Today's Saint 17/10/07

St. Ignatius of Antioch (d. 107?)

Born in Syria, Ignatius converted to Christianity and eventually became bishop of Antioch. In the year 107, Emperor Trajan visited Antioch and forced the Christians there to choose between death and apostasy. Ignatius would not deny Christ and thus was condemned to be put to death in Rome.

Ignatius is well known for the seven letters he wrote on the long journey from Antioch to Rome. Five of these letters are to Churches in Asia Minor; they urge the Christians there to remain faithful to God and to obey their superiors. He warns them against heretical doctrines, providing them with the solid truths of the Christian faith.

The sixth letter was to Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, who was later martyred for the faith. The final letter begs the Christians in Rome not to try to stop his martyrdom. "The only thing I ask of you is to allow me to offer the libation of my blood to God. I am the wheat of the Lord; may I be ground by the teeth of the beasts to become the immaculate bread of Christ."

Ignatius bravely met the lions in the Circus Maximus.

Quote

"I greet you from Smyrna together with the Churches of God present here with me. They comfort me in every way, both in body and in soul. My chains, which I carry about on me for Jesus Christ, begging that I may happily make my way to God, exhort you: persevere in your concord and in your community prayers" (Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Church at Tralles).

"Lord Jesus, touch everyone with your gospel! Surpass our expectations of how you can work. Turn even the most desperate situations upside down with your grace and mercy!" AMEN

He who is devout to the Virgin Mother will certainly never be lost. ST. IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH.

The little i read of Ignatius, he could not have been a catholic!

Hello my fellow Catholic brethren,

I want to tell you to be very careful.
My instinct tells me that B.rent and Lawyer and many more others who may claim that Pilgrim.1 and Cgift post in this thread have made them to change their view about catholics should be watched. (It's very hard to convert Catholics to any protestant church)

I think they are all fakes, they are working hand in hand with pilgrim.1 and cgift.

oby, exactly my thoughts and come, on it is so obvious you pple pls give us some credit.

anyhow, thanks to you all once again for everything so far gozizi, pamperme,oby and everyone else.

please continue to pray your rosaries and other prayers.

The Virgin most Powerful is my Mother.

Today's Saint 18/10/07

St. Luke 

Luke wrote one of the major portions of the New Testament, a two-volume work comprising the third Gospel and the Acts of the Apostles. In the two books he shows the parallel between the life of Christ and that of the Church. He is the only Gentile Christian among the Gospel writers. Tradition holds him to be a native of Antioch, and Paul calls him "our beloved physician" (Colossians 4:14). His Gospel was probably written between A.D. 70 and 85.

Luke appears in Acts during Paul’s second journey, remains at Philippi for several years until Paul returns from his third journey, accompanies Paul to Jerusalem and remains near him when he is imprisoned in Caesarea. During these two years, Luke had time to seek information and interview persons who had known Jesus. He accompanied Paul on the dangerous journey to Rome where he was a faithful companion. "Only Luke is with me," Paul writes (2 Timothy 4:11).

When Jesus sent his disciples out to proclaim the gospel, he told them to announce to the people that "The kingdom of God has come near to you".(Luke 10:9). This was the watchword of Luke's life. He came to understand the meaning of this exhortation and responded to it.

Unlike most of the early disciples, Luke was a Gentile. Well educated, a painter and a physician. He had carved out a comfortable niche for himself in the world and would, by its standards, have been considered successful. Luke came to understand how perishable all this was in relation to the kingdom of God. He gave up his worldly pursuits adn dedicated his whole life to the work God has planned for him.

Quote

"Then [Jesus] led them [out] as far as Bethany, raised his hands, and blessed them. As he blessed them he parted from them and was taken up to heaven. They did him homage and then returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and they were continually in the temple praising God" (Luke 24:50-53).

Let us ask the Holy Spirit to give the same clear thinking which characterized Luke as he regarded the perishable nature of worldly fame to imperishable crown that awaits those who desire to serve God and build his kingdom.

"Blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord". LUKE 1:45

LUKE

The writer of the Gospel named 'Luke' in the NT gives us some particularly interesting features about the life and ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. In his account, he lists the genealogy of Christ from Joseph's lineage; as well as records some perculiar distinctives of the birth of Christ. It is from the Gospel of Luke that the Roman Catholic Church supposes that Mary should be venerated in view of the angel Gabriel's greeting to her: 'Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women' (Luke 1:28). From that salutation, Mary has become an icon of worship in the RCC, even though that was not Luke's intention in recording the inspired Gospel account that is attributed to his authorship.

Did LUKE teach that MARY was sinless?

Contrary to the RCC doctrine that Mary was sinless and untainted in any way by sin, LUKE categorically demonstrates that she indeed knew in herself that she shared the common lot of sinful humanity. In the first place, she declares: "And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour" (Luke 1:47); and the angel announces the saviour to be "Christ the Lord" (ch. 2:11).

Secondly, in respect of Mary's experience, Luke also tells that "the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished" (Luke 2:22). The relevant text in the OT to which this law applies is Leviticus 12 (please read the whole short chapter). The clear instructions in verses 2 and 4 are unmistakable:

"Speak unto the children of Israel, saying,
If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child:
then she shall be unclean seven days;
according to the days of the separation for her infirmity
shall she be unclean."

"And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying
three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing,
nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying
be fulfilled."

Of course, the Roman Catholic Church pays no attention to Scripture, else they would no doubt have acknowledged indeed that Mary, according to the law of Moses, was "unclean seven days" (Lev. 12:2) and also had to continue in "her purifying three and thirty days" (vs. 4).

Luke's Gospel also tells us that Mary went to Jerusalem "to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons" (Luke 2:22, 24). This clearly tessellates with Leviticus 12:6-8 - -

[list]⁶And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon[b], or [b]a turtledove, for a sin offering, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest: ⁷Who shall offer it before the LORD, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female. ⁸And if she be not able to bring a lamb, then she shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons; the one for the burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering: and the priest shall make an atonement for her, and she shall be clean.[/list]

Inspite of all these clear instructions in God's holy WORD, the RCC yet claims that Mary was without sin, and was untainted by sin in any way. Even so, ask a Catholic why Mary had to go to Jerusalem to offer the turtledoves or young pigeons, and you're most likely to find them tongue-in-cheek.

Mary in LUKE's Gospel

We have seen that the RCC veneration of Mary is unfounded, cannot be defended in Scripture, and is perculiarly the distinguishing mark of Rome's Mariolatry. The question still remains:

WHY has the Roman Catholic Church taken the divine titles of God and ascribed them to MARY?

Catholic lay-readers often get upset (some simply swallow their pride and tersely offer weak cliches) when they are presented with such questions. However, inspite of the RCC's veneration of Mary on false premises from Luke's Gospel, they recognize that the "Glory of Israel" in Luke 2:32 is a divine title for the Lord Jesus Christ; yet they have taken that title and ascribed it to Mary instead.  Through the years of the development of Romish doctrines, the vatican has accepted just about anything that detracts from Christ and focuses on Mary instead. That is why we find men like Ignatius who is reported to have said:

"He who is devout to the Virgin Mother will certainly never be lost."

That is one of the appealing sanctums where the RCC asks unsuspecting seekers to rest the destinies of their souls. Reading Ignatius works in itself demonstrates that the gentleman was spiritually confused in many respects.

More than that, we find in the Benediction known as "The Divine Praises" that both Mary and Joseph are praised in exactly the same rank as such praises are offered to the Trinity. Doubtful? Well, it's true, and anyone can settle their doubts by picking up a copy of the Divine Praises (samples [url=http://www.cwo.com/~pentrack/catholic/divpraises.html]available[/url] online) and see for themselves:

[list]
Blessed be God.
Blessed be His Holy Name.
Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true Man.
Blessed be the Name of Jesus.
Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart.
Blessed be His Most Precious Blood.
Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.
Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most Holy.
Blessed be her Holy and Immaculate Conception.
Blessed be her Glorious Assumption.
Blessed be the Name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.
Blessed be St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse.
Blessed be God in His Angels and in His Saints.[/list]

Okay, now gather them in a summary and notice how the highlights above stand out in RCC's placement of Mary and Joseph on the same pedestal in praise as rendered to God:

Blessed be God
Blessed be Jesus Christ
Blessed be the Holy Spirit
Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary
Blessed be Saint Joseph

In other words, one is forced to ask Catholics if the "Divine" Praises are meant for the Trinity; or the RCC has added other members to obliterate the concept of the Trinity and instead inched closer towards the contents of the THIRD SECRET of FATIMAH suspected to deify MARY?!? Just in the same way as Catholics chant "Blessed be His Holy Name" so they also place Mary on the same level and chant as well "Blessed be the Name of Mary".

Is it any wonder then that the only religious institution in Christendom to have tried tampering with the 1st and 3rd commandments (to have no other gods; and to reverence God's Name) is the Roman Catholic Church? The Vatican does not rest content with preserving God's Name in holiness; but in order to preserve and propagate her heresy of Mariolatry, this system of 'Vatican magic' has placed Mary alongside God Himself!

Do you ever wonder that staunch Catholics feel no qualms when the see the Name of the Lord jesus Christ lampooned? Have you ever wondered why the same Catholics growl when anyone says anything about MARY?  Now you are coming close to seeing real Catholicism - it is all a matter of MARIOLATRY and not Biblical Christianity.

I pray that Catholics who read these matters carefully ponder them and ask God to open their eyes before it is too late.

[center]Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.
1 John 5:21[/center]

pilgrim.1:

Blessed be God.
Blessed be His Holy Name.
Blessed be Jesus Christ, true God and true Man.
Blessed be the Name of Jesus.
Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart.
Blessed be His Most Precious Blood.
Blessed be Jesus in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.
Blessed be the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete.
Blessed be the great Mother of God, Mary most Holy.
Blessed be her Holy and Immaculate Conception.
Blessed be her Glorious Assumption.
Blessed be the Name of Mary, Virgin and Mother.
Blessed be St. Joseph, her most chaste spouse.
Blessed be God in His Angels and in His Saints.[/list]

Amen!!!!!

Loving God, Divine Oneness, open my heart, mind and being to the unity of all life. Help me to see and hear your Word in myself, my neighbor, in all my relationships and all of creation. Let the Word open in me like a lotus so that the Christ consciousness may find expression through me.

from Wake Up to God’s Word: Exercises for Spiritual Transformation

viee:

Amen!!!!!

So, which is which? Are MARY and JOSEPH now part of the TRINITY in what your RCC calls the DIVINE Praises?!? Do you have a clue as to the meaning of words before you posts your agreement to open idolatry?

I'm really sorry for you, because you really have no clues what you've signed your soul unto. Please come back and post another no-brainer in confirmation that you have made MARY your GOD!

viee:

Let the Word open in me like a lotus so that the Christ consciousness may find expression through me.

Uhm-hmm. . . na small-small una go take style dey confirm that the RCC is a stronghold of every wind of doctrine.

Dear viee, there's nothing like "the Christ consciousness" in Biblical Christianity. If anything at all, that is one of the dubious slogans of the NEW AGE movement! May God open your eyes to see things clearly before you sign your soul to just about anything and wake up too late that you can't worship God and mammon! Don't mix them up - is that too hard for you to heed?

To love and obey God is easy - if you are willing.

Carlosein:

oby, exactly my thoughts and come, on it is so obvious you people please give us some credit.

Some CREDIT!! Even when both lawyer and b.rent have made themselves clear, you still can't think straight. Well done - and more credit on that!

[center]Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.
1 John 5:21[/center]

Oh Mary, Queen of Heaven, thank you for giving us Jesus-the light of the world. Amen.

It may seem so harmless to bow down to images, yet it provides a perfect opportunity for idolatory. I see Catholics who carry scapular and chaplets for protection.

It is natural for todays Catholics to defend the practices, yet it will do them some good to check church history to discover that most of these things crept in during the dark ages. My advice is that every doctrine introduced during the dark ages must be examined incase they are "dark" doctrines. Did Peter wear scapular? Paul would had encouraged the Ephesians to say their rosary.


The danger of doctrines like the "infallability of the Pope" is that even when the Popes teaches error, it is accpeted without any question. Yet, we saw in Galatians 2 that Paul withstood Peter when he entered into error.

True worship is in the spirit for God is a Spirit. Those who have had an enocunter with the Lord do not images to remind them of Him.

Concerning the honouring of the Mother of Christ, Catholics must know the difference between honour and worship.

Hymns like "O Come to the Thrown of Grace" is not just honour but worship.

O COME TO THE THRONE OF GRACE (Where is the throne of Grace?)
O come to the throne of grace!
O come to the heart most pure! (I thought God Himself is the Most Pure?)
To Mary, our hope of life, (I thouhgt that our hope is in the Lord?)
In whom salvation is sure. (I thought that the Lord is our salvation?)

O Queen of the Rosary , hail!
Immaculate Mother of grace! (Is this not equal to the the Father of Grace?)
O pray for us, help us today, (but is it not Jesus who is interceding for us)
Thou hope for the human race. (this one bits me, hope of human race?)

Immaculate Heart, we kneel
To consecrate all to thee, (Now this is the ultimate worship)
The present, its pain and joy,
The future, all it may be.

The Rosary, white and gold,
We take from thy virgin hand;
A pledge of the power of God, (I thought the Power is to come from the Holy Spirit as pledged by the Lord Jesus)
To heal and strengthen our land. (I thought we are healed by His stripes)

O Mother of Sorrows, hail!
We mourn for our evil done
O soften our selfish hearts (No!, that is the work of the Holy Spirit)
And lead us back to thy Son. (No!, the Son leads us to the Father)

"For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time", (1 Timothy 2:5-6 NKJV)

Repent and believe the gospel.

“Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. Whoever welcomes a prophet in the name of a prophet will receive a prophet's reward; and whoever welcomes a righteous person in the name of a righteous person will receive the reward of the righteous; and whoever gives even a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple—truly I tell you, none of these will lose their reward.”

Glory be to Jesus, Honour to Mary (twice)

Heavenly race i no go tire (thrice)
I no go tire

Amen - Matthew 10:40-42.

Read more of His WORD - it will bring you round as to WHY Mariolatry is contrary to what the Lord Jesus Christ taught.

Joy! Joy!! Joy!!! Joy!!!!
Heaven is full of Joy

oby how now

cool like that

and i hope u r too, where is Ebos?

Is your parish in Lagos?

pilgrim.1:

Uhm-hmm. . . na small-small una go take style dey confirm that the RCC is a stronghold of every wind of doctrine.

Dear viee, there's nothing like "the Christ consciousness" in Biblical Christianity. If anything at all, that is one of the dubious slogans of the NEW AGE movement! May God open your eyes to see things clearly before you sign your soul to just about anything and wake up too late that you can't worship God and mammon! Don't mix them up - is that too hard for you to heed?

To love and obey God is easy - if you are willing.

Pilgrim, i have actually said i wont say a thing to you
but i have to say you really make me LAUGH
i give you that!

"the Christ consciousness" ?
try using your dictonary sometimes, it could help.
your arguments here baffles me in all honesty

don't know of his whereabouts.

see what all this pple are saying, amazing how they think we are so gullible don't you think?


my parishes are in lagos.

viee, i say "ignorance them now"

my dear i tire o.
I no come your church, na by force?

na all the whole parishes you dey go at the same time?

Viee, keep your cool, The Lord know his own. ("I know my sheep and my sheep knows me"

gozizi how far

Carlosein:


viee, i say "ignorance them now"

good point. . . . . noted.

Oby1:

my dear i tire o.
I no come your church, na by force?

help me beg o!

Oby1:


Viee, keep your cool, The Lord know his own. ("I know my sheep and my sheep knows me"

very kool



anywayz,

back to beta topic. . . . .
how una dey sef?
the October devotion is gradually coming to an end
i pray we all get our heart desires
and continue to watch and PRAY

Brethren can we all meditate on this verse tonight before going to bed;

I cor 13: 6