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1
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- Still Yet Another
- “Church of Christ”
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2
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- Still Yet Another
- “Church of Christ”
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3
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- To briefly list a few examples of recently made churches called “the
church of Christ”
- To quickly review Felix Manalo’s faith journey
- To skim through what today’s “Iglesia Ni Cristo” (Tagalog, “Church of
Christ”) teaches
- To demonstrate how private interpretation of the Bible can lead people
away from the historically ancient New Testament Church.
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4
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5
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- “churches of Christ” Romans 16:16
- “churches of God” 1 Corinthians 11:16
- “churches of Judea that are in Christ” Gal.1:21
- “churches of the Gentiles” Romans 16:14
- “church of God” Acts 20:28, 1 Cor. 1:2, Gal. 1:3
- “churches of God” 1 Cor. 11:16, 1Thes 2:14
- “church of the living God” 1 Timothy 3:15
- “brethren in Christ” Colossians 1:2
- [ et cetera, (e.g.,1 Cor.16:1,19;2 Cor. 8:2;Col.4:16, . . . )]
- “church of Christ” (a not-cited, but popular choice)
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- Alexander Campbell (1788-1866)
- Barton W. Stone (1772-1844)
- Mary Baker Eddy (1821-1910)
- Joseph Smith (1805-1844)
- David Whitmer (1805-1888)
- Felix Manalo (1886-1963)
- Samuel B. J. Oshoffa (1909-1985)
- Thomas “Kip” McKean (1954- )
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7
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8
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9
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- Baptized into the Catholic Church (c.1886)
- Converted to the Methodist Episcopal Church (1904)
- Switched to the Presbyterian Ellinwood Bible Training School in 1906
- Migrated to the Christian Missionary Alliance Church
- Moved to the Disciples of Christ’s Manila College of the Bible in 1908
- Crossed-over to the Seventh-Day Adventists (SDA)
- Turned to Florencia Entrencherado’s Colorum Movement
- Shifted to the Anglican Church’s
“Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts”
(SPG)
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10
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11
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- “One day in November, 1913, Felix Manalo gathered all the religious
literature he had accumulated and arranged them, with a pile of unused
notebooks, sharpened pencils and the Bible, on a table inside a
dimly-lit room in Eusebio Sungas house in Pasay. He instructed everyone
in the household that he should not be disturbed, then kept himself in
seclusion.”
- “So intense was his concentration that he became oblivious of time, food
and the world outside. He emerged from that seclusion after three days
and three nights of intensive study and reflection, his notebooks filled
with notes, certain that God had
commissioned him to perform a mission.”
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12
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- Within nine years, Manalo went through at least six Christian Churches: The
first being Historically Ancient,
while the other five were
of recent origin.
- Despite his efforts, Manalo was still personally “dissatisfied with what he saw as
doctrinal contradictions and inconsistencies in the teachings and
interpretations” from the Bible-only churches.
- Not to be outdone, he made his very own church in 1913.
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13
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14
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- Though founded and established in 1913, Manalo’s “Iglesia Ni Kristo” was
incorporated on the 27th of July 1914.
- Much later, their church’s name got changed: The “K” got replaced with a
“C” . Hence:
- The “Iglesia Ni Cristo” (INC)
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16
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- It has been related that in 1919 Manalo left the Philippines to study at
the Pacific School of Religion (run by the Congregationalist Church).
- During that year he was away they enjoyed growth until a schism was
started by Teogilo Ora, one of its pioneer ministers.
- Then in 1922 Manalo declared himself to be the “fifth angel” as mentioned in
Revelation 7:2. Manalo appears to
have developed the messenger doctrine to accumulate power and re-assert
his leadership in the church.
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17
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18
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- The Text:
- Revelation 7:2, Then I saw another angel come up from the East, holding
the seal of the living God. He cried out in a loud voice to the four
angels who were given power to damage the land and the sea.
- Manalo’s Interpretation:
- Revelation 7:2, I saw another angel come up from the East Contrary to the literary context of
the verse, John the Evangelist
really saw Felix Manalo in the Philippine Islands. John really meant “Far East.”
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19
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- Note: We are to just take his word for it.
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20
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21
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- The Text:
- Isaiah 66:19, I will set a sign among them; from them I will send
fugitives to the nations: to Tarshish, Put and Lud, Mosoch, Tubal and
Javan, to the distant coastlands that have never heard of my fame, or
seen my glory; and they shall proclaim my glory among the nations.
- Manalo’s Interpretation:
- Isaiah 66:19, the distant coastlands ( or “islands afar off ”) Contrary
to the geographic context of this verse, the Prophet Isaiah was really
writing about the area specifically around Felix Manalo only: the
Philippines.
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22
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- The Text:
- Isaiah 60:4,9, Raise your eyes and look about; they all gather and come
to you: Your sons come from afar, and your daughters in the arms of
their nurses . . . All the vessels of the sea are assembled, with the
ships of Tarshish in the lead, To bring your children from afar with
their silver and gold, In the name of the LORD, your God, the Holy One
of Israel, who has glorified you.
- Manalo’s Interpretation:
- Isaiah 60:4,9, from afar Contrary
to the cultural context of this
book, the Prophet Isaiah was really writing about the area only around
Felix Manalo: the Philippines.
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23
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- Isaiah 43:5-6, Fear not, for I am with you; from the east I will bring back your descendants,
from the west I will gather you. I will say to the north: Give them up!
and to the south: Hold not back! Bring back my sons from afar, and my
daughters from the ends of the earth:
- Isaiah 41:9-11, You whom I have taken from the ends of the earth and
summoned from its far-off places, You whom I have called my servant,
whom I have chosen and will not cast off-- Fear not, I am with you; be
not dismayed; I am your God. I will strengthen you, and help you, and
uphold you with my right hand of justice.
- Isaiah 46:11, From the east I summon a bird of prey; from a far-off
land, a man to fulfill my purpose.
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- Isaiah 43:5-6, “from the Far East” Contrary to the historical context of
the verse, the Prophet Isaiah was specifically mentioning Felix
Manalo. Only he is to bring back God’s sons & daughters
to Manalo’s soon-to-be True Church in the Philippines.
- Isaiah 41:9-11, You Felix Manalo whom I have taken from the ends of the
earth and summoned from its far-off places, You whom I have called my
servant, Felix Manalo, whom I
have chosen and will not cast off-- Fear not Felix Manalo , I am with
you; be not dismayed; I am your God. I will strengthen you, and help
you, and uphold you with my right hand of justice Felix Manalo .
- Isaiah 46:11, From the Far East I summon Felix Manalo the bird of prey; from the
Philippines a far-off land, because Felix Manalo is the man to fulfill
my purpose.
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- Note: We are to just take his word for it.
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- Reality: God’s Word is contained in the written Holy Scriptures and the oral, holy Apostolic
Traditions:
- 2 Thessalonians 2:15, “Therefore, brothers, stand firm and hold fast to
the traditions that you were taught, either by an oral statement or by a
letter of ours.”
- 1Corinthians 11:2, “I commend you because you remember me in everything
and maintain the traditions even as I have delivered them to you.”
- Luke 10:16, “He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects
me."
- 2 Timothy 2:2, “And what you heard from me through many witnesses
entrust to faithful people who will have the ability to teach others as
well.”
- Acts 2:42, The first Christians “devoted themselves to the apostles’
teaching” long before there was a New Testament.
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- Reality: The Holy Trinity is very real, biblical, and personal.
- John 10:30, Jesus taught His Divinity & the Jews understood this:
“We are not stoning you for a good work but for blasphemy. You, a man,
are making yourself God.” (No-one stoned high-creations.)
- John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and
the Word was God.” (Unitarians like to weaken this text )
- John 20:28, St. Thomas declared to Jesus, “My Lord and my God!”
- Matthew 28:19, “baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.” (One singular Name and 3 Persons)
- Acts 5:1-4, Concerning a dishonest act, St. Peter said, “Ananias, why
has Satan filled your heart so that you lied to the Holy Spirit … You
have lied not to men, but to God!”
- 1Cor.13:13, The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and
the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.
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- Reality: We have already reviewed the fact that the
- Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) can only trace its history to Felix Ysagun
Manalo
- (Born: 10 May 1886 ; Died: 12
April 1963).
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- Note: Even the Catholic Church does not claim to have a monopoly on the:
Love of the Father, the Salvation of Jesus, or the Gifts of the Holy Spirit.
- 1Timothy 2:4, God “wills everyone to be saved and to come to the
knowledge of the truth.” cf. John 3:16
- CCC 847, “Those who, through no fault of their own, do not know the
Gospel of Christ or his Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a
sincere heart, and, moved by grace, try in their actions to do his will
as they know it through the dictates of their conscience—those too may
achieve eternal salvation.”
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- But Jesus promised that His Church would never be overcome
- Matthew 16:18, Jesus declared to Peter, “Upon this rock I will build my
Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.”
- Matthew 28:20, Jesus promised the eleven disciples, “Behold, I am with
you always, until the end of the age.”
- John 14:16, Jesus assured the Apostles, “And I will ask the Father, and
he will give you another Advocate to be with you always.”
- John 14:26, “The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in
my name--he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told
you.”
- John 16:13, “But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you
to all truth. He will not speak on his own, but he will speak what he
hears, and will declare to you the things that are coming..”
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- “Its leaders spend more time debunking Christianity than explaining
Iglesia's own positions.”
- Tim Ryland “Keating for the Defense.”
- (Ft. Collins, Colorado:
Foundation for Catholic Reform)
- Sursum Corda! (Spring 1996).
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35
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36
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- “Know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is
a matter of personal interpretation.” (2 Peter 1:20f)
- St. Peter, in speaking of St. Paul's epistles, declares that in them
there are “things hard to be understood, which the unlearned and
unstable wrest, as they do also the other scriptures, to their own
destruction.”
- (2 Peter 3:16).
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37
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- By refusing to return to the Catholic Church, Felix Manalo continued to be “tossed to and fro and blown about by
every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:14).
- As evidenced with history: People, who empower themselves with the vice
of private interpretation, tend to divide -and not unite- the Church (cf. 2 Peter 2:1,20-22).
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39
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- The true “church of Christ” cannot be re-invented by man. The historical Church of Jesus is already in our
midst (Luke 17:21): The Catholic Church.
- When Felix Manalo refused to return to the Catholic Church, he continued to be “tossed to and fro and blown about by
every wind of doctrine” (Ephesians 4:14) (see 2Peter1:20f).
- Because Felix Manalo’s Iglesia Ni Cristo teaches a “different gospel” (Gal
1:6-9), his church is not in accord with the tradition we received (2Thess
3:6). While we should admonish,
correct, and pray for them, we
must also reject their mis-interpretations and false teachings (2
Timothy 3:5; Titus 3:10; 2 John 10)
.
- There “is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal
interpretation.” (2 Peter 1:20f)
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40
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41
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- Jesus personally chose the people to teach His message (Mark 1:16-20; John
15:16); He chose His Apostles.
- Jesus built His Church (Matthew 16:18).
- We should “hear the Church” (Matthew 18:17) which is the “pillar and
foundation of truth” (1Timothy3:15).
- The Catholic Church is Apostolic: We can trace our Church’s history
“from the beginning” (John15:27) of Jesus ministry to the present.
- Moreover, Jesus promised us that will be with His Church “always, even
unto the end of the world.” Matthew 28:20
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42
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43
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44
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45
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- Note what Saint Jerome said in this regard:
- “Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ.”
- - Message of the Holy Father Benedict XVI to the Youth of the World On the
Occasion of the 21st World Youth Day (09 April 2006) confer: (PL 24,17;
cf Dei Verbum, 25).
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46
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47
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- “The Bible is not a book just to be disseminated and left to the
personal whims of anyone. No one
can make himself the owner of the Bible and its message.” -Cirilo R.
Almario, Jr., D.D. (Bishop Emeritus of Malolos)
- “Do not think that you are the first to understand God’s message and
that there were no true Christians before you. This would be the way to
have one more founder of those strange sects.” Christian Community Bible. Catholic
Pastoral Edition. Fifth Edition. (ISBN 91-501-409-7) Quezon City,
Philippines: Claretian Publications, 1990. (introduction)
- “Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to
pervert the gospel of Christ ... If anybody is preaching to you a gospel
other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!” (Galatians
1:7-9, NIV)
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48
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- God’s people needs the Bible, but the Bible has to be interpreted by the
people of God. e.g.,Acts 8:26-35
- In the Bible, what is most important for us is clearly taught. e.g., Matthew 22:37-40
- However, there are some pages that actually have little to teach us
today. Some passages were written
in a sophisticated way according to an old literary style for their time
and place. e.g., Psalm 137:9
- Do not cling to some strange, isolated sentences to the point of
forsaking what is clear and fundamental. e.g., Pursuing exactly what
Jesus wrote in the sand but ignoring His message “to sin no more.” John 8:1-11
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50
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- “The Iglesia ni Kristo is an indigenous semi-Christian group that does
not believe in the divinity of Christ.
It was founded more that 75 years ago by Felix Manalo and is
similar in nature to these fundamentalist and evangelical groups except
perhaps that it has been more virulent in its attacks, and has become a
very important political force in the country. Its members have also
increased remarkably in number and they have retained their cohesion and
discipline.”
- Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, 1991.
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51
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- “We need not apologize for
apologetic catechesis. Since its birth, Christianity has been subject to
attacks from which it has had to defend itself. Jesus had to answer objections to His
teachings, as the Gospels testify.
St. Paul had to answer early Christian errors, and charged his
disciples to protect the faithful from them while keeping pure the
deposit of faith.”
- Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, 1991.
- See Acts 20:28-32; Ephesians 4:14; Colossians 2:8; 1Timothy 4:1-11;
6:3-5. See also 2 Peter 3:16-18.
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- “Keep watch over yourselves and over the whole flock of which the holy
Spirit has appointed you overseers.”
- Acts 20:28
- “Until we all attain to the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of
God, to mature manhood, to the
extent of the full stature of Christ, so that we may no longer be
infants, tossed by waves and swept along by every wind of teaching
arising from human trickery, from their cunning in the interests of
deceitful scheming.” Ephesians 4:13f
- “See to it that no one captivate you with an empty, seductive philosophy
according to human tradition, according to the elemental powers of the
world and not according to
Christ.” Colossians
2:8
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53
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- “Avoid profane and silly myths.
Train yourself for devotion, for, while physical training is of
limited value, devotion is valuable in every respect, since it holds a
promise of life both for the present and for the future.” 1 Timothy 4:7f
- “Whoever teaches something different and does not agree with the sound
words of our Lord Jesus Christ and the religious teaching is conceited, understanding nothing,
and has a morbid disposition for arguments and verbal disputes. From
these come envy, rivalry, insults, evil suspicions, and mutual friction
among people with corrupted minds, who are deprived of the truth,
supposing religion to be a means of gain.” 1 Timothy 6:3ff
- If false teachers refuse to be corrected: “Reject them.” 2 Tim 3:5;
“Break off contact with a heretic” Titus 3:10; cf. 2Jn 10
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54
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- “Apologetics has always been
part of the pastoral and theological tradition of the Church. We must today be willing and able to
defend our teachings in public fora, and we need to equip the faithful
so that they can defend their faith.
Parish priests must encourage and support the training of lay
Catholic faith defenders.”
- Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, 1991.
- Held at the Holy Apostles Seminary, Makati, Metro Manila
- from 20 January 1991 to 17 February 1991.
- “Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
that you keep away from any brother who is living in idleness and not in
accord with the tradition that you received from us.” 2 Thessalonians 3:6
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55
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- Christian Community Bible. Catholic Pastoral Edition. Fifth Edition.
(ISBN 91-501-409-7) Quezon City, Philippines: Claretian Publications,
1990. Makati, Philippines: St. Paul Publications, 1990. Manila,
Philippines: Divine Word Publications, 1990.
- Acts and Decrees of the Second Plenary Council of the Philippines. Held
at the Holy Apostles Seminary, Makati, Metro Manila from 20 January -17
February 1991. (ISBN 971-8561-04-5). (originally: Manila, Philippines:
Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines, 1992. The reprint by:)
Pasay City, Philippines: St. Paul Publications, 1994.
- Joaquin L. Gonzalez III. “Transnationalization of Faith: The
Americanization of Christianity in the Philippines and the
Filipinization of Christianity in the United States.” Asia Pacific Perspectives: An
Electronic Journal February 2002 (Volume I, Number 2). (http://www.pacificrim.usfca.edu/research/perspectives/gonzalez.pdf
) { University of San Francisco (San Francisco, California) (http://www.usfca.edu)
}
- Fr. Manuel Piñon O.P. (1910-1997). “Two Major Sects of the
Philippines.” Newsletter of the District of Asia. Jan - Mar 2002. Quezon City,
Philippines: Dominican House of Studies, 1982. http://www.sspxasia.com/Newsletters/2002/Jan-Mar/Two_Major_Sects_of_the_Philippines.htm
- Alejandro S. Camiling, CPA with Teresita Z. Camiling, BSE, MA. “San
Fernando, Pampanga: The Nerve Center of Central Luzon.” { University of
Southern California (Los Angeles, California) } http://www-rcf.usc.edu/~camiling/san_fernando_history.html
- Ann C. Harper. “The Iglesia Ni Cristo and Evangelical Christianity.” Journal
of Asian Mission. March 2001 (Vol. 3, No. 1). Page 110-119. (Asian
Pacific Theological Seminary, Baguio City, Philippines) http://www.apts.edu/jam/01-1/a-harper.pdf
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- Holy Bible. Douay-Rheims Version.
New York, New York: P. J. Kenedy and Sons, 1914.
- The Holy Bible: A Translation From the Latin Vulgate in the Light of the
Hebrew and Greek. Ronald Knox
(trans). Kansas City, Missouri:
Sheed & Ward, 1954.
- The New Testament. James A. Kleist and Joseph L. Lilly (trans). Milwaukee, Wisconsin: The Bruce
Publishing Company, 1954.
- Holy Bible. Saint Joseph edition.
Confraternity Version. New York, New York: Catholic Book Publishing
Company, 1963.
- The Jerusalem Bible. Garden City, New York: Doubleday and Company, 1966.
- The Way. The Catholic Living
Bible. Wheaton, Illinois: Tyndale
House Publishers, Incorporated, 1974.
- New Jerusalem Bible. New York, New York: Doubleday & Company, 1985.
- Revised Standard Version. The Ignatius Bible. Catholic Edition. Fort
Collins, Colorado: Ignatius Press, 1994.
- Good News Bible. Today’s English
Version With Deuterocanonicals / Apocrypha. New York, New York: American Bible
Society, 2001.
- New American Bible. Catholic
Study Bible. New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
- Peter E. Gillquist, Alan Wallerstedt, Joseph Allen, and St. Athanasius Orthodox Academy (Santa
Barbara, Calif.). The Orthodox Study Bible. Nashville, Tennessee: Thomas
Nelson Publishers, 1993.
- The Bible: Authorized King James Version. (Robert Carroll and Stephen
Prickett, eds.) London, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press, 1998.
ISBN-10: 0-19-283525-4 ; ISBN-13: 978-0-19-283525-3 . (This edition has
the unabridged canon. See: http://www.oup.co.uk/isbn/0-19-283525-4 )
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- Catechism of the Catholic Church. CEPAC edition. Episcopal Conference of
the Pacific. Suva, Fiji: CEPAC/Liberiria Editrice Vaticana, 1994.
- Louis La Ravoire Morrow, SDB. (Bishop Emeritus of Krishnagar.) My Catholic Faith. Kenosha, Wisconsin:
My Mission House, 1954.
- Aidan Nichols. Rome and the
Eastern Churches. Collegeville,
Minnesota: The Liturgical Press, 1992.
- Leo Donald Davis. The First Seven
Ecumenical Councils (325-787). Their History and Theology. Collegeville,
Minnesota: The Liturgical Press, 1983.
- Raymond Edward Brown. Introduction to New Testament Christology. Mahwah, New Jersey: Paulist Press,
1994.
- John R. Kohlenberger III (editor).
Precise Parallel New Testament.
New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1995.
- Alfred Marshall (translator). Interlinear
NASB-NIV Parallel New Testament.
Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1995.
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- “In times past, God spoke in partial and various ways to our ancestors
through the prophets; in these last days, he spoke to us through a son,
whom he made heir of all things and through whom he created the
universe.”
- Hebrews 1:1
- “Beloved, although I was making every effort to write to you about our
common salvation, I now feel a need to write to encourage you to
contend for the faith that was
once for all handed down to
the holy ones. For there have
been some intruders, who long ago were designated for this
condemnation, godless persons, who pervert the grace of our God into
licentiousness and who deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus
Christ.” Letter of Jude, verse 3.
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Notes
