1. Promote Catholic vocations to the priesthood?
2. Cultivate virtuous, manly, financially successful husbands?
3. Attract young men and grown men to study Catholic theology?

One way you can do this is start a Troop of Saint George in your community. The Troops of Saint George is an outdoor, bushcraft, adventure fraternity for Catholic priests, deacons, fathers, and sons. Here are some photos of what we do:

This is not a rubber chicken. The boys prepared their dinner from live chickens, to plucked, to quartered, to cooked on the campfire. These young men now know how to bring a bird from yard to table. #realfood

We have Junior Cadets (ages 6-11) and Senior Cadets (ages 12-18):

Our boys love the uniform. Our uniforms are durable and look sharp:

We found a Copperhead snake one night:

We honor our priests who come out and celebrate Mass. We build outdoor chapels and altars and pews and pulpits for them:

We chop our own firewood:

We love our sons and teach them to become men of valor and virtue. Strength and Honor!:

Here’s what else the Troops of Saint George do:

1. build outdoor chapels in the woods
2. help and support our priests
3. cut firewood
4. fish
5. cook all meals over the fire
6. have Mass in the woods
7. promote Marian devotions
8. provide theological catechesis
9. sharpen knives
10. promote devotion to Catholic saints
11. learn bushcraft and survival skills
12. tell a lot of jokes
13. build things like catapults and bridges
14. teach young men how to serve Mass

I founded the Troops of Saint George in May of 2013 and we’ve grown to Saint George Troops all of the United States (and the world). We are not an arts and crafts organization. We are not a boy scout organization. We are not knights or squires or militia. We are men living in the world. We are a outdoors fraternal organization for Catholic clergy, fathers, and sons.

Our goal is to promote virtue and excellence in young men so that they respond with fire in their hearts to the priestly, religious, and marriage vocations.

Please visit our site and get started!

If you’d like to start your own Troop of Saint George, we have a starter kit for you at troopsofsaintgeorge.org.

If you’d like to start your own Troop of Saint George, we have a starter kit for you at troopsofsaintgeorge.org. 

Also, please like our Facebook page by clicking here:

https://www.facebook.com/TroopsofSaintGeorge/

The post Photos: Troops of Saint George Campout appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

The politically incorrect article I wrote last week on a Thomistic response to the Islamic Refugee Crisis is approaching 100,000 views and 20,000 shares on Facebook and some 300 comments – many of which debate the “nature of Islam.”

I wanted to continue this discussion in a sequel article about the relationship of Islam with Christian theology. You’ll find this sequel in the post below:

The question is really about whether Islam is a “Christian heresy” or a whether Islam is a “world religion.”

The English word “heresy” derives from the Greek word αἵρεσις (hairesis) meaning “choice” or “a thing chosen.” (It’s the original “pro-choice” position.) Saint Paul uses the word in Titus 3:10 to describes “heretics” – those that pick and choose their own beliefs instead of following the beliefs taught by the Apostles:

• heresy = I choose my own personal beliefs just as I choose my meal at Luby’s
• orthodoxy = I receive the Apostolic beliefs passed down through papally ratified Councils, Scripture, and Tradition (orthos in Greek means “right or straight”; eg. orthodontics means “straight teeth” and orthodox means “straight belief.”

Heresy is not a slur or pejorative term. It simply describes a method of religion.

An Analogy from Legos

Let’s say you purchased the Lego edition of the Star Wars’ Death Star. It comes with a box full of plastic pieces and a paper set of instructions. If you follow the directions and follow the instructions correctly or “straight” then you have an orthos situation and having something that looks like this:

But if you buy this box of Legos and personally choose how you yourself want to assemble it, you’ve created your own reality and arrange the pieces however you want to create any pattern that you like. For example, this Lego pattern:

In the first example, the Lego pieces were arranged according to the creator’s instruction. In the second example, the Lego pieces were arranged in accord to the person’s “choice” or “hairesis.”

Legos and Islam

When it comes to Islam, we must ask whether Islam is a religion totally distinct from apostolic Christianity (like Hinduism or Jainism or Aztec paganism) or whether it is a “rearrangement” of historic Christianity (like Mormonism or Jehovah’s Witnesses).

The History of Muhammad

If you haven’t listened to my free audio talk on “Is Muhammad Evil? (audio)” please take a listen. It will give you a short biography of Muhammad and show how he fell under demonic influence.

You will learn that the ancient Arabs were generally polytheistic pagans. They worshipped a variety of deities, as did the ancient Greeks and Romans. However, Muhammad belonged to a social circle that was composed heretical Christians as we will discuss below.

[callout]Listen to Dr Marshall’s Is Muhammad Evil? (audio)[/callout]

Islam as a Heresy Stealing from Christian Ideas

The great Catholic writer Hilaire Belloc (d. 16 July 1953) foretold the future rise of Islam in his book The Great Christian Heresies (a book that every member of the New Saint Thomas Institute should read).

Hilaire Belloc wrote, “[Islam] began as a heresy, not as a new religion….It was a perversion of the Christian religion…an adaptation and a misuse of the Christian thing.” Belloc is following Saint Thomas Aquinas, Dante, and Saint John of Damascus who describe Islam not as a new religion but as a corruption of Christian ideas, notably a pre-existing Christian heresy of Nestorianism.

Was Muhammad modifying the Christian Heresy of Nestorianism?

The Islamic sources reveal a heretical Christian monk having an influence on the young Muhammad. Moreover, Muhammad’s first wife Khadija belonged to a heretical Christian sect since she was familiar with the God of Abraham, Jesus, Mary, and the angel Gabriel. Khadija once consulted a monk about Muhammad and the monk was named Nestora. Given the time period and geography and name, we are likely dealing with Nestorian branch of heretical Christians having influence over Khadija and her husband Muhammad.

Nestorianism was a heresy that denied that the baby Jesus born of the Virgin Mary was the Divine Son of God. Rather, the heretic Nestorius taught that the historical Jesus Christ was a combination of two persons: the Son of God (one divine person) and the historical and human Jesus son of Mary (one human person). Catholic orthodox teaches that Jesus Christ is one Divine Person with a Divine Nature and a Human Nature united but not confused or commingled.

Here are a few teachings of Muhammad that cribbed from Christianity:

1. Muhammad taught that God chose Abraham (although Muhammad taught that God’s promise went through Hagar and Ishmael and not Sarah and Isaac – hence the term Sara-cenes).
2. Muhammad taught that Jesus was born of a Virgin (although Muhammad denied that God was His Father).
3. Muhammad taught that Jesus was the Jewish Messiah (although he denied that Jesus was the Savior and Son of God).
4. Muhammad taught that Mary the Mother of Jesus was sinless.
5. Muhammad taught that Saint Michael and Saint Gabriel are important angelic messengers (Muhammad claimed to speak with Saint Gabriel).
6. Muhammad taught that there is Heaven and Hell.
7. Muhammad taught that there will be a resurrection of the body as Christians recite in the Creeds.
8. Muhammad taught that a Creator created the universe out of nothing (as Jews and Christians believe).
9. Muhammad taught the importance of Christian customs such as fasting, regularly prayer, almsgiving, and pilgrimage.

So the “Lego pieces” being used in Muhammad’s religion are those of Christianity. But he re-organizes these pieces to create a religion in his own image.

Here are some those heretical errors:

1. Muhammad taught that Jesus Christ is not divine.
2. Muhammad taught that Jesus Christ is not the Son of God.
3. Muhammad taught that the Trinity was “the Father and the Son and the Virgin Mary.” He didn’t properly understand the Christian teaching on the Trinity.
4. Muhammad taught that there was no such thing as a Trinity of Divine Persons as Christians profess.
5. Muhammad taught that there are no sacraments (eg, no baptism, Eucharist) but only a profession of faith (shahada).
6. Muhammad taught that lying is allowed. It’s the al-Taqiyya deception. Muhammad said that Muslims can lie to non-Muslims. So when a Muslim tells you “I am peaceful and I don’t approve of terrorism – we can never be 100% ceratain about whether they are being honest with us, because the Quran explicitly gives them permission to lie to non-Muslism.” Mohammed also gave permission for a follower to lie in order to murder a Jewish poet who had offended Mohammed. [Are you learning from this post? If so share it on Facebook by clicking here.]
7. Mohammad taught that Jesus did not die on the cross and therefore denied salvation through the cross of Christ. Surah 4:157-158 says: “they [the Jews] said, ‘We killed Christ Jesus the son of Mary, the Messenger of Allah’ – But they killed him not, nor crucified him, but so it was made to appear to them, and those who differ therein are full of doubts, with no (certain) knowledge, but only conjecture to follow, for of a surety they killed him not. Nay, Allah raised him up unto Himself.”
8. Mohammad denied that marraige is monogamous or sacramental.
9. Mohammad denied the existence of a “Church” and instead had the “State” stand in as the organizing principle, hence the imperative for Sharia Law.

Muhammad is painting with Christian colors, but omitting and reorganizing the structure and form of religion. He’s taking Nestorianism (false belief that Jesus son of Mary is not a Divine Person) and taking it to the heretical next level.

Why Does This Matter? “Islam as Heresy”

If we perceive Islam as a Christian heresy, it helps Christians better understand and address Islam. Muslims are not baptized and do not have faith in Christ as Savior. Hence, they are not Christians. They are certainly not “brothers and sisters in Christ.”

However, they do profess that Jesus is the “Jewish Messiah” (though non-saving Messiah), and the sinless son of Mary.

This matters because we are dealing a demographic of people with a severely “malformed conscience.” We know from Saint Thomas Aquinas and from the Catechism of the Catholic Church that all humans are called to form their conscience in accord with reason, natural law, and divine revelation. Islam leads human adherents to a conscience formed incorrectly.

So the Christian answer is most certainly not: “Just be a good Muslim. Follow your conscience.”

The Christian answer is, “Let’s reform consciences in conformity to natural law (eg, lying is always sinful and polygamy is contrary to nature).”

Even better, the Christian answer is, “Let us tell you the good news of Jesus Christ who is Son of God, Savior, and Divine Mercy. He will lead you to know God as Father.”

Our Goal as Christians:

Our goal as Christians is to remove all error from the earth and lead people to God Who is Truth Incarnate. Our goal is to see all peoples saved and every human person receiving the joy of the Holy Eucharist. This includes Muslims. So we must form consciences properly and evangelize every human heart.

If you want to learn how to do this better, the New Saint Thomas Institute is currently offer a special Catholic Apologetics training module on “How to Share Your Faith to Jewish Friends and Muslim Friends.” It’s available to all of our Basic and Premium Member students:

If you’re not yet a student Member of the New Saint Thomas Institute, you can watch the video series and quizzes here. If you want to join and get start learning how to share the Catholic Faith with Jewish and Muslim friends, click here.

Please share this on Facebook.

[reminder]

The post Is Islam a Heresy or World Religion? Legos and Muhammad appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

What would Saint Thomas Aquinas say about the Refugee Crisis?

We as Christians are debating among ourselves about whether or not we have a moral duty to receive refugees fleeing Muslim nations.

[callout]This article is politically incorrect and says things that might shock you. Please read the entire article until the very last two paragraphs before making a judgment or writing incendiary comments. This might be one of the clearest things you’ve read on the topic, because it draws on virtue ethics of Thomas Aquinas – something generally ignored in our day and age. – Godspeed, Taylor Marshall[/callout]

Are We Good Samaritans?

As Christians we remember Our Lord’s parable about the Good Samaritan recounting how the outwardly religious clerics (the priest and the levite) passed the injured man in the road, but how the Samaritan proved to “be his neighbor” and care for him. Christ rebukes the outwardly religious hypocrites and commends the good Samaritan.

When it comes to the refugee crises, none of us wants to be the hypocrite who turns his steps to the opposite side of road to avoid caring for an injured victim.

Or Are We Good Maccabeans?

Meanwhile, if you are Catholic, you’ve been listening to the book of Maccabees this week in the daily Mass readings. These biblical lessons approvingly recount how Mattathias along with his Maccabean sons and companions rightfully used physical violence against their political oppressors the Seleucid Greeks who were actively using force to undermine the conscience and convictions of the People of God.

So which are we?

Are we the caring Samaritans or the crusading Maccabeans?

The Catholic political theology of Saint Thomas Aquinas can help us with this question:

Let’s first suspend all emotional appeals, and set down a few logical and calm points of agreement to get us all on the same page:

• In the Summa theologiae, Thomas Aquinas places politics under the civic virtue of patriotism which is itself a sub-virtue of justice. Our discussion is ultimately not about “politics” but the virtuous duties of justice toward God, our families, our nations, and all of humanity (in that order).
• For Thomas Aquinas, all political human laws must be: 1) in accord with reason; 2) published or promulgated; 3) by rightful political authority; and for the common good (See STh q. 90, aa. 1-4). If a political law is lacking in any of these four attributes, it is for Thomas, not a law at all.
• The duty of the political magistrates (the Republic or Kingdom) are by the virtue of justice different than the duty of the civilian person. Citizens are not de facto judges, soldiers, police officers, or legislators (STh q. 90, a. 3).
• Muslims explicitly affirm that Muhammad is the Last Prophet of God.
• Muslims explicitly affirm that Our Lord Jesus Christ is certainly not the Son of God.
• These two Muslim affirmations place all Muslims in implicit or explicit theological contradiction with Christians who profess Jesus Christ as the Son of God and consequently conclude that Muhammad was a false prophet.
• For Sunni Muslims (the majority of global Muslims), the mandate to erect Sharia law in every human government is a doctrine of faith. Muslims must in accord with their conscience pursue this theological belief that Sharia law must be promulgated in every human society (England, France, Poland, USA, Mexico, etc.)

So how does this apply to Refugees from Islamic nations?

When we move through the logical points above, we begin to discover a few logical conclusions:

1. Muslims are bound by conscience to erect Sharia law in your nation. This is a bad thing for baptized Christians. At best it means being taxed at a higher rate (the Muslim jizya tax for Christians). At worse it means death.
2. If you live in a democracy, a 51% political Islamic majority will allow “we the people” to promulgate Sharia law. They are following their conscience and religious beliefs in this matter. They will do this just as they have done in any other community where they captured the majority (Mecca, Palestine, Egypt, Syria, etc.)
3. It is a duty of of justice for Christian people to strive to prevent the promulgation of false laws (i.e. those contrary to reason or the common good). Christians are called to be politically active and advocates for the common good and natural law.
4. While we have the Christian duty to care for the refugee, the sick, the victim, and the injured, we have a greater common duty by justice to preserve the state of law and our religious liberty first and foremost.

We see this principle in our Scriptural readings. When it comes to the Samaritan, he rightfully cares for the victim. However, when it comes to the nation and the threat of terrorism (Seleucid Greeks), false laws, and the danger of our children, military, and civic peace, we (like the Maccabees) are politically obliged to resist, protect, and expel…for the common good.

The Analogy of the Familial Home

I am the head of a household. I earn an income to feed my wife and my children. With my surplus, I care for orphans, widows, the church, pro-life causes, single-mothers, and other apostolates that I feel God has called me to support.

Justice and charity demand that I care for the less fortunate and it is a Catholic belief that our salvation depends on how we treat the hungry, the naked, the homeless, and the sick.

MOREOVER….

I am not obliged to take the homeless into my house and have them sleep in my daughter’s bedroom at night. I am not obliged by justice or charity to give the homeless a vote over my financial decisions. He does not have the right to choose what’s for dinner. The homeless man does not (by my charity) receive a right to my continued support. The homeless man cannot share a bed with my wife when I am traveling. Nor may he presume a right over my children’s belongings.

Since we live in a democracy (“we the people”), political refugees de facto gain a measure of political authority over our laws, taxes, finances, military, religious holidays, and legislative bodies.

This principle applies to refugees universally. It applies even more so when the refugee in his conscience believes that he is morally obligated to introduce and vote for the enshrinement of Sharia law.

There is also the further problem that 5%-20% of global Muslims are considered to be “radicalized,” which means that they are consciously willing to use terrorist tactics to advance their Muslim worldview against the West. If you knew that 10% of your child’s Halloween candy was poisoned, would you allow your child to consume any of it?

So what would Thomas Aquinas say?

I’m afraid that Thomas would be much harsher than most of us would feel comfortable with.

Thomas prizes the “common good” so highly under the virtue of political justice that he openly promotes arms and capital punishment against those who are publicly “dangerous and infectious.”

The common good is the peace of society so that life and faith can thrive. Babies can be born and have a happy life. Grandparents can grow old together. Anyone who seeks to destroy the common good should be, according to Thomas, destroyed.

Thomas Aquinas also taught that anyone that fomented “danger to the community” or heretical movements is worthy of the death penalty:

“Therefore if a man be dangerous and infectious to the community, on account of some sin, it is praiseworthy and advantageous that he be killed in order to safeguard the common good.” STh II-II q. 64, a. 2.

It is permissible to kill a criminal if this is necessary for the welfare of the whole community. However, this right belongs only to the one entrusted with the care of the whole community — just as a doctor may cut off an infected limb, since he has been entrusted with the care of the health of the whole body. STh II-II q. 64, a. 3.

Have no doubt that Thomas Aquinas would have stated that Christian nations should receive Christian refugees but refuse Muslim refugees for the sake of national justice and the common good. The Muslim’s official declaration of faith denies natural law (eg, polygamy), religious liberty (eg, Sharia), and implicitly Muhammad’s doctrine and example of political violence.

What’s our Catholic Response? The Samaritan Uses the Hotel

We Christians should be generous with humanitarian aid toward Muslims and all people. We should send money and resources to those who have been dispossessed. We should be loving and generous with Muslims. Kindness brings about conversion and understanding. We should also try to topple the Islamic State and eradicate terrorism in our lands and in the Islamic lands.

Remember the Good Samaritan! He did not take the roadside victim home with him. Rather, the Good Samaritan put the victim up in a hotel and paid for him to get better. The Good Samaritan was good and commended by Christ. The Good Samaritan did the right thing: humanitarian aid.

We are not required by Christ to take victims that oppose our faith and our way of life and make them into our political heirs. We are not required to take them into our homes.

But we are obliged to help them. And if terrorists use our charity as a pretense to hurt us, then, as Thomas Aquinas says, they should be swiftly destroyed.

Saint Thomas Aquinas, pray for us.

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

Would this help people you know? If so, please share it on Facebook by clicking here:

If you’d like a free book on the thought of Thomas Aquinas (including a brief account of his political philosophy), I’ll give you a free copy of it. Just click here to receive it.

[reminder]Do you agree? I’d love to hear from you.[/reminder]

PS: If you like how we broke this issue down into bite-sized theological information and then logically built up a position using the wisdom of Saint Thomas Aquinas, then you are probably a key candidate for becoming a student at our New Saint Thomas Institute:

The post Islamic Refugee Crisis: Good Samaritan or Maccabean Response? Or both appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Who was Muhammad? What was his childhood like? When did he begin claiming to be a prophet? What did he teach about war and sex? Find out in this week’s show by clicking the play button below:

#098: Was Muhammad Evil? [Podcast]

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• Proverb of the Week: Prov. 29:10
• Featured Segment: Is Muhammad Evil?
• Tip of the Week: External Monitor for eyesight and work posture
• Announcements:
  • My novel Sword and Serpent is once again a #1 Bestseller at Amazon. It’s available at amazon.com. Get a copy for you and a friend for Christmas!
  • Spring Enrollment for the New Saint Thomas Institute will begin in December. Reserve your spot on our waiting list here.
  • NSTI will also be enrolling new students for our “Certificate in Catholic Church History” in January 2016!
• Latin Word of the Week: saraceni from the Greek Sarakenoi

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The post #098: Was Muhammad Evil? [Podcast] appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Two reasons: lack of authentic Catholic teaching regarding homosexuality…and the Church omitted one of the clearest Bible verses on homosexuality from the lectionary:

One of the very unfortunate results of the New Lectionary is that verses that might be deemed offensive have been omitted from our liturgical celebrations. (I’ve written about how three “offensive” Psalms were removed from the Liturgy of the Hours after 1971 here.)

Verses against Homosexuality Omitted from Current Lectionary

An example of the silence of offensive passages is from the readings of last week, where the reading of Saint Paul against homosexuality (including female lesbianism) in Romans 1:26-32 is notably omitted from the cycle. Below are the readings for the 28th Week in Ordinary Time (Lectionary 468 and 469):

Tuesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 468
Reading 1 ROM 1:16-25

Wednesday of the Twenty-eighth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 469
Reading 1 ROM 2:1-11

So what’s missing? Romans 1:26-32 is clipped out. Yet this passage at the end of Romans 1 is the locus classicus for Paul’s theology against homosexual behavior and it also forms the cited passage in the Catechism of the Catholic Church for its teaching:

CCC Para. 2357. Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that “homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered.” They are contrary to the natural law.”

In the footnotes in the CCC for this passage, you’ll find the citation for Romans 1:26-32. So if this passage is important for the Saint John Paul II’s Catechism, why is it skipped over in the Lectionary?

The Missing Romans 1:26-32

Here is the skipped passage in full:

²⁶ For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. Their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural [Paul calls lesbianism is “unnatural”], ²⁷ and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men [male homosexual acts are “shameless acts”] and receiving in their own persons the due penalty for their error. [homosexual acts are an “error” with “due penalty”]

²⁸ And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a base mind and to improper conduct. ²⁹ They were filled with all manner of wickedness, evil, covetousness, malice. Full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malignity, they are gossips, ³⁰ slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, ³¹ foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

³² Though they know God’s decree that those who do such things deserve to die, they not only do them but also approve those who practice them. [those that approve of homosexual acts and any of the sins above deserve to die according to “God’s decree”]

This passage is inspired by the Holy Spirit – by the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. This is not a politically correct passage of the Bible, but it’s just as true as John 3:16. We may not read it at Mass, but we need to accept it as “inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Tim 3:16).

Why is it omitted from the cycle of Romans for the Catholic Mass?

Is there a bishop out there who will ask the Holy Father to have this verse included in the Mass readings of Roman Rite? In this time of crisis, we need a Saint John the Baptist who defends God’s teaching on human sexuality against the Herod’s that compromise God’s loving law.

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall, PhD

[reminder]Should the Catholic Church revise the Lectionary and include Romans 1:26-32 in the readings for Holy Mass?[/reminder]

Sample New Saint Thomas Institute Video from Dr. Taylor Marshall on “How to Explain Catholic Teaching on Homosexuality”:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B4dwIED8ghQ

The post Catholic Mass Lectionary Omits Anti-Homosexualism Verses from Romans 1 appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Click to Listen: #079: Revelation Chs. 4-5 The Lamb and Liturgy of God (Catholic Apocalypse Part 3)

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Before you look at the verses in the Quran, here are three things to consider:

1. Muhammad was a military leader. He was more of a general than a guru. Historical records (Islamic and secular) record the battles and raids of Muhammad. Here’s a Quran verse on that topic: Quran (8:67) – “It is not for a Prophet that he should have prisoners of war until he had made a great slaughter in the land…”
2. In the pattern of Muhammad, leaders of Islam are not immams, pastors, or priests. They are political militaristic leaders. Here’s a Quran verse on that topic: “Quran (47:35) – “Be not weary and faint-hearted, crying for peace, when ye should be uppermost (Shakir: “have the upper hand”) for Allah is with you.”
3. Why did the Crusades (the first pan-Christian wars) begin in the middle east after Islam began invading and attacking Christian settlements in the 8th through 11th centuries? Could it be that Islam introduced something new the euro-asian political sphere that got things out of whack?

Okay, and now for the verses from the Quran
(This were collected from this site.)

The Quran contains a mandate to kill

The first example explains how those who wage war against Allah should be:

• crucified
• murdered
• have their hands cut off
• have their feet maimed
• imprisoned

Quran (5:33) – “The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be imprisoned; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement.”

Here’s a verse criticizing Muslim’s remain “peaceful” and refuse to fight:

Quran (4:95) – “Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) and receive no hurt, and those who strive and fight in the cause of Allah with their goods and their persons. Allah hath granted a grade higher to those who strive and fight with their goods and persons than to those who sit (at home). Unto all (in Faith) Hath Allah promised good: But those who strive and fight Hath He distinguished above those who sit (at home) by a special reward.”

Quran (2:191-193) – “And kill them wherever you find them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out. And Al-Fitnah [disbelief] is worse than killing…but if they desist, then lo! Allah is forgiving and merciful.   And fight them until there is no more Fitnah [disbelief and worshipping of others along with Allah] and worship is for Allah alone.  But if they cease, let there be no transgression except against Az-Zalimun (the polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc.)”

Quran (2:216) – “Fighting is prescribed for you, and ye dislike it. But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for you, and that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knoweth, and ye know not.”  Not only does this verse establish that violence can be virtuous, but it also contradicts the myth that fighting is intended only in self-defense, since the audience was obviously not under attack at the time.  From the Hadith, we know that this verse was narrated at a time that Muhammad was actually trying to motivate his people into raiding merchant caravans for loot. 

Quran (4:74) – “Let those fight in the way of Allah who sell the life of this world for the other. Whoso fighteth in the way of Allah, be he slain or be he victorious, on him We shall bestow a vast reward.”

Quran (4:76) – “Those who believe, fight in the cause of Allah…”

Quran (4:89) – “They but wish that ye should reject Faith, as they do, and thus be on the same footing (as they): But take not friends from their ranks until they flee in the way of Allah (From what is forbidden). But if they turn renegades, seize them and slay them wherever ye find them; and (in any case) take no friends or helpers from their ranks.”

Quran (8:39) – “And fight with them until there is no more fitna (disorder, unbelief) and religion should be only for Allah”

Quran (8:57) – “If thou comest on them in the war, deal with them so as to strike fear in those who are behind them, that haply they may remember.”

So there are words from the Quran. If you want to understand a religion, read its original texts. They will show you the truth on the matter. Again, make your own conclusions.

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The post Is Islam Really a Peaceful Religion? (with quotes from the Quran) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

The song is hauntingly beautiful with subtle verses and a soulful chorus. Admittedly, when I first heard it, I thought, “Wow, this is a powerful song. It’s almost hymn-like.” It’s Elton John mixed with an old Southern Spiritual from the American Civil War.

But then I started listening to the lyrics…

“Take Me to Church” by Hozier could only have been written by an Irishmen with Catholic roots. When he sings of “Church,” it is a “sacrifice” at a “shrine” with a “ritual” and includes “I’ll tell you my sins.”

However, Hozier’s religion is not Protestant or Evangelical Christianity. This is Irish Catholicism with a blasphemous twist…

Take Me to Church Lyrics Analyzed

Regrettably, the lyrics to “Take Me to Church” are pretty blasphemous. Here’s my theological analysis with my commentary in the red:

[Verse 1]
My lover’s got humour
She’s the giggle at a funeral
Knows everybody’s disapproval
I should’ve worshipped her sooner (So this is the cue. The God throughout the song is a girlfriend.)
If the Heavens ever did speak (“If the Heavens ever” = revealed religion is cast into doubt)
She’s the last true mouthpiece
Every Sunday’s getting more bleak
A fresh poison each week
“We were born sick”, you heard them say it (“they” [Catholics] teach original sin)
My church offers no absolutes (So unlike Catholicism, there are no moral absolutes – only relativism)
She tells me “worship in the bedroom” (the liturgy is sex. It’s the place of union between him and the “god”/girlfriend)
The only heaven I’ll be sent to
Is when I’m alone with you
I was born sick, but I love it (acknowledges original sin – but he loves it)
Command me to be well (a reference to Christ commanding people to be well in the Gospels)

[Pre-Chorus]
Amen, Amen, Amen

[Chorus] (x2)
Take me to church (remember, “Church” here is sexual reference in this song)
I’ll worship like a dog at the shrine of your lies
I’ll tell you my sins so you can sharpen your knife (confession reference)
Offer me my deathless death
Good God, let me give you my life (he hands over his life to her the “god”)

[Verse 2]
If I’m a pagan of the good times
My lover’s the sunlight
To keep the Goddess on my side (the god/girlfriend is also a goddess)
She demands a sacrifice (here’s where the song gets “Eucharistic” with reference to sacrificial meal and hunger…)
Drain the whole sea
Get something shiny
Something meaty for the main course
That’s a fine looking high horse
What you got in the stable? (reference to the Christ Child “in the stable”)
We’ve a lot of starving faithful
That looks tasty
That looks plenty
This is hungry work

[Chorus] (x2)

[Bridge]
No masters or kings when the ritual begins (egalitarian ritual – sex)
There is no sweeter innocence than our gentle sin (hey, at least he knows it’s sin – he’s Irish!)
In the madness and soil of that sad earthly scene (a reference perhaps to leaving earth into the “heavenly bliss” of sexual embrace)
Only then I am human
Only then I am clean (he ends with a reference the sexual completion as a kind of baptism or absolution)

Amen, Amen, Amen

Take Me to Church Meaning

What’s amazing about his song is that it’s about as offensive as anything produced by Marilyn Manson, Judas Priest, or Slayer – yet hardly anyone recognizes it! It takes rich Catholic sacramental language but re-signifies the imagery as a sexual encounter. And that’s the so-called “genius” of this song.

The music industry is now much smarter than it was in the days of Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, and Slayer. Your daughter is not likely to love Marilyn Manson and erect an idol to Satan in her bedroom. Your son will not likely consecrate his baby to Lucifer and baptize him in goat’s blood.

Overt Satanism is out of style. However, young people are likely to exchange their Christian faith for sexual license. The stats show that young people will likely exchange the sacramental life and liturgy for the liturgy of sexual experimentation.

And that’s exactly why this song has become an American anthem. The devil doesn’t needs a league of heavy metal Satanists. He’d almost prefer to have people mocking the Christian sacraments and images.

If God isn’t real – “If the Heavens ever did speak” – then the only goods to be enjoyed in this life are the pleasures of food and sex. That’s all there is left for humans to experience transcendence. Hozier gets it and he sings for us a catchy hymn.

In an interview with New York Magazine in March 2014, the artist Hozier stated:

‘Take Me to Church’ is essentially about sex, but it’s a tongue-in-cheek attack at organizations that would… undermine humanity by successfully teaching shame about sexual orientation — that it is sinful, or that it offends God… But it’s not an attack on faith… it’s an assertion of self, reclaiming humanity back for something that is the most natural and worthwhile.

So there you have it from Hozier himself.

Conclusion

I know it’s a catchy song. There’s a part of me that likes it. But seriously, this is probably one of the most sacramental songs every popularized – and it sacramentalizes the wrong values. That’s my two cents. Godspeed, Taylor

Download a pdf Study Guide by Taylor of the Lyrics for “Take Me to Church”:

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The post Take Me to Church Lyrics and Meaning – A Christian Analysis and Critique appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

The history books will tell you that the first Thanksgiving was celebrated by the Protestant pilgrims of Massachusetts in 1621. Not so. There was the Catholic Thanksgiving of 1565 in Florida and another Catholic Thanksgiving of 1589 in Texas.

1. The first American Thanksgiving was actually celebrated on September 8 (feast of the birth of the Blessed Virgin) in 1565 in St. Augustine, Florida. The Native Americans and Spanish settlers held a feast and the Holy Mass was offered. This was 56 years before the Puritan pilgrims of Massachusetts.Don Pedro Menendez came ashore amid the sounding of trumpets, artillery salutes and the firing of cannons to claim the land for King Philip II and Spain. The ship chaplain Fr. Francisco Lopez de Mendoza Grajales chanted the Te Deum and presented a crucifix that Menendez ceremoniously kissed. Then the 500 soldiers, 200 sailors and 100 families and artisans, along with the Timucuan Indians celebrated the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in gratitude to God.
2. The second American Thanksgiving happened on April 30, 1598, when Spanish explorer Don Juan de Oñate requested the friars to say a Mass of Thanksgiving, after which he formally proclaimed “La Toma”, claiming the land north of the Rio Grande for the King of Spain. The men feasted on duck, goose, and fish from the river. The actors among them dressed and presented a play. All this took place twenty-three years before the Pilgrims set sail from England on the Mayflower.
3. The Puritan pilgrims were violently anti-Catholic. They left England because they thought that the Church of England was too Catholic. These Puritans were strict Calvinists. The pilgrims also opposed celebrating Christmas, dancing, musical instruments in church, and even hymns as papistical.
   
4. Squanto, the beloved hero of Thanksgiving at Plymouth Rock, was Catholic! (Here’s my full article on the Catholicism of Squanto.) Squanto had been enslaved by the English but he was freed by Spanish Franciscans. Squanto thus received baptism and became a Catholic. So it was a baptized Catholic Native American who orchestrated what became known as Thanksgiving.

   

   Please take a moment to watch the video below as I explain the story behind the first Thanksgiving and what a group of Franciscan monks did to make it happen:

   [youtube id=”lWSc4DPlkHo”]

   Are you having trouble seeing the “Catholic Squanto” video in your browser or email? Please click here to watch it.

5. So while Thanksgiving may celebrate the Calvinist Separatists who fled England, Catholics might remember the same unjust laws that granted the crown of martyrdom to Thomas More, John Fisher, Edmund Campion, et al. are the same injustices that led the Pilgrims to Plymouth.
6. And let everyone remember that “Thanksgiving” in Greek is Eucharistia. Thus, the Body and Blood of Christ is the true “Thanksgiving Meal”.

And don’t forget to raise your wine glass and recite the wonderful limerick of Hilaire Belloc:

“Wherever the Catholic sun doth shine,
There’s always laughter and good red wine.
At least I’ve always found it so.
Benedicamus Domino!”

― Hilaire Belloc

[reminder]

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The post 6 Interesting Catholic Thanksgiving Facts You Need to Know appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

The Troops of Saint George (TSG) have reformed and officially filed for 501c3 non-profit status with the United States. In this post, I’m going to tell you how to get involved with our growing outdoors movement for fathers and boys.

The timing of this new phase is noteworthy because today (Oct 21) marks the 915th anniversary of the apparition of Saint George to the knights of the First Crusade outside the walls of Antioch on Oct 21, 1098:

Legal Problems

In early September, the lawyers of the Boy Scouts of America sent us a ‘cease and desist’ letter regarding the use of the word “Scout,” as well as our proposed uniforms and literature.

It was never our intention to challenge or confuse others about the brand or identity of the Boy Scouts of America. We are a separate organization with an entirely different mission, style, purpose, and identity. Honestly, we do not want to be confused with them.

We want to clearly define our own separate identity since our values and goals are much different from those of the BSA. Therefore, the Board of Directors have legally reformed the organization as the Troops of Saint George.

Who are the Troops of Saint George?

We are a Catholic apostolate for Catholic men and their sons. We are Catholic first above all else. Our campouts feature the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the Rosary, the Chaplet of Divine Mercy, the sacrament of Confession, and time-honored Catholic devotions.

We are not interested in arts and crafts or meetings for the sake of meetings. (Read this to see if the TSG may not be the right fit for you.) Rather, we’re interested in meeting the challenges of being a godly and Christian man for our wives, children, grandchildren, and culture. We want our sons to become true men infused with virtue, decisiveness, and integrity.

We recognize that Christian manhood based on the the classical understanding of virtue is under attack. Those who think that American culture is healthy will probably not be attracted to our movement. We are interested in rising to the challenge of Blessed John Paul II: to become signs of contradiction in our increasingly post-Christian culture.

The Troops of Saint George have troops all over the United Sates and more forming all over the world, including the following 13 nations:

1. Australia
2. Italy
3. Philippines
4. United Arab Emirates
5. United Kingdom
6. Bermuda
7. France
8. Germany
9. Luxembourg
10. India
11. Netherlands
12. Paraguay
13. Switzerland

Our new website, troopsofsaintgeorge.org is up but there isn’t much there yet. Look for more information in the weeks to come.

Please sign up to receive email updates and more information about troops forming near you:

or click here to subscribe to our Saint George updates.

We’ll send you information on troops forming in your state or region.

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

[reminder]Are you part of a Troop of Saint George? Share your experience or some photos in the comments below![/reminder]

If you’re interested in finding a troop near you, here is a list of troops and regions currently in formation (this list is not entirely up to date):

The post The Troops of Saint George are Back! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

I don’t often disclose personal thoughts on this blog, but I feel that this is something that might be helpful for folks on both sides of the Tiber: Ten Reasons why it’s hard to become Catholic.

I have spoken to somewhere between 50-100 Protestant ministers who have become Catholic or are contemplating entry into full communion with the Catholic Church. Most of these are Anglican or Presbyterian. A few have been Lutheran.

Over the last several years, I’ve gathered up the “big ten” that either cause pain or lead to a man saying “No thanks,” to the Catholic Church.

#10 Theological Submission
It’s difficult to say serviam (“I will serve”). Theology is no longer “what I think”. It requires a submission of the mind. At the same time, this a liberation of the mind. Still, it is difficult to tell oneself: “I don’t fully understand the Treasury of Merit, but I will submit my reason to the reason of the Church.”

#9 Priests
Catholic priests are not like Protestant ministers. Relatively speaking, they are more distant than Protestant clergy, albeit for good reasons sometimes. A Protestant has the experience of a minister smiling whenever he sees you, memorizing your name, and generally going out of his way to make a personal connection. This rarely happens in Catholicism. I admit it – it wounds my pride a little. I wish that I were greeted and hailed by the pastor after Mass. It’s humbling to be part of the masses at Mass.

Protestant ministers usually have smaller congregations and more competition with one another. Hence, the minister is much more likely to say, “Hey, let’s go to Starbucks this week and talk about your faith.”

Of course, I know dozens of Catholic priests who do reach out on a personal level, but for the most part, Catholic priests are stretched out more thinly. Consequently, personal access is more rare. And to be honest, I’m glad to know that my priests are hearing confessions and going to the hospital all the time. That’s a much better use of their time than drinking expensive coffee with me.

#8 Liturgy
I am beginning to think that there is nothing as controversial in the Catholic Church as liturgy. It is at the center of everything.

I like clean, tight liturgies. Altar boys turning on a dime and making a 90 degree right angle around the altar. Latin. Gregorian chant. Synchronized genuflections. Defined signs of the crosses. Corporal folded the proper way (up not down!) You may have guessed it. I attend the Extraordinary Form of the Mass.

However, it’s not like that everywhere. There are some wonderful liturgies and some not-so-wonderful liturgies. Sometimes, potential converts walk in to a not-so-wonderful liturgy with broken rubrics and oddities. It’s difficult for many – especially if they are coming from a more liturgical form of Protestantism. I don’t know the best answer to this problem. All I know that it is a problem.

My suggested solution is the “Great Catholic Migration of the 21th Century.” Click here to read more about “the great migration.”

#7 Dealing with marriage, divorce, homosexuality, contraception, abortion
Some people have irregular marriages, live homosexual lifestyles, or enjoy the comforts of contraception. It’s painful to allow your divorce and re-marriage to be examined by the bishop’s tribunal. It’s embarrassing to talk about a ‘lifestyle.’ It’s not easy to imagine having a minivan overflowing with car seats or to rethink the vasectomy.

For some, they have to revisit an abortion that occurred decades ago. These sort of things cut deep to the heart and make us squirm. All this is understandable and I think that these things should be addressed with caution and compassion. If you’re a potential convert, pray for and seek out a good priest with whom you can speak confidentially.

I’ll also add from personal experience, the healing a good confession is about 100 times more powerful than any of the shame or fear associated with past problems. I think others here would agree.

(Please leave a comment below to testify to this reality so others might be assured.)

#6 Financial discomforts
If you’re a clergyman you stand to lose your great pension, great health benefits, discretionary fund, and your salary. I’ve been there and it’s tough. It’s likely that you haven’t been trained to do anything else that is marketable. I doubt that anyone out there will pay you six figures to write sermons for them or lead a small-group Bible study. It goes without saying that most ministers take a major pay cut when they become Catholic. Their family income goes down. They usually start having more kids. Also, they usually start paying for parochial education – another hit to the pocketbook.

#5 Vocational confusion
It was difficult at first to admit that my Anglican priesthood was invalid. I wasn’t a priest long, but I heard confessions, anointed the dying, etc. What was I doing? What was God doing? Why did God let me function sacramentally with people who were deeply hurting. I still don’t know how to “classify” those ministerial acts.

I think other would-be converts struggle with the same ideas. Even if they were laymen, they wonder about their past roles as Sunday school teachers, mentors, Bible study leaders, counselors, etc.

#4 Non-Catholic ridicule and estrangement
Family and friends do not understand. Even when they try to understand, they will never appreciate the frustrations, study, and heart-searching that goes into becoming Catholic. Some Anglicans still call me “Father”, which makes me feel uncomfortable. Others have written terrible things about me. I’ve never been more greatly attacked for anything else in my life.

Tension often arises with parents and siblings. I’ve even heard of converts who were cut out of the inheritance because they became “Roman”.

#3 Catholic ridicule and estrangement
This may seem odd, but some Catholics are suspicious of converts to Catholicism. These come in two forms. Type A is the cradle-Catholic who has all their ducks in a row and suspects the convert of being a crypto-Protestant unschooled in the ways of being Catholic. If the new Catholic prays extemporaneously, then it’s “We don’t do that.” If the convert quotes Scripture about something, they frown upon this, too.

Some Catholics also seem to think that it is helpful to ridicule my past as a non-Catholic, as if that would somehow validate me as now “one of them.” Some Catholics just love to hear converts bash their former faith. This places converts in a strange position.

Type B is the cradle-Catholic who is less committed to the distinctives of the Catholic faith. They see zealous converts as a threat. These converts are overly-concerned with dogma and truth. And this leads us to obstruction number two…

#2 RCIA (Rite for Christian Initiation of Adults)
RCIA must have been invented so that every conversion to the Catholic Church might somehow be miraculous. It is becoming an element of Catholic lore that RCIA is commonly led or organized by someone who is a “type B” Catholic as described above. These people don’t seem to understand how zealous these converts can be. These leaders stress the “feelings” part of Catholicism and not the “orthodoxy” part of Catholicism much to the chagrin of the converts who have had it up to their ears in Protestant appeals to their feelings.

It’s amazing how many people “give up” in RCIA. It’s also amazing how many push on through. I know many who have had wonderful RCIA experiences, but I know many more who had to defend the Catholic faith while taking RCIA.

Just so I don’t step on any toes, I salute and applaud all the great RCIA teachers out there. I know that you’re out there and we are thankful for you! Keep up the great work.

#1 Pride
I don’t know how to say this in a witty way, but pride holds the number one slot. At one point in life I felt that I was too good for all those people who respected the Infant of Prague. I’m ashamed to admit, but there it is. Why join a religion where adherents air brush images of Our Lady of Guadalupe on the hoods of their lowriders? (I grew up in Texas…) One Protestant gentlemen even told me that he couldn’t be Catholic because it was “the religion of the masses.” I asked him what he meant, and the term “Mexicans” was employed in his reply.

It’s snobbery against the religion of the masses and immigrants.

It’s just cooler to go to an Evangelical mega-church that has a pool, basketball gym, powerpoint presentations, podcasts, and a rocking “praise team.” I sometimes wish that our homilies had really cool cultural references in them or solidly crafted “gotcha” endings. Alas, this is not typical of the parochial homily.

Question: So these are the top ten that I perceive. I’d love to hear what you think are the obstacles to Catholicism. Would you please share a comment?

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The post 10 Reasons Why It’s Hard to Become Catholic appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. Golgotha, a seemingly unintelligible word, has something to do with a “skull.”
2. Golgotha is located outside the city walls of Jerusalem.
3. Golgotha was a widely known Jewish location with a proper name. Presumably the location symbolized something.

The “place of the skull” is where King David buried the head of the decapitated giant Goliath of Gath. The Bible teaches that after David slew Goliath, he cut off his head and brought it the skull to Jerusalem:

“He ran, and stood over the Philistine, and took his sword, and drew it out of the sheath, and slew him, and cut off his head. And the Philistines seeing that their champion was dead, fled away. And the children of Israel returning, after they had pursued the Philistines, fell upon their camp. And David taking the head of the Philistine, brought it to Jerusalem: but his armour he put in his tent.” (1 Samuel 17:51–54, D-R)

This would explain why the “place of the skull” is oddly named “Golgotha.” The term is a corruption of Hebrew for “Goliath Gath”:

The slaying of Goliath by David was one of the most important events in “Israelite history.” The location of the giant’s head would have been known by all. Hence, “Golgatha” is likely the the place of not just any old skull, but the place of the skull of Goliath of Gath.

The post Golgatha: The Word Symbolizes A Beautiful Reality! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Squanto fell ill of Indian fever, bleeding much at the nose, which the Indians take as a symptom of death, and within a few days he died. He begged the Governor to pray for him, that he might go to the Englishman’s God in heaven, and bequeathed several of his things to his English friends, as remembrances. His death was a great loss.

The post Squanto, the Catholic Hero of the Thanksgiving appeared first on Taylor Marshall.