You may have heard the claim that Roman Emperor Constantine I “invented” the Catholic Church sometime in the early part of the 4th Century. But this is simply not true.

The church was called the “Catholic Church” within the first 75 years of its existence. We see this in the writings of Ignatius of Antioch, a disciple of St. John the Apostle. He calls the church “catholic” to distinguish it from the heretics of his day: “Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude [of the people] also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church” (Epistle to the Smyrnaeans 8, written in A.D. 107).

Ignatius also describes the church in very “Catholic” ways, such as its belief in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist: “…the Eucharist is the self-same body of our Savior Jesus Christ which suffered for our sins, and which the Father in His goodness afterwards raised up again” (Epistle to the Smyrnaeans, 7). He also writes of the Episcopal leadership of bishops, priests and deacons: “…nobody’s conscience can be clean if he is acting without the authority of his bishop, clergy and deacons” (Epistle to the Trallians, 7).

Irenaeus of Lyon, writing around A.D. 190, notes that the Bishop of Rome has authority over the other bishops throughout the world: “…it is a matter of necessity that every Church should agree with this Church, on account of its preeminent authority” (Against Heresies, 3, 3, 2).

Another important point about the early church: It is a fact of history that Christians were under the pastoral care of the Church’s leaders and did not look to the Bible alone as their authority. Even if they wanted to, they couldn’t, because the Bible was not yet formed. For the first 15 or 20 years of the church’s existence, none of the New Testament books had been written. And it was not until centuries later that the bishops of the church determined, under the Holy Spirit’s guidance, which books belonged in the Bible. The Council of Hippo (A.D. 393) created the list of the Old and New Testament books, which is the same as the Roman Catholic list today. The Council of Carthage in A.D. 397 formulated the same list of canonical books, and it is this council that many Protestant Christians take as the authority for the New Testament canon of books. Interestingly, the Old Testament canon from that same council is identical to Roman Catholic canon today (46 Old Testament books; in the 16th Century, Protestants removed 7 Old Testament books).

So it is clear that well before the time of Constantine, the church was certainly Catholic – in name, in hierarchy and in practice. Constantine gave the Catholic Church status as an officially recognized religion within the Empire; he did not create it.

Someone emailed me several months ago asking why Catholics believe that Mary remained a virgin after Jesus’ birth. His original questions are in bold below, with my answers beneath them:

Do you really think little miss Mary was a virgin?

Yes, I do – we are told in Scripture that she was a virgin when Jesus was conceived (Luke 1:27). Surely you believe that as well.

Christ had numerous brothers and sisters from his mother Mary

I’m sure you are referring to Matthew 13:55-56 where it is written, “Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not his mother called Mary? And his brethren, James, and Joses, and Simon, and Judas? And his sisters, are they not all with us?”

Like you, I once thought that this showed that Mary and Joseph had other children after Jesus was born. But I later learned that the early Protestants – including giants like Martin Luther, Ulrich Zwingli and John Wesley – all believed in the perpetual virginity of Mary. Consider these quotes:

• Luther: “It is an article of the Faith that Mary is the Mother of the Lord and still a virgin…Christ, we believe, came forth from a womb left perfectly intact.”
• Zwingli: “I esteem immensely the Mother of God, the ever chaste, immaculate Virgin Mary.”
• Wesley: “I believe… he [Jesus Christ] was born of the blessed Virgin, who, as well after as she brought him forth, continued a pure and unspotted virgin.”

Seeing how these men – certainly not Catholics! – viewed Mary, I had to modify my opinion. It seemed that the idea that “brethren” and “sisters” meant Jesus’ half-siblings was a fairly modern innovation in Protestant circles.

What are we to make of the “brethren” then? In Biblical times, “brethren” or “brothers” can refer to any male kinsmen. For example, Abraham was Lot’s uncle (cf. Genesis 14:12), but in Genesis 14:14 and 14:16 Lot is called Abraham’s “brother.”

Returning to the “brethren” in Matthew 13:55, James and Joses are also mentioned in Matthew 27:56 as being the sons of another Mary; perhaps they are sons of Mary’s sister, also named Mary, who was the wife of Clopas mentioned in John 19:25.

The Biblical use of the term “brothers” or “brethren” to refer to extended relatives – plus the mention that James and Joses were sons of another Mary – makes the claim that Jesus had biological half-siblings very weak indeed.

You may also be familiar with Matthew 1:25, which says Joseph “knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son.” In our modern usage, the word “till” or “until” frequently implies a change of state after an event occurs. But in Biblical times, that was not the case. Other passages in Scripture help make this clear:

• Luke 1:80 – “And the child [John the Baptist] grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel.” But John the Baptist remained in the desert even after his ministry began.
• 1 Timothy 4:13 – “Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine.” Does that mean that they were to ignore reading, exhortation and doctrine after Paul arrived?
• 1 Corinthians 15:25 – “For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.” Does this mean that Christ will cease to reign after he has put all enemies under his feet? No, Christ’s reign will continue.
• Hebrews 1:13 – “Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?” Will Christ no longer sit at the Father’s right hand after his enemies are subdued?

Seeing in these passages how “till” or “until” does not necessitate a change of state after an event occurs, Matthew 1:25 is seen in its proper light. The sacred author was emphasizing Mary’s virginity, not making a statement that it ended at some point in the future.

Today’s Marietta Daily Journal presents some interesting facts, culled from the recently published 2009-10 edition of The Atlanta Business Chronicle’s annual Book of Lists. Columnist Joe Kirby writes:

Two generations ago, Catholics were as rare as hen’s teeth in Cobb. Now, they’ve just about taken over the joint.

The largest church in Cobb is St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church on King Springs Road in Smyrna, pastored by the Rev. James Kuczynksi, with 19,780 members, according to the ABC. It also ranks as the second-largest church in the metro area, behind only the Rev. Eddie Long’s New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, which has more than 25,000 members.

In third place in the metro area is First Baptist of Woodstock, with 17,000 members, followed by another Catholic house of worship in Cobb, Transfiguration Catholic Church on Blackwell Road in east Cobb, headed by the Rev. Msgr. Patrick Bishop, with 15,277 members.

All told, six of the metro area’s 10 largest churches are Catholic, according to the ABC – one more indication of the demographic changes that have swept across Georgia in recent decades.

The National Catholic Register has a terrific article titled “New Malthusians Propose a Worldwide One-Child Policy” by Tim Drake. Also featured is this great YouTube video:

This is a great video about the Advent season. Thanks to phatmass.com for bringing it to my attention. Enjoy!

True story: About three years ago, I stepped away from work to buy Christmas stamps at the nearby post office. When the receptionist saw me return a few minutes later with no stamps, I explained that they didn’t have the Madonna and Child stamps that I wanted. The young lady — an early twenty something — got a puzzled look on her face and said, “Wow…I didn’t know they made a stamp with Madonna and her new adopted baby.”

What are they teaching our young people in schools these days?

Andrew Tallman’s column on Townhall.com about government-run healthcare makes some great points:

When I argue that abortion under most circumstances should be illegal, I am charged with trying to legislate morality.

When I say divorce ought to be harder to obtain, not easier, I am accused of trying to legislate morality.

And when I say states should be free to make laws concerning adultery, homosexual behavior, contraception, or premarital sex, I am accused again of trying to legislate morality.

Yet when Barack Obama and the Democrats propose making it a crime to not carry health insurance, no one seems to notice that they are very aggressively trying to legislate morality.

…

So in the name of clarity and finality, I suggest we all admit one simple, obvious fact:

All laws legislate morality.

Sadness in Athens…

The University of Georgia’s beloved mascot, Uga VII, died unexpectedly Thursday. Sniff.

No replacement mascot will be used in tomorrow’s game, but they’ll place a wreath outside of his doghouse on the sidelines.

The Cathedral of Christ the King in Atlanta will begin it’s three-part Catholic Leader’s Forum tonight at 7 p.m. Parts 2 and 3 will be held in February and April. I’ll be there!