Stephen K. Ray's Blog, page 87
July 11, 2022
Working on my knees
Many people who know me know that my knees are a problem. All through my life I have been a runner and I ran through countries around the world. It was a great adventure and a way to explore and keep thin and fit.
Running throughout Israel and Egypt, Jordan, Iraq, Dubai and Onamia and India and Australia, Guam and all over Europe and the Philippines and all across the beautiful land of America and more.
I remember running around the Sea of Galilee, up the Mount of Transfiguration and Masada, from Nazareth to Cana and from Bethlehem to Jerusalem and now it’s over.
To see my video of running through all the holy sites in Jerusalem click HERE.
The running took its toll and the doctors told me 10 years ago I would never run again. It has been one of the great sorrows of my life.
The pain has continued to increase and at only 67 years old I have a lot yet I want to do in life. We are planning to lead pilgrimages to the Holy Land, around the Catholic world for years to come. So what to do?
Today I had the PRP treatment which takes my own blood and spins it to extract the platelets which help regenerate cartilage in the joints. The doctor said my knee joints were pretty far gone and therefore it would probably not work. So, at the same time I am now interviewing a few doctors about knee replacement.
It’s hard to get old. My mom and dad were married for 73 years. My dad died at 94 years old and my mom died on Mother’s Day this year at 100 years old.
So, Janet and I figure it’s a good idea to get my knees replaced if this blood platelet replacement doesn’t actually solve the problem. If so, it will require 4 months or so to accomplish. A doctor friend told me that I have a choice. I can experience pain the rest of my life or I can experience pain for three months and then no pain the rest of my life. I guess I made my decision
Pray for us as we pursue the later years of our lives with every desire to continue full blast ahead.
Thanks!
The post Working on my knees appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
Fatherless Homes Linked to Mental Illness, Mass Shootings
It has always been my contention that a — if not “the” — major problem in our country today is children being raised without fathers.
Boys need role models and if there’s not a strong father in the family, they will look to alternatives which are usually not good.
Young girls need the acceptance and love of their fathers and if that’s absent, they’ll look for it elsewhere and it will not be pretty.
This article demonstrates that a good percentage of the problems in our country are caused by children raised without fathers, especially sons without dads. He uses Mass shootings as an example.
“Warren Farrell, author of the book “The Boy Crisis: Why Our Boys Are Struggling and What We Can Do About It,” has found that being “dad deprived” is a leading factor in males’ increased mental illness, addiction, and suicide.
“He links the mass shootings in 53 developed countries to boys and men who lacked a father figure, and he specifically mentioned six mass shootings that have occurred in the United States in the 21st century.
“All six of those mass school shootings that have killed more than 10 people have been done by boys, and all six of them have been done by boys who have been ‘dad deprived,’ from Sandy Hook right on through to the Texas shooting,” Farrell said during a recent interview for EpochTV’s “American Thought Leaders” program.
Farrell was referring to the 2012 shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, and the May 24, 2022, shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas….
As of 2020, 21 percent of children, or about 15.3 million, lived with their mother only, compared to 11 percent, or 7.6 million, in 1968…
For the whole story, click HERE.
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July 8, 2022
Is DOGMA an Oppressive Catholic Word?
When I was an Evangelical Protestant, I thought DOGMA was a dirty word. It had bad connotations. It represented unbiblical teaching forced down people’s throats by the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. They invented new doctrines not found in the Bible and then called them dogmas and told Christians if they didn’t believe them — well, they would go to hell.
So, is DOGMA a bad word? Are they teachings and traditions created by men to control people and to force them to believe things not in the Bible? Where did the word come from? What does DOGMA mean?
You may be surprised to find out the the word DOGMA was not coined by the medieval Church. Nor was it created to defend alleged corrupt politics of the Catholic hierarchy.
Actually, one of the first usages of the word DOGMA is in the Bible!
DOGMA comes from a Greek word meaning decree or decision. It’s actually used five times in the New Testament. It is used of the decree of Caesar Augustus and the ordinances of the Mosaic Law. It is also used to describe the decrees of the Jerusalem Council in 49 AD which is written about in Acts 15.
There was a crisis in the early Church. The apostles and elders (priests) got together in Jerusalem for a council. The Holy Spirit worked together with the Council to make a decision. Acts 15:28 says, “It has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us…” The decision was put into a letter (like an encyclical) and sent to all the churches, even those founded by St. Paul. It was binding on them all.
This Council of Jerusalem was the prototype of all future Church Councils, the latest of which was Vatican II. This letter is mentioned in Acts 16:4 where the word DOGMA is used. Here is what is says:
As [Paul, Silas, and Timothy] went on their way through the cities, they delivered to them for observance the decisions (dogma) which had been reached by the apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem.
The Council of Jerusalem in AD 49 (Acts 15) made doctrinal decisions regarding faith and morals and they were delivered by letter to the churches. The content of the Apostles’ letter was DOGMA, something defining doctrine and practice. It was authoritative — from the Church Council AND the Holy Spirit (Acts 15:28).
Surprising? DOGMA is not a word invented by devious Catholic hierarchy. It is a biblical word used to describe the decisions and decrees made by the Church Council in Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit and the Apostles made a determination or ruling which was binding on all the churches. This decree was actually DOGMA.
From that point on the Church has used the Greek word DOGMA to describe a teaching which the Holy Spirit together with the Apostles/Bishops of the Church define as a truth that the faithful are required to believe. The magisterium of the Church today has received the authority to define and explain dogmas today. Dogmas are not invented doctrines; they are the interpretation and development of truth which is contained in the original deposit of faith given to the Church by Jesus and the Apostles.
DOGMA is defined by the Catechism: The Church’s Magisterium exercises the authority it holds from Christ to the fullest extent when it defines dogmas, that is, when it proposes truths contained in divine Revelation or also when it proposes, in a definitive way, truths having a necessary connection with these. . . . Dogmas are lights along the path of faith; they illuminate it and make it secure” (CCC 88-89).
So, DOGMA is a good word, one that explains the work of the Church to define and assist us — the faithful — to know the truth and gain eternal life. Blessed be God for DOGMA!
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But, we’ve used two other words that often seem mysterious to the average person — like ominous clouds hanging over the horizon — HIERARCHY and MAGISTERIUM. Don’t they sound like medieval tyrants controlling your every move and oppressing the people? Darn right they do, if you don’t know what they really mean and how the words came into our language.
HIERARCHY comes from two Greek words: hier– holy, and archy – rule of, or government. Therefore, a holy government or the rule of holy men.
MAGISTERIUM comes from two Latin words: –ium – office of, and magisterius – teacher, master (as schoolmaster, or magistrate). Therefore, it is an “office of teachers” who have the blessed authority and ability to instruct, decide and protect the faithful.
So, all of these words refer to marvelous gifts from God — gifts that help the Christian know the truth, be certain of their faith, and avoid error. Those from my old Evangelical tradition would do well to understand and embrace these terms and the Church that possesses them.
The post Is DOGMA an Oppressive Catholic Word? appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
July 4, 2022
Join our St. Paul Mediterranean Cruise and Visit 10 Biblical Cities & Islands
Ten biblical sites, the Greek Islands and our “Seminar at Sea” in the footprints of St. Paul. Steve & Janet Ray will be your guides and hosts.
Visit our web page at www.FootprintsOfGod.com. You can contact our Reservations Team at 866-557-2364, or write them at FootprintsOfGod@ctscentral.net.
Visit our website for the interactive map, itinerary, cities and islands visited and the very reasonable rates including airfare.
The post Join our St. Paul Mediterranean Cruise and Visit 10 Biblical Cities & Islands appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
Join us visiting 10 Biblical Sites on the Mediterranean with St. Paul
Ten biblical sites, the Greek Islands and our “Seminar at Sea” in the footprints of St. Paul. Steve & Janet Ray will be your guides and hosts.
Visit our web page at www.FootprintsOfGod.com. You can contact our Reservations Team at 866-557-2364, or write them at FootprintsOfGod@ctscentral.net.
Visit our website for the interactive map, itinerary, cities and islands visited and the very reasonable rates including airfare.
The post Join us visiting 10 Biblical Sites on the Mediterranean with St. Paul appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
“Who Do You Say That I Am?” by Steve Ray in Catholic Answers Magazine
Last year Catholic Answers Magazine asked me to write an article about the humanity of Jesus, actually “the scandal of his humanity”. We are constantly defending his divinity, but think very little about his real human humanity. He was God and Man.
Based on my many trips to the Holy Land and walking in his sandals, so to speak, they asked if I would tackle this issue so here it is.
They walked from sunup to sundown for at least two days. Rugged country but also rugged men. They had left the Jewish community in Capernaum and headed north to the pagan, gentile district of Caesarea Philippi. Jesus had led this motley crew of disciples for three years. They had watched his life, listened to him teach and debate, and witnessed his miracles and works of power beyond number.
Upon arrival in this unfamiliar territory, Jesus asks what is arguably the most important two questions of all time. Presumably gesturing toward the crowds thronging the outskirts of the city, he asked his devoted disciples, “Who do men say that I am?” And then he looks directly in their eyes and asks an even more pointed question, “Who do you say that I am?”
There is no more important question we can ask. It has puzzled people from the beginning and is still debated to this day. The disciples responded to Jesus’ first question with a flurry of responses from the editorials and rumors of the day, that Jesus was John the Baptist raised from the dead, others said Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets. All of these were heroic men from their past.
The debate and speculation continues. The Jehovah’s Witnesses knock on your door and present Jesus as “a god”, an angel, maybe even Michael. The heretic priest Arius in the 4th century agreed as to his angelic nature. The Mormons present Jesus as a son of their heavenly father who is one god of many gods. The secularist will say at best he was a good teacher and a hapless rabbi, while a Jew might say he was a dangerous imposter and false teacher. In any case, Jesus remains one of the most discussed and debated figures in human history.
When Jesus addressed them personally with his second question, Peter blurted out, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” Now that was a mouthful and I suspect maybe even he was surprised a bit. Jesus quickly acknowledged the truth of Peter’s words but also gave the credit to God, not to any insightfulness of Peter. He said, “Blessed are you … for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” In other words, the gray matter between your ears did not conceive of this profound definition. It was God who gave you a direct revelation and inspired your words.
Was Jesus merely a prophet with a human nature or was he more than that. Peter’s words soared way above the words of the others. The Messiah was eminently expected but it was a man that was anticipated. His title would be Son of David and he would bring back the glory days of their ideal king of the past. Peter’s first description of Jesus was piercing, but the second portion of his description soared like an eagle — the Son of the Living God. A son has the same nature as his father, so Peter’s statement asserted that Jesus was not only human, but was divine as well.
The disciples knew of Jesus humanity but now began to comprehend the divinity of Jesus, as one of them would later write, “In the beginning was the Word … and the Word was God … and the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.” Jesus was the Word and he put on a tent of flesh. That is what dwelt means. In the original Greek it the word tent or tabernacle, in other words, to dwell in a tent of flesh.
For the whole article, click HERE.
The post “Who Do You Say That I Am?” by Steve Ray in Catholic Answers Magazine appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
July 1, 2022
Love these kind of e-mails: Back to the Catholic Church
Revisiting a nice note received from England:
Thank you, Steve. My sister-in-law was Catholic and she turned away to be a new-born Christian [Fundamentalist Protestant]. A lot of these people got round her and constantly told her she was going to hell unless she gets born again and she then tried to convert me and my wife.
She successfully made us doubt the Catholic religion but then we found you and listened to what you had to say and I feel stronger than ever about my Catholic faith. Last night I showed my sister-in-law some of your clips on YouTube. We just told her to listen to what you had to say then make her mind up after watching.
She has now turned back to the Catholic faith. Thank God!
The post Love these kind of e-mails: Back to the Catholic Church appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
June 29, 2022
Pelosi receives Communion in Vatican amid abortion debate
Posted without comment — too disgusted to comment!
Associated Press | By Nicole Winfield | June 29, 2022
ROME (AP) — U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi met with Pope Francis on Wednesday and received Communion during a papal Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, witnesses said, despite her position in support of abortion rights.
Pelosi attended the morning Mass marking the feasts of St. Peter and St. Paul, during which Francis bestowed the woolen pallium stole on newly consecrated archbishops.
She was seated in a VIP diplomatic section of the basilica and received Communion along with the rest of the congregants, according to two people who witnessed the moment.
Pelosi’s home archbishop, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, has said he will no longer allow her to receive the sacrament in his archdiocese because of her support for abortion rights.
Cordileone, a conservative, has said Pelosi must either repudiate her support for abortion or stop speaking publicly of her Catholic faith.
Pelosi has done neither. She called the recent Supreme Court ruling removing constitutional protections for abortion an “outrageous and heart-wrenching” decision that fulfils the Republican Party’s “dark and extreme goal of ripping away women’s right to make their own reproductive health decisions.”
The post Pelosi receives Communion in Vatican amid abortion debate appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
Stones Cry Out: Does Archaeology Support the Bible?
This year we are again in the air with pilgrims. I always get asked if archaelogy confirmes the truth of the Bible. In October we will be in Corinth where St. Paul lived for 18 months. Every time I come here with my groups I give one of my favorite short talks on the truth of Scripture and the Catholic Faith. You can watch my 10-minute talk below.
Join us on our “St. Paul Mediterranean Cruise and Seminar at Sea“. See the interactive map, itinerary and brochure HERE.
Recently I did an interview I did with Tim Staples which you can read now entitled “The Stones Cry Out: the Apologetics of Archaeology.” It was published in the Catholic Answers Magazine. It especially mentions the stone I am showing my group here in Corinth.
Are we sure the Bible is true? Does archaeology help us know? Enjoy!
My impassioned talk at Corinth about the Erastus Stone and the truth of the Bible is below.
The post Stones Cry Out: Does Archaeology Support the Bible? appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
Liberal Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer announces retirement this month
Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer announced that he will officially retire from the nation’s highest court.
In a letter to President Joe Biden, Breyer confirmed that his retirement will come into effect on Thursday, June 30, at 12 p.m. ET.
The post Liberal Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer announces retirement this month appeared first on Defenders of the Catholic Faith.
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