[Apologetics] Challenge

[Dianne Dawson]

http://www.fisheaters.com/challenge.html

  
 

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``Where the Bishop is, there let the multitude of believers be; 
even as where Jesus is, there is the Catholic Church'' Ignatius of Antioch, 1st 
c. A.D 


________________________________
 
 Questions I Challenge Christians to Pray About, Ask Themselves, & Research 
(using different sources --- including Orthodox, Catholic and purely secular 
scholarly ones). Please, consider this exercise. Write out your answers as you 
go along to look at them at the end. All I ask is that you are honest, 
open-minded, and prayerful: 

Where did the Bible come from? When was it codified? What books were first 
listed as belonging in the Christian canon? How has the canon changed over time 
in various groups? What books were included in the first edition of the King 
James Bible? When did the Council of Jamnia take place, who were its members, 
and what did it do?

Before the Books of the Bible were canonized, how was the Gospel spread? Before 
the printing press was invented some one-thousand and five hundred years after 
Christ, how was the Gospel spread? How do the answers to these questions apply 
to the concept of "sola scriptura," or the "Bible alone" as the rule of faith? 
What does 2 Peter 3:16 warn against? 2 Peter 1:20-21 says Scripture is of ___ 
____________ _____________? What does the word "profitable" mean? In 2 Timothy 
3:16-17, what does the word "profitable" mean? Does "profitable" mean "is 
sufficient for" in any dictionary? Was there a New Testament canon at the time 
Paul wrote that verse? If not, then what Scripture was he referring to?

What do 2 Thessalonians 2:15, 2 Thessalonians 3:6 and 1 Corinthians 11:2 say 
about Tradition? When did this Tradition stop being in effect? What did Jesus 
mean when He told his followers to heed those who sat on the Chair of Moses in 
Matthew 23:2? What does that say about Jesus' expectations for his followers to 
obey earthly authority? 


What does 1 Timothy 3:15 indicate is the rule of faith? What do you believe is 
the rule of faith, and why?

The man to whom Jesus is speaking in Matthew 16:18-19: what was his name before 
those verses? What was his name after those verses? What does that name mean? 
What language did Jesus speak? What is the name given to this man in Jesus' 
original language? What does that word mean? What other people in the Bible were 
given name changes? What did name changes signify in Hebrew life? What 
metaphoric object does Jesus give the man in Matthew 16:18-19? What does this 
symbolize? What did they symbolize in Isaiah 22? What are "binding and loosing"?

If Christ is a High Priest, and we are members of His royal priesthood, what are 
the offerings of each? If Christ is a High Priest forever, can his offerings 
have stopped? Did the fact that the Israelites were members of the royal 
priesthood negate the ordained Levite priesthood? Did the New Testament Church 
have bishops, elders (presbyteros, priests), and deacons or was it 
non-hierarchical? What is the rebellion of Korah mentioned in Jude 1:11? (hint: 
see Numbers 16:3) What does it mean that Jesus is a "High Priest after the order 
of Melchizedek"? In John 6:52-58, what is the meaning of the word "is"? In I 
Corinthians 11:23-30, why does Paul say some people become sick -- and what does 
that indicate to you? Since Messiah has come, where today are the incense and 
"pure offering" offered up as predicted in Malachi 1:10-11? What is the root 
word of the word "priest"? What is the root word of the word "presbyter"? 


How does Paul refer to himself in 1 Corinthians 4:14-15? In what way do the 
Apostles treat new Christians according to 1 Thessalonians 2:11? How does Paul 
refer to Isaac in Romans 9:10? How does John address his audience in 1 John 
2:13? 


What does I Peter 3:18-21 say baptism does? Whom does Acts 2:38-39 say that 
baptism is for? Whom does it indicate the promise of baptism is for? What does 
Colossians 2:11-12 compare baptism with? When were people circumcized to enter 
into the Old Covenant (i.e., at what age)? Did or did not Paul baptize entire 
households? In John 3:1-7, it says we are to be baptized in the Spirit and 
_______? In Whose name are we to be baptized according to Matthew 28:19? Do you 
believe something different about Baptism than what these verses teach? If so, 
why? How did the earliest Christians baptize according to the non-canonical 
writings of the earliest Christians (e.g., the Didache)?

According to Acts 8:14-17 and Acts 19:5-6, what did Peter, Paul and John do in 
addition to baptizing? Do you believe that what they did is unimportant? If so, 
why?

What do Proverbs 28:13 and 1 John 1:9 say we should do with our sins? What 
authority was given to the twelve who were with Jesus in the Upper Room in John 
20:21-23? What power was given speficially to Simon Peter in Matthew 16:19? What 
sort of ministry is described in 2 Corinthians 5:18? Do you believe something 
different than what these verses teach? If so, why?

How does James 5:14 describe how the elders (presbyters, priests) dealt with the 
sick? What did they use to help the sick? Does the faith community you're 
involved with do this? If not, why not?

What does Matthew 19:6 say about marriages that are put together by God? Does 
your faith community teach something different? If so, why?

Mark 12:26-27 says that God is the God of what three people? What does it say 
about these three people (i.e., what condition are they in)? Is God the God of 
Abraham? Is God the God of the dead? How can he be both the God of Abraham but 
not the God of the dead but the living? What does Revelation 6:9-10 say about 
what the "souls of them that were slain" are doing? Where are those souls? What 
does Hebrews 12:1 say we are surrounded by? Who are they? What does this say 
about those who die in Christ? Does your faith community teach something 
different? If so, why?

What woman in Scripture gave birth to the man who was to rule all nations? Where 
does Revelation 12 say this woman is? What does the word "magnify" mean? In Luke 
1:46-49, what does "magnify" mean? Who is the "Queen in Gold" of Psalm 45:10-17? 
In what ways does this Psalm make Luke 1:48 clear?

If Christ is the New Adam Christ (Romans 5:14-15, 1 Corinthians 15:22, 1 
Corinthians 15:45), who is the New Eve? Who are the only two people in the Old 
Testament to have been without original sin from their first moments? 


What three things did the Ark of the Covenant have within it (hint: see Hebrews 
9:4)? What did Mary carry within her and in what ways are the contents of the 
Ark similar? Compare Luke 1:39-56 and 2 Samuel 6:2-16: in what ways are the Ark 
of the Covenant and Mary similar?

What is the Jewish "Mourner's Kaddish" (or "Quaddish") and why is it prayed? 
What is the meaning of 1 Corinthians 3:13-15? What does Revelation 21:27 say 
about the unclean? If you were to die right now, today, would you be clean 
enough to stand before Almighty God? For whom was Paul praying in 2 Timothy 
1:16-18 and what was his condition at that time?

What does James 2:24 say about how we are justified? What kind of faith is 
mentioned in Galatians 5:6? Whom does Jesus say will enter the Kingdom of Heaven 
in Matthew 7:21? What does Ephesians 2:8-9 say about the possibility of saving 
ourselves through works? What does that verse say we are saved by? Does your 
faith community teach either salvation by faith alone or by works alone? If so, 
why?

What does Hebrews 3:12-14 indicate about the possibility of departing from God? 
Under what conditions does it say we can be "partakers of Christ"? In what way 
does Philippians 2:12 say we should approach salvation? Do you approach 
salvation in this way? If not, why not? Are babies saved? Are 5 year olds saved? 
19 year olds? At what point, if any, do the conditions for salvation change and 
how do your answers affect the concept of "once saved, always saved"?

What does Acts 7:51 say about the ability to resist the Holy Spirit? What does 
this mean in terms of the existence of free will? Does your faith community 
teach something different about free will? If so, why?

What does Luke 23:34 indicate about those who act in ignorance? What does Romans 
9:15 indicate about the ultimate sovereignty of God?

Revelation 17:15-18 speaks of a whore which is "that great city." What is this 
city according to Revelation 11:8? Where was Christ crucified?

How did the Jewish historian, Josephus, describe the Temple in Jerusalem that 
was destroyed in A.D. 70?

Why does Jesus say He came according to John 12:25-27? What is the nature of the 
Kingdom according to John 18:36? How long has this been the nature of the 
Kingdom according to Matthew 25:34? What do those three verses say to those who 
might believe Jesus came (and will come again) to set up an earthly kingdom? 
Does Galatians 3:7-29 differentiate between the "seed of Abraham" and the 
Church? Who is a Jew according to Romans 2:28-29? With whom is the New Covenant 
made according to Jeremiah 31:31-34? Are there people who say they are Jews but 
are not according to Revelation 2:9 and 3:9? Given these verses, are people 
properly referred to as "Gentiles" when they enter the New Covenant? Did God 
keep His promises to the ancient Israelites concerning the Holy Land according 
to Joshua 21: 43-45, 1 Kings 8: 56, Nehemiah 9: 7-8? Why did they lose their 
rights to the Holy Land according to Deuteronomy 28: 58-68?

What are the Talmud and Kabbalah? What does the Talmud say about Jesus Christ 
and Mary? How is modern Judaism different from the religion of the Old 
Testament? 


What objects are described in 1 Kings 6:29? What about in Ezekiel 41:17-19? What 
does this mean in light of Exodus 20:4?

Did the religion of the Old Testament have a sense of sacred time, sacred space, 
and sacred objects? Is there anything in the New Testament that indicates the 
concept of consecrated things/places/times has changed? What media does God use 
to effect miracles in:
 
  
Joshua 3:15; 1 Samuel 4-6; and 2 Samuel 11-1?  ______________ 
Numbers 21:9?  ______________ 
2nd Kings 13:21?  ______________  
Mark 5:25?  ______________ 
Acts 5:15?  ______________  
Acts 19:12?  ______________  


What is the true relationship of the people described as "brothers" in: Genesis 
11:26-28 and Genesis 14:14? In Genesis 29:15? In 1 Chronicles 23:21-22? In 2 
Kings 10:13-14? In Deuteronomy 23:7 and Jeremiah 34:9? In Matthew 23:8? In John 
20:17-18 and Matthew 12:49? In 1 Corinthians 15:6? Who is the real mother of 
"James, the brother of Jesus" according to your view of these verses: Matthew 
27: 55-56, Mark 3:18, Mark 15:40, John 19:25, and Jude 1? What does "firstborn" 
mean (hint: see Exodus 13:2, Exodus 13:14-15, Numbers 18:15)?


What is "Easter" called in Latin? In Italy, France and Spain? What is it called 
in Germany, Sweden, and Denmark? What do Byzantine Catholics call it? What is 
the common root word for all these names? What does that root word indicate 
about the origins of the holy day known in English speaking countries as 
"Easter"? 


Everyone wants to be part of a "New Testament-style Church" -- but few are the 
people who read what the earliest Christians wrote! If worshipping and believing 
like the Apostles did are, indeed, what you want, then why haven't you read 
thoroughly Sacred Scripture, the Didache (the first century "Teachings of the 
Twelve Apostles"), Ignatius of Antioch, Clement of Rome, Irenaeus, Justin 
Martyr, John Chrysostom, Augustine (all of him, not just the parts that, pulled 
out of context, seem to support various modern positions!), Hippolytus, etc. 
Even Origen and Tertullian give witness to what the early Christians believed... 
How can you know what the earliest Church was like if you don't look? What is 
holding you back? If you read these early Christians' writings, ask yourself: 
what Church today is like the Church they described? What Church today teaches 
Bible-based answers to the questions above? 

For Those Who Hate the Catholic Church 
Ask yourself: why do I hate the Catholic Church? Who taught me what I think I 
know about the Catholic Church? Is what I was taught true? Have I looked at what 
the Catholic Church has to say about itself, using official resources such as 
the Catechism of the Catholic Church and papal encyclicals? Could my opinion of 
the Catholic Church possibly be based on bias, bigotry, bad history, propaganda 
from the secular media, or the bad priests who get publicity (i.e., the sick, 
and sickening, ephebophile priests or those certain heretical modernist priests 
the secular media love to give press to)? Is it fair to judge doctrine by such 
things? Is any group with human beings in it free from sin and scandal? If I am 
wrong about the Catholic Church, what does that mean? 

Here are some common myths about the Catholic Church: 
 

 Because Catholics reject the tradition of "sola fide" ("faith alone"), they 
think they can work their way into Heaven and believe they are saved by works  

 Catholics think the pope does not sin  
 Catholics re-crucify Christ at their Masses (or at least think they do)  
 Catholics think Mary is part of the Godhead and is to be worshipped 
 Catholics worship statues 
 Catholics think they can't pray to God directly but have to go through saints 
 Catholics conjure the dead  
 Catholics believe people can be saved after they die  
 The Catholic Church teaches that one who isn't formally a Catholic is damned to 
Hell 

 The Crusades are an example of Catholic aggression 
 The Inquisition(s) killed hundreds of thousands of people and targeted Jews 
 Pope Pius XII was "Hitler's Pope" and didn't do a thing to help Jews during 
WWII 

 The Catholic Church wasn't around until the time of Constantine, a pagan who 
controlled the Church. The Catholic Church did more than baptize pagan calendar 
days for the good of Christ, it is pagan in its very roots. 

If you believe any of the above myths, I implore you to research. For doctrinal 
questions, ask the Church what it teaches; it's the only fair thing to do. For 
historical questions, look at balanced and objective scholarly research from a 
variety of sources (including Catholic ones). 


And as you research, keep in mind the common logical fallacies that are often 
used in attacks against Catholicism: 

Generalization: 
>"I knew a Catholic/ex-Catholic (or I was a Catholic) who was (mean, a drunk, not 
>holy, didn't like the Church, was superstitious, didn't know the Bible, didn't 
>have a deep relationship with Jesus, etc.), so therefore, the teachings of the 
>Catholic Church are wrong." (Ignores the fact that bad catechesis, 
>misunderstandings, or other shortcomings of a few Catholics do not reflect on 
>what the Catholic Church teaches)
>
>Bifurcation:
>"If the Catholic Church doesn't teach that it's faith alone that saves, then it 
>must teach that men are saved by their own works." (Ignores that we teach that 
>we are saved by Grace alone -- a Grace with which we must cooperate through 
>"faith that works in love")
>
>Cum hoc ergo propter hoc: 
>"Winter Solstice is on 21 December; Christmas is 25 December. Therefore, 
>Christmas is a pagan holiday. (Ignores that fact that there are only 365 days to 
>choose from in a year and that the early Church Fathers had good reasons to 
>choose the date they did. It also ignores that Protestants' "Reformation Day" is 
>celebrated on 31 October, the pagan festival of Samhain.)
>
>Post hoc ergo propter hoc: 
>"Constantine must have been the real source of the Catholic Church's teachings 
>because after his reign the Church grew tremendously, and before his reign it 
>wasn't as well-known" (Ignores the simple fact that Constantine merely stopped 
>the persecution of Christians with the Edict of Milan and allowed Christianity 
>to spread. It also ignores the writings of the Church Fathers who lived before 
>Constantine -- and who were Catholic.)
>
>Straw man: 
>"You guys worship statues, and that's evil. Therefore, your religion is 
>Satanic." (Ignores that fact that we don't worship statues) 
>
Meanwhile: The Final Challenge 
... and now I challenge each of you who calls on the Name of the Lord to take 
two hours of your life to listen to theologian and former very anti-Catholic 
Presbyterian minister, Scott Hahn, and to Rosalind Moss, who was raised Jewish 
and later became Evangelical. Both are now Catholic; don't you want to know why? 
Truly, I challenge you to listen and pray and think about what you hear, all 
with an open heart to God's will.     

  
  


 
Like a deer that longs for running waters so my soul longs for you, O God.
Ps 42:1


      
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