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XXIX - 06(96)
"Watchman,
what of the night?"
"The hour has come, the hour is striking and striking at you,
the hour and the end!" Eze. 7:6 (Moffatt)
E & C T - Part 5
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THE SEAL of GOD & THE MARK of THE BEAST
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Editor's Preface
The fourth Essay in the publication Evangelicals & Catholics Together
was written by the Jesuit Theologian Avery Dulles of Fordham University, and Professor Emeritus of the Catholic University of America. Dulles was also one of the participants in drafting the original document of the Accord between Evangelicals and Catholics. In his Essay he discusses the various models of ecumenical unity, and seeks to establish that the Roman Catholic Church is in its structure and organization a continuum of the apostolic church with "adaptations." He sets forth the supreme sign and instrument of the Church's unity.
Because of Dulles emphasis on the "sign" of the Catholic Church, the second article reviews the Seal of God and the Mark of the Beast perceptions held in Adventism. Many of us perhaps will need to do some serious rethinking, and not merely hold to surface perceptions. The information available in the new Catholic
Catechism, and the messages coming from the various apparitions of Mary in regard to the Eucharist, demand that we do some serious reflection.
Many may not be aware that what we have given as a doctrinal conclusion in regard to the "Seal of God" is elementary. What Ellen White indicates it to be, is quite different. I, therefore, deemed it advisable to note these points in the editorial, "Let's Talk It Over." Further, I hope that the few thoughts suggested in the column will stimulate some study and research on your part. I know that I shall be doing some. What is the meaning of the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ on Calvary in contrast to the multiple sacrifices as the Catholics believe the Eucharist to represent? Do we mingle these two concepts in our theology? That is still ahead and will come up in the next issue
of WWN.
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"The Sabbath is the time when the spent spirit may catch its breath, and man can look into the face of God and be refreshed."
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E & C T - 5
The fourth Essay in Evangelicals and Catholics Together, was written by Avery Dulles, a Jesuit theologian. A convert to Catholicism, he was the son John Foster Dulles, who served as Secretary of State during the Eisenhower administration. Writing on "The Unity for Which We Hope," a quote is chosen from Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger as a theme which reads - "As people who are divided, we can also be one."
Drawing on "the vigorous discussions about models of Christian union and unity that took place in ecumenical circles in the 1970s" and the work of several recent authors, Dulles discusses six models "as patterns for possible interchurch cooperation and unity." (p. 115) Several of these "models" are similar, and only a fine line distinguishes them apart.
Dulles begins with the "organic union" model long advocated by the World Council of Churches. Interestingly, it was at the Third Assembly held in New Delhi in 1961, and the Assembly to which Pope John XXIII first sent Roman Catholic observers, that formulation of this type of union was made. At the Fifth Assembly in Nairobi, a new constitution was adopted which proclaimed that the first purpose of the council was "to call the churches to the goal of visible unity in one faith and in one eucharistic fellowship." The Lima Text in 1982, which discusses the "fellowship" objective, notes in its preface that the Faith and Order Commission is charged by the Council "to keep always before them their accepted obligation to work towards manifesting more visibly God's gift of Church unity." (p. vii)
After the Lima Text, the focus of the Faith and Order Commission moved to the confession of one Apostolic faith. To this end the Nicene-Costantinopolitan Creed of 381 was adopted. The Moderator of the Apostolic Faith Steering Group to advance its adoption, as well as vice-moderator of the Commission itself, is a Roman Catholic, Jean-Marie Tillard OP. Dulles in his Essay notes that this Creed along with the Apostles' Creed "are still acknowledged as normative for Christian faith by most Christian churches." (p. 132) This Creed formally ratified "the formula of one God existing in three co-equal Persons," in other words, the Trinity doctrine. (Early
Christian Doctrines, p. 88) This has set the stage to "re-vision the
goal of visible unity" in terms of koinonia, a Greek word, described as "a gracious fellowship in Christ expressing the richness of the gift received creation and humankind from God." (One World, October 1993, p. 15) This "new vision" was the theme of the Fifth World Conference of Faith and Order held in Santiago de Compostela, Spain, in 1993. One of the key speakers an Orthodox theologian, John Zizoulas said "the notion of the church as koinonia is rooted in faith in God as trinitarian." A report from this Conference "depicted this shared life of Christians as rooted in the Triune God, who is 'the ultimate reality of relational life.' Consequently, 'unity and diversity are inseparable;' both must be safeguarded in the structure of the church." (ibid.) Thus we are left to determine what "oneness" means in terms of the Godhead as applied to visible church unity, and what the distinctions between the members of the Godhead mean in terms of diversity in church union.
Dulles discusses other models - Conciliar Fellowship, Communion of Types,
Reconciled Diversity - all of which reflect some aspect of the concept of
unity in diversity. In discussing "Reconciled Diversity," he refers to Oscar
Cullmann's "important little book, Unity through Diversity," in which
Cullmann pleaded for a harmonious separation" of churches. Quoting further
from Cullmann, Dulles notes that "the planned community of churches, though
it is itself not a church, should have some sort of superstructure, even if
fairly loose, a superstructure which respects the churches which it unites:
here too, unity in diversity." (E&CT, p. 120; emphasis in text)
In another section of Dulles' Essay, he returns to Cullmann summarizing:
"For Cullmann the goal of ecumenism is to achieve a visible manifestation of unity without the suppression of the diversity of the distinct charisms. This can be achieved, he believes, in a community of independent churches that cross-fertilize one another, both enriching the others with their own gifts and submitting to criticism by the others. While he opposes merger, he does not exclude the erection of certain common structures to sustain the relationship between the churches. ... He also makes it clear that such a union would be open only to churches that adhere to the basic Christian faith, as expressed in the early creedal and confessional statements found in the New Testament."
(E&CT, pp. 135-136)
Why is Dulles stressing Cullmann? Interestingly, he writes that "Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, writing from a Roman Catholic perspective, proposes an
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ecumenical strategy surprisingly similar to those of Cullmann." Ratzinger accepts the goal of full visible unity set forth in the "Decree of Ecumenism" and other Roman Catholic documents, but "he recognizes that the attainment of that goal depends upon a special initiative of the Holy Spirit" beyond the Roman Church's power to so attain. (ibid., p. 137)
First it must be observed that Ratzinger accepts Cullmann's model as only a "strategy" for the attainment of the Roman Catholic "goal of full visible unity." Secondly, it is not difficult to observe that "full visible unity" is the same goal as that of the WCC. Further, it needs to be recalled that the Faith and Order Commission has as its stated aim to carry out this objective, and that on this Commission is the Seventh-day Adventist presence. As noted above, the Moderator of the Steering Committee to forward this goal is a Roman Catholic priest.
Thirdly, and this is most important. What did the "Decree of Ecumenism"
state? Dulles wrote and note carefully what this Jesuit is saying:
"In Catholic teaching the papacy is understood preeminently as a unitive [unifying] agency in the words of the First Vatican Council [which issued the Dogma of Papal infallibility], repeated almost vorbatim by the Second Vatican Council: ' In order that the episcopate itself might be one and undivided, and that the whole multitude of believers might be preserved in unity of faith and communion by means of a closely united priesthood, [Christ] placed blessed Peter at the head of the other apostles, and established in him a perpetual principle and visible foundation of this twofold unity.
"According to the Catholic understanding, then, the visible unity of the church, as intended by Christ, includes three constitutive elements: the sacramental, the doctrinal, and the governmental. The members of the Church are in communion with one another to the extent that they enjoy the same sacramental life, profess the same faith, and acknowledge the same authoritative leadership." (p. 134)
This, then is what is down the road, at the end of the tunnel. The road to the objective is "unity in diversity." And even when the objective is realized it will still be passed for "unity in diversity." Dulles writes - "Within this unity of faith, worship, and polity, considerable scope is allowed for diversity of styles and practices. This variety, far from impairing the unity, enriches it." (ibid.)
Now the details as they are spelled out need to be considered. "The unity
of the whole body is expressed and maintained by manifold signs and
instruments that are attested in the New Testament and in patristic tradition. Among these bonds are liturgical worship, canonical Scriptures, creeds, and a hierarchical system of government," according to Dulles. (p. 131; emphasis supplied)
We can understand what the system of Church government is all about - the Papacy. We have ready access to the "creeds" being promoted. We do need to keep in mind that the "canonical Scriptures" as decreed by the Roman Church includes the Apocrypha. However, it is the "liturgical worship" which is a key issue in the present ecumenical process.
"Liturgical worship includes most prominently baptism and the Lord's Supper," states Dulles. "Baptism, the basic sacrament of incorporation, is necessarily 'one' according to the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed ,... By incorporating Christians into Christ, baptism makes them members of one another." Quoting the "Decree on Ecumenism," Dulles writes - "Thus baptism establishes a sacramental bond of unity existing among all who have been reborn by it." (p. 131) This is why the stress on unity in baptism. It should be recalled that the Ecumenical convocation on the Union College Campus, the first of a series of annual meetings sponsored by the Interchurch Ministries of Nebraska, began with a discussion on baptism. Further, at the first service, a form of baptism was performed on the whole of the attending congregation in the College View Seventh-day Adventist Church. This established all present as one body.
[Dr. John Kerbs, President of Union College, stated in a telephone conversation that no Adventist ministers participated in this service and to his knowledge, no Adventists were in attendance. The Church Board had made available the church and college facilities to the Interchurch Ministries for their convocation.
See WWN, January and February issues, 1996, for full details and documentation]
The second part of the "liturgical" package needs to be carefully noted - the celebration of the Eucharist. Dulles writes:
"Of all the sacraments, the Lord's Supper or Eucharist is seen especially as the bond of unity. For the fathers and medieval doctors, the Eucharist was the supreme sign and instrument of the Church's unity. The 'Decree on Ecumenism' describes it as 'the wonderful Sacrament . . . by
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which the unity of the Church is both signified and brought about.' " (p. 132; emphasis supplied)
This "sign" of unity with the Church of Rome is stated in their official pronouncements, and is not merely a letter from a Chancellor to a Cardinal. This weight of authority needs to be carefully weighed in any study of the Mark of the Beast. Keep in mind that the Eucharist can be received on either the tongue, or in the hand.
The last model of church unity, Dulles terms, "Spiritual Ecumenism." He defines this model as "an invisible communion of the faithful in Christ." Those who hold to this concept believe that "the Spirit can raise up true Christians wherever the Scriptures are read and wherever prayer in the name of Jesus is practiced." (p. 120) Assuming, and rightly so, that this "model" is the position held by "Evangelicals," Dulles then proceeds to respond to this concept. As if answering those Evangelicals who are opposing the E&CT Accord, he jesuitically twists the point, and suggests that the reluctance of some Evangelicals is based on the supposed fact that the Roman Catholics would be unwilling to enter into such a model. He declares that this is because of ignorance of the pronouncements of Vatican II. Citing a section (Unitatis Redintegratio), he quotes - "Those who have been justified by faith through baptism are incorporated in Christ, and have a right to be called Christians, and so are deservedly recognized as brothers and sisters in the Lord by the children of the Catholic Church." Because of this there should be no problems of mutual fellowship, Dulles concludes. Further, wherein the Evangelicals have different views from the Roman Catholics on the structure of the Church, "they must therefore engage in dialogue about the matter." (p. 124)
Immediately, Dulles devotes a section of his Essay to what he calls "Biblical Perspectives." Noting that Evangelicals "recognize the canonical Scriptures as a peremptory norm, one that may under no circumstances be contradicted," he observes, "Holy Scripture therefore provides a common resource for giving specific content to the prayer of Christ for unity. It helps us to know what kind of unity prevailed among the early Christians and to identify the signs by which that unity was expressed and the means by which it was maintained." (p. 125)
Lest one assume that a Jesuit theologian would be more apt to cite the church fathers and papal pronouncements to defend his position, it should be noted that when Dulles said, Scripture, he meant just that. This should serve as a warning that in the days ahead, we will be faced with Scripture used to defend false premises, thus it behooves us to know what "Saith the Lord." Further, Dulles' discussion of the Church structure closely parallels the very issue within the Community of Adventism today between a hierarchical allegiance and the independent ministries. Dulles even alludes to "the house church."
His first point is the universality of the Christian religion "embracing
in a single fellowship adherents of every race, nation, and linguistic
group." (p.125) He freely admits that a difficulty against the universality
of the Church "can be raised on the basis of the Greek word, ekklesia(church) as used in the New Testament. He notes Paul's use of the term, even using it to refer to "house churches," and then states that "although Paul is conscious that all Christians are 'one body,' he never uses the term 'one church.' Thus an argument can be made that the Church is primarily the local congregation and only secondarily the totality of such congregations." (p. 126) Dulles does not "buy" this argument and seeks to mute its force. He states that "the ecclesiology of the New Testament has to be teased out of a great variety of terms" and metaphores such as "the new Israel, the body of Christ, Bride, and Temple. ... To the New Testament authors it was evident that there could only be one body or bride of Christ, one temple of the Holy Spirit, one new Israel. Christians were conscious of belonging to a single, all-embracing fellowship or society."
While the concept of the nature of the Church as a universal (catholic) entity existed, the fact remained that it existed in the form of a multiplicity of congregations. So what was going to keep the unity of the faith? While Dulles admits that common teaching and the Scriptures were factors, he writes - "Yet another structure of unity was the hierachical vigilance exercised by the apostles and their associates." (p. 128) To this he adds "common practices of worship" - baptism and the eucharist - and concludes:
"To be a Christian was to confess the apostolic faith, to be baptized, to partake of the Eucharist, to join in the traditional hymns and prayers, to practice mutual charity and solidarity, and to accept the leadership of the duly designated leaders, whose function it was to maintain orthodox belief and good order in the community." (p. 130)
From these "Biblical Perspectives" - and Scripture can be cited for each point noted in the above paragraph. Dulles moves to "The [Roman]
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Catholic System" writing:
"The system of unity in the Roman Catholic Church, as it has developed since the early patristic times, is grounded in the order of the apostolic Church as attested by the New Testament. It is not a rigid perpetuation of that order but an adaptation to the needs of a later age, retaining the same essential structures in a variety of forms that have unfolded under the aegis of the Holy Spirit." (p. 130)
Herein is the error. Many of the observations made under "Biblical Perspectives" are valid, but now we face the "adaptations" which became known as the "Roman" Catholic Church. Further, Dulles declares that these modifications came through the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Paul warned that there was to be "a falling away." (II Thess. 2:3) These "adaptations" are a part of that "falling away." Jesus in promising the Holy Spirit indicated that the Spirit would "guide into all truth" not away from the truth. Neither would the Spirit "speak of Himself," but would inspire that which Christ revealed. (John 16:13-14)
The very concept of "church" as perceived by Rome is at variance with the words of Jesus. The Second Vatican Council propounded the idea of the Church as a communion of local churches in each of which the one Catholic Church is truly present and operative. Each local church is to be realized only when gathered together at the Eucharist "under the presidency of the bishop surrounded by members of his clergy." (p. 130) What a contrast to the simple statement
of Jesus - "Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them." (Mat. 18:20) What is the bond which would unite these various gatherings in Jesus' name? Truth - truth as it is in Jesus. (John 14:6; I Tim. 3:15)
Since Evangelicals and Catholics at present cannot unite as one Church, Dulles suggests an interim strategy. He suggests changing false impressions which each has of the other. Among these is that Roman Catholics deny the "unique mediatorship of Christ." How can one alter this concept of Roman teaching when the placing of Mary as a co-mediatrix predominates in their practice? He further suggests that emphasis be placed on concepts which both communities affirm - doctrines held in common. Observe carefully what Dulles writes on this point:
"It is no small thing that we [Evangelicals & Catholics] can jointly read the same [?] Scriptures as God's inspired Word, that we can share the confession of the Triune God and of Jesus as true God and true man. It is a blessing to be bound together by the essential forms [the Rosary excluded?] of Christian prayer, based on Holy Scripture, and by common commitment to the way of life held forth in the Ten Commandments as interpreted in the light of the New Testament." (p. 140)
And again:
"Within this type of ecclesial friendship there is no lack of things that Catholics and evangelicals can do together. They can join in their fundamental witness to Christ and the gospel. [Do they both teach the same gospel?] They can affirm together their acceptance of the apostolic faith enshrined in the creeds and dogmas of the early Church. They can labor side by side in defending the religious heritage of the nation, to the extent that this is authentically biblical and consonant with the eternal law of God. They can jointly protest against the false and debilitating creeds of militant secularism. In all these ways they can savor and deepen the unity that is already theirs in Christ." (p. 144)
THE SEAL of GOD & THE MARK of THE
BEAST
To John on the Isle of Patmos was given visions of things to come. Among those future events to transpire just prior to the return of Jesus Christ in clouds of heaven (Rev. 1:7) was to be the sealing of a group of people described as 144,000 "servants of our God." (7:3-4) This group is noted as standing with the Lamb, "having His Father's name in their foreheads." (14:1) They are also declared to be those "that keep the commandments of God," "the remnant of the seed of the woman." (14:12; 12:17) Further, it was recognized that the last messages of God to mankind involved a call "to worship Him that made heaven and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." (14:6) Knowing that the law was to be sealed among the disciples of the Lord (Isa. 8:16), Adventists have taught that the commandment of that Law which designates God as the Creator of all life and being constitutes its seal of authority; in other words, the Sabbath.
In the final messages to be given - the Third -
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there is a warning against one receiving "a mark in his forehead, or in his hand." (Rev. 14:9) Identifying the beast as the Papacy, the mark was assumed to be a sign of that system in contrast to the "seal of God." Such a "mark" was easily found in the substitution by Rome of the observance of Sunday in place of the Sabbath of the Commandments of God. While this act of Rome has been used to signify its "authority" in religious matters, and to justify "tradition" as the "continuing inspiration" of the the Spirit rather than "antiquity," it has lacked an essential ingredient for contrast with the Sabbath - "creation."
In the previous article, we noted that Avery Dulles, the Jesuit
theologian declared - "For the fathers and medieval doctors the Eucharist
was the supreme sign and instrument of the Church's unity." Then he quoted the "Decree on Ecumenism" from the Vatican II Council which described the Eucharist as "the wonderful Sacrament ... by which the unity of the Church is both signified and brought about." (E&CT, p. 132, emphasis supplied) At another point, Dulles wrote that "the bodliness of the [Eucharistic] sacrament cannot be dissociated from the bodliness of the Church."(ibid., p. 139)
In the new Catechism of the Catholic Church, the Eucharist is defined as "the Sacrament of sacraments." (1211) In another paragraph, the Eucharist is declared to be "the sum and summary of our [Roman] faith: 'Our way of thinking is attuned to the Eucharist, and the Eucharist in turns confirms our way of thinking."' (1327)
In a recent book - The Thunder of Justice - which brings together the messages given during the apparitions of Mary worldwide, and the messages she has given to "prophets," she is quoted by a priest, Don Stefano Gobbi, as stating - "The Eucharistic Jesus is the Living Bread come down from Heaven, the food to eat that one may hunger no more, the water to drink that one may thirst no longer." (p. 392)
Herein is the factor of "creation" which in its blasphemous suggestion truly sets this as a "mark" diametrically opposed to the Lord God as Creator of all life and being. The sainted Doctor of the Roman
Church, Alphonsus de Ligouri, wrote in his book, The Dignity and Duties
of the Priest, the following:
"St. Bernardine of Sienna has written: 'Holy Virgin, excuse me, for I speak not against thee: the Lord has raised the priesthood above thee.' The saint assigns the reason of the superiority of the priesthood over Mary; she conceived Jesus Christ only once; but by consecrating the Eucharist, the priest, as it were, conceives him as often as he wishes, so that if the person of the Redeemer had not yet been in the world, the priest, by pronouncing the words of consecration, would produce this great person of a Man-God. 'O wonderful dignity of the priests,' cries out St. Augustine; ' in their hands, as in the womb of the Blessed Virgin, the Son of God becomes incarnate.' Hence the priests are called the parents of Jesus Christ ...
"Thus the priest may, in a certain manner, be called the creator of his Creator, since by saying the words of consecration, he creates, as it were, Jesus in the sacrament, by giving him a sacramental existence, and produces him as a victim to be offered to the eternal Father ... St. Augustine has written, 'O venerable sanctity of the hands! O happy function of the priests! He that created me (if I may say so) gave me the power to create him; and he that created me without me is himself created by me!' As the Word of God created heaven and earth, so, says St. Jerome, the words of the priest create Jesus Christ." (pp. 32-33)
Here all the vindictiveness of the demonic hatred of Lucifer is displayed in one service. He "creates" the One of whom he was jealous, who in reality had created him in the beginning. This in turn becomes the "supreme sign and instrument" of his Church's unity which he has set up in the world as opposed to the Church of Jesus Christ. All who join in the worldwide unity under the aegis of Rome will accept this mark.
It is also of interest to note that Dulles in his Essay observes - "In the New Testament we begin to find hints that the Christians regularly assembled for the Eucharist on the first day of the week." The aspect of creation is central - the Eucharist - the time of its celebration, an adjunct. This point we seemed to have missed. If we emphasize the Sabbath in its external aspect, and fail to understand the creative power which it memorializes, we will be no better off than the Jews and their Sabbath emphasis in the days of Christ. Ours will be a form of godliness without the power thereof. We will be unable to stand against the power behind the Eucharist.
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LET'S TALK IT OVER
In 1898, Ellen White wrote a letter in which she asked the question - "What is the seal of the living God, which is placed in the foreheads of His people?" (Letter 126) She answered her own question, and the answer she gave goes far beyond what is given as the standard doctrinal reply: "It is a mark which angels, but not human eyes, can read: for the destroying angel must see this mark of redemption. [Here is an allusion to the Passover - the blood on the door post]
The intelligent mind has seen the sign of the cross of Calvary in the Lord's
adopted sons and daughters." It doesn't say, that mind has observed Sabbath keepers. In fact, "not all who profess to keep the Sabbath will be sealed. There are many even among those who teach the truth to others who will not receive the seal of God in their foreheads." (5T:213-214) This should cause us to pause and do some honest evaluating.
There is today much agitation on the part of some over "The National Sunday Law." This emphasis is surface, elementary, and deceptive. It is deceptive in that it fails to go to the basis of the real controversy between Christ and Satan which involves the sacrifice of Christ upon the cross, once and for all time. It fails to focus our attention on Him who ever liveth to make intercession for us by that once-for-all sacrifice. True it is a popular, money making topic, but in the end it will leave the devotees of such a cause unready for the final confrontation.
Back to Letter 126 - It states further - "The sin [not "sins"] of the
transgression of God's law is taken away. They have on the wedding garment,
and are obedient and faithful to all God's commands." Note the steps -
1) The Cross: "They overcame him [the dragon]by the blood of the Lamb." (Rev. 12:11). 2)
They have on the wedding garment [Christ's righteousness] "We through the
Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith." (Gal 5:5)
3) Then - and not before then - are they obedient and faithful to all of God's commands. It all begins with "the sign of the cross of Calvary" - "the surrender of self to the will of God, the yielding of the heart to the sovereignty of love." (MB:203)
Let's stop thinking in a surface manner and promoting cliches to further our own ends, and instead sink the shaft of our thinking into the mine of truth.
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