re: Serious question: Is the pope Catholic?

“Your church is literally responsible for the downfall of the West.”

Now, try “what created the West.” I’ll wait.

Flex Dawg:

Long post, full of nonsense:

1) Constantine did not establish himself as head of the Church in 313 AD nor did his Edict make Christianity the state religion. That was the Emperor Theodosius in circa 380 AD. Constantine did, at the request of Bishop Hosius of Cordoba Spain call the Council of Nicea to address the heresy of Arianism, which dogmatically proposed there was a time when the Father was not a Father, later on he became Father. This suggested that Christ was subordinate to the Father and was created.

The Council of Nicea in the Creed rejected Arius's doctrine as unorthodox as the Nicene Creed states Christ is God from God, Light from Light begotten not made, consubstantial (Latin equivalent of Greek Homoousia) with the Father indicating that the Father and the Son (Christ) are identical in substance or essence.

2) Papacy. The Bible itself is a product of the the Church's Tradition, and as such there was no clear Canon until the 4th century when Church Councils approved by the Bishop of Rome (Pope) defined the 27 book NT canon.

Furthermore, all the early Church Fathers clearly indicate that Peter was indeed in Rome, Clement of Rome in his epistle to the Church in Corinth (90AD) indicates that as does Ignatius of Antioch in his letter to the Church of Rome in circa 107AD.

3) Mary is referred to in Luke 1:43 as the Mother of the Lord. This is a clear inference for Christ being Divine. Nestorius an early 5th century theologian challenged the Greek theological term of "Theotokos" and stated Mary was the Mother of the Human Person Christ. Well that is problematic, as Mary did not give birth to 2 Persons. So the in line with the Council of Nicea (325) and Constantinople (381) the Church at the Council of Ephesus in 431 dogmatically Defined Mary as "Theotokos" literally the one who bears God. Mother of God is the Latin "Mater Dei" and how the Greek "Theotokos" was translated. Ephesus in 431 defining Mary as such is actually related to Christological issues and thus clearly maintains that Christ is a "Divine Person" (one Peson) who had a Divine Nature with the Father and Holy Spirit from all eternity and by his incarnation took on human nature. Thus, Mary beared a Son (she was a Mother) who was Christ. Christ is a Divine Person with a fully Divine and human nature.

Absent that understanding, when did Christ become Divine. At the Presentation of the Temple, his baptism at the Jordan by John. All of that is unorthodox and is a form of subordination of Christ and adoptionism.

4) Purgatory: Saint Augustine in the early 5th century used the term Purgatory, way before Pope Gregory. Purgatory is a Latin term that was used to describe the state of Souls who died in communion of God but still not pure to enter Heaven. The Church from the earliest times prayed for the Dead in the Liturgy. You will find in the 4th century the likes of Cyril of Jerusalem, Gregory of Nysaa and John Chrysostom attesting to that in the 4th century.

Purgatory is in Scripture, the doctrine, although not the term, it just does not fit your notion of forensic or imputed justification. The OT mentions fire as a cleansing and refining agent in several places [Sirach 2:5, Is 4:4; 6:6-7; Zech 13:9, and Mal 3:2-3]. 2 Macabees 2:46 mentions prayers for the dead. St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 3:15 speaks of a cleansing fire and Matthew 12:31 speaks of sins not forgiven in this age or age to come

In both the Catholic and Eastern Orthodox canon of the OT, 2 Macc and Sirach are in the OT.
Furthermore, the interpretation that 1 Cor. 3:15 is part of the theological tradition of St. Augustine as he writes in his Explanation of the Psalms [i.e. a collection of Homilies/sermons and commentaries written on the Psalms from 392 to 418 AD] as follows:

“Lord rebuke me not in Your indignation, nor correct me in Your anger [c.f. Psalm 38:2]….In this life You may cleanse me and make me such that I have no need of corrective fire, which is for those who are saved, but as if by fire…For it is said “He shall be saved, but as if by fire [c.f. 1 Cor 3:15]. And because its says he shall be saved, little is thought of that fire. Yet plainly though, we be saved by fire, that fire will be more severe than anything a man can suffer in this life”

In his defense of the Book of Genesis [written 388-395 AD] against the Manicheans [who were dualistic and thus had problems with Creation and the fact that God had given man free will], St Augustine uses the term “purgatorial fires” as he writes:

“The man who has cultivated that remote land (c.f. Genesis 3:17) and who has gotten his bread by his very great labor is able to suffer this labor to the end of life. After this life, however, it is not necessary that he suffer. But the man who perhaps has not cultivated the land and has allowed it to be overrun with brambles has in this life the curse of the land on all his works, and after this life he will have either purgatorial fire or eternal punishment.”

St. Augustine talks of purgatorial fires in his reflection “Faith and Works” (413 AD) and The Enchiridion of Faith, Hope and Love {421 AD}, and also speaks of the doctrine of purgatory in The City of God [413-426 AD] in numerous places throughout that work.

The Doctrine of Purgatory is consistent the Liturgical Rites of the early Church, both West and East which all offered prayers for the dead [cf. 2 Maceabees 12:43-46]
For example, Saint Gregory of Nyssa on a Sermon [around 382] on the Dead speaks of a purifying fire that purges [not quite the use of the word purgatory but it is consistent with it]. Saint Cyril of Jerusalem [350 AD in Catechetical Lectures, which is ripe with Sacred Scripture commentary by him] speaks of praying for the dead at the Eucharistic celebration and states we pray to Him for those who have fallen asleep, thought they be sinners. St. John Chrysostom in Homilies on Saint Paul's Letter to the Philipians speaks of “Not in vain was it decreed by the Apostles that in awesome Mysteries [The Greek term for Sacrament] remembrance should be made for the departed.


So I will defer to the great theologians of the early Church, you can follow the fundamentalist Protestant of Me and my Bible alone interpretation.

You're putting more effort into it than what he copied that drivel from. It's just another baptists with no education and a chip on their shoulder publication. Same level as a Chick Tract.

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You're putting more effort into it than what he copied that drivel from. It's just another baptists with no education and a chip on their shoulder publication. Same level as a Chick Tract.

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Oh I agree it is a Chick Tract. But you have to understand I love making intellectual fools out of these back woods me and my Bible alone types.

THE False Prophet

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So, serious question: Is the pope Catholic?

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Yes

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Or is he Marxist impostor pushing the woke agenda of the globalist elite, and selling out Chinese Catholic to the CCP?

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He's this too, alas. I pray for him.