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“To live without faith, without
a patrimony to defend, without a
steady struggle for Truth, that
is not living but existing
(Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati).”
INTRODUCTION
I have noticed through my
observations of many good
Christian people that they do
not know their faith in a way to
convince the modern man of
Christianity’s irrefutable
proofs of her credentials. Many
people believe that Christianity
is a religion that can only be
accepted on blind faith, rather
than proven. Through my
conversion years, I studied the
faith of Christianity and wanted
to know answers to why
Christians believed what they
do. As I read more about the
truths of Christianity and
compared her truths to that of
other religions, I became
convinced beyond a shadow of a
doubt, that Christianity was
established by God so that man
may know, love, and be in
communion with God, the Father
of all creation that is seen and
unseen.
My studying took two years to
complete, which is now finalized
in this work. I have decided to
make it a compilation of what
various people, including
myself, have said about
Christianity and other areas
related to it. It is in a
compilation format of what these
people and I have said so that
readers may be drawn to read
their books and to grow more in
knowledge of God and His
religion He established for
man’s salvation and so that man
may reach communion with Him in
Heaven.
To the already believer,
Campaigning for the Way, the
Truth, and the Life
is a weapon for the serious
campaigner of Christ to defend
and spread the Truth to all
peoples to all generations
throughout the world. It
contains irrefutable proofs of
Christianity’s truth in an easy
and common sense manner to
convince the hardest of
skeptics. One can not read this
book and walk out a nonbeliever
in Christianity. I hope that by
reading it, the Truth will be
made clearer to you, and that
you will live this life and in
the hereafter more abundantly in
happiness. God bless you my
friend!
EVOLUTION
“Spontaneous generation, that
the first being spontaneously
brought itself into existence,
and is the cause or parent of
all other beings, cannot be
accepted. You cannot speak of a
thing making itself. To make or
generate itself would mean that
it had to exist before it could
generate itself, which would
imply that it came both before
and after itself. It is
self-contradictory. Spontaneous
generation, because it is
nonsense, as a common sense
explanation of the origin of the
first being, must be rejected
(Reverend Lee A. Scheetz, M.A.,
J.C.B., The Faith of Your
Forefathers, Huntington,
Indiana: Our Sunday Visitor,
1936, p. 15).”
“The
world’s greatest bacteriologist,
Louis Pasteur, completely
demonstrated the unsoundness of
the theory of spontaneous
generation that no well read man
should doubt today that life
comes from life-that organic
life cannot proceed from
inorganic matter. The closing
words of Pasteur’s lecture at
the Sorbonne in Paris before the
greatest scientists of his day,
assembled at the call of the
Academy of Science, have stood
as the final word of science
with regard to the theory of
spontaneous generation. We
quote: ‘There is not one
solitary instance known to our
day in which beings have been
observed to have come into the
world without parents. Those
who assert such a thing have
been the sport of illusion or of
causes which they have not been
able to perceive or which they
were unwilling to avoid (Etudes
Rel., April, 1889) (David
Goldstein and Martha Moore
Avery, Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, p.
158).”’
“A deity (God) is necessary to
explain first life (Wallace
Johnson, The Death of
Evolution, Rockford,
Illinois: Tan Books and
Publishers, 1986, pgs.
142-143).”
CREATURES DO NOT EVOLVE
“DNA is
needed to make enzymes; but
enzymes are needed to make DNA.
Which came first? Operator
genes would wreck a cell if the
Regulator genes were not
controlling them; but Regulatory
genes would be purposeless
without Operator genes (Wallace
Johnson, The Death of
Evolution, Rockford,
Illinois: Tan Books and
Publishers, 1986, pgs.
136-137).”
“In the cell, all the parts and
pieces are separate units,
working precisely together, but
not themselves alive. Life is
not in any of those parts and
pieces, just as, in your
automobile, there is no
automobility in any piece or
part, in a spark plug or a
carburetor needle. Automobility
is a super quality, which
coheres to the total motor car.
Similarly, life is a super
quality that coheres to the
total cell (Ibid, p. 137).”
“Suppose from a living cell we
extract any structure. Suppose
we extract a ribosome, a
membrane, or any protein, even
some DNA, we will find that such
structure, when separated from
the total, organized cell, is
nothing more than an organic
molecule-a lifeless molecule.
Whatever life is, life coheres
to the organized cell, the
complete cell (Ibid, p. 137).”
“The living cell is the most
complex structure that exists
and its every part depends
somehow on its other parts.
When it is realized that a cell
could not evolve part by part,
but must exist in (total) or not
at all, then it becomes clear
that the propaganda about
spontaneous generation is
unscientific wishful thinking
(Ibid, p. 137).”
“Bombardier beetles are able to
shoot sparks of fire out of
their shells as a defense
mechanism. A blast of
irritating and odious gas is
projected out of the beetle's
body. This gas is 212 degrees
Fahrenheit. Hydroquinone and
hydrogen peroxide are mixed
together causing a small scale
explosion. These chemicals are
kept from exploding within the
beetle's own body, by the use of
an inhibitor. Beetles don't
understand chemistry. They only
understand survival. If just
one part of this chamber
developed before the other, then
the beetle would blow himself up
(http://www.angelfire.com/mi/dinosaurs/leviathan.html).”
“No
creature is self-sufficient.
Creatures exist only in
dependence on each other and on
their differing body parts, to
complete each other, in the
service of each other (The
Catholic Church, Catechism of
the Catholic Church, Second
Edition, Vatican, 1997, p. 88,
#340).”
VESTIGAL ORGANS IN MAN THOUGHT
TO BE PROOF OF MAN’S DESCENT
FROM BRUTES
“At one time evolutionists had a
long list of supposed vestigal
organs in man, withered
memorials of man’s animal past.
As medical knowledge increased,
it was found that these
supposedly useless relics are
functional and even vital. The
evolutionist(s) point to the
coccyx and call it a vestigal
tail, that is, a useless remnant
from man’s animal past. The
coccyx is certainly not
useless. Without a coccyx we
could not sit down comfortably.
Even more importantly, the
coccyx is an anchor post.
Anchored to it are ligaments and
muscles, which control the
anus. The coccyx is a vital
part of the mechanism of waste
elimination (Wallace Johnson,
The Death of Evolution,
Rockford, Illinois: Tan Books
and Publishers, 1986, pgs.
31-32).”
TRANSITIONAL CREATURES
“If life began with simple forms
and steadily progressed upwards
into more and more complex
creatures to culminate in man,
the fossils should record the
progress step by step. If
creatures evolved, there would
have lived and died and been
fossilized innumerable
intermediate creatures, steadily
bridging the transitions between
one kind and the next kind. In
fact, there would have been so
many intermediates, in
successive stages of transition,
that we should now have
difficulty finding fossils of
the perfected kinds amid the
overwhelming profusion of
transitional fossils.
Darwinists have been digging for
120 years. Innumerable fossils
have been unearthed, but not one
fossil of an intermediate
creature. There is not a single
transitional fossil to bridge
the gaps between perfected kinds
(Wallace Johnson, The Death
of Evolution, Rockford,
Illinois: Tan Books and
Publishers, 1986, p. 34).”
“At an historic conference in
Chicago, 160 of the world’s
leading evolution experts faced
the facts of the fossil record.
In a report of the conference,
Newsweek (3/11/80)
stated: ‘The missing link
between man and apes…is merely
the most glamorous of a whole
hierarchy of phantom creatures.
In the fossil record missing
links are the rule. The more
scientists have searched for the
transitional forms that lie
between species, the more they
have been frustrated (Ibid, pgs.
19-20).’”
“It is beyond question that
whenever and wherever, the
remains of man are found, there
he is found to be a fully
developed man (David Goldstein
and Martha Moore Avery,
Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, p.
174).” “Those who have no place
for God in their philosophy, are
greatly in need of a monkey-man
who will thrust Adam out of
court (Ibid, p. 178).”
“The
public would be surprised to
know how little fossil evidence
there really is-and surprised to
know how scientists sometimes
allocate the bones the way they
have preconceived them to be,
according to the theory of
evolution (Wallace Johnson,
The Death of Evolution,
Rockford, Illinois: Tan Books
and Publishers, 1986, p. 58).”
The evidence that man evolved
from apes are as follows:
Nebraska man (molar tooth
found), Piltdown man (upper part
of a skull and a broken jaw
bone, which was found nearby),
Australopithecines (skull
found), Peking man (molar tooth
and two years later a skull
found), Java man (skullcap and a
year later fifty-feet away a
human leg bone found), and
finally, Ramapithecus (some
fragments of a jaw bone and some
teeth found). As you can see,
“fossils are so fragmentary as
to admit several
interpretations, and ‘the entire
hominid collection known today
would barely cover a billiard
table (New Scientist,
March 26, 1981, p. 802).’ On
those few meaningless fragments
of bone a small group of fossil
hunters, aided by the mass
media, has persuaded the world
that brutes turned into man
(Wallace Johnson, The Death
of Evolution, Rockford,
Illinois: Tan Books and
Publishers, 1986, p. 82).”
“The hard fact is that every
kind of creature living today
which appears in the fossil
record appears there in form
similar to its present form.
This was dramatically confirmed
by the Coelacanth fish. This
fish, through one of its
relatives, was credited as being
the ancestor of amphibians, a
vigorous evoluter (as claimed by
scientists). It was regarded as
extinct for 70 million years.
But in 1939, a fisherman hauled
up a Coelacanth very much
alive. To an evolutionist, this
was just as upsetting as if a
dinosaur had walked up the
street. Since then, several
more living Coelacanths have
been caught, all of them exactly
as they were when the last
Coelacanth fossil was laid down
70 million mythical years ago
(Ibid, p. 39).”
“The genetic blueprint allows
great variety within a species
or kind, but no further. There
is a genetic barrier, which
prevents change beyond that.
This barrier confronts every
animal and plant breeder.
Always a limit is reached beyond
which no further improvement of
the line can be obtained (Ibid,
p. 23).”
NATURAL SELECTION
In
Popular Science Monthly (May
1905), Professor T. H. Morgan
stated, “The theory of natural
selection has nothing to do with
the origin of species, but with
the survival of already formed
species.”
In The Beginnings of Science
Biologically and Psychologically
Considered, Boston, 1918,
Professor Edward J. Menge
stated, “Natural selection can
only kill off plants and animals
and can never originate
anything.”
In L’ Herodite, Second
Edition, 1903, Professor Yves
Delage stated, “Selection is
powerless to form species. Far
from being an instrument for the
evolution of species, it
guarantees their finity.”
“The true task of natural
selection is to conserve the
quality of a species, not to
transform it into a different
species (Wallace Johnson, The
Death of Evolution, Tan
Books and Publishers, 1986, p.
29).”
MUTATIONS
“The genes are very precisely
arranged in the DNA in the
living cell. An organism
reproduces itself by a complex
process which is so exquisitely
engineered it suggests the
miraculous. The finite facts
are basically that, when sperm
impregnates ovum, the DNA
produces a replica of itself
which is passed onto the new
cell. The process is almost
mistake-proof and the DNA is
faithfully replicated and handed
on generation after generation.
But occasionally, rarely, a
mistake occurs which is called a
mutation (or change). The
mistake alters the correct DNA
blueprint. The mistake becomes
part of the genetic pattern of
the recipient and becomes
inheritable by future
descendants. Being a mistake,
it would be unlikely to upgrade
those affected. In fact, for
practical purposes, mutations
are always harmful or useless,
or even fatal (Wallace Johnson,
The Death of Evolution,
Rockford, Illinois: Tan Books
and Publishers, 1986, p. 24).”
“Mutations must be recognized
for what they are, namely
mistakes that are damaging, not
constructive. In fact, all
forms of life have wonderful
repair mechanisms to guard the
DNA against the ravages of
mutations-repair mechanisms that
are fundamental to the survival
of living organisms. However,
some mutations slip through
these defense mechanisms with
usually undesirable results
(Ibid, p. 25).”
“The hopelessness of mutations
to produce evolution was
confirmed by classic experiments
on the fruit fly. Fruit flies
breed rapidly. Furthermore,
they were given doses of
radiation which speeded up their
mutation rate by 15,000
percent. After a long
experiment involving 25 million
fruit flies, they refused to
turn into anything else.
Certainly there was plenty of
variation: stunted wings, lack
of wings, yellow eyes, useless
eyes, abnormal feet and bodies.
There was grotesqueness; there
were freaks. Never was there
the start of a new organ of a
different species. Mutations
can do all sorts of things to
the organs of a species, but
never produce a new organ. For
example, a mutation can produce
a baby with deformed arms, but
that is a different thing from
producing a baby with wings, or
a baby with wheels (Ibid, p.
25).”
RESEMBLANCES OF MAN TO THAT OF
APE
“A resemblance merely gives
evidence of resemblance, not of
identity of objects, nor of
identity of stock. A
resemblance, then, is nothing
more, nothing less, than a
resemblance. Although in common
with animals, we breath, eat,
sleep, and propagate kind, these
resemblances do not prove that
the human race sprung from the
monkey. Furthermore, since no
animal has been found with
evidence of a language-even
though it is their common
inheritance to make sounds-nor
one which shows signs of
abstract reasoning (the ability
to choose right from wrong), the
whole question of structural
resemblances may be dismissed as
giving not the slightest proof
that man and brute have one and
the same root (David Goldstein
and Martha Moore Avery,
Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, pgs.
171-172).”
FOSSILS AND SEDIMENTARY ROCKS
Fossils are mostly found in
sedimentary rocks; rarely in
others. In order to form a
fossil, the dead or alive animal
has to be buried rapidly. These
sedimentary rocks can only be
formed through a sudden encasing
of sand or other materials on
top of one another through the
use of water. The enormous
abundance of fossils scattered
throughout the world suggests
that it is very possible that a
worldwide flood buried them into
the sediments very quickly.
What this means is that if these
fossils were all buried at the
same time during this worldwide
flood, then that means they were
all living at the same time.
This worldwide flood, by coming
out of the Mid-Atlantic Ocean
Ridge (Genesis 7:11, 8:2), could
have also pushed the continents
apart and formed the mountains
we see today by shoving one
continent up against another.
CARBON DATING
“(Dr. Willard) Libby devised
(the carbon) dating method in
1946. (This) dating method
depends on one
thing-equilibrium; on production
of Carbon 14 up there (in the
atmosphere) and its decay down
here on earth being in
equilibrium. His figures
showed, not equilibrium, but a
20% imbalance (Willard F. Libby,
Radiocarbon Dating,
Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1952, pgs. 4-9). The
method also depends on
radioactive Carbon 14 and
ordinary Carbon 12 being in a
constant ratio throughout time.
Such a ratio would be altered if
an upheaval of nature, such as
(a worldwide flood), affected
the production of Carbon 14
(Wallace Johnson, The Death
of Evolution, Rockford,
Illinois: Tan Books and
Publishers, 1986, pgs.
108-109).” What this means is
that carbon dating is not
effective for knowing the age of
a fossil, because there is no
equilibrium of Carbon 14 forming
and decaying and most likely not
a constant ratio between Carbon
14 and Carbon 12.
CREATION WAS INSTANTANEOUS
“Etched
within Earth's foundation rocks
are the granites, which are
beautiful microspheres of
coloration produced by the
radioactive decay of primordial
polonium, which is known to have
a fleeting existence. Polonium
halos could have (been) formed
only if specks of polonium had
been instantly encased in solid
rock. An exceedingly large
number of polonium halos are
embedded in granites around the
world. These halos are
unambiguous evidence of an
almost instantaneous creation.
The occurrence of these polonium
halos implies that our earth was
formed in a very short time, in
complete harmony with the
biblical record of creation
(Earth Science Associates,
http://www.halos.com/).”
“There
would have been a moment after
creation when apparent age was
different from real age. Note
well the point I am trying to
make-apparent age versus real
age. I suggest that the
Creator’s ‘Fiat’ produced a
fully fledged, perfectly
operating, adult universe. And,
from the dust of the earth,
another ‘Fiat’ produced an adult
man. At that moment the
apparent age of the universe
might have seemed billions of
years to a uniformitarian
scientist, but its real age was
maybe six days. Adam’s apparent
age would have been, say 21
years; but his real age, a few
minutes, on that newly created
earth (Wallace Johnson, The
Death of Evolution,
Rockford, Illinois: Tan Books
and Publishers, 1986, pgs.
165-166).”
THE EARTH IS NOT MILLIONS OF
YEARS OLD
“The man
(Dr. Willard F. Libby) who
invented Carbon 14 dating knew
that atmospheric carbon would
reach equilibrium in 30,000
years (Willard F. Libby,
Radiocarbon Dating,
Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1952, pgs. 4-9). He
assumed that the earth was
millions of years old, and that
it was already at equilibrium.
However, each time scientists
test the atmosphere, they find
more Carbon 14 in the
atmosphere, and have realized
that we are only 1/3 the way to
equilibrium. What does this
mean? It means that based on
Carbon 14 formation, the earth
has to be 1/3 of 30,000 years,
or less than 10,000 years old
(http://www.angelfire.com/mi/dinosaurs/carbondating.html)!”
“Meteorite dust is constantly
falling through the earth’s
atmosphere. In five billion
years it should have formed a
layer about one hundred and
thirty feet thick if
accumulating undisturbed. There
is no sign of such a layer.
Meteorite dust is rich in
nickel, but in earth rocks,
nickel is rare. In billions of
years the nickel-rich dust
should have made our oceans rich
in nickel. In fact, ocean water
and ocean sediments have so
little nickel that the meteorite
dust could have been falling for
some thousands of years at most
(Wallace Johnson, The Death
of Evolution, Rockford,
Illinois:
Tan Books and Publishers, 1986,
p. 158).”
“The
moon tells a similar story.
Meteorite dust has been falling
on the moon’s surface just as on
the earth. On the moon there is
no wind, water, or weather to
disturb the dust as it
accumulates. Assuming an age of
billions of years for the moon,
it was feared that the
astronaut’s landing craft might
sink into sixty or one hundred
feet of dust, so the landing
craft was fitted with pancake
landing feet. When the
astronauts landed on the moon
they found half an inch of dust,
which indicated that the moon
has been there for about eight
thousand years (Ibid, pgs.
158-159).”
GOD EXISTS
“To prove the non-existence of
God is utterly impossible (David
Goldstein and Martha Moore
Avery, Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, p.
126).”
ARGUMENT FROM DESIGN
“We can tell, immediately what
things are natural and what
things are made by human hands.
Nobody is deceived; nothing man
has ever made can be passed off
as a thing that came into
existence by itself (David
Goldstein and Martha Moore
Avery, Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, pgs.
148-149).”
“If our
earth were located much farther
away from our sun we would
freeze like the planet Mars. If
it were much closer to the sun
then we would be burned up like
the hot surface of Mercury or
the 860-degree temperature on
Venus. If the magnetic forces
within our planet were stronger
or weaker, life could not
exist. If our earth did not
revolve every twenty-four hours,
then one-half of the planet
would be in permanent darkness
without vegetation. Meanwhile,
if the earth did not revolve,
the other side of the planet
would be an uninhabitable desert
as it suffered from the
overwhelming heat of permanent
exposure to the sun. If our
earth were not tilted at
twenty-three degrees, we would
not have the seasonal variation
that produces the incredible
abundance of crops that feed our
planet’s huge population.
Without the twenty-three degree
tilt, less than half of the
present land used for
cultivation of crops would grow
vegetables. The moon produces
the tides that continually
replenish the oceans with oxygen
allowing the fish to breathe.
If the earth were significantly
smaller, the lessened gravity
would be incapable of holding
the atmosphere that is essential
for breathing. A much thinner
atmosphere would provide no
protection from the 25,000
meteors that burn up in the
atmosphere over the earth every
day. In addition, a thinner
atmosphere would be incapable of
retaining the higher
temperatures required for human
and animal life to exist. If
our planet earth were twice as
large, the effect of increased
gravity would make everything on
the planet’s surface weigh eight
times what it weighs today.
This increased weight would
destroy many forms of animal and
human life. (Hence), the
smallest change in any of the
circumstances of the natural
world, such as the relative
strengths of the forces of
nature, or the properties of the
elementary particles, would have
led to a universe in which there
could be no life and no man
(Grant R. Jeffrey, The
Signature of God, Nashville,
Tennessee: W Publishing
Group, 1998, pgs. 141-142).”
“The
heavenly bodies go along their
appointed courses age after
age. The seasons succeed one
another year by year. There is
splendor, beauty, arrangement,
and order everywhere. If you
plant an orange seed, you are
certain an apple will not spring
from it. Every morning you are
sure the sun, when it rises,
will appear in the east. At
night you can go peacefully to
sleep, assured that after your
rest the day will come again.
To say that this universal order
is the result of accident, or
that the planets direct their
own courses, is as foolish as to
say that an automobile goes
sensibly around the city streets
running itself (Reverend Louis
LaRavoire Morrow, S.T.D., 1949,
http://net2.netacc.net/~mafg/mcf/mcfc006.htm).”
‘“The heavens show forth the
glory of God, and the firmament
declareth the work of His hands
(Psalm 19:2).’ God is the
intelligent Cause (Ibid).”
ARGUMENT FROM THE LAWS OF NATURE
“Nature is governed by wise
laws, regulating with never
failing accuracy the movement of
the stars as well as the
phenomena in the lives of the
smallest infusoria; wonderful
laws directing all things to a
most wise end! They are true
laws, which the human mind goes
on discovering every day in
creation; admirable, wise,
unchanging laws. Who is the
framer of these laws? A law
supposes a legislator. Wise
laws suppose a wise legislator.
Who is he (D.I. Lanslots O.S.B.,
Reasonable Service; or, Why I
Believe, London and
Edinburgh: Sands and Company,
1912, p. 8)?”
“Nature is devoid of
understanding; it cannot be
therefore the author of these
laws; it could not have imposed
it on itself; there must be then
a legislator who framed them.
Who is He but God (Ibid, p.
14)?”
GOD AND HIS CREATION
“God is not personally within
His creatures. No more is the
man who makes a clock personally
within the clock he made. The
clock making was an act of
his-his work-but he and his work
are distinctly separate. At
once, if one has the good will
to grasp the truth logically, he
shall see the impossibility of
believing that ‘I am the Creator
and the created’ as Emerson
phrased it (David Goldstein and
Martha Moore Avery,
Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, p.
138).”
GOD IS NOT IMPERSONAL, BUT
PERSONAL
“No impersonal substance can
possibly be greater than a
person, who has an intellect and
a will. Therefore, the
impersonal One (God) cannot
create persons since the Creator
cannot be less than His
creatures. An effect cannot be
greater than its cause. The
principle is simply this: we
can’t give what we don’t have.
For example, I can’t give you
$1,000 if I don’t have $1,000.
An impersonal Creator could
never have created personal
creatures (Father Frank Chacon &
Jim Burnham, Beginning
Apologetics 4-How to Answer
Atheists and New Agers,
Farmington, New Mexico: San Juan
Catholic Seminars, 1999, p.
36).”
GOD IS EXISTENCE ITSELF
If somebody created God, then
somebody would have to create
that Creator and so on. This
can not go on to infinity.
Sooner or later we have to
arrive at somebody who was not
created. God, therefore, has to
be responsible for His own
existence, because if He was
not, then none of creation would
exist. This would also bring us
to the conclusion that if God is
uncreated, then He must be
infinite.
THERE IS ONLY ONE GOD
It is impossible for there to be
more than one God, for God is
Existence Itself, since He alone
is responsible for His own
existence. If there were more
than one being who were
Existence Itself, they would
cancel each other out.
Therefore, there can only be one
God of whom all existences come
from.
“Learn that I, I alone, am God,
and there is no god beside me
(Deuteronomy 32:39).” “I am the
first, and I am the last; there
is no God but me (Isaiah
44:6).” “I am the Lord and
there is no other, there is no
God besides me (Isaiah 45:5).”
MAN
MAN HAS A SPIRITUAL SOUL
The imagination is one function
of the mind, which can produce
spiritual images. Since the
body is material, physical, and
not spiritual, it can not be the
source where these spiritual
images are coming from. There
must be another source in the
person of a man where these do
come from, and it must be
spiritual. The obvious
conclusion is that there must be
a spiritual faculty in man to
account for it, which we call
the soul.
“The matter from which the human
body is formed undergoes
continual changes, and it is
entirely altered in a few
years. My body will be in a few
years composed of entirely
different molecules from those
of which it is composed today;
yet I know that I am the same
individual of ten, twenty or
fifty years ago (D.I. Lanslots
O.S.B., Reasonable Service;
or, Why I Believe, London
and Edinburgh: Sands and
Company, 1912, p. 40).” “If the
body were man, I today would not
be the same individual of seven
years ago, although I know that
I am the same individual now,
and will always be what I was at
my birth. Without the presence
of this soul we cannot possibly
explain the personal identity of
the individual (Ibid, p. 46).”
“Do not be afraid of those who
kill the body but cannot kill
the soul (Matthew 10:28).”
THE SOUL COULD VERY WELL BE
IMMORTAL
The body dies and decays, but it
is not certain that the soul
dies and decays, since it is
invisible and spiritual, which
is completely different from
anything material. Therefore,
we must conclude with the
evidence that we have that the
soul could very well be
immortal, unless its Creator
decides to annihilate it.
REINCARNATION IS FALSE
“Our soul makes possible our
self-consciousness and the
awareness of our identity. If a
man lives to be a hundred, he
can still remember when he was a
child. He is aware that he is
the same person as he was then
because the soul has not
changed. If reincarnation were
true, we should remember past
lives and be aware that it was
we who were living those lives.
But people don’t remember past
lives like they remember their
own childhood. Although there
are more than six billion people
in the world, (reincarnationists)
can only point to a few dozen
who supposedly remember former
lives. This number is
statistically insignificant.
Furthermore, these few cases can
be easily explained without
resorting to reincarnation. If
reincarnation were true, we
should have billions of people
giving clear evidence of
remembering previous lives
(Father Frank Chacon and Jim
Burnham, Beginning
Apologetics 4-How to Answer
Atheists and New Agers,
Farmington, New Mexico: San Juan
Catholic Seminars, 1999, p.
37)!”
“(Reincarnationists) claim that
we grow in knowledge and become
‘enlightened’ through many
reincarnations. But how can
this be if we can’t recall our
past lives? We can’t learn from
our experiences (what) we can’t
remember! If this system were
true, we should expect humanity
to be steadily improving over
time. However, humanity has
been around for thousands of
years and people are as wicked
as ever. We obviously haven’t
learned from past lives (Ibid,
pgs. 37-38)!”
“In a single life, we see many
people growing more wicked with
age. They are obviously not
learning from experience. Why
should it be any different if
the process is stretched out
over many lives? A thousand
lifetimes might easily leave a
person completely unchanged, or
even a thousand times more
wicked. If we observe human
nature carefully and still cling
to reincarnation, we should
logically expect the mass of
humanity to go through infinite
reincarnations with no hope of
ever reaching Nirvana (except
for the lucky few who find a
guru with the right
connections!) (Ibid, p. 38).”
“(Reincarnation further is a
belief) that we can be
reincarnated into lower life
forms like dogs and
cockroaches. If human souls
could inhabit lower animals,
these animals would display
human intelligence, which they
obviously don’t (Ibid, p. 38).”
“It is appointed that human
beings die once, and after this
the judgment (Hebrews 9:27).”
MAN’S PURPOSE
“You do not truly know what
anything is until you know what
it is for. Knowing what a thing
is made of, even knowing whom a
thing is made by, these things
are but scanty knowledge,
impotent of themselves to lead
to fruitful action. The
complete knowledge demands a
knowledge of purpose. A very
crude instance may make this
sufficiently obvious truth still
more obvious. Imagine a man who
has never shaved and suppose
that he suddenly discovers a
razor. He does not know what it
is, but he discovers that it
cuts. Whereupon he uses it for
cutting wood. He does not cut a
great deal of wood and he ruins
the razor, leaving it fit only
for the scrap heap. The point
is that he has used it without
knowing its purpose; and save by
accident such use must always be
misuse. And in the face of the
general proposition that nothing
can be used aright until its
purpose is known, the man who
uses anything at all without
such knowledge is acting
blindly. He may mean well, but
meaning well is not a substitute
for knowledge of purpose (Frank
Sheed, A Map of Life-A Simple
Study of the Catholic Faith,
San Francisco: Ignatius Press,
1994, pgs. 11-12).”
“Apply this principle to man
himself: we cannot use ourselves
aright nor help any other man
till we know what man is for.
Obviously, the perfect way to
know the purpose of a thing is
to find out from its Maker: any
other method leaves too many
loopholes for error (Ibid, p.
12).” “If you do not know what
men are-that is, are for-how do
you know what is good for them?
That thing is good for any being
that helps it to achieve the
true purpose of its nature. How
can you help men to that if you
do not know what their true
purpose is (Ibid, pgs. 15-16)?”
“The purpose of our life is
dependent upon a revelation from
God, that without such a
revelation we cannot know our
purpose and so cannot have any
means of testing the value or
the significance of anything
that we do (Ibid, p. 19).”
“The wise man never acts without
a motive. A most wise God would
have had a purpose in the
creation of the world. If He
had not, He acted not as a wise
but as an irresponsible
individual would act. If He had
an end in view, He will see to
it that it be attained, and
direct the whole of creation
toward its attainment. If He
does not, whilst He is able to
do it, He shows the reverse of
wisdom (D.I. Lanslots O.S.B.,
Reasonable Service; or, Why I
Believe, London and
Edinburgh: Sands and Company,
1912, p. 43).”
REVELATION
“It was necessary for man’s
salvation that there should be a
doctrine revealed by God,
beside(s) the philosophical
disciplines investigated by
human reason. First, man is
directed to God for a purpose
that surpasses the grasp of his
reason. But the purpose must
first be known by men who direct
their intentions and actions to
the purpose. Thus it was
necessary for the salvation of
humankind that certain truths,
which exceed human reason,
should be made known by divine
revelation. Even those truths
about God which human reason can
investigate were necessarily
taught to man by divine
revelation. For the truth about
God, as far as reason can know
it, would only be known by a
few, and moreover, after a long
time, would then begin to have
many errors mixed in. But the
whole of human salvation, which
is in God, depends upon the
knowledge of this truth.
Therefore, in order that
salvation might be brought about
more fitly and more certainly,
divine truths must be taught by
divine revelations. It was
therefore necessary that,
besides the philosophical
disciplines investigated by
reason, there should be a sacred
doctrine by way of revelation
(St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa
Theologica, 1,1,1;
translated by Fathers of the
English Dominican Province).”
“Merely by thinking, we cannot
know what is in the mind of
another or what some place is
like that we have not visited.
On these matters we must either
be told by someone who knows, or
else remain ignorant. That is
why God has given men His
revelation upon what He had in
mind when He created man, upon
what awaits us after death, and
upon what kind of action here
upon earth will bring us to our
true destiny. There is a
multiplicity of such truths,
which man could not find for
himself, and God has supplied
them
(F.
J. Sheed, Theology and Sanity,
London and New York: Sheed and
Ward, 1953, p. 210).”
GOD CREATED US FOR HAPPINESS
“Happiness is the satisfaction
of an individual’s desires
(Peter Kreeft, A Summa of the
Summa-The Essential
Philosophical Passages of St.
Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica-Edited
and Explained for Beginners,
San Francisco: Ignatius Press,
1990, p. 361).” “Man is not
perfectly happy, so long as
something remains for him to
desire and seek (St. Thomas
Aquinas, Summa Theologica,
I-II, 3,8; translated by Fathers
of the English Dominican
Province).” “Man’s good
consists in retaining happiness
(Ibid, I-II, 2,1).” “Happiness
is the perfect Good, which
(satisfies) the appetite
altogether (Ibid, I-II, 2,8).”
“(It) is the attainment of the
perfect Good (Ibid, I-II,
5,1).”
“For the more perfectly the
Sovereign Good is possessed, the
more It is loved, and other
things despised: because the
more we possess It, the more we
know It. Whereas in temporal
goods, the contrary is the case:
for when we already possess
them, we despise them, and seek
others: which is the sense of
our Lord’s words (John 4:13): ‘Whoever
drinketh of this water,’ by
which temporal goods are
signified, ‘shall thirst
again.’ The reason of this
is that we realize more their
insufficiency when we possess
them and this very fact shows
that they are imperfect, and
that the Sovereign Good does not
consist therein (Ibid, I-II,
2,1).” “Whatever good there be
in these things, we shall
possess it all in the supreme
Fount of goodness (Ibid, I-II,
4,7).”
“A certain participation of
happiness can be had in this
life: but perfect and true
happiness cannot be had in this
life (Ibid, I-II, 5,3).”
“Imperfect happiness, such as
can be had in this life,
external goods are necessary,
not as belonging to the essence
of happiness, but by serving as
instruments to happiness (Ibid,
I-II, 4,7).”
“All that we desire in earthly
goods, we will find in God,
their Inventor and Source (Peter
Kreeft, A Summa of the
Summa-The Essential
Philosophical Passages of St.
Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica-Edited
and Explained for Beginners,
San Francisco: Ignatius Press,
1990, p. 390).” “It is only God
in these things that we enjoy,
but we do not recognize that
(Peter Kreeft, Everything You
Ever Wanted to Know About
Heaven-But Never Dreamed of
Asking, San Francisco:
Ignatius Press, 1990, p. 52).”
“Final and perfect happiness can
consist in nothing else than the
vision of the divine Essence
(St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa
Theologica, I-II, 3,8;
translated by Fathers of the
English Dominican Province).”
“The vision of the divine
Essence fills the soul with all
good things, since it unites it
to the Source of all goodness
(Ibid, I-II, 5,4).”
“Why are you disappointed?
Because of the tremendous
disproportion between your
desires and your realizations.
Your soul has a certain infinity
about it because it is
spiritual; but your body and the
world about you are material,
limited (Archbishop Fulton J.
Sheen, From the Angel’s
Blackboard-The Best of Fulton J.
Sheen, Liguori, Missouri:
Liguori/Triumph, 1995, pgs.
119-120).” “To love things
without loving God means loving
shadows and expecting from
shadows what only reality can
give (F. J. Sheed, Theology
and Sanity, London and New
York: Sheed and Ward, 1953, p.
281).”
“Why has God given us that
intense thirst after enjoyment,
that ardent desire of a
happiness which cannot be
attained here below if the soul
is not immortal? Each one longs
for happiness, but true
happiness is not possible on
earth. Suffering is our share
from the cradle to the grave;
all animals seem happier than
man, because there is not in
them the burning thirst of
happiness which torments us.
God would be neither good nor
wise if He planted in the heart
of man a craving which cannot be
satisfied (D. I. Lanslots O.S.B.,
Reasonable Service; or, Why I
Believe, London and
Edinburgh: Sands and Company,
1912, p. 48).”
“Would a duck have the instinct
to swim if there were no water?
Would a baby cry for nourishment
if there were no such thing as
food? Would there be an eye
unless there were beauty to
see? Would there be ears unless
there were harmonies to hear?
And would there be in you a
craving for unending life,
perfect truth, and ecstatic love
unless perfect Life and Truth
and Love existed. In other
words, you were made for God.
Nothing short of the Infinite
satisfies you, and to ask you to
be satisfied with less would be
to destroy your nature
(Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen,
From the Angel’s Blackboard-The
Best of Fulton J. Sheen,
Liguori, Missouri: Liguori/Triumph,
1995, pgs. 120-121).”
St. Augustine of Hippo in his
The Confessions of St. Augustine,
Book 1, Chapter 1 (397 AD),
wrote, “O God you have made us
for yourself and our hearts are
restless till they rest in you.”
LAW
“Very early in life, man becomes
aware that he is living in a
world of laws. He discovers
that fire burns, that hunger
weakens, that rain wets, that
bodies fall toward the earth and
not toward the sky, and so with
a myriad other things. If he
reflects at all upon these laws,
he realizes that they are not of
his choosing-in fact that, in
many cases, they are the reverse
of what he would have chosen-but
that their power is in no way
affected by his disapproval.
There is no way in which he can
get free of them. He can act as
though they did not exist, in
which case they damage or even
destroy him. If he is a sane
man, he may dislike them but he
accepts them and does his best
to live in accordance with
them. In any case, there is no
such thing as freedom from them,
but only freedom within them.
And freedom within them can be
obtained only by one who knows
them. This knowing them is
always a matter of discovery and
not invention; in other words,
one finds out what they are, one
cannot in any way make them to
be (Frank Sheed, A Map of
Life-A Simple Study of the
Catholic Faith, San
Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994,
pgs. 19-20).”
“All is obvious enough as
applied to the body. Men,
however, do not always make the
application of precisely the
same truths to the soul; yet the
parallel is exact. As there are
laws that govern the body, so
there are laws-in particular the
moral law-that govern the soul.
The moral law is no more made by
man, or dependent on the
approval of man, or in any way
escapable by man than the
material laws. Man can ignore
the moral law as he can ignore
the material law, but the result
in both cases is his own
diminution or destruction.
There is no freedom from the
moral law; but as with the
material law, there is freedom
within it, the only freedom
possible to man. And a
condition of this freedom is the
same as in the other
case-namely, knowledge of what
the law is (Ibid, pgs. 20-21).”
“Given that no one but the law
maker can know with certainty
the text of the laws He has
made, there is immense food for
thought in this: that God, the
Author alike of the laws that
govern matter and the laws that
govern spirit, has left man very
largely to discover-with an
endless accompaniment of
disaster-the laws that govern
matter, as though the discovery
of these were a trivial thing,
not vital; but has revealed to
man the laws that govern spirit
because they are essential laws,
whose breach is fraught with
eternal catastrophe (Ibid, p.
23).”
“Everybody accepts as authority
the word of those whom they
believe. We believe that this,
that and another person knows
what to do and how to do it in a
given case. The lawyer, the
banker, the doctor, the
engineer, the butcher, the
baker, the candle stick maker,
all have our confidence. We
step foot aboard a ship from New
York to Havre with hardly a
thought that we have faith in
the captain. We board a train
from Boston to San Francisco
with faith that the engineer has
the authority to carry us over,
and the skill to do so. If then
we put our trust in the
authority of these men to take
us safely on journeys from place
to place, should we not seek out
the authority upon the one great
journey of life, and take heed
of His instructions (David
Goldstein and Martha Moore
Avery, Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, p.
131)?”
“God’s laws are a precise
statement of how (we) may avoid
destruction and reach (our)
particular goal. (They) are
best thought of as ‘Maker’s
instructions,’ directions for
the right use of ourselves.
And any action against it is
therefore an action against our
own nature and is consequently
destructive (Frank Sheed, A
Map of Life-A Simple Study of
the Catholic Faith, San
Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994,
pgs. 99-100).”
“We are true only when we
conform to God’s knowledge of
us, God’s artistic plan for our
identity. Since our highest
freedom means freedom to be
ourselves, we are most free when
we are most obedient to God’s
will, which expresses His ideas
of us. To obey God is to be
free in the most radical sense
(Peter Kreeft, Everything You
Ever Wanted to Know About
Heaven-But Never Dreamed of
Asking, San Francisco:
Ignatius Press, 1990, p. 41).”
“We persist in believing the
First Lie, the lie that lost us
Eden, the devil’s lie that sin
is fun and sanctity is not, that
following ‘My will be done’ is
joy and following ‘Thy will be
done’ is not. The devil teaches
us this primal lie about the
separation between our will and
God’s to make us think of God as
our enemy, to make us fear Him
instead of trusting Him, so as
to keep us from our joy (Ibid,
p. 201).”
“Satan hates us and loves to
take away our joy. He hates God
even more, but he cannot take
away God’s joy. But he can take
away ours, if we let him. Even
that, however, he can do only
indirectly, by deceiving us with
the two false pictures of God’s
will as joyless and our own as
joyful (Ibid, p. 201).”
“If you become seriously ill
after disobeying a doctor’s
orders, will you saddle the
illness on the physician? Yet
that is what some people are
doing nowadays. They have
rejected the Great Physician and
scorned His remedies because He
has not kept them well (Martin
J. Scott, S.J., The
Credentials of Christianity,
New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons,
1920, p. vii).” “The Beatitudes
represent the divine way to be
happy (Gregory Joseph Ladd,
Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen-A Man
for All Media, San
Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2001,
p. 27).” “Obeying God’s will is
the pathway to joy (Peter Kreeft,
Everything You Ever Wanted to
Know About Heaven-But Never
Dreamed of Asking, San
Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1990,
p. 199).”
FREE WILL
“He (God) endowed us with
liberty and He will not take
back His endowment. If there
were no choice between good and
evil, there would be no human
liberty for free will supposes
choice (Martin J. Scott, S.J.,
The Credentials of
Christianity, New York: P.J.
Kenedy and Sons, 1920, p.
227).”
“We may live as we wish. We may
be our own law if we will. God
has left us free. But He has
not left us without
responsibility. If we choose to
use our liberty to serve
ourselves rather than to serve
Him, He will let us, but He will
judge us by His Law, not by
ours. ‘If thou will enter into
life everlasting, keep the
commandments (Matthew 19:17)
(Ibid, p. 250).”’
SUFFERING
“Suffering is not necessarily an
evil. A thing is evil if it
hinders a being in the
attainment of the purpose for
which the being exists. In the
fullest sense, therefore, a
thing is evil for man only if it
makes it more difficult for him
to save his soul. Now suffering
does not necessarily do so.
Only sin is always and
necessarily an evil (Frank Sheed,
A Map of Life-A Simple Study
of the Catholic Faith, San
Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994,
p. 105).”
“Life is a period of testing:
the suffering that arises in it
is part of that test. Two sorts
of suffering-the sort that
cannot be avoided at all and the
sort that cannot be avoided
without sin-represent the test
that God allows every man to go
through (Ibid, p. 106).”
“The
whole of life represents God’s
means of bringing a soul to its
highest point of (spiritual)
development. It is for God to
measure the amount of suffering
necessary for a man’s
perfection. And anyone who
tries to modify God’s Law in
order to reduce the suffering is
ensuring that the soul shall not
become as fine a thing as it
might (Ibid, p. 106),” because
suffering is what purifies man
of evil inclinations and the
less you are inclined to do
evil, the more perfect you are
(Matthew 5:48).
“God would not allow any evil to
come into any of His works
unless His goodness and power
were such as to bring out of it
an even greater good (Romans
8:28) (Peter Kreeft,
Everything You Ever Wanted to
Know About Heaven-But Never
Dreamed of Asking, San
Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1990,
p. 204).” “All things work
together for good only to those
who love God (Romans 8:28)
(Ibid, p. 208).”
“All is love. Nothing escapes.
Nothing happens by chance when
God’s back is turned. No fly
settles on His painting, no gust
of wind spills His ink bottle.
Every wart is part of the
masterpiece (Ibid, p. 205).”
“In a world ruled over by the
providence of God nothing is of
necessity evil, save only sin
(Frank Sheed, A Map of Life-A
Simple Study of the Catholic
Faith, San Francisco:
Ignatius Press, 1994, p. 134).”
JESUS CHRIST
JESUS CHRIST IS THE PROPHESIZED
MESSIAH, THE ANOINTED ONE OF GOD
Jesus Christ fulfilled all of
the messianic prophecies in the
Old Testament and He even
claimed to be the Messiah (Mark
14:61-62). This is why the Jews
asked if He was the Prophet that
was to come (Deuteronomy 18:15,
John 1:21, 6:14, 7:40, Acts
3:22, 7:37).
“The foreknowledge of the house
(Genesis 49:10, 2 Samuel 7:12,
Isaiah 11:1, Romans 1:3), the
place (Micah 5:1), and the time
(Daniel 9:25-26) was necessary
to the identification of the
Messiah-which is the Greek
equivalent of Christ (David
Goldstein and Martha Moore
Avery, Campaigning for Christ,
Boston, Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, pgs.
200-201).”
There would come a day of
salvation (Isaiah 49:8, 2
Corinthians 6:2). He would
establish a New Covenant
(Jeremiah 31:31, Matthew 26:28,
Mark 14:24, Luke 22:20, Hebrews
8:8). The time of His coming
was specified (Daniel 9:25, Luke
1:31). Christ’s coming would be
announced by a forerunner
(Isaiah 40:3-5, Matthew 3:3,
11:10, Mark 1:2-3, John 1:23).
“Christ would come out of Israel
(Numbers 24:17, Isaiah 11:1,
Hebrews 7:14). Christ would be
born of the family of David
(Genesis 49:10, Isaiah 11:1,
Romans 1:3). Christ would be
born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:1,
Matthew 2:1). Christ would be
born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14,
Luke 1:27). He would be the
Light of the world until the end
of time (Isaiah 49:6, Luke
2:32). He would be the Prince
of peace (Isaiah 9:6, Luke
1:78-79). He would be a Prophet
(Deuteronomy 18:18, John 17:8).
He would be the Messiah (Daniel
9:25, John 1:41). He would be
the Redeemer (Isaiah 59:20,
Romans 11:26). He would be the
Son of God (Psalm 2:7, Romans
1:4). He would be the mighty
God (Isaiah 9:5, Revelation
1:8). The Messiah would be God
manifest in the flesh (Isaiah
9:5, 1 Timothy 3:16). He would
come to serve and not to be
served (Isaiah 42:1-4, Matthew
12:18, Mark 10:45). He would
bear the sins of mankind (Isaiah
53:4, Matthew 8:17, 1 Peter
2:24). He would be made to be
sin (Isaiah 53:6, 2 Corinthians
5:21). He could not sin (Isaiah
53:9, 1 Peter 2:22). The Spirit
would rest upon Him (Isaiah
11:2, 42:1, Matthew 3:16). He
would have fishermen as
disciples (Jeremiah 16:16,
Matthew 4:18-19, Mark 1:16-17).
He would go to Capernaum for
awhile (Isaiah 9:1, Matthew
4:13-16, Luke 4:31). He would
receive pleas to calm the storm
(Psalm 107:23-29, Mark 4:37-39,
Luke 8:23-24). He would calm
the storm (Psalm 107:29, Mark
4:39, Luke 8:24). He would
preach to the people (Isaiah
61:1, Matthew 10:7, Luke 4:18).
He would speak in parables
(Psalm 78:2, Matthew 13:34-35,
John 16:25). He would be a
Teacher (Isaiah 54:13, John
7:14). He would be a Shepherd
of His People (Psalm 23:1,
Isaiah 40:11, John 10:11 & 14 &
16, Hebrews 13:20). He will be
heard and not understood (Isaiah
6:9, Matthew 13:14, Mark 4:12).
He will be seen but not
perceived (Isaiah 6:9, Matthew
13:14-15, Mark 4:12, Acts
28:26). He would not be
believed (Isaiah 6:10, 53:1,
Mark 6:6, John 12:38-40). He
would make the blind see (Isaiah
29:18, 35:5, 42:7, Matthew
11:5). He would raise the dead
(Isaiah 26:19, John 11:1-44,
Ephesians 5:14). He would enter
Jerusalem on a colt, the foal of
an ass (Zechariah 9:9, Matthew
21:5). They would spread their
garments before Him (2 Kings
9:13, Matthew 21:7-8, Mark
11:7). They would sing,
‘Blessed is he who comes in the
Name of the Lord (Psalm 118:26,
Matthew 21:9).’ His enemies
would be of His own house (Micah
7:6, John 7:5). Christ would be
betrayed by a friend (Psalm
41:10, John 13:18, Acts 1:16).
He would be sold for thirty
pieces of silver (Zechariah
11:12, Matthew 27:3 & 5 & 9).
Thirty pieces of silver would be
given for the potter (Zechariah
11:13, Matthew 27:9-10). They
would smite the Shepherd, the
sheep would be scattered
(Zechariah 13:7, Matthew 26:31,
Mark 14:27, 14:50). Enemies
coming for Him in the garden
would stumble and fall (Psalm
27:2, John 18:6). He would be
accused by false witnesses
(Psalm 27:12, 35:11, 109:2,
Matthew 26:60, Mark 14:57). He
would be despised (Psalm 22:7,
Isaiah 53:3, Amos 5:10, Mark
9:12). He would be hated
without a cause (Psalm 69:5,
109:3, John 15:25). He would
not open His mouth to His
tormentors (Isaiah 53:7, Matthew
26:62-63, 27:14, Luke 23:9, John
19:9, Acts 8:32, 1 Peter 2:23).
They would spit in His face
(Isaiah 50:6, Matthew 26:67).
He would be scorned and mocked
(Psalm 22:7-8, Matthew 27:29).
He would be bruised and wounded
(Isaiah 53:5, Matthew 27:26).
He would be spat upon and
smitten (Isaiah 50:6, Matthew
27:30, Mark 14:65). His
appearance would be marred
beyond other men (Isaiah 52:14,
Mark 15:19). His hands, feet,
and side would be pierced (Psalm
22:17, Zechariah 12:10, John
19:37, 20:27). He would be
crucified with two thieves
(Isaiah 53:9 & 12, Mark 15:27).
He would be given gall and
vinegar in His agony (Psalm
69:22, Matthew 27:34). Men
would cast lots for His garments
(Psalm 22:19, Matthew 27:35,
John 19:24). He would be
taunted as He hung on the Cross
(Psalm 22:8-9, Matthew 27:40,
Mark 15:32). He would be looked
at and stared upon (Psalm
22:17-18, Matthew 27:36, John
19:37). He would utter, ‘My
God, my God, why hast thou
forsaken me,’ words in His dying
agony, which were quoted before
He was born (Psalm 22:2, Matthew
27:46, Mark 15:34). He would
say, ‘Unto your hands I commend
my spirit (Psalm 31:6, Luke
23:46).’ The sun would be
darkened at midday (Amos 8:9,
Matthew 27:45). Not a bone of
His Body would be broken (Psalm
34:21, John 19:32-33 & 36). He
would die for our sins (Isaiah
53:4-12, 1 Corinthians 15:3).
His accuser, Judas, would be
replaced (Psalm 109:6-8, Acts
1:20). His Body would not see
corruption (Psalm 16:10, Acts
2:31, 13:36-37). He would rise
from the dead (Psalm 16:10,
49:15-16, Hosea 6:2, 1
Corinthians 15:4). He would
rise on the third day (Hosea
6:2, Matthew 12:40, 26:61,
27:40, 27:63). He would not
fail (Isaiah 42:3-4, John
19:30). He would establish His
Church (Zechariah 6:12-13,
Matthew 16:18). He would be the
cornerstone (Psalm 118:22, Mark
12:10, 1 Peter 2:6-7). His word
would spread to many nations
from Jerusalem (Micah 4:2, Luke
24:47, Acts 1:8). He would sit
at the right hand of the Father
(Psalm 110:1, Acts 2:34, Hebrews
1:3). Every knee would bow to
Him (Isaiah 45:23, Romans
14:11). He would make His
enemies His footstool (Psalm
110:1, Hebrews 1:13). His
kingdom would last forever and
ever (Psalm 45:7, Daniel 7:14,
Hebrews 1:8). His word would
last forever (Isaiah 40:8, Mark
13:31, Luke 21:33, 1 Peter
1:25). He would be a Priest
forever (Psalm 110:4, Hebrews
7:17 & 21). He is the first and
the last, the Alpha and the
Omega (Isaiah 41:4, 44:6,
Revelation 22:13) (Bob Stanley,
http://home.inreach.com/bstanley/prof.htm).”
“Since the tragic destruction of
the Jerusalem Temple and its
records in 70 AD, it would be
impossible for anyone else ever
to prove their claim to be the
Messiah based on their
genealogical descent from king
David (Grant R. Jeffrey, The
Signature of God, Nashville,
Tennessee: W Publishing Group,
1998, p. 119).” “In the event
that someone should now put
forward a claim to be the
Messiah, it would be impossible
to establish the validity of
such a claim. Even if the man
were born in Bethlehem, there
are no records extant by which
to prove that he is of the tribe
of Judah of the house of David,
from which it was foretold the
Messiah would come: ‘God said to
David, ‘And when your days shall
be fulfilled, and you shall
sleep with your fathers, I will
raise up your seed after you,
which shall proceed out of your
bowels, and I shall establish
His kingdom (2 Samuel 7:12)
(David Goldstein and Martha
Moore Avery, Campaigning for
Christ, Boston,
Massachusetts: The Pilot
Publishing Company, 1924, pgs.
200-201).’”
JESUS CHRIST DID MIRACLES
“Jesus’ enemies admitted that He
did miracles (Matthew 9:34,
12:24, 13:54, 14:1-2, 27:42,
Mark 3:22, 6:2, 6:14, Luke
11:15, 13:14, 23:8, 23:35, John
11:47). If these claims that
the New Testament made about
even the enemies of Jesus
admitting that He performed
miracles if these in fact were
not true, why didn’t someone
just stand up and say, ‘Wait.
He didn’t perform miracles and
we never agreed that.’ So this
is a perfect time for the Jews
to come forward and say, ‘Hey,
none of us were there. This is
referring to me and I wasn’t
there. It’s not true.’ The
Pharisees never came forward and
said they were not factual. The
Romans believed that Jesus was
some kind of a magician (Matthew
14:1-2). It would be stupid for
the Apostles of Jesus Christ to
write these individuals into the
story if in fact they were not
there. If the stories of the
miracles were not true, then the
Apostles would really be leaving
themselves open to having their
story exposed and themselves
exposed as liars and fabricators
of truth. There was no outcry
saying, ‘Wait a minute. I never
said that. I never did this. I
wasn’t there.’ This is powerful
evidence that proves that Jesus
did perform miracles. There is
not a shred of an outcry. There
is nothing there that would
indicate these were simply made
up. The enemies of Jesus proved
a truth about Jesus that He did
in fact do miracles (Brian Paul,
Evidence for Christ-The Case
for the Identity, Divinity, and
Resurrection of Jesus Christ,
Two-Tape Audio Set, Racho
Santa Fe, California: Basilica
Press, 1999).”
“If the Apostles were lying,
they were not very smart because
they gave too many details in
their story. Look at Luke 8:26
& 40-56. Location: Galilee;
enemy name: Jairus (official of
the synagogue). If Luke is
making up this story, he has to
be terribly foolish because what
has he just done? He has told
us where this event has taken
place, Galilee. He has told us
the name of the man who
instigated this, Jairus; and he
gave the man’s position. He was
an official of the synagogue.
There are not that many
synagogues in Galilee and the
records would immediately say
whether or not this was true or
not and he did this in front of
a crowd. That’s the thing.
Here is a public miracle. Too
many details are given to claim
that this is just something made
up. Luke is no fool. Luke is
actually a very quality
historian. So here is Luke
telling a story that has the
name of the guy, the place, the
job, all the things that you
would need to check upon the
story. We find the same thing
in the Gospel of John. John
does the same thing (John
11:1-44). Many of these stories
are almost given as challenges.
You do not claim something
miraculous and then give details
so the person can check them up
or check up on them without
almost issuing a challenge. You
know if you do not believe, here
is the name, his place, etc.,
etc. You are not going to write
a story unless you know that
your story will hold up because
your story is true and that of
course is what the Apostles
knew. All these details given
in the miracles could be checked
upon. (Furthermore), some of
the events (recorded) were
(even) humiliations to the
Apostles (Matthew 14:28-31,
26:56, 26:69-75, 28:5, Mark
6:49-50, 14:50, 14:66-72, Luke
24:37, John 20:19, 20:25,
21:15-22) (Ibid).”
Flavius Josephus, a Jewish
historian in the first century
AD, wrote in his Antiquities
of the Jews, Book 18,
Chapter 3:3 (93 AD), in
regards to Jesus, “Jesus, a wise
man, a doer of wonderful works
(translation by William Whiston
at http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josephus_on_Jesus).”
In the Talmud in
Sanhedrin 43a, which was
written before 200 AD, the
Jewish Rabbis stated, “And it is
tradition: On the eve of
Passover they hung Jeshu (Jesus)
because he hath practiced magic
(translation from
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/talmud_jesus.htm).”
JESUS CHRIST DIED ON THE
CROSS
“The Romans were experts when it
came to anything violent and
especially experts when it came
to execution. If they wanted
you dead, you were going to be
dead. If the soldiers got the
crucifixion wrong, and the
person lived, they would be
killed. So they were very,
very, very careful to make sure
that when a body came off the
crucifix, when the body came off
the cross, it was a dead body
(Brian Paul, Evidence for
Christ-The Case for the
Identity, Divinity, and
Resurrection of Jesus Christ,
Two-Tape Audio Set, Racho
Santa Fe, California: Basilica
Press, 1999).”
JESUS CHRIST RESURRECTED FROM
THE DEAD
“In 1 Corinthians 15:6, the
Apostle Paul says Jesus appeared
to more than 500 brothers at one
time, most of whom are still
alive, though some have fallen
asleep. If St. Paul were making
up a story, he is not going to
make up a story where 500 people
see Christ risen and he is
certainly not going to say, ‘And
guess what. Most of them are
still alive. So you can go
check with them if you want.
They are still alive. There’s a
bunch of’em and ya go check it
out for yourself.’ The only
reason St. Paul would tell this
story is if in fact he was
absolutely sure that there story
would stick together because the
story itself is true (Brian
Paul, Evidence for Christ-The
Case for the Identity, Divinity,
and Resurrection of Jesus Christ,
Two-Tape Audio Set, Racho
Santa Fe, California: Basilica
Press, 1999).”
“The Resurrection was a fact.
Think not that Peter and the
Apostles were the victims of a
delusion; think not they had (a)
hallucination. All those who
saw the One whom they thought
dead walk in the newness of life
had to be convinced. They were
not expecting the Resurrection
(John 20:9). When the women
announced the Resurrection,
instead of being impressed they
regarded the words of women as
‘idle tales and believed them
not (Luke 24:11).’ They were so
far away from the idea of seeing
Him upset the human concept of
death, that when they first saw
Him, they thought they had seen
a ghost (Luke 24:37). Mary
Magdalene thought He was the
gardener (John 20:15), and the
disciples on the way to Emmaus
did not recognize Him until the
breaking of the bread (Luke
24:13-31). And when they told
the other disciples, they were
not believed (Mark 16:11 &
13-14). When He appeared in
Galilee, Matthew tells us that
some doubted (Matthew 28:17).
The very evening of the
Resurrection some of His
Apostles would not even believe
their own eyes until they saw
Him eating (Luke 24:39-43).
Thomas even then doubted and
would not be convinced until he
put his finger unto His hand,
and his hand into the divine
side to be cured of his doubt
(John 20:25-28) (Fulton J.
Sheen, The Eternal Galilean,
New York: Alba House, 1997,
pgs. 229-231).”
“Think for a moment on the
conduct of the Apostles before
the Resurrection, and the way
they acted when the Spirit gave
them the fullness of belief in
the risen Savior. What new
force so transformed the souls
of the Apostles, so as to make
the abject, the venerated; the
ignorant, masters; the egotists,
the devoted; and the despairing,
Saints? What power was it that
laid hold of Peter who once said
he knew not the man (Matthew
26:69-74, Mark 14:66-71, Luke
22:57-60, John 18:17 & 25-26),
and now before a learned
audience of Parthians and Medes
and Elamites, of Mesopotamians,
Phrygians and Egyptians and
Romans (Acts 2:9-10), arises to
startle their hearts and thrill
their souls with the message,
‘You killed the Author of life,
whom God then raised from the
dead… So repent and be baptized
every one of you in the Name of
Jesus Christ for the remission
of sins (Acts 3:15-19).’ What
hand was it that laid hold of
Saul, the bitter enemy of
Christians (Acts 9:1-2 & 13-14 &
21), converted him into a Paul
and the preacher who counted all
things as naught save the glory
of the risen Christ (Philippians
3:8)? What new spirit entered
into that crude, fish smelling
group of Galilean fisherman
which compelled them to go to
the capital of the world, which
brushed them aside with disdain,
and there preach the seemingly
grotesque creed that He who was
executed as a common criminal by
a Roman procurator was the
Resurrection and the Life (Ibid,
pgs. 232-233)?” What could
account for it but the
Resurrection of Jesus Christ?
If the Resurrection was not a
fact, then when they started
getting arrested and tortured,
they would admit that they had
lied and would recant their
story. “They would have exposed
it. Not a single Apostle
recanted under torture. Not
even one ever claimed that it
was a lie. Not even one ever
denied that Christ rose from the
dead. They all sealed their
testimony with their blood.
They had everything to gain and
nothing to lose if they recanted
unless Jesus really did rise
from the dead (Brian Paul,
Evidence for Christ-The Case for
the Identity, Divinity, and
Resurrection of Jesus Christ,
Two-Tape Audio Set, Racho
Santa Fe, California: Basilica
Press, 1999).”
Flavius Josephus, a Jewish
historian in the first century
AD, wrote in his Antiquities
of the Jews, Book 18,
Chapter 3:3 (93 AD), “He (Jesus)
appeared to them alive again the
third day (translation by
William Whiston at http://www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Josephus_on_Jesus).”
THE REDEMPTION
“Man’s sin was infinite in
malice; it did an infinite
injury to God. How, you may
say, could poor finite man
commit an infinite offence?
Consider: ‘Injury is in the
person injured.’ The first
measure of offense is the person
offended. If a soldier in the
ranks strikes a fellow soldier,
the offence is not very serious;
if the private soldier strikes
his lieutenant, the offence is
more serious; if the private
soldier strikes his general, the
offence is still more serious,
and so on. Yet the thing done
was precisely the same in all
cases-a blow struck. The
measure of the offence is, first
and foremost, in the personage
offended; secondarily, it is in
the status of the offender, and
the lower or more dependent that
status, the greater is the
offence. Now, sin is an offence
against God, whose majesty is
infinite, and hence sin is
infinite. It is an infinite
injury done to God, not indeed
that it hurts or maims the
divine substance itself, but
that it outrages the divine
majesty and dignity (RT.
Reverend MSGR. Paul J. Glenn,
Ph.D., S.T.D., Apologetics-A
Philosophical Defense and
Explanation of the Catholic
Religion, Rockford,
Illinois: Tan Books and
Publishers, 1980, p. 170).”
“The atonement, insofar as man
might offer to make it, would be
measured by the finite capacity
of man. Man could not atone in
the measure exacted by justice.
Yet man should atone, for man
did the offence. Here, then, is
an impasse: man owes an infinite
debt and cannot pay it; God can
pay an infinite price, but does
not owe it. Is this the end,
then? Is the Redemption
impossible? No; for the wisdom
and power of God now shine(s)
forth in a word that passes far
beyond the wildest hopes and
thoughts of man: God gives a
Redeemer (Jesus Christ) (Isaiah
53:12, 59:20) who is both God
(John 1:1) and man (John 6:27,
Matthew 24:36, Luke 22:41-43):
He is God, and can pay the
infinite price of Redemption in
the measure of justice; He is
man, and of the race that should
pay that price (Ibid, pgs.
171-172).”
JESUS CHRIST IS GOD
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