In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

John 1:1-5

Hallelujah! All faithful Christians believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. Holy scripture is a huge gift to humanity. St. Paul says:

All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that one who belongs to God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

2 Timothy 3:16-17

St. Jerome, translator of the original canon of scripture (the Vulgate, which remains the official Catholic Bible), says simply: “Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ.” No Christian community is more “Bible-based” than the Catholic Church, its very self inseparable from Christ. The Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass – Catholic worship – was instituted by Jesus and is tied directly to Holy Scripture from start to end.

To know Christ, God’s revelation, and His will for us – to live on the “straight and narrow” path (Matthew 7:13-14) – we must know scripture.

The canon of scripture is the fruit of Sacred Tradition and infallibly known through the Magisterium. Without both, we would not have the Bible. Without both, we would not be able to correctly understand it today. For the first 4 centuries, there was no official canon of Holy Scripture. Around 400 A.D., the Catholic Church, guided by the Holy Spirit, infallibly declared the 73 sacred books, determined their order and numbered their verses. All translations for 1,100 years, the New Testament writers themselves and the Church fathers were Catholic.

It’s all a matter of interpretation…

No, I am not suggesting relativism. There is only the truth, unchanging and certain, that will set you free. The problem is, how do you know what that is? The fact is, words are ALWAYS interpreted and can mean quite different things to different people.

Patrick Madrid uses a very simple 6 word example: “I never said you stole money.” It seems straightforward, containing easy words, obvious in meaning — or not. Read that sentence, without emphasis then put emphasis successively on words 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6. You get 6 very different interpretations.

Holy Scripture is far more complex. It is a translation, so those who understand ancient Aramaic and ancient Greek have an advantage. The words must also be understood culturally as they would have been thousands of years ago. Different books use different types of prose. Finally, and very importantly, it must be taken as a whole.

Those scholars who are on-top of all of this, still differ. Reasonable, well educated, well-intentioned people can make plausible cases for very, very different interpretations. There is also a temptation for all readers to see in the words what they want to see and not see what they do not wish.

The false Protestant doctrine of sola scriptura posits that scripture is the ONLY authority (a claim not made by scripture itself) and that the authority of Sacred Tradition and the Magisterium somehow ended upon the canonization of scripture. This was of course, a necessary invention of the Protestant revolution in order to be separated from the authority of the Church given by Christ.

In this novel doctrine, created 1,500 years after the time of Christ, proper understanding is generally assured by personal guidance of the Holy Spirit. This quite flawed assumption has resulted in countless Protestant denominations and ever increasing division among the faithful. While they may cringe at the description, each denomination has their own “tradition” to guide their flock in the “correct” interpretation.

This is precisely why Christ established a VISIBLE CHURCH, His bride, joined together in the Communion of Saints to form the Body of Christ. This Church is ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC (universal) and APOSTOLIC. To His Church, he gave real and infallible authority to know and teach faith and morals — despite their personal failings.

Learning the Bible

We Catholics have an advantage in addition to our Bible based liturgy: every Mass focuses on different scripture readings (uniform, throughout the world). Those readings are proclaimed then reflected on in a homily (from the Greek homilia meaning explanation) given by an ordained priest or deacon. This provides an excellent baseline understanding.

Deepening one’s knowledge of scripture can be advanced by simply reading it. While that is a start, there will be questions. A good Catholic study Bible or commentary will help immensely. There are many good choices such as the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible and the Navarre Bible. There are good online resources too, including free ones such as Haydock’s Catholic Bible Commentary.

Perhaps the very best way to learn the Bible is in a class, a “Bible study.” There you will read scripture, discuss it, and use various resources to explore and understand it. These include the leader, printed materials, audio and video presentations, and so on.

Bible Studies are Always BIASED

I bet that heading got your attention! Many people presume that the Bible is the Bible and any study of it is comparable to any other. This is simply not true as I explained above.

Those offering Bible studies genuinely hope to share the Word of God and have no intention to deceive. Yet, their interpretation will be seamlessly interwoven throughout the class. This is true for Catholic Bible studies and Bible studies offered by each of the numerous Protestant communities. It is unavoidable.

There is no such thing as a truly non-denominational or inter-denominational Bible study, despite claims to the contrary. It simply is not possible. At most, interpretation would have to be severely restricted to a least common denominator and even so, remain open to interpretation. I see this all the time between Christian communities. Words are said, everyone nods agreement, but if you scratch below the surface you quickly find understanding differs.

Due to the unfortunate nature and results of the Protestant schism, this issue is especially prominent for Catholics. To be blunt, Catholics should not accept invitations to non-Catholic Bible studies. Here is a partial list of issues:

• How exactly one is saved (justification) will be wrong. This will probably include false (and non-biblical) doctrines such as being saved by faith alone and/or once saved, always saved.
• The novel Protestant doctrine of sola scriptura will be pervasive. The equal, supporting and non-contradictory roles of Sacred Tradition and the Magisterium will not be recognized.
• The visible Church founded by Jesus Himself will likely be denied. In its place, a non-biblical theory of an invisible Church of all believers will likely be substituted. (You will also find the definition of “believer” to be problematic.)
• The authority of the Vicar of Christ, successor of Peter, and those bishops in communion with him will be rejected. Either there is no authority (you are on your own) or their denomination’s leaders are correct (by some vague authority).
• No ministerial priesthood will be acknowledged – those ordained by a Sacrament of Holy Orders and uniquely configured to act sacramentally for Christ. (If it comes up at all, Matthew 23:9 will be woefully misinterpreted.) Apostolic succession will be seen as irrelevant.
• All or most of the sacraments instituted by Our Lord will be denied. The gifts of their sacramental graces will be unknown.
• The real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist is denied. At most, communion is a symbolic ritual.
• Baptism may or may not be understood as required for salvation. If baptism is believed to be necessary, its regenerative nature may not be understood.
• The indissolubility of marriage will probably not be accepted. The nature of marriage itself might not be understood. Liberal Protestant communities sometimes believe that homosexual unions are possible, normal and good.
• Life is not necessarily sacred from conception to natural death.
• Understanding God’s mercy and justice probably differ. Likewise, understanding the forgiveness of sins and perhaps the need for the forgiveness of sins may differ.
• Most denominations do not recognize the Communion of Saints. Most believe that praying for each other is possible only among those currently on Earth.
• Mary, the Mother of God, her role in salvation history, her perpetual virginity and her assumption into heaven is disminished or denied.
• The existence of purgatory is not understood, nor the authority of the Church to grant indulgences.
• The non-biblical and false (and relatively recent) novelty of rapture doctrines like a 7 year tribulation may be taught.

As there is no single Protestant theology, the above list is both incomplete and not applicable to all denominations. It is however at least possible to attend a Protestant Bible study where the differences to Catholicism are not great — depending on the particular study, the leader and their denomination. Protestants are, after all, Catholic too…   just not in full communion with Christ’s Church. That said, the only safe path is to avoid Protestant Bible studies.

A Cautionary Tale

I met a very nice Catholic man recently who has attended a large, Protestant “inter-denominational” Bible study for several years. He really enjoys it and feels that he has learned a lot about scripture. Actually, it was through my encounter with him that I decided to write this piece.

My discussion with Bob (not his real name) was not exhaustive, but I could see that his Catholic faith was undermined. He expressed that the Bible was the sole authority for truth. He noted that religion was the creation of men. He dismissed the importance of differences between ecumenical communities.

Bob is sincere in his search for truth, but is unwittingly being lead away from it. The group he is with genuinely believes that they teach only the truth. Yet, they have their own statement of faith and supporting study materials. They use the Protestant NIV Bible, a dynamic (less literal, more interpretive) translation. Leaders must pledge fidelity to their beliefs so Catholics are not accepted as leaders. For all practical purposes, while not their intention, this group has none-the-less become simply another Protestant denomination.

The bottom line is this: seek the truth. I believe you will find it only in the Church directly founded by Jesus Christ. If you are Protestant and think that all Protestants have mostly the same beliefs, look closer. You will be surprised to learn how different they are on core Christian beliefs. If you are Catholic, depend only on the numerous Catholic sources of information.

In last week’s Gospel reading we heard about Jesus’ encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well (John 4:5-42). It is packed with several important themes. Jesus meets the woman “where she is” and brings her to truth. Jesus does not avoid an encounter with this lost lamb, loves her, but does not accept her sinfulness. (At this point I could easily go “off the rails” about sin not being a matter of opinion or tolerance thereof not a good thing!) Through her conversion and witness, many others are brought to the truth.

If you are Catholic, your priest probably spoke of this at length in his Sunday homily. You may have read one of the many good reflections on it. I would like to briefly reflect on something Jesus said almost in passing (verse 22): “You people worship what you do not understand; we worship what we understand, because salvation is from the Jews.”

The Samaritans (shamerim meaning “observant”) were not ungodly people. They were in fact, schismatic Jews. They followed the law of Moses (in some ways even more strictly) and accepted the Torah as dogmatic but believed their Jewish bretheren had become apostate. Yet, compared to other religions of the day, you could say Samaritans and Jews both believed the same “important stuff.”

Being separate from the Jews meant divergence. The Samaritans no longer had the true temple in Jerusalem but their own on Mount Gerazim which they were convinced was the true one. Intermarrying with pagans, they incorporated their beliefs through compromise. Truth was not unchanging.

While imperfect, this strikes me as analogous to today’s schism of Protestantism from Catholicism. We have much in common, but by schism much is lost or imperfectly understood. New beliefs evolve continuously among our separated Protestant brethren (e.g. on contraception, divorce, abortion, understanding homosexuality, roles of men and women, and much more). Having separated themselves from the “temple” of Sacred Tradition and Magisterium, a replacement was needed and found in the invention of sola scriptura (Protestant “Mount Gerazim”).

The Samaritans were not necessarily destined for damnation, only that being separated from the fullness of truth, their path was more problematic, difficult and uncertain. Missing parts of the faith handed-on by the prophets, and the introduction of error, hampered their journey. So it is with Protestantism, in all its diverse and contradictory forms.

In Jesus, we have a new and everlasting covenant. Neither the Samaritan nor Jewish temples are important as Jesus said in verse 21: “Believe me, woman, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.”

God’s path until that time however was not vague, multiple paths, or even one of “similar beliefs.” While it was certainly imperfect (is that ever an understatement), none-the-less God’s path was Judaism as Jesus continued “You people worship what you do not understand; we worship what we understand, because salvation is from the Jews.”

Judaism is now fulfilled in Christ and His Church. It is one, visible, and the full faith handed-on by the Apostles. Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus — outside the Church there is no salvation. As the Samaritans were Jews, but imperfectly – Protestants too are in Christ’s Church.

Truth matters. It does not change nor is it relative. “But the hour is coming, and is now here, when true worshipers will worship the Father in Spirit and truth; and indeed the Father seeks such people to worship him. God is Spirit, and those who worship him must worship in Spirit and truth.” (verses 23 and 24)

So, where can we find the truth? Is it in the Baptist, Lutheran, Methodist, Reformed, Pentecostal, Evangelical, Adventist, “non-denominational” or other denomination from Catholicism? They are not the same, with core beliefs that differ significantly (such as understanding what Christ taught, how to be saved or knowing God’s will). Maybe the truth is a private matter, one you discern exclusively from reading the Bible for yourself. In that case your understanding will be personal, private, unique to yourself — and contain a lot of error. On the plus side, it will say what you want it to say. Perhaps you are one of those folks who do not need “organized religion.” You have a “personal relationship with Jesus” and that is all you need. In that case, you are half right (the first half).

Is truth really important? Jesus seems to think so (and says so over and over and over again). Maybe that is just His opinion.

I know someone you may know. He is no atheist or agnostic, but rather a firm believer in the existence of God. He knows Jesus and fears the Lord! (Hold that “Hallelujah!” for a moment.)

Not only that, this individual also knows and understands scripture very well. He quotes it with ease from memory. (Not so fast on that “Praise God!” response.)

Many people would say that such an individual is saved. He is not. In fact, he is evil and will spend eternity in hell, a fate he richly deserves.

He is an extremely dangerous stalker but there can be no relief from the police or a court. He prowls around like a roaring lion, tenacious in his pursuit, looking for someone to devour. He is self-centered – an idolater of himself – and a notorious liar. No dummy he, but rather one who uses his God given high intellect to the detriment of others. I’ll just come out and say it — I hate him.

When I told my wife about him recently, at this point I quickly got a firm lecture on judgment and Christian charity! You may be inclined to agree. Putting aside the issue of judgment, how could anyone who (1) believes in God and (2) is even a Bible scholar be destined for damnation?

It is of course, Satan of whom I speak.

We recently read from Matthew chapter 4 (1-11):

At that time Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was hungry. The tempter approached and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command that these stones become loaves of bread.”

He said in reply, “It is written: One does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God.“

Then the devil took him to the holy city, and made him stand on the parapet of the temple, and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written: He will command his angels concerning you and with their hands they will support you, lest you dash your foot against a stone.“

Jesus answered him, “Again it is written, You shall not put the Lord, your God, to the test.“

Then the devil took him up to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world in their magnificence, and he said to him, “All these I shall give to you, if you will prostrate yourself and worship me.”

At this, Jesus said to him, “Get away, Satan! It is written: The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve.“

Then the devil left him and, behold, angels came and ministered to him.

Satan is a scripture quoting believer. In no way does this mean that scripture quoting believers are (necessarily) like Satan. Rather, being a believer is but a first step to becoming a true follower. Being only a believer is NOT ENOUGH. We must actually, in our own heart…   in our personal thoughts and actions, FOLLOW Christ in order to be saved. Unlike Satan, we must put God and His will before our own.

Satan fears the Lord too, as James 2:19 tells us: “You believe that God is one. You do well. Even the demons believe that and tremble.” His fear is rooted in God’s almighty power not God’s love. Accepting God’s love and mercy means following His will – not just selective parts of it (those parts which we “agree with”). In Jesus final words, the Great Commission, He commanded the Apostles to teach us to “observe ALL that I have commanded you” (my emphasis; Matthew 28:20). One last verse (again, my emphasis):

While he was still speaking to the crowds, his mother and his brothers appeared outside, wishing to speak with him. [Someone told him, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, asking to speak with you.”] But he said in reply to the one who told him, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?? And stretching out his hand toward his disciples, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of my heavenly Father is my brother, and sister, and mother.“

Matthew 12:46-50

Take up your cross and follow Christ (Matthew 16:24). “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)

Follow, do not just believe.

As for Satan…

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle.
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do thou,
O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God,
cast into hell Satan, and all the evil spirits,
who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

Have you ever been asked if you are saved? Maybe you have even asked this question of others.

The question says a lot about the inquirer – all good. They are a Christian who knows Jesus Christ and accepts Him as their Lord and Savior. They summon the courage to ask this question, one which in today’s world can easily get them labeled as a “religious kook.” They do that because they care about the eternal salvation of others (i.e. love their neighbor) and want to share the Good News of faith with them that they too may be transformed. May God bless them and make the mustard seeds they sow fruitful!

We learn from Holy Scripture and are taught by the Church of the new covenant in Christ, offered through His merits alone: by His passion and death for us on the cross. Only through His most Precious Blood are we redeemed of our sins. All are redeemed but all are not saved (the heresy of universalism). Salvation is gained by uniting ourselves with Christ.

Our evangelizing friend’s beliefs are true in many important ways, but in asking this question we know that they are wrong in at least one very, very important area: the moment of salvation. Those such as our friend believe in a non-biblical doctrine commonly described as “once saved, always saved” (OSAS). They believe that salvation offered by Christ may be accepted and irreversibly gained through a one-time act. This act is accomplished by a sinner’s prayer when the penitent sincerely accepts Jesus Christ as his or her personal Lord and Savior. The wording varies, but one example is:

Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior. In Your Name. Amen.

These are wonderful prayers. Praying thus sincerely one-time, with all of your mind, will and heart, does not lock-in salvation – unless perhaps you die immediately afterward. You are on the right track if you live the sinner’s prayer every day.

OSAS is a product of the Protestant revolution, developing well after the initial schisms (1,500 years after Christ). For the most part, it is a modern invention of the last hundred years or so (almost 2,000 years after Christ). It is a dangerous heresy. It takes final judgment away from Christ and makes salvation an act of man (however sincere). Dying in a state of grace (i.e. in friendship with God), of which we know not the hour (Mark 13:32) is no longer imperative. Our on-going conversion to full unity with Christ (working out our salvation with fear and trembling; Philippians 2:12) is no longer a concern.

There is no irreversible moment of salvation until Christ, the most merciful and just judge, meets us upon our death. Then and only then will the wheat be separated from the chaf (Matthew 3:12), with the sheep then set on his right and goats on his left (Matthew 25:31-45; some calling-out “Lord, Lord” – Matthew 7:21-23).

How do we respond as faithful Catholics to this question? In truth… “I am already saved (Romans 8:24, Ephesians 2:5-8), but I’m also being saved (1 Corinthians 1:18, 2 Corinthians 2:15, Philippians 2:12), and I have the hope that I will be saved (Romans 5:9-10,1 Corinthians 3:12-15). Like the apostle Paul I am working out my salvation in fear and trembling (Philippians 2:12), with hopeful confidence in the promises of Christ (Romans 5:2, 2 Timothy 2:11-13).”

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Why are most of us not ready for heaven if we were to die right now? Scripture tells us:

• The treasure and wealth of the nations will be brought there, but nothing unclean will enter it (Revelation 21:26-27a).
• So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect (Matthew 5:48).
• “Be holy because I [am] holy.” (1 Peter 1:16b)

We are not ready because we are not clean, perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect, nor holy as Christ is holy. When we at long last die with the grace of final perseverance, we may leave this world with unabsolved venial sins and a lifetime of temporal damage from past sins. It is through the refiners fire (Malachi 3:2-3) of purgatory that the imperfections on our soul like wood, hay or straw will be removed leaving gold, silver and precious stones (1 Corinthians 3:12-15) suitable for heaven.

Part of our problem is attachment to sin. Understanding that as an impediment to heaven is obvious.

There is, I believe, another attachment impediment: addiction to life. We love life – all the joys and hope it offers – and are often more oriented toward it then we are toward its author. Fr. Leo Clifford made this point very well in one of his reflections:

We fall in love with God’s gifts and forget the giver. We give our love to mere creatures and we forget that they are God’s gifts to us. We are so in love with his gift of life, we never want to part with it. We want to stay here instead of going back to the author of life, the God for whom we were made.

Play The Love of God

There has been much speculation on the nature of purgatory. We know it is not Heaven nor Hell. It is not a place in between either, as it is the portico of Heaven. All who enter purgatory ARE saved. For that matter, it is not a place either and “how long” we are there is a complicated concept because it is outside of time. All we know, while we are still in time, is that we must pray for the souls in purgatory (they can pray for us too).

I still like my earlier conception of purgatory as a hospital for the soul. Like any hospital, treatment varies from person to person as does the length of treatment. Treatment is often painful. Unlike earthly hospitals, there is a 100% cure rate.

In the paradigm I am presenting here, “addiction” is a good fit for the primary disease of which we must be cured. Those who are not addicted will not have unabsolved venial sins and have turned completely to God. For them, no treatment is necessary. For most of us (I suspect), some amount of time in purgatory’s 12-step program (as I imagine it) will be necessary. We must let go of our addiction to life and replace it by union with God.

So, what might those 12 steps be? Adapting from Wikipedia’s article for alcoholics, we lifeoholics might need to:

1. Acknowledge our addiction to life and open ourselves to healing power of the Holy Spirit.
2. Abandon our false idols, uniting our will with God alone.
3. Turn ourselves completely over to God.
4. Make a searching and fearless inventory of our addiction to life.
5. Admit to God and to ourselves the nature of our addiction to life. In the Church Militant: also use the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
6. Be entirely ready to have God remove these defects.
7. Humbly ask God to cleanse our shortcomings.
8. Recognize the effects of our life addiction and how it separates us from God.
9. Pray for forgiveness.
10. Continue to take personal inventory and address our shortcomings as we recognize them.
11. Seek through prayer and meditation to complete our unity with God, praying only for knowledge of His will and His power to carry that out.
12. In the Church Militant: help others; In the Church Suffering: enter the Church Triumphant!

The good news is that we can begin our treatment NOW. Progress that we make here on earth will lessen the necessary treatment later.

O Lord, who art ever merciful and bounteous with Thy gifts, look down upon the suffering souls in purgatory. Remember not their offenses and negligences, but be mindful of Thy loving mercy, which is from all eternity. Cleanse them of their sins and fulfill their ardent desires that they may be made worthy to behold Thee face to face in Thy glory. May they soon be united with Thee and hear those blessed words which will call them to their heavenly home: “Come, blessed of My Father, take possession of the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.”

Fr. John P. O’Connell