Catholicism
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How to properly respect Mary
Do Catholics worship Mary? Catholic theology makes an important distinction between the worship owed to God and the veneration given to Mary and the saints. That distinction deserves to be represented fairly. But definitions are only part of the question. We also need to examine what Catholic prayers, popes, saints, and official teaching actually say.…
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Did Mary remain a virgin?
Christians agree that Mary was a virgin when Jesus was conceived. But did she remain a virgin for the rest of her life? Catholic and Orthodox traditions say yes. Yet the New Testament repeatedly mentions Jesus’ brothers and sisters, says Joseph did not know Mary “till” Jesus was born, and describes Jesus as Mary’s firstborn…
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Was Mary really sinless? Why did she need a Savior?
Did Mary ever sin? And if she was completely sinless, why did she rejoice in “God my Savior”? The Catholic doctrine of the Immaculate Conception teaches that Mary was preserved from original sin from the first moment of her conception and remained free from personal sin throughout her life. Catholics have thoughtful explanations for how…
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Was Mary the “Mother of God”?
Is Mary the “Mother of God”? Christians have debated that language for centuries, but the controversy was originally about much more than Mary. It was about the identity of Jesus Christ. In this study, we’ll examine what Scripture actually calls Mary, why early Christians used the Greek title Theotokos, what happened in the controversy surrounding…
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Did Rome actually change the Sabbath? (No!)
There are claims that the Roman Empire, and later the Roman Catholic Church, changed the Sabbath from Saturday to Sunday. Is this true? What do the Scriptures say?
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Reclaiming Biblical Words: “Saint”
When I say, “Charles is a saint,” what comes to mind? To one person, “Charles is a saint” may simply mean Charles is extraordinarily kind. To another, that may mean Charles died as a devout Roman Catholic at least five years ago and has been accepted by a special Vatican tribunal to be venerated in…