Far less than meets the eye

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Ecumenism is the Universal Solvent of Tradition .

Matt 16:18 Why did Jesus bring His disciples to Caesarea Phillipi?






Therefore, the reference to being in the area of Caesarea Philippi makes a strong case that Jesus was making a huge contrast.  On the one hand there was this huge wall of rock and the city built on top of it that was dedicated to false gods.  On the other hand there was Simon, now made the real Rock, Peter, upon whom Jesus would build His Church that would give glory and honor to the One, True God - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Peter became the Rock because it was the Rockness of Christ that worked through him.  The importance of Caesarea Philippi and why Jesus would have wanted to make an analogy here is made more apparent in Part IV.






http://www.defendingthebride.com/ch/ca/rock1.html


Fr. William Most

Daniel: Chapter 2: During the second year of the reign of Nabuchodonosor, the king had a dream (Problem of second year explained above). He 

called all the wise men, including the "Chaldeans". The word has two meanings 1) members of that nation 2) a special class of  astrologer-soothsayers. 

The king demands that they tell him what
dream he had and then interpret it. They were unable, and said no  king had ever asked such a thing. If they had the picture of the  dream, they could devise something, and the king knew it. 

Being a real tyrant, the king said he would have them torn apart - no metaphor - In the most literal way of understanding the expression  'You shall be made into limbs", the arms and legs would be tied to  four trees near each other, with the tops of the trees roped together. When the upper rope would be released, the trees would spring back literally tearing the victim to pieces. Or, they might
be hacked to pieces with swords and axes. So the king ordered that it be done to them, including Daniel and associates. The reason: they had claimed special powers, but now were proved to be fakes.

When Daniel heard of it he asked to see Arioch, the king's captain, and got him to beg a bit of time from the king. Daniel and his friends then prayed. Then he went to the king and said he could interpret the dream, not by his own power, but by the power and wisdom of God.

Daniel told the king that he, the king, had begun to think of "days to come".- this expression first appears in Gen 49.1 at the start of the prophecy made by Jacob. It also occurs in Dt. 4.30,
in 31.39, in Is 2.2, Ezek 38.16 and in Dan 10.14.

In his dream, the king had seen a giant statue, terrible to behold. The head was gold, standing for the power of Nabuchodonosor. Obviously, the first king, the golden head, is the Babylonian kingdom.

Then other kingdoms: breast and arms of silver, belly and thighs of bronze, and legs of iron with its feet part iron, part clay. 

The mixture foretells a mixed people which would not hold up  because of the mixture of iron and clay- which do not blend. Perhaps there would be an alliance by marriage, which would not
last.

After that would come another kingdom that will never be destroyed. For a rock cut out of a mountain, without human hands, would break the previous kingdoms to pieces, the gold, silver, and bronze and iron. The stone that was cut out without hands would stand forever.

And we know who is the rock and who established His Church on the rock, Peter.

And how can you tell if you are a member of His One True Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church?

Hear St. Robert Bellarmine: The Church is the visible society of the validly baptised faithful, united in one organic body by the profession of the same Christian faith, by participation of the same Sacrifice, and the same seven sacraments, under the authority of the Sovereign Pontiff and the bishops in common with him.

Thus, our sedevacantist friends are not in the Church and we must pray they return before they die and stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ to answer for their perfidy.