20 Dec 22 – Is the Bible Without Error?

[0] Welcome to the Bishop Strickland Hour.

[1] My name is Terry Barber.

[2] I'm with Virgin Most Powerful radio and have the honor to share the gospel with the bishop through the catechism of the Catholic Church and through the tweets that he sends.

[3] It's all about saving souls and giving the truth out that the gospel has given us in the perennial teachings of the church.

[4] Bishop Strickland, I can tell you're a little under the weather.

[5] And thanks for still a swing in the bat for Jesus, even if you're sick.

[6] Thanks, Terry.

[7] Bishop Strickland, one of your tweets, this is one of the sad days in America Thursday when we're recording us today this week.

[8] What happened is President Biden signed the crazy name called Respect for Marriage Act, which means it's for homosexual marriages being with a federal guarantee of that.

[9] House Nancy, excuse me, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi proclaimed Thursday to be a glorious day.

[10] here in the house.

[11] This is a Catholic woman.

[12] I mean, the joy, the pride, the euphoria that we feel today having passed the respect for marriage act.

[13] That is very sad to hear a Catholic speak like that.

[14] And you tweeted, you said, so sad for Mrs. Pelosi to claim to be a faithful Catholic and promote this so -called redefinition of marriage.

[15] It is destructive to the human family and harmful to every child of God because, and this is the key, it ignores God's will.

[16] When we ignore him, we are in peril.

[17] Pray for our nation.

[18] That's your tweet.

[19] Bishop Strickland, I mentioned this off the air to you.

[20] I read, and I've watched this with about Nancy Pelosi, that she was raised as a youngster in college.

[21] She talked about some nuns up in the New England area that she was taught by.

[22] And they happened to be, I use a political term, you know, liberal, but they were heterodox.

[23] That's a theological term.

[24] They were in error because they taught her that abortion was okay.

[25] And my point to you, Bishop Strickland, as a layman, you know, I'm not in management, I'm in sales, but it's so critical that we give people good formation, because think of that, that was 50, 60 years ago.

[26] She was in college and she didn't get the perennial teachings of the church and look at the effects of it has that it has on not only the church but on those little children and on our culture so give me your thoughts on why you sent that tweet and would you agree that i mean i'm sure you would but catechesis is absolutely necessary because without it we have people like nancy pelosi confused absolutely and she's a woman who's had a lot of power and a lot of influence and she's influenced things in a evil direction that she will come to rue the day that she's celebrated the signing of this destruction of marriage act is what they were honest which they aren't there are all kinds of evil things going on I mean, part of it, Terry, just the other part of the bill, they said, protection of basically same -sex marriage and inter -race marriage.

[27] Yeah, I know what?

[28] That's just a bald -faced lie.

[29] It is.

[30] How long has it been since interracial marriage wasn't recognized in all the states?

[31] And they put that smokescreen up for people, you know, and sadly, many people have all of it.

[32] that's wonderful.

[33] That's what we need to do.

[34] And it's just, it's evil.

[35] It truly is.

[36] And she and President Biden probably went to the same catechism class.

[37] But actually, no, Terry, I think we have to acknowledge because it's on videotape.

[38] Yeah.

[39] I don't know a videotape.

[40] That's old terms, but it probably is videotape from years ago, back in the 90s, I think.

[41] I saw it.

[42] And President Biden is saying everything the opposite of what he said down.

[43] I guess he got woke, but it's not what he was saying at one point in his career.

[44] And sadly, you know, the problem with politicians, too many of them, it's hard to know what they really believe because they're just saying what gets them elected.

[45] Because their job is to get reelected so that then they can have all their access.

[46] and do all the stuff they do as elected politicians rather than serving the people.

[47] You know, Bishop, you nailed it, and I couldn't agree more.

[48] I listened to the same.

[49] I actually considered playing the clip on the radio because he was so emphatic about marriages between a man and a woman.

[50] What's the issue?

[51] And what can, you know, here's the other thing, and I can only speculate.

[52] Like I said, I pray for our leaders in the government and in the church because I can't even imagine the pressure they're under.

[53] I get that.

[54] I mean, because I have a little pressure.

[55] I ran an apostolate with about 800 employees through Lighthouse Catholic media.

[56] And I had some pressure from things that went on, but I always said, you know, I'd rather fold it up if we're not going to compromise.

[57] We've got to stick to our principles.

[58] And so I get that.

[59] So I would say this, that we need to pray and make reparation.

[60] for people like Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi, because they're still on this planet.

[61] They still have time to repent, okay, and believe in the gospel.

[62] Absolutely, yes.

[63] So I just say we keep praying for them, and that's what I would suggest there.

[64] Now, Bishop Strickland, we live in some troubled times.

[65] We talked about this before on the air, before we went on the air.

[66] And I saw your tweet when you said, a godless world is bankrupt that's strong language with no lasting goodness truth or beauty it leaves humanity disengaged from reality and meaning adrift in the sea of whims and feelings it is ugly this it is an ugly world that leaves the soul empty and form utterly reject this godless agenda and find follow Jesus Christ.

[67] So they make the point, and I just want to let you respond, look at the mental problems we have, emotional problems right now, look at the total corruption of what they're doing in schools, because we've left God out of the picture.

[68] So you're spot on, but what made you speak so clearly on this?

[69] Because I mean, I haven't read something so succinct and so short on that topic?

[70] Well, it's just we're being bombarded with godless agendas from the global scene, too many in the church herself.

[71] Yeah.

[72] And in our government and in all kinds of, in science, in our education system.

[73] I mean, we're just being bombarded with godless agendas.

[74] And I think what probably prompted that was, I forget the man's name, but he's one of the key advisors.

[75] or people in the World Economic Forum.

[76] And he was just talking about how we just are really on the verge of technologically of being able to just play God.

[77] I mean, outright play God and reinvent the human being.

[78] And he talked about even, you know, we probably heard.

[79] of transhumanism.

[80] And I'm sure a lot of people, including myself, when you first hear that, you say, well, that's science fiction, that isn't real, nobody's going to do that.

[81] If that's exactly what their agenda is.

[82] Exactly.

[83] And we're just to asleep, the vast majority of people don't agree with these approaches.

[84] And we have to, the number one question humanity needs to ask is, what's God's will?

[85] Exactly.

[86] What is God's plan for us?

[87] And then, certainly, he's given us the ability to reason and to shape things and to seek justice and to seek a better system.

[88] But when we leave God out of the picture, it gets really dangerous and really harmful to everyone.

[89] Another thing I saw, once again, coming out of Germany, that is just, you know, it's just tragic what's with the church.

[90] the German culture, but these German scientists were putting forward that they now perfected or close to perfecting an artificial womb, talking about being able to gestate 30 ,000 children all at the same time in artificial wombs and genetically engineer everything.

[91] You know, once you disengage from God and you disengage from reason, the sky's the limit.

[92] Anything goes.

[93] And you can get crazier all the time.

[94] But one thing that occurred to me, you know, they're talking about, okay, in this world of the future, you just have said, oh, I've got to order a baby.

[95] Yeah.

[96] I can't imagine many people have been bothering to do that because you still have to raise the child.

[97] Yeah.

[98] And a lot of people say, I'm not interested, I'm sure, but let's say you order a baby and you say, oh, wait, well, we want a boy and a girl.

[99] And then why even make that choice if later on you're going to say, well, the boy can decide he's a girl and the girl can decide he's a boy or they can both decide they're both boys.

[100] I mean, it's like it's just unrooted from reality.

[101] a final thing.

[102] And I guess all of this, you know, these tweets just come from frustration and feeling a real call.

[103] Oh, yeah.

[104] Just say something that's true that people that care can at least know there's someone out there.

[105] There are a lot of us that believe in what God says.

[106] Amen.

[107] Believe God's word.

[108] Believe in the teachings of the church.

[109] But there are too many people that don't.

[110] But I think we have to support each other.

[111] Absolutely.

[112] We have to, like you're saying, we have to resist.

[113] Oh, yeah.

[114] No. I mean, with this bill and what sort of goes so often, that's the way Washington works with these bills, the real sinister part is how they're going to try and limit religion.

[115] Maybe we can talk about that a bit more.

[116] When we come back, absolutely, Bishop Stricklandauer here on Virgin Most Powerful Radio.

[117] Stay with us, family.

[118] We'll have more to inspire you to fall deeper in love, Jesus Christ.

[119] welcome back to the bishop strickland hour our good bishop was sharing before the break about religious freedom being under attack and i'd like to have you continue your thought on that bishop strickland yeah because this bill that was just signed of the protection of marriage that does anything but protect marriage but underneath and not so much talked about was a lot of elements of attempting to curtail the voice of religion and society and saying anyone who says the opposite of what this bill says, no, what we know marriage is, marriage is a man and a woman, married for life, open to children, and if we, I mean, trying to stop us from being able to say that.

[120] And like you said, Terry, I think what, you know, there have been other cultures and other times where people were faithful Catholics, and they got silenced.

[121] And we can't allow ourselves to compromise the faith away because we're worried about being silent, certainly, and ultimately, where are those other cultures?

[122] What happens?

[123] The truth prevails.

[124] Amen.

[125] The church is here for the long term, not for today only, but for day and tomorrow.

[126] And so we've, and I think more and more, we're likely to see people being forced to take a stand and say, no, we're not going to do this.

[127] We're not going to teach this in our schools.

[128] We're not going to employ these people that deny the values that we live by.

[129] And it could get rough, but we've got to be strong.

[130] And we've got to be, I mean, we celebrate the saints.

[131] and the martyrs who face the same kind of pressures from their culture, whether it was very early centuries of the church up until modern times.

[132] And we've got to, I think we've got to be more alert and more ready to defend the truth that we know is the truth, the truth revealed by God, because as we can see, it's destructive.

[133] when the powers that be are able to play fast and loose with the truth.

[134] I mean, in the news just recently has been this official appointed by the White House, I guess.

[135] I'm not sure, and not a really high -level official, but got a lot of notoriety because this person, I guess, is non -binary.

[136] And a man, obviously a man, dressed up as a woman.

[137] in all kinds of outlandish outfits.

[138] But finally, thankfully, you know, they fired the man because he was stealing women's baggage at the airport.

[139] Exactly.

[140] They caught them.

[141] And what they don't realize is the logic or totally lack of logic that they are pushing and what's going to come back and bite them and sadly, all of us is at a point, if you can say what this individual is doing with playing around with gender and all of that, then why can't he identify himself as owning that other person?

[142] Yes, there's no truth.

[143] I mean, it really starts to fall apart.

[144] I agree.

[145] And it becomes totally arbitrary.

[146] And I think, really, sadly, I think the people, like we were talking about the catechises of Nancy Pelosi, or lack of, for catechosis.

[147] Catechesis is the truth.

[148] If we don't get the truth across, the truth that comes from God, not my truth or your truth, but the truth that comes from God that is contained in Scripture and in the teaching of the church, if that's not what we're transmitting to those we're teaching, it's not catechesis.

[149] It's propaganda.

[150] It's Paul's teaching.

[151] And that's what too many have received.

[152] And they don't realize it's taking them down to the pit along with all of us.

[153] I mean, they're undermining the very things that got them where they are, and they better, all of us better wake up.

[154] Bishop Strickland, I'm reading a quote from Bishop Strickland, there's no, Bishop Fulton J. Sheen, which I might add, folks, a year, 43 years ago yesterday, I was at Fulton Sheen's funeral at St. Patrick's Cathedral.

[155] How the time has gone by?

[156] And for those 43 years, I've been promoting Bishop Sheen, he said something that you just said.

[157] He said, truth is not something.

[158] we invent he said if we do it's a lie bishop strickland this sounds like you he says rather truth is something we discover like love and that's what we constantly talk about is the truth and yes we do need to push back i i have a little article here about a little young woman you know at the at the virginia tech university she's a former soccer player she was benched for refusing to kneel for the being BLM, you know, flag.

[159] And now she sued the school and the coach, and the judge is saying, yeah, you're right.

[160] They shouldn't have done that.

[161] And this is an example of being pushed back, our pushback that you talked about, and I'll just throw one more pushback in, Bishop Strickland, and that is, I just got word an hour ago that we pushed back, my wife and I, we have rental property, and I had a statue of our blessed mother, five and a half feet tall, about a thousand pounds heavy and sitting on one of my properties and somebody in the neighborhood who's anti -Christian complained to the city and the city said you need to take that statue and move it you can't have it out there so i went to the city and said wait a minute show me where i'm in violation of any code for the city well when i sat down with them they said well actually you're not and i said well then tell that got to go pound sand because i I'm going to keep, that's my expression, and the guy at the city goes, well, no, you have your right to have that statue, so we close the case.

[162] Why am I saying this, Bishop Strickland?

[163] Because the little girl at the university did the same thing.

[164] She said, no, you can't do that to me. I have a right to not have to kneel for a BLM flag.

[165] And so this is what I think we need to do more of.

[166] And I know I think you're 100 % behind us giving a big pushback, correct?

[167] Absolutely.

[168] Let me read something from our favorite archbishop that I read just recently in an article.

[169] Yeah.

[170] I read these things and it's amazing to say this was written says it was on his Life is Worth Living television series years ago.

[171] 50s.

[172] It is not the sanctuary that is in danger.

[173] It is civilization.

[174] It is not infallibility that may go down.

[175] It is personal rights.

[176] It is not the Eucharist that may pass away.

[177] It is freedom of conscience.

[178] It is not divine justice that may evaporate.

[179] It is the courts of human justice.

[180] It is not that God may be driven from his throne.

[181] It is that men may lose the meaning of home.

[182] For peace on earth will come only to those who give glory to God.

[183] It is not the church that is in danger.

[184] It is the world.

[185] Wow, I need to hear that one.

[186] How long ago did he say that?

[187] How true is it today?

[188] Yeah, we're talking almost 70 years ago.

[189] And again, Bishop Strickland, I'm convinced, I really am convinced that we need to pray hard for Bishop Sheen's beatification because, okay, here I come again.

[190] I know I sound like a broken record for Sheen.

[191] But I really believe that when he's beatified, many more people will be exposed to the kind of content you just gave us.

[192] And they're going to go, wow, this guy was spot on, and it's going to really tick off, I use a nice word, the liberals in our church.

[193] I'm sorry, did I say that?

[194] Yeah, it will.

[195] It'll tick them off.

[196] And it should because what Fulton Sheen is saying is absolutely true.

[197] And so I just want to say, to all of our listeners, continue to pray for the beat.

[198] gratification for Fulton Sheen.

[199] I won't get into all.

[200] I did that on the Terry and Jessie show if you want to hear that, folks.

[201] Bishop Strickland, I have another story, and I know this is going to shock you, because it shocked me. It's a Catholic school up in Canada, and the school district fired a substitute teacher.

[202] Why?

[203] Was he teaching something wrong?

[204] No. You are not called upon to evangelize our Catholic students.

[205] The kids in the school ask the question, a legitimate question and the teacher gave them a biblical answer along with the catechism of the Catholic Church and that's why he got canned and I hope he sues the school for their identity I mean it sounds almost like are you sure we'll go to life site news it's there but Bishop Strickland again this is where we have to stand up even inside the church where sometimes our leaders are stamping on our I have a right to teach the Catholic faith through the Bible and the catechism.

[206] And guys like either you or any priest to stop me, I'm going to call you out and say, Bishop, I'm sorry, I'm actually doing you a favor.

[207] You made a promise when you were ordained to follow the teachings of the church.

[208] Please do that.

[209] Well, as usual, once again, that illustrates rights and responsibilities.

[210] go together.

[211] That school has a responsibility to be truly Catholic.

[212] Whoever is the superior over that school, whether it's religious run or diocese, that superior needs to pull the name Catholic with that kind of garbage going on.

[213] Amen.

[214] Because that's exactly what, and I really don't care what the teacher was teaching.

[215] But if the kids had questions that had to do with something that the Catholic, Vaticanism or the word of God can answer, then that's where you need to go.

[216] Absolutely.

[217] So, and it's, it just shows how distorted things are when a, I mean, you'd almost make it, you'd think it was a joke.

[218] I think a lot of people still do.

[219] A lot of people think probably the things we talk about, the things that we get all riled up about, they, they just don't understand.

[220] And it's just they're, the reality.

[221] The reality.

[222] is there's some Catholic schools that aren't Catholic at all.

[223] And we need to call them out.

[224] And I applaud.

[225] And I hope that teacher that Godfire does take it further.

[226] Because that's part of our standing up as well to say, then you, if you're going to remove a teacher for teaching the catechism and the word of God, then you need to lose the name Catholic.

[227] and be whatever kind of school you want to be, but you're not a Catholic school, that's all ready to reality.

[228] So rights and responsibilities go together.

[229] That's another element, just basic to justice, that we've lost touch with.

[230] Well, we're going to take a quick break, but I want to remind everybody the 14th of January, Johnny Romero, Jesse's brother and myself are going to be doing a conference here at the Sacred Heart Chapel on evangelization.

[231] and you can get more information by going to vmpr .org or you can register by calling 877 -526 -2151.

[232] When we come back, I just want to have one more tweet because today is the celebration of St. John of the Cross.

[233] And when you hear the story of St. John the Cross, I think of how the saints are our models.

[234] I'll give you a teaser, everybody.

[235] his own order put him in jail and whipped the guy and beat him up because he was trying to preach the truths of the faith sound familiar when we come back we'll talk more about that stay with his family welcome back to the bishop strickland hour and uh i gave a little teaser someone said in the studio they what did that really happen to st john yeah uh bishop strickland sent a a tweet out about his feet and you said the story of St. John of the cross is a stark reminder of Jesus's words.

[236] Anyone who wishes to be my disciple must take up his cross and follow me. St. John bore multiple crosses through his life, but he achieved sainthood because he bore them for the Lord.

[237] Let's do the same.

[238] See, there are models.

[239] Bishop Strickland, before you make a comment, I just want you to know that I, I I read this story how St. John of the Cross was just kind of like in our own time.

[240] He was concerned about his own order that they were a little too progressive.

[241] And so he was trying to reform the order.

[242] And I didn't realize, maybe you knew this, I didn't know it until today.

[243] Because you do research and you're like, well, this is great about our faith.

[244] I'm still learning.

[245] He was in the Jesuits for a point of time in his life and then left the Jesuit order to become a Carmelite.

[246] And then Teresa of Abula met up with him and said, hey, isn't the way he said.

[247] We said, hey, I need you to help me reform the men.

[248] I'll reform the women.

[249] And he told St. Teresa Vabula, hey, wait a minute.

[250] Actually, I'm going to the Carthusians.

[251] And I didn't know that.

[252] The Carthusians are one of the toughest orders in the church.

[253] I have former employees of mine who are Carthusian monks.

[254] And believe me, when I saw their schedule, they're tough dudes.

[255] So St. Teresa of Abula convinced him, don't become a Carthusian, be a Carmelite and let's reform the order.

[256] Well, my goodness, they got so mad at him.

[257] They put him in jail for nine months, and they used to beat him with a whip.

[258] And my understanding, correct me if I'm wrong on this, but he escaped his prison.

[259] And some people have identified lay people, lay people undermine and getting him out of jail and I'm going to make a joke are you ready bishop strickland if they throw you in jail i'll do my best to get you out of jail all right go ahead tell me about john of the cross i had to share that thanks terry yeah well the reason i tweeted that it just struck me that he was born with the cross yeah it's born into poverty that's right you know so many of the saint a lot of the saints were in wealthy families are successful and even had to careers and then turn to the Lord St. John of the Cross was born in poverty and really never had any worldly success.

[260] And then, as you said, wanted to become a Carthusian and St. Teresa, sorry.

[261] St. Teresa Vabella said helped me reform the car And then he ends up in prison with them.

[262] It's just a reminder to us that Jesus didn't say, if you want to be my disciple, you might want to take up your cross.

[263] He said you must.

[264] Amen.

[265] And we tend to, just as a culture and even as Catholics, we want to leave the cross out.

[266] of the picture.

[267] Certainly, we want everlasting life with God.

[268] And I think part of the mystery in St. John is a great mystic and doctor of the church.

[269] His writings are beautiful in that flow from his own embracing the cross.

[270] And I guess that to me is the main lesson, sort of the foundational lesson that we need to learn what St. John of the cross reminds us is that we are going to have crosses.

[271] We don't need to necessarily, I mean, sure, we should do penance.

[272] We should choose, you know, the small things that we can do to remind ourselves that the material things in this world and all the things that this world offers us doesn't really feed us.

[273] I mean, that's what penance and carrying our cross is about.

[274] But I think the beauty of St. John of the cross is that he had crosses that he didn't choose.

[275] He didn't say, hey, throw me in prison.

[276] But as he bore those crosses, he embraced it to be drawn closer to the Lord.

[277] It ends up a saint and doctor of the church.

[278] That's what we're all called to do is whatever crosses come our way.

[279] And frankly, as two men in one bishop, a layman um in this time yeah but because we speak the truth their crosses to bear with that there's the ways that you're mocked or misunderstood or told that you're just uh you know caught up in in the dark things or whatever people want to say and all of that st john of the cross and i'm sure he does the same for you, but it strengthens me to just be reminded that, you know, what he knew what it was really about.

[280] And we've also, as, you know, just before today, this week we celebrated our lady of Guadalupe.

[281] Yes.

[282] And that comes to mind because, you know, there certainly is a cross, But there's also the great joys and the great blessings that, I mean, like St. Juan Diego, now as saint, the peasant man that our lady of Guadalupe appeared to, probably there where you are.

[283] It's similar to here in East Texas.

[284] The Mexican people, and we have a lot of people from Mexico that are now here in this diocese.

[285] big they do a beautiful job of celebrating our lady of guadalupe oh yeah and they have a real love for her here we are 500 years later and the phenomenon of conversion that happened in mexico is still maybe the greatest single conversion of a culture that's ever happened in christianity 500 it'll be 500 years 531 yeah 531 1531 was the date yep in 2031 it will be 500 years and the but like something like 5 million people converted and that the power of that you can still see in the faith of the Mexican people yeah and certainly many others of many other cultures, but they receive that gift because in many ways the world still kind of looks at Mexico as this sort of third world, lower class country, culture.

[286] And Mary went there directly because she knew that they would embrace the truth of her son, the greatest treasure of all.

[287] So I think it's all connected to recognizing and embracing our cross, in a sense, that's what Juan Diego did as well.

[288] So I think that that's important during these Advent days to remember.

[289] And I've had the chance to see the Tilma of our Lady of Guadalupe as close as you can now.

[290] It's under all kinds of protection because people have tried to.

[291] destroy it yeah i mean that's another note i think we need to remember i mean this i don't know when this bombing happened but it was years ago it wasn't something recent sadly probably wouldn't surprise us if these days if we heard somebody tried to attack the image of our lady of guan lupé but through the ages evil has been real and evil has raised its ugly head and tried to bring harm But thankfully, the image wasn't destroyed.

[292] The altar around it and everything was, but the image.

[293] And you may have seen the bent crucifix that just basically bent double from the bomb.

[294] Exactly.

[295] But the image of our lady of Guadalupe was left intact.

[296] Wow.

[297] Another just part of that story of the image, I mentioned.

[298] this, just to, it helps make it more, I mean, I believe in it, and I know it's real, but I think it's just sort of one of those serendipitous kind of elements that I never knew, but I always kind of wondered.

[299] And maybe you've looked at the image of Our Lady of Guad Lupin.

[300] Yes.

[301] And you may have known this already.

[302] I didn't know it until last June when we went there to the museum that's dedicated to the image of Our Lady of Guad Lupe.

[303] but we had the ordination of a priest there at the basilica for the diocese and we went to the museum and I asked the question why does the image it kind of looks like the very top was cut off and it turns out it was in history of course you know people didn't have the all the understandings that we had have.

[304] I mean, they knew it was a treasure.

[305] So in that way, it does surprise me that they, but they probably thought, well, this is the best way we can protect it.

[306] But they had a frame that it didn't quite fit into.

[307] And so they cut off the, not interfering with our lady's face in the image or anything, but the top of the corona, which had a crown there at the top.

[308] It was cut off.

[309] And if you look at the actual image or an authentic duplication of the image now, it's cut off.

[310] That corona, which should extend to be like an arch, it's cut off flat.

[311] And that's the reason because the frame wasn't big enough.

[312] And I just mentioned that because we need those things to be real and to know that the Lord has spoken through his mother to the people of Mexico.

[313] and to all of the Americas.

[314] And those little things, I know for me and I think for all of us, it helps us to stand up and to resist the false messages and not just knuckle under and say, oh, well, yeah, okay, I'll just let you say some things it's not true if you'll leave me alone.

[315] But to know that we've got to speak the truth because Guadalupe and all the teachings of Christ are the reality that guides us to God.

[316] Well, Sid, when we come back, we're going to open up our catechism.

[317] The Diocese of Tyler, Texas has a catechism called The Way of Christ, and we're going to continue to study our faith because this is an important element of building our faith, giving us reasons for our faith.

[318] Stay with us, family.

[319] You're listening to the Bishop Strickland Hour on Virgin Most Power Radio.

[320] Welcome back to the Bishop Strickman Hour.

[321] We're going to join to a catechristin Hour.

[322] Again, I'll repeat the Way of Christ Catechism, published by the Diocese of Tyler, Texas.

[323] You can check that out by the St. Philip Institute.

[324] There's a video with it, so it can walk you right along.

[325] This is so important to study our faith.

[326] Some of this stuff I know you're going to say, I knew that, but you know what most of the time you're going to say?

[327] I didn't know that.

[328] So let's start with the section right here on what is Scripture, because I mean that's critical to us.

[329] We're always talking about the Bible.

[330] here it starts with scripture is the inspired word of God in written form the Bible is a collection of 73 inspired books divided into two parts the Old Testament and the New Testament the Old Testament contains 46 books that tell how God prepared humanity for Jesus and then the New Testament contains 27 books that recount Jesus's life death and resurrection, and tell the history of the Apostolic Church, through the Acts of the Apostles and proclaim Jesus' teachings.

[331] Bishop Strickland, I want to get your take because my thought is whenever I talk about Scripture, I like to talk about the inerrancy of Scripture.

[332] Dr. Scott Hahn really educated me as a young man 35 years ago, and he did a six -cd -set on the inerrancy of Scripture.

[333] And if people want to get a copy of it, really it's important.

[334] If you really love scripture, you want to have Dr. Hahn, in my opinion, one of the better scripture scholars in the church today, just go to vmpr .org or call us at 877 -526215.

[335] So your thoughts on why is it important to know what the church teaches about the Bible?

[336] Your thoughts?

[337] Well, it's critical.

[338] One thing that I like to remind everyone of is, As the catechism tells us, the scriptures are Christ.

[339] Yes.

[340] In the great mystery that is Jesus Christ, what this paragraph talks about, it's talking about Jesus, because he is the word.

[341] Amen.

[342] Eternal.

[343] The truth that is recorded in the books of the Old and New Testament are all about Jesus, even before his name is used, because it is.

[344] He's the eternal word.

[345] He's the incarnate word of God.

[346] So I think that's a critical reminder for all of us of why the Bible is sacred.

[347] And to me, it just pulls it all together that we tend to live in a world where there's truth and compartments, oh, there's scientific truth, or there's natural truth, or this truth is of God.

[348] Jesus Christ is the font of truth coming from the font of truth.

[349] Coming from the father.

[350] He is the word.

[351] And so sacred scripture is really the truth, the word that's been revealed to humanity through the ages and the old and the New Testaments and is now given to us in written form to guide us.

[352] And so when you embrace scripture in that way, then like you we're talking about Dr. Hahn in the inherency scripture, it logically follows, and it's important to remember God is truth.

[353] Amen.

[354] God can't proclaim or offer anything that isn't true.

[355] So the inherency of Scripture is because it comes from God, and it comes from the fond of truth himself.

[356] Right.

[357] And so that helps us as humans, because sometimes if you look at, and I think this is one of the great principles that I learned, I'm no great Catholic scripture scholar, but one of the principles that is very important is that you don't isolate one text from all the rest.

[358] Right.

[359] It really fits back with what is scripture?

[360] It is the truth that Jesus Christ embodies.

[361] Yes.

[362] And so when you're taking one verse away from that context, away from the body of truth, then you're easily distorting it.

[363] And I think that's what gets done so easily, especially in the Protestant world where very often, I mean, I live in a very Protestant part of the world where the dominant culture is Protestant Christianity.

[364] We get along well because, you know, any believing Christians really need to support each other.

[365] Yeah.

[366] Amen.

[367] But there is that approach to scripture that likes to isolate one verse out of the rest.

[368] And when you do that, you can almost verse by verse go and find another scripture passage that at least in some way contradicts what you have in this verse.

[369] And you start to get confused.

[370] But if you bring it all back together and remember that it's one corpus of truth, one body, and that it all is coherent in the one truth that shines forth from Jesus Christ, then it helps us.

[371] it humbles us.

[372] It makes us as human beings recognize that we're never seeing the whole truth.

[373] What the church teaches us is that scripture and now tradition and the whole teaching of the church, we have the truth that God is revealed that is necessary for our salvation.

[374] But God hasn't revealed everything about, I mean, we've discovered a lot scientifically.

[375] that is beautiful when it is science seeing more clearly the way God has written creation.

[376] God is the code writer for creation.

[377] And when we see that more clearly, it's beautiful.

[378] But I think in our time, when that gets disconnected from God from the true author, then like we were talking about earlier, with some of the things going on in the world and the evil and the godlessness, then we get ourselves in big trouble because we've got to stay rooted in the truth.

[379] So the Bible, sacred scripture, is foundational to all believers.

[380] Well, Sadd, and I want to remind everybody in this catechism, they give the catechism with the Catholic Church paragraphs like this.

[381] Next one we're going to talk about, what does it mean scriptures inspired?

[382] And it gives you paragraph 107, and 112 as an additional reference, and I would, I'll read this paragraph, but if you can take a look at the catechism, paragraph 106 and 112, this is really an important aspect.

[383] It says, what does it mean that scripture is inspired?

[384] Well, it's inspired means breath breathed into.

[385] Inspiration means God is the author of the scripture and used human authors writing the ability and knowledge of to express his meaning, God did not dictate to the human author everything to write.

[386] Instead, by the inspiration of God, the human author used his talents and abilities to compose all and only that which God intended.

[387] Your thoughts.

[388] Well, I think it does express the critical understanding of inspired and, as that paragraph says, breathe into.

[389] And a key element there is the truth came from somewhere besides ourselves.

[390] It's not just a formula that we created.

[391] It came from us outside the human reality.

[392] It came from God.

[393] It was inspired, breathed into us by God himself.

[394] And that I think is important because we've talked a lot about revealed truth.

[395] That's what this is.

[396] Inspired truth.

[397] God is revealing himself.

[398] He is the wonder of truth.

[399] He's the wonder of love.

[400] And God has chosen because he loves us to reveal himself to us.

[401] But we've got to keep it in that context and recognize the truth that we know comes from God because God has chosen to reveal it to us.

[402] Well, said, I want to give a teaser for next.

[403] week's show because we're going to talk about how did the scriptures come together I always have a line I say which came first the Bible or the church and it's a fascinating study I remember as a youngster asking that question and finding out wow I didn't know for like you know 300 and some years there was no canon for the scriptures and it was the authority of the Catholic church that put that list together so I joke with my Protestant friends and say you should be thanking us.

[404] Our church gave you the Bible.

[405] And you know what's beautiful a detail about that that I love is it wasn't just the church, a bunch of bishops getting together or whatever.

[406] It grew out of the liturgy herself.

[407] Exactly.

[408] That's a key point.

[409] Out of the mass. Oh, yeah.

[410] So what was being proclaimed at mass, that's right.

[411] They said, yes, that rings true.

[412] And so the church discerned these that's where the canon came from it came out of prayer it came out of the greatest prayer of all the mass and the very heart of the church and that's what we're going to talk about next week we're going to talk about what it means where does it mean how did we get the scriptures because it's a fascinating topic and I just think when I mention that to people they usually ask well I'm not sure how did it come but that's a legitimate question and Catholics should know the answer because it's really important.

[413] Bishop Strickland, this is the end of the year.

[414] Christmas is coming.

[415] I'm going to make the pitch for you.

[416] Yes, I'm a salesman.

[417] I used to sell real estate on planet Earth.

[418] Now I sell real estate for heaven.

[419] I want to encourage our listeners to support the Diocese of Tyler, Texas.

[420] How financially, yeah, prayerfully too.

[421] They'll take your prayers in your...

[422] But I really do because I know you have seminarians that need to be formed correctly.

[423] housed, educated, you've got all kinds of needs.

[424] And if you had more funding, more work for the church would be done.

[425] So if people can go to the Diocese of Tyler, Texas, they have a website.

[426] You just Google it.

[427] It'll be there.

[428] And, you know, I'm sure they'll acknowledge it, but even if they don't say, I just want to give a little donation to help you, Bishop Strickland, because all of our listeners know that you're not going to put out any kind of wokeness, you know, where, you know, diocese is doing things that is more concerned about, you know, this life rather than the next.

[429] Not that we can't do social justice, we need to do that, but we also need to teach people the faith and through the St. Philip Institute, that resource also needs funding.

[430] So go to the diocese of Tyler, Texas.

[431] How about a blessing for our listeners, Bishop Strickman?

[432] Almighty God, we ask your blessing for Terry Barber and all of his associates.

[433] And for all that are listening to this program, that we may continue to grow in the wondrous truth that you've offered us through your son, may all the saints, especially the Queen of Saints, the Immaculate Virgin Mary, intercede for us.

[434] We ask this in the name of the Father and the Son of the Holy Spirit.

[435] Amen.

[436] Thank you again, Bishop Strickland, and I hope you're back on your feet with your health next week.

[437] And again, you can listen to any of these shows by going to vmpr .org.

[438] All the podcasts are there for you.

[439] May God richly bless you and your family and keep doing what you're doing for Advent.

[440] Get the confession.

[441] I just went.

[442] It's refreshing for the soul because life is short and eternity is forever.

[443] God love you.