Jesus Giving the Key to St. Peter by Jean-August Ingres, 1820
Here is the tentative schedule for our 2009 Apologetics Seminar:
September 26 Church - Atty Marwil Llasos
October 3 Holy Bible - Chief de Vera
October 10 Papacy - Iboy Pinga
October 17 Sacraments 1 - Digoy Fernandez
October 24 Sacred Tradition/Magisterium - Dr. Dicky Boncan
October 31 Sacraments II - Fr. Abe Arganosa (All Saints Day weekend!)
November 7 Church History - Chief de Vera
November 14 Mariology - Atty Marwil Llasos
November 21 Christology and Holy Trinity - Fr. Cayo Estrada
November 28 Sola Fidei/Sola Scriptura - Chief de Vera
December 5 Local Sects - Atty Marwil Llasos
December 12 Bible Christians' - Foreign Sects - Chief de Vera
December 19 Graduation and Christmas Party
Venue - Training Room of Amici Greenhills 3rd Floor Missouri Square Bldg Connecticut corner Missouri StreetsNortheast Greenhills
TIME : 9 AM to NOON on Saturdays
Seminar is FREE.
Please call Lerma at 723-4326 or text me at 09178260047 for reservation.
We have limited seats available.
Tell your friends about it.
.jpg)
![ST. JEROME EMILIANI [1486-1537]](http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_6dKQTchkJaA/R0lo013dyBI/AAAAAAAAB_4/XzUAPDESwwQ/s1600/St.+Jerome+in+prayer,+small_1.jpg)
Fr. Abe: the title of your blog suggests that you want to reveal to us, ordinary roman catholics, the beauty of the Roman Catholic Church so that, when we are approached by preachers of other denominations, we know how to behave. I suppose this was your intention when you started, in fact at the beginning you were really teaching us.
ReplyDeleteThen you started to fill up some vacant days with news, some times related with the life of the Church ( your school, your diocese, defensores fidei, popular religious devotions and traditions), but later you entered into open polemic with other denominations, particularly Iglesia Ni Cristo, and became offensive. Your intentions may be good, but the way is not. Fairly sure your polemic positions are not converting anybody to your Catholic Church; they cannot see any splendor. Particularly offensive was your posting on the day the leader of the INC died. While signs of respect were raised from everybody by full pages, you tried to ridicule him. I don’t think it was the right moment.
At present, starting from the death of Cory, you included politics in your blog.
You may do whatever you like with your blog, but I would like to tell you to be faithful to your beginnings; we, the ordinary Christians, need more correct and plain doctrine to confirm our faith than polemics and political emotions.
Dear Anonymous, Thank you for your comment. I appreciate it. Just want to clarify:
ReplyDelete1. This Blog was not opened merely for doctrinal purpose. It was never intended to be exclusive for Catholic Doctrines, Dogmas or Apologetics.
This Blog meant to show the beauty of the Catholic Church in all its aspect, including the ordinary life. That is why there are explanations of doctrines especially questions from the viewers, response to the questions of people from other faith, Parish and School based activities, pastoral missions and practical living. That is the original intention.
2. Polemics with other religions. Records shows that I didnt enter into other religions' realm to debate them. They were the one who infested this blog with insults against the Blessed Mother, the Pope and the Catholic Church.
ReplyDeleteThe Iglesia ni Cristo and the Born Again are die hards anti Catholics. They believe we are shooin to Hell. I cannot remain idle on that. O no. That is the mistake why anti Catholic heretics increased. They never got answers in a manner understandable to them. We responded to the anti-Catholic attacks with the same fire and intensity. Thus, they felt the pain and the fire themselves. Some of the born again that we debated here apologized, some admitted mistakes on issues of Praying for the Dead, Intercession of Saints and Virginity of Mary. One prominent Anti-Catholics disappeared from the web world after his charades were unmasked - the guy who vowed that he will destroy the Catholic Church.
If we remained gentle as lambs like what the previous priests and bishops did, thousands of our faithful would have abandoned the faith.
Only the Holy Spirit can convert people and that is not my main goal. My goal is to defend the faith. In order to do so effectively we have to do it in a manner understandable to the other side. The faith must be presented with conviction and that the arguments of the opponents must be answered and must be destroyed with equal intensity.
The Iglesia ni Cristo are fond of insulting the Popes. Then as we defend the Biblical Foundation of Papacy it is also our duty to question the origin of their Cult for Manalo, for the Succession of Manalo Authority from Felix to Eraneo to Eduardo. It is our duty to challenge them why did the son of their beloved angel died like a sinful man. That is not mere polemic, that is a reasonable challenge for them to provide an answer for the faith that they thought to be from God's last messenger. This is not polemic, this is facing the issues fairly and squarely.
If I will be required to be gentle and kind just to pacify these anti-Catholics then what is the difference between me and many other Catholics who chose to turn their back on issues thrown against the Church while thousands of Catholics are being deceived by the same anti-Catholics.
Moreover, I chose to answer the polemics against our faith because it is necessary for our people to know how to answer polemical attacks from others. Our leaders already tried to be gentle in answering anti-Catholic attacks but they were proven to be ineffective.
In the United States, Catholic Apologists debated the Anti CAtholics in public squares and it resulted to the conversions of many souls back to the Catholic Church.
I am also receiving a lot of message of gratitude from students and other Catholics for what is being done here. Just yerterday, Fr. Treb Futol of the Diocese of Sorsogon sent me some students who were researching about Iglesia ni Cristo. They need it because their INC classmates used to insult them in class. After our sessions they were overjoyed. Same thing happened in Sorsogon State College where a Born Again professor was insulting Catholics inside the Class. After they attended apologetic training with us, the professors couldn't answer their questions in front of class.
3. About politics.
ReplyDeletePolitics is part of the life of the people of God and we are called to live our Catholic Faith even in Political Life.
The reports on the Death of Pres. Cory was not merely political but an Historical and Religious Event for the country. Even before her death countless Masses and Rosaries were prayed all over for her recovery. This is greater than politics.
If you need more correct and plain doctrine then go to Blogs or Webside dedicated to Catechesis not in an Apologetic Blog. Because in Apologetics polemics are being faced head point. This is not for the faint hearted but for warriors of faith.
My political preference is not based on 'political emotions'but on political CONVICTIONS. Feel free not to read those post on politics. I will still share my political opinion. That is my right.
A good Catholic must also be active in politics. Others are sharing their views in Facebook or Friendster. I know a lot of priests and Catholic apologists who are doing so. It so happened that I am one of the few who have a Blog.
I re-read the post http://thesplendorofthechurch.blogspot.com/2009/09/iglesia-ni-cristo-supreme-leader-leader.html and didn't find it particularly "offensive". How much respect does the man deserve for leading so many astray? How many people are in hell now because of Iglesia?
ReplyDeleteThank you very much Paul.
ReplyDelete