• Peter the Rock?
• Pope, M.Teresa, Diana => Christians?
• Atheists and resurrection

Q.
I need help in knowing whether or not this article is true and where it errors if it is false. Please help me. This is authored by Steve Ray, an outstanding catholic Apologist...A former baptist biblical scholar!

Peter the Rock: A Biblical Analysis by Steve Ray [ed: article's too long to summarize here. It contains the typical Catholic reasonings.]

A.
Well...if Peter was THE "Rock" and as Catholics subsequently claim, was "perfect" ...why did he suggest what resulted in the choosing of Matthias to replace Judas (Acts1:15~) in disobedience to Jesus' command to go to Jerusalem and "WAIT" (vs4) for the Holy Spirit ...when Jesus' choice was actually Saul/Paul? (Acts9:6,15 1Cor15:8-10)

If Peter was, thus, "perfect" why did Paul have to confront him for hypocrisy in Gal2:11~?

If Peter was THE "first pope" why do we see "James" actually being the leader? At the same Jerusalem "council" this author speaks of Peter being in charge, look who is REALLY "in charge." After everybody's had their say, "who" is doing the synopsis of the whole matter? James. (Acts15:13) And when Paul comes back from his missionary journeys, it is "James" whom he goes to see. (Act21:18) As Paul begins his ministry, yes...he sees Peter (Gal1:18) But see who else he talks with..."James" (Gal1:19) "the Lord's brother."

When Peter had been released from prison, he tells the disciples to be sure to tell "James" about the incident. (Acts12:17)

And in the afore-mentioned lip-lashing Paul gave him, notice that Peter was hypocritcal because of those who "came from James" (Gal2:12) ...as though he was afraid of the report they would take back to James about him.

For a more scholarly treatise on this matter, I would recommend a reading of a book by Dave Hunt, "A Woman Rides the Beast."

"For who is God besides Jehovah? Or, who is a Rock except our God?" (Ps18:31)

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Q.
A question that really bothers me. Is mother teresa saved?? Isn't she catholic? What about Pope John Paul II?? In my opinion, they are not regenerate christians. What about Princess Diana, she claimed to be a christian, but she still went to see those fortune tellers. Do you think mother teresa and princess diana are in heaven now? What do you think ? I don't know whether this is an appropriate question to ask, but I really am confused here. Thanks for your time in advance.

A.
"You shall know them by their fruits." (Mt7:16)

M Teresa continually encouraged the suffering people to "hang in there" that their suffering would help atone their way into heaven. M.Teresa had $Millions, but did not use any of it to actually "feed" the hungry, nor for medicine to help "cure" the sick. She went around, pretending to live in poverty...encouraging people to remain in their state of suffering. That is M.Teresa's legacy.

9/6/07 ADDENDUM:
Recently M.Teresa's writings have become public, in which, over her lifetime, she expressed things like:
• doubting God's existence, but if He exists, hoping for His forgiveness
• the "terrible darkness" inside her
• that Jesus was "the Absent One" in her life
• even though trying to cling to Jesus that she was "all alone"
• "If I ever become a Saint -- I will surely be one of 'darkness"
• "The silence and the emptiness is so great -- that I look and do not see... Listen and do not hear."

If a person does not have God's Light of Jesus Christ, they have darkness. There are no "gray" areas. It is either white or black, Light or Darkness.

"But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" (Mt6:23)

A lot of people think Teresa was a "christian", in spite of her RCC connection, due to all her good works. But from her own mouth...? A person cannot doubt God's existence, and still claim to be a christian. Is not "doubt" the opposite of "faith", and "...without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is (He exists), and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." (Heb11:6)

"They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out that they might be made manifest, that not all of them are of us." (1Jn2:19)

Our "Way" to heaven is Jesus, Who is the "Way the truth and the life; no one comes to the Father but by [Christ]."(Jn14:6) It is "not by works of righteousness [or penance through suffering] which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit." (Tit3:5) We are saved "by grace..through faith..not of [ourselves], it is a GIFT of God, not of works [of penance, masses, prayers, last rights and purgatory], lest anyone should boast." (Eph2:8-9) It is "through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the reconciliation [atonement]" (Rom5:11)

The Pope? He, along with M.Teresa...worship/ed "Mary." They consider Mary to be above Christ...and their prayers actually prove their "faith" that in Mary "alone" is their hope. When Scripture is quite clear, "And there is salvation in no other One; for there is no other name [than Jesus] under Heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Act4:12)

Diana? I think you answered your own question on that one.

"You shall not turn to those that have familiar spirits, nor seek to spiritists to be defiled by them. I am the LORD your God. (Lev19:31)

" And the soul that turns to those who have familiar spirits, and to spiritists, to go lusting after them, I will even set My face against that soul, and will cut him off from among his people.(Lev20:6)

According to those who "know" these things...it seems the very location she was killed has occult significance with respect to the goddess named, of all things, "Diana"

And the very night she was killed, she was with her adulterous "lover" going to who-knows-where, to do who-knows-what.

There's really no question on these, is there...!

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Q.
I am doing a study on refuting atheist on the internet. especially in the area of prophecy. Do you know of any helps? I have been using a few commentaries such as Matthew Henry's. Also, if you would like to see some of their (atheists) web pages refuting the prophecy's on Jesus being the Messiah, let me know & I'll give you their web pages addresses....

A.
"Prophecy" is such a broad topic. And so is "atheism." The only way I can try to give any "help" intelligently, is to field "specific" questions. Specific issues or questions that might be on your mind.

Q.
I guess one would be Luke 24:46 & 1 Cor. 15:3-4, where Jesus & Paul talk about the Resurrection "according to the scriptures" which the atheists say isn't in the O.T.

A.
Well, of course...if they "don't want to" see it, they won't. However, consider the following:

Isa 53:12 after talking about Christ's suffering and death, vs 12 speaks of "I will divide to him with the great, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong." This is "because of" His death, He will receive this...the rational mind has to realize that a resurrection HAS TO take place. Dead people don't receive "spoils" do they...

Jesus used logic against the scoffers in Mt22:31-32 that if God is the "God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob?" and He reasons with them "God is not the God of the dead, but of the living." Thus, there is a resurrection for Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Some specific O.T. passages about Jesus, and N.T. references to them can be found in Ps16:10, 49:9, acts 2:31,13:35 "..for You will not leave My soul in hell; You will not allow Your Holy One to see corruption [decay physically]." If His body was to not decay, that indicates a resurrection, doesn't it.

PLus, there is a picture of His rising on the first day of the week in an annual Jewish custom of the firstfruits. "Christ the firstfruits" (1Cor15:23) The waving of the "sheaf before the LORD...on the next day after the sabbath the priest shall wave it." (Lev23:11) And also notice that, while everything else of bread in the O.T. was "unleavened", the firstfruits was "WITH leaven" (vs17)...another picture of His "rising."

Not to mention the O.T. pictures of "the third day." The sacrifices, being a type of Christ's sacrifice in dying on the cross, and being dead for three days. The meat of the sacrifice was not to be kept around (nor eaten) beyond three days. ( Lev7:17-18,19:6-7)

And finally, one that couldn't be any clearer. "And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." (Dan12:2) And Job confidently proclaims, "I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall rise on the earth at the last; and even after they corrupt my skin, yet this: in my flesh I shall see God." (Job19:25-26)

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