Where Does The Bible Say We Can Find Truth?

I will reference 3 verses to this question.

1) Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth.   John 17:17 

Just the fact that we are using the scriptures to tell us where we can find truth is an affirmation of this reference, Your word is truth.

2) Jesus said to him, ” I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.   John 14:6 

Jesus is the Son of God, the second Person of the Holy Trinity. Sent by the Father for the redemption of mankind. He is 100% God and 100% man. Well wait a minute, Jesus being 100% God and 100% man is not in the Bible (we’ll get to this in a minute). We are told in scripture that Jesus was born of a virgin, her name was Mary and she was engaged to a man named Joseph. She was told by the angel,“The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”  Luke 1:35

So scripture states that God’s word is truth. Jesus is God’s Son and He is truth. This leads us to our third reference.

3) But if I should be delayed, you should know how to behave in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of truth.  1 Tim. 3:15  

The church is “the pillar and foundation of truth.” I had never read that verse before! I can’t tell you how many times I had read 1 Timothy and had never seen that verse! What could this mean? Well we need to step back, turn to Matthew.

And I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church, and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom. Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.”  Matt. 16:18-19  

The church has been given authority by Jesus Christ, the Son of God Himself, the Truth Himself.

Here are a few examples of the Church’s authority:

A.D. 49-50: The Jerusalem Council (Acts 15) combated the heresy that Gentile converts had to observe the Mosaic Law completely.

A.D. 196: The Easter controversy, which day to celebrate the Resurrection, Sunday ,or linking it with the Jewish Passover regardless of the day of the week.

A.D. 325: Council of Nicaea; responds to numerous heresies, condemned Arianism which claimed Jesus Christ was a created being and not God by nature. Developed the Nicene Creed- a clear definition of the Trinity.

A.D. 367+: The Canon of the New Testament slowly collected and confirmed. Books recognized as authoritative by the Council of Carthage.

A.D. 381: Council of Constantinople 1 finalizes the Nicene Creed and condemns heresies concerning the Holy Spirit.

A.D. 431: Council of Ephesus condemns Nestorianism which taught that there were two distinct Persons in Jesus Christ and Mary was the mother of the human part only, therefore, some of Jesus’  actions were human and some divine. (Remember reference #2). Condemned Pelagianism which claimed man could attain salvation by works. The Council defines Mary, Jesus’ mother, as Theotokos,“bearer of God” to show that Jesus has one nature that is fully human and fully divine.

So Jesus, through God the Father and the Power of the Holy Spirit, guides the Church in teaching and authority. The Church was led by the Holy Spirit in the development of the dogma (doctrine) of the Incarnation, of the Holy Trinity and, the Holy Spirit even led the Church, in gathering the collection of letters and gospels that make up the New Testament.

Let us ponder one last thought: If Jesus is the fullness of Deity (Col.1:19), why would the Church He founded, be devoid of the  fullness of truth?

Amen.

Jesus Hears His Mother

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and His disciples were also invited to the wedding. When the wine ran short, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” And Jesus said to her, “Woman, how does your concern affect Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servers, “Do whatever He tells you.”   John 2:1-5  

In this final installment of Mary as our Mother, I wanted to look at her interaction with her Son, Jesus.

First we notice, Mary is told of, or at least sees a need. She takes that need to Jesus, and He meets that need. This is the prime example that we, as Catholics, use to teach Mary’s intersession for us. Of course there is the Old testament example as well.

Without getting “to” historical, here’s  a brief history of what is known as “the Queen Mother”.

In the ancient near East, most nations were monarchies ruled by a king; most of these cultures practiced polygamy, so a king may have had several wives. Problems arose from this like, who should be honored as queen, and whose son should recieve the right succession to the throne? So in most of these cultures, these two birds were killed by one stone. The woman ordinarily honored as queen was not the kings wife, but the kings mother!

Israel begged Samuel to give them a king “that we may be like all the nations” (I Sam. 8:19-20). God grants their request, making Israel’s monarchy a foreshadowing of the Kingdom of God.

We see the Queen Mother from David’s first successor Solomon, and his mother Bathsheba through the fall of Jerusalem to the Babyloian empire with King Jehoiachin and his mother Nehushta (2 Kings 24:8-15, Jer.13:18).

Read the story in I Kings 2:12-22, of Solomon and Bathsheba. This example is how we understand the mystery of the miracle at Cana. Mary approaches Jesus her son to intercede for the people-like Bathsheba intercedes for Adonijah to Solomon-Mary brings Jesus the need and tells the servers,”Do whatever He tells you.” She looks for obedience to Him, not herself. Jesus speaks to His mother as her superior, yet deferring to her request.

I hope this has helped in your understanding of Mary’s role in salvation history. If I’ve missed anything, let me know and I’ll do my best to find it! It’s very helpful to know that we are not alone in this world. It is also very helpful to know that on the other side, in heaven, there is a “cloud of witnesses” praying for us and cheering us on to victory, to finish the race. Our spiritual Queen Mother Mary, our brothers and sisters in Christ, and Christ Jesus Himself. Waiting to say to us, “Well done, My good and faithful servant.”

The Magnificat: Mary Praises God

And Mary said: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord; my spirit rejoices in God my savior. For He has look upon His handmaids lowliness; behold, from now on will all generations call me blessed. The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is His name. His mercy is from age to age to those who fear Him. He has shown might with His arm, dispersed the arrogant of mind and heart. He has thrown down the rulers from their thrones but lifted up the lowly. The hungry He has filled with good things; the rich He has sent away empty. He has helped Israel His servant, remembering His mercy, according to His promise to our fathers, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.” Mary remained with her [Elizabeth] about three months and then returned to her home.   Luke 1:46-56 

I include Mary’s song here for a simple reason. For us to see her humility. She knew exactly who she was before God. She magnifies (proclaims) the Lord’s greatness, rejoicing in God as her Savior. How He’s done great things for her. His mercy, His might, dispersing the arrogant. Throwing down rulers, lifting up the lowly, filling the hungry and sending the rich away empty. And lastly; remembering His promises.

She does say something interesting toward the beginning though; behold, from now on will all generations call me blessed.

When and why did we stop honoring this part of scripture? Isn’t this the infallible, inerrant Word of God? Yet we treat (at least I used to) this part, like it doesn’t exist.

The Jews referred to Abraham as their father and Jesus didn’t say, “You can’t say that, you can’t honor Abraham in that way, that’s idolatry!” What He actually said was, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works of Abraham.” (John 8:39)

If we are God’s children, shouldn’t we be doing God’s work? Doing the work of Jesus? How many times have I copped out on that by saying, “Well, I ain’t Jesus.” Because we know that even though Jesus was man, He was God,too. But Mary, she was all human, and submitted perfectly to the will of God, from the beginning.

Go to Jesus in prayer and ask Him yourself how to honor His mother, our mother. That’s what I did.

Jesus Indwells His Mother

And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the child leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting touched my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”   Luke 1:41-45    

Along with drawing on the tradition of 2 Samuel, Luke also draws on the tradition of Chronicles. He now introduces us to a highly significant expression once connected with the Ark. This expression is found in verse 42, when Elizabeth “exclaimed” at Mary’s arrival. The expression seems ordinary enough, but it is rarely used in the Bible. Actually, this is the only place it’s found in the New Testament. In the Greek Old Testament, it only appears 5 times. You might think, “So! What’s the big deal about that?” Well, every-time that expression is used in the Greek O.T., it forms part of the stories surrounding the Ark of the Covenant. In particular, it refers to the chanting, singing and music made by the Levitical singers and musicians when they glorified the Lord in song, as David carried it in procession to Jerusalem (I Chron. 15:28, 16:4-5). It is also used as Solomon transferred the Ark to it’s final resting place in the Temple.

Now, let’s look at what Elizabeth actually said.

Blessed are you recalls words spoken long ago to Jael and Judith in the O.T. (Judg. 5:24-27, Jud. 13:18) they were blessed for their heroic faith and courage in warding off enemy armies hostile to Israel. Both these ladies assured Israel’s victory by assassinating the opposing military commander with mortal blows to the head. Mary follows in their footsteps. In her case though, the victory won and the enemy destroyed are much greater! She will bear the Savior who crushes the head of the serpent, sin and death underfoot!  (Gen. 3:15, I John 3:8)

Now,  the mother of my Lord title reveals the twin mysteries of Jesus’ divinity and Mary’s divine maternity (CCC 449, 495). Note that all occurrences of the word “Lord” in this context, as well as in the surrounding context, refer to God (v. 28, 32, 38, 46, 58, 68). Mary’s divine motherhood was the first Marian doctrine set forth at the Council of Ephesus. She was given the title,Theotokos- bearer of God, to show that Jesus had one nature that was fully human and fully divine! This is where the phrase, “Mother of God” comes from, right here in sacred scripture. Jesus being fully God and fully man is born of a woman (Gal. 4:4) who gives birth to the Divine Son.

As stated last time, these definitions of Mary do not imply that she is divine, only that her Son is. And as God found her worthy to be the mother of His only begotten Son, may we find in our hearts a place for honoring her too.

Next: The Magnificat.

Jesus Leads His Mother

In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a city of Judah, and she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the child leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? For behold, when the voice of your greeting touched my ears, the child in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfilment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.”……….And Mary remained with her about three months and returned to her home.     Luke 1:39-45, 56  

Compare St. Luke’s telling of the “Visitation” and David’s efforts to bring the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem found in 2 Samuel 6. St. Luke tells of Mary as she “arose and went” into the hill country to a city in Judah, reminding us of how David “arose and went” into the same region centuries earlier to retrieve the Ark (2 Sam. 6:2). Elizabeth, at the arrival of Mary, is struck by the same sense of awe and unworthiness before her that David felt standing before the Ark of the Covenant (2 Sam. 6:9). St. Luke goes on to show the joy Mary’s greeting caused in the infant John as he leapt with excitement, much as David’s excitement caused him to leap and dance before the Ark of the Lord (2 Sam. 6:16). As the Visitation draws to a close, St. Luke adds that Mary stayed in the “house of Zechariah” for “three months”, recalling how the Ark had remained in the “house of Obed-edom” for a period of “three months”(2 Sam. 6:11).

As we see St. Luke drawing on the tradition of 2 Samuel, he’s revealing to us Mary’s role in salvation history. Like that holy gold and wooden chest of long ago, Mary is a sacred vessel where the Lord’s presence dwells intimately with His people.

I am convinced that this is more than coincidence. I’ve been led by the Holy Spirit and the scriptures, and the teachings of the early Church Fathers that indeed the Old Testament is revealed in the New Testament and the New is concealed in the Old. They’ve been taught that way since the beginning.

You will find as you study these things objectively, that these teachings are less about who Mary is, and more about who Jesus is.

We will go a little more in-depth in this aspect as this study continues.

Jesus Chooses His Mother: Part II

“He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of His kingdom therewill be no end.” And Mary said to the angel, “How can this be, since I have no husband?” And the angel said to her,”The Holy Spirit will come upon you and the power of the most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God. And behold your kinswoman Elizabeth in her old age has also concieved a son; and this is the sixth month with her who was called barren. For with God, nothing will be impossible.” And Mary said,” Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her.   Luke 1:32-38   

Mary asked, “How can this be…?” She isn’t questioning God’s ability to give her a son, but inquiring as to how. “Since I have no husband,” in the Greek reads “I do not know man” referring to her virginal status. Her concern is not that she is unmarried but that she is a virgin and intending to remain one. She wonders aloud to the angel, how God will bless her with a son and at the same time preserve her virginal purity. Nothing in Gabriel’s announcement should have puzzled her, she was already engaged to Joseph, unless she intended to abstain from ordinary sexual relations even as a married woman. Early Church Fathers like St. Gregory of Nyssa and St. Augustine teach, Mary had previously taken a vow of lifelong virginity.

The expression used by the Angel Gabriel “overshadow you” is the same expression used in the Greek version of Exodus 40:35; it describes how the Lord God “overshadowed” the Tabernacle, making it His dwelling place in Israel (episkiasei – to cast a shade upon, envelop in a haze of brilliancy, to invest with preternatural influence, overshadow). This is why many Church Fathers compare her or, type her as the “Ark of the New Covenant.” Within the Ark of the Old Covenant was manna, the rod of Aaron and the tablets of the Law, written by the finger of God. Within Mary was contained, “The Bread from Heaven”, The Great High Priest, and the Word of God made flesh.

Marys response to all this was, “I am the handmaid (servant) of the Lord. Let it be to me according to your word.” Mary knew who she was in God’s sight and freely chose to submit to His plan. She is the first great example of faith in Christ in the New Testament. An example we would all do well to follow.

“…let it be to me according to Your word.”

Jesus Chooses His Mother: Part I

In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town of Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David, and the virgin’s name was Mary. And coming to her he said, “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be. And the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And behold you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus.”  Luke 1:26-31

  Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with you!” But she was greatly troubled at the saying and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be.  

The greeting of the angel Gabriel to Mary is of great importance to understand in the context of salvation history. Let’s look at this section of sacred scripture to see how.

 

First the  “Hail” or, as it is also translated “Rejoice” would’ve for Mary, and should for us, call to mind the Old Testament passages that refer to “Daughter Zion” and her “faithful children” rejoicing in the coming Messianic age. For God has chosen to dwell in their midst (Joel 2:23-24; Zeph. 3:14-17; Zech. 9:9).

 

 Chosen to be the virgin mother of the Messiah, Mary is greeted with this word, for she would indeed become the “daughter” who would bring God’s Messiah to the faithful “children”.

  

Next, the word “full of grace” happens to be one word in the Greek text (kecharitomene) which has a very different expression of the same words Luke uses of Stephen in Acts 6:8 (pleres charitos). Kecharitomene indicates that God has already graced Mary previous to this point, making her a vessel who, has been and is now, filled with the Divine Life.

 

Different translations such as, “favored one” or “highly favored” are possible but unsatisfactory, because of the special and unique role that Mary accepts at this hinge-point of salvation history. Since God endowed Mary with an abundance of grace, preparing her for this call to divine motherhood, the best translation should be the more exalted one.

 

This better explains the reaction of Mary after the greeting. But she was greatly troubled at the saying and considered in her mind what sort of greeting this might be.

I mean, look at the text, Gabriel had not mentioned anything to her at this point, of God’s plan for her. So why would she become greatly troubled by the saying and the greeting? It only makes sense in this context.

 

Again, this is no call to “worship” Mary. Mary calls us to worship her Son, Jesus.

Jesus Gives Us His Mother: Part I

When Jesus saw His mother and the disciple there whom He loved, He said to His mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then He said to the disciple, “Behold your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.   John 19: 26-27

  It is said that we as Christians have become the family of God (Eph. 3:15). We’ve been adopted as sons (Gal.4: 5). Now I am aware that we live in the days of dysfunction, but I can confidently declare:

GOD IS NOT DYSFUNCTIONAL!!!

What kind of family would God be adopting us into, if He brought us into one that had no mother? Do we render Jesus’ promise null and void,  “I will not leave you as orphans;”  (John 14:8, from the Greek word, orphanos – without parents-plural)? We also know that God is not a God of disorder (I Cor. 14:33) and that He created the family (Gen. 1:27-28, 2:24).

So, what is not to understand? God is our Father. Jesus, His Son, is our brother. The Virgin Mary, Jesus’ mother, is our mother.

This doesn’t make her divine. This doesn’t make her the fourth member of the Trinity. It simply means she is our Mother, The Mother of all the faithful.

Before we can continue with this train of thought, we must clarify some early Christian teaching brought to us through Judaism.

                  

               The Communion of the Saints 

 

In the Apostles Creed, there is a line that states; “[I believe in] the communion of Saints.” This phrase refers to the bond of unity among all those, living and dead, who are or who have been committed followers of Christ. This should lead us to understand the Ephesians 3:14-15 passage a little better, “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named,” along with others of Paul’s writings of being one Body (Rom. 12:5, I Cor. 12:26).

Then may come the argument of, “Well, Paul is talking about (and writing to) those who are living, not dead.” To which I would respond, “He was speaking of both.”  For two major reasons:

First, as a Pharisee, and a devout Jew, Paul (and even the other apostles) was more than aware of the Jewish practice of praying for the dead and even for the intercession of the saints in heaven (2 Maccabees 12: 39-46, 15: 11-16, normally I wouldn’t make reference to a deuterocanonical book but, since I’m speaking of earlier Jewish religious practices I will. The Maccabean revolt and their defense of the Temple, is where the celebration of the Feast of Lights, Hanukkah, originated).

Secondly, since God “is not the God of the dead, but of the living” (Matt. 22:32) and to be “absent from the body and to be present to the Lord” (2 Cor.5:8 ) those who have died in Christ are truly in His presence. Who better to pray on our behalf (intercede for us) than those in the presence of the Lord Himself!?

 

So, in understanding the Communion of the Saints, we can better grasp the concept of “praying to the Saints.” As a Catholic, I ask Saints to pray for my family and I. I do not pray to them as an end, for they are not God, but as a means to an end. Much like I would ask a faithful friend to pray for my family or I.

 

“The fervent prayer of a righteous person is very powerful.” (James 5:16) and again, who better to intercede for us than those present with our Lord already.

This should help clarify this aspect of the role of Mary (and the Saints) in the lives of Catholic Christians, though it does go a little deeper with our Mother. And we will look at her role specifically in our next post.