Catholic and Mormon: A Theological Conversation

by Stephen H. Webb

Avery Dulles, before he was raised to the rank of a Cardinal in the Catholic Church, wrote a book on dogma with a chapter titled, “The Permanence of Prophecy in the Church.” It is an incredibly relevant chapter for this dialogue. He notes the high standing of prophets in the New Testament (1 Corinthians 14:1–5), but also insists that they were distinguished from and ranked beneath the Apostles (1 Corinthians 12:28; Ephesians 2:20, 3:5, 4:11). Early Christian prophets, Dulles argues, were not official witnesses of the risen Christ. They were also not teachers or theologians. They passed on admonitions and predictions they received from the Holy Spirit. These claims and insights needed to be scrutinized to make sure they harmonized with the faith, since there were many prophets during this period and not a few were false (1 Corinthians 12:3; 1 John 4:3; Mark 13:22). The Church was thus forced (or inspired) to develop rules for distinguishing between genuine and counterfeit prophecies.