But We're Just Getting Started!

I've started and stopped about 3 blogs now, for various reasons, and this time it's for a *GOOD* reason. I've come to the startling realisation that my blogging, while rooted in a sincere desire to share the riches of the Catholic faith and worldview, is a premature endeavor by an immature Christian. I love to learn - and to dare to teach in an unaccountable forum like this broaches sheer hubris. I can't overstate what a joy it is to soak in the blessings of the catholic faith and the beauty of Western Civilisation, but my credentials are no better than the average layman.

I bid all my brethren, all who love the adorable Trinity, and who were made partakers of the Redemption in Christ through faith and the washing of regeneration, blessings and prosperity. My absence will be relatively brief (about a 3 year sabbatical), and do hope to come back with something remotely intelligible and helpful. The Internet for all its advantages has that uncanny alchemy which turns blathering idiots into seeming oracles and seers. I am no seer, no oracle, no prophet. I'm barely a Christian. If I can do that with a modicum of integrity then I'll be doing well.

Any here who wish to reach me (there are some I'd love to keep in touch), may do so:

a m s _ b o e t h i u s

[AT]

b e l l s o u t h . n e t

Blessings, my brethren.

De Potentia Promissioque Baptismi - Part IV

Chapter III - Baptism and Purification Under Mosaic Law

Previously we had set forth the themes of rebirth (beginning anew) and redemption (saving from bondage) as found in portions of Genesis and Exodus, but now seek to lift that of purification (washing for service) into view for our consideration. Purification language is a recurring subject across the Old Tetament landscape; and picking up where we left off we want to obtain a comprehensive, if not exhaustive, sampling of such language in our preparation for commentary on the New Testament baptismal texts. This we shall do over the course of a few chapters.

Purification rites by the washing of water is found virtually in all ancient religions. This universal impulse testifies to the instinctual knowledge that the profane and unclean must be made holy and pure, fit for the gods or in service of the gods. The Hebrew religion also recognizes things clean and unclean. Man and beast can be clean or unclean, but unlike beasts of distinction, only man can be ritually made clean. The well-known phrase, "Cleanliness is next to godliness," though not likely of Hebrew origin, is a profound axiom in the context of ancient Jewish rite and ceremony.

Washing and purification are applied in Old Testament baptismal theology to both garments and flesh, being symbolic of the inward reality that man's heart is either upright or wicked, clean or unclean. The First Man, Adam, had no such covering until the fall, indicating that righteousness could only be obtained through the forgiveness of sin that God provides: in this case his covering was animal skin, which Jehovah obtained through the shedding of blood. However, the standard apparel in the ancient world was wool or cotton, and therefore the symbolism for righteousness gave way to washed garments. In Exodus 19, just prior to the giving of the Law, we read that God commands Moses to prepare the people for the New Society through a formal washing. We read:

And the LORD said to Moses, "Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their garments, and be ready by the third day; for on the third day the LORD will come down upon Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. And you shall set bounds for the people round about, saying, `Take heed that you do not go up into the mountain or touch the border of it; whoever touches the mountain shall be put to death; no hand shall touch him, but he shall be stoned or shot; whether beast or man, he shall not live.' When the trumpet sounds a long blast, they shall come up to the mountain." So Moses went down from the mountain to the people, and consecrated the people; and they washed their garments. (Exodus 19:9-14)

Not only is the theology of newness and holiness through washing applied to the garments, but we find yet another striking image of washing in the context of the liturgical and ceremonial life of Israel, more specifically in the Aaronic priesthood. When God commanded Moses to construct the Tent of Meeting (the tabernacle), a means for washing and purification was included. We read:

"You shall also make a laver of bronze, with its base of bronze, for washing. And you shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it, with which Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet. When they go into the tent of meeting, or when they come near the altar to minister, to burn an offering by fire to the LORD, they shall wash with water, lest they die. They shall wash their hands and their feet, lest they die: it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his descendants throughout their generations." (Exodus 30:18-21)

The old priesthood therefore required washing to remove (symbolically and literally) filth and impurities, and rendered Aaron and his sons fit for the service of Jehovah. We see such preparation implemented at Jehovah's bidding, in the last chapter of Exodus, reading:

"You shall also anoint the laver and its base, and consecrate it. Then you shall bring Aaron and his sons to the door of the tent of meeting, and shall wash them with water, and put upon Aaron the holy garments, and you shall anoint him and consecrate him, that he may serve me as priest... And he set the laver between the tent of meeting and the altar, and put water in it for washing, with which Moses and Aaron and his sons washed their hands and their feet; when they went into the tent of meeting, and when they approached the altar, they washed;" (40:11-13, 30-32).

The constant message is that God is holy, and the ritual cleansings were prescribed to impress sensibly that divine reality. The washing of hands in Divine Service in the old Priesthood is re-applied to the Royal Priesthood in the New Testament, under the imperative to "Cleanse your hands, ye sinners" (James 4:8), because God has "purified unto Himself a peculiar people" (Titus 2:14). Those who would not regard God's holiness and pass through the rite of washing were subject to the penalty of death, prefiguring our Lord's words to St. Peter, "If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me" (John 13:8). And so what appeared in the old administration as a harsh penalty for not washing, as we will discover, becomes in the New Administration a gateway to newness of life and consecration for the New Priesthood.

De Potentia Promissioque Baptismi - Part III

Chapter II - Baptismal Themes in Exodus: Waters of Regeneration and Redemption*

*Note: I had intended on discussing the ceremonial washings in this installment, but due to the profound subject matter of the exodus of the Hebrews I decided to put off the topic only for now.

Exodus is also replete with significant baptismal themes, and therefore worth our effort to survey these and continue to build upon the Old Testament typology. Those elements which we find later in the New Testament are set in motion in the Old, with pictures and types woven into the historical-redemptive narrative. Particularly, themes of rebirth (beginning anew), redemption (saving from bondage), and purification (washing for service) are of interest to us in this chapter, as they present themselves to this end quite easily.

The Hebrew people, who began to grow and be strong in Egypt after the days of Joseph, were made slaves under the oppressive hand of Pharaoh, that they might not pose a threat to him or his nation (Exodus 1). A decree went out from the Pharaoh that all the sons born to the Hebrew women were to be "cast into the Nile" (1:22).

The future deliverer was slated for death in the Nile, and not unlike Noah before him, was preserved by a vessel that would preserve a race with him. His mother fashioned a basket "of bulrushes" sealed with "bitumen and pitch," and "put the child in it and placed it among the reeds at the river's brink" (2:2) In a miraculous turn of events, the Pharaoh's daughter finds, and eventually adopts, the child whom she names "Moses" because she "drew him out of the water" (2:5-10).

If the figure-head of the Hebrew race was delivered from evil in waters of redemption, no less did the Hebrew race itself find redemption through waters of redemption. For what transpires over the next 12 chapters of Exodus builds up to the monumental salvation of the people through the waters of the Red Sea. To omit the account would be unjust, so we read:

Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Lift up your rod, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go on dry ground through the sea. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen.

And the Egyptians shall know that I am the LORD, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.Then the angel of God who went before the host of Israel moved and went behind them; and the pillar of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them, coming between the host of Egypt and the host of Israel.

And there was the cloud and the darkness; and the night passed without one coming near the other all night. Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea; and the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night, and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. (14:15-21)

Of note, the Angel of God and the Pillar of Cloud already demonstrate Water and Spirit, yet another picture of baptism, that will be picked up by St. Paul in I Corinthians 10. But for now we also note that, by God's command and through His minister, the waters of judgment are opened up for the nation that was under a death sentence by him who enslaved them, and they passed in safety. But that is only the first glorious half of the deliverance. The second half recounts the destruction of the old creation (as in the days of Noah). The old life of death would soon be swallowed up in death, reading:

"And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. The Egyptians pursued, and went in after them into the midst of the sea, all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen... Then the LORD said to Moses, "Stretch out your hand over the sea, that the water may come back upon the Egyptians, upon their chariots, and upon their horsemen."

So Moses stretched forth his hand over the sea, and the sea returned to its wonted flow when the morning appeared; and the Egyptians fled into it, and the LORD routed the Egyptians in the midst of the sea. The waters returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all the host of Pharaoh that had followed them into the sea; not so much as one of them remained. But the people of Israel walked on dry ground through the sea, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left.

Thus the LORD saved Israel that day from the hand of the Egyptians; and Israel saw the Egyptians dead upon the seashore. And Israel saw the great work which the LORD did against the Egyptians, and the people feared the LORD; and they believed in the LORD and in his servant Moses. (14:22-31)

And therefore the song of redemption in Exodus 15 is sung by Moses and the people, retelling the salvation God wrought through the Mosaic baptism. True to form found in Genesis, God's Spirit is figured in His breath in the waters of redemption: "At the blast (wind) of Thy nostrils the waters piled up" (15:8); and judgment: "Thou didst blow with Thy wind, the sea covered them" (15:10). This dual aspect of the baptism of the Hebrews is no less preserved in Christian baptism, as we will discover later in our series.

De Potentia Promissioque Baptismi - Part II

Chapter I - The Water and Spirit in Genesis: Creation, Judgment, and Renewal


On a purely natural level, the power the sacraments exert over us is tied to the psychological impact inherent in the Divine tokens. Simply put, our human make-up is drawn to the power of symbol. This fact in no way diminishes the objective meaning of the sacraments, as they are God's instituted means of conveying spiritual realities, regardless of how sharp or dull our imaginations might be. And though the effect of the sacraments do not rely on our imaginations, nevertheless, speaking to the power of the senses, we cannot ignore the profound symbolism behind the physical instruments so wisely selected by God, that instruct -- no! preach -- His saving activity in our midst.

In the sacrament of holy baptism water is our object of instruction. It has a universal relevance to which virtually no race or nation couldn't relate. Perhaps the most fundamental of all elements, water becomes for mankind the most basic sign of life. It is accounted as the primordial building block of all that is vital for our existence.

--Creation--

In the book of Genesis we find God's Holy Spirit "hovering" or "moving over the face of the waters" (1:2), preparing to bring forth the new creation from the depths. The water is first broken up by a firmament, some of which is set in the heavenly vaults, and the rest remains beneath (1:6).

The Lord then draws up the water into its own distinct entity (1:9) revealing the land on which and out of which His crowning achievement will be made. Like the earth, the water receives its command to "bring forth swarms of living creatures" (1:20) .

In Genesis 2 the water nourishes the earth, but not in a down-pour of rain, but rather envelops the Paradise in the form of a mist (2:6). Additionally, the very Garden eastward of Eden was watered by a river, which branched into four historically named rivers: Pishon, Gihon, Tigris, and the Euphrates (2:14).

--Judgment--

The creation narrative therefore begins with the Spirit of Life over the Water, but the Principle of Death (sin) soon fills the earth. Not only was the First Man exiled from the presence of God through disobedience, but by the 6th chapter we find the entire race of men "corrupted their way upon the earth" (6:12), and the earth was "filled with violence through them" (6:13).

The Judgment that ensued was a virtual reversal of creation, for God declared, "My Spirit shall not abide in man forever, for he is flesh, but his days shall be a hundred and twenty years" (6:3), and "I will bring a flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall die" (6:17) . The Spirit's presence of life was to be removed, and the waters which brought life were now a grave.

But Noah, a righteous man who feared God, was chosen by God and commissioned to build an ark and save himself, his family, and a remnant of all animals from the earth. God graciously established a covenant with faithful Noah (6:18), that all with him would be saved through the flood. Even with an eye toward judgment, God's merciful eye looked further to the salvation of the whole world.

Nevertheless, judgment as promised came, and "on that day all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened, and rain fell upon the earth forty days and forty nights" (7:11, 12). The Spirit departed, the waters of life became death and judgment, and only God's chosen remained. All men, fowl, beasts, and creeping things were utterly destroyed (7:23), "and the waters prevailed upon the earth a hundred and fifty days" (7:24).

--Renewal--

True to His covenant, "God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the cattle that were with him in the ark. And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided" (8:1). The "wind" (Hebrew. ruach) is also "Spirit" -- and whether this is the third Person of the Blessed Trinity or a physical wind, is of little import -- God nevertheless returns to divide the waters as in Creation, setting in order what was disorder. Judgment is removed, and for 150 days the water subsides until the Ark of Salvation rests on Mt. Ararat (8:4).

Noah remained in the Ark, and at first sent out a raven to see if the waters had sufficiently subsided to leave the Ark. Next a dove was sent out from the Ark to see if it would return for lack of land. Finally, 14 days later the dove returned with an olive leaf, and the promise of salvation fulfilled.

Noah was saved through the waters and the presence of the dove carrying the olive branch confirmed Jehovah's promise. After the flood, God declares to Noah:

"Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark. I establish my covenant with you, that never again shall all flesh be cut off by the waters of a flood, and never again shall there be a flood to destroy the earth... This is the sign of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh." (9:9-18).

Next time, we shall look at how Scripture expands on water's use in liturgy and ceremony in various places of the Old Testament.

De Potentia Promissioque Baptismi ("On the Power and Promise of Baptism")- Part I

"Baptism now saves you..." I Peter 3:21

Preface

In a day when fidelity to Christian orthodoxy is rare, especially in our Anglican quarters, it would seem almost inopportune to pick up the subject of baptism when other weighty matters press us on all sides. For those of us in the so-called continuing bodies who insist on orthodox principles of morals should not become so lost in the fray as to forget the fundamental doctrines of our catholic faith. By "forget" I don't mean an absence from memory as much as a neglect of presentation.

It's my conviction that the theology of baptism is so rich and its symbolism so moving, that to speak of it in dry and remote terms smacks of sacrilige. There is therefore an intended devotional quality that may or may not come through as I would like, but the hope is that the reader will understand with the mind, feel with the heart, and cling more tightly by faith to the blessings of baptism that our Lord and His Apostles set forth in sacred Scripture.

Naturally there will be those outside the Anglican tradition who will vigorously oppose some of the ideas presented here, and for these brethren I have nothing but a loving hope that we can find agreement in the clear matters, and in the speculative matters we can pray for charity to prevail. Even so, I boldly seek out to present the catholic dogma in this matter, informed by Scripture and expounded by the Fathers. If the good reader finally objects, hopefully it will be the fault of my reasoning alone and nothing offensive in style or tone.

Blessings!

Chivalry and the Kingdom of God

Chivalry is the Christian form of the military profession; the knight is the Christian soldier. -- Leon Gautier

Leon Gautier's classic work on Chivalry has in the first three sections of the book a bold, Roman Catholic presentation of what he argues is the Christian view of warfare. Guatier asks the reader to consider whether the advancing threats in Medieval Europe (Barbarians, Musselmen, & Pagans) could have been turned back if it weren't for the Church's support of the political powers. In other words, was the "Christianised soldier" an oxymoron, or can the Kingdom of God -- whose characterstics are peace, love, and joy in the Holy Spirit -- have in its citizenry men at arms?

Gautier argues that Chilvary, while not traceable to any one event or person, spontaneously emerged across Christianized Europe though rooted in what he terms "a German custom which has been idealized by the Church" (p.2). It seems that the Germanic people's historic appetite for unbridled destruction needed an ideal to temper it and dress it up nobly. Christianity was able to do this.

On the flip-side, what business has the Church mingling with worldly powers and supporting the cause of war, especially in the light of what Her Lord had expressly stated, "My Kingdom is not of this world?" And, "He who lives by the sword will perish by the sword?" There is an apparent contradiction that weakens the idea of Chivalry, and the pacifist has explicit statements from Scripture which seem to reign in on the concept of a Christian militarism.

The theology of the medievals, in Gautier's presentation, possessed an underlying historicism which interpreted national affairs in the light of God's sovereignty. No nation was simply "attacked" -- it was either being judged for wickedness, or chastised so as to purge it, or perhaps even "punished for others" (p.3) since even individuals are personally afflicted for the salvation of others, so it can be with nations. Here's how Guatier explains it:

As soon as a nation ceases to be manly and self-sacrificing, as soon as it enters into its era of decadence, and becomes capable of rendering other nations effeminate; or again when in the midst of its prosperity and splendour it becomes tyrannical; oppresses the human conscience, and threatens the free destiny of the truth on the earth--God makes useof another people to chastise this corrupt, haughty, and dangerous nation. (p.3)

This understanding didn't detract from the reality that the Church officially "hates war" (p.2), as it is a great evil, but that she authorizes wars is philosophically defensible for those nations whose cause is just. Therefore the Old Testament war mandate to conquer by the sword in the name of Jehovah is taken away from the New Testament Church, the New Israel. She has no forcible means of advancing the Kingdom. However, since God has not abrogated government, and that institution exists for peace and justice, the Church has every right and duty to encourage the maintenance of that peace and justice. Since Europe was largely Christianized by the 9th century A.D., there was no practical way for the Church to neatly divide the Two Kingdoms. There was an overlapping in effect. The Church's worldview demanded that Christians be upright and contributing citizens, and that included participating in the affairs of the state even if the affair was war.

Gautier reminds the reader that while the general thrust of the early Church was to avoid war, and even some notable figures like Tertullian and Lactantius boldly denounced Christian participation, nevertheless the council of Arles in 314 "separated from the communion those who refused or abandoned military service" (p.7). There could be no absolute refusal to fight for a nation's cause if it conforms to the will of God.

Even if the reader does not finally agree with Gautier's explanation and defense of the history of Chivalry -- after all, it's not hard to see such entanglements in the world easily corrupting Christian testimony -- one can't but help to feel a certain gratitude that our Christian forebears had sense enough to fight under the banner of the Kingdom of God, which no doubt influenced our freedoms we have today in the West. It's also a warning to us all that no nation is exempt from conflict (maybe Switzerland is the exception to this) -- but every nation can choose either righteousness or wickedness. We can only pray that Chivalry is not lost to us in our time.

Le Courayer's Defense of Anglican Orders (Chapters 1-7)

Le Courayer, as previously mentioned, was an 18th-century Roman Catholic canon regular of St. Genevieve's Abbey in Paris (see Wikipedia article), who undertook to defend the validity of Anglican episcopal succession and her rite and form of consecration.

It was widely charged and believed by Roman Catholics that the Anglican episcopacy was broken in the case of Matthew Parker, who was Archbishop of Canterbury (1559), because there were no Catholic bishops who would consecrate him. So, as the myth goes, by secret assemby at Nag's Head tavern, one deposed bishop under Queen Mary, John Scory of Rochester, conducted the service of consecration by placing a Bible on Parker's neck saying, "Receive the power of preaching the Word of God sincerely."

Well, that story was thoroughly debunked by folks like Le Courayer, and many Roman Catholics were later ashamed that such a legend was propagated in their own ranks (which arose some 45 years after the fact of Parker's consecration). Le Courayer painstakingly compares the public Registers and dispelled any idea that Parker received invalid ordination.

More importantly, the objection to the Edwardian Ordinal raised by certain Roman Catholics at the time is just as skilfully dealt with by Le Courayer. He diligently compares the Roman Ordinal with the Edwardian Ordinal and shows that the substance of the prayers are kept intact, even if worded differently; but most of all, that the essential act of the sacrament, the laying on of hands, is present and therefore meets the requirements of valid ordination.

Le Courayer masterfully proves that Rome's rite of consecration was only 400 years old in the form that was used during the 16th century, and could not justly uphold their ritual as the standard since no monolithic service of consecration has existed if the Maronite, Greek, and Oriental churches are considered (since these omit words that the Roman rite has). This would equally invalidate their bishops and priests if Rome were consistent, but Rome readily accepts their antiquity and validity. Point being, all Sees have a right to form their own service of consecration as they see fit, amending those parts not essential to the rite.