarnation, the things that the prophets described in the OT did not happen.  At least they didn't happen literally.  

Kenny Burchard former Pentecostal preacher interjects that the Dispensationalists, at least in some ways, retain many of the Messianic expectations of the group of Jews who rejected Jesus as the Messiah, because Jesus didn't do the things that they expected him to do.  - Kenny asked a Rabbi why he didn't accept Jesus as the Messiah and he said, "because he [Jesus] didn't kick the Romans out of Palestine." 

"Dispensationalists insist upon a rigid application of an exact literal interpretation, particularly as it has to do with Israel and the Church. They insist on an unconditional literal fulfillment of all prophetic promises. This leads to an exact futuristic fulfillment of every detail of early prophetic statements.  The covenant with Abraham must be fulfilled in every detail to satisfy this principle of interpretation."  Background to Dispensationalism by Clarence Bass 

Ken Hensley explains the options for understanding the prophecies of the OT? 

(1) If one insists that they are literal, then Jesus must not have been the Messiah. The things that God promised would happen when the Messiah came, didn't happen.  This is the position that most Jews at the time took. This is the position that Orthodox Jews have now.  

(2) If one insists on the literal fulfillment of these prophecies and they believe that Jesus is the Messiah, it must be that while Jesus offered the kingdom, it was rejected by the Jews and so God has postponed the fulfillment and it is going to happen later.  In the meantime, there is the dispensationalist system which believes that the Church, which came into existence instead of the promised kingdom, must be some kind of parenthetical (subordinate, incidental) thing in the prophetic timeline. It must be that God has two plans for two people. He has a plan for his earthly people Israel and a plan for his heavenly people the Church.  Two people, two plans, totally distinct. And when God has finished his plan for the Church (this parenthetical entity) then God will remove this Church so that the prophetic timeclock can start again and he can fulfill the promises to Israel.  Removing the Church is what is called the Rapture. This is the position that dispensationalism takes. 

(3) A third option was held historically by Christians and most of the original Reformers, and is currently held by Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, and some Protestant denominations.  Jesus was the Messiah contrary to Judaism, and Jesus did bring the kingdom contrary to dispensationalism.  The OT prophecies did begin to be fulfilled, but in a way unexpected.  They were fulfilled, and they are being fulfilled to this day in Christ and the Church which is his Body. 

Ken Hensley's Story (timestamp 17:29) - Ken was brought up in a dispensationalist church.  This is his story on how his understanding of dispensationalism began to break down. There were two main issues which follow: 

(1) Issue number 1 occurred as Ken was trying to understand all the OT prophecies literally.  In doing so he began to come to some strange conclusions. 

    (A) Example one dealt with what prophets describe as the day God will gather Israel and Judah and bring them back into the land. (Ezekiel 36:24; 34:11-13) There is nothing wrong with this promise but Ezekiel goes on to say who will be king.  This posses a problem - " And I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd.  And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I the Lord, have spoken." (Ezekiel 34:23-24) 

        (i) Ken began to wonder, if dispensationalism takes everything literally, is God going to resurrect David from the dead to literally fulfill this prophecy? But dispensationalists don't believe this part of the prophecy liberally.  They don't believe that David will be resurrected and become king again, they believe that Jesus will take that role.  So in this point dispensationalists are allowing for a less than literal fulfillment. This became the first sticking point for Ken.

    (B) Another example comes from Ezekiel chapters 40 to 48.  This describes the future temple in grand detail. Dispensationalist's believe that this temple will be the temple that will exist during the millennial reign of Christ.  In Ezekiel 43:1-5 we read of the glory of God coming to fill the temple.  Then Ezekiel goes on in chapters 43 to 46 to describe the altar in the temple, the Levitical priests, the worship that will take place in this future temple and the laws that will apply.  In Ezekiel 43:18-22 we read "These are the ordinances for the altar:  On the day when it is erected for offering burnt offerings to it and for throwing blood against it, you shall give to the Levitical priests of the family of Zadok who draw near to me to minister to me...a bull for a sin offering..." and Ezekiel 44:9 - saying that no one who is uncircumcised in the flesh will be allowed into the temple.  These prophecies are to take place after Jesus, and after St. Paul has taught in the NT that the wall has been broken down there is no longer Jew or Gentile. Being circumcised or uncircumcised means nothing to God. And how can there be animal sacrifices to make atonement after Christ? Dispensationalists say that there will be animal sacrifices but they will be in remembrance of Christ.  But the problem with that is that Ezekiel says that these sacrifices will be for atonement (Ezekiel 43:20; 45:15).  Is this really to be fulfilled literally after Jesus has come and died on the cross as the true Lamb of God. Jesus is king, God, and sacrifice. "Christ our Paschal Lamb, has been sacrificed." (1 Corin 5:7) For Ken, this put another chink in the dispensationalist argument. 

Kenny Burchard interjects how at Pentecost Jews from all over the Diaspora were brought back together (Acts 2:5-6).  It literally happened. They received and accepted the Gospel, believed and were baptized (Acts 2: 37-47). In a sense this fulfills the prophecy of  Ezekiel 34:13 there it says that God "will bring them out from the peoples, and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land." Jesus literally relocated the temple in his resurrected and ascended body. (John 2:19-21)

(2) Issue number 2 occurred when Ken read the New Testament and found that the prophecies made about Israel in the Old Testament appeared to be fulfilled in Christ and in his Church which is his Body. These questions came to him while he was attending Bible College. Here are four examples:   

    (A)  This first example deals with the New Covenant. OT prophecy states that one day God is going to gather his people back into the land and he is going to make a new covenant with them (Jeremiah 31:31-34).  The new covenant is a covenant that God will make with the Jewish people, the house of Israel and the house of Judah. It is true that when Jesus instituted the new covenant at the Last Supper, he did it with his 12 Apostles, 12 Jews.  And it is true that when Peter preached the gospel at Pentecost, 3000 Jews were converted.  But very soon thereafter in the book of Acts it becomes clear that this community is now spread to the Gentiles.  What is being formed here is the Church.  In 2 Corin 3:6 Paul refers to himself as a minister to the new covenant.  Clearly Paul has the same new covenant in mind that Jeremiah had in mind from chapter 31:33 ["written on human hearts"] when he says "who has qualified us to be ministers of a new covenant, not in a written code but in the Spirit; for the written code kills, but the Spirit gives life." Yet  according to dispensationalism Israel and the Church are two completely separate people for which God has two completely separate plans.  Ken began to wrestle with this question: While the new covenant was promised to the house of Israel and the house of Judah, how is it that the community that is formed by this new covenant (instituted by Christ at the Last Supper), the community we see growing in the book of Acts, how is it that this community (made up of Gentiles as well) turns out to be the Church? Instead of being two separate people, the Church, instituted by Jesus, is a blending of both Jew and Gentile. 

(B) The second example regards the king on his throne.  The prophets describe that David (or a descendant of David, the Messiah) will sit on a throne and reign over them. This didn't happen. According to dispensationalists, Jesus did offer this kingdom to the Jews in the first Advent, but it was rejected by the Jews.  Instead of being hailed as king, Jesus was mocked as king at the crucifixion. Because of this, according to dispensationalists, the kingdom will come, and Jesus will reign, but it is at some point in the future. Ken is suddenly convicted while reading Acts chapter 2 and the sermon of Peter that, Peter sees Jesus as having taken his seat on his throne in his kingdom at the resurrection and the ascension to the right hand of God (Acts 2:30-36; Psalm 110:1). The promise of Psalm 110:1 is fulfilled at the resurrection of Christ as well as after the ascension with Jesus being seated at the right hand of the Father. Peter says in Acts that the promise was fulfilled but in a manner different than what was expected by the Jews [and dispensationalists who believe it won't be fulfilled until Jesus returns and he will take his literal throne]. Jesus isn't going to return to be this king, he is the King. 

(C) (time stamp 45 minute) Matt Swaim interjects the third example, that of the sacrifice being reinstated.  This is another concept dispensationalists take literally from Ezekiel 43:18 - 46:24. Dispensationalists believe that this sacrifice for atonement will take place in the future (Ezekiel 43:20; 45:15). According the the Catholic Church Jesus fulfilled this one sacrifice once and for all.  It is referenced in prophecy in Malachi 1:11 "For from the rising of the sun to its setting my name is great among the nations, and in every place incense is offered to my name, and a pure offering, for my name is great among the nations, says the Lord of hosts." This is also refenced in the Didache chapter 14 [the earliest Christian document outside the New Testament]

14:1 But on the Lord's day, after that ye have assembled together, break bread and give thanks, having in addition confessed your sins, that your sacrifice may be pure. 14:2 But let not any one who hath a quarrel with his companion join with you, until they be reconciled, that your sacrifice may not be polluted, 14:3 for it is that which is spoken of by the Lord. In every place and time offer unto me a pure sacrifice, for I am a great King, saith the Lord, and my name is wonderful among the Gentiles. (Didache chapter 14)

Matt reminds us that the consensuses of every Church Father was that the sacrifice has been fulfilled (in Jesus). No more sacrifices are needed.  Here the Didache is describing an early Mass (break bread). The sacrifice from east to west that makes God's name great among the nations is the Mass. Most specifically the Eucharist which is the Body Blood Soul and Divinity of the Lord sacrificed for us at Calvary outside of time at every Mass.  See Revelation 5:6 where Jesus resides by the throne as the Lamb standing as though slain.  Jesus resides outside of time forever as our one pure sacrifice.

(D) The last example is the kingdom of God.  In Matthew 11:3 where John the Baptist asks Jesus "Are you he who is to come, or shall we  look for another?" Jesus answers in Matthew 11: 4-5 (also see Luke 7:18-23) "Go and tell John what you hear and see: the blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them." In Jesus' answer he is almost quoting  Isaiah 35:3-7 which is a prophecy of the future kingdom. One chapter later in Matthew 12:28 Jesus replies to the Pharisees, "But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you." Dispensationalists say that the kingdom is a literal kingdom but it was postponed because it was rejected by the Jewish people, it will come later after the second coming of Christ.  But Jesus says no, the kingdom is here, it is among you, it has just come in a way you didn't expect. 

Conclusion by Kenny Burchard: No one in the New Testament is acting like a dispensationalist.  They are acting like Jesus has fulfilled all the messianic prophecies of the OT.  

Conclusion by Ken Hensley: Dispensationalists tend to give a literal reading to the OT prophecy primacy over what the NT actually tells us about the fulfillment of those prophecies.  It seemed to Ken that the NT should be given the primacy over the OT.  Dispensationalists give primacy to OT prophesy giving authority over anything that the NT says about it. Dispensationalists allow their understanding of the OT to control their understanding of the NT. Ken began to think that the teaching of Jesus should have taken authority over the prophets.  

Catholicism and Dispensationalism, Part III:
On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Episode 190

In this episode, they look at the covenants God has made with His people through the centuries leading up to Jesus, and how it is Jesus Himself who is the most perfect fulfillment of the prophecies and promises made to Israel.

"The new testament in is in the old concealed and the old testament is in the new revealed." - St. Augustine 

Notes on Part III 

Ken Hensley's premise for this part is that the New Testament authors do not see the Old Testament prophecies of a future glorious kingdom of the Jewish people as being fulfilled literally at some point in the future as dispensationalists hold. Rather the NT authors see these prophecies as being fulfilled in Christ and Christ's Body the Church. In this part a detailed case will be presented for a non-dispensational reading of Scripture. Rather than insisting up front that the OT prophecies must be fulfilled literally what this video will to is allow the NT to tell us how they have been fulfilled.  In this video we are going to let the NT be our guide in how we understand the OT. 

Who is Israel? To the dispensationalist Israel is either the ancient nation we read about in the OT or the modern state of Israel or a reference to Jew in general. There is truth in this but there is more. 

Romans 9:6-7 "...For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel and not all are children of Abraham because they are his descendants; but "Through Isaac shall you descendants be named." This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are reckoned as descendants."

In Genesis 3:15 when Adam and Eve are still in the garden and sin has entered the world we have the protoevangelium(the first Gospel).  The promise of the seed, the seed of the woman who will one day crush the head of the serpent and it is implied deliver the human race, meaning reverse the work of the devil. But it is in Genesis 12:1-3 in the call of God to Abraham that we learn that this blessing is going to come through the Hebrew people.  It begins with Abraham but it becomes clear that the blessing will come through Abraham's son Isaac (Genesis 26:4).  Soon we learn that this blessing will come through the Isaac's son Jacob whose name God changed to Israel.  A little later we learn that this blessing will come through the line of Judah one of Israel's sons.  And much later through the line of David. In summary it is through the people of Israel that the seed will come who will crush the head of the serpent and bring blessing to all the families of the earth (Genesis 22:18).  While God's covenant with Abraham was unconditional in the sense that God will make this happen.  One way or the other God will bless all the nations of the earth through the seed of Abraham. Whether or not any descendant of Abraham or any generation of Abraham would benefit from this blessing, this was always conditioned on obedience of faith.  There was no promise that all the descendants of Abraham, or that any Israelite in particular would be blessed.  We hear about this when God enters into covenant with Moses such as in Exodus 19: 5-6 - "Now therefore, if you will obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my own possession among all people; for all the earth is mine, and you shall be me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation." But what if God's people do not obey what then? This is spelled out in Deut 30:15-19 "See, I have set before you this day life and good, death and evil.  If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God, which I command you this day, by loving the Lord your God by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statues and his ordinances then you shall live and multiply and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you are entering to take possession of it.  But if your heart turns away and you will not hear but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you this day, that you shall perish, you shall not live long in the land which you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess. I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day that I have set before you life and death blessing and curse; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live."  (left off 11:22) 

Catholicism and Dispensationalism, Part IV:
On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Ep. 191

In this episode, they look at the prophecies throughout salvation history related to how God was gathering together a people, and how the words and actions of Jesus in founding His Church fulfill the promises God made to bless all nations through His people Israel.

Catholicism and Dispensationalism, Part V:
On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Ep. 192

In this episode, they look at the prophecies about God's coming Kingdom throughout salvation history, and compare that with the way Jesus preached the Kingdom during his earthly ministry. They also look at examples in the writings and preaching of Peter and Paul to unpack how they and the other apostles understood the kind of Kingdom that Jesus had come to establish.

Deconstructing Dispensationalism, Part VI: On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Ep. 193

Deconstructing Dispensationalism, Part VII:
On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Ep. 194

Deconstructing Dispensationalism, Part VIII:
On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Ep. 195

Deconstructing Dispensationalism, Part IX: On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Ep. 196

Deconstructing Dispensationalism
Part X: On the Journey with Matt, Ken, and Kenny, Ep. 197

 

NOTES 

The following notes are taken from Catholic Magazine articles "Left Behind" "Israel and the Church" and "Waiting to be Raptured."   

Dispensationalism has its roots in the teaching of John Nelson Darby (1800 - 1882), an English Plymouth Brethren preacher. The concept was made famous by an  American preacher C. I. Scofield (1843-1921) who incorporated the system into his Scofield Reference Bible which was first published in 1909. 

Darby created a timeline that divided history into “dispensations,” either six or seven in number. These indicated various ages in which God dealt with humans in distinct ways. Dispensations were “administrations” through which God tested humans and proved their utter sinfulness before him. According to Darby we live in the dispensation of the Church, which began during the ministry of Paul. For Darby the Church forms a “parenthesis” between the dispensation of the Law (from Moses to Christ) and the coming dispensation of the Kingdom. It is an era of grace in which the rejected Messiah is building up his heavenly people, the Christians. Meanwhile, God’s real issue in human history is with his earthly people, the Israelites. The Rapture will be the necessary removal of the heavenly people from the world so that God’s work with the earthly people might be finished.

Dispensationalists see Revelation as a blueprint of future events, chiefly concerning the Jewish people, leading up to a future, earthly reign of Christ known as the Millennium. During the Millennium, they believe, Israel will be restored as a nation, will return to offering animal sacrifices (in commemoration of Christ’s death on the cross), and will be the most favored nation on earth, with Jesus physically ruling in its capitol. In dispensational thought, the Jews may also have a special status in the eternal order that follows the Millennium.

Along with the dispensationalists the Catholic Church acknowledges that God does still have plans for the Jews as a unique people (Catechism of the Catholic Church 674). Paul clearly indicates this in his writings, especially in Romans 9–11, where he indicates God continues to fulfill his promises about the Jewish people by preserving a remnant of Jewish believers in Christ (Romans 11:1–11). This indicates a special place for Israel, for no other people has a promise that there will always be a believing remnant. God also has future plans for the Jewish people: One day the Jewish people as a nation will return to Christ, and this will be one of the signs of the Second Coming and the resurrection of the dead (Romans 11:12, 15).

But here is where Catholics differ from dispensationalists, Catholics believe that the Church is spiritual Israel or, in Catholic parlance, the “new Israel” (cf. CCC 877). This too is indicated in Paul’s writings: In Romans 9:6 he says that “not all who are of Israel are Israel.” This indicates the existence of two Israel's. One—”all who are of Israel”—indicates the ethnic people, not all of whom believe in Jesus. The other Israel, the context reveals, does not include those who have rejected the Messiah. This new Israel, founded by Messiah, exists in spiritual continuity with the Old Testament saints and so counts as a “spiritual Israel.” It includes Gentiles who believe in the Messiah and so through baptism are spiritually circumcised (Col. 2:11–12) and are reckoned as spiritual Jews (Rom. 2:26–29).

In his letter to the Ephesians Paul is even more explicit about the Gentiles’ spiritual inclusion when he states that “you Gentiles in the flesh . . . were [once] separated from Christ, alienated from the commonwealth of Israel . . . But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near . . . So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints” (Ephesians 2:11–13, 19).

The Catholic Church does not endorse or use the Scofield Reference Bible because its foundational theology, dispensationalism, is contrary to Catholic doctrine. But for reference here are 

Selected Notes from the Scofield Bible 

Is Praying for the Dead Biblical?

Scripture covered in this YouTube video

1 Cor 15:29-34 "Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead?  If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf?  Why am I in peril every hour?  I protest, brethren, by my pride in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die every day! What do I gain if, humanly speaking, I fought with beasts at Ephesus?  If the dead are not raised, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die."  Do not be deceived: "Bad company ruins good morals." Come to your right mind, and sin no more.  For some have no knowledge of God.  I say this to your shame."

Commentary: This passage continues to baffle interpreters, since neither the form nor the meaning of this practice is familiar to us today.  Perhaps living believers were receiving baptism for the sake of deceased persons, hoping its benefits would accrue to them in the afterlife (2 Macc 12:39-45).  Another possibility, suggested by the verses 1 Cor 15:30-34, is that Paul is talking about people who endure a baptism of suffering for the sake of others who are physically or spiritually dead (Mark 10:38, Luke 12:50).  Either way, Paul reasons that such baptisms are pointless apart from the belief in a future resurrection."  

Mark 10:38 "But Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking.  Are you able to drink the chalice that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism which which I am baptized?" 

Commentary: Drinking the chalice is a reference to Jesus' forthcoming suffering.  The term "with the baptism" is symbolic for immersion in trial and suffering.  James and John will share in Jesus' cup and baptism as they encounter persecution in the early Church.  The NT recalls the martyrdom of James in Acts 12:2 a he exile of John in Rev 1:9.  

Luke 12:50 "I (Jesus) have a baptism to be baptized with; and how I am constrained until it is accomplished!" 

Commentary: A figure of Jesus' Passion, his baptism is when he will be immersed in suffering and death and will raise again to a new life.  

2 Macc 12:39 - 45 "On the next day, as by the time it had become necessary, Judas and his men went to take up the bodies of the fallen and to bring them back to lie with their kinsmen in the sepulchers of their fathers.  Then under the tunic of every one of the dead they found sacred tokens of the idols of Jamnia, which the law forbids the Jews to wear.  And it became clear to all that this was why these men had fallen.  So they all blessed the ways of the Lord, the righteous Judge, who reveals the things that are hidden; and they turned to prayer, begging that the sin which had been committed might be wholly blotted out.  And the noble Judas exhorted the people to keep themselves free from sin, for they had seen with their own eyes what had happened because of the sin of those who had fallen.  He also took up a collection, man by man, to the amount of two thousand drachmas of silver, and sent it to Jerusalem to provide for a sin offering.  In doing this he acted very well and honorably, taking account of the resurrection. But if he was looking to the splendid reward that is laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought.  Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin."  

Commentary: Praying for the dead, a practice here attested by Jews over a century before Christ, became common in early Christianity as well.  St. Augustine's treatise On the Care of the Dead begins by citing the Maccabees' intercessions for the dead in this passage, which he sees as corresponding with the Church's universal practice of the priest praying for the dead at the altar. 

John 11:39-44 "Jesus said, "Take away the stone."  Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, "Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days."  Jesus said to her, "Did I not tell you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?"  So they took aways the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me.  I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this on account of the people standing by, that they may believe that you sent me." When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice. "Lazarus, come out."  The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with bandages, and his face wrapped with a cloth."  

Commentary:  Jesus prays for the dead man Lazarus and he lives. 

Mark 5:39-42 "And when he had entered, he (Jesus) said to them, "Why do you make a tumult and weep?  The child is not dead but sleeping."  Ad they laughed at him.  But he put the all outside, and took the child's father and mother and those who were with him and went in where the child was.  Taking her by the hand he said to her, "Talitha cumi which means, "Little girl, I say to you, arise."  And immediately the girl got up and walked; for she was twelve years old.  And immediately they were overcome with amazement." 

Commentary:  Biblical writers often speak of "sleep" as a euphemism for biological death.  Jesus prays for the dead girl that she might live. 

Luke 7:12-15 "As he (Jesus) drew near to the gate of the city, behold, a a who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow; and a large crowd from the city was with her.  And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep"  And he came and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, "Young man, I say to you, arise."  Ad the dead man sat up, and began to speak.  And he gave him to this mother." 

1 Kings 17:17-23 "After this the son of the woman, the mistress of the house, became ill; and his illness was so severe that there was no breath left in him. And she said to Elijah, "What have you against me, O man of God?  You have come to me to bring my sin to remembrance, and to cause the death of my son!"  And he said to her, "Give me your son." And he took him from her bosom, and carried him up into the upper chamber, where he lodged, and laid him on his own bed.  And he cried to the Lord, "O Lord my God have you brought calamity even upon the widow with whom I sojourn, by slaying her son?  Then he stretched himself upon the child three times, and cried to the Lord, "O Lord my God, let this child's soul come into him again"  And the Lord listened to the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came into him again, and he revived.  And Elijah took the child, and brought him down from the upper chamber into the house  and delivered him to his mother, and Elijah said, "See, your son lives."  

Commentary:  Elijah prays intensely for the dead man and the Lord hears him.  

2 Tim 1:16-18 "May the Lord grant mercy to the household of Onesiphorus, for he often refreshed me; he was not ashamed of my chains,  but when he arrived in Rome he searched for me eagerly and found me.  May the Lord grant him to find mercy from the Lord on that Day, and you well know all the service he rendered at Ephesus." 

Commentary:  Onesiphorus and his family may have lived in Ephesus (1:18).  His diligent search for the imprisoned Paul was an expression of loyalty and courage, especially since Christians in Rome were at this time targets of fierce persecution (1:17).  Some commentators infer that Onesiphorus died before 2 Timothy was written, since (1) Paul does not indicate that Onesiphorus is with him any longer; (2) he prays that the Lord will grant him mercy at the final Judgment (1:18); and (3) he asks Timothy to greet the household of Onesiphorus, but not Onesiphorus himself (2 Tim 4:19).  If, in fact, Onesiphorus had died before Paul wrote this letter, then the apostle's prayer in 1:18 would be an early example of the Christian practice of praying for the dead.  

Acts 9:39 - 41 "So Peter rose and went with them. And when he and come, they took him to the upper room.  All the widows stood beside him weeping, and showing coats and garments which Dorcus made while she was with them.  But Peter put them all outside and knelt down and prayed; then turning to the body he said, "Tabitha, rise."  And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. And he gave her his hand and lifted her up.  Then calling the saints and widows he presented her alive. " 

Commentary:  Peter prays for the dead Dorcus and she rises from the dead.  

Matt 10:8 "Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse lepers, cast out demon." 

Matt 11:5 "The blind receive their sight and the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, and the dead are raised up, and the poor have good news preached to them." 

 

Luke 7:22 "And he (Jesus) answered them, "Go and tell John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them." 

Protestant Ordination vs Catholic Ordination (Man-made vs God-made)

The question of how a Protestant becomes a pastor never actually crossed my mind. But when Kenny Burchard of Catholic Bible Highlights made a podcast on the subject I knew the subject was of great importance.

As a Catholic I understand that our Bishops and Priests are in direct line of the apostles of Christ.  It is what we call apostolic succession.  An unbroken line for over 2000 years.  Protestant pastors can not claim to be a part of this line as they broke off from the Church in the 1500's during the Protestant Reformation.  

In this podcast, Kenny lays out the story of how Protestant pastors are ordained and how this differs from how Catholic priests are ordained. One is of man and one is of God.  He starts his video with this question:  Do you know how your Protestant pastor was ordained?  

He gives 7 options for these man made ordinations:  1. They were self-ordained.  They decided to start a church, ordained themselves, and hung up their shingle.  2. Congregational ordination. This is where a pastor will be voted in by committee.   3. Presbyterian ordination is when the elders of the church vote in a new pastor. 4. Seminary ordination.  Pastors who attend a specific seminary may receive an ordination at the end of their education.  Some congregations source their pastors from a specific seminary.  5. 3rd Party Credential Program. 6. Online ordination.  Here a person pays a fee and receives a certificate of ordination.  7. Episcopal ordination.  Here a Bishop within a specific denomination will appoint a pastor.   

In the Catholic Church ordination is handed down through Jesus.  Jesus designed ordination when he commissions the 12 apostles in Matthew 28: 18-21.

"And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the close of the age."    

Also see John 20:21. 

"Jesus said to them again,  "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even to I send you." 

The 12 are sent out into the world where they have the authority, through Jesus, to lay hands on their delegates.  Such as when Judas commits suicide and a new apostle was selected in Acts 1:15 - 26 

"And they put forward two Joseph called Barsabbas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.  And they prayed and said, "Lord, you know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside, to go to his own place.  And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was enrolled with the eleven apostles." (Acts 1: 23 - 26)

They give their delegates the authority to lay hands on others. 

"For this reason I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands." (2 Tim 1:6) 

"Therefore, brethren, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this duty.  But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word."  And what they said pleased the whole multitude, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolus,  proselyte of Antioch These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands upon them." (Acts 6:3-6)

This happens throughout the ages in perpetuity down to the present day through the laying on of hands by the Bishops to the Priests. In the following passages we see three generations of succession: Timothy, his successor, and their successor. 

"You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus, and what you have heard from me before many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." (2 Tim 2:2) 

Our Catholic Priests are in apostolic succession to the apostles who were given authority from Jesus.  

Other important scripture for this lesson are: 

Titus 1:5 "This is why I left you in Crete, that you might amend what was defective, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you." 

1 Tim 5:22  "Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor participate in another man's sins."  

1 Tim 1:3 "As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine." 

Alright take out your bible and follow along with Kenny as he discusses how Protestant pastors are ordained, if it is a biblical ordination, and how Catholic priesthood differs from Protestant ordination.