The Latin Text of Gelasius

The passage is from Pope Saint Gelasius’ work De duabus naturis in Christo Adv. Eutychen et Nestorium (On the two natures of Christ against Eutyches and Nestorius) at section 14. I have included the original Latin text:

*There is an alternative reading provided by Schwartz for verse 5:

Standard reading         ut sicut in hanc, scilicet in divinam transeant
Schwartz reading:       ut sicut haec licet in divinam transeant

The difference doesn’t substantially change the meaning of the text. The primary difference being:

Haec is nominative
Hanc is accusuative

Does Gelasius Contradict the Council of Trent?

The important text is verse 2, where Saint Gelasius explicitly states, “yet the substance or nature of bread and wine (substantia vel natura panis et vini) does not cease.” Strictly speaking, this would place Saint Gelasius at odds with the dogmatic definition of the Council of Trent on transubstantiation, which reads as follows:

“If anyone says that in the sacred and holy sacrament of the Eucharist the substance of the bread and wine remains conjointly with the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, and denies that wonderful and singular change of the whole substance of the bread into the body and the whole substance of the wine into the blood, the appearances only of bread and wine remaining, which change the Catholic Church most aptly calls transubstantiation, let him be anathema.” (Council of Trent, Session 13, Canon 2).”

Trent rejects the affirmation that the substances of bread and wine remain after the consecration. Gelasius says “the substance or nature of bread and wine (substantia vel natura panis et vini) does not cease.”

Two Possible Responses

The Catholic is faced with two possible responses to the formulation of Pope Gelasius:

1. Gelasius was wrong and held an incorrect belief about the Eucharist. But it doesn’t matter because Popes can be personally mistaken on matters of doctrine before their dogmatization.
2. Gelasius used “substance or nature” analogically to refer to what later Catholics called the “accidents of bread and wine,” and verses 5 and 7 reveal his clarification on that matter as in conformity with later Catholic teaching.

The proper response is that the second option, that Gelasius clarified his meaning in verses 2, 5, and 7. Let us look at the passages:

In verse 2, Gelasius states:

“the sacrament which we receive, the body and blood of Christ, is a divine thing (divina res).”

The Latin “res” refers to what is real. Our English word “real” comes from res. It is a divina res, or divine reality. Only after stating this does Gelasius say that “the substance or nature of bread and wine do not cease.” This is problematic because res usually refers to substance. However, we find clarification in verses 5 and 7.

In verse 5, Gelasius states:

5) That just as they pass into this, namely into the divine substance, the Holy Spirit perfecting, nevertheless remaining in the propriety of its nature.

Gelasius states in verse 5 that the bread and wine transeant (pass into or transition into) the divine substance. I have never heard a Protestant affirm that the bread and wine transition into the divine substance. Gelasius then affirms “nevertheless remaining in the propriety of its nature.” The bread and wine here retain not their “natures,” but he clarifies that they retain what is “propriety of its nature.” Gelasius refers here to what is proper to the nature of bread and wine, but this time does not denote “nature” simply. He is clarifying his statement in verse 2. What is proper to the nature of bread? Texture, smell, taste, etc. These are what would later be separated as the “accidents” or sensible features pertaining to the substance of bread. But the res is divine. This essentially clears up the misunderstanding.

Moving to verse 7:

From which permanent things, the one Christ, properly, remains constant, because the integrity and truth are shown to remain.

Gelasius here indicates that the one Christ is constant or enduring in the Eucharist. The full presence of Christ is in the Eucharist.

Two Possible Positions

From this analysis, Gelasius could be said to hold either of the two positions:

1. Consubstantiation: The substances of bread and wine are united to Christ’s divine and human substances. This is problematic because it creates a second hypostatic union with bread and wine. So that Christ now has a divine substance, a human substance, a bread substance, and a wine substance. Actually, it would create a second hypostatic union (union with bread substance) and then a third hypostatic union (with wine substance), since the consecration of each species is separate from the other.
2. Transubstantiation: The substances bread and wine are transubstantiated into the substances of Christ’s divine substance and human substance—the position of the Fourth Lateran Council and the Council of Trent.

One could argue that Gelasius affirms consubstantiation, but he is undoubtedly not affirming a symbolic or memorialist Eucharist held by most Protestants. I think the strongest argument is that Gelasius is describing transubstantiation, because he describes the bread and wine “remaining in the propriety of its nature.” He clarifies “nature” as actually being what is “proper to its nature.”

Furthermore, Gelasius was pope from 492 to his death on 21 November 496. He was daily praying the Roman liturgy with the fully developed Roman Canon as the Eucharistic anaphora or prayer. It is difficult to read the Roman Canon with its prayers over the Eucharist and deduce anything less than transubstantiation. Even Martin Luther (who held something closer to consubstantiation) felt the need to reject the Roman Canon (as used by Gelasius in the fifth century) because of its “transubstantiation” theology.

Imprecision is not Heresy

In conclusion, Gelasius affirmed the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist and asserts that it enters into the divine substance. He remarks that the substance or nature of bread and wine does not cease, but just after that, he clarifies his meaning by his reference to what is proper to their nature.

This debate is akin to that of the miaphysite arguments after the Council of Chalcedon. Miaphysite teaching is based on Saint Cyril of Alexandria’s formula μία φύσις τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου σεσαρκωμένη, meaning “one physis of the Word of God made flesh.” Chalcedon declared “two natures” in Christ but never doubted Saint Cyril’s orthodoxy or sanctity. Saint Cyril defended the right concept but used a different (misleading) formulation regarding one physis or nature with respect to the incarnation. Nobody doubts that Saint Cyril was correct, but later Catholic teaching rejects the “one nature” formulation of Saint Cyril in favor of “two natures.”

Gelasius is teaching the Catholic (Tridentine) doctrine of the Eucharist, but with the confusion about “substance or nature” not being what later Catholic dogma would articulate. Nevertheless, Gelasius does clarify in verse 5 that he is speaking of that which is proper to the nature of bread and wine.

Conclusion

Pope Gelasius (pope from 492-496) would be in continuity with his papal predecessor Pope Leo the Great (pope from 440 to 461) who wrote:

“Dearly beloved, utter this confession with all your heart and reject the wicked lies of heretics, that any contagion with error may not pollute your fasting and almsgiving: for then is our offering of the sacrifice clean and our gifts of mercy holy, when those who perform them understand that which they do. For when the Lord says, “unless ye have eaten the flesh of the Son of Man, and drunk His blood, ye will not have life in you,’ you ought so to be partakers at the Holy Table, as to have no doubt whatever concerning the reality of Christ’s Body and Blood. For that is taken in the mouth which is believed in faith, and it is vain for them to respond ‘Amen’ who dispute that which is taken.” Pope Saint Leo the Great, Sermon 91:3

The worst-case scenario is that Gelasius was teaching consubstantiation (not Protestant symbolism), but this is unlikely. The context of the passage seems to indicate that the bread and wine “enter into the divine substance,” but the properties of bread and wine remain. The entire context suggests what later theologians would call “transubstantiation,” even if Gelasius’s formulation is awkward. The goal here is to use the Eucharist as an analogy in discussing Christology, not as a dogmatic statement about the metaphysics of the Eucharist. That’s why the passage isn’t a major issue for Catholic theologians.

The post Did Pope Gelasius deny transubstantiation? Nature and Substance Debate appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

In the New Testament, the term “bishop” or its Greek equivalent ἐπίσκοπος (episkopos), meaning “overseer,” appears in several passages.

The English word “bishop” derives from the Greek word “episcopos”:

Episcopos > Episcop > Piscop > Biscop > Bishop

The post Bishops in the New Testament – Study on Episcopos appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Hebrews 8:13: “In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete.”

“Finally, He says to them: ‘Your new moons and your Sabbaths I cannot endure.’ You see what He means: it is not the present Sabbaths that are acceptable to Me, but the one which I have made, when, giving rest to all things, I shall make the beginning of an eighth day, that is, the beginning of another world.

Wherefore also we keep the eighth day with joyfulness, the day on which Jesus rose from the dead, and after He had appeared, ascended into the heavens.”

Epistle of Barnabas 15:8–9 (Ante-Nicene Fathers [ANF], Vol. 1, p. 147).

Why Christians Worship on Sunday Instead of Saturday

From a Christian viewpoint, the shift from worshiping on Saturday (the Jewish Sabbath) to Sunday (Christian Lord’s Day) is a profound theological and historical development rooted in the New Testament, early Church tradition, and the fulfillment of the Old Covenant in Christ.

Today, I’ll explore why Christians do not communal worship on Saturday but instead on Sunday, drawing on Sacred Scripture—particularly the New Testament—and the writings of early Church Fathers like Ignatius of Antioch and the author of the Epistle of Barnabas. We now belong to the New Testament and the New Creation in the New Adam, who is Jesus Christ.

Christ’s Resurrection and the Lord’s Day

The New Testament provides the foundational basis for Sunday worship, emphasizing Christ’s resurrection as the defining event that transforms the rhythm of Christian life. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus rises on “the first day of the week” (Matthew 28:1), which corresponds to Sunday in the Jewish reckoning of days beginning at sundown. Similarly, Mark 16:2 states, “And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb,” and Luke 24:1 echoes, “But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb.” John 20:1 reinforces this: “Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early.” This consistent testimony across the Gospels identifies Sunday as the day of Christ’s triumph over death, a pivotal moment that Catholics see as inaugurating a new creation.

New Testament Witness

This resurrection significance extends to early Christian practice. Acts 20:7 records, “On the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread, Paul talked with them.” The phrase “break bread” is widely understood in Catholic tradition as a reference to the Eucharist, the central act of worship. This gathering on Sunday reveals a shift from the Jewish Sabbath (Saturday) to a new day of Eucharistic worship tied to Christ’s rising. Likewise, 1 Corinthians 16:2 advises, “On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up,” indicating a regular Sunday collection during worship, further evidencing its liturgical prominence.

Revelation 1:10 adds a theological layer: “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s Day.” Though not explicitly cited as “Sunday,” early Christians interpreted “the Lord’s Day” (kyriakē hēmera) as the first day of the week, commemorating Christ’s resurrection. The Didache (c. AD 70–120) and later Fathers confirm this usage. Thus, the New Testament establishes Sunday as the day when Christians gathered to celebrate the Eucharist and honor Christ’s victory, distinguishing it from the Jewish Sabbath.

Fulfillment of the Sabbath in Christ

The New Testament views the Sabbath—a commandment to rest on the seventh day (Exodus 20:8–11)—as part of the old creation and old covenant, fulfilled and transformed by Christ in the New Covenant.

Colossians 2:16–17 states, “Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” Paul here identifies the Sabbath as a “shadow,” a prefigurement of the spiritual rest found in Christ, not a perpetual obligation for Christians.

Hebrews 4:9–10 deepens this: “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.” This “Sabbath rest” is eschatological, realized in Christ’s redemptive work, not tied to a specific day.

The Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15) further supports this shift. When debating whether Gentile converts must follow Mosaic Law, the apostles, led by Peter, ruled that only minimal requirements (e.g., abstaining from idolatry and immorality) were necessary, omitting Sabbath observance (Acts 15:28–29). This decision, authoritative for Christians, signals that the ceremonial laws, including the Saturday Sabbath, do not bind Christians.

Early Church Fathers: Ignatius of Antioch

Ignatius of Antioch (d. c. AD 108), a disciple of the Apostle John, provides early testimony to the abandonment of Saturday worship in favor of Sunday. In his Epistle to the Magnesians 9:1, he writes,

“If, therefore, those who were brought up in the ancient order of things have come to the possession of a new hope, no longer observing the Sabbath, but living in the observance of the Lord’s Day, on which also our life has sprung up again by Him and by His death—whom some deny… how shall we be able to live apart from Him?” (ANF, Vol. 1, p. 62).

Ignatius contrasts the Jewish Sabbath with the Lord’s Day (Sunday), linking the latter to Christ’s resurrection as the source of new life. His phrase “no longer observing the Sabbath” explicitly rejects Saturday worship for Christians, emphasizing a theological shift rooted in Easter.
Ignatius’ context is anti-Judaizing: he warns against Christians reverting to Jewish practices, which he sees as denying Christ’s grace (Magnesians 8:1: “If we still live according to the Jewish law, we acknowledge that we have not received grace”). For Christians, Ignatius’ witness, as an Apostolic Father, carries weight, reflecting apostolic tradition that Sunday supplants Saturday as the day of worship.

Early Church Fathers: Epistle of Barnabas

The Epistle of Barnabas (c. AD 70–132), though not canonical, offers a sharp critique of literal Sabbath-keeping, reinforcing the Catholic view. In Barnabas 15:8–9, the author declares,

“Finally, He says to them: ‘Your new moons and your Sabbaths I cannot endure.’ You see what He means: it is not the present Sabbaths that are acceptable to Me, but the one which I have made, when, giving rest to all things, I shall make the beginning of an eighth day, that is, the beginning of another world. Wherefore also we keep the eighth day with joyfulness, the day on which Jesus rose from the dead” (ANF, Vol. 1, p. 147).

Citing Isaiah 1:13, the author argues that God rejects the Jewish Sabbath, reinterpreting it as an eschatological rest fulfilled in Christ. The “eighth day” (Sunday, following the seventh-day Sabbath) symbolizes this new era, aligning with resurrection theology.

Christians observe this as evidence of an early Christian consensus that Saturday worship is obsolete, replaced by Sunday’s celebration of the “new world” begun in Christ. While Barnabas is polemical and not magisterial, its influence on early theology underscores the shift away from Judaizing practices.

Theological Rationale: Sunday as the Day of the New Creation

Christian doctrine ties Sunday worship to the concept of a “new creation.” Just as God rested on the seventh day after creating the world (Genesis 2:2–3), Christ’s resurrection on the first day marks the renewal of a new creation. Christ fulfills the Sabbath’s purpose—rest and communion with God—in a new context, as Christ’s victory over sin and death (Romans 6:4) surpasses the old order.

The Church Fathers amplify this. Ignatius’ “life has sprung up again” (Magnesians 9) and Barnabas’ “beginning of another world” (15:8) echo 2 Corinthians 5:17: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” Sunday thus becomes the day when Catholics celebrate this renewal through the Mass, which re-presents Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection.

Traditional Witness and Authority

Historically, Christian Sunday communal worship emerged early, as seen in Acts 20:7 and 1 Corinthians 16:2, and was codified by Church authority. The Council of Laodicea (c. AD 363–364), Canon 29, later declared, “Christians must not judaize by resting on the Sabbath, but must work on that day… preferring in honor the Lord’s Day” (NPNF, Series 2, Vol. 14, p. 148). This reflects a Catholic reliance on apostolic tradition and the Magisterium to interpret Scripture, per 2 Thessalonians 2:15: “Stand firm and hold to the traditions that you were taught by us.”

Conclusion for Christians

Christians worship on Sunday, not Saturday, because the New Testament establishes it as the day of Christ’s resurrection (Matthew 28:1, Acts 20:7), fulfilling the Sabbath’s shadow (Colossians 2:16–17) in a New Covenant of grace (Acts 15). Fathers such as Ignatius of Antioch confirm this shift, rejecting Sabbath observance for the Lord’s Day (Magnesians 9:1), while Barnabas redefines rest as an eschatological reality celebrated on the “eighth day” (15:8–9). Theologically, Sunday honors the new creation in Christ, a truth the Catholic Church, guided by apostolic authority, has upheld since the resurrection of Christ. For Christians, this is not a rejection of the Sabbath’s sanctity but its transformation into a higher celebration of redemption, lived out each Sunday in the Eucharist.

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The post Should Christians Keep the Seventh-Day Sabbath? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. Didache
2. Epistle of Clement of Rome
3. Epistle of Barnabas

Brief history of the Epistle of Barnabas:

1. The Epistle of Barnabas dates between AD 70 and AD 135 with an attribution to the Apostle Barnabas, the co-missionary with the Apostle Paul. “When the apostles Barnabas and Paul had heard, rending their clothes, they leaped out among the people, crying.” (Acts 14:13) Barnabas speaks of the Jerusalem temple being destroyed, an event that happened in AD 70.
2. Barnabas is quite familiar with New Testament literature and he refers to or cites Matthew, John, Romans, 1 Corinthains, Hebrews, and 1 Peter.
3. The complete text of Barnabas is preserved in the 4th-century Codex Sinaiticus. It appears at the end of the New Testament, following the Book of Revelation and before the Shepherd of Hermas.
4. Some early Fathers of the Church ascribed it to the Barnabas mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles. Early Egyptian Christians, namely Clement of Alexandria, Origen, and Didymus the Blind quoted from Barnabas. May scholars today attribute it to an otherwise unknown early Christian teacher. I personally believe it was written by Saint Barnabas, who appears in Acts. The theological argument corresponds closely to the theology of Paul’s Galatians and Hebrews (yes, I also believe Paul is the author of Hebrews with Luke as a writer).

Who is the Evil Angel?

Barnabas on the Deception of Food Laws

1. Swine: Forgetfulness of God and ingratitude
2. Eagle, Hawk, Kite, Crow: Stealing dead meat as injustice, oppression, and greed
3. Fish Without Scales: Instability and wickedness living at the bottom in darkness
4. Rabbit: Sexual immorality, pederasty and promiscuity
5. Hyena: Sexual perversion and transgenderism
6. Weasel: Sins of the mouth, such as slander and oral sodomy

Is the Evil Angel the Demiurge or Satan?

Satan as Evil Angel

The post Who is the Evil Angel in the Epistle of Barnabas? Are the Rabbis Satanic? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Catholicism argues for a hierarchy of duty with regard to the love of neighbor. Christ our Lord taught the parable of the Good Samaritan to reveal that our duty to love our neighbor extends to all. Nevertheless, the order of love is not flattened out completely and redistributed to all persons without distinction. For example, as a married man, I have the obligation of love to make sure that my wife’s medical care is being met before I do the other 50 women on the same hospital floor. There is a higher love for my wife that is not wrong or selfish. Likewise, I have a higher obligation of love to make sure that my own children are properly nourished and clothed–above my duty to to feed and clothe children in France.

The principle is set down by Saint Paul:

But if any man have not care of his own, and especially of those of his house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel. 1 Timothy 5:8

As a Christian, I must have a concern for the well-being of all people made in the image of God, but I have a rightful prior concern for “those of his house.”

Saint Thomas Aquinas discusses the hierarchy or ordo caritatis (order of charity) at Summa theologiae II, q. 26 and orders love in this way:

1. God
2. Myself (“a man ought to love himself more than his neighbor.”)
3. Neighbor
4. My body (:”we ought to love our neighbor more than our own body.”)

Regarding our neighbor, Thomas teaches we love all universally but practically we must love unequally

On this respect we love all men equally out of charity: because we wish them all one same generic good, namely everlasting happiness. Secondly love is said to be greater through its action being more intense: and in this way we ought not to love all equally. STh q. 26, a. 6.

The degree of care we have for our various neighbors is related to proximity levels of kinship, friendship, and nationality:

Moreover there is yet another reason for which, out of charity, we love more those who are more nearly connected with us, since we love them in more ways. For, towards those who are not connected with us we have no other friendship than charity, whereas for those who are connected with us, we have certain other friendships, according to the way in which they are connected. STh q. 26, a. 6.

A proper ordo amoris may look like this:

1. God
2. myself
3. my spouse
4. my family, children and parents
5. my godchildren and extended family
6. my friends and coworkers
7. my neighborhood (I pay HOA for this one, not all neighborhoods)
8. my county
9. my state
10. my nation
11. my nation’s allies

The Christian may at any time extend charity, love and care to someone outside this levels of proximate and remote relationships. An American traveling for business can give alms to a stranger in Argentina. The act is perfectly Christian if done with the proper intention to honor God. The alms would immoral, however, if that money prevented him from paying the mortgage on his family home or prevented him from paying for a taxi to make his airplane flight back to his family. The ordo amoris establishes the what is and is not allowed in the quest for charity toward God and neighbor.

Consequently, we use our goods and time to execute a positive effect in the world so that “thy kingdom come, by will be done.” There is however a rational order, hierarchy and prevention mechanism in the pursuit of love or charity.

The post JD Vance and Thomas Aquinas on Ordo Amoris appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

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In this podcast I explain the epic botafumeiro. As promised, in the the podcast I include my video footage of the botafumeiro in action.

Godspeed,
Dr Taylor Marshall

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Listen to the mp3 podcast below to the amazing experience of arriving with all the pilgrims on the Camino of Santiago (podcast and photo below):

Buen Camino!
Dr Marshall

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Today we arrived at the historic Benedictine monastery at Samos. I detail the building and lament on the collapse of Christianity in Spain (and especially the collapse of monasticism). Click below to listen:

Dr Taylor Marshall

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As one who connects the Old Testament features to Catholic dogma (see this book: The Crucified Rabbi), I’ve always been painfully aware that the term “apostle” doesn’t have a slick connection to Old Testament kingdom language.

Pagan “Boat” Sources for the Term Apostle:

In pagan Greek sources (such as in the writings of the Greek historian Herodotus), ἀπόστολος (apostolos) refers to a political or military delegate or messenger. ἀπόστολος also refers to the commander of a naval force.

In fact, στόλος refers to a naval division or to a colony. So an ἀπόστολος is one who travels out to these naval colonies. Sometimes ἀπόστολος is used to refer to a formal naval dispatch or to an export license to/from these colonies.

So when the New Testament authors adopt this Greek term, they are not merely referring to a local rabbi or preacher. They are using a term that referred to diplomats who traveled to the farrest ends of the earth. It’s a global or catholic term.

Pauline Sources for the Term:

The term ἀπόστολος appears only once in the Greet Septuagint (Greek version of Old Testament) at 1 Kings 14:6 where ἀπόστολος is a translation of the Hebrew שָׁלוּחַ (sha-lach). The term appears 79 times in the New Testament – 68 of which are found in the writings of Paul and his disciple Luke.

It seems that originally ἀπόστολος referred to each of the original Twelve Apostles. However, Saint Paul opened the term to include himself, Barnabas (Acts 14:14) and Timothy and Silvanus (1 Thessalonians 2:7). Paul also speaks of false apostles in 2 Corinthians.

In Hebrews, Luke/Paul identify Jesus as “the apostle and high priest of our confession” (Heb 3:1). In this context, apostleship is associated with the high priesthood. This is our biggest hint into how early Christians understood the term ἀπόστολος. It was missionary and priestly. Just as an ἀπόστολος origianlly referred to naval delegates to colonies, so a high priest bridges over water as a pontifex, a bridge builder between God and man.

According to Paul, apostles surpass the various other offices within the Church of “teachers, evangelists, and prophets” (διδάσκαλος, εὐαγγελιστής, προφήτης). In the mind of Paul, an apostle is more than these three. I would argue, that for Paul an apostle is all three of these at once while also being priestly diplomats for Christ.

Are Apostles Political or Priestly?

At first glance into a Greek dictionary, the term ἀπόστολος seems political or mercantile. It’s a civil title. However, the Christians looked to King Melchizedek and King David as “priest kings” or “liturgical kings” as the prototypes for King Jesus. So the political realm collapses into the priestly liturgical realm. This is why Christ is both establishing a “kingdom” (political) and also building at “temple” (priestly). He is king and pontiff. And so also, his political ministers are both political and cultic. The ἀπόστολος is a naval delegate for foreign colonies throughout the world but he is also a sacrificial priest who offers the Gentiles to God as sacrifice and who offers the Eucharist as sacrifice.

Apostles on a Boat:

One final related topic. I couldn’t help but noticed that in Acts, the vivid scenes of Paul traveling by ship may in fact be intentionally recounted with detail to bolster Paul’s identity as ἀπόστολος. In the Greek mind, the ἀπόστολος is primarily naval and thus Paul is literally fulfilling his role as ἀπόστολος (maybe better so than the Twelve!). Also, the stories of Saint James Zebedee going to and from (posthumously) to Spain by boat ratifies James as a true apostle for Jesus. And let’s not forget all the “Jesus in a boat” scenes from the Gospels!

[reminder]

The post What is an Apostle? (And How it Relates to all the Boat Scenes in the Bible) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Here is an audio file of me recounting the experience and explaining the Iron Cross tradition:

Here is the Cruz de Ferro surrounded by pebbles placed their by pilgrims over time:

The post 139: Embarrassing Fall at the Iron Cross (Camino 3) [Podcast] appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

I will be praying for all readers, video watchers, and NSTI members in general, but if you have a specific intention, please leave it in the comments below and I’ll carry your prayer with me into the Churches and finally to the resting place of Saint James the Greater within the Basilica.

[reminder]I won’t be posting here for awhile as I don’t know if I’ll have internet access as we move along the pilgrimage.I’ll pray for you. Leave your intentions in the comments below. [/reminder]

Godspeed,
Dr Taylor Marshall

PS: I hope to post photos and comments along the way. You can follow these photos at Instagram. My profile there is “drtaylormarshall.” Please follow me on Instagram to see our progress through Spain.

The post Can I pray for you on Pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Sometime around the 200s BC a Jewish document called “Book of Enoch” or 1 Enoch was produced. It gives all the details on how angelic beings copulated with human women and created a cosmic mess before the Flood. And here’s the interesting problem we have:

Saint Jude (Jude 1:14-15) directly quotes this non-biblical document known as “Book of Enoch” or 1 Enoch:

It’s not only this direct quotation of 1 Enoch by Jude, but Jude (and 2 Peter) allude to the fantastical events of 1 Enoch, namely the sexual encounters of fallen angels with human women, which gives birth to the nephilim or “giants.” The birth of the giants, according to 1 Enoch, is the reason for the Noah’s Flood.

And this belief is also found in the canonical book of Wisdom:

“And from the beginning also when the proud giants (γιγάντων) perished, the hope of the world fleeing to a vessel, which was governed by thy hand, left to the world seed of generation.” (Wisdom 14:6)

The author of Wisdom clearly associates the flood to a divine genocide of the race of the giants (γιγάντων) to leave the world a “seed of generation.” (Saint Paul quotes from Wisdom about 7 times – so Saint Paul also likely hold this belief.)

Let me tell you the story of Angels and Giants that 1 Enoch tells:

In 1 Enoch, Yahweh sends 200 angels to guide and instruct humanity. These 200 angels are called “Irin” in Aramaic and “Egregoroi” in Greek. Both words mean “Watchers.” These Watchers corrupt humanity by teaching them evil arts such as cosmetology (sorry ladies), sorcery, astrology, and the arts of war.

These angels also seduce human women and copulate with them. The women give birth to nephilim or giants. God causes these giants to fight and die. Then the souls of the giants turn into demons that haunt and tempt humans for the rest of time.

• So Yahweh binds these 200 evil angelic Watchers into “Tartarus.”
• What is Tartarus? In the Homer’s Iliad, Zeus teaches that Tartarus is “as far beneath Hades as heaven is above earth.” Tartarus is the deepest part of the underworld, far below Hades.
• It’s noteworthy that the term “tartarus” is used by Enoch and 2 Peter. This signals the blending of Hebrew history with Greek mythology since Greek myth depict Zeus (after 10 years of battle or titanomachy) sending the older primordial deities called Titans into the deep dungeon abyss of “tartarus.”

Notably 2 Peter explicitly uses Enoch’s word “Tartarus” for the condemnation of fallen “angels.” Jude and 2 Peter use almost the same words, but 2 Peter uses “Tartarus”:

It seems that 1 Enoch (and maybe Jude and 2 Peter) have assimilated the titanomachy legend of Zeus condemning the Titans into Tartaus into a legend about Yahweh condemning the 200 angelic Watchers into the chains of Tartarus. But in the 1 Enoch legend the crime is that of angels procreating mutant giants with human women.

“And when the angels, the sons of heaven, beheld them, they became enamored of them, saying to each other, Come, let us select for ourselves wives from the progeny of men, and let us beget children.” (1 Enoch 7:2)

The resulting children are called nephilim in Hebrew or gigantes (giants) in Latin and Greek. In 1 Enoch, the historical Enoch goes to God and seeks to make intercession for the forgiveness of the giants. God refuses and the giants are condemned. This part of the story is referred to in Sirach:

“He was not propitiated for the ancient giants who revolted in their might.” (Sirach 16:7)

The Dead Sea Scrolls contain 10 copies (!) of the Book of Giants – a work that describes in detail the conception of giants in Genesis 6 from the union of women and angelic watchers. The giants were warriors and cannibals. This theology was an important part of the theology of Second Temple Judaism.

Church Fathers who explicitly teach that angels copulated with women and bred giants in Genesis 6:

Justin Martyr, Tatian, Clement of Alexandria, Origen, Tertullian, Irenaeus, Athenagoras, Commodianus, Ambrose of Milan.

In the City of God, Saint Augustine taught that the “sons of God” in Genesis 6 were simply human ancestors of Seth and that they bred with the evil daughters of men/Cain. This became the received tradition in the post Augustinian Christian West. It’s notable, however, that his mentor Saint Ambrose believed that the “sons of God” were in fact angels that copulated with humans.

What’s going on here in the Hebrew tradition?

The “Legend of the Watchers” in 1 Enoch was written in the Maccabean period before Christ. It’s could be a Jewish appropriation of a Greek myth but it’s likely explaining how the Hellenistic invaders are:

1. The Gentile invaders of the Holy Land (312-63 BC)
2. Greeks teaching and requiring Jews to follow pagan customs
3. Greeks marrying and copulating with Jewish women
4. The production of “hybrid” Greek/Jewish children that are considered “monstrous”
5. The need to destroy and drive out the Greeks by means of the Maccabean Revolt (167-160 BC)

The titanomachy of Enoch is not historically “Zeus vs. Titans” or “Yahweh vs. Watchers,” but Judah Maccabeus vs. Greeks.

How does Catholic Christianity understand the “angels and tartarus” sections?

Saint Augustine and Saint Thomas Aquinas (both had not read 1 Enoch) interpretted the passages in Jude and 2 Peter in this way:

1. Before the flood, the “sons of God” were the righteous humans and the “daughters of men” were the female daughters of evil humans from Cain. These women were evil and and they seduced the noble and righteous sons of Seth.
2. They interbred and this lead to the moral corruption of humanity.
3. God sent a flood to kill everyone since they were all now a mixture of sons of Seth and daughters of Cain.

The solution here is to read “sons of God” not as “angelic beings” but as holy humans. It’s plausible and it has become the accepted tradition in Catholicism. However, ever since the Flood, good people have been interbreeding with evil people. And we know that the child of a holy mother and an evil father can turn out either good or bad. There are not “evil genetics.”

We can see here that the problem of intermarrying between the righteous and the wicked didn’t suddenly stop because water covered the land.

So it seems that Genesis describes a “water genocide” of a corrupted angel-human species. And certainly 1 Enoch is following the idea. If Jude (and 2 Peter) considered 1 Enoch as theological true, this would mean that at least one (or two) Apostle(s) believed the Enochic legend of the Watcher angels being sent to “Tartarus” because they had deceived humans and copulated with them.

The Enochic Legend as a theological device in Jude and 2 Peter:

Regardless of whether Jude and 2 Peter believed the Enochic “Watcher-Angel legend,” we know for a fact that they applied it as a teaching paradigm for their contemporary Apostolic Church:

1. There are false heretical teachers that were once part of the Apostolic Church
2. These have fallen away from Christ and are teaching Christians false doctrine and sin
3. These heretics are having illicit sex with Christians (their lust here and in Revelation is highlighted)
4. These heretics will be judged in the same way as the Watchers: they will be locked up in the dark tartarus forever.

If Jude and 2 Peter did not quote and/or reference 1 Enoch, we could cast off 1 Enoch forever as a Jewish oddity. But since there is a theological reference of 1 Enoch within Jude and 2 Peter, it provides a challenge.

I’m curious, how do you read the canonical passages of Genesis 6, Jude, 2 Peter (as well as Wisdom, Sirach and several Dead Sea Scrolls that promote the idea of giants as children of human women and demonic angels) in light of 1 Enoch? Secondly, do you think Jude and 2 Peter take the Enochic Watcher-Legend literally or are they simply using it to make an contemporary application against lustful heretics?

[reminder]

Godspeed,
Dr Taylor Marshall

PS: I recorded a podcast on the role of 1 Enoch in the Noah film that came out a few years ago starring Russell Crowe as Noah. You can listen to it by clicking here: Podcast on Noah (2014 Film) and 1 Enoch.

The post Angels having Relations with Humans within Jude and 2 Peter and 1 Enoch appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

How was he martyred and why do Catholic and Orthodox images of Saint George have him fighting a mythical dragon?

Best-selling author and scholar Dr Taylor Marshall explains the authentic history of Saint George and the meaning of the “George and Dragon legend.”

Watch the New Saint Thomas Institute Catholic video on Saint George and the Dragon Icon here:

If you’d like to sign up for a Catholic course in Catholic Church History featuring Church Fathers and early Catholic Saints, please click here: New Saint Thomas Institute Course on Church History and Church Fathers.

For more information about online courses and Certificates in Theology through the New Saint Thomas Institute, please visit newsaintthomas.com.

Sword and Serpent: My Best-Selling Novel about Saint George is on sale this weekend

Looking for a Catholic fiction page-turner? I published a #1 best-selling historical fiction novel about Saint George and the Dragon (plus St Christopher, Emperor Constantine, Diocletian, et al.) titled Sword and Serpent. 

Father Dwight Longenecker wrote a glowing review of Sword and Serpent here.

Here’s the book trailer for Sword and Serpent on YouTube:

The novel is now on sale for this April 23 week on Kindle and in paperback. Click here to get a copy.

Get a copy of this novel about Saint George on sale here.

The post Did St George really fight a Dragon? Byzantine Icon Analysis and History appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Simili modo postquam coenatum est, accipiens et hunc praeclarum Calicem in sanctas ac venerabiles manus suas: item tibi gratias agens, benedixit, deditque discipulis suis, dicens: Accipite et bibite ex eo omnes…

Which I translate as:

In similar way, after He had supped, taking also this precious chalice into His holy and venerable hands again giving thanks to Thee, He blessed it, and gave it to His disciples, saying: All of you, take and drink this…

There is a tradition that the chalice used in Rome was once the actual chalice used by our Lord Jesus Christ at the first Eucharist.

When the Roman Emperor Valerian ordered the beheading of Pope Sixtus II in Rome, the Pope’s deacon named Lawrence sold the gold chalices and precious items and gave the proceeds to the poor. However, there was one item that was preserved. According to legend it was the chalice used at the Last Supper by Christ and served as the personal chalice of Saint Peter who had brought it to Rome. This is why the Roman liturgy reads: “hunc praeclarum Calicem.” Laurence gave this special chalice to a Roman soldier who took it to Spain.

Here is a photo of it paired with a painting from 1560 by Juan de Juanes that incorporated it:

And painted by Juan de Juanes:

If this tradition is valid, then this is the chalice of the Son of God and also the chalice of Saint Peter used by Peter and all popes up till the martyred Pope Sixtus II. The mystery of faith.

[reminder]

The post The Chalice of the Last Supper and Saint Laurence of Rome appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. What does the name “Joseph” mean?
2. Where is he mentioned in the 4 Gospels?
3. Was Joseph really a “carpenter” or something more?
4. What languages would he have spoken? Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek and Latin?
5. Was Joseph young or old when he married Mary?
6. Was he truly married to Mary even those it was a Josephite marriage?
7. Did Joseph ever commit sins?
8. Why are there no relics of Joseph?
9. Should you bury his statue to sell your home?

Listen to this brief podcast as I tackle each of these questions:

Or download the mp3 directly by clicking here.

The post 133: Saint Joseph in 9 Points Podcast (Should You Bury His Statue?) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

[callout]PARENTAL WARNING: I discuss a strange episode in Patrick’s life where sailors ask him to “suck their breasts” and explain what that meant in ancient Ireland (Hint: it symbolized as oath of coming under another person’s protection.)[/callout]

If the audio player does not show up in your email or browser, please click here to listen.

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• Announcements:
  • The podcast is now on my channel on Youtube.com
  • The complete Sword and Serpent Trilogy is now published, including the the third Book: Storm of Fire and Blood.
  • Download the Study Guide at: http://swordandserpent.com
  • New classes at New Saint Thomas Institute. We have just begun our New Testament Studies curriculum. Please visit: newsaintthomas.com for more details.

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[reminder]

If you like this podcast, please leave a review.

The post 132: St Patrick in 9 Bullet Points and the “Two Patrick Theory” [Podcast] appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Since the Apostles and Church Fathers universally recognized that baptism was the instrumental means by which Jesus Christ removes sin and infuses grace, they also received the pastoral question of what happens to unbaptized babies. Before we look St Gregory the Theologian, let that sink in. The presumption is that infants should be baptized.

Not only that, but we know from the Eastern Fathers and from Western Fathers like Cyprian, Ambrose, and Augustine that baptized infants were confirmed and received the Holy Eucharist. We Roman Catholics would do well to request that the Apostolic and Patristic practice of paedo-communion (infant communion) be rightfully restored to our children.

Here is Saint Gregory “the Theologian” Nazianzus on the death of unbaptized children:

“And so also in those who fail to receive the gift [of baptism]…perhaps on account of infancy, or some perfectly involuntary circumstance through which they are prevented from receiving it, even if they wish…will be neither glorified nor punished by the righteous Judge, as unsealed [by baptism] and yet not wicked, but persons who have suffered rather than done wrong. For not every one who is not bad enough to be punished is good enough to be honored; just as not every one who is not good enough to be honored is bad enough to be punished.”

-Saint Gregory Nazianzus, Oration 40 on the Topic of Baptism, AD 329-390)

Let’s break all this down in bullet point format for clarity:

• Gregory begins with those that die without baptism as adults who are not baptized because of “involuntary circumstance.”
• Gregory then distinguishes those that die without baptism “on account of infancy.”
• Gregory states such persons are neither glorified or punished.

“neither glorified nor punished”

The terms “glorified” and “punished” are most important. What do they mean here?

Let’s start with “punished.” There are two forms of punishment in the afterlife. The first punishment of Gehenna is eternal. It is the punishment of everlasting damnation. The second punishment of therapeutic and cleanses the soul. This is the fire of purification in 1 Corinthians 3:15, and what we call purgative fire.

Clearly an unbaptized baby is not going to be burning in Gehenna forever (Augustine is the only known Christian theologian to even suggest this, and he admits it being untenable). Moreover, it is also untenable to suggest that unbaptized infants go into purgative fires after death, because there is not evil in the soul to cleanse. What is lacking is the gift of sanctifying grace.

In conclusion, no infant (by which we mean ages 0-7 years) would ever go into the eternal fires of Gehenna or the temporary fires of Purgatory.

What is Glorification?

Let’s now look at the term “glorified.” Saint Paul uses the language of “glorification” to describe the final transformation of the Christian after death in the presence of God:

“And those whom he predestined he also called; and those whom he called he also justified; and those whom he justified he also glorified.” (Romans 8:30)

Glorified means to enter the glory of God. It refers to the human soul partaking of the divine nature. Thomas Aquinas calls this becoming “deiform.”

Saint Gregory Nazianzus teaches that the unbaptized infant would not enter the divine glory or partake of the divine nature. So where does this leave the unbaptized baby?

It would seem that the Church Fathers were open to the idea of a natural paradise in the afterlife that was not the same as the supernatural glory paradise of Heaven. What is a “natural paradise”? Well it would entail perfect natural happiness. This would include all pleasure that could be naturally experienced. Saint Thomas Aquinas even suggests that angels infuse light and knowledge into the souls of unbaptized infants. However, it would stop short of the beatific vision and partaking of the divine nature.

Example: the Mother and Child in the Louvre

I once heard a priest suggest that it might be like a 3 year old accompanying his mother the Louvre Museum in Paris. The mother is in awe as she studies the Venus de Milo or the Mona Lisa. However, the 3 year old child does not possess the capacity to admire the Mona Lisa like his mother. The child may be perfectly happy holding the mother’s hand, or examining the pattern of her mother’s dress, or watching the janitor mop the floor in the adjacent gallery.

1. Is the child happy? Yes.
2. Is the child suffering or being punished? No.
3. Are the mother and child together? Yes.
4. Are the mother and child experiencing the same thing? No.
5. Can the child appreciate the Louvre more than he would appreciate a playground? Probably not – and that is perfectly fine!

Whether we call it Limbo, natural paradise, or something else, it doesn’t seem that we must rush to “all dogs and all babies go to Heaven no matter what.” One of the richest elements of Catholicism (that I constantly stress this on Youtube) is that there is a rich and exotic geography in the Catholic afterlife.

The Catholic Geography of the Afterlife:

There are “many mansions” in Heaven. There are various levels along the way. There is Hades or Inferno which contains up to 4 sections, including Purgatory which also contains various levels. Catholicism does have a binary finality of “Heaven and Hell” but that there are many levels, provinces, guilds, and neighborhoods within each. Every person in Heaven experiences God is a particular way relative to his life on earth. Every person in Hell experiences a varying degree of punishment and intensity relative to his life on earth. God is perfectly just and he doesn’t punish people inordinately.

You sometimes hear someone say: “So you’re saying that if I skip Mass on Sunday, I’m going to burn in Hell forever just like Adolf Hitler?”

That is not what we are saying. We are saying that there is a Hell and if you sin mortally you will be rightfully punished in Hell. That punishment for neglecting Mass will justly be less than the person who performed 5,000 abortions, raped 10 people, donated to the Nazi party, tortured pets, and was ordained as a priest of the Church of Satan. If there are a million and four people in Hell, there are one million and four justly arranged penalties for each and every inhabitant. God is infinitely and perfectly just, and he would never punish someone beyond the measure of their crimes.

The reverse is also true of Heaven. If there are one million and four people in Heaven, there are one million and four different ways of reward and experience of the divine nature. Saint Francis’s proximity and experience of the Holy Trinity is different than that of Saint Mary Magdalene or Saint Ambrose. Each has a various level of charity and merit based on their life and decisions. This delights God.

In conclusion, whether we speak of the Saints, the Old Testament righteous before Christ, those in purgatory, the unbaptized infant, or even the damned in Hell, the afterlife is indeed “customized” by the providential and perfect judgment of God in response to our faith, works, and charity. Nobody, as Gregory states, is punished for something he never performed.

If you’d like to take an online course in Church Fathers (including Gregory Nazianzus) or New Testament Studies (including St Paul on baptism), please visit our online classes for Catholic students:

• Certificate in Church Fathers
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The post Concerning the Death of Unbaptized Infants by St Gregory Nazianzus appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. Pope Zachary appointed Saint Boniface (Apostle of Germany) in AD 742 as Papal Legate to the German dioceses.
2. Pope Zachary condemned the practice of worshipping angels in AD 745.
3. He is the Pope known for deposing the Merovingian King of the Franks, Childeric III and then granting the crown to Pepin the Short, the father of Charlemagne. Saint Boniface crowned Pepin King of the Franks at Soissons in 752.
4. Pope Zachary accused the court of Constantinople, along with its Patriarch, and its Emperor Constantine V of heresy. They promoted iconoclasm: the destruction of images of Christ and the saints and banned their production. (Here’s my podcast on iconoclasm in its Byzantine context.)
5. Pope Zachary built the original church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva (“over Minerva”) over an ancient temple to Minerva near the Pantheon. This church would later become a setting for the Dominican Order. It’s (revised) interior is stunning.
6. Pope Zachary forbade the selling of slaves to Muslims in the city of Rome.
7. But here is why I really like Pope Zachary: While restoring the Lateran Palace, he relocated the relic of the skull of Saint George to the church of San Giorgio al Velabro (a church I visit annually in Rome).

Here’s a photo of me in San Giorgio al Velabro kneeling by the altar that holds the skull of Saint George.

It looks empty now but a cleric in the church told me that the skull is still in there. Just not visible (if I understood his Italian).

If you’d like to read my bestselling historical fictional account of Saint George’s life, please check out my novel: Sword and Serpent at amazon.com.

The post Pope Zachary (d. 752) in 7 Points appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Canonizations are Infallible. Here’s why:

Concerning the Potential Problem of “Damned Saints”:

When a person is damned, he hates and curses God forever in Hell. That’s what damnation is. It’s a decision to reject God and His love. The damned person lacks all charity toward God. As Thomas Aquinas, would say, he belongs to the Kingdom of Satan. He is officially anti-Christ.

If the Church mistakingly were to canonize a damned man, then that means monks and nuns would be praying the Liturgy of the Hours and commemorating a man who currently curses God – and doing so annually in the liturgical cycle. Moreover, this would entail that priests are celebrating Masses in honor of a man who is literally diabolical. Even more so, churches, chapels, and cathedrals would be erected and consecrated in honor a man who hates God. No doubt, the devil would love all of this. So canonizations are infallible.

Concerning the Potential Problem of “Make-Believe Saints”

The same goes saints who are claimed to not have existed. If someone were to say that St George or St Christopher were make-believe people, then you have the Liturgy of Hours and Holy Mass celebrated to what amount to cartoon characters. It would be like celebrating Mass in honor of Luke Skywalker. It’s a mockery of true religion.

[Shameless plug: Check out my #1 Bestselling Historical Novel Sword and Serpent for a plausible biography of Saint George (and the “Dragon”) along with Saint Christopher by clicking here.]

We can grant that the legends and hagiography about certain saints are exaggerated or embellished, but we cannot say that the Church formally venerates imaginary people, celebrated Mass in honor of imaginary people, or that there are Churches dedicated to imaginary people.

If so, the devil would love all of this. So canonizations are infallible. It’s also worth noting that when a Pope canonizes a saint he invokes his authority as Vicar of Christ and successor to Saints Peter and Paul in a way similar to declaring dogmas infallible.

I recently wrote a history of the process of canonizations. You can read it here: “How Saints are Canonized: from Local to Papal Canonizations over Time.”

The post Are Catholic Canonizations of Saints Infallible? Yes appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

The feast of the Holy Innocents marks the martyrdom of an unnumbered group of boys aged 2 and under during the reign of King Herod and fulfills the prophecy of St Jeremias:

Then was fulfilled that which was spoken through Jeremiah the prophet, saying, ‘A voice is heard in Ramah, mourning and great weeping, Rachel weeping for her children and refusing to be comforted, because her children are no more.’ (Jer 31:15)

How can children become martyrs if they cannot speak or affirm faith?

These holy innocents are martyrs because they were murdered in odium fidei (in hatred of the Faith). If someone kills a child on accident or even through malice, that child is not a martyr. However, if the murderer kills the child out of hatred for Christ or the Christian faith, then the child is a martyr. Same goes for adults. If a robber shoots a father in his home, he is not a martyr. If an Islamic State terrorists shoots because a man because he won’t renounce Christ, then that victim is a martyr.

Children can become martyrs for the same reason that children are baptized. Other persons can effect persecution (or sacramental grace) upon them. Babies have personal relationships. My babies had “personal relationships” with their mother at the breast immediately (and even before birth). It’s a unique non-verbal relationship. And if that “personal relationship” between mother and baby exists, then a “personal relationship” can exist between a baby and our Triune God.

Parents usher their babies into the eternal life and energy of the Holy Trinity at the baptismal font and so also did Herod’s soldiers baptize the Holy Innocents with their own blood.

Our family asks for the intercession of the boy Holy Innocents every evening and their presence in Scripture and the Catholic Calendar remind us that children die. But why?

Why do children die?

Saint Irenaeus of Lyons (d. 202) explained how the sin of Adam and Eve passed down to all generations and deprived even infants of the supernatural blessing of Eden.

The Eastern Fathers such as Saint Gregory Nazianzus noted the theological problem of children dying. Children are not guilty of personal sins. Why would God allow them to die. And when they die, where do they go? Heaven? Hell? Perhaps a special place reserved for them?

Saint Gregory and others noted that children die not through their own fault, but on account of being born outside Eden – that is being born under the sin of Adam and Eve. The Eastern Churched calls this προπατορικὸν ἁμάρτημα (propatorikon harmatema) or “ancestral sin.”

The Western Church calls it peccatum originale or “original sin.” Without getting into Eastern vs. Western distinctions, all Christians agree that the penalty of death has spread to all human persons, even children. And we all agree (even the Jansenist or Calvinist) that children die not on account of their own personal misdeeds.

Why do they die? We don’t know, but we trust that their eternal life is better than any life they had here. Whether it is postulated as natural paradise, limbo, or a hope for supernatural Heaven itself, their life is one of peace, rest, happiness, and beatitude.

Do most humans die in infancy?

It’s patently obvious that more than 51+% of members of the race of homo sapiens died before the age of 7. We might even dare to say that 51+% of every homo sapiens died before being born. This is a starting fact to consider from a theological perspective. Most humans in God’s image died prior breathing.

Why is this?

There are a few optional explanations:

1. Predestination Option: God predestines most humans to die in utero or in infancy because he likes the idea of Heaven (or limbo) being populated with people who have never committed a personal sin against him or another – despite them having been conceived without habitual grace. This theory would posit that every human child receives habitual or sacramental grace prior to death to Heaven OR that they don’t receive habitual grace and so end up in perfect natural (but not supernatural) paradise. And this natural paradise is often known off the cuff as limbo. (Pun intended. The Latin limbus means “cuff”.)

   [NOTE: I should add here that the heretic John Calvin used this argument above (that all deceased babies go to Heaven) in favor of unconditional election. He noted that so many babies die before and after birth (including his own dead children), and so this confirms the fact that God chooses them for Heaven without any faith or merit.]

2. Pre-Existence Option: The Church Father (but not saint) Origen posited that every human pre-existed in a celestial realm prior to conception in a mother’s womb. Each of these minds erred or sinned in this celestial realm and thus were consigned to a carnal life on earth suiting the measure of their rebellion. So a pre-existent mind that rebelled greatly against the Trinity would be given a very tedious life on earth so that they could merit salvation through Christ. However, a pre-existent mind that only slightly rebelled against the Trinity would be given a very brief life on earth by which they would turn back to God. And these, then, are the little children that die before and after birth. They are the ones who sinned in a lesser degree before being conceived on earth.

   [NOTE: This opinion of Origen is not held by many today – except in a corrupted form by Mormons.]

3. We don’t really know. I think this is the theological position of most Christians. There is no easily packaged explanation for a pair of parents standing over their child’s tiny grave. There is no easy answer for a woman after miscarriage. It’s never been the position of Christians to dogmatically describe the afterlife for children other than saying: “they do not suffer and they are at peace.” We don’t know much because the Bible says nothing about it. We can only rest on the conviction that God desires all men to be saved and that He is fully aware that 51+% die before attaining the age of reason or before professing faith.

PS: If you’re interested in reading more of my posts on the topic of infant death, limbo, St Augustine, St Thomas Aquinas etc., check out this series of posts: Unbaptized babies that die: 5 Theories.

The post Holy Innocents: Why does God allow so many babies to die? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

What was Saint Nicholas like as a young priest? Could he bi-locate? Could he read souls?

These are topics that I explored in my bestselling historical novel Sword and Serpent, in which I imagined a young and clairvoyant Saint Nicholas meeting a traveling pair of young future saints: Saint George and the recently baptized Saint Christopher.

These novels explore the historical martyrdoms of Christians under the Emperor Diocletian from the point of view of St George, St Christopher, St Nicholas, St Catherine of Alexandria, St Helena, Constantine, and dozens of other men and women who will go on to be known as Catholic saints. The novels are “clean” but contain gruesome and detailed accounts of martyrdoms, Roman battles, and gladiatorial bouts. If you mixed together Catholic Saint stories, The Princess Bride, and Lord of the Rings – you’d get the Sword and Serpent Trilogy.

Sword and Serpent Book 3: released today!

The first 2 novels were Amazon best-sellers in their categories – and on the feast of Saint Nicholas, we are announcing the print version of the third and final novel in the Sword and Serpent Trilogy is released: Storm of Fire and Blood.

The consensus from the reader reviews from the ebook version is that this third novel is exhilarating, well-researched, and the best of the three in the trilogy. Some have said it is the best book that they’ve read all year:

Here are the three novels in the Sword and Serpent Trilogy:

Just like first two novels in the series: we are having a Launch Party to get the word out with prizes.

How To Join the Party and Get FREE Books (hashtag: #SwordAndSerpent #TenthRegion #StormofFireandBlood)

Here are 8 epic ways you can do epic things and win epic stuff:

1. Take an Epic #Selfie with the Book
(Prize: a Free signed copy of Storm of Fire and Blood)

HOW TO ENTER: Take a photo with the book Storm of Fire and Blood. Extra points will be awarded for costumes or exotic places. We once had one taken in front of the Colosseum in Rome! The more epic, the more likely you are to win. Take a photo, post it on Facebook and then send an email to swordandserpent+selfie@gmail.com with a link to your picture.

RULES:

• This is not a random drawing. This is a performance-based contest that will be judged. Be epic. Get the family to dress up as Jurian, Sabra, Aikaterina, Menas, Helena, et al. and snap a selfie with the book. Or maybe take a photo of yourself holding the book in someplace amazing. If you get a photo of yourself standing next to Pope Francis holding the book, you win hands down!
• Selfies with any version of the Storm of Fire and Blood count (printed, ebook).

2. Just Get the Book Contest (Prize: $100 Amazon Gift Card)

HOW TO ENTER: Buy just one copy of Storm of Fire and Blood and then send an email to swordandserpent+boughtbook@gmail.com simply stating “I bought a copy.” If you buy more than one copy, please send one email for each copy you bought. *If you already reviewed the novel before today and emailed me about it, you’re already entered into this contest.

You can get a copy of Storm of Fire and Blood by clicking here.

RULES:

• You can enter for each copy purchased. (For example, if you buy four copies, send an email saying “I bought 4” in the subject line.)
• Winner will be drawn at random on December 24.

3. St Nicholas Gift Contest (Prize: an iPad Mini mailed to your house! AND a free signed copy of Storm of Fire and Blood)

HOW TO ENTER: Several reviewers on amazon.com said that Sword and Serpent would be a perfect Christmas gift. This contest honors Saint Nicholas who is an important character in the book – it’s also his feast day this week. To win this prize, purchase at least 4 copies (1 for yourself and 3 as gifts to give away at Christmas) and send an email to swordandserpent+gifts@gmail.com. You can order copies by clicking here.

RULES:

• You must purchase at least 4 copies to enter.
• If you purchase multiples of 4, you can enter that many times (8 copies = 2 entries; 12 copies = 3 entries; 80 copies = 20 entries – enter how many copies you got in the subject line: “I got 8 copies as Christmas gifts” – that’s 2 entries in this prize)
• Winner will be drawn at random on December 24 and will receive an iPad for free.

4. Review the Novel at Amazon.com (Prize: $100 Amazon Gift Card AND a free signed copy of Storm of Fire and Blood)

HOW TO ENTER: Read the book and leave a friendly review at amazon.com. Next, send an email to swordandserpent+reviewed@gmail.com with a link to your review.

RULES:

• Please leave a review at amazon.com before December 24.
• Even though GoodReads is not a retailer, we’ll count GoodReads reviews too. So if you review at Amazon and goodreads, that’s two entries. Way to go! Click here for GoodReeds reviews.
• Send an email to swordandserpent+reviewed@gmail.com with a link to your review.
• Winner will be drawn at random on December 24.

5. Write a Blog Post about Storm of Fire and Blood
(Prize: $50 Amazon Gift Card + a promo link to your blog from my blog)

HOW TO ENTER: Write a blog post about Storm of Fire and Blood with the amazon link to the book in your review. Next, send an email to swordandserpent+blog@gmail.com with a link to your review.

RULES:

• The post does not have to be a “book review.” It can be a theological reflection or an interview with me about the book.
• Please include this exact amazon.com link: http://amzn.to/2BFTyWh
• Winner will be drawn at random on December 24.

6. Facebook The Book (Prize: $50 Amazon Gift Card)

HOW TO ENTER: Write an update on your Facebook wall about Sword and Serpent and include a link to the amazon link and the link to the book trailer. Next send an email to swordandserpent+facebook@gmail.com.

Please use this photo and this link to the book: http://amzn.to/2BFTyWhRULES:

• Please feel free to use the book video trailer from Book I: http://youtu.be/lN8dFJEOQ_8
• Please include the amazon.com link to the book: http://amzn.to/2BFTyWh
• Winner will be drawn at random.

Okay, there are the contests. They all end on Dec 24 2016. Get busy taking epic selfies. By the way the easiest contest to win is #3 – Just Get the Book: Storm of Fire and Blood.

To everyone who already made Storm of Fire and Blood possible and helped it get to #1, THANK YOU!

Happy winnings and Happy Advent!

Saint George, pray for us!
Taylor

Epic Book Trailer for Sword and Serpent, Book I:

Saint George pray for us,
Taylor Marshall

The post What was St Nicholas like as a Young Priest: Sword and Serpent Book 3 released! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

For Protestants without a tradition of All Saints Day, it sometimes becomes “Halloween vs. Reformation Day,” the latter being the celebration of the Martin Luther’s posting of the 95 Theses on Oct 31 (click here for recorded thoughts on the evil Martin Luther). Even some Catholics are concerned that Halloween has become “evil.”

Well, here are ten ways to keep good ol’ Halloween fun and sacred.

Top 10 Christian Halloween Ideas

10. Don’t call it “Satan’s Holiday”!
There are many Christians who have written off Halloween as some sort of diabolical black mass. In reality, it’s the vigil of a Christian holy day: All Hallows’ Eve or All Saints Eve. Has it been corrupted by our culture and consumer market? You bet. However, Christmas has also been derailed by the culture. Does that mean that we’re going hand over Christmas? No way! Same goes for Halloween. The Church does not surrender what rightfully belongs to her – she wins it back!

9. Don’t feel that you have to opt for a Christian Halloween alternative.
Many churches (particularly Protestant ones) are now how hosting “Fall Festivals” on Oct 31.

That’s like saying, “commercialism has destroyed Christmas, so let’s instead celebrate a “Winter” Festival” on Dec 25. (By the way, I really do believe that Christ was born on Christmas – click here for the article).

It’s All Hallows Eve. Don’t change the name.

Unless you have serious hesitations about your neighborhood, why not join your neighbors? It could be a great opportunity to get to know them and spark up some relationships. I’ve gotten to know some neighborhood dads as we stand out on the curb and watch our kids go up and the ring the door bells of every house on the street.

8. Have fun, don’t force converts.
Look, nobody likes to get a religious tract in their candy sack. Don’t pass out religious literature in place of candy. Give out big handfuls of candy and the extra large candy bars, if you can. In the long run, you will make more converts with your charity. After all, you’ll be known as “the house that always gives out good candy.” If you have a Halloween after party, maybe that’s the place to give away Rosaries (October is the Month of the Rosary!).

7. Be salty.
Try some subtle evangelism. Don’t drop the Evangelical approach: “Do you know Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior? Would you like to be baptized tomorrow?” Instead, ask people if they know the origin of Halloween. Talk about “saints.” It’s a great “ease in” approach to having a spiritual conversation with your neighbors.

6. Be hospitable – Why not host the neighborhood party?
Christians are supposed to be hospitable, right? It’s in the Bible. Check out Romans 12:13. Why not host a Halloween after party at your house with hot chocolate and coffee for the adults? Open up your house or back yard for games. Remember bobbing for apples? Bean bag toss? Pin the tail on the Leviathan?

5. Don’t be turned off by the ghoulish-ness of Halloween.
Every great Catholic cathedral has gargoyles carved into its stone work. Illuminated manuscripts are also full of ghouls in the margins. Catholics are into this kind of stuff. Why? Because Christ has conquered death and the devil. After Christ, death has lost its sting.

Also, All Saints day is followed by All Souls day so it’s okay to be a little macabre. (By the way the word “macabre” comes from Maccabees – those two books in the Catholic Bible that Protestants threw out.) And if you live in an Hispanic area like I do, you’ve got the whole Dia de Muertos to play up.

4. Have a bonfire!
We Catholics used to specialize in bonfires. A Christian Halloween calls for a fire pit. If you have the land and it’s legal, stoke up a blaze. If you’re kids are older why not set out a bunch of glowing jack-o-lanterns and roast marshmallows over a blazing-hot fire? If someone can play the fiddle, all the better.

3. Carve some fine looking Jack-O-Lanterns.
This is a no-brainer. Download some fancy cutting patterns from the web. Spend time as a family carving out some pumpkins. Put some candles in them and let them burn outside your house for a week or so before Halloween. My kids always like to see who has jack-o-lanterns in front of their house. Do you want to make friends in the neighborhood? Have a carving party and give a prize to the best jack-o-lantern.

2. Visit the graves of your loved ones.
This applies more to All Souls Day (Nov 2) than it does to All Saints Day (Nov 1). Still the point is to remember our loved ones and to pray for those who have died marked with the sign of faith. Death is not the last word. Christ has overcome death by His own sorrowful passion and death through the resurrection. That is is the source of our hope and strength of all the saints.

[callout]Discover the “volcanic origin of All Souls Day” by clicking here.[/callout]

The All Souls Indulgence runs from November 1-9.

(If you’re a Member of the New Saint Thomas Institute, we just put up a great video course on Indulgences with Dr Moorman and me. It’s getting great reviews. Click here to learn more about the New Saint Thomas Institute.)

1. Be holy.
If you persevere in the love and grace of God, you too shall be a capital “S” Saint. The whole point of “All Hallows” is to remind us to be “hallowed” or “sanctified”. Most of us won’t have our own particular feast day and so All Saints Day will be our feast day. It is the feast day for most of the Church’s saints, those who lived peaceably, followed Christ, loved their families, accomplished their duties in life and passed on to the next life. May their prayers be with us.

Have a happy Christian Halloween!

[reminder]Have other Christian Halloween ideas?[/reminder]

PS: Please “Share” this on Facebook to help others and spread the word by clicking here.

The post Top 10 Catholic Halloween Ideas! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Tertullian and Origen spoke against Pope Callixtus for his laxity. And Saint Hippolytus became the Catholic Church’s first antipope in resistance to Pope Callixtus who he saw as promoting and allowing: contraception, abortion, heresy, and easy-penance.

Why the conflict?

Before we get started I want to stress that all this happened 100 years before Constantine legalized Catholicism. Some wrongly assume that before Constantine the Church of Rome was a happy assembly of saints without church politics. Not quite. The Church of Rome has been plagued with conflict and controversy from the very beginning (as detailed in this book).

The document Philosophumena (attributed to Saint Hippolytus of Rome) recounts how Pope Callixtus had once been a Roman slave belonging to a Christian master named Carpophorus. Carpophorus placed his slave Callixtus (the future pope) in charge of funds that he had collected from other Christians for the care of orphans, widows, and the poor.

Callixtus the slave who lost all the money. He fled Rome but was discovered boarding a ship near Portus, the harbor city of Rome. Callixtus jumped overboard to avoid capture but was arrested nonetheless and taken back to his Christian master Carpophorus.

In an attempt to recover the money, Callixtus the slave physically assaulted Jews inside a Roman synagogue in attempt to either get a loan from the Jews or to collect debts from Jews. He was re-arrested. At this time, he was denounced as a Christian (probably by the Roman Jews) and sent as a prisoner to the mines of Sardinia.

Enter Emperor Commodus. Commodus was the son of Emperor Marcus Aurelius. You likely remember him from the film Gladiator:

Emperor Commodus had a “Christian” mistress named Marcia (you might be surprised to learn that Rome one hundred years later had a collection of so-called “Christian prostitutes” that were regulated by Constantine’s son). The “Christian mistress” Marcia was served by a eunuch named Hyacinth who was also an ordained presbyter. (100 years later, eunuchs were banned from ordination at the Council of Nicea).

Marcia and Hyacinth appealed to the Roman Emperor Commodus for the release of Christian prisoners from the mines of Sardinia. This imperial intervention affected the release of Callixtus and other Christians in the mines. Life in the mines was rough and they had suffered there as witnesses to our Lord Jesus Christ. These Christians were honored by Christians back in Rome as quasi-martyrs.

Callixtus’s Rise to the Papacy:

• Pope Victor I as Bishop of Rome honored Callixtus with a monthly pension from the Catholic Church, supposedly to honor him as a living confessor (one who suffered for Christ, but did not die).
• Pope Zephyrinus (successor of Victor I) honored Callixtus in AD 199 by ordaining him as one of the prestigious “seven deacons of Rome,” and appointed him as guardian of the catacombs along the Appian Way. To this day, these catacombs are named after Callixtus as the “Catacombs of Saint Callixtus.” From his time until the time of Constantine, this catacomb became the ceremonial burial place for nine bishops of Rome. (Origen visited Rome during the reign of Pope Zephyrinus.)
• Deacon Callixtus became the chief advisor of Pope Zephyrinus in Rome.
• In AD 217, Pope Zephyrinus received the crown of martyrdom and the Deacon Callixtus was the obvious choice for Bishop of Rome.
• Callixtus became Pope in AD 217 and established Santa Maria in Trastevere as his principle “cathedral” in Rome (this was before the Lateran basilica was given to the Church by Constantine and before the construction of the basilica at the Vatican).

Pope Callixtus as a “Lax Pope”:

Callixtus’s “pre-mining” life had been one of financial controversy, and yet he had proved himself faithful to Christ in the mines and worthy of respect and office in the Church of Rome. Perhaps it was his controversial past that lead to his position of laxity for the Church in Rome.

In AD 217 (the first year of his Pontificate), Pope Callixtus issued the “Decree of 217” which scandalized many, especially Tertullian who documents the episode. The Decree of 217 stated that penance and absolution would be enough to re-admit Christians to the Eucharist for the seven sins previously restricted. These seven sins were:

1. murder
2. idolatry
3. fraud
4. apostasy (publicly renouncing Jesus Christ)
5. blasphemy
6. adultery (sex with someone besides your spouse)
7. fornication (sex outside marriage)
   (this list is found in Tertullian’s De Pudicitia*, Ch 19).

Pope Callixtus also allowed:

• not requiring public penance from heretics entering the Catholic Church.
• clergy t0 marry before and after ordination.
• noblewomen to contract Christian marriages with plebs and slaves (forbidden by Roman law).

The Christians at the time were divided on this lax approach to sinners.

• Tertullian openly wrote and taught against the lax novelties of Pope Callixtus.
• The Greek-speaking Roman priest Hippolytus was elected as a rival Bishop of Rome and became the Church’s first Anti-Pope.
• Origen relates how when he was in Rome he heard the famous Hippolytus preach – showing that Origen was sympathetic with Hippolytus’ theology. It seems however that Origen greatly respected the Bishop of Rome and that he heard Hippolytus preach before Hippolytus presumed to become a rival Bishop in Rome. Nevertheless, Origen’s strictness would seem to make him more sympathetic with the ancient practice of making sacramental absolution rare.

In general, opponents of Pope Callixtus alleged that his policies would lead to a lower of morals among Christians, and this proved to the case with regard to contraception and abortion.

The Problem of Abortion and Contraception among Christians during the time of Pope Callixtus:

Hippolytus laments that Catholic women in Rome began to engage in contraception and abortion during the lax reign of Pope Callixtus:

Whence women, reputed believers, began to resort to drugs for producing sterility, and to gird themselves round [their belly], so to expel what was being conceived on account of their not wishing to have a child either by a slave or by any paltry fellow, for the sake of their family and excessive wealth. Behold, into how great impiety that lawless one has proceeded, by inculcating adultery and murder at the same time! And withal, after such audacious acts, they, lost to all shame, attempt to call themselves a Catholic Church.

For Hippolytus, this rise in contraception and abortion among Roman Christian women was a sign that the laxity of Pope Callixtus was bearing evil fruit.

Five or six years later, Pope Callixtus received the crown of martyrdom in AD 222 or 223 and was enrolled in the number of the saints. His feast day is October 14.

Conclusion:

Do grace and mercy lead to laxity? It’s a common question: If God forgives me no matter what, why not just keep sinning? Why change my life at all?

This precise question is tackled by Saint Paul in his epistle to the Romans 6:

1 What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? 3 Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried[a] therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.

It was and will be a perennial question for Christians in every age. If a Christian can just “pray the prayer” (as Evangelicals say), just be baptized, just go to confession, or just get an indulgence, why live like a saint?

Problems also with Rigorism:

But there is an opposite error. If the forgiveness of sin is rigorous (as it was before AD 217), two results follow:

1. First, is simply despair. If forgiveness if far off, why even try?
2. There is a second result that I would like to suggest that I rarely see in Patristic studies. I believe that the popularity of Gnosticism and Gnostic sects the exploded in the 100s was partly due to the lack of access to sacramental absolution. Gnostics promised that there were secret ways (not depending on morality or absolution) that allowed access to God. If a Christian had fallen into apostasy, murder, or adultery and could not find forgiveness and communion within the Catholic Church, there would be extreme pressure to join a Gnostic cult where immediate salvation and access to God was assured.

All Catholics today would grant that Pope Callixtus made the correct move, by allowing for “easy” absolution of grave sins before the time of death. (Easy, by the way, still entailed periods of public penance.) Did this new laxity come with a price? Yes. Did Catholic women try to “get away” with contraception and abortion? Yes. Does that still happen today? Yes.

Is the solution to this form of laxity to make the conditions for sacramental absolution more strict? No. I don’t think so. People can and will take advantage of grace in every age. There is no way to prevent that. However, we must always be in a position to recognize the forgiveness and mercy of Christ who was ready to immediately forgive the repentant Peter, Thomas, Paul, et al.

[reminder]I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic of lax vs. rigorous absolution.[/reminder]

The post Pope Saint Callixtus I – Laxity, Contraception, Abortion in AD 217 appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Roughly the contemporary process looks like this:

Servant of God → Venerable → Blessed → Saint

This week, a reader named Fr. Paul D’Souza, OCD writes a question about the history of the process of Beatification:

Dear Dr. Taylor,

Just yesterday we were discussing whether or not there was a process of canonization and beatification in earlier centuries.

We were especially concerned with Blessed Dionysius and Redemptus who were martyred in 1638. Can you kindly find out for us when they were declared venerable? and other details of the PROCESS leading to their beatification in 1900 by Leo XIII. I am a Carmelite from Goa where we had a monastery in the 17th century from where these two went to their martyrdom in Sumatra.

Father Paul

Father Paul, bishops had the power of beatifying deceased Christians within their own diocese until July 6 1634, when Pope Urban VIII reserved the power of beatifying to the Pope alone (Cœlestis Jerusalem).

Being declared “Venerable” essentially means: “This person is approved as heroic in virtue, so now we are just waiting for one miracle to move on to beatification.”

I’m not sure about Blessed Dionysius (Denis) and Blessed Redemptus (shared feast day Nov 29) who were martyred in 1638. If you don’t count Saint Bede, the earliest example of being called “Venerable” goes back to 1673 (35 years after their martyrdom). We certainly have popes declaring “Venerables” in the 1700s. So it is unclear to me whether these two Blesseds were formally declared “Venerable” prior to their beatification in 1900. I suspect that they were since Venerable came to mean “accepted into the process of canonization” and each martyr was already well along that process by 1900.

Godspeed,

Dr Taylor Marshall

PS: Notably, all priests of the Carthusian Order use the title “Venerable” rather than “Reverend.”

The post When was the process of Beatification invented? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Local bishops would recognize martyrs or deceased confessors (saints who were not martyred) within their diocese by confirming the cultus of the person and often by doing so by erected an altar over their grave or by placing their remains/relics within an altar.

Metropolitan Canonizations (began in 400s)

By the time of Saint Augustine (d. 430), the process required the further ratification of the metropolitan archbishop of the province to which the saint belonged. (A province is a collection of dioceses within a Roman province headed by a metropolitan archbishop.)

The last Metropolitan canonization of a saint occurred in AD 1153 with the canonization of Saint Walter of Pontoise by the Archbishop of Rouen. After this, Popes in Rome reserved the right to canonize saints.

Papal Canonization (began in AD 993)

As the Church gained more political power, Catholic royalty would press bishops to canonize their kinfolk and ancestors so as to prop up their political standing as being holy and beneficent. It better establishes your crown if dad or granddad is a venerated saint.

Popes as Bishops of Rome had canonized Roman saints. But AD 993 marks the first papal canonization outside Roman territory with that of Saint Udalric, Bishop of Augsburg (and belonging to the family of the  Ottonian dynasty) by Pope John XV.

Pope Alexander III decreed in 1170 that the canonization of saints was reserved to the Pope alone after investigation.

Pope Benedict XIV (1740 – 1758) established the procedure for papal canonizations. Since 1983, under John Paul II, the process looks like this:

1. Servant of God – person submitted by local bishop to Rome for consideration
2. Venerable – Rome formally recognizes the heroic virtue of the person. The person is not said to be in Heaven, does not receive a feast day, and churches or shrines cannot be dedicated to this person. However, prayer cards can be printed and distributed.
3. Blessed – This is the papal approval for a local diocesan cult. One confirmed miracle through the post-mortem intercession of the person is required.Beatification confirms officially that it is “worthy of belief” that the Venerable is in Heaven and saved. A feast day is assigned to the Blessed but it is restricted to the home diocese of the Blessed and not to the universal Church.
4. Saint – This is the papal approval for a universal cultus of the person. A total of two miracles are required (one more after the beatification miracle). The feast day is universal and parish churches, cathedrals and shrines may be named after the saint. Canonization confirms that the person certainly enjoys the Beatific Vision of Heaven.

Equipollent (Papal) Canonization (began in late 1500s)

Beginning in the late 1500s, Popes also recognized an form of papal canonization known as “equipollent canonization.” Equipollent means “equal in power.” These canonization do not require a formal process of canonization or miracles. Rather, equipollent canonizations recognize an already large, ancient and thriving cultus to a deceased and miraculous Christian person. Here are the conditions:

1. existence of an ancient cultus of the person
2. a constant attestation to the virtues or martyrdom of the person
3. uninterrupted fame as a worker of miracles

Examples include these equipollent saints:

• Bruno
• Raymond Nonnatus (literally “not born”)
• Stephen of Hungary
• Margaret of Scotland
• Wenceslaus of Bohemia
• Peter Damian
• Boniface
• Cyril and Methodius
• Ephrem the Syrian
• Albert the Great
• John of Ávila
• Hildegard of Bingen
• Gregory of Narek

There has been increase in equipollent canonizations: 18 or so in the last 100 years. My guess is that this will reduce over time as most canonized saints are more recent and will likely go through the now established papal canonization process.

All Saint, pray for us,

Taylor Marshall, PhD

The post How Saints are Canonized? From Local to Papal Canonizations over time appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Is Saint Christopher still a saint? It’s said that his feast day (July 25) was removed from the universal calendar, but was it? Actually it was not. It was removed from the General Roman Calendar of 1969. Saint Christopher is still liturgically celebrated by the Eastern Catholic Churches and by those churches celebrating the Latin Mass, which follow the General Roman Calendar of 1960.

Saint Christopher is an unnamed martyr who died for Christ either under the Roman Emperor Decius (249–251) or under the Roman Emperor Maximinus II Dacian (308–313). My research leads me to believe that the latter date is accurate.

The Legend of the Christophoros:

The legend is that an evil and gigantic Canaanite man named Reprobus (“reporobate”) was asked by a child to carry him across a river. As Reprobus carried the child, the child became heavier and heavier and nearly drowned the giant Reprobus.

The child revealed Himself as the Christ Child who bore the weight of all the sins of the world, especially those of Reprobus. The evil man repented and was baptized by Christ in that same river. His baptismal name became Christo-Phoros (Christ-bearer) since he ferried the Christ Child across the river.

Christopher is sometimes depicted with the head of a dog, since he was a Canaanite. But the term Canaanite was confused for “canine” meaning “dog.”

The Historical Christophoros:

In my best-selling historical-fiction novel Sword and Serpent (featuring Saint George and Saint Christopher as companions) I follow an alternative history for Saint Christopher that identifies him with the Coptic “Saint Menas.”

Saint Menas is venerated in Egypt and is also said to have carried the Christ Child. He was a Roman solider (like Saint George) who later abandoned the military to live a solitary life of a hermit. The association of Saint Menas with Egypt fits the Roman tradition of “Saint Christopher belonging to the Egyptian “Third Valerian Cohort of the Marmantae.”

Additionally, Christopher and Menas received martyrdom in Antioch, further linking their identity.

My hypothesis is that Menas (from Egypt) was martyred to the north in Antioch. The local Christians were not familiar with him but honored him simply as “he who bore Christ” or “Christophoros” and thus the Antiochian Christians called him “Saint Christopher,” and the Egyptian Christians called him by his actual name: “Saint Menas.”

Saint Christopher in Catholic Novel Format:

I tease out all these traditions in my historical-fiction trilogy Sword and Serpent. In the third novel (Book III: Storm of Fire and Blood; due Christmas 2017), while Saint George and Saint Christopher are in Britain, I have the pagan inhabitants mistaking Saint Christopher for the god Woden for reasons that will be entertaining and apparent if you read the Book II: Tenth Region of the Night.

If you’d like to begin this best-selling “5-star” novel trilogy: Book I Sword and Serpent is on sale today (for the feast of Saint Christopher) for:

• Sword and Serpent: $0.99 on sale today for Kindle
• Sword and Serpent: $13.29 on sale today in paperback

(It’s available in Spanish as well: La espada y la serpiente.)

Please grab a copy and enjoy your summer reading! Happy feast of Saint Christopher!

Saint Christopher/Menas, pray for us!

Dr Taylor Marshall

The post Is Saint Christopher still a saint? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

In the last few years, I’ve spent a lot of time reading up on Constantine. I’ve taught a course three times in Rome called “History and Theology of Rome,” which touches on Constantine and his legacy. I’ve written a book The Eternal City which also explores his impact on Christianity (I was much more pessimistic about him in the book than I am now). Moreover, Constantine is a major literary character in my historical fiction Trilogy: Sword and Serpent: Trilogy.

[PS: Book III in the Sword and Serpent Trilogy is now complete and in the final editing stages – and young Constantine heavily present in the final novel.]

Since we live in times of political and ecclesiastical ambiguity, here are 11 facts about Constantine to help you see that God can use imperfect politicians (and imperfect bishops) to bring about great good:

1. He was divorced and remarried. His first wife was Minervina, and he divorced her to marry his second wife was Fausta.
2. Constantine killed his second wife. In AD 326, he had his first son Crispus (from his first marriage) killed. He also had his second wife Fausta killed. Both names were removed from public documentation. After Constantine had his second wife killed, he never married again until his death at age 65. (It was rumored that his son Crispus had an affair with his stepmother Fausta and that this revelation and their ordered deaths haunted Constantine to the grave.)
3. During his early life, the Roman Empire was divided into a Tetrarchy of four emperors: two senior emperors with the title “Augustus” and two junior emperors with the title “Caesar.” Constantine’s father Constantius was the “junior emperor” or “Caesar” of the Western half of the Empire.
4. Constantine spent his early life held captive in the East (away from his father in the West) by the senior emperor Augustus Diocletian (a great persecutor of Christians). Constantine escaped the Eastern emperors by night and fled to his father. It is said that he hamstrung every horse along the way so that he would not be caught! Constantine joined his father Constantius in York in Britain. His father died in 306 and his son Constantine was acclaimed “Augustus” or senior emperor of the Western Roman Empire by his soldiers.
5. But Constantine needed to prove his title. Before defeating Maxentius in AD 312, Constantine saw the cross in the sky above the sun with the words “in touto nika” or,  “In this sign, conquer.” Lactantius (who tutored his sons) says Constantine was instructed to conquer under the sign of the cross during a dream. Eusebius records that it happened during the day at noon and that all the troops saw it. Either way, Constantine is said to have placed the sign of the cross or a Chi Rho on the shields of his men. Scholar Peter Weiss suggests the public “sun miracle” happened in Gaul in AD 310 and the dream happened in AD 312 before the Battle at the Milvian Bridge. That in AD 310, Constantine began to shift to monotheism based on “Sol Invictus” and that by AD 312, this monotheism had become (or was becoming) Christian monotheism.
6. Constantine legalized Christianity with the Edict of Milan in AD 313, but he began to remove pagan symbols from imperial coins beginning around the year AD 318. He gave the Lateran Palace to the bishop of Rome in AD 324. His conversion seems gradual and is in full display after about 10-12 years of rule.
7. Constantine didn’t likely convert for political reasons as most high school history teachers will tell you. The demographics were against him. It is estimated that in AD 312, Christians composed only 10-15% of the Roman Empire’s population and fell into the lowest levels of education, wealth, and political power. The influence, wealth, and political power were still held by those checking the box labeled: “Jupiter, et al. Give me that old school Roman religion.”
8. In AD 325, he called the first Catholic and Ecumenical Council of Nicea, which condemned the heresy of Arius falsely teaching that the Son of God was created and not eternally begotten of the Father.
9. Constantine left three living sons (each born from Fausta):
   Constantine II (Catholic and anti-Arian). The first born.
   Constantius II (Semi-Arian). The most powerful and through his influence, Semi-Arian theology spread.
   Constans (Catholic and anti-Arian and anti-Donatist). Constans was rumored to be a man of unnatural vices.
10. Constantine did not divide the Roman Empire into “East and West.” That had already been accomplished fully by Diocletian. Constantine, in a sense, re-united the entire Roman Empire under himself as one household or oecoumenos.
11. Constantine fell ill and personally selected the Semi-Arian bishop Eusebius of Nicomedia to baptize him just days before his death. He died on Pentecost AD 337.

Whatever your opinion of Constantine, it’s a historical fact that Christianity was spread to more souls by Constantine than by Saint Paul himself. This is why the Eastern Churches hail him as the “Thirteenth Apostle.” I’ll admit that this title is overly ambitious, but my opinion is that he was genuinely apostolic despite him being obviously imperfect.

Depending on your perspective: pray for Constantine’s soul or ask him to pray for you!

The post 11 Unusual Facts about Constantine the First Christian Roman Emperor appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

I’m sorry that I have not been posting articles for the last two weeks. I’ve been teaching a class in Rome to Seminarians called “The History and Theology of Rome” (based on The Eternal City) and it has been a rich blessing.

Since I have not been posting theology articles, I’ve been posting a stream of photos and videos. For example, here is a video of the bishops and cardinals processing with the Holy Eucharist for the feast of Corpus Christi:

If you’d like to see a constant stream of photos of Roman and Italian relics, saints, churches, architecture, sites, and food, please check out my daily photo posts on Instagram (DrTaylorMarshall): click here to see photos.

Godspeed,
Dr Taylor Marshall

PS: I’ll be back in the US next week and will resume theological blog posts.

The post Photos from Pilgrimage to Rome, Assisi, Florence, Venice appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. The name “Joseph” in Hebrew means “he increases.” We get it from the Greek form of Ιωσηφ (Ioseph), which comes from the Hebrew name יוֹסֵף (Yoseph). Saint Bernard of Clairvaux taught Joseph was rightly named because God “increased” the gifts and graces that were in the world through Saint Joseph (Hom. 2 super Missus est).
2. Saint Joseph is not mentioned in Mark’s Gospel, but he features in Matthew and Luke. He is only briefly mentioned by Saint John when he writes: “Jesus the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know” (John 6:41-51).
3. Saint Joseph is described in Greek as a τέκτων or “tekton,” which is translated as “carpenter,” but it is better translated as “artisan.” A tekton is anyone involved in physical construction and repair. Joseph may have worked with stone, wood, metal, cement, clay, and other substances. The words “technology” and “architecture” are related to the Indo-European root for tekton.
4. Joseph, while of the House of David in Bethlehem, lived in Nazareth, which is only a 40 mile (65km) walk to Jerusalem. Nazareth was a suburb of the town of Sepphoris described as: “Rich, cosmopolitan, deeply influenced by Greek culture, and surrounded by a panoply of races and religions, the Jews of Sepphoris were the product of the Herodian social revolution – the nouveaux riches who rose to prominence after Herod’s massacre of the old priestly aristocracy.” (Aslan, Reza. Zealot: The Life and Times of Jesus of Nazareth, 44)This places Joseph, Mary, and Jesus in the proximity of a wealthy, Gentile culture. Most craftsmen in this region would likely have learned Greek and perhaps Latin to serve the economy of Sepphoris. This is why some speculated that Christ our Lord knew Hebrew (as a student of Scripture), Aramaic (as a native of Nazareth), Greek (Gentile language of politics and commerce), and Latin (the language of Roman occupants).
5. History testifies to two traditions of Saint Joseph – the Old Joseph (widower) and the Young Joseph (virgin) traditions. I personally follow the Young Joseph tradition as I think it’s more historical and more biblical. I’ve detailed the debate here: ARTICLE the Old Joseph (widower) and the Young Joseph (virgin).
6. Saint Joseph was truly married to the Blessed Virgin. This was debated and settled in the early Church. Some people wrongly state that Mary was an “unwed mother” and this is blasphemy. See my article: “Thomas Aquinas 12 Reasons Why Joseph was Married to Mary.”
7. It is speculated that Saint Joseph never sinned (confirmed in grace) and that he was sanctified before birth – but not at conception like the Blessed Virgin. Francisco Suarez, Jean Gerson, and Saint Alphonsus Ligouri each teach that Saint Joseph was sanctified and regenerated in his mother’s womb prior to birth. Sacred Scripture teaches us that the Prophet Jeremiah and Saint John the Baptist received this honor of sanctification in the womb. The eminent theologians above, notably Saint Alphonsus – a doctor of the Holy Church, extend this privilege to Saint Joseph. They even teach that Saint Joseph was confirmed in the grace, which means that he was so filled with grace that he never committed a mortal sin or a deliberate venial sin.
8. Some also speculate that since there are no relics of Saint Joseph, he was assumed bodily into Heaven. Francis Suarez maintained St. Joseph was taken up into heaven bodily. St. Bernardino of Siena, Gerson, and St. Vincent Ferrer held the same. St. Francis de Sales points out the fact that nobody claims the tomb of St. Joseph and that there are no relics of this saint. Then he continues in Les Vrais Entretiens Spirituels: Surely, when Our Lord went down into Limbo, St. Joseph addressed Him in this wise: “Be pleased to remember, Lord, that when you came down from Heaven to earth I received you into my house and family, that I took you into my arms from the moment you were born. Now you are going back to Heaven, take me with you (body and soul). I received you into my family, receive me into yours; I took you in my arms; take me into yours; I looked after you and fed you and guided you during your life on earth; stretch forth your hand and lead me into life everlasting.” It is based on the typology of Joseph from the last two lines in Genesis where the Patriarch Joseph requests that his bones be taken from Egypt: “And [Joseph] made them swear to him, saying: God will visit you, carry my bones with you out of this place: And he died being a hundred and ten years old. And being embalmed he was laid in a coffin in Egypt. (Genesis 50:24-25)

   Some have speculated that Saint Joseph was among the “saints” who were resurrected shortly after the death of Christ on Good Friday: “And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and the rocks were split; the tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many” (Mt 27:51-53).

9. It’s common practice to bury a statue of Saint Joseph to sell one’s home. This comes from condemned divination practiced called “Deprecation of the Saints,” whereby a person places a sack on a saint’s statue head or hides a statue in the closet or otherwise treats a saint statue disrespectfully until a request is granted. This is why folklore states that you’re supposed to dig up the Saint Joseph statue after the sale of the home to “reward” him for granting a request. It’s probably not a wholesome practice. Perhaps its better to place Saint Joseph’s statue in a place of honor in the home for intercession through Saint Joseph to our Lord Jesus Christ for the sale of one’s home. (Though feel free to debate this in the comments box.)

Have a happy and holy Feast of Saint Joseph. Saint Joseph pray for us.

[reminder]Do you think of Saint Joseph as an older widower or as a young guardian?[/reminder]

Dr. Taylor Marshall

The post 9 Facts about Saint Joseph (Plus Old vs Young Joseph Debate) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Who would you pick? Jesus and Mary are excepted and your pick must be human (ie, no angels).

Options include:

• Adam
• Eve
• Moses
• Ruth
• David
• Solomon
• Esther
• Isaiah
• Malachi
• Joseph
• John the Baptist
• Peter
• Paul
• John
• Mary Magdalene
• or anyone you choose.

Your choice could even be a villain, if you like, such as Pharaoh, Jezebel, or even Judas. But your choice must be from the Bible.

[reminder]Who would you choose and why? What would you ask them? I’ll reveal my answer after several people have left comments below.[/reminder]

The post With whom would you eat dinner with from the Bible? (excepting Jesus and Mary) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Mari Webber, New Saint Thomas Institute Member and Sword and Serpent Launch Team member (and Our Lady of Guadalupe NSTI Pilgrim) purchased in Germany this beautiful smoking Saint Nicholas for our family. Our children love it! Thanks Mari for your generosity!

You place incense inside of him and he blows the incense smoke out of his mouth, as if he is smoking his pipe:

and here is Mari taking an “epic selfie” with a copy of Sword and Serpent in Germany:

Thank you Mari for our smoking German Saint Nick!

Happy Advent to everyone!

Godspeed,

Taylor Marshall

The post Saint Nicholas is smoking incense in our kitchen! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Is Halloween the Devil’s Day? Let’s break it down and see how Satan is trying to steal our Catholic holidays. Ready?

As you know, Halloween is short for All-Hallows-Even. “Even” or “Eve” refers to the evening before the day.

There are some Christians who have written off Halloween per se as some sort of diabolical black mass.  This interpretation usually includes a legend of how the Catholic Church conspired with druids to corrupt Europe, or some other nonsense.

To be clear, it’s the vigil of a Christian holy day: All Hallows’ Eve or All Saints Eve. Has it been corrupted by our culture and consumer market? You bet. But they have also attempted to redefine “marriage,” Easter, Christmas, St Valentines, and increasingly Ash Wednesday.

Yes, Christmas has also been derailed by the culture. Does that mean that we’re going hand over Christmas? No way! Same goes for Halloween. The Church does not surrender what rightfully belongs to her – she wins it back!

Hell is on defense since Jesus Christ came. It’s the “gates of hell.” Gates are defensive. We are supposed to be storming the gates of hell. The sacrament of Confirmation commissions us as soldiers.

Pandaemonium: Here’s your Greek word of the week

The word Pandaemonium derives from Greek “παν”, meaning “all” and “δαιμόνιον”, meaning “little devil.” Pandaemonium means “All Devils.”

John Milton imagined Pandaemonium as the capital city of Hell in Book I of his Paradise Lost (1667).

[callout]Milton was an Arian, but his Paradise Lost is a pretty cool book. If you’re a Member of NSTI, you should read it and let me know if you think his Arianism bleeds through the pages. Also, check out Milton’s Satan Trinity.[/callout]

The Devil would love to take over the feast day “All Saints” and rebrand it as “All Devils” or “Pandaemonium.” Are we going to let him? Hell no [pun intended]. All the Saints are ready for battle.

[callout]Watch Dr. Taylor’s Youtube Video: Dracula vs. the Eucharist.[/callout]

[callout]How do All the Saints hear us from Heaven? Free mp3 from Dr Taylor answering this question: Click here to listen (mp3).[/callout]

Let’s take back the entire “Hallow Triduum” of:

1. Halloween (Oct 31)
2. All Saints Day (Hallowmas Nov 1)
3. All Souls Day (Nov 2)

Celebrate Hallows Eve, but clarify “We don’t celebrate it by glorifying the demonic.” Dress your children as saints and be counter-cultural. Be leaven in the lump. Salt in the world. Be hallowed.

Oh, and don’t forget All Hallows (Nov 1) is a Holy Day of Obligation. It’s a mortal sin not to attend Holy Mass on this day (unless it is lawfully transferred by the bishops).

Don’t forget to read my 10 Tips for a Catholic Halloween by clicking here.

And share it on Facebook with all your friends by clicking here:

[reminder]

Please sign up for my daily email updates and get a FREE book on Thomas Aquinas by clicking here.

The post Catholic Halloween and the New Evangelization appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

For Audio Podcast version of: “My True Opinion of Martin Luther” click here.

Essentially, Francis teaches us that we cannot fight heresy by creating new heresies. Francis always submitted to the Church, the popes, and the bishops.

The post How St Francis differed from Martin Luther or Catholic Reform vs. Protestant Reform appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Saint Michael was one of the lower angels. Lucifer was the highest angel. How did Lucifer fall and how did Saint Michael get his name (Mi Cha El?).

Here’s a free video from the New Saint Thomas Institute on the subject of Satan and Michael. You’ll learn about the creation of the angels, the fall of Satan according to Saint Augustine, and the reason Saint Michael is called “Mi Cha El.”

[youtube id=”IlRR-j7XaYM”]

Don’t see the video? Click here to watch it.

Are you not yet a Member of the New Saint Thomas Institute? If not, Fall Enrollment is now open. Join well over 3,000 Members of the New Saint Thomas Institute from all over the world as we study Catholic theology together.

There are limited spots and our tuition sale is limited. We also have a bunch of great bonuses for this fall. Want to join? Learn by clicking here.

Share this post on Facebook.

The post St Michael vs. Lucifer: Why St Michael Won! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. Hunting provides organic, grass-fed, hormone free meat for my family of 8 children.
2. It feels exhilarating to serve food to your family that you trained for, hunted, butchered, prepared, and cooked.
3. I like having a tangible connection with the food that I prepare and eat.
4. Hunting is the #1 way to promote funding for wildlife conservation.
5. I love the outdoors.
6. It’s a craft or an art that requires practice and dedication.
7. All of our ancestors did it.

We were recently discussing the Troops of Saint George achievement in “Hunting” and I suggested that we focus on Saint Hubert, the patron saint of hunting:

Saint Hubertus was born around the year AD 656. Saint Hubert’s wife (the daughter of a count) died giving birth to their son who would eventually become a bishop. Heartbroken by the death of his wife, Saint Hubert retreated from the court and gave himself up entirely to hunting.

On Good Friday morning, when the faithful were crowding the churches, Hubert went hunting. As he was pursuing a magnificent stag, the animal turned and he beheld a crucifix standing between its antlers, while he heard a voice saying:
“Hubert, unless thou turn to the Lord, and lead an holy life, thou shalt quickly go down into Hell”.

Hubert dismounted, prostrated himself and said, “Lord, what would Thou have me do?” He received the answer, “Go and seek Lambert [bishop of Maastricht-Liège, Tongeren], and he will instruct you.”

He was condemned by God not for hunting but for withdrawing from the world and shirking his duties as a member of court and as a Christian (he was out hunting on Good Friday!).

Saint Hubertus is honored among hunters as the father of ethical hunting behavior. It is said that Saint Hubertus established the hunting principle of conserving wildlife, not killing a mother with its young, and preferring older bucks and bulls past their breeding prime. He also advocated only shooting an animal when a humane, clean and quick kill is assured.

After leaving the wilderness as a hunter, he became a priest and eventually the successor bishop to his master Saint Lambert of Maastricht. He was famous for his asceticism and preaching.

He is thus the patron saint of hunters, and bowhunters in particular.

For those interested, here’s a podcast I did about one of my hunts for Indian Nilgai.

[reminder]Share your thoughts about ethical hunting and/or Saint Hubert.[/reminder]

Fun facts:

• Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia died while on a hunt for the members of the International Order of St. Hubertus.
• The Jägermeister logo is taken from the vision of Saint Hubertus. Jägermeister means “master hunter.”

The post Saint Hubert – Patron Saint of Bowhunters (and Jagermeister) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

But in reality, she looks like Saint Clare of Assisi:

St Clare is a Virgin Warrior against Islamic Terror!

In AD 1240, Saint Clare shielded her convent from Muslims through the power of the Eucharist.

The Muslims (and the Vikings) were increasingly aware that Catholic convents contained gold, treasure, and…virgins.

As the Muslims invaded the walls of her convent, Saint Clare of Assisi entered into spiritual battle and she took up the most powerful shield known to men or angels:

“By imperial order, regiments of Saracen soldiers and bowmen were stationed there (the convent of San Damiano in Assisi, Italy), massed like bees, ready to devastate the encampments and seize the cities. Once, during an enemy attack against Assisi, city beloved of the Lord, and while the army was approaching the gates, the fierce Saracens invaded San Damiano, entered the confines of the monastery and even the very cloister of the virgins. The women swooned in terror, their voices trembling with fear as they cried to their Holy Mother Clare.

Saint Clare, with a fearless heart, commanded them to lead her, sick as she was, to the enemy, preceded by a silver and ivory monstrance in which the Body of the Holy of Holies was kept with great devotion. And prostrating herself before the Lord, she spoke tearfully to her Christ:

‘Behold, my Lord, is it possible You want to deliver into the hands of pagans Your defenseless handmaids, whom I have taught out of love for You? I pray You, Lord, protect these Your handmaids whom I cannot now save by myself.’

Suddenly a voice like that of a child resounded in her ears from the tabernacle: ‘I will always protect you!’ ‘My Lord,’ she added, ‘if it is Your wish, protect also this city which is sustained by Your love.’ Christ replied, ‘It will have to undergo trials, but it will be defended by My protection.’

Then the virgin, raising a face bathed in tears, comforted the sisters: ‘I assure you, daughters, that you will suffer no evil; only have faith in Christ.’

Upon seeing the courage of the sisters, the Saracens took flight and fled back over the walls they had scaled, unnerved by the strength of she who prayed. And Clare immediately admonished those who heard the voice I spoke of above, telling them severely: ‘Take care not to tell anyone about that voice while I am still alive, dearest daughters.’” (The History of Saint Clare the Virgin by Tommaso da Celano)

This episode is the reason that Saint Clare is so often depicted holding a Eucharistic monstrance (sometimes against the Muslim invaders in the photo below):

I was recently at the tomb of Saint Clare in Assisi. I have a twin daughter named after Saint Clare and so this 800 year old saint from Assisi holds a special place in my heart. Here’s a photo of my with my twin daughters praying at the tomb of the Saint Clare:

And me with my daughter named after Saint Clare still down in the crypt of Saint Clare of Assisi:

And with another daughter sneaking in from below:

St Clare is the patroness of television, and you can read about how she had a flat screen TV 800 years ago by clicking here.

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

The post St Clare: Virgin Warrior against Islamic Terror! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. Edith was born on the Jewish feast day of the Day of Atonement.
   From an early age she perceived herself as special chosen by God and situated her own life into the Jewish theology of atonement. Whereas ancient Old Testament Judaism has a rich theology of blood atonement, contemporary rabbinical Judaism (as I cover The Crucified Rabbi) has no way of providing blood atonement according to the precepts of Moses.
2. Edith lost faith in early Feminist movement.
   She described herself as a “radical suffragette” who eventually “lost interest in the whole issue.” She turned to philosophy and then eventually Catholicism to provide answers to the problems facing women in the 20th century. Ultimately, she found those answers in the Carmelite convent as a place of silence, religious obedience, mortification, study, and prayer.
3. Edith studied phenomenology under the guidance philosopher Max Scheler.
   Philosophy has been plagued by the problem of how the mind knows and interacts with the world. If our perceptions are different from one another and different at various times of life, is there truly an objective reality outside our mind. Phenomenology seeks to bridge the real world to the phenomena of our mind. Ultimately, it took a Catholic guide in the person of Max Scheler to guide Edith to the philosophical Realism that Catholicism offers. Scheler called his philosophy a “return to things” or a “turn to reality.”
4. Edith’s dissertation thesis was titled “The Problem of Empathy.”
   As a professor myself, you can tell a lot about a professor by just knowing the title of the doctoral dissertation. The philosophy of empathy (literally “suffering in another”) maps neatly onto Catholicism, with its universal call to mercy and its pattern of faithful suffering and martyrdom. Even before she was a Catholic, she wrote the following in her dissertation: “There have been people who believed that a sudden change had occurred within them and that this was a result of God’s grace.” Clearly, she was already finding her way to Christ.
5. Edith read the autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila in one night.
   During her philosophical struggles with empathy, psychology, and suffering, she came across a book about the Carmelite spiritual master Saint Teresa Avila. “When I had finished the book, I said to myself: This is the truth.” Notice she said “the truth” and not simply “truth.” She had found Christ Himself.

I’m sure there are dozens of other events and inspirations that led Edith Stein into the Catholic Church. She was baptized on the feast of the Circumcision of Christ (Jan 1) in 1922. She entered the Carmelite convent twelve years later in 1934 taking the name Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (German: Teresia Benedicta vom Kreuz). She received the crown of martyrdom under the Nazis on August 9, 1942

Saint John Paul II canonized Edith on Oct 11 1998 as “a daughter of Israel” and as a martyr of the Catholic Church.

One interesting fact is that the final miracle for her canonization came from Eastern Catholic devotion to her. You can read about that miracle among the Melkite Catholics here.

[reminder]Do you have devotion to Saint Teresa Benedicta? Do you know of any other intimate details from her life?[/reminder]

The post 5 Reasons Why Jewish Prof. Edith Stein Became a Catholic Nun appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

God’s greatest love is unleashed into creation through martyrdom.

When a believer in Jesus Christ surrenders his life in death for witness of Christ, suddenly and immediately the power of the crucified Lord enters into the world.

Two “citizens” of the Islamic State beheaded the 86-year-old priest Father Jacques Hamel. Like Nero and Diocletian, the Islamic State does not comprehend the power they are fighting.

Rome molested the Church. And Rome was overcome through martyrdom. Islam has been molesting Christianity for 1,400 years. And Islam will be defeated through martyrdom. It’s easy to day, but the difficult questions are these:

1. Do I believe that God would give me the grace to die as faithfully as a martyr?
2. Would I be willing for my children to demonstrate the witness of a martyr in the future?
3. Would I rejoice to be a martyr as so many thousands of martyrs have in previous centuries?

It is helpful to remember that from AD 60 till AD 313, receiving sacramental baptism meant that you were enrolled for martyrdom. Every parish and every diocese on the planet during those years could name martyrs from their midst. Every Christian community possessed martyrs: Jerusalem, Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Carthage, Lyons, etc.

Martyrdom was so common that Christianity underwent a crisis of identity after Constantine legalized Christianity: Can Christians truly be Christian without the reality of impending martyrdom?

The monastic revolution of the 4th and 5th centuries was a response to this identity crisis – the monastics sought to regain the danger and asceticism of carrying the cross.

For me personally, this is a moment of personal crisis. I wrote books about Christ. I record podcasts and videos about Christ. I talk about Christ frequently. But am I ready for this to happen to me:

…two Islamic State knifemen who cut the priest’s throat after bursting into a French church and taking nuns and worshippers hostage before being shot dead by police.

[reminder]What about you? Do you feel ready? What if it comes to this in the West?[/reminder]

Father Jacques Hamel, pray for us.

The post Islam Will Destroy Itself By Creating Christian Martyrs! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

30 Then Eli′jah said to all the people, “Come near to me”; and all the people came near to him. And he repaired the altar of the Lord that had been thrown down; 31 Eli′jah took twelve stones [prefigures the 12 Apostles], according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Jacob, to whom the word of the Lord came, saying, “Israel shall be your name”; 32 and with the stones he built an altar in the name of the Lord. And he made a trench about the altar, as great as would contain two measures of seed [2 measures of seed comes again with Elisha as a prophetic sign in 2 Kings 7]. 33 And he put the wood in order, and cut the bull in pieces and laid it on the wood. And he said, “Fill four jars with water, and pour it on the burnt offering, and on the wood.” 34 And he said, “Do it a second time”; and they did it a second time. And he said, “Do it a third time”; and they did it a third time [triple pouring on the sacrifice with water – as a kind of baptism]. 35 And the water ran round about the altar, and filled the trench also with water.

36 And at the time of the offering of the oblation, Elijah the prophet came near and said, “O Lord, God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. 37 Answer me, O Lord, answer me, that this people may know that thou, O Lord, art God, and that thou hast turned their hearts back.” 38 Then the fire of the Lord fell, and consumed the burnt offering, and the wood, and the stones, and the dust, and licked up the water that was in the trench. [here we have a prefigurement of Pentecost with the fire coming down from Heaven upon the “baptized sacrifice”] 39 And when all the people saw it, they fell on their faces; and they said, “The Lord, he is God; the Lord, he is God.” 40 And Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Ba′al; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them; and Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon, and killed them there.

The Church East and West conforms to a triple affusion (pouring) or triple immersion (dunking) with the recognition of the three Divine Persons of the Trinity. Prophetically, Elijah has the attendants pour water on the slaughtered sacrifice three times. It’s also no accident that Saint John the Baptist was the “new Elijah” teaching a new baptism.

Elijah poured water on the sacrifice to show that God’s fire is so hot and powerful that water cannot prevent it from burning the sacrifice.

I recently spoke of the life of the follower of Jesus as “being on sacrificial fire” (click here to read “Do you have fire in your soul?”). You may also want to listen to my presentation on on the apocryphal 1 Enoch and Tongues of fire here.

There is a connection between the mystery of water (baptism in Christ) and the mystery of fire (confirmation or chrismation in Christ), as Saint John the Baptist relates in his speaking of baptism by water and fire.

We do this every day. We wash our food and then we place it in the fire. When you slaughter animals, you wash the meat and then cook it. The many mikvehs of the Old Covenant were washings to prepare the believer for becoming a burnt sacrifice for God.

Hence, Christ’s baptism is a preparation for His burnt sacrifice (crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, pentecost).

The priest washes his hands ceremonially because his hands are about to hold the burning coal of the sacrificial body of Christ.

In the Solemn High Mass (pre 1970), the priest sprinkled the faithful in the pews – to prepare them to become a burning sacrifice.

And of course, we will all be “salted with fire” when we die. It’s just a matter of whether we burn in this life (as sacrificial love) or burn some in the next age (in the purgatorial fires of 1 Cor 3:15).

Make your life into a bonfire.

Godspeed,

Taylor

PS: If you want to learn more about Old Testament and Jewish origins of Catholic sacraments and Catholic theology, check out my book The Crucified Rabbi: Judaism and the Origins of Catholicism.

The post Elijah as a Type of Triple Baptism and Pentecost appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

[reminder]Do you have questions about Saint Justin Martyr? If so leave a comment.[/reminder]

The post Video Class: St Justin Martyr and Tatian the Heretic appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. credere Deum (“to believe that God is”): This is simply to believe that God exists. The devils have this kind of faith, as Saint James explains in James 2.
2. credere Deo (“to believe toward God”): This is to trust God. If God says, “Jesus is God’s Son,” then you believe it. If God says, “I am your shepherd. I will take care of you.” You believe it.
3. credere in Deum (in Latin, literally: “to believe into God”): This is more difficult to translate but it implies motion into God. This is placing faith, trust, even yourself into God. This is the highest form of faith.

Saint Augustine says that credere in Deum (level 3) is actually placing “yourself into God.” In the moments and seasons of tragedy, depression, dark nights, betrayal, confusion, bankruptcy, divorce, cancer, and death, this highest form of faith transcends simply believing that God exists or believing His statements.

Pain and Believing into God

“Believing into God” or “credere in Deum” (not “in Deo” – a huge difference in Latin) is what I often teach to myself and to others who are hurt so deeply.

In the moments and seasons of tragedy, you have to push everything and your own pain and soul into the bleeding side wound of Jesus and just camp out there. That spiritual movement of going into the Heart of Jesus is the highest form of faith. It is the only thing that can restore peace, sanity, and joy. I’ve been there. It’s true.

Explore the three levels of faith. Where are you? Honestly I have moved up and down the ladder. Sometimes we can be satisfied with level 2 (credere Deo). Even if life is good, try to move beyond this daily and pray for the faith credere in Deum – to believe into God.

Godspeed,

Taylor Marshall

The post The 3 Kinds of Faith? Which do you have? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Saint George Podcast

Have you ever debated whether Saint George is real or historical? If so, then this Catholic podcast is for you: Is Saint George (and Saint Christopher) still a Saint?.mp3

Sword and Serpent: My Best-Selling Novel about Saint George is on sale this weekend

Looking for a Catholic fiction page-turner? I published a #1 best-selling historical fiction novel about Saint George and the Dragon (plus St Christopher, Emperor Constantine, Diocletian, et al.) titled Sword and Serpent. 

Father Dwight Longenecker wrote a glowing review of Sword and Serpent here.

Here’s the book trailer for Sword and Serpent on YouTube:

The novel is now on sale for this April 23 weekend on Kindle and in paperback. Click here to get a copy:

You can also download the free “Sword and Serpent Study Guide” (an explanation of the historical features of the book and its saints) at swordandserpent.com.

Troops of Saint George: Outdoor Adventure for Catholic Men and Sons

Looking for a Catholic alternative to scouting? In 2013 I founded a Catholic outdoor adventure fraternity for priests, deacons, fathers and sons – and dedicated it to Saint George. We have 40 active troops. Please visit our website and consider starting a Troop of Saint George at your parish. We have a starter kit for dads and for priests to help you get started:

Click here to visit the Troops of Saint George website.

Saint George’s Skull in Rome

Saint George’s skull is in Rome and I visited him last summer in Rome. If you’d like to go on pilgrimage with me for a NSTI Catholic Theology Pilgrimage to Rome and Italy this summer, please click here to reserve your spot.

Happy feast of Saint George!!!

Saint George pray for us,

Taylor Marshall

The post Is St George Still a Saint? What about the Dragon? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

“Thomas Aquinas is too hard,” is a common myth and it derives from decades of teachers who were not enthusiastic and skilled in making Catholic Theology via Thomas Aquinas accessible to the ordinary person.

So here are 10 Reasons to Study Thomas Aquinas for 2016. Below you also find resources to help you:

1. Thomas Aquinas keeps things simple. “What? I thought he was complicated?” No, Thomas Aquinas writes in a simple bullet point style. Literally “bullet points.” He calls them objections and responses but they are numbered just like you would in MS Word. Once you learn how the numbering system works, you’re rocking. (If you’re a member of NSTI, we have a 10  minute class that teaches the system step by step. You can watch it here: “How to Unlock and Read the Summa”.
2. Thomas Aquinas was a mystic. Thomas would place his head on the tabernacle to gain knowledge. He was visited by angels. He was visited by Saint Peter and Saint Paul. He had a vision toward the end of his life that left him wordless.
3. Thomas Aquinas built theology on nature in a way you can understand. Like Christ his Master, Thomas uses nature and our experience through it (plus divine revelation) to present theology. Christ was the master of the parable (describing spiritual realities with natural occurrences: farming, fishing, taxes, losing items). Thomas believes grace perfects and elevates nature and he is constantly using analogies to clarify profound topics.
4. Thomas is systematic. There is nothing worse than reading contemporary soft theology because it is so often literary and formless. Thomas tells you straight up at the beginning of each topic: “First I’m going to show you x. Then I’m going to do y. And then I’m going to z. Now let’s go.” It’s a linear approach to Catholic Theology.
5. Thomas Aquinas is a biblical scholar. Today people would call Thomas a “philosopher.” He’d likely be offended by that. He would have identified himself as a biblical scholar or as a biblical preacher. Pick up his commentaries on the Gospels or, my personal favorite, his commentary on the Epistle of Hebrews.
6. Thomas Aquinas is a preacher. This relates to the above point. Thomas Aquinas’s goal was to communicate profound truths to the people. For him, it was not an academic exercise for university faculty. Thomas wanted to refute heretics, strengthen the faithful, make saints, and get people to Heaven.
7. Thomas Aquinas is Marian. Thomas loved the Blessed Virgin because he so deeply loved Christ. He left behind an entire series of sermons just on the Hail Mary. I know you’ve heard the bit about Thomas Aquinas denying the Immaculate Conception (to see how he didn’t always deny it, watch my video on Youtube: Did Aquinas deny the Immaculate Conception). Thomas also said that the Blessed Virgin Mary “was so full of grace that it overflows on to all mankind.” He was one of the original popularizes of the title “Mediatrix” for Our Lady.
8. Thomas Aquinas was Eucharistic. Thomas Aquinas centered everything on Christ. Christ was the beginning and end of everything for him. He would say Mass daily, and then to show his thanksgiving for the Eucharist and the priesthood, he would serve another Mass (as an altar server) for another priest. He wrote the great hymns for Corpus Christi (eg, Pange Lingua, the opening music of the NSTI video classes).
9. Thomas Aquinas will make you into an Evangelist and Apostle. Thomas wrote so that other people could explain the Catholic Faith. His works (eg Summa contra Gentiles and even his Summa theologiae) are written to equip others to share the Catholic Faith with those who disagree with them. If you want to draw your family and friends into the Catholic Church, Thomas is the best to help you.
10. Thomas Aquinas will make you fall deeply in love with God. My eyes want to feel with tears on this point. He will open to you the riches of God’s grace, love, and compassion. You will come to see Christ in all his glory and splendor. The sacraments will come alive. You will thirst for the Eucharist. You will love the Church. You cannot love what you do not know and Thomas is the best teacher in what you should know.

Resources to get started on Thomas Aquinas:

1. A have a free book Thomas Aquinas in 50 Pages. You can download it for free at my website: taylormarshall.com. I wrote it to make the world a more Thomistic place. Spread the information and let others know about it. It’s helped tens of thousands of people get started with Saint Thomas Aquinas. You can also get it in paperback. (I’ll be giving away a few print copies tonight at our live Catholic Webinar on Thomas Aquinas.)
2. I’m teaching a free live Catholic Webinar on Thomas Aquinas and Natural Law. This will explain what natural law is how you can use it convince non-Catholics about morality and Catholic teaching. If you’ve ever wanted to master the basics on Natural Law (through the lens of Thomas Aquinas), then this is the Catholic webinar for you. Click here to sign up or learn more.

PS: Since today is the feast of Thomas Aquinas I’ll be giving away some Thomas Aquinas books in the webinar – including a 5 Volume hardback copy of his Summa Theologiae to one of our attendees. Click here to sign up or learn more.

One attendee will win this 5 volume Summa theologiae hardback set:

The post 10 Reasons to Study Thomas Aquinas in 2016 appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Free Video: Catholic Theological Core of Saint Paul as “en Christo”

Free audio mp3s: Catholic Perspective on Paul (11 presentations)

If you are looking for a concise book proving that Saint Paul and the New Testament is Catholic, my book The Catholic Perspective on Paul has become a go-to resource for seminaries and apologists. Today it is on sale today for 50% off on Kindle and on sale in paperback:

GK Chesterton once observed that the Catholic Church has been “attacked on all sides and for all contradictory reasons. No sooner had one rationalist demonstrated that it was too far to the east than another demonstrated with equal clearness that it was much too far to the west.” The same may be said of Saint Paul. The history of heresy is essentially a series of contradictory positions, each claiming the authority of the Apostle Paul.

In today’s video I explain how understanding Paul’s “core theology” can help you explain and defend EVERY Catholic teaching and doctrine:

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According to some heretics, Paul was the first corrupter of the life and doctrines of Jesus Christ. To others Paul alone preserved the true message of Christ that had been corrupted by the Twelve. Some consider Paul to have been the champion of grace, while others accuse him of yielding to the so-called Jewish legalism of Peter and James. Paul has since been accused of being too Greek, too Jewish, too gnostic, and too orthodox.

In his own day, he was held by some to be an apostle and by others to be a heretic. Martin Luther claimed Paul’s authority, as did the Catholic Council of Trent. He has been called both a misogynist and a liberator of women. Some hail him as a proponent of freedom and others revile him for imposing rules against sexual freedom and social progress. Always and everywhere, Paul is pulled and tugged in opposite directions. Paul has been stretched out so thinly that his features have become faint, almost forgotten. Prophetically, Saint Peter aptly described the controversial nature of Paul’s epistles:

Also our most dear brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, hath written to you: As also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are certain things hard to be understood, which the unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other Scriptures, to their own destruction (2 Pet 3:15-16).

All the detractors of Paul stand united in their conviction that the historical Paul is certainly not the same Paul revered by the Catholic Church. There is today a deep prejudice against the so-called “Saint Paul” of the Catholic Church. They will grant that Paul was a rabbi, missionary, mystic, polemicist, author, and apostle. However, they will not grant that the man enshrined in the mosaics, statues, and stained glass of a thousand Catholic cathedrals is the Paul of history. The critics are convinced that the Catholic religion as we know it today has little to do with the historic Paul of Tarsus.

Paul is none other than a saint of the Holy Roman and Catholic Church. He spent his life wishing to bring his feet within the walls of Rome and he surrendered his head to the sword outside those very walls. Within his writings, we find the primitive and pristine doctrines of the Catholic Faith. We discover a Paul who is Catholic, a theologian who is sacramental, a churchman who is hierarchical, a mystic who is orthodox.

Please watch this video to learn more about Saint Paul:

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[reminder]

The post Did You Know Saint Paul was a Catholic Priest? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

90% of the time, the other person will ask, “What’s Advent?” and that’s your cue to “be salty” (Mt 5:13) and papistically practice the New Evangelization!

Join us for a Live Catholic Event on “Advent”:

So to help you answer the question: “What is Advent?” I’m inviting you to a live, online 30 minute Webinar this coming Thursday on: “The History and Theology of Advent (Plus Tips for Catholic Families)”:

1. Did you know that Catholics used to celebrate 5 (not just 4) Sundays of Advent?
2. Did you know that there is an ancient theological and “40 day” connection between Advent and Lent?
3. Did you know that the Advent Wreath may have started with Lutherans?
4. Did you know that Taylor will be sharing personal recommendations based on how his family and children celebrate Advent?
5. Did you know that everyone who attends this webinar will get a free ebook copy of my book God’s Birthday: The Evidence for Christ’s Birth on December 25:

What are you waiting for? Let’s learn about Catholic Advent.

Sign up for the Live Advent Webinar Event this Thursday. Register by clicking here:

If you don’t see the sign up button in your email or feed, click here to register.

The post Merry Christmas OR Happy Advent – How should Catholics Respond? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Although many people have forgotten, the heads of Peter and Paul are situated in the baldacchino which you can see in this video (click here to watch):

[reminder]

The post Where are the Skulls of Saints Peter and Paul? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

The 2 year Catholic Synod of the Family is over. Was it worth it?

I hate to say it, but the Synod of the Family was essentially a two year debate between bishops over:

• Homosexuality. Can a “merciful church” make room for alternative lifestyles?
• Communion for the Catholics who were sacramentally married in the Catholic Church, later civilly divorced, and then remarried new partners. Can a “merciful church” modify the teaching of the Catechism and Saint John Paul II and…wait for it…the Second Person of the Trinity (Mk 10:11).

People are still debating the final document and trying to figure who “won.”

While dogma did not change, it was nevertheless a massive failure because it did not speak to the troops on the ground: That is, it did not speak to the families actually trying to live the mystery of Matrimony and family as described by Saint John Paul II and the Catechism.

So what might have been a better game plan for a “Synod on the Family”? How about this:

7 Point Wish List of what a Synod on the Family might have looked like:

1. A special message from the Pope issued to mothers of children, thanking them for their physical and emotional sacrifices. Thanking these brave women for having resisted the feminist lies they hear every day on TV, Facebook (and in the grocery store from clerks) as they gracefully raise the future Christians and Saints of human civilization. These women have many babies, homeschool, squeeze budgets, and are criticized by clerks and even their own families. Our Catholic women were basically ignored by this Synod. Women are mentioned only 6 times in the Relatio. Motherhood only one time! Shame on the bishops for this.
2. A special message from the Pope to fathers of children, thanking them for resisting the easy-sex hook-up culture and choosing the vocation of monogamy and fatherhood. Thanking them for their financial sacrifices and their fidelity toward their wives and children. Thanking them for mirroring Christ as a faithful Groom.
3. The Pope formally granting a plenary indulgence (with usual conditions) to any couple on their wedding day and every annual anniversary to thank them for taking up the vocation of Holy Matrimony.
4. A Mass to strengthen families. The synod’s request that there be a celebration on a certain date in every diocese of a special Mass offered by the bishops for mothers and fathers and their children. We don’t want to see our bishops as CEO’s within the hedge of the chancery. We desperately desire to see him as a father and shepherd laying his hands on our children and blessing them.
5. Instead of having special meetings between the Pope and transgendered and homosexuals, have the Pope meet, bless, and honor married couples who have been married faithfully for over 50 years and hold them up as examples to the entire Catholic Church. Lots of photos. Lots of interviews. Let’s celebrate the heroes of Catholic Holy Matrimony from all cultures.
6. An encouraging document from the Synod for families to be open to large families. Having large families is not “breeding like rabbits.” The Holy Trinity calls having large families “being fruitful,” and He thinks it’s a great thing. It would be nice to hear the Pope and bishops formally recognize the Catholic tradition of large families, and celebrate sacramental spouses that are trying to live it in a culture that is materialistic and anti-life.
7. A strong “Culture of Life” message a la Saint John Paul II. We haven’t heart a good Culture of Life vs. Culture of Death rally in awhile. We watch our culture celebrate extramarital sex, pornography, homosexual rights, abortion, etc. daily on Facebook and the news outlets. We would love to have our own Church celebrate the counter-cultural vocation that we are trying to live out for Christ.
8. [UPDATED EXTRA POINT 8: Recognize all the married couples suffering from infertility that remain faithful to the Church’s teachings on openness to life without resorting to immoral means of conceiving children, such as in vitro and rented wombs. – This point was recommended by Rebecca Christian after I published this post. Thank you, Rebecca.]
9. [UPDATED EXTRA POINT 9: Address all the children who have been hurt through divorce, sexual confusion, and irregular marriages. There is a growing collection of young people who are scarred by divorce and they themselves are fearful to enter marriage after having watched their parents marriage break apart and after having lived in the fallout. The bishops need to publicly make a plan to “journey with them.” Divorce isn’t just “what about who can receive the Eucharist, but “what about our young people”? – This point was recommended by Sharon after I published this post. Thanks Sharon.]

Dear Bishops, these faithful growing families are your biggest assets. They are the ones teaching their children to pray for the bishop every night. They are the ones offering prayers, donations, volunteer time, and support.

These are the families that will give you the priests and religious that you so desperately need in the years to come. They are the ones that will fund your bishop’s appeal.

And yet we are mostly neglected by “the hierarchy.” The Church just spent millions of dollars on these two synods (airfare, housing, hotel, security) and to be honest, it was a big let down for those of us leading actually families.

We are “just laypeople” but would you please offer us some tangible encouragement – especially our wives who are viewed as pitiful pawns of an oppressive patriarchy?

We Need Clerical Coaches of Encouragement:

We are now a persecuted minority in the world, and we need some coaches on the sidelines slapping us on the back and shouting “Way to go team!” as we come off the field.

If you’re a priest or a bishop reading this, please consider becoming one of those encouraging coaches.

Personal story: When I was on pilgrimage to Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico, I went to confession to a priest. Some of my sins related to the frustrations of running a large family. The priest gave me solid advice.

Before absolution, the priest said:

“Heh brother. On behalf of the entire Catholic Church, thanks for trying hard and having a large family. It’s not easy and you’re doing it. Thank you. It’s beautiful.”

And you know what, I just blew up into tears. Total face melt. I didn’t expect to have that kind of response. It was just so cool to hear. After that priest said that, I was ready to fight for the Catholic Church, my wife and kids, as the most zealous apostle. I had wind in my sails and I was given enough fuel to go another 10 years. I was charged up.

[callout]My appeal to bishops and priests: Be that kind of priest in the pulpit and within the confessional. You will have loyal lay people that march through Hell for you. And with the way things are going in the years to come, you’re gonna need it.[/callout]

Just a layman,
Taylor Marshall

Do you know somebody who needs to read this? Please share it on Facebook by clicking here.

[reminder]To all the other families out there: What do you think? Did the Synod fail you? How else do we encourage our struggling families?[/reminder]

Do you benefit from my posts, because an email subscriber for free and get a free book on Saint Thomas Aquinas: sign up here.

The post My 7 Point Wish List for a Catholic Synod of Family appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

There are some Christians who have written off Halloween per se as some sort of diabolical black mass.  This interpretation usually includes a legend of how the Catholic Church conspired with druids to corrupt Europe, or some other nonsense.

To be clear, it’s the vigil of a Christian holy day: All Hallows’ Eve or All Saints Eve. Has it been corrupted by our culture and consumer market? You bet. But they have also attempted to redefine “marriage,” Easter, Christmas, St Valentines, and increasingly Ash Wednesday.

Yes, Christmas has also been derailed by the culture. Does that mean that we’re going hand over Christmas? No way! Same goes for Halloween. The Church does not surrender what rightfully belongs to her – she wins it back!

Hell is on defense since Jesus Christ came. It’s the “gates of hell.” Gates are defensive. We are supposed to be storming the gates of hell. The sacrament of Confirmation commissions us as soldiers.

Pandaemonium: Here’s your Greek word of the week

The word Pandaemonium derives from Greek “παν”, meaning “all” and “δαιμόνιον”, meaning “little devil.” Pandaemonium means “All Devils.”

John Milton imagined Pandaemonium as the capital city of Hell in Book I of his Paradise Lost (1667).

[callout]Milton was an Arian, but his Paradise Lost is a pretty cool book. If you’re a Member of NSTI, you should read it and let me know if you think his Arianism bleeds through the pages. Also, check out Milton’s Satan Trinity.[/callout]

The Devil would love to take over the feast day “All Saints” and rebrand it as “All Devils” or “Pandaemonium.” Are we going to let him? Hell no [pun intended]. All the Saints are ready for battle.

[callout]Watch Dr. Taylor’s Youtube Video: Dracula vs. the Eucharist.[/callout]

[callout]How do All the Saints hear us from Heaven? Free mp3 from Dr Taylor answering this question: Click here to listen (mp3).[/callout]

Let’s take back the entire “Hallow Triduum” of:

1. Halloween (Oct 31)
2. All Saints Day (Hallowmas Nov 1)
3. All Souls Day (Nov 2)

Celebrate Hallows Eve, but clarify “We don’t celebrate it by glorifying the demonic.” Dress your children as saints and be counter-cultural. Be leaven in the lump. Salt in the world. Be hallowed.

Oh, and don’t forget All Hallows (Nov 1) is a Holy Day of Obligation. It’s a mortal sin not to attend Holy Mass on this day (unless it is lawfully transferred by the bishops).

Don’t forget to read my 10 Tips for a Catholic Halloween by clicking here.

And share it on Facebook with all your friends by clicking here:

[reminder]

Please sign up for my daily email updates and get a FREE book on Thomas Aquinas by clicking here.

The post Is Halloween the Devil’s Day? Catholic Perspective from Dr Taylor appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

In this sample video from the New Saint Thomas Institute, I explain how it happened according to Saint Augustine:

Please share on Facebook:

[reminder]

The post {Video} The Fall of Lucifer and Saint Michael’s Victory appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1) Paul’s Vision on the Road to Damascus (described in Acts 9, 22, and 26). Paul is walking on the road to Damascus in order to arrest Christians in Damascus.

[callout]To read my theory that Saul/Paul had Herodian connections to accomplish this political task, click here.[/callout]

A bright light surrounds Saul and he hears a voice claiming: “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” Saul loses his sight but gains it again through the laying on of hands by Ananias who then baptizes Saul/Paul.

2) Paul’s Trance in the Temple (Acts 22:17-21). After his conversion, Paul returns to Jerusalem and while he is praying in the Temple, he enters into a trance. In Greek, the word for trance is ἐκστάσει {ecstasei} or “ecstasy.”

17 “When I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance {ἐκστάσει} 18 and saw him saying to me, ‘Make haste and get quickly out of Jerusalem, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’ 19 And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believed in thee. 20 And when the blood of Stephen thy witness was shed, I also was standing by and approving, and keeping the garments of those who killed him.’ 21 And he said to me, ‘Depart; for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”

We learn something more about Saul here. Although he did not capture Christians in Damascus, he did previously and personally “imprison and and beat” Christians in Jerusalem – “in every synagogue.” Saul was the chief of Anti-Christian police in Jerusalem. Saul would have had to have authority from the High Priest and Herod Antipas to accomplish this.

3) Paul’s Vision in Prison (Acts 23:11). This is the big “Roman Catholic” passage that I stress in my book on Saint Paul as Roman and in my book on Rome as the Capital of Christianity. Here Jesus Christ connects the Apostolic ministry from Jerusalem…to Rome. Romanism is a mandate delivered to Paul from the resurrected mouth of Jesus Christ:

“The following night the Lord stood by him and said: Take courage, for as you have testified about me at Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also at Rome.” (Acts 23:11)

Christ connects the Great Commission as a line drawn from Jerusalem to Rome. We see this in the thematic structure of the four Gospels (the Jerusalem/Pilate struggle) and also in the narrative structure of the Acts of the Apostles (Acts starts in Jerusalem and ends in Rome). The Book of Revelation, rightly interpreted is a vision about the unholy adultery between Whore of Babylon (Jerusalem) and the Beast (Rome).

[reminder]

The post Paul’s Three Encounters with Christ Jesus in Acts appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Paul was originally a Herodian. By “Herodian” I mean that he seems to have connections with the family and court of the Herods. Theologically, Saul/Paul favored the theology of the Pharisees before his conversion but his family connections relate him to the inner circle of Herod Agrippa.

Here are the reasons demonstrating that Saul/Paul had Herodian connections

1. Saul/Paul was highly educated both in Hebrew Scripture/Tradition but also in Greek philosophy. He seems familiar, for example with Plato’s Timaeus. He is Hebrew, but he also dabbles in Gentile learning and culture. This is the Herodian style: Jewish identity, loyalty to Jerusalem, familiar with the priests, but appreciative of Gentile power and learning. Sounds like Paul…

2. Saul/Paul was a Roman citizen. Jews were not typically citizens. We learn that Saul/Paul gained his Roman citizenship by birth. This means that his parents were Hebrews with Roman privilege. In the first century, Hebrews with Roman privilege were linked to the Roman appointed rulers of Palestine – the Herod’s.

3. Saul/Paul officially persecuted Christians on behalf of the Temple authorities. This is odd. Think about how hard it was for the Sanhedrin to kill Jesus Christ. Back and forth between the Roman Pontius Pilate and the Roman appointed “King” Herod Antipas the Tetrarch. Killing Christ was complicated and difficult.

And yet somehow we are to believe that Saul received certificates of authority in around the year AD 36 to go about capturing and killing Christians without trial…even as far away as Damascus? Ahem, this is the Roman Empire with laws and rules. A man can’t get permission from the priests of one city and then go and capture people in another city.

How did Saul/Paul get that power? The High Priest and the Jewish Sanhedrin in Jerusalem could not have authorized Saul to arrest Christians in Damascus. The High Priest and the Jewish Sanhedrin in Jerusalem had no power in Damascus, a city in the Roman Province of Syria. Jerusalem belonged to the Roman Province of Judea. Saul seems to have gained an authority entrusted to him by a civil power connected to the Temple. This means that Saul needed religious authority (Temple) and he needed Roman authority in Damascus (King Aretus IV of Damascus).

[callout]King Aretus IV of Damascus. King Aretus IV who ruled over Damascus during the period of Saul/Paul’s conversion was the father-in-law of Herod Antipas the Tetrarch (d. AD 39). You might remember how Saint John the Baptist was preaching against Herod Antipas for divorcing his wife in order to marry his brother’s wife Herodias. Well Saint John the Baptist was defending the honor of Herod Antipas’ first wife Phasaelis – the daughter of King Aretus IV. Small Herodian world![/callout]

Which one politician of this period had deep connections with the High Priesthood at the Temple in Jerusalem and political influence in Damascus?  Who was the only man on earth who could arrange for Saul to act on behalf of the High Priest in the foreign city of Damascus? Oh that’s right, Herod Antipas the Tetrarch!

Why was Saul/Paul able to fulfill his desire to persecute Christians on behalf on the High Priest throughout the Roman Empire? Because his family was close to the family of Herod.

4. Saul/Paul is grouped with those raised with Herod Antipas the Tetrarch. “Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers as Barnabas and Simeon that was called Niger and Lucius of Cyrene and Manaen which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch and Saul. (Acts 13.1) The Greek is unclear but there is certainly a group of young Jewish men in Antioch who are associated with Herod Antipas the Tetrarch.

According to Josephus, Herod Antipas the Tetrarch, his full brother Archelaus and his half-brother Philip were raised and educated in Rome (Josephus, Antiquities 17.20–21). Hence, those raised with Herod Antipas the Tetrarch were educated in Rome. I would not be surprised if Saul/Paul had also studied in Rome as a young man, even though he is younger than Herod Antipas the Tetrarch.

5. Saulus/Paulus was not merely a plebian rabbi. He had political clout. When Saul/Paul is arrested, the commander assigns, get this, 470 men to guard Paul’s life!

“Get ready a detachment of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at nine tonight. 24 Provide horses for Paul so that he may be taken safely to Governor Felix.” (Acts 23:23)

• 200 soliders
• 70 horsemen
• 200 spearmen

Yes, Paul was a Roman citizen, but Roman citizen’s didn’t normally receive 470 body guards. Saul/Paul was being protected because he was connected to the family of Herod Agrippa.

6. Josephus refers to a “Saulus” who persecuted people in Jerusalem. From the Antiquities (20.9.4) of Josephus:

“Costobarus also, and Saulus, did themselves get together a multitude of wicked wretches, and this because they were of the royal family; and so they obtained favour among them, because of their kindred to Agrippa; but still they used violence with the people, and were very ready to plunder those that were weaker than themselves.”

Is this the same “Saul”? It’s hard to tell, but a Saul who was “of the royal family” and “kindred to (Herod) Agrippa” and who “used violence with the people” sure sounds like Saul/Paul in his pre-Christian days.

7. Paul identifies his Herodian kinfolk. We don’t need Josephus to tell us about a “Saul ” was also “kindred to (Herod) Agrippa.”

In Romans 16:11 Paul writes: “Greet Herodion, my kinsman.”

Paul has connections in Rome. He even has a Jewish relative in Rome named Herodion! We don’t know who Herodion is, but his name links him to the Roman-Jewish rulers associated with the dynasty of Herod the Great.

Conclusion: Paul as Herodian Pharisee

Some might counter my arguments by stating that Saul/Paul himself clams to have been a Pharisee and not a Herodian.

But this is where things get interesting. The Pharisees and Herodians worked together!

When the Herodians are mentioned in the Gospels (Mark 3:6, 12:13; Matthew 22:16; cf. also Mark 8:15, Luke 13:31-32, Acts 4:27), they are coupled with the Pharisees. For example, in Mark 3:6, the Pharisees plot against Jesus regarding his teaching on the Sabbath day by incorporating the Herodians into their conspiracy. In Mark 8:15, Christ described the alliance of Pharisees and Herod against Him. In Mark 12, the Pharisees and Herodians together, try to trap Christ with their question about paying taxes.

The fact that Saul/Paul was a Pharisee does not disqualify him from being a Herodian. Rather, it substantiates it.

[reminder]Do you have any arguments pro or con regarding my Paul the Herodian thesis?[/reminder]

PS: I plan to revise and update my The Catholic Perspective on Paul to incorporate this new research.

The post Was Saint Paul Related to Herod? 7 Reasons Paul was Herodian appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Like Saint Dominic, Saint Peter of Verona was a preacher to the Cathar Albigensian heretics. The Cathars believed physical matter is evil, despised the body, despised marriage, and essentially held to Manichaean view of the universe.

Peter was a famous preacher and crowds followed him around Italy. A group of Cathars conspired to murder him and hired a professional assassin to kill the priest (can you imagine if this happened today?).

The assassin struck Peter on the head with an axe. Peter, still alive but with the top of his cranium chopped off, stood to his feet, recited the Creed. With the blood running from his head, he wrote with his finger “Credo in Unum Deum” or “I believe in one God,” so as to witness against the Cathars’ heresy.

Despite the head wound, he lived for five days and then died.

Saint Peter Martyr is an example for us to brush up on our Catholic theology and actively teach the truth. And the next time the Mormons on your doorstep, be ready by knowing your theology…and be grateful that they don’t carry axes.

[reminder]

The post He wrote the Creed in his blood…literally – Meet St Peter Martyr appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

In this video from the New Saint Thomas Institute I explain the biblical teaching on intoxication as it relates to our the faculties of our intellect and will. We look at Scripture, Philosophy, and the Catechism. This video is getting lots of buzz, so I hope you enjoy it.

[reminder]Please feel free to ask questions about Marijuana, etc. below.[/reminder]

If you are having trouble watching or seeing this video on Marijuana, Drugs, and Alcohol, please click here to watch it.

Do you have friends and family who need to see this video? Share it on Facebook by clicking here.

If you like this video, you can join over 1,600 students at the New Saint Thomas Institute and earn your Certificate in Theology with us. Click here to sign up before registration closes or spots run out.

The post Can Christians Smoke Marijuana, Get High, and Get Drunk? Answer from Scripture, Thomas Aquinas, Catechism appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Here’s a preview video unit lesson from the Certificate in Catholic Theology curriculum from the New Saint Thomas Institute on the death of Christ as explained by Saint Thomas Aquinas. I’ve included the video file and the audio mp3 file for your convenience.

 If you don’t see the video in your browser or email, please click here.

If you want to earn our Certificate in Catholic Theology through the New Saint Thomas Institute (NSTI), our enrollment is currently full and closed. However, we will open a limited number of spots for Easter. If you want the opportunity to join when we open these enrollment spots, please make sure that you are on our Priority Waiting List by clicking here.

We have over 1,500 students in NSTI from 30 nations! Learn more about how you can get deep into Catholic philosophy, theology, and apologetics through our online video unit courses a NewSaintThomas.com.

[reminder]

The post Thomas Aquinas on the Death of Christ: Body, Blood, Soul, Divinity [Video and Audio] appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

On planet earth there are about 70 million Orthodox Christians that are not in full communion with the Catholic Church (centered at Rome) or with the Eastern Orthodox (centered at Constantinople). These are the Oriental Orthodox Christians. They have all seven sacraments, revere the Mother of God and the saints, have a valid Eucharist, pray for the faithful departed, and have preserved a valid line of apostolic succession.

These Oriental Orthodox Christians do not accept the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451 which dogmatically defined that Christ is one divine Person with two natures (divine and human).

Meet the Miaphysites

The Non-Chalcedonian Oriental Orthodox Christians rejected this Council because Saint Cyril of Alexandria spoke of one nature (Greek: mia physis) in the incarnate Christ. These Non-Chalcedonian Christians rejected the Council of Chalcedon on grounds that a great saint and doctor of the Church, Saint Cyril, spoke of “one nature” or “mia physis.” According to them, how then could the Council teach “two natures”?

The Six Oriental Orthodox Churches

The Non-Chalcedonian “Miaphysite” Christian Churches are the:

1. Armenian Apostolic Church
2. Syriac Orthodox Church
3. Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church of India
4. Coptic Orthodox Church of Egypt
5. Ethiopian Orthodox Church
6. Eritrean Orthodox Church

The Oriental Orthodox Communion of Churches

This communion of Oriental Orthodox Churches are called by the following terms:

• Oriental Orthodox (to distinguish them from the Eastern Orthodox)
• Non-Chalcedonian (since they do not receive the Council of Chalcedon as do Roman Catholics and Eastern Orthodox)
• Jacobites (after Jacob Baradaeus, the Miaphysite Bishop of Edessa who died in AD 578)
• Miaphysites (in honor of the term used by Saint Cyril: mia physis or “one nature”)
• Monophysites (a pejorative term rejected by the Oriental Orthodox Church – they prefer the term Miaphysite)

The Big Debate Over Ek or En “Two Natures”

The big debate between Non-Chalcedonian Miaphysites on one hand, and Chalcedonian Catholics and Eastern Orthodox on the other, centers on the use of terms in Greek:

• The Non-Chalcedonians insist on Saint Cyril’s phrase “mia physis” (one nature) and the formulation that the incarnate Christ is “ek duo physeon” (out of two natures).
• The Chalcedonians (Rome and Constantinople) allow for Saint Cyril’s phrase “mia physis” (we must accept it, because it comes from a sainted champion of orthodoxy!) but prefer the formulation that the incarnate Christ is “en duo physesin” (in two natures).

It is important to note that Non-Chalcedonians reject the heretic Eutyches and also rightly believe that Christ is consubstantial with the Father and consubstantial with humanity. It seems that the heretic Eutyches condemned by the Council of Chalcedon did not profess that Christ was consubstantial with the rest of humanity. This is bad, bad theology because if Christ does not share our nature, He cannot save us or lift us up.

Saint John Paul II Forges a Way Toward Union

Pope Saint John Paul II signed accords with the Coptic Orthodox and the Syriac Orthodox (both miaphysite) recognizing that their Christology is currently sound and orthodox – fully in accord with Roman Catholic Christology. The Catholic Church recognizes that the debate was essentially linguistic and political and it’s worth noting that ALL the miaphysite churches belong to the Eastern Provinces of Byzantium and were non-Greek speaking nations. Hence, there is little separating the Oriental Orthodox from joining into full communion with the Successor of Saint Peter in Rome.

With the recent martyrdom of the 21 Coptic Martyrs and persecution of Syrian Christians, let’s pray for a reunion of all followers of Our Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist.

I put together a free worksheet about Coptic Christians which you can download here:

Click Here to Download the 1 page Coptic Report pdf

Note: Saint Cyril of Alexandria wrote against the Nestorians saying: “one (mia) nature of the Word of God incarnate” (μία φύσις τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου σεσαρκωμένη mía phýsis toû theoû lógou sesarkōménē). Although Chalcedon taught “two natures” there must always be a way to preserve Saint Cyril’s “one nature” formulation. See John McGuckin (2004), Saint Cyril of Alexandria and the Christological Controversy, ISBN 0-88141-259-7 p. 140.

The post Meet the Oriental Orthodox Christians and Their Controversial Christology appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

If you’re having trouble watching the video in your browser, click here.

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To celebrate Saint Thomas Aquinas, please share this with your friends on Facebook by clicking here.

And here are four more videos on Saint Thomas Aquinas. Saint Thomas Aquinas pray for us!!!

7 Reasons to Love Saint Thomas Aquinas

Did Thomas Aquinas deny the Immaculate Conception? The answer may surprise you?

Thomas Aquinas on the four sections of Hell:

Thomas Aquinas on the Creation of Eve: Is Woman a Misbegotten Male?

Have a great feast day of Saint Thomas Aquinas!!! Don’t forget to download your free ebook Thomas Aquinas in 50 Pages over at taylormarshall.com

[reminder]What would you like to learn more about on any topic related to Thomas Aquinas?[/reminder]

The post 7 Reasons to Love Saint Thomas Aquinas (plus 4 Catholic videos) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

What’s not often noted in the strategized context of this passage within the structure of Saint John’s Gospel:

The Jewish scriptures often employ a chiastic structure – the stacking of passages in an inverted narrative. It’s like sandwich with the bread on the outside and the meat in the middle.

Saint John does this exact thing when places two important sections just before the “Bread from Heaven” passage of John 6:22-59 and two more sections after it in John 6-7. If you understand this, you can make a better defense of Christ’s teaching about His Body and Blood in John 6.

Here’s the outline and climax of the passage in John laid out as a chiastic outline (climax happens in the middle of a literary sandwich):

Chiastic Context of Eucharistic Teaching in John

a. Moses’ and God the Father’s testimony to Christ (Jn 5:30)

b. Feeding 5,000 (Jn 6:1-15)

c. Christ walks on water (Jn 6:16-21)

x. The Bread of Life Discourse (Jn 6:22-59)

cc. Disciples Leave but Peter says, “To whom shall we go….” (Jn 6:60-71)

bb. Unbelief of Christ’s brethren (Jn 7:1-9)

aa. Christ at Feast of Tabernacles (Jn 7:10-24)

Why this is important!

1. As you can see in this chiasm or “sandwich” the the outer layers (a and aa) refer to the Jewish context. God’s testimony through Moses’ testimony mirror the Christ as the fulfillment of the Israelite feast of tabernacles – when God tabernacles or dwells among men. (Of course, Catholics call the box holding the Eucharist a “tabernacle” for this reason.)
2. In the next inner layer (b and bb), you can see that Christ feeds 5000 – His great public miracle is paired with the unbelief of His brethren. Notably, Christ’s ability to multiply “bread” is John’s way of showing Christ has supernatural power over the nature of ordinary things…like bread.
3. The next inner layer (c and cc) has Christ walking on water – yet another proof given by John that not only does Christ have power over natural things (like bread), but His own body has supernatural powers over nature. The multiplying of bread and His walking on water show that there is something miraculous about “bread in the hands of Christ” and something miraculous about the “Body of Christ” which can defy natural laws regarding gravity and water. It’s paired with Peter’s act of faith.
4. In the middle we get the Bread of Life discourse, which is power packed with theology about Christ, bread, body, blood, Moses, and eternal life. Once you see the chiasm or “literary sandwich” surrounding the passage, the argument is even more powerful.

As you read this passage or use it for Catholic apologetics, be aware that it’s not just the individual verses that are powerful – it’s the entire symphonic arrangement of this section in Saint John’s Gospel that argues for the Holy Eucharist and the miraculous transformation of mere bread and wine into the very incarnate Son of God Himself.

Challenge: Some time this week, read John 5-7 altogether in one sitting. Take notes and see if you find more layers hidden in the text. I bet you will!

[reminder]

The post John 6 and Judaism: The Jewish Symphonic Sandwich Structure of the John’s Gospel appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

1. disagreement with the sexual teachings of the Church
2. denial of God altogether
3. common Protestant objections against Mary, the Pope, or salvation and grace

I’ve made the mistake in the past of thinking that if I could “just get smarter” or “just read more books,” I’d somehow become a logical ninja able to convert the most hardened atheist or Protestant…

…but it’s just not true…

What I’ve learned over the years is that gaining theological knowledge is 100% necessary, but (and this an important but) acquiring daily positive habits are 100% more important.

Have you cultivated these necessary Christian habits? In this video, I’ll share the my opinion on the 5 most important “Life Habits” for not only transforming your own life, but the lives of those around you (especially those that disagree with you about Catholicism).

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Having trouble watching the video in your browser or email? Please click here to watch the video.

Tomorrow, I’ll send a follow up video on how the essential Catholic intellectual tools (most of which are free) that every Christian should start using to gain in head knowledge after they have already committed to heart knowledge of the Most Holy Trinity through the revealed life and ministry of Our Lord Jesus Christ.

[reminder]

The post Do You Have the 5 Life Habits of a Convincing Catholic? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Here’s a quick backstory to the plot.

Saint Irene was the wife and empress of the Byzantine Emperor Leo IV. She was not a princess. Historians believe she was chosen to marry the emperor’s son through an imperial Miss Byzantine Beauty Pageant known as a Bride Show.

Basically, the Byzantine emperor would line up the most gorgeous women of the empire for a beauty contest, and the emperor’s son would choose his favorite.

(“Wow dad, that girl over there would make for a really hot empress. Can I marry her?”

“If she’s the one you like.”

“Gee, thanks dad!”

“You’re welcome, son. Happy birthday Leo!”)

Although she won out as “Miss Constantinople AD 768,” she soon learned that her young husband Leo IV espoused the heresy of iconoclasm.

Iconoclasm wrongly taught that images of of Christ, Mary, and the saints should not only be removed from churches and homes, but that they should be destroyed as being contrary to the commandment “Thou shalt not make unto thyself any graven image.”

Saint Irene’s husband Leo IV died and left the throne to their nine year old son Constantine VI. She served as Regent until the prince reached the age of majority.

Irene unveiled a plot enthrone throne Caesar Nikephoros, a half-brother of her deceased husband Leo IV. To overcome this conspiracy, she had Nikephoros and his co-conspirators ordained as priests, an act that disqualified them from political office. Check mate!

“So you want to usurp my nine-year-old son’s rightful claim on the Byzantine throne, do you? Too bad. I’ve arranged for you to receive Holy Orders tomorrow before breakfast. Toodles!”

Saint Irene got busy. She arranged for her son Constantine VI to marry Rotrude the daughter of Charlemagne, but the wedding fell through. (Maybe the young Constantine VI also wanted to choose his own Miss Constantinople rather than risk it with the daughter of a Frankish warlord.)

Irene also worked with the Pope in Rome for the Second Ecumenical Council of Nicea in AD 787 to doctrinally ratify the use of Christian images of Christ and the saints.

Saint Irene refused to allow the rule to pass from her regency to her son Constantine VI. Like Queen Elizabeth I of England, she employed the male title of “king” (basileus) instead of “queen” (basilissa). She was King Irene!

By the way, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as a substitute Roman Emperor because of the irregularity of Irene’s rule in the New Rome of Byzantium!

The widowed Irene later proposed marriage to Charlemagne to reestablish the glory of Constantinople! Charlemagne declined…even though she had once been Miss Constantinople.

Saint Irene’s feast day is August 9.

[reminder]

The post Saint Irene: Miss Constantinople Beauty Pageant Winner of AD 768 appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

In this video I retell how I as a Protestant once (aggressively and rudely) challenged the Catholic philosopher Dr. Peter Kreeft in person and how Dr. Kreeft’s calm and researched replies demonstrated the BEST in Catholic apologetics and technique. Wouldn’t you know it – I’m Catholic now! I’ll also explain the 5 common mistakes that you might make and how to avoid them:

If you don’t see the video in your email or browser,
please click here to watch it.

If you don’t see the video in your email or browser,
please click here to watch it.

[reminder]

PS: You can get hours of videos like this and earn a Certificate in Catholic Theology or a Certificate in Catholic Apologetics by joining the New Saint Thomas Institute – an online member community with Catholic classes and thousands of Christians from over 25 nations! Don’t miss the enrollment window! Join now at: New Saint Thomas Institute.

The post 5 Common Mistakes Catholics Make When Defending the Catholic Church appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

My goal this week is to share some secret information and the theology embedded in my Amazon Bestselling novel Sword and Serpent.

Click to Listen: #058: The Secret Hidden Theology in Sword and Serpent

  If the audio player does not show up in your email or browser, please click here to listen.

• Featured Segment: Theology in Sword and Serpent
• Announcements:
  • Looking for a solid Advent Devotion this year. Give a gift to Christ. Consecrate yourself to Mary with the 33 day consecration. We have everything need for it at 33Mary.com. Please visit 33mary.com and sign up.
  • My new book Sword and Serpent hit #1 Amazon Bestseller in the category of Young Adult Christian Historical and Christian Action! Thanks to everyone who promoted it and got a copy!

• Latin word of the week: fabulator

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[reminder]What are other helpful ways that we can explain infant baptism? Do have any recommendations or advice to share?[/reminder]

The post #058: The Hidden Theology in Sword and Serpent with St George and Sabra appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Please take a moment to watch the video below with 3 facts about Saint Nicholas you’ll want to share with friends and family this Christmas:

Are you having trouble seeing this video in your browser or email? Please click here to watch it.

[callout]Please share this post on Facebook and share these 3 facts about Saint Nicholas every Catholic will want to know: Click here to share.[/callout]

[reminder]

The post 3 Facts About Saint Nicholas to Share This Christmas appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Your history teacher probably forgot to teach you that Squanto, the native American hero of the Pilgrim’s first Thanksgiving was Catholic. And your history textbooks probably wrongly told 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. Read on for 6 Amazing Catholic Thanksgiving Facts…

1. Squanto, the beloved hero of Thanksgiving at Plymouth Rock, was Catholic! (Here’s my short video on how Catholic Squanto saved Thanksgiving.)

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 friars did to make it happen. You can retell this story at this year’s Thanksgiving and impress everyone as they eat your delicious pies:

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

Catholic Thanksgiving Fact 2:

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.

Catholic Thanksgiving Fact 3: 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.

Catholic Thanksgiving Fact 4: 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.

Catholic Thanksgiving Fact 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.

Catholic Thanksgiving Fact 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

[callout]Please share this with your Puritan friends on Facebook (do Puritans prohibit Facebook?). Share it on Facebook by clicking here. [/callout]

[reminder]What are some Catholic traditions you’ve added to your Thanksgiving celebration?[/reminder]

If you’d like to receive my theology updates and get one of my books for free, join our 31,000 daily subscribers by signing up here and get a free book on Saint Thomas Aquinas!

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

Please take a moment to watch the video on the Presentation of Mary in the Temple and learn how you can join our 33Mary.com consecration movement this Advent:

Are you having trouble seeing this video in your browser or email? Please click here to watch it.

Would you like to join 33mary? Simply visit 33mary.com and follow the instructions, and I’ll send you a free book later this week along with your first email for 33Mary this Saturday.

Here are three reasons why you should consider consecrating your life using the 33 day consecration:

1) Saint John Paul II said that the 33 Day Consecration was the “major turning point” in his life before becoming Pope.

2) Over 10 Popes have endorsed this 33 Day Consecration Devotion.

3) Numerous saints have endorsed the 33 Day Consecration Devotion as integral to their formation.

This week as we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of Mary in the Temple, please consider how you might present yourself to God in a rich and beautiful way this Advent.

[callout]Please share this post on Facebook and help spread the word on the power of total consecration and how to participate this Christmas season: Click here to share.[/callout]

[reminder]

The post 3 Reasons to Consecrate Yourself to Mary This Advent appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

So after they went to bed, I nightly sipped on a snifter of Grand-Marnier and typed out the life and adventures of the historical Saint George. It’s finally being published for this Christmas with the title: Sword and the Serpent.

It’s historical fiction. If you like Roman history, adventure, mystery, and well, Catholic saints, you’re going to love this book. It’s not magical – it’s supernatural, with miracles, relics, and even some bilocation.

Please take a moment to watch the book trailer for Sword and Serpent (the book won’t be published till December):

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Are you having trouble seeing this video in your browser or email? Please click here to watch it.

Would you like for us to let you know when the novel is released? If so please enter your name below and we’ll email you to let you know. (Your email address will be secure and will be used for nothing other than for letting you know about Sword and Serpent.)

[callout]Please share this post on Facebook and help spread the word on this book I know will shape and inspire both Catholics and non-Catholics alike. Click here to share.[/callout]

The post Video Preview of My New Saint George Novel appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

As I explain in the video below, the Dracula legend is a demonic Anti-Christ or Anti-Eucharist myth. Please take a moment to watch our new video to learn more – and hopefully you learn some interesting facts in time for Halloween:

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Are you having trouble seeing this video in your browser or email? Please click here to watch it.

[reminder]What’s your take on vampire literature? Do you think contemporary vampire stories (Twilight) corrupt or undermine the original Christ vs. Satan dialectic?[/reminder]

[callout]Do you know people confused about vampires and demonic possession? Please share this post on Facebook by clicking here.[/callout]

The post Dracula vs. the Catholic Eucharist appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Our Protestant friends know about Saint Michael and Saint Gabriel. Both archangels appear by name in the Old Testament and the New Testament. The third member of the angelic triumvirate (or perhaps trium-archangelate) is Saint Raphael who appears only the Deuterocanonical book of Tobit.

Former Catholic priest Father Martin Luther blotted out the book of Tobit from the canonical table of contents and so Protestants don’t have this book or the six Deuterocanonical Bible books removed by Luther.

[callout]If you want to hear my hard words about Martin Luther (in contrast to Padre Pio), click here.[/callout]

Saint Raphael in the Old Testament

In the divinely inspired book of Tobit, the archangel Raphael first disguised in human form as the travel companion of Tobit’s son, Tobias. While in human disguise, Saint Raphael calls himself calling himself “Azarias.” Saint Raphael protects Tobias and even binds the demon Asmodeus in the desert of Egypt. At the end of the story, “Azarias” reveals himself as “Raphael one of the seven, who stand before the Lord” (Tobit 12:15). It’s a great story. By the way, the name Raphael in Hebrew means “God heals,” and so Saint Raphael is associated with physical and spiritual healing.

Saint Raphael in the New Testament

Even advanced students of Sacred Scripture may be surprised to learn that Raphael makes a cameo appearance in the New Testament, as well. Tradition identifies the “healing angel” in John 5 to be Saint Raphael. This is manifest when we see that the Gospel lesson for Saint Raphael’s feast day (in the old calendar Oct 24) is this story from John 5:

an angel of the Lord descended at certain times into the pond; and the water was moved. And he that went down first into the pond after the motion of the water was made whole of whatsoever infirmity he lay under” (Jn 5:1-4)

Is this a slam dunk infallible case? No, but it’s the strong tradition of the Catholic Church that the anonymous angel that stirred the waters for healing was none other than the biblical archangel Raphael from Tobit. After all, Raphael doesn’t like to reveal his name or identity…

Godspeed,
Taylor

Please pass this on to someone who might find it interesting.

PS: Thomas Aquinas only mention Raphael three times in his entire corpus of works. Here are the citations:

• Super Sent., lib. 2 d. 10 q. 1 a. 4
• Summa Theologiae I, q. 112 a. 3
• Super Psalmo 21, n. 27.

[reminder]

The post Does Saint Raphael Appear in the New Testament? Yes, He Has a Cameo Appearance appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Do you have questions about how the Church is handling homosexuality? Has it bothered you? Are you concerned? Below is a video explaining some of the lesser known details, the crazy things cardinals say, how Saint Paul handled homosexuality in the first century, and why you should not lose your peace over this situation.

Please take a moment to watch this video:

[youtube id=”5HNRNLS-tSg”]

Are you having trouble seeing this video in your browser or email? Please click here to watch it.

[reminder]Please share your thoughts about the Synod of Bishops for Marriage and the Family (but be charitable in your feedback, please).[/reminder]

[callout]Do you have friends and family confused about this Synod? Please share it with them on Facebook by clicking here.[/callout]

The post Crazy Cardinals, Synod on Marriage and Family, Finding Peace appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

I first saw Father Benedict Groeschel on television. I was a 24 year old (Protestant) seminarian in Philadelphia. I was flipping through the channels at night and saw Father Benedict talking about Martin Luther and John Calvin. He said something like, “Luther I couldn’t work with, but Calvin, I think I could have turned him into a Catholic.”

I was immediately fascinated with this man wearing a long beard and “dressed in sackcloth.” I started watching him at night and he certainly planted seeds in my heart for a future conversion to Catholicism.

Years later when I was an Episcopalian priest, I was able to meet him in person in Washington DC. He was very interested in the fact that I was an Episcopalian priest and he was certain that I should become a Catholic. “Oh, you went to Nashotah House in Wisconsin,” he said with enthusiasm, “then you’re almost Catholic already!”

Father Benedict Groeschel Read My Soul

I’ve never said this publicly, but he leaned in to me and whispered. He read my soul right then and there. He told me things that I had thought but that I had never told to people. It was alarming but also comforting.

It was a miracle and I have ever since believed that Father Benedict was a holy man with miraculous charisms like Padre Pio. He gave me counsel and encouraged me. It was quite a remarkable experience. These are things that cannot be explained by science or natural observation. There was something deeply supernatural about Father Benedict Groeschel.

Father Benedict Groeschel into the Arms of God the Father

We had been following Father Benedict’s health for awhile, and my CFR friends had told me that he had not been doing well for the least several weeks. This morning Joy told me that Father Benedict had died. We stopped during breakfast and prayed that he would skip purgatory and go straight into the arms of the Father.

I’m pretty certain that he did. He was very close to the Eucharistic Heart of Jesus and he deeply understood the profound mercy of God. He would say that when he died and showed up at the pearly gates, all he would do is cast his eyes down and humbly beg for mercy. I know that he received it!

May Father Benedict rest in peace and do more for us in Heaven than he did for us on earth.

Godspeed,
Taylor Marshall

[reminder]Do you have any memories of Father Benedict that you’d like to share?[/reminder]

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The post Fr Benedict Groeschel Once Read My Soul – May He Rest in Peace appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Here’s the theological evidence to settle the issue that there are nine celestial orders of angels (from lowest to highest):

Angels, Archangels, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Dominations, Throne, Cherubim, Seraphim

In my free book Thomas Aquinas in 50 Pages, I explain the cosmic responsibilities of each order.

St. Gregory the Great teaches, based on Saint Paul’s writings, that there are nine orders of angels:

We know on the authority of Scripture that there are nine orders of angels, viz., Angels, Archangels, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Dominations, Throne, Cherubim and Seraphim. That there are Angels and Archangels nearly every page of the Bible tell us, and the books of the Prophets talk of Cherubim and Seraphim. St. Paul, too, writing to the Ephesians enumerates four orders when he says: ‘above all Principality, and Power, and Virtue, and Domination’; and again, writing to the Colossians he says: ‘whether Thrones, or Dominations, or Principalities, or Powers’. If we now join these two lists together we have five Orders, and adding Angels and Archangels, Cherubim and Seraphim, we find nine Orders of Angels.” (Hom. 34, In Evang.)

St. Thomas Aquinas teaches the same ninefold pattern at Summa theologica I, q. 108.

St. Paul teaches speaks of angels and archangels and refers to the orders of “principality, and power, and virtue, and dominion” in Ephesians 1:21. He also mentions “thrones, dominations, principalities or powers” at Colossians 1:16.

The term archangel occurs only in St. Jude and 1 Thessalonians 4:15; but St. Paul has furnished us with two other lists of names of the heavenly cohorts. He tells us (Ephesians 1:21) that Christ is raised up “above all principality, and power, and virtue, and dominion”; and, writing to the Colossians (1:16), he says: “In Him were all things created in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominations, or principalities or powers.”

Paul gives us the middle five orders and we add to it, “angels, archangels, cherubim, and seraphim” from his writings and the rest of Scripture. So that bring us to nine orders or choirs of angels.

[reminder]Are you aware of this tradition? Do you think it is controversial?[/reminder]

The post The Nine Choir Hierarchy of the Angels in Scripture and Tradition appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

Here’s a free video from the New Saint Thomas Institute on the subject of Satan and Michael. You’ll learn about the creation of the angels, the fall of Satan according to Saint Augustine, and the reason Saint Michael is called “Mi Cha El.”

[youtube id=”IlRR-j7XaYM”]

Don’t see the video? Click here to watch it.

Are you not yet a Member of the New Saint Thomas Institute? If not, this is the week to join. We are opening a few limited spots for Fall Enrollment and offering a limited time discount on NSTI tuition. Join well over 1,000 Members of the New Saint Thomas Institute from all over the world as we study Catholic theology together.

There are limited spots and our tuition sale is limited. We also have a bunch of great bonuses for this fall. Want to join? Learn by clicking here.

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The post Lucifer vs. St Michael: Why St Michael Won! appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

My goal was to finish researching and writing the book by the feast day of Saint Augustine on August 28, 2014. I worked hard on it and put the finishing touches on it on August 29. Do you know how hard it is to squeeze Augustine into 50 pages? 

Please Listen Here: Your Voicemail about the Book

Here’s a short 1 minute voicemail I recorded to you telling you about the book: Click here to listen to it: Taylor’s Voicemail to you about your free book.

Augustine in 50 Pages Table of Contents

Here’s a sneak at the title page for the book:
SAINT AUGUSTINE IN 50 PAGES title page.pdf

When will you get this Free Book?

The book is finished. But as you know, I am the royal king of typos (it’s a common theme in the comments box. My dad is dyslexic. Maybe I have a little bit of it.) So I need to get this Augustine manuscript professionally edited and cleaned up. Whenever that is finished, you’ll have this free book in your hands. Thomas Aquinas in 50 Pages will go into paperback version and will be available for purchase at amazon soon.

If you still want a free copy of Thomas Aquinas in 50 Pages, sign up and get it here.

Godspeed, Taylor Marshall PS: I shared this on Facebook, but I really felt that Saint Augustine was in the room with me when I wrote this book. It was a very supernatural sensation. The closest experience I’ve had as an author was writing The Catholic Perspective on Paul and my new fictional novel about Saint George, Saint Christopher, and Saint Nicholas (due after Thanksgiving). [reminder]Should the new title be SAINT Augustine in 50 Pages or just Augustine in 50 Pages? The reason I ask is that Thomas Aquinas in 50 Pages doesn’t have the “Saint” in front of it.[/reminder]

The post Taylor’s Voicemail about St Augustine in 50 Pages appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

The post Saint Helen: A recommended book, Evelyn Waugh’s Helena appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

How would you answer this question?

As a Catholic, it’s always a toughie.

When someone (that someone is always an Evangelical Protestant Christian) asks me this question, “Taylor, are you born again,” he is usually asking this question:

Taylor, did you have a moment in your life when you suddenly realized that you were a sinner and that you were on the road to hell and then by God’s grace you believed with all your heart that Jesus is your personal Lord and Savior and that by trusting in Him, all your sins are washed away?”

In other words, did I ever have a “darkness to light” moment.

Catholic “Born Again”: Is it Just Baptism or Something More?

Now the smart aleck Catholic response goes like this, “Dude, I’m a baptized Catholic. Baptism = born again. John 3:3-5 is talking about the sacrament of baptism. So yes, I’m born again. I’m baptized.”

This is theologically true. Baptism = born again.

As Saint Augustine says:

It is this one Spirit who makes it possible for an infant to be regenerated through the agency of another’s will when that infant is brought to Baptism; and it is through this one Spirit that the infant so presented is reborn…’Unless a man be born again of water and the Holy Spirit.’ The water, therefore, manifesting exteriorly the sacrament of grace, and the Spirit effecting interiorly the benefit of grace, both regenerate in one Christ that man who was in one Adam.” -Augustine, To Boniface, Epistle 98:2 (A.D. 408).

Saint Augustine and all of the early Church Fathers taught that being born again was related to baptism. However, does the Church teach that there more to it? Are we post-Reformation Catholics minimizing what Christ meant by “born again”?

Catholic Cynicism about “Born Again”

Due a Protestant over-emphasis on “being born again,” some Catholics have become a little cynical about “being born again.” I’ve heard Catholics say, “Oh he’s one of those born again Christians,” or “I’m not born again, I’m Catholic!”

Of course this kind of answer just reconfirms the Protestant suspicion that we are false Christians trying to earn “salvation brownie points” with a God that we don’t know.

This is tragic. I think we need to rethink how we understand baptism, being born again, and a continually renewed life in Christ. We should reflect on our lives in the context of those “darkness to light” moments even if they aren’t as dramatic as the conversion of Saint Paul on the road to Damascus.

Being Born Again Could Be a Dynamic Reality Present in Your Life Today

Yes I was “born again” on the day I was baptized. I was regenerated and justified in Christ our Lord. But there is something richer entailed by all of this. Being born again is not just a past event – it’s a present reality.

Consider all your sins, your mistakes, the people you’ve hurt, the evil things you’ve said to hurt other people. Through faith, hope, love, and the sacraments you are experiencing a continual renewal or rebirth. It’s not just a past event associated with a past baptism, because your baptismal identity and the power of sacramental baptism endures into this very moment as you’re reading this blog post. This is something that Paul is always drilling into the minds of his first century disciples: “Experience now what you became then in Christ!”

So “being born again” applies to today. Christ is offering you a fresh grace today. Christ offers you a fresh anointing. Christ offers you a new identity in His status as “New Adam” and an offer to escape from the “Old Adam.” The grace of your baptism can be renewed tomorrow morning in a powerful way. Oh, and he throws in a bonus: The Holy Spirit is transforming your soul, and you are being re-formed and re-developed in the spiritual womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Not too mention, you have the Bible, the Catechism, the sacraments, and millions of saints and angels surrounding you throughout the day.

When Jesus said that we must become like children, I think He is telling us to return to an age closer to our birth – but not our natural birth – our spiritual rebirth in baptism. Return to your baptism.

Stir Up Your “Born Again-ness” Every Morning

As Saint John Paul II reminded us, our greatest dignity is our baptismal identity. Baptismal dignity is the sign that says “You are born again.” It’s something that we must recall daily. It cannot be a past event isolated to a photograph of your baptism. It has to be lived now by grace. As Pope Benedict XVI wrote:

Their example gives witness to the fact that baptism commits Christians to participate boldly in the spread of the Kingdom of God, cooperating if necessary with the sacrifice of one’s own life.”

– Pope Benedict XVI

So recall your baptism daily and by doing so, you will recall you regeneration or “born again-ness.”

Godspeed,
Taylor

PS: Holy water is a fantastic way to continually renew and recall your baptismal born again identity.

[reminder]

The post Are you Born Again? How do you answer this question? appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

It relates to a vision found in the second chapter of Daniel. This chapter describes a dream of Nebuchadnezzar about an enormous statue composed of four different materials. First, the head was of gold. Second, the chest and arms were of silver. Third, the belly and thighs were of bronze. Fourth, the legs and feet were of iron and clay. According to the vision, a stone will be hewn from a mountain without human hands and cast into the statue. This small rock smashes against the statue’s iron and clay feet, which causes the entire statue to crumble. Then the small rock becomes a great mountain and fills the entire earth.

Daniel interpreted the dream in the following way. First, the golden head was Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian Empire. Next, an inferior kingdom would then follow the Babylonian Empire, as silver is inferior to gold. Then, a third kingdom would arise inferior to the second kingdom, as bronze is inferior to silver. Lastly a fourth kingdom would arise that was different than the previous three. As for the small uncut rock cast down from Heaven, Daniel explains:

And in the days of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed, nor shall its sovereignty be left to another people. It shall break in pieces all these kingdoms and bring them to an end, and it shall stand forever; just as you saw that a stone was cut from a mountain by no human hand, and that it broke in pieces the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold. A great God has made known to the king what shall be hereafter. The dream is certain, and its interpretation sure (Dan 2:44-45).

The stone from Heaven in the days of the Fourth Kingdom signifies that “the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed.”

Looking in back in time, we understand the prophecy as corresponding to the following historical chronology when heathen kingdoms ruled over the Jews:

1. Babylonian Empire (ca. 587-539 B.C.)
2. Medo-Persian Empire (ca. 539-331 B.C.)
3. Greek Empire (ca. 331-168 B.C.)
4. Roman Empire (ca. 63 B.C.-A.D. 70)

It was in fact in the days of the Fourth Kingdom, the Roman Empire that God established His Messianic Kingdom:

In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be enrolled…And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be enrolled with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to be delivered (Lk 2:1-6).

It is also common knowledge that Christ was crucified under Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor of Judea. From a historical point of view we see that the Rock of Ages came crashing into the Roman Empire. The Kingdom of Christ began precisely when Daniel predicted—during the era of the Fourth Kingdom, the Kingdom of Rome.

It is important to note here that the Four Kingdoms of the Gentiles also began to anticipate a Messiah in their own way. Ezekiel and Daniel called King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon “the King of Kings” (Ezek 26:7; Daniel 2:37), a title given subsequently to Jesus Christ. Isaiah called King Cyrus of Persia “the Messiah” (Isaiah 45:1), a surprising use of the term for a Gentile king! Alexander the Great of Greece united the Mediterranean world, had himself proclaimed the “Son of God,” and died at the age of thirty-three. The Greco-Syrian ruler Antiochus IV later ruled the Promised Land, desecrated the Temple, and in turn became a type of the False Messiah or Antichrist. But it was Rome that was the final “kingdom” and it was inherited by Christ and His saints.

As we see in Daniel 2, “[Rome’s] sovereignty shall be left to another people” and it would happen through the introduction of a stone or rock – a Petros or Peter!

The section above was an excerpt from The Eternal City: Rome and the Origins of Catholicism.  To learn more about the “Theology of Rome” or Romalogy, take a look at my book.

[reminder]

The post The Roman Church as Prophesied in the Old Testament appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

This is a sneak preview of my second (new) Ox Talk Podcast. Also, for the first time ever, my lovely wife Joy joins me on the microphone in this podcast. You won’t want to miss this one!

Click to Listen: Podcast #039: How Was the Bible Assembled

If audio player does not show up in your email or browser, please click here to listen.

New Announcements:

1. There is now a “waiting list” to join the New Saint Thomas Institute. There are currently 232 people waiting to join our New Saint Thomas Institute. If you would like to reserve your spot on our waiting list, receive priority enrollment, and get reduced tuition, please learn more by clicking here.
2. Today is a special public preview of “Ox Talk Podcast” – a special podcast for Members of the New Saint Thomas Institute.
3. My wife Joy co-hosts today’s show.

Past Episodes of the Show:

The post #039: How Was the Bible Assembled? (plus Joy joins me) appeared first on Taylor Marshall.

As a confirmed Catholic, you must know and understand the canonized terminology for God – otherwise you might start speaking like a heretic and not even know it!

If you’re not already a Member, here’s a sample video of what we are studying inside NSTI:

Here is the mp3/audio version for your convenience:

For those of you who are not Members of the New Saint Thomas Institute, here is how it works.

New theology content like the video and mp3 above come out every week in the form of videos, notes, bonuses, and mp3 audios/podcasts.

Members of the New Saint Thomas Institute receive new lessons, new podcasts, notes, bonuses, and theological forums. You also have the opportunity to earn a Certificate in Theology through the New Saint Thomas Institute.

[callout]The New Saint Thomas Institute is currently “Waitlisted.” There are currently 208 people on the waiting list to join NSTI. If you would like to be notified and receive a personal invite to Priority Enrollment before NSTI is open to the public, please sign up below. Those who get on the waiting list will receive: 1) a 22% discount on tuition and 2) a private invitation to join before enrollment is made available to the public.[/callout]

Please share your email and first name above and we’ll make sure that you are on the waiting list and receive an opportunity to join before we open it to the public again.

PS: We cannot guarantee that everyone on the waiting list will have an available spot. It’s first come, first enroll. To learn more about NSTI and how our “waiting list” works, please click here.

The post Video Lesson: 9 Big Theology Words you should know by now appeared first on Taylor Marshall.