This article is a reply to WorldlyWiseMan who questions the use of the terms ‘Covenant of Redemption’ and ‘Covenant of Grace’ as not being Biblical terms. Our reply is that the term ‘Trinity’ is not used in the Bible, but it is a descriptive term that encompasses what the Bible teaches about the nature of the living God revealed in 3 persons.

The NT gives many precious promises. Among these are some that give us a glimpse of the eternal plan of the Creator before time began. The modern Christian apologetics against naturalism is usually based on a reading of the first chapters of Genesis as if they meant what they say. We agree with this testimony. What we advocate here is that Biblical Theology is another approach to expose the nonsense of naturalism and to encourage the people of God.

These promises may be viewed as a covenant between the Godhead that is called the Covenant of Redemption, where the Persons of the Trinity agree on a plan to accomplish the salvation of a multitude of people from the fallen race of men. The Father elects a people according to the election of grace according to His good pleasure. The Son agrees to become the sacrificial Lamb to redeem the ones given to Him by His father.

The role of the Spirit is to apply the work of Christ to the elect through the preaching of the gospel. The application of redemption in space and time is called the Covenant of Grace, whereby the people of God are brought to faith and repentance.

"Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world." [John 17:24]

‘Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.’ [Ephesians 1:3-6]

‘And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.’ [I Peter 1:17-21]

‘All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.’ [Revelation 13:8]

‘Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began, but has now been revealed by the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who has abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel…’ [2 Timothy 1:8-10]

‘Paul, a bondservant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ, according to the faith of God’s elect and the acknowledgment of the truth which accords with godliness, in hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began, but has in due time manifested His word through preaching, which was committed to me according to the commandment of God our Savior…’ [Titus 1:1-3]

Is a global and life threatening catastrophe possible in the Biblical framework of history?

After the Genesis Flood, God made a promise to Noah saying, ‘The waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh.’ [Genesis 9:8-17]

The prophet Jeremiah links the constancy of the earth’s functions necessary to maintain physical life with the permanence of the Covenant of Grace; the promise that God will have a people in every generation to worship Him in spirit and truth...

Thus says the LORD: ‘If you can break My covenant with the day and My covenant with the night, so that there will not be day and night in their season, then My covenant may also be broken with David My servant, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and with the Levites, the priests, My ministers. As the host of heaven cannot be numbered, nor the sand of the sea measured, so will I multiply the descendants of David My servant and the Levites who minister to Me.’ [Jeremiah 33:19-22]

Calvin comments on this passage and addresses the complaint of the Jewish church from God’s perspective…

‘It is as though you sought to pull down the sun and the moon from the heavens, and to subvert the difference between day and night, and to upset the whole order of nature; for I am the same God, who has settled the succession of day and night, and has promised that the Church shall continue for ever: you can, therefore, no more abolish my covenant with David than the general law of nature.’ [Calvin on Jeremiah]

Peter says that the earth is ‘reserved for fire until the day of judgment.’ [2 Peter 3] Would to God that men were as concerned with the reality of this catastrophic event as they seem to be about global warming.

If we define paradox as an apparently contradictory assertion opposed to common sense, yet nevertheless true, then how are the following examples to be answered?

The claim that repentance and faith are gifts of grace and the claim that they are universal duties are not mutually exclusive. The Bible teaches both. At Mars Hill Paul said, ‘God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent’ [Acts 17:30]. Repentance is clearly a duty required. But it is also the gift of God. As Peter says, ‘He is the one whom God exalted to His right hand as a Prince and a Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins’ [Acts 5:31 & 11:18].

It is also the duty of people to believe the Gospel. Paul and Silas commanded the Philippian jailor, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ’ [Acts 16:31 & Matthew 11:28]. But faith is also the gift of God. As Paul says, ‘For to you it has been granted for Christ's sake, not only to believe in Him, but also to suffer for His sake. [Philippians 1:29].

‘The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lamp stands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches.’ [Revelation 1:20]

In the book of Revelation chapters 2 and 3 we have seven different letters written to the seven churches in Asia. What is unique about these epistles is that they are given by Jesus Christ directly to the churches. The picture we have in chapter 1 is of our glorified Lord in the midst of the lampstands. The seven stars or angels are said to be in His right hand.

Christ is identified as the ‘ruler of the kings of the earth’; the One with all authority in heaven and earth. This book is the revelation of His plan to rule the nations for the good of His church. In that respect it is a divine philosophy of history. The book describes principles of human conduct and divine moral government that are always operative.

This plan pertains to things that must shortly come to pass. They begin to happen at once. ‘The time is at hand.’ Revelation 1:3 should end the debate over futuristic views of this book.

The covenant of redemption has been accomplished in the life, death and resurrection of Christ. The covenant of grace is being applied until all the elect are gathered into the kingdom. It is Christ who has ‘released’ us from our bondage in sin. He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father. [Revelation 1:5-6] This designation was formerly applied to Israel [Exodus 19:6], but is now applicable to believers collectively in the Church.

The churches are called lampstands; that is light-bearers. The same word is use by Christ in the Sermon on the Mount. ‘You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.’ [Matthew 5:14-16]

In the tabernacle there was one lampstand with seven lamps; here in Revelation there are seven lampstands. This symbolism illustrates the new order in the kingdom of God. In the Old Covenant there was a visible unity in the Jewish church-state. The New Covenant churches find their spiritual unity in Christ who is present and active among them through His word and Spirit. [Hendricksen, More than Conquerors]

Who are these angels or stars? All seven letters are introduced with the words; ‘To the angel of the church in [name] write:’ where name is one of the churches; Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia or Laodicea. The letters are addressed to the ‘angel of the church.’ Faithful teachers are stars that shall shine forever [Daniel 12:3], and false teachers are wandering stars [Jude 13].

If we take angels in the sense of pastors and ministers of the word, then the church government in Revelation is consistent with the church government given in the rest of the New Testament. Paul instructs Titus to appoint elders in every city; that is, in every church. [Titus 1:5] The qualifications for the office of elder is given to the churches in Titus 1 and I Timothy 3 so that they can recognize qualified men for the eldership. These are independent churches each under the control of Christ through the ministry of His word.

The Christian Church is one, but it is also many; at once the ‘Church’ and the ‘Churches.’ These may be quite independent of one another, the only bond of union with one another which they absolutely require being that of common dependence on the same Head, and derivation of life from the same Spirit; and are fitly represented by seven, the number of mystical completeness. [Trench, Commentary on the Epistles to the Seven Churches in Asia]

Most folk are ashamed of their sin. Even the unrepentant try to conceal their sin having some sense of shame. So why do sodomites glory in their shame? They pride themselves in that which is shameful.

In Ephesians 5 the marriage relationship is compared to the relationship between Christ and His church. Husbands ought to love their wives just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her. No one ever hated his own body, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ also does the church.

When men suppress the knowledge of God as in the doctrines of naturalism, the Bible says in Romans 1 that the wrath of God is revealed against them. They are given over to their lusts for impurity, sexual immorality and sexual perversion. Why is wrath expressed as giving men over to sexual sin?

God is not mocked. When men suppress the truth of His revelation in Christ, God removes the restraining influences over them. His Law loses its influence, the gospel is perverted and men become their own law.

Since the marriage relationship is associated with Christ and His church, divine justice allows improper expressions of sexuality to characterize those who are ‘given over’ because ‘they did not like to retain God in their knowledge.’

In Romans 1:32 we read the prophetic words that have been fulfilled in our culture in the current generation…’Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.’

The acceptance and approval of men of things which bring the wrath of God is what allows them to glory in their shame.

"We need to stop endlessly repeating, You're special,' and having children repeat that back…Kids are self-centered enough already."

Children are born barbarians; that is, hyper-self interest is what motivates them above all else. Among the first words they learn is ‘mine’. Taking rather than giving comes naturally. They are quick to assume ownership, but must be taught to share.

Telling them they are special must be qualified with the whole truth. In the public school system the message is unqualified and given with a conflicting world view. They may be barbarians, but they are not stupid. They don’t know what a world view is but they do know that what they hear is inconsistent with the words, ‘You are special.’

The prevalent philosophy reduces them to just another animal from the tree of common descent. What makes them special? The implied message that cannot be hidden is that we are without design and therefore without purpose. The mixed message leads to confusion and ends with despair and hopelessness and their fruits.

‘To argue it's more important to have a strong leader in the war on terror than one who will stand up for traditional values is to present a false choice. There are a number of capable, credible and electable candidates out there who are "right" across the spectrum.’ –David Limbaugh

Can imperfect men stand up for traditional values?

Traditional values do not originate from men nor do they depend on the governments of men. They originate from the Infinite and Personal I AM of the Bible; the same Bible that informs us that men bear His image.

God brings blessing and causes calamity. He is not the creator of evil as the mockers like to claim. The world is broken due to man’s sin. Though the image is marred due to our own sin, every conscience bearing witness to the moral Law testifies that we are image bearers. This is the basis of God’s judgment in that what we condemn in others we commit the same agreeing with God that His Law is just and that we are all guilty without excuse.

What is more conservative than agreeing with the moral Law that life and marriage are sacred and should be held as sacred in the institutions of men?

What is more destructive than to disregard revealed truth and to advocate for what is against conscience?

What is more deceptive than to debate these things as the rights of men when the Law of the creator of men is counted as nothing?

The wisdom of this age; that is the wisdom of men has proven to come to nothing. Men now say that truth cannot be known, and they are right. Doesn’t truth require that it be true in every place and at every time? Then how does the finite know truth? Finite man starting with himself will never arrive at truth, and he has finally admitted it.

But rather than return to our Reformation roots where men shared a consensus of truth based on an open Bible, our culture pursues its destruction by pursuing the foolishness of men rather than the wisdom of God.

Truth must be revealed by the creator of space and time. I AM has revealed truth to His image bearers. This is the truth before time began. Unlike the wisdom of men that leads to destruction, the wisdom of God results in man’s glory through the everlasting gospel of Jesus Christ.

In the grace of God imperfect men can stand for traditional values. Our Founders stood for morality and law based on revelation, and they advanced the cause of liberty. Today the social liberals promote lawlessness over morality. Declaring freedom from the oppression of the Law they ignore its purpose and leave men unconstrained in their sin. Through the Law comes the knowledge of sin and apart from Law there is no sin. Therefore, freedom will abound, at least in the mind of the social liberal. Conservatives call it the path to tyranny.

The familiar words of Romans 8:1 speak peace to a multiple that no man can number from every kindred, tribe, nation and tongue. These are the spiritual seed of Abraham joined to Christ by faith…

‘There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.’

The message of the gospel is that grace has come in Christ Jesus. The harsh penalties imposed on OT Israel are done away with in the coming of the New Covenant. The Christian is well aware of his own sin and the cost of redemption. He is overwhelmed with the mercy of God shown to him in the gospel. He agrees with Christ in His treatment of the woman caught in adultery.

The Mosaic Law is without mercy for those who transgress. But rather than observing a strict adherence to the judicial law, Christ caused those who would condemn the woman to consider their own sin…’He who is without sin cast the first stone.’

In the gospel mercy is the friend of repentance; forgiveness more powerful than condemnation. Even apart from repentance the Christian understands tolerance because the grace of God has come near to him. God demonstrated His love toward us in that while we were dead in sin Christ died for us. We call all men to repentance, but how shall we condemn anyone for whom Christ has died?

Everybody knows what hate crime legislation is about. It is not to protect sodomites from the Christians. It is to suppress the gospel message of repentance toward God and faith in Christ Jesus for all manner of sin, including sodomy.

There is but one question necessary: If Christ is not risen, then why be a Christian? If He is risen then His word is truth and calls for our allegiance, since it is through His word and Spirit that He rules His people.

In I Corinthians 15 the apostle tells us that if we have hoped in Christ in this life only, then we are of all men most to be pitied. If the dead are not raised then Christ is not risen; if He does not have power over sin and death, then our faith is vain; let us eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die.

Even though the Bible declares that the things of this world are passing away, the men of this world continue to mock the crucified Savior of men, and those who believe on Him are considered foolish. Men continue to think that the tiny sliver of time that they draw breath is the only reality. The things that are seen are temporal, but the things that are unseen are eternal. Compared to eternity this life is but a vapor, here today and gone tomorrow. The reality is the spiritual kingdom of God where Christ reigns seated at the right hand of God [Colossians 3:1] with all authority in heaven and earth given to Him at His resurrection [Matthew 28:18] and His coronation ceremony in heaven [Revelation 5].

The problem of unbelief is not in the evidence but in the nature of men. Christ said that though a man rise from the dead, they will not believe. Some say that Christ is not risen; that His tomb is not empty; that His word cannot be trusted. They underestimate the great power exercised by God when each believer enters the kingdom. The apostle compares regeneration of the believer to the resurrection of Christ [Ephesians 1:18-20].

The righteous shall live by faith. We know that Christ is risen because He raised us and many others from spiritual death that we might know Him and testify of the riches of His grace. He rules the nations in the interest of His church according to His own will. Redemption from the bondage and guilt of sin and reconciliation with our Creator is the unseen reality. Eternal condemnation and judgment is the other reality. The focus of all history is the cross of Jesus Christ, because it is at the cross that God dealt with sin. God made good on the promise of grace through the acceptable sacrifice. He invites all who will to come to the wedding feast [Matthew 22:1-10].

What is the Church according to the New Testament?

The New Testament makes a distinction between the universal church defined as the body and bride of Christ and the visible church assembled as particular congregations. The Scriptures know nothing of any visible church identifying itself as the catholic or universal church. Any assembly of churches who does so whether Protestant or Catholic has set itself in opposition to the apostolic testimony given in the New Testament.

Just as there is one body of Christ, not many, there is one faith; that is, one body of truth to testify that Jesus is the Christ. [John 20:30-31]

‘There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.’ [Ephesians 4:4-5]

According to Jude this faith was once for all delivered to the church. ‘To those who are called, sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ...’

‘Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints. For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ. [Jude 3-4]

He warns the church that the truth of the gospel will be challenged by corrupt men. His exhortation is for the church to defend the body of faith because it is the truth delivered to the church by the Spirit of God. ‘All Scripture is God breathed…’ [II Timothy 3:16]

The Universal Church of Christ

The catholic or universal church may be called invisible being likened to the spouse and body of Jesus Christ. It consists of the whole number of the elect, who have been, are, or shall be gathered into one, under Christ, the head of His church. [Adapted from early Protestant Confessions of Faith ‘Of the Church’ paragraph 1]

There is one Church of Christ made up of those believers from every generation regenerated by the Spirit and raised up with Christ on hearing the word of God in faith. These are the body and spouse of Christ and the Scripture knows no others. This is the general assembly referred to in Hebrews 12…

‘But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel.’ [Hebrews 12:22-24]

Mount Zion in the New Testament is associated with the heavenly Jerusalem. In Rev 21:2 the New Jerusalem is compared to a bride made ready for her bridegroom. This is similar language used to describe Christ and His church in Ephesians 5:26-27…

‘Christ might present her [His bride] to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.’

The Scripture leaves no doubt as to the identity of the head of the church. It is no other than the founder and redeemer of the church…

‘Christ is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence. [Colossians 1:18]

Neither can the Pope of Rome in any sense be head thereof. The Scripture gives strong warning against anyone who exalts himself in the church opposed to the doctrine of Christ. [II Thessalonians 2:4]

Next Post: What does the Scripture have to say about the church visible in the world?

Thoughts on Mr. Pastore’s TH article…

http://www.townhall.com/columnists/FrankPastore/2007/07/22/why_al_qaeda_supports_the_emergent_church

The prophet Daniel reveals the dream of king Nebuchadnezzar…

‘…a stone was cut out without hands, which struck the image on its feet of iron and clay, and broke them in pieces. Then the iron, the clay, the bronze, the silver, and the gold were crushed together, and became like chaff from the summer threshing floors; the wind carried them away so that no trace of them was found. And the stone that struck the image became a great mountain and filled the whole earth…’ [Daniel 2:33-35]

Daniel reveals the purpose of the dream…

‘…there is a God in heaven who reveals secrets, and He has made known to King Nebuchadnezzar what will be in the latter days.’ [Daniel 2:28]

Daniel then reveals the meaning of the dream…

‘…in the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to other people; it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.’ [Daniel 2:44]

Daniel’s prophecy has been fulfilled in the coming of Christ and in the fall of the Gentile world kingdoms embodied in the Roman Empire. His prophecy is being fulfilled today in that the kingdom which God established is the sphere of His reign. God is sovereign over all things; His kingdom extends in every place and in every generation where His sovereignty is recognized and His word is honored and obeyed. The world continues until Christ’s enemies become His footstool; that is, until all men recognize His sovereign rule.

‘The purest churches under heaven are subject to mixture and error; and some have so degenerated as to become no churches of Christ, but synagogues of Satan; nevertheless Christ always hath had, and ever shall have a kingdom in this world, to the end thereof, of such as believe in him, and make profession of his name.’ [from the Protestant Confessions of Faith under church]

The Christianity of which Mr. Pastore speaks is the kind that gave rise to the overthrow of British tyranny. These men understood liberty and were confident in their Redeemer to risk all in the pursuit of liberty. The Christianity of today is but a watered down version of the original. False doctrine that limits God’s sovereignty to the will of men and postpones His kingdom and reign to a future age has taken the salt and light out of the visible church. We no longer influence the culture, but have retreated into a mode of defending what was once the consensus.

A return to Biblical Christianity, what the Reformers and those in the Great Awakening and the early Americans called evangelical Calvinism, is necessary to restore the legs and the backbone to the body of Christ. This Christianity is toward a practical outworking of the Lordship of Christ in every aspect of life. It is a world view with Christ as the focus. It views the Scriptures as authoritative and a complete and sufficient rule for faith and practice. It agrees with the apostolic testimony that ‘God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom [was] crucified’ [Acts 2:36].

For many the Church is synonymous with the Roman Catholic Church (RCC). Most TownHall articles related to the Christian religion are accompanied by a photo of the Pope, even articles written by Protestants.

Since we are centuries removed from the Protestant Reformation, the causes of the split with Rome are less of an issue today. There are even movements among some Protestants toward ‘reunification’ with Rome. Not that Rome has reformed, but that the Protestants have given up the distinctives that define Protestantism; that is the five solas…

http://www.ondoctrine.com/fivesola.htm

Christianity is disparaged many times by referencing the apostasy of the RCC. The Protestant church is not without its own share of apostasy. The question of ‘What is the Church?’ is surrounded by confusion.

The Pope’s recent declaration of the superiority of the RCC has prompted this response.

Let’s consider these questions. What is the church? Who is the head of the church? What is the proper government of the church?

Before we can hope to answer those questions, we must answer a more important question. How shall we answer these questions regarding the church?

Without apology we assert that the Scriptures are the only sure guide to truth in these matters. We appeal to the resurrected Christ as our authority…’The Scriptures cannot be broken; sanctify them in truth, Thy word is truth.’ [John 10:35 & John 17:17]

What saith the Scriptures?

‘The heart is deceitful above all things…who can know it?’ [Jeremiah 17:9] Shall we consider the traditions of men? Yes, but we know better than to hold them as authoritative…

For example, compare these Scriptures with RCC tradition regarding food and celibacy…

‘Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron, forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from foods which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing is to be refused if it is received with thanksgiving; for it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.’ [I Timothy 4]

Contrast this with the liberty we have in Christ…

‘If you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why, as though living in the world, do you subject yourselves to regulations— “Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle,” which all concern things which perish with the using—according to the commandments and doctrines of men? These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh.’ [Colossians 2:20]

The doctrine of a celibate clergy is an example of man made doctrine which gives the appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion but is of no value against the indulgence of the flesh. We make the general observation that by forsaking the legitimate means that God has provided for sexual expression, occasion is given for the propagation of gross sin and deceitfulness.

Next Post: How does the Scripture define the church?

Vatican says other Christian churches "wounded"

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20070710/wl_nm/pope_christians_dc

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - The Vatican said on Tuesday Christian denominations outside Roman Catholicism were not full churches of Jesus Christ.

Protestant leaders said this was offensive and would hurt inter-denominational dialogue.

[Why should they be offended? This is way better than being pronounced anathema.]

A 16-page document by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, which Pope Benedict once headed, described Christian Orthodox churches as true churches, but suffering from a "wound" since they do not recognize the primacy of Pope.

[The Reformation recognized that the head of the church is Jesus Christ and that His Word is the rule for faith and practice in the local church.]

But the document said the "wound is still more profound" in Protestant denominations.

"Despite the fact that this teaching has created no little distress ... it is nevertheless difficult to see how the title of 'Church' could possibly be attributed to them," it said.

[The Pope is right. Protestants are waiting for Catholics to repent of the traditions of men and return to Biblical Theology.]

The Vatican text, which restates the controversial document "Dominus Iesus" issued by the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in 2000, said the Church wanted to stress this point because some Catholic theologians continued to misunderstand it.

Ratzinger was elected Pope in April 2005. The document is his second strong reaffirmation of Catholic tradition in four days, following a decree on Saturday restoring the old Latin Mass alongside the modern liturgy.

[He is revealing himself as an enemy of the cross for rejecting those for whom Christ accepts. All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.]

The document said dialogue with other Christians remained "one of the priorities of the Catholic Church."

[Yes, they want to enslave us again to the bondage of a works based righteousness.]

But Bishop Wolfgang Huber, head of the Protestant umbrella group Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD), said the new Vatican document effectively downgraded Protestant churches and would make ecumenical relations more difficult.

[The Vatican has no authority over the Protestant churches. They see it as rebellion we see it as liberation from the apostasy of Rome.]

Huber said the new pronouncement repeated the "offensive statements" of the 2000 document and was a "missed opportunity" to patch up relations with Protestants.

"The hope for a change in the ecumenical situation has been pushed further away by the document published today," he said.

[Justification by faith alone in Christ alone is not a matter for compromise.]

A statement from The French Protestant Federation said that while the document was an internal pronouncement of the Catholic Church, it would have "external repercussions."

Bishop Friedrich Weber of Germany's United Evangelical Lutheran Church said the pronouncement "makes me sad," adding that the official Vatican teaching did not reflect the grass roots reality of inter-denominational dialogue in many communities.

SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL

The document, issued by Benedict's successor in doctrinal matters, Cardinal William Levada, aimed to correct what it called "erroneous or ambiguous" interpretations of the Second Vatican Council, which took place from 1962 to 1965.

Church modernizers interpreted the Council as a break from the past while conservatives, like Benedict, see it in continuity with 2,000 years of Catholic tradition.

The document said the Council's opening to other faiths recognized there were "many elements of sanctification and truth" in other Christian denominations, but stressed only Catholicism had all the elements to be Christ's Church fully.

The text refers to "ecclesial communities originating from the Reformation," a term used to refer to Protestants and Anglicans.

[Protestant churches are members of the New Covenant Church not the Roman Catholic Church.]

Father Augustine Di Noia, Under-Secretary for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, said the document did not alter the commitment for ecumenical dialogue, but aimed to assert Catholic identity in those talks.

"The Church is not backtracking on ecumenical commitment," Di Noia told Vatican radio.

[No, not as long as Protestants recant and bow to Rome.]

‘This brings me to the challenge that Hitchens has posed in various debates across the country, and which he put forward once again on my radio show. He offers a prize to anyone who can come up with an ethical declaration or behavior that a religious believer could urge or demonstrate that couldn’t equally win endorsement from an ethical atheist.’ –Michael Medved

This challenge is no more than admitting that men are image bearers of the personal God that made them. Though living in a fallen world cursed by the entrance of sin, men still retain their soul which testifies to the righteousness of the Law. This is true of all men without distinction, even the man without the Bible. Yes, the atheist may agree with the ethic of the golden rule, but he has no power to love the ethic, nor the power to live by it. For example, consider the words spoken against Dr. Falwell on the day of his death. Words reveal the condition of the heart.

How can men be freed from the enslaving power of their sin? Atheism has no answer. They do not even understand the question. Hitchens hangs his hat on naturalism, not realizing that it is nothing but another false religion with no hope of ever addressing the metaphysical questions. As Mr. Schaeffer might say, he has escaped from reason.

The naturalist has no bases for ethics. The consistent ones will admit they have no ethic except that there are no ethics. We can agree with Hitchens that his religion does poison everything, because its origin is from the father of lies that continues to deceive men and cause them to doubt and then deny the word of God.

NEW YORK: A panel of scientists convened by America's leading scientific advisory group says the hunt for extraterrestrial life should be greatly expanded to include what they call "weird life": organisms that lack DNA or other molecules found in life as we know it.

"The committee's investigation makes clear that life is possible in forms different from those on Earth," the scientists conclude in their report, "The Limits of Organic Life in Planetary Systems," published by the National Research Council.

[They are right. If macro-evolution is possible, then anything is possible.]

Other experts hailed the report as an important rethinking of the search for life. "It's going to help us a lot to make sure we go exploring with our eyes wide open," said Michael Meyer, lead scientist for NASA's Mars exploration program.

[They would spend any amount of taxpayer money to find some evidence to support their religion.]

Starfish, sequoias, salamanders and the rest of Earth's residents may seem very diverse, but they are surprisingly similar on the molecular scale. All species that scientists have studied need liquid water to survive, for example. Further, they all rely on DNA to carry genetic information, and they all use that information to build proteins from the same set of building blocks, known as amino acids.

[Rather than common descent, perhaps they had a common designer.]

NASA has long looked to life on Earth to guide its search for life on other worlds. Planets and moons that have hints of liquid water have been ranked high on the list of potential sites for life-detection missions.

[Perhaps the water came from earth.]

But there is good reason to suspect that other kinds of chemistry could support life as well, the authors of the new report argue. Weird life could differ from life as we know it in small or big ways.

[And what would be some of those good reasons?]

For example, while DNA uses phosphorus in its backbone, it might be possible to build a backbone out of arsenic instead. And life might exist in liquids other than water, perhaps ammonia or methane.

[Is that it? Are these the good reasons?]

The report, which is posted on the Web site of the National Academies, www.nationalacademies.org, even explores the possibility of life based on silicon, not carbon, though Meyer, who had no role in the work, thinks that astrobiologists should limit their search to carbon-based life forms.

[Why should there be any restrictions? They are speculating about random macro-evolution.]

"When we look in the universe," he said, "the only compounds we see with more than six atoms are all carbon chemistry. So there's a hint that looking for carbon chemistry may be a better bet. There we have some idea of what to look for."

[They haven’t a clue what they’re looking for.]

The report calls for NASA and the National Science Foundation both to support research into weird life. Chemists need to investigate "the chemical possibilities for what forms life might take," said one member of the committee, Steven Benner, a distinguished fellow at the Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution, in Gainesville, Florida.

Scientists should also search Earth for weird life, the authors maintain. "There's much about Earth life we don't understand," said the panel's chairman, John Baross of the University of Washington.

[Finally, some truth.]

Benner said there was "good evidence that the life we know on Earth was preceded by a weird form of life." Early Earth life may have been based on RNA, a single-stranded form of DNA. Although DNA-based life may have out-competed earlier forms on the surface of the planet, RNA life may still exist in refuges. One potential hiding place is deep below the ocean floor.

[More evolution ‘science’]

"It's an incredibly primordial world down there," Baross said.

"If you're going to look for remnants of an RNA world, those are the environments you want to go to."

To find weird life, however, scientists will have to build new kinds of detectors. "There's no question that the surveys of life on the planet we've done so far would have missed it," Benner said.

[Even more evolutionary ‘science’]

The scientists also said the possibility of weird life should prompt NASA to reorder its future missions. They singled out Saturn's moon Titan as particularly promising.

[Weird life means that life originated prior to DNA/RNA system. Since they cannot explain that system by naturalism, then it follows that weird life must exist. Welcome to weird science.]