featured – Page 129 – Restless Pilgrim

“They did not kill him”

February 10, 2013 pilgrim 2 comments

One of the major points of divergence between Islam and Christianity is that, in addition to denying Jesus’ divinity, Islam asserts that Jesus did not die on the cross. We find this assertion in Surah 4 of the Qur’an:

Just in case you don’t read Arabic(!), here is the English translation:

[They said] “Indeed, we have killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of Allah”… [But] they did not kill him, nor did they crucify him; but [another] was made to resemble him to them… Rather, Allah raised him to Himself… – Surah 4:157-158, Sahih International

Catholicism

PWJ: S4E103 – Bonus – “Season Finale” (Part 2)

September 30, 2021 pilgrim Leave a comment

David, Andrew, and Matt wrap up Season 4 with the Season Finale. This is Part 2 of that Finale.

S4E103: Season Finale (Part 2) (Download)

If you enjoy this episode, you can subscribe manually, or any place where good podcasts can be found (iTunes, Google Play, Amazon, Audible, Podbean, Stitcher, TuneIn and Overcast), as well as on YouTube. The roadmap for Season 4 is available here.

More information about us can be found on our website, PintsWithJack.com. If you’d like to support us and get fantastic gifts, please join us on Patreon.

Podcast

Was Irenaeus wrong?

February 12, 2015 pilgrim 10 comments

A while ago, I had a chap called Roscoe commenting on my blog, denying the Catholic claims concerning St. Peter and the See of Rome. In response, I quoted St. Irenaeus, one of the most important witnesses concerning the Church at Rome:

“…that tradition derived from the apostles, of the very great, the very ancient, and universally known Church founded and organized at Rome by the two most glorious apostles, Peter and Paul; …which comes down to our time by means of the successions of the bishops. For it is a matter of necessity that every Church should agree with this Church, on account of its preeminent authority…

…The blessed apostles, then, having founded and built up the Church, committed into the hands of Linus the office of the episcopate [of Rome]. Of this Linus…Anacletus…Clement…[and] Eleutherius does now…hold the inheritance of the episcopate.

“In this order, and by this succession, the ecclesiastical tradition from the apostles, and the preaching of the truth, have come down to us. And this is most abundant proof that there is one and the same vivifying faith, which has been preserved in the Church from the apostles until now, and handed down in truth

– Against Heresies III.3.3 (c. AD 180)

Not founded by Peter and Paul

In reply to my quotation of Irenaeus, Roscoe wrote the following:

There are no historical facts to support the idea that Peter and Paul founded the church at Rome. Rome was over 1000 miles away from where they were. We can see what Peter was doing in Acts and he was not in Rome at this time. Most likely the faith was brought there by pilgrims who were converted in the early chapters of Acts.

Roscoe’s main argument seems to be:

1. Irenaeus says Peter and Paul “founded” the church at Rome.

2. Jews from Rome were present at Pentecost and converted to Christianity. It would have most likely been these Christians who would have brought the faith to Rome.

3. Irenaeus is proven demonstrably wrong and therefore his testimony concerning Rome should be regarded as extremely dubious.

I’ve heard this kind of argument a few times in the comment section of other blogs, so today I’d like to respond to it…

Catholicism

Rest

January 3, 2013 pilgrim One comment

The term “Desert Father” is generally used to refer to the Christian monks, hermits and ascetics who began to appear in about the Third Century. They were often located in the Scetes desert of Egypt, but their lifestyle was subsequently imitated throughout the world. A visitor to Egypt in the 4th Century wrote:

“One can see them in the desert waiting for Christ as loyal sons watching for their father… There is only the expectation of the coming of Christ in the singing of hymns… There is no town or village in Egypt and the Thebaid which is not surrounded by hermitages as if by walls”
– The Lives of the Desert Fathers, Norman Russel

The most famous of these Desert Father was probably St. Anthony The Great whose biography, written by St. Athanasius, inspired many to follow his example to renounce wealth, enter the desert and live a simple life of prayer.

St. Anthony of Egypt

One of the books which I’m reading this year is Sayings of the Desert Fathers, so you can expect to see quite a few quotations from these early Christian witnesses over the course of next year. I’d like to begin with a story of St. Anthony which I hope to set the tone for my 2013…

A hunter happened to come by and saw Anthony talking in a relaxed way with the brothers, and he was shocked. The hermit wanted to show him how we should sometimes be less austere for the sake of the brothers, and said to him, “Put an arrow in your bow, and draw it.” He did so, and Anthony said, “Draw it further” and he drew it further. He said again, “Draw it yet further,” and he drew it some more. Then the hunter said to him, “If I draw it too far, the bow will snap.” Anthony answered, “so it is with God’s work. If we always go to excess, the brothers quickly become exhausted. It is sometimes best not to be rigid”
– Sayings, Anthony, 13

Quotation

PWJ: S1E28 – Bonus – “Mailbag Episode (Part 2)”

July 24, 2018 pilgrim One comment

This week Matt and I read some more mail from listeners. This week we get some constructive criticism! We’re going to be talking about charity and suffering…

Please send any objections, comments or questions, either via email through my website or tweet us @pintswithjack or message us via Instagram!

Episode 27: “Mailbag Episodes (Part 2)” (Download)

If you enjoy this episode, you can subscribe manually, or any place where good podcasts can be found (iTunes, Google Play, Podbean, Stitcher and TuneIn).

Podcast

Artwork of God’s Artwork

May 24, 2011 pilgrim 6 comments

In a previous post I explained the meaning of the text “IC XC” which is found in Eastern icons. I thought today I would do a quick follow-up to explain the letters which commonly appear around the Theotokos…

The Theo-what?

“The Theotokos” (pronounced “th-ay-oh-to-kos”) is the name that Eastern Christians (both Orthodox and Catholic) typically give to Jesus’ mother, Mary. It was also the word used in the proclamation of the Council of Ephesus in 431 AD. In the Western Church, “Theotokos” is often loosely translated into English as “Mother Of God” (whereas it literally means “God-bearer”).

Giving Mary the title “Mother of God” has certainly caused some heated arguments in the history of Christianity. Some have mistakenly seen this title as an elevation of Mary to a height even greater than that of Jesus (if such a thing were possible!). Yet the title “Mother Of God” is really much more about Jesus than Mary, since to say that Mary is not the mother of God is to say that she gave birth only to His humanity, which would indicate some kind of rupture between Jesus’ human and divine natures. That’s kind of a weighty topic…I think I’ll come back to that another time….

Catholicism

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