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This Rock
Volume 9, Number 11
 November 1998 
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I sort of agree with the questioner who asked, "Isn't the simplest and most straightforward explanation still that [Jesus' 'brethren'] were his real brothers, other sons of Mary?" ("Quick Questions," July/August 1998). Sort of. Acts 1:14-16 tells us that the apostles, gathered in the upper room, "together with the women who had followed Jesus, Mary his mother, as well as his brothers, devoted themselves to prayer. It was during this period that Peter stood up among the brothers-there were about a hundred and twenty present at the time-and said, 'My brothers. . .'"
What's the "simplest and most straightforward explanation" of who "his brothers" are? Isn't it that they are those whom Revelation 12:17 calls "the rest of her children-those who keep the commandments of God and bear their witness to Jesus?" It would seem so.
I realize that there are commentators who believe that the "brothers" in verse 14 and the "brothers" of the next two verses are two different groups of people. In fact, except for J. B. Phillips, the translation I just quoted from, Protestant translations translate adelphoi two or three ways in these verses. So I could see how most Protestants could miss something that to me is obvious-that apparently the New Testament Christians considered Mary their mother.
Don Schenk
Allentown, Pennsylvania
Give Me a Real Answer
This is a response to the answer about Jesus having brothers. The answer, from what I understood, basically came down to this: It's just something we have to accept. Specifically, the writer said, "Precisely how they were related to Jesus remains open to speculation; how they were not related is quite clear." This is not an answer.
While I am no theological scholar, I think a better answer would be to give what the translations of "brothers" or "brethren" actually mean, referring to cousins. As least, that is what I've heard from such teachers as Scott Hahn, who would seem to know more about Greek and Aramaic than I.
Bryan G. Robinson
Downington, Pennsylvania
Editor’s reply:
I feel confident in saying that that isn't quite what Scott Hahn said-and that the "Quick Questions" answer was correct.
The Greek term used in the Gospels may refer to cousins, but it also may refer to brothers. We have to look beyond the "brethren" verses to determine the sense of the term. When we look at other evidence in Scripture, we see that the term isn't applied as "brother" in the narrow sense. Those referred to as the "brethren of the Lord" are kinsmen of the Lord, but the text doesn't tell us just what the relationship is. Cousins? Maybe, and that's a common conclusion, but it can't be a definitive conclusion. Some of the "brethren" in fact may be first cousins; others may be second cousins; others may be more distantly related. We just don't know for sure, because the sacred writers didn't tell us.
While it might seem "cleaner" just to say, "All these people were Jesus' first cousins," that would be stepping beyond proper exegetical bounds. We don't approve when Modernist Catholics or Fundamentalist Protestants do that, and we shouldn't do it either.
"I Am Under Constant Attack"
I want to thank you for your great magazine, which has been truly "saving" to me and my Catholic Christian walk.
I left the Catholic Church when I was fourteen, shortly after I was confirmed, and I joined a non-denominational Pentecostal church. I wanted to walk with Jesus and follow his teaching. I became "born again" and accepted what I was taught and heard preached, that Catholics weren't Christians, that the pope was the Antichrist, that Catholics worship Mary-all the common prejudices. I also spread this message to as many people as I could ("witnessing") and found open acceptance of these views.
My hate of Catholics continued for nearly fifteen years and continued until I met my husband. The two churches I attended, one after the other collapsed because of leadership problems. I was just beginning to see the problems with non-denominational leadership and the lack of doctrinal unity within Protestantism.
Several years went by before I felt compelled to find a "true" church. I wanted children and knew that if I was blessed with them I would want them to attend church.
My first issues were with Bible teachings and church teachings regarding children, then birth control, and divorce and remarriage. I'm a reader, good at investigating, and could not believe what I was discovering. How could it be that the Catholic Church was the only one to stand up for what the Bible and the original Christians taught?
I bought and read the Catechism of the Catholic Church and everything I could find to help me with my search, and I returned in 1994 to the Church Jesus Christ instituted and today leads. I am under constant attack from my family, in-laws, and friends regarding my beliefs as a Catholic. Your magazine has empowered and helped me more than words can say. There hasn't been a month that's gone by that I haven't used an article as a reference for somebody. This Rock is my favorite mail each month.
Please pray for my husband. He has not formally converted to Catholicism, though we do attend Mass every week with our two children. I know he has fears concerning the Catholic faith that are deeply embedded from his divorced-and-remarried parents.
Jowella Messing
Livonia, Michigan
Nihil Obstated into Submission
I'm writing because there is an anti-Catholic who is familiar with Karl Keating's materials and isn't moved by any of them. . . hard to figure out. He told me that Keating and Peter Ruckman, an ardent anti-Catholic, had a debate about sola scriptura. He said that Keating lost because Ruckman used against the Church a book that had a nihil obstat. My faith almost depends on it-please clear up the confusion.
John Hewett
Via The Internet
Editor’s reply:
I debated Peter Ruckman about a decade ago at a Baptist church in Long Beach, California. I don't know whether he thought he won, but, after the debate, he refused to shake hands with me. That might have been indicative of something other than just poor manners. In any case, it is true that he quoted from Catholic books. So what? He also quoted from the Bible, another Catholic book. In each case he took his quotations out of context. Were his own writings taken out of context, Ruckman could be shown to believe, say, in Arianism and vegetarianism. When Catholic books are taken out of context, one can build a case against the Church-but the case won't stand up to fair-minded inquiry.
Catechizing Kitty and Kari
A few weeks ago, two young women (teenagers, to be exact) walked into our parish office and said they were interested in learning about our Church. Our pastor, Fr. Tom, had greeted them, but he had an appointment so he directed them to me. I introduced myself as the youth minister, and they introduced themselves as Kari and Kitty. Kari said that she was a junior in high school and was baptized Catholic but had been going to Evangelical churches on and off throughout her life. I proceeded to make Kari more comfortable by asking her about what she enjoyed doing in her free time and about what interested her in school.
After this brief period of getting to know Kari, all of the knowledge that I have accumulated from listening to "Catholic Answers Live" and from reading Catholic Answers' tracts flowed from my mind. I was able to articulate the differences between the Catholic and Protestant churches. At the end of the conversation I gave Kari and Kitty copies of Pillar of Fire, Pillar of Truth.
I am convinced that much of a youth minister's job involves apologetics.
Michael Ludeman
Sherwood, Oregon
The Joke's on Them
Two heretics were siblings, members of Call to Action, and proponents of the "freedom of choice" movement. They called themselves "Catholic" but went to Mass only when circumstances required them to look good.
When the less evil one died, the surviving sibling promised the diocese a sizeable contribution if the eulogy for the deceased would describe him as a saint. The diocese needed money and succeeded in acquiring the contribution without compromising any of its virtue.
The eulogy accurately described the life and character of the deceased, identifying and listing the many sins committed. In conclusion, the speaker pointed to the bereaved survivor and said, "But compared to him, the departed was a saint!"
Another: What do honest anti-Catholic apologists and UFOs have in common? You always hear about them, but you never see them.
A third: My priest suggested that, before I criticize an anti-Catholic Fundamentalist, I walk a mile in his shoes. That way, I won't be around to listen to his convoluted argument and I'll have his shoes.
Steven Rush McCoy
Represa, California
Future Bishop Writes
I am very impressed with your periodical, as it addresses a real need for apologetics. It is on subscription at our library here at the Pontifical College Josephinum. Please keep up the good work. After my ordination, I plan to have the magazine on the rack in the parish library.
Eric Weldon
Wichita, Kansas
Just Like Newman, Only Backwards
In the article on Catholics who abandon the faith for the Episcopal Church ("Two-Way Traffic on Convert Street," September 1998), Fr. Ray Ryland says, "Show us one Catholic like that who reluctantly leaves the Catholic Church for only one reason, because he has discovered that the Episcopal Church is the one true Church of Christ." This is a reverse image of John Henry Newman's conversion story. He reluctantly abandoned Episcopalianism for one reason-he believed the Catholic Church is the one founded by Jesus Christ. Perhaps devotions and prayers to him might be in order for these fallen-aways.
Marie Wolf
Prosser, Washington
Facing the Demon
I enjoyed Fr. Ryland's article, but I think he missed the source of the Catholic Church's wrong-way convert problem. The masses of Catholics are ill informed about their faith and about how to search out the truth. There always have been false churches, from the Gnostics and the Arians to the Unitarians and the Mormons-and even the Episcopalians. But the Catholic Church can't do anything about that other than through evangelism and prayer.
Having been both a professional and a lay educator in the Lutheran Church, I have seen many congregants leave our community for a more "real" religious experience. People think that the more something touches their hearts, the more true it must be. Sounds like the Catholic Church is facing a similar demon. Our society tells us that the truth is within us, but we, as members of the Way, know this is not true.
Although Christ lives within us, what we feel within us does not define Christ.
Eric B. Nelson
St. Paul, Minnesota
Gimme a BLT, and Hold the Bread
As a convert to Catholicism, it is a very curious thing for me to observe other Catholics renouncing or, at least, ignoring many of the Church's teachings. I became a Catholic precisely because of the Church's teachings, not in spite of them. I find it curious because many of those who reject the "unpalatable" teachings of the Church still insist on calling themselves Catholics. Why?
If we throw out or replace the bacon in our bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwich, we no longer can call our sandwich a BLT. We might like the name, or we might continue using the name out of habit or convenience, but we must recognize that, if we remove this or that constituent, what we have is something other than a BLT. If we alter or remove ingredients, what we have is either an incomplete BLT, a false BLT, or both, especially if we remove or replace the bread.
In like fashion, when we reject or replace Catholic teachings, we no longer can call ourselves Catholic. We might like the name, or we might continue calling ourselves Catholic out of habit or convenience, but when we ignore or throw out Catholic teachings, we become something other than Catholic. When we reject those teachings, what we become is incomplete Catholics, frauds, or both, especially if we remove or replace the teaching regarding our bread. We may find the new thing easier to swallow if we remove the "meatier" ingredients, but it is not the true faith and thus cannot be completely nourishing.
Many of the teachings that are the most vehemently rejected by nominal Catholics and by Protestants alike are the very teachings that convinced me-finally-of the authenticity of the Catholic Church. There are many churches that claim to be the one, true Church, and, at a glance, many of them look convincing, but, after taking an inventory of the ingredients provided by Christ, it becomes clear that the Catholic Church is the only one that has the right stuff.
Steve Parlin
Culver, Indiana
Dake, Unger, and Lazarus
Mark Shea's article "Dake & Unger vs. Jesus" (September 1998) effectively refutes the claim that the story of Lazarus and the Rich Man (Luke 16: 19-31) demonstrates that prayers to dead saints will avail nothing. Shea's refutation argues that Dake has forgotten that this story is not a historical account, but a parable, and that the point of the story is not about prayer to saints but about the hardness of men's hearts.
But I am partial to Scott Hahn's interpretation, which differs from Shea's. In one of his tapes Hahn says, "Now you might say, 'So there. They may pray in purgatory, but they are not answered.' But notice one thing. Jesus raised a man named Lazarus after four days. Jesus didn't say, 'Let me tell you a parable.' There is no evidence that this is a parable. Nowhere, in any parable, does Jesus name the characters. Here he names the man, and he happens to give him the name of one of his very best friends, whom he raised from the dead. A coincidence? Maybe, maybe not."
John W. Stanmeyer
Arlington, Virginia
Recycling This Rock
Some of your readers may be wondering how best to continue using their old This Rock magazines for their intended purpose: Catholic apologetics and evangelization. I have a suggestion: Provide them to Catholic prisoners who are desperate for orthodox Catholic materials.
I am privileged to sit on the board of directors for First Century Catholic. Ministries (FCCM), a solidly Catholic: outreach to Catholic inmates which was founded by Catholic prisoners. One of the founders, Russell L. Ford, is still in prison, and he regularly contributes articles on the evangelization of prisoners to This Rock and a variety of Catholic periodicals. He has hundreds of "godsons"-men he has brought to the faith in prison via sound apologetics and evangelization.
Most American prisons are flooded with Evangelical (often anti-Catholic) material, and many prisoners do not have access to the sacraments. Still, a number of prison chaplains (not all Catholic) have contacted FCCM to request literature for their Catholic inmates. I would be happy to mail a chaplain's list (with guidelines) to any readers wishing to donate orthodox books, periodicals, holy cards, tracts, and pamphlets to Catholic prisoners. (Please do not mail them to me!) We also desperately need good "freeworld" pen pals for Catholic prisoners who long for spiritual companionship. As one prisoner puts it, "A letter in this place is like a diamond."
Interested readers should contact me via snail mail (FCCM, c/o 5120 Pheasant Ridge Road, Fairfax, VA 22030) or e-mail (joseph.a.strada@aero.org) if they would like to donate literature or become pen pals. Thanks in advance on behalf of these "least of our brothers" in prison.
Joseph Strada
Fairfax, Virginia
Accidental Apologist
I have been a subscriber to This Rock since 1992. I am a cradle Catholic, and up to that time I never really knew how to defend or explain what I believed. It was the old "Go ask Father" answer.
When I entered the Air Force in 1971 I was challenged, overtly and covertly. This prompted me to find answers wherever I could. Not knowing where to look or having a lot of guidance other than the typical books at libraries and chapels, it was a long and laborious process. Then, around 1991, I accidentally discovered your organization. It was Scott Hahn, Patrick Madrid, James Akin, and Karl Keating who were examples to me to study and research to find answers. They provided a starting point.
I was so inspired to research and find answers that I am now attending St. Mary's University in San Antonio, earning my master's degree in systematic theology. I intend to spread what I learn. After 22 years in the Air Force and after all my experience in parishes, I hope God can use me to touch a few hearts.
John E. Leon
Schertz, Texas
Just As I Thought
A cursory look at your catalogue only serves to reinforce my contention that the Catholic Church of post-Vatican II is that of a new religion. For instance, in Mass Confusion (an apt title), for which I thank James Akin, all dated references in the "Abbreviations" section are post-Vatican II, as though the Catholic Church did not exist prior to it.
Frank M. Wessely
Stevensville, Maryland
Editor’s reply:
Of course the works mentioned are "post- Vatican II. " That's the legislation that governs the liturgy. Today's liturgical norms are to be found by looking at today's liturgical documents. You would not get very far, when inquiring about the proper role of extraordinary minister., of the Eucharist, if you tried to look up the answer in a nineteenth-century manual-there weren't any extraordinary ministers then.
Naming Names
Mark Shea does a good job showing that Jesus' story has nothing to do with prayer to the saints. But this story must be considered not a parable but actual history. Why would Jesus mention Lazarus by name, something he never does in parables?
George Scanlon
West Roxsbury, Massachusetts
What We're Protected From
I read with interest "Taking Back Our 'Holy Halloween'" (September 1998). I think Katherine Andes is correct in saying that Catholics should neither retreat from nor ignore the paganization of this holy day. I like her idea of prayers for treats.
Nevertheless, I think she missed a second dimension to the celebration. Along with teaching children about purgatory and the necessity of praying for the dead comes an opportunity to teach about the powers of darkness, Christ's victory over them, and, thus, the Church's power to banish them. Although my children choose to dress as their heroes of the moment (knights, Robin Hood, soldiers), I don't mind the witches outside as long as my children understand that this is what the Church protects us from. We say a prayer asking for our children's protection from the evil spirits abroad and give them our blessing before they go trick-or-treating.
Mary Vilim
Aurora, Illinois
Friendly Friar
I just want to say thanks for the great job your staff is doing with the magazine and the Catholic Answers web site. They're great resource centers, written in a lucid, easy-reading style.
Greg Plata, O.F.M.
VIA Via The Internet
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