This is a fascinating question. And it goes to the heart of religion. Religious people tend to put what a casual observer might call “an oversized meaning to a minor detail.” For instance, among Christians, there might be some debate over just how important is the Virgin Birth within the context of the whole of […]
Tag Archives: #QuestionForAPriest
Christ said: I am with you always, to the end of the age.” What is Jesus saying to them; is the end of age your death?
Hmmm. Is the end of age your death? I suppose that one way to look at it is that your death is the end of your ageing. Once you die you won’t get any older. But that is just humor. And bad humor at that. So let’s start here; what is the end of the […]
Christ said to the Apostles “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth.”
Is Christ saying that the Spirit of truth is our helper? I am not comfortable thinking of the Spirit of God as my helper. That sounds like God is subservient to me and that makes me start to listen for thunder and to watch for lightning. Is God my helper, or am I His servant? […]
The verse in this week’s gospel says: “And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed. John 17.” What is Jesus talking about; “with the glory that I had before the world existed?”
What a great question. If Jesus died and rose again from the dead, which he did, then where is he now? The first question to ask is where was Jesus before he became the baby Jesus? We know where he was for 33 years, right here on earth. On Good Friday after he died and […]
Do you believe that the devil is real?
We recently talked about the three sources of temptation; the world, the flesh and the devil. Having talked to a great many people about their experience with sin, I can say that people generally can see and comprehend how the world and the flesh have an effect on human sin. It seems that what they […]
Does the bible tell us what heaven will be like?
Many people would say that the bible does tell us what heaven is like. In the book of Revelation there is a description of heaven including its walls and gates and streets and other aspects of its appearance. Those who take every portion of the bible as literal and infallible will be happy to describe […]
Is there a formula on how we should tithe? What happens if you cannot?
Here’s the fuller picture; Biblically, a tithe is the first tenth of one’s increase, set apart for God. For us in the modern world, that’s 10% before taxes. In the Old Testament, Israel gave tithes to support the Levites, the temple, and the poor. That’s 30% on top of what the civil government required. In the New […]
I heard someone once said to beware of that which is acceptable to the world. What are some of the practices God is asking us to separate from?
From the beginning of the Scriptures, God commanded His people to separate themselves from the other people of the world. They were to look different, act different, hold different opinions and to behave differently. They were to treat people differently, they were to have a different diet, they were to not intermarry with the others […]
What do you think God expects from me in my life?
What a question! To make any kind of answer would involve cutting out some of what anyone would see as an essential of the faith. I am not the best person to try such a task. But I will try anyway. Please know that many very gifted writers have tackled this topic. Since we have […]
If God killed His only son how does that say He loves us?
A strange question, but I think that I understand why it is asked. Do you remember Abraham? The Patriarch who was told by God to leave his home and go to live in a distant land. He was then told to take his son Isaac, the greatest gift he had ever received, and sacrifice him […]