Choose a topic from Vol 2:

God

Proof of God's existence
God's nature
Supreme control over all things and the problem of suffering and evil

Man

Destiny of man
Death
Immortality of man's soul
Pre-existence denied
The human free will
Determinism absurd

Religion

Necessity of religion
Salvation of the soul
Voice of science
Religious racketeers
Divine revelation
Revealed mysteries
Existence of miracles

The Religion of the Bible

Gospels historical
Missing Books of the Bible
The Bible inspired
Biblical account of creation
New Testament problems
Supposed contradictions in Sacred Scripture

The Christian Faith

Source of Christian teaching
Jewish rejection of Christ
Christianity a new religion
Rational foundation for belief
Causes of unbelief

A Definite Christian Faith

Divisions amongst Christians
Schisms unjustified
Facing the problem
The wrong approach
Is one religion as good as another?
Obligation of inquiry
Charity and tolerance

The Protestant Reformation

Meaning of "Protestant"
Causes of the Reformation
Catholic reaction
Reformers mistaken
The idealization of Protestantism
The Catholic estimate

The Truth of Catholicism

Meaning of the word "Church"
Origin of the Church
The Catholic claim
The Roman hierarchy
The Pope
The Petrine text
St. Peter's supremacy
St. Peter in Rome
Temporal power
Infallibility
Unity of the Church
Holiness of the Church
Catholicity of the Church
Apostolicity of the Church
Indefectibility of the Church
Obligation to be a Catholic

The Church and the Bible

Catholic attitude towards the Bible
Is Bible reading forbidden to Catholics?
Protestant Bibles
The Catholic Douay Version
Principle of private interpretation
Need of Tradition
The teaching authority of the Catholic Church

The Dogmas of the Church

Revolt against dogma
Value of a Creed
The divine gift of Faith
Faith and reason
The "Dark Ages"
The claims of science
The Holy Trinity
Creation and evolution
Angels
Devils
Man
Reincarnation
Sin
Christ
Mary
Grace and salvation
The Sacraments
Baptism
Confession
Holy Eucharist
The Sacrifice of the Mass
Holy Communion
The Catholic Priesthood
Marriage and divorce
Extreme Unction
Judgment
Hell
Purgatory
Indulgences
Heaven
The resurrection of the body
The end of the world

The Church and Her Moral Teachings

Conscience
Truth
Charity
Scandal
Tolerance
Censorship
The Inquisition
Astrology
Other superstitions
Attendance at Mass
Sex education
Attitude to "Free Love"
Abortion
Suicide

The Church in Her Worship

Magnificent edifices
Lavish ritual
Women in Church
Catholics and "Mother's Day"
Liturgical Days
Burial rites
Candles and votive lamps
The rosary
Lourdes water
The Scapular

The Church and Social Welfare

Social influence of the Church
The education question
The Church and world distress
Catholic attitude towards Capitalism
The remedy for social ills
Communism condemned
The Fascist State
Morality of war
May individuals become soldiers?
The Church and peace
Capital punishment
Catholic Action

Comparative Study of Non-Catholic Denominations

Defections from the Catholic Church
Gnosticism
Manichaeism
Arianism
Nestorianism
Eutychianism
Coptic Church
Greek Orthodox Church
Anglican Episcopal Church
The "Free" or "Nonconformist" Churches
Presbyterianism
Methodism
Church of Christ
Baptists
Seventh Day Adventists
Plymouth Brethren
Catholic Apostolic Church or Irvingites
Salvation Army
Spiritualism
Christian Science
Christadelphians
British Israelism
Liberal Catholics
Witnesses of Jehovah
Buchmanism or the "Oxford Group Movement"
From Protestantism to Catholicism

To and From Rome

Conversion of Cardinal Newman
Why Gladstone refrained
The peculiar case of Lord Halifax
Gibbon the historian
Secession of Father Chiniquy
Father Tyrrell, the modernist
Bishop Garrett's departure
Judgment on lapsed Catholics
Protestant apathy towards conversion of Catholics
Principles for converts to Catholicism
God's will that all should become Catholics

Principle of private interpretation

466. Have not Catholics to read even their own DouayVersion subject to the direction of their Church?

They read the Bible with the conviction that any sense whichwould be opposed to the express teaching of the Catholic Churchwould undoubtedly be an erroneous interpretation. And they knowthat their Church alone is the only ultimate and infallibleinterpreter of its pages. Individual readers are ever liable to bemistaken; but the Catholic Church cannot fall into error in anyexpress definitions concerning the contents of Sacred Scripture.Our conviction is that God confided the inspired writings to theguardianship of a living and infallible Church. The written pagescannot explain themselves. The living voice of an authenticinterpreter is necessary. And God has provided that in the CatholicChurch.

467. Surely any person with the capacity to read andunderstand the law of our country would be able to read andunderstand the Bible.

How many men have the capacity to read and understand the law ofour country? An ordinary man might manage some of the easier andsimpler laws; but highly trained lawyers could wrangle for weeksover individual laws, and even then differ as to their rightinterpretation. Yet even though the average man could fullyunderstand human legislation, the Bible is God's revelation ofa supernatural order of truth far deeper than the product of humanthinking; and conflicting conclusions are proof that men have notmanaged to understand it.

468. Can it be interpreted safely only by Catholicpriests?

Not always by them. Priests have made mistakes again and againin the interpretation of Scripture. In many cases the only reallysafe guide is the authentic ruling of the Catholic Church, to whichpriests and laity alike must submit. The ordinary priests do notconstitute the teaching authority of the Church. The Bishops collectively and in union with the Pope constitute theauthoritative Catholic teaching body. And their guidance is oftenneeded, even in what would seem to be most obvious. For example,the few words, "This is my body," seem clear enough. Yetmen have proposed a dozen conflicting interpretations of thosewords!

469. If God is the Author of Scripture, was Heincapable of making it so clear that no one could doubt itsmeaning?

To that I must say that even God could not make written words soclear that no one could doubt their meaning. But the fault is noton God's side. It is due to the limitations of men. I havestudied Aristotelian philosophy for years, and have taught thatsubject. Whose fault would it be if I could not write a treatise onthe metaphysics of Aristotle totally devoid of obscurity for aclass of children whose ages ranged from eight to ten years old?The fault would lie in the lack of capacity in the children. Andthe distance between the supernatural mysteries of revelation andthe highest natural wisdom is infinitely greater than between themetaphysics of Aristotle and the mind of an untrained child.

470. Did God designedly make the Bible so obscurethat people would be forced to seek guidance of the Church tounderstand it?

No. The establishing of a teaching Church was not a consequenceof the obscurity of Scripture, as if God had really intended theBible to be the guide of men, but found that it would not work, andthen decided to establish the Church. Scripture was never intendedto be the final guide of men. God primarily intended to have a bodyof men appointed to teach in His name. Thus, in the Old Law, Hesays, "The lips of the priest shall keep knowledge, and theyshall seek the law at his mouth." As long as the Old Lawobliged, Christ referred the people to that authority. In Matt.XXIII., 2, He says, "The Scribes and Pharisees have sitten onthe chair of Moses. All things whatsoever they shall say to you,observe and do." In the New Law He substituted the Apostolicbody and their successors as teachers in His name. Some years afterthe Catholic Church had commenced her work of teaching mankind, asecondary record of some of the events of Christ's life, and ofsome of His teachings and of those of the Apostles was made. Thatsecondary record is contained in the New Testament; and itscollected Books are the "family papers" of the CatholicChurch. She owns them, and alone has the right to give theauthentic interpretation of their meaning.

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