tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4669958696229907702.post387713542600806353..comments2023-10-08T10:57:52.692-04:00Comments on Civics Geeks: Angels, continuedZachhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05397708268816821523noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4669958696229907702.post-78171078339775843682010-03-13T10:41:01.410-05:002010-03-13T10:41:01.410-05:00The word "literalist" sounds like a load...The word "literalist" sounds like a loaded term to me, so I would not say I am a "literalist". It could mean too many things, and I don't want to debate whether or not I fit into some category.<br /><br />I can say that I trust the historical accuracy and the witness of the Gospels to Divine Truth and things pertinent to Salvation. The Church does insist that we understand Holy Scripture as one of the three fundamental sources of Divinely Revealed Truth, and I think to spend time calling into question whether Jesus really said this or really said that bespeaks a basic distrust of God's Holy Word. <br /><br />And to reiterate what Catherine has already pointed out: The existence of angels is a dogma of the faith; it was defined at the 4th Lateran Council. They are not an optional addition to the faith, they are part and parcel of the faith. This is why I originally asked you the question, "why would you not believe in something that exists?"Zachhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05397708268816821523noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4669958696229907702.post-54327671119279974992010-03-12T00:25:22.832-05:002010-03-12T00:25:22.832-05:00Do you believe that Jesus said everything that the...Do you believe that Jesus said everything that the gospels say he said? Are you, in other words, a literalist?<br /><br />It's okay if you are. Just be aware that the church does not insist that we be literalists. <br /><br />I'm not aware of a church teaching that says Catholics MUST believe in angels.Michaelnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4669958696229907702.post-52124474643636978162010-03-11T20:17:50.843-05:002010-03-11T20:17:50.843-05:00Jesus Christ, the Eternal Word of the Father, the ...Jesus Christ, the Eternal Word of the Father, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, took on human nature and in so doing took on the limitations of human nature, including, as you say, finite knowledge. <br /><br />I think this is saying something different than saying Jesus spoke falsely, especially about those things for which He came to speak, i.e. matters of revelation and salvation. Angels play a role in salvation so I think He was not mistaken, as you suggest. <br /><br />Fortunately we don't even have to wonder whether He was mistaken about angels because the Holy Spirit has already settled the question for us, through the Magisterial Teaching office of the Holy Roman Catholic Church.Zachhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05397708268816821523noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4669958696229907702.post-62604888306869307832010-03-11T02:54:34.127-05:002010-03-11T02:54:34.127-05:00Do you and Zach (or either of you) believe that Je...Do you and Zach (or either of you) believe that Jesus knew everything? That he was not limited intellectually by his context? Because orthodox christology holds that Jesus was fully human. And to be fully human involves, among other things, limitation in knowledge. <br /><br />You might counter that Jesus was also God. This is true but no where does the Church teach that Jesus must have known everything since he was God.<br /><br />We also have to work, theologically, to the divinity of Christ through his humanity. We have come to discern that Jesus is God, but it is far from clear what that means exactly. But we <i>do</i> know what it means to be human, and it involves being limited creatures. In his humanity, Jesus was limited too.Michaelnoreply@blogger.com