#11858 Ask Me Anything - Jim Blackburn

Questions Covered: 01:48 – What do you mean that it is ok to believe Adam and Eve are symbolic? 06:20 – What are the restrictions on Fridays? Does that include all animal products or just animal flesh? 10:22 – Why did God mandate Hosea to have relations with the prostitutes? 15:08 – Can we truly know if we are saved? 19:10 – I found a ring with the initials SMOTJ. I discovered it was the Sovereign Military Order of the Temple of Jerusalem. What is it and is it Catholic? 22:30 – How do I respond to the claim that there is no evidence that the Deuterocanon was not included in the original canon of the Old Testament? 29:04 – Once you discover the talents that God has given you, how do you use them to the best of your abilities? 30:52 – Is polygamy acceptable in an apocalyptic situation? 37:12 – Why don’t Catholics baptize by immersion and in the name of Jesus? 43:40 – Do you have any speculation as to why the book Esther wasn’t found in the dead sea scrolls? 46:45 – When did the bread that Jesus had at the last supper turn into his body and blood? 50:17 – What are your thoughts on Dr Scott Hahn’s theory and book on the Fourth Cup? 52:36 – Is the Church’s definition of death, the separation of body and soul? Would Elijah resurrect a child in 1 Kings 17:17-24 back up this definition? …

Questions Covered: 06:01 – John 14 Jesus says He is the way the truth and the life. How would this affect people who haven’t heard the message of Jesus? 08:35 – Why do some Catholics justify doing bad things in a civil marriage and later dismiss that former behavior saying it was not an issue because it wasn’t a valid marriage? 15:09 – Is it necessary to believe in historic Adam and Eve? 21:09 – Why does one need to be baptized to merit anything? How do you answer the atheist object of why would God send an unbaptized but otherwise good person to hell? 32:08 – Can you help me better understand Matthew 24? 45:29 – Why did God allow certain things in the old law like capital punishment? 52:50 – How is it not blasphemy to pray to the saints? …

Questions Covered:  03:05 – I have an Eastern Orthodox friend – How can you prove Mary’s sinlessness through scripture and history?    12:10 – Can you explain your article that said Miracles happen? If they do, why do we rarely ever see them?   19:05 – How do I go by the code of canon 988 in confession, which says I must confess all past mortal sins?   34:25 – If somebody has a phobia is that something they will need to detach from in Purgatory?    38:08 – I struggle with the idea that rituals would mean something to God. Is there a scriptural reference for their importance?  43:06 – Why did St. John the Baptist send his disciple to ask Jesus who he was, if he recognized Jesus in the womb?  47:28 – My church does a communal Rosary during the time I can go to Adoration. How can I respond well to this since it prevents me from doing private prayer?  52:14 – Why do bad things happen to good people?  …

Questions Covered: 03:08 – How do atheists handle the question “How do you know what is essential to the category of God”?  07:45 – I met an atheist who believes in the idea that the universe is circularly caused. How can I respond to this?  13:40 – How can I interpret paragraph 9 of Inter mirifica as it relates to media?  19:14 – What did St. Paul think of his previous faith and Judaism?  29:23 – How do I respond to people who say you shouldn’t judge?  34:40 – Is Tradition infallible?  41:31 – Can a Catholic consider corporal punishment in general inadmissible?  …

Questions Covered: 03:10 – What happens if someone commits a mortal sin under baptism of desire? 05:28 – When Pope Pius XII issued liturgical forms to include vernacular, what was the purpose of that? 08:04 – Can Latin Mass societies begin the Easter Vigil Mass at a different time than is standard today? 12:49 – Is it okay for me to use the New Oxford Bible translation for a Catholic Bible study? 16:12 – How can we be so sure that Jesus wasn’t just using symbolic language during the last supper? 29:16 – What is your advice on what I can do since I can’t participate in the sacraments as a non-Catholic? 33:59 – Would a person that has to go to RCIA classes have to pay for the classes? 46:17 – The World Health Organization says that no amount of alcohol is good for a person. How does this square with the Catholic religion and their use of alcohol? …

Questions Covered: 05:13 – What is the matter in the sacrament of confession? 12:33 – What do you recommend to read for someone who wants an intro to the Church Fathers? 18:10 – How do we make the argument that Enoch is not inspired scripture? 23:56 – If we are not supposed to judge people, how do we judge anything in our lives? 31:20 – Why should Catholics consider Mary perfect? 38:32 – What evidence in the Early Church apart from Paul do you have to justify calling priests father? 48:08 – My husband is not Catholic. How do I convince him of the authority of the magisterium? …

Questions Covered: 07:26 – I’m new to Catholicism. What next steps can I take to learn more? 13:49 – What reliable methods do Catholics have to detect the supernatural? 22:16 – I’m Protestant. Why does RCIA/OCIA take so long? 30:03 – Why did they get rid of the communion rail? 33:39 – Why should a non-denominational Christian become Catholic? 38:22 – Are there levels of Purgatory? 47:20 – What are the 3 most common misconceptions that keep Protestants away from Catholicism? …

Questions Covered: 04:53 – Why does the Catholic Church claim to teach salvation by faith? 17:53 – Why do Catholics believe in purgatory and what does that mean? 31:44 – What is the Catholic interpretation of Romans 4:5? 35:28 – Why don’t we see Catholics street preaching? If they do, what does that evangelization look like? 46:05 – Why do we as Catholics believe in some of the laws of the Old Testament such as priestly laws? Why do we follow those and not others like the Mosaic laws? …

Questions Covered: 08:38 – Is there empirical evidence in biochemistry for your God? 17:28 – If AI had free will, could it be blamed? 22:16 – How does the Church deal with how Fr. Georges Lemaître’s work was used to calculate the big bang? 34:22 – Could science prove the existence of God? Have you read Peter Kreeft? Are spirit and matter distinct and disconnected? 45:37 – I’m a Catholic AI engineer. I disagree with the claim that AI sentience cannot exist. I think it’s something we should be concerned with. 52:36 – I have thoughts on AI not being able to have sentience. Its closer to robots. …

Questions Covered: 17:33 – Should we take every word that Jesus said literally? Ex. Pluck your eye out if it causes you to sin. 30:26 – What are your thoughts on a priest who claimed that feeding the 5 thousand was not literal? 35:46 – What are your thoughts on Jonah? 38:38 – I heard that the sponge they used to give Jesus wine on the cross was a sponge the Romans used to clean up after using the restroom. Is that true? 45:40 – You guys are wrong about the eye of the needle was a gate. 49:58 – Is the miracle of Jesus raising a man from the dead a prefigurement of his death? 52:30 – Saul/Paul was given a new name at his conversion. 53:12 – They used to swaddle lambs so it wouldn’t get blemished. …