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28 minutes.
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This podcast examines Saint Paul’s insistence “that there be no divisions” in the Church. Paul could not conceive of Christians naming themselves after human church leaders. Paul exhorted the Corinthians not to tolerate those who claimed to be “Pauline” Christians. Nor should there be any “Apollonian” or “Petrine” Christians. Given Paul’s insistence against name-bearing sects, we safely conclude that he would fiercely condemn the practice of certain Christians who identify themselves as “Lutherans” or “Calvinists”. Even the word “denomination” comes from the Latin de nomine meaning “of a name”. This denominational arrangement is completely foreign to the teachings of Paul. For this reason, the Catholic Church never accepted a “denominational” understanding of Church.
Taylor was an Episcopal priest in Fort Worth, Texas before being received into the Catholic Church by Bishop Kevin Vann of Fort Worth.
Taylor was also formerly the Assistant Director of the Catholic Information Center in Washington, D.C., located three blocks north of the White House, where he lectured regularly. He was served under Archbishop John J. Myers and Msgr. William Stetson for the Pastoral Provision of John Paul II, the canonical structure by which Anglican clergy are received into the Catholic Church and then go on to pursue Holy Orders in the Catholic Church.
He is a graduate of Westminster Theological Seminary (M.A.R. Theology), Nashotah Theological House (Certificate in Anglican Studies), and University of Dallas (M.A. Philosophy). He is currently a Ph.D. student in Philosophy at the University of Dallas where he studies the Natural Law theory of Saint Thomas Aquinas (Summa Theologiae Ia Iaa qq. 94-108). Taylor and his wife live in Dallas, Texas with their five children. He is the author of The Catholic Perspective on Paul (forthcoming).
Visit his personal site at: www.taylormarshall.com
Taylor is also the Editor of Christian and American at: www.christianandamerican.com. 
I think you mixed up shows, this show #3 is the same show as #2.
Nick,
Sorry about that. I’ve corrected it so that it’s now properly Episode #3.
Which is precisely why the Anglican Church refers to itself as part of the one true, holy, catholic and apostolic church.
Technically, it’s the “Anglican Communion”.
Oh yes, it’s clear now. Calling one’s self a Christian, after a geographical region, is somehow acceptable. Paul would be elated about that,I’m sure. With all due respect,according to the text in Romans, and throughout Scripture, God is sovereign. He reserves the right to save and the right to harden. Scripture is clear, God saves according to His will, not our understanding.
Michael,
Are you referring to “Roman Catholic” as regards a geographical location? The term “Roman Catholic” is a slur made by Protestants – it’s not something that we typically call ourselves. We are “Catholic Christians” (i.e. universal Christians), not “Roman Christians”.
I agree with you that God is sovereign. I’m not sure that is an objection. Scripture teaches that God is sovereign all over the place.
It is true that God saves according to His will, but He does usually include our understanding. As Saint Paul wrote: “that their hearts may be encouraged as they are knit together in love, to have all the riches of assured understanding and the knowledge of God’s mystery, of Christ” (Col 2:2).
pretty much the same stuff as the introduction to “Paul and the Church” in my book, surprise surprise again:)
To take it to a higher level again:
When Paul describes the Church theologically as holy, and when on the other hand empirically there are unholy members in the Church, is it right to simply assume that we can speak about “The Church” in both cases? The Protestant would say the true Church is the invisible Church… It does seem hard to claim that the sanctified Church in Eph 5 equals all the formal members of Catholic parishes in the world. What about the rest of the baptized, and what about unbelieving Catholics..
Very nice website and very clear teaching. Thank you very much.
I have a question…
I hear you say that “Lutheran… Wesleyan….Calvinist… and such tags etc. would be contrary to St. Paul’s intent and teaching.
“This denominational arrangement is completely foreign to the teachings of Paul. For this reason, the Catholic Church never accepted a “denominational” understanding of Church.”
What then would he say about the different scapulars ? Orders? Brotherhoods?
Is someone who calls himself a “Franciscan friar” naming himself? (ie: de nomine)
Would you explain that by saying it is an “order only, and not a “church”"? Well, actually, there are a great many people who call upon the name of Jesus, and believe that he is the Son of the Living God, and trust him for their salvation, AND identify themselves as accepting some of the teachings of these various church fathers (Calvin, Wesley, etc.)YET, consider themselves part of a Church that transcends all human institutions and is JOINED together by the Holy Spirit that is, … the Body of Christ.
Even Pope Benedict recently expressed his desire to recognize Christians of other “denominations”. (sorry, I don’t have a quote ref.)
Thanks for the informations on the history of the saints or of st Paul about is desired for the catholic church. I which to know more about the church history and that of the Blessed Virgil Mary please reply. Thanks
Robert, Franciscan, Dominican, or Jesuit are just orders within the Catholic Church. Unlike the Protestant denominations, Franciscans and Dominicans don’t have different teachings, nor are they truly independent “denominations”.
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In response to Mr. Sessford, above:
The unity of the Church is a doctrinal issue, of course, yet, the essence of the Church is identification, or using Mr. Marshall’s word, participation, in Christ. Doctrine implies tenets of faith by which we understand the core concepts defining our participation in Christ. My understanding of the Catholic definition of our relationship with Christ fully depends upon our absolute surrender of every facet of our being to the Lordship of Christ, but not by will alone as an entity separate and outside of God, who by faith and doctrinal affiliation gives mental and volitional assent to His Lordship, but, by complete com-union. Our entire being, spirit, soul and body is yielded up to God in living sacrifice that He might fully indwell us. We become His temple, His physical body upon Earth. He becomes our all in all, and thus, through Him, with Him, and in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, we live out our lives giving all glory and honor to our Lord, God Almighty.
Denominationalism destroys this unity by claiming alternative interpretations of scriptural issues and by separate authority. Denominations set themselves as separate authorities, claiming divine guidance in the process. Ultimately, each human being, by logical extension, becomes their own authority. This, every-man-is-an-island approach is the soul of disunity. Protestantism has thus become splintered into, according to Gordon Conwell Seminary, nearly 40,000 private denominations. To argue that this myriad of divergent approaches honors God by transcending all human institutions, yet claiming to be united in the Holy Spirit is so divergent from the passion of Our Lord’s final prayer in St. John, and the hope of the early Church, and the writings of the apostles, the Fathers, and every Christian mystic and saint, that support of it boggles the intellect. Such division, could only have been authored in confusion.
The various orders within the Church are not disunited by issues of authority but instead reflect the spectrum of purpose and mission to which the Church is called. There do arise persons within the institution who claim by their own authority the right to advance positions contradictory to the Church’s teachings. These, one must assume, are they who have compromised their commitment to the Lordship of the Holy Spirit. By defying the authority of the Magesterium, who exists to safeguard us from error, such individuals demonstrate their essential lack of understanding. They fail to comprehend the call to which they have been called.
Having read Scriptures for nearly 40 years from the Protestant, “faith alone” perspective, and then having recently re-examined them from the Catholic perspective, I have found myself in deep and sorrowful remorse for having every left the Catholic faith as a youngster. I have been deceived, but no longer. And I encourage all who might read this entry, to seriously re-examine your understanding should you be of Evangelical persuasion. My friends, it may cost you more than time.
Dr. Taylor, may God bless you and show you His kindness, may He be for you a source of wisdom and spiritual richness… I thank my God for coming to read a lot of your writing about blessed Virgin Mary and am glad… You have done me a great favour, please put me in your prayers that i may grow in her love for the glory of Christ… And for you, may her blessed heart keep you close and may you enjoy her protection here and be in her bosom in the life after this… Amen, thank and God bless you
Paul did not believe in the peculiar superiority of the Roman Catholic Church since he mentioned no such thing in the book of…. Roooooomans—which is where he should have mentioned it if it was true.
Thanks for the infos bro