One of the most common objections to Catholic teaching about Mary sounds very simple: “The Bible says Jesus had brothers. Therefore Mary must have had other children.” Another objection points to Matthew: «“He knew her not until she had borne a son.” — Matthew 1:25» And another asks: “Why would Mary and Joseph remain virginal…
How did the earliest Christians know which interpretation of Christianity was true? By the end of the second century, many groups claimed to possess the real teaching of Jesus. Some claimed to have secret knowledge. Others produced alternative interpretations of Scripture. Some even claimed that the visible Church had misunderstood the faith handed down by…
What would happen if we could walk into a Christian church less than 130 years after the Resurrection of Jesus and watch Christians worship? Would we find something completely unfamiliar? Would we find Christians simply gathering informally, reading Scripture and sharing ordinary bread and wine as symbols? Or would we recognise something remarkably similar to…
In this episode of Catholic Feedback, Keith Nester sits down with Franciscan University of Steubenville Theology professor Dr. Jeff Morrow to discuss his remarkable conversion to Catholicism and the biblical themes that transformed his understanding of the Christian faith. Together, they explore how the story of the Bible—from Genesis to Revelation—reveals God’s covenant plan, the…
St. Ignatius of Antioch — c. AD 107 Imagine being able to read the words of a Christian bishop writing only a few generations after the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. Not a medieval theologian. Not someone writing a thousand years after the Apostles. But a bishop of one of the great churches of…
The Didache — c. AD 70–120 What did Christianity look like immediately after the age of the Apostles? Did the earliest Christians simply gather together, read Scripture and interpret Christianity individually? Or was there already a recognisable Christian way of life involving Baptism, Eucharistic worship, fasting, confession, bishops and deacons? One of the oldest Christian…
When the angel Gabriel appears to Mary in Luke’s Gospel, something extraordinary happens that is easy to miss in an English translation. Gabriel does not begin by addressing her simply as “Mary.” Instead, he addresses her with a remarkable Greek word: Χαῖρε, κεχαριτωμένη, ὁ κύριος μετὰ σοῦ.Chaire, kecharitōmenē, ho Kyrios meta sou. — Luke 1:28…
Introduction Why should someone be Catholic? For Catholics, the answer is not simply that Catholicism is an old tradition, a particular style of worship, or the religion into which they happened to be born. The Catholic claim is much greater: Jesus Christ founded a visible Church, gave that Church authority, entrusted His teaching to the…
