Recent content by Shiranui117

I was always taught that it's pride to see you as something other than you are--either thinking of yourself more highly than what you are, or more lowly. When you utterly reject anything good you've done or anything good about you, that's false humility, which is a form of pride. Humility is to...

Is schism the same thing as breaking communion with someone? I know Rome and Antioch were out of communion with one another because Rome refused to recognize St. Meletios as the rightful patriarch, but does anyone know of other examples?

Hi folks, I'm talking with a friend about Orthodoxy vs. Catholicism (I'm doing my best to explain my favoring the former, he's trying to persuade me of the latter), and he asked me a question which I don't have a full answer for. What does it mean when two Orthodox churches break communion...

Are you also calling the Lutherans, Episcopalians, Catholics and Orthodox "pompous false religions"? https://www.haaretz.co.il/embeds/pdf_upload/2017/20171206-163611.pdf

Thanks for the correction. What do you mean when you say "Efficacious" grace, specifically, within a Reformed context?

So after how long can you tell whether a person is among the elect or not?

So lately I've had some interaction with Calvinists, and of course we got to talking about TULIP (AKA Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Limited Atonement, Irresistible Grace, Predestination). As we especially got to talking about Limited Atonement and Predestination (which are inseparable...

See Psalm 104:14-15. He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, And vegetation for the service of man, That he may bring forth food from the earth, 15 And wine that makes glad the heart of man, Oil to make his face shine, And bread which strengthens man’s heart.

So the Popes, for more than a thousand years in the midst of so many schisms and divisions in the Church, just said "Meh, don't feel like taking on my God-given duty to impose my Papal authority on the Church and safeguard the unity of the Faith under me as her shepherd". Is that about what your...

Can you explain why? I've never quite understood this. If the point is to abstain from certain foods, what's the harm in checking to see whether or not you're actually abstaining from them and not accidentally breaking the fast?

Lord have mercy.

This turned out to be SO helpful and I've been checking all instances where that verb is used (proskyneo), and it works perfectly for all the cases where it occurs in the New Testament. Even though it occurs in the Parable of the Unforgiving Servant when the servant falls before his master...

Hi guys, So right now I'm debating with a Jehovah's Witness about the Divinity of Christ. They're bringing up passages where Jesus says that the Father is His God, like Revelation 1:6, Revelation 3:12 and John 20:12. Their main allegation is "How can God worship God"? My question is, do you...

It is my understanding that the "theos" in John 1:1c is a qualitative theos. I'd have to look up the German theologian who I read this from, but the idea is that John 1:1c is not identifying Jesus as the God spoken of "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God...", i.e. the...

I'm sorry you experienced this and that it ruined your faith. But please know that this sort of "Charismatic" movement is only one kind of Christianity. There are many other kinds, such as Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran, Anglican, Methodist.. The list goes on. There is a home for you within...