Wyatt Graham

Faith | Books | Culture

The Forearm of Saint Francis Comes to Canada

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After nearly 500 years, the forearm of St. Francis Xavier is coming to Canada for the first time. The Archdiocese of Ottawa, the Jesuits in Canada, and Catholic Christian Outreach are working together to accomplish this feat, which will allow Canadians to go on a pilgrimage to see the saint’s arm. According to the Catholic Christian Outreach, they are expecting “three particular extraordinary graces in this pilgrimage.” The extraordinary graces are: “(1) conversion of souls; (2) the raising up of missionary disciples who are abandoned to God’s will; and (3) healing.”

To announce the relic, the Catholic Christian Outreach released a video, and announcer concludes by asking, “What graces do you think Saint Francis Xavier wants to bring for you, for Canada?”

My answer? Not one iota of grace.  [Read more…] about The Forearm of Saint Francis Comes to Canada

N. T. Wright Calls Gender Confusion A Modern Form of Gnosticism

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New Testament Scholar and former Anglican Bishop, Tom Wright, wrote a letter to the editor of the London Times, arguing that gender fluidity is a “form of the ancient philosophy of Gnosticism.” He explains, “The Gnostic, one who “knows”, has discovered the secret of “who I really am”, behind the deceptive outward appearance (in Rifkind’s apt phrase, the “ungainly, boring, fleshy one”).”

According to Wright, part of this “knowing” involves denying the goodness of the natural world. The problem, he argues, is that nature “tends to strike back.” The next generation will become “confused adults” and will pay the price for this generation’s “fashionable fantasies.” [Read more…] about N. T. Wright Calls Gender Confusion A Modern Form of Gnosticism

You’re Not the Real St. Nicolas!

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A Christmas meme has been making it’s way around the internet. It features a little boy asking Santa: “Homoousios or Homoiousios?”[1]

Santa replies with a confused, “What?”

Then comes the punchline. The little boy says, “You’re not the real St. Nicolas.”

So what in the world is this meme about? Well, it’s about one of the most important realities in the universe: who Jesus is.

[Read more…] about You’re Not the Real St. Nicolas!

Does God Change?

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There is a controversy simmering online about whether or not God can change. Some argue that God changes because he enters into history and appears to do something at one point and to do another action at a different time. God is angry with someone for sinning on Monday. Then he is happy with someone for obeying on Tuesday. The Bible seems to describe God changing.

So is the classical view that God is without change wrong?

No. God is unchangeable, and we should thankful for that! [Read more…] about Does God Change?

How Did 2nd Century Christians Understand Israel’s Relationship to the Church?

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When the last Apostle died sometime in the 90s, the church had to define where authority lay. Scripture was always central. But who would lead the churches like the apostles did? Would it be the itinerant prophets, or would it be the elders? Already by the late 90s, the answer became clear: elders or bishops would lead the church (cf. Ignatius and Clement).

But the elder-led churches in the generation after the apostles frequently encountered persecution and opposition. Emperors persecuted, philosophers accused (Celsus), and Jewish believers challenged the faith (Trypho, Ebionites, etc.).

In response, Christians appealed to Emperors and defended the faith. The question of identity also became extremely important. Who were God’s chosen people, and who was God working through today: Israel or the church?

The New Testament already provides preliminary answers to the question (cf. Rom 9-11), but the new apostles—the elders and bishops—had to clarify for their people what the church’s role was in relation to the people of Israel.

Elders and other church leaders began to answer this question by solidifying the identity of Christians as the people of God. Overwhelmingly, they saw themselves as not only the successors to Israel but the true, faithful people of God, whose roots lie in the faith of Abraham and whose faith is unrevocable in Christ. Here are three witnesses that testify that the church, not Israel, is the true people of God. [Read more…] about How Did 2nd Century Christians Understand Israel’s Relationship to the Church?