In my Apologetics studies, I am quite proficient at finding multiple credible sources. Everything from the Bible to the Catechism of the Catholic Church to books by theologians, to Apologetics Flashcards.
The following Bible passages I found in a set of apologetics flashcards.
They refute the situation I explained in my opening email/blog post.
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| The flashcards I used for this lesson |
I did not quote the actual Bible passages here because the main idea of this study of ours is to learn, and the best way to do that is to open your bible and really immerse yourself in it. Obviously its a big book so we’ll start by taking just isolated verses... But don’t use that as a constant rule of bible study. In order to know the bible well, we must study it in context, not just isolated verses.
“Call no man ‘Father’” Matthew 23:9
Judges 17:9-10
Micah has asked the young Levite to stay with him, but why be his father and priest? Levites were the priests of God, so Micah knew he was a priest. But Micah also knew that Levites were also fathers because the priests were called to father the children of Israel. These verses show how spiritual fatherhood was practiced in the Old Testament. It is from the priest today that we receive our spiritual guidance.
Romans 4:16-17
Would St. Paul be deliberately disobeying Jesus by calling Abraham father? No, St. Paul understood Jesus’ words and His intentions. The love, honor and reverence we have for God is different than the love we have for our earthly fathers and priests. We show our priests human honor because they are our spiritual fathers here on earth. Divine honor and worship is reserved for God alone.
1 Corinthians 4:14-17
The priests are our spiritual fathers in the faith. As our natural fathers guide our home where we live, so the priest guides Christ’s home which is the Church. In response to the question, “why do you call your priests father?” we should respond with, “Why don’t you call your pastors or ministers father?” St. Paul does and encourages others to do so.
1 Thessalonians 2:10-11
St. Paul again mentions himself, as well as leaders of the church, as spiritual fathers to it’s members. Referring to a man as a spiritual father is not what Jesus was condemning. Jesus was saying that we are to give to God our Father the honor, love, praise, and reverence that is reserved for Him alone and not to any man. Catholics are obedient to Christ and understand what Jesus taught regarding this issue. All of scripture must be considered when studying the Bible.
1 Timothy 5:1-2
We are a family and thus we should treat our Christian brothers and sisters as family. Our priests are the head of our earthly Church family. The priest also feeds us spiritually through the sacraments (especially the Eucharist) and therefor requires our respect. As Christians united to the body of Christ, we are closer (spiritually speaking), than our family members who are not Christians.
Philemon 10-11
St. Paul did not have children of his own, but as a leader of the church, he calls his parishioners his children. Thus he is a “father” within the church. Taking a Bible verse out of context can lead to many misunderstandings. This is the case with Matthew 23:9. The whole of scripture must be read and understood in the light of the teachings of the Catholic Church.
1 John 2:14
St. John could not be deliberately disobeying Jesus time and again by using the word “father.” Obviously, St. John did not understand Jesus’ words “call no man father,” the way some non-Catholics understand them. St. John did not hold “earthly fathers” in the same regard as his “Heavenly Father.” Catholics understand and recognize the meaning of Christ’s words just as St. John did.
“Traditions of Men” Matthew 15:3
2 Thessalonians 2:15
The traditions that St. Paul speaks of are those that the Thessalonians were taught, either by spoken word or in the writing of letters. If oral traditions were to be condemned, there would have been a verse to do just that. However, Paul’s encouragement to the Thessalonians, to hold on to both the preached and written traditions, supports the Catholic practice and point of view.
2 Thessalonians 3:6
Contrary to what many non-Catholics believe, all traditions are not condemned in the Bible. Here, St. Paul even says to shun those that don’t follow the Holy Traditions which have been passed on to them. If all traditions are evil, why would St. Paul be telling Christians to follow them. All traditions are not evil. The Traditions found in the Catholic Church are those handed on from the apostles which can be found in the writings of the early Church Fathers.
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