Tim Staples, a popular (though unscholarly) Catholic apologist recently republished an article against LDS claims to authority here (it has appeared elsewhere, including his book, Nuts and Bolts). Much of his understanding of, and arguments against the Latter-day Saint understanding of apostasy and restoration is grossly misunderstood (see this post offering a bibliography of the best books on the Apostasy/Restoration by LDS scholars). This post will not be a direct refutation of Staples’ article, but instead, will ask questions for Roman apologists, like Staples, who assume (falsely) a priori that Rome teaches the same doctrines and dogmas as the New Testament Church--
1. Why did the earliest Church Fathers (e.g., Irenaeus) accuse Mary of personal sin in texts such as John 2:4, when Rome teaches that the Immaculate Conception has been a doctrine that has always been a belief in the Church (being part of “apostolic tradition”)? The idea of Mary being "sinless" is a much later development, and even later is her being exempt from original sin. Indeed, her exemption from original sin was a belief the majority of Medieval theologians rejected, as even Ludwig Ott, John Salza, and other Catholic theologians and apologists admit (it would not be dogmatised until 1854 by Pope Pius IX).
2. Why is there no evidence whatsoever, even among patristic authors who held to a strong “corporeal” understanding of “this is my body/blood” in the Last Supper narratives (e.g., Cyprian of Carthage), that Christians worshipped the consecrated Eucharistic host and wine until the second millennium? According to the Council of Trent, it is proper to give “latria” (same veneration/worship reserved for God only) to them.
3. Why is there no evidence whatsoever for the Bodily Assumption of Mary in the opening centuries of Christian history, let alone it being held up as a doctrine of the faith, until several centuries after this (fictional) event? For a full-blown study of the origins of this belief, see Stephen Shoemaker’s Ancient Traditions of the Virgin Mary's Dormition and Assumption (Oxford: 2003).
4. According to the Second Council of Nicea (AD 787), the veneration of saints and images is not only proper, but part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and yet, why is it that the earliest Christians unanimously rejected the veneration of images, including the same theological presuppositions this council, and modern Catholicism, teaches (e.g., the veneration one gives ultimately goes to the heavenly prototype, not the image per se)?
5. According to Vatican I (1869-70), “Peter = the Rock” has been the unanimous understanding of Matthew 16:16-19, and yet, according to the majority of patristic exegetes of this text, the “rock” in this pericope is understood to be the faith of Peter and/or his confession that Jesus is the Christ. While some Catholics will claim that there is no real distinction between the person of Peter and his faith, a number of fathers (e.g., John Chrysostom) differentiate between the confession and person of Peter. For careful studies of this and similar issues which refute Roman claims to authority, see George Salmon, Infallibility of the Church (1888); Janus (pen name for Ignatius Von Döllinger), The Pope and the Council (1869) and Edward Denny, Papalism (1912). For a recent study, see William Webster, The Matthew 16 Controversy (1996). Such volumes also show what the dogma of papal infallibility is an utter myth (e.g., Honorius; Zosiumus; Vigilius, etc).
6. In Roman Catholic dogma, Mary is a perpetual virgin. If this is the case, how come the authors of the New Testament, when one engages in meaningful exegesis of the biblical texts, operate under the assumption that normal sexual relations took place between Mary and Joseph after the birth of Jesus, and the overwhelming linguistic and exegetical evidence against any other reading of the texts speaking of the “brothers” and “sisters” than uterine siblings? For more, see chapter 3 of Eric D. Svendsen’s 2001 book, Who is My Mother? The Role and Status of the Mother of Jesus in the New Testament and Roman Catholicism; for a contrast in scholarly and exegetical methodologies, see Staples’ own book on Mary, Behold your Mother (Catholic Answers, 2014).
7. According to many Catholic apologists, without an infallible decree about the contents of the biblical canon, one cannot be sure of the Bible. If this is the case, does that mean that faithful Catholics were uncertain of the Bible and its contents until 1546 when Trent issued the decree about the canon? Furthermore, if one wishes to appeal to Carthage and other councils, realise that, in Catholic theology, such local councils were not infallible and, additionally, the Tridentine canon list does not match the earlier lists from these late fourth/early fifth century councils (see the New Catholic Encyclopaedia article's discussion of 1 and 2 Esdras in the canon list from Carthage and how it differs from Trent). Also, was Jerome and others (e.g., Cardinal Thomas Cajetan) in apostasy when they rejected the Deutero-canonical (Apocryphal) books as divinely inspired and authoritative?
8. Staples ends this article with the following:
Keep in mind that, if this person from 1785 queried a Catholic of his time about what the Gospel of Jesus Christ was, it would not include three dogmas he now must, under pain of anathema, believe to be definitional of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (i.e., the Immaculate Conception [1854]; Papal Infallibility [1870] and the Bodily Assumption of Mary [1950]). Perhaps one could rephrase Staples' question thusly:
Ultimately, the question posed by Staples is just empty rhetoric for those familiar with Roman Catholic theology and history.
One could go on, but one should realise that, when critiquing “Mormonism,” Catholic apologists could never use the same standards, biblically and historically, to examine the LDS faith in comparison to how they defend Catholicism. Furthermore, I have only raised issues that are central, core issues about Rome’s claims to authority, not minor issues like “bad popes” and the like. There has been, sadly, an apostasy, and what Rome teaches dogmatically about Mary, the papacy, the Mass as a propitiatory sacrifice, and other things are proofs of her being forever separated from the Church of Jesus Christ and the authority of the apostles. No amount of sophistry from the likes of Tim Staples et al. will ever change this fact.
As an aside, Tim Staples recommended Isaiah Bennet’s book, Inside Mormonism (Catholic Answers, 1998) as “that book is loaded with great information.” I would urge anyone to read Barry Bickmore’s devastating review, which puts the lie to Staples’ outlandish claim.
1. Why did the earliest Church Fathers (e.g., Irenaeus) accuse Mary of personal sin in texts such as John 2:4, when Rome teaches that the Immaculate Conception has been a doctrine that has always been a belief in the Church (being part of “apostolic tradition”)? The idea of Mary being "sinless" is a much later development, and even later is her being exempt from original sin. Indeed, her exemption from original sin was a belief the majority of Medieval theologians rejected, as even Ludwig Ott, John Salza, and other Catholic theologians and apologists admit (it would not be dogmatised until 1854 by Pope Pius IX).
2. Why is there no evidence whatsoever, even among patristic authors who held to a strong “corporeal” understanding of “this is my body/blood” in the Last Supper narratives (e.g., Cyprian of Carthage), that Christians worshipped the consecrated Eucharistic host and wine until the second millennium? According to the Council of Trent, it is proper to give “latria” (same veneration/worship reserved for God only) to them.
3. Why is there no evidence whatsoever for the Bodily Assumption of Mary in the opening centuries of Christian history, let alone it being held up as a doctrine of the faith, until several centuries after this (fictional) event? For a full-blown study of the origins of this belief, see Stephen Shoemaker’s Ancient Traditions of the Virgin Mary's Dormition and Assumption (Oxford: 2003).
4. According to the Second Council of Nicea (AD 787), the veneration of saints and images is not only proper, but part of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and yet, why is it that the earliest Christians unanimously rejected the veneration of images, including the same theological presuppositions this council, and modern Catholicism, teaches (e.g., the veneration one gives ultimately goes to the heavenly prototype, not the image per se)?
5. According to Vatican I (1869-70), “Peter = the Rock” has been the unanimous understanding of Matthew 16:16-19, and yet, according to the majority of patristic exegetes of this text, the “rock” in this pericope is understood to be the faith of Peter and/or his confession that Jesus is the Christ. While some Catholics will claim that there is no real distinction between the person of Peter and his faith, a number of fathers (e.g., John Chrysostom) differentiate between the confession and person of Peter. For careful studies of this and similar issues which refute Roman claims to authority, see George Salmon, Infallibility of the Church (1888); Janus (pen name for Ignatius Von Döllinger), The Pope and the Council (1869) and Edward Denny, Papalism (1912). For a recent study, see William Webster, The Matthew 16 Controversy (1996). Such volumes also show what the dogma of papal infallibility is an utter myth (e.g., Honorius; Zosiumus; Vigilius, etc).
6. In Roman Catholic dogma, Mary is a perpetual virgin. If this is the case, how come the authors of the New Testament, when one engages in meaningful exegesis of the biblical texts, operate under the assumption that normal sexual relations took place between Mary and Joseph after the birth of Jesus, and the overwhelming linguistic and exegetical evidence against any other reading of the texts speaking of the “brothers” and “sisters” than uterine siblings? For more, see chapter 3 of Eric D. Svendsen’s 2001 book, Who is My Mother? The Role and Status of the Mother of Jesus in the New Testament and Roman Catholicism; for a contrast in scholarly and exegetical methodologies, see Staples’ own book on Mary, Behold your Mother (Catholic Answers, 2014).
7. According to many Catholic apologists, without an infallible decree about the contents of the biblical canon, one cannot be sure of the Bible. If this is the case, does that mean that faithful Catholics were uncertain of the Bible and its contents until 1546 when Trent issued the decree about the canon? Furthermore, if one wishes to appeal to Carthage and other councils, realise that, in Catholic theology, such local councils were not infallible and, additionally, the Tridentine canon list does not match the earlier lists from these late fourth/early fifth century councils (see the New Catholic Encyclopaedia article's discussion of 1 and 2 Esdras in the canon list from Carthage and how it differs from Trent). Also, was Jerome and others (e.g., Cardinal Thomas Cajetan) in apostasy when they rejected the Deutero-canonical (Apocryphal) books as divinely inspired and authoritative?
8. Staples ends this article with the following:
One way to know is to ask another simple question: What if you were living in, let’s say, 1785, and you were to read this very passage from St. Matthew. You could know that Jesus would never lead you to a “church” with no one who could speak for him. In obedience to Jesus, where would you go? The LDS did not exist yet. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life. He would never lead us astray or command us to follow error. If the true church did not exist on this earth for 1,800 years, then Jesus misguided millions into obeying an error-filled church with no apostolic authority. That would be unthinkable.
Keep in mind that, if this person from 1785 queried a Catholic of his time about what the Gospel of Jesus Christ was, it would not include three dogmas he now must, under pain of anathema, believe to be definitional of the Gospel of Jesus Christ (i.e., the Immaculate Conception [1854]; Papal Infallibility [1870] and the Bodily Assumption of Mary [1950]). Perhaps one could rephrase Staples' question thusly:
"If Rome is the true Church, then it misguided countless millions into obeying an incomplete Gospel in 1785. That would be unthinkable."
Ultimately, the question posed by Staples is just empty rhetoric for those familiar with Roman Catholic theology and history.
One could go on, but one should realise that, when critiquing “Mormonism,” Catholic apologists could never use the same standards, biblically and historically, to examine the LDS faith in comparison to how they defend Catholicism. Furthermore, I have only raised issues that are central, core issues about Rome’s claims to authority, not minor issues like “bad popes” and the like. There has been, sadly, an apostasy, and what Rome teaches dogmatically about Mary, the papacy, the Mass as a propitiatory sacrifice, and other things are proofs of her being forever separated from the Church of Jesus Christ and the authority of the apostles. No amount of sophistry from the likes of Tim Staples et al. will ever change this fact.
As an aside, Tim Staples recommended Isaiah Bennet’s book, Inside Mormonism (Catholic Answers, 1998) as “that book is loaded with great information.” I would urge anyone to read Barry Bickmore’s devastating review, which puts the lie to Staples’ outlandish claim.