Notice 1 John 2:27 says, "Just as it has TAUGHT you..." In black and white, here it is, the need for someone to be TAUGHT the meaning of the Holy Scriptures (the Orthodox and Catholic Tradition;by the way , there are what, over 33,000 Protestant denominations now? Thus, the Scriptures are NOT perspicuous, and no,"Invisible Church" is a lie and dodge employed by the first Reformer, Martin Luther). Also, in Basil, I need context, specifically whether or not the receiver of the letter is learned or not in exegesis and hermeneutics.
1st off, "Romanism"?! Really?! Did I call you or your denomination names?! 2ndly, I noticed you made a connection that WASN"T THERE! You seem to be saying, "Aha, here Athanasius is saying, 'Tradition is bad,'" when he is simply saying the book of Revelation (Scripture, or, as with the Orthodox and Catholic Churches, Scripture and Tradition together) is more powerful in teaching us about theology than the book of Nature.
Heh-heh, you just trapped yourself with a quote (as Miles Edgeworth , from the videogame "Phoenix Wright:Ace Attorney" said, "Sit back, relax...and enjoy the sound of the noose tightening around your own neck"), "The scriptures are enough for instruction, but it is A GOOD THING TO ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER IN THE FAITH , AND TO STIR UP WITH WORDS" or , in other words, to TEACH DOGMA. The same thing is taught by your 2nd quote from Athanasius:"For although the sacred and inspired Scriptures are sufficient to declare the truth,—while there are other works of our blessed teachers compiled for this purpose, if he meet with which a man will gain some knowledge of the interpretation of the Scriptures, and be able to learn what he wishes to know,—still, as we have not at present in our hands the compositions of our teachers, we must communicate in writing to you what we learned from them,—the faith, namely, of Christ the Saviour; lest any should hold cheap the DOCTRINE TAUGHT among us, or think faith in Christ unreasonable."
Nonsense-just read the Founders, and you'll see Religiousness.
Notice how the article states the USA is secular, without any supporting evidence? Just more trying to make us Christians look like freaks - Walter Roy must be spinning in his grave!
How is the Pope the leader of the "One World Government", and not Christian?! Oh, I know "Pope" comes from "Papa", Father, but when Our Lord said to "call no one your father on earth"(Matt 23:9 NRSV) why, if we're to take Him literally, do we call our dads "Father"?! And no nonsense about him speaking only about priests, as that is eisegesis.
The "lure" of Rome is we're the ORIGINAL Christian Church (The Early Church Subsists in or Subsistit in; Lumen Gentium Para 8). Just read the Early Church Fathers.
So, it all comes out. You may or may not believe in "once saved, always saved", but that's not the subject of my critique. Rather, you are afraid of sounding like Roman Catholicism(which you, disgustingly and argumentum ad hominem-styled, attack as "Romanism".) In fact, properly understood, the verses you quote militate AGAINST Calvinism-if there are "none who seeks for God", in the Calvinistic sense, then that means we are all reprobate, and predestined for Hell. Since few, if any, believe this-even Calvinists believe in atonement, albeit limited-it must mean Calvinism is incoherent, therefore incorrect. There is a site called "Shameless Popery" that dealt, recently, with Psalm 69:8, Mary, and her Perpetual Virginity, at this link: http://catholicdefense.blogspot.com/2011/12/does-psalm-698-proves-that-mary-had.html
You say "Gospel", but that's only part of their own merits. How about their exemplary behavior of the Blesseds and Saints, for example?! E.G. St Thomas Aquinas and Blessed John Paul II, as well as lesser known ones such as Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman.(And, before you shout, "IDOLATRY!", know that I am NOT placing them above or equating them with God, just using them as role models, that I, alack, often fail to live up to.)
"BC/AD has nothing to do with the Bible." Right, it is based on THE BEST GUESSES as to when Jesus of Nazareth was born.
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