2 Corinthians 5:15: And he died for all, that those who live might live no longer for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.
Romans 5:6-21: While we were yet helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly, etc.
1 John 2:2: . . . and he is the expiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.
1 Timothy 2:4: . . . who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Christ died to redeem all men and women. Some Protestant groups contend that he only died for a select few predestined for salvation. A radical variation of Calvinism claims as much. Theirs is an angry God who has also predestined many for hell. They are even punished in this world by misfortune, poverty and sickness as a sign of their eternal depravity. Catholics, on the other hand, acknowledge that while Christ has died for all, human freedom still gives us the ability to accept or reject the gift of salvation. God’s passive will allows this, but his direct will makes salvation available to all. Poverty and sickness in this world is not a sign of our status with God; indeed, many have chosen to be poor in the sight of men so as to be rich in the eyes of God. The most wicked war criminal, psychotic serial killer, and abortionist are given God’s fatherly attention and, if they should want to avail themselves of it, can claim the boundless mercy of Christ. It may be that many follow the example of the good thief Dismas on the cross.
Matthew 22:1-14: The parable of the king who made a marriage for his son.
Matthew 13:24-32: The parable of the field in which grew both grain and cockle.
2 Timothy 2:20: In a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver, but also of wood and earthenware, and some for noble use, some for ignoble.
Matthew 18:15: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.”
Matthew 13:47-50: Parable of the net that was cast into the sea, and gathered every kind of fish, savory and unsavory.
Membership in the Church is retained for the righteous and sinners alike. Thus, it is possible for both good and evil men to claim to be Catholics. Of course, such Christianity for wicked men and women would be in name only. It is such a terrible tragedy. Some of the saints have claimed that there are even priests in hell. It is a prospect that sickens us. But, it is a possibility.
For more such reading, contact me about getting my book, DEFENDING THE CATHOLIC FAITH.
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Sometimes anti-Catholics talk as if the Catholic Church is the enemy of the Bible. The contrary is true; the Bible is the Catholic Church’s book! The late Paulist priest, Fr. Alvin A. Illig, CSP, joked, “It is a shame we never got a copyright on OUR book.” The Bible did not suddenly come into existence or out of bondage with Martin Luther. Prior to the invention of the printing press, bibles were produced by hand and could be quite expensive and time consuming to create. For this reason they were often secured in churches with locks and chains. A theft could cost the entire faith community its copy of the Scriptures. Many people were illiterate and thus received their bible instruction in preaching and in religious art. The first book printed with the new technology devised by John Gutenberg was probably the Catholic Bible. This was done under the auspices of the Church. Prior to Luther’s German bible in 1534, some 626 bible editions (or portions thereof) were printed in nations where the Catholic Church held sway. Many of these were in the vernacular languages of the day. Today, the lectionary used at Mass insures a wide exposure to Scripture in our worship. There is a papal indulgence available for faithful bible reading. Every Catholic home probably has a bible, or at least, is supposed to have one. The so-called Catholic hostility to the Bible during the Middle Ages and later to bible study groups or societies is a deliberate distortion of the facts by anti-Catholics. The Church was not against the Bible; rather, she was opposed to faulty and dangerous translations as rendered by the Waldensians, Albigensians, Wycliff and Tyndale. The fact that churchmen may have gone to unnecessary extremes in combating heretical versions of Scripture does not invalidate their overriding concern. Bible societies, just as they can be today, posed a danger in that false interpretations to bible passages were given to proselytize Catholics from the true faith.
In comparison to the fragmentation evident in Protestantism, the uniformity in doctrine as derived from an ultimate teaching authority over Scripture and Tradition has done much to sustain the Catholic faith. There is only one Christian faith— a single flock of Christ— and one shepherd over all. Legend has it that Martin Luther lamented on his deathbed, “My God, what have I done, there are now as many churches as there are heads!” It is sometimes joked that if you get two Protestants together to read the Bible, you will get three different opinions. So much for private interpretation of the Scriptures; it does not work and to suggest that it does might blaspheme the Holy Spirit by denying the facts. The abiding unity in faith is proof enough of Catholic claims and would not be possible without divine intervention.
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