What is being taught orally is Scripture,

Lutero:

Yes - All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching... What is being taught orally is Scripture,

Its the reverse. What is being presented in writing are the Traditions of Jesus Christ. Jesus did not write Scripture. Jesus taught His Word and commanded the Church to teach. The Church then wrote down Christ's teachings.

2 Peter 1:19-21

King James Version (KJV)
¹⁹We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:
²⁰Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

not some extra Biblical writings that we would refer to as traditions.

That is precisely our gripe with Protestants. Anytime you want, we can do a comparison to see who teaches extra biblical traditions. Because every tradition of the Catholic Church is in Scripture implied or explicit. While every tradition of the Protestants, which disagrees with the Catholic Church, also disagrees with Scripture.

The following, the pillars of your faith, are all non-biblical traditions of men which contradict the Word of God:
Faith alone.
Scripture alone.
Grace alone.
Once Saved Always Saved.

The Church should never stop oral teaching of Scripture, but should never add to Scripture.

Agreed. If it wasn't for the Catholic Church, you wouldn't have the 66 books you have now. But you are missing 7 which Luther took out.

All things that Jesus has commanded us to observe are found in Scripture.

Agreed. But not in the Protestant catechisms. They have discarded or changed much of Christ's teachings.

I've heard people in the Roman Catholic church refer to "Tradition" as a body of undefined teachings,

No you haven't. That is the ignorant allegation of the Protestants.

apart from the Holy Scriptures,

Here is what the Church teaches:
97 "Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture make up a single sacred deposit of the Word of God" (DV 10) in which, as in a mirror, the pilgrim Church contemplates God, the source of all her riches.

allegedly of apostolic origin,

Precisely.

that are passed on perfectly from generation to generation through the Church,

Scripture is a witness:
Ephesians 3:10

King James Version (KJV)
¹⁰To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,

and especially through Catholic bishops.

Through the Magisterium, the Bishops and Priests united to the Pope.

You quoted 2 Thessalonians 2:15 to support this concept of "Tradition" but a closer look reveals that the apostle Paul has something different in mind. Writing to the believers in Thessalonica, among whom he had personally laboured, he says: But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God from the beginning chose you for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and belief in the truth, to which He called you by our gospel, for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, brethren, stand fast and hold the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or our epistle. (2 Thessalonians 2:13-15).

How is that different? It certainly doesn't teach Scripture alone. It confirms the authority of the Church represented by the Apostles and the Traditions of Christ. Because at the time of their personal presence in the flesh, 2 Thess was not yet written. Lets go back to 1 Thess:
1 Thessalonians 2:13

King James Version (KJV)
¹³For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God,which effectually worketh also in you that believe.

Even before 1 THESS was written, the Apostles had passed down the word of God.

First the Apostles went there and taught the Traditions of Christ.
Then St. Paul wrote an epistle to confirm what they had taught.
Note that this procedure was not always followed. Frequently they simply taught and did not follow through with Scripture.

The apostle Paul had preached the gospel to the Thessalonians,

In other words, he passed down Oral Traditions.

and they believed the truth for their salvation.

You forget the Berean episode:
Acts 17:10-12

King James Version (KJV)
¹⁰And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews.
¹¹These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so.
¹²Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few.

Does anything strike you there as incompatible with the PROTESTANT TRADITION?

St. Paul and Silas were in the Synagogue preaching the Gospel IN THE OLD TESTAMENT.

Does that remind you of anything?

Luke 24:25-27

King James Version (KJV)
²⁵Then he said unto them, O fools, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken:
²⁶Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory?
²⁷And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.

In order for the Jews to understand the Traditions of Christ, they had to be taught by the Church. Just as Christ had taught the Church originally.

Now that he was absent, Paul exhorted them to hold on to the "traditions" he had passed on to them.

Exactly as the Church does today.

These traditions, or teachings, here were simply the truths of the gospel which the apostle Paul had "handed on" to them by two means: by preaching "by word" and by writing "our epistle".

Amen! No Scripture alone there. No faith alone there. No OSAS there. Just the true gospel as the Catholic Church teaches it today. Keep the Commandments and you shall live. The Mass. The Eucharist.

There is nothing here about the perfect transmission of an undefined body of teachings through a succession of bishops.

I have no idea where you got that undefined stuff from. Here's what the great doctor of the Church said:
"I would not believe in the Gospel myself if the authority of the Catholic Church did not influence me to do so."
Against the letter of Mani, 5,6, 397 A.D.http://www.thecatholictreasurechest.com/august.htm

The Lord has preserved and transmitted the apostolic message in the New Testament.

The Lord has preserved and transmitted His Word through the Church.

Therein we find an infallible record of the apostolic traditions, their message, the gospel.

That is true. An infallible message that is infallibly defined by the Catholic Church:
1 Timothy 3:15

King James Version (KJV)
¹⁵But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.

We are not supposed to find the Word of God in the Holy Scriptures as well as some form of oral tradition.

Yes. We are. Scripture tells us that the Word of God is transmitted orally:
Hebrews 13:7

King James Version (KJV)
⁷Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their conversation.

In fact the Lord Jesus warned about this very thing in Mark 7.

He warned against heretical traditions such as Sola Fide and Sola Scriptura.

Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, “Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?”

He answered and said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:

"This people honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."

For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men — the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do.” He said to them, “All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition. For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.’ But you say, ‘If a man says to his father or mother, “Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban” ’ (that is, a gift to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

Precisely. God does not teach the commandments of the Protestants.

How serious these words of our Lord; how we ought to give them our full attention! People today are bound to repeat the same mistakes of the Pharisees unless they take heed.

They have made the same mistakes and continue to make them. The Protestants are an example. But there are others. Only the Church teaches the Wisdom of God.

Again, these traditions, or teachings, here were simply the truths of the gospel which the apostle Paul had "handed on" to them by two means: by preaching "by word" and by writing "our epistle". Our situation is radically different from that of the Thessalonian Christians in the first century. They had the privilege of welcoming a living apostle among them. They heard the apostle speak to them; we cannot do the same, simply because there are no apostles today. How then can we learn the Word of God since we are living so many centuries after the apostles?

Scripture tells you:
2 Timothy 2:2

King James Version (KJV)
²And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.

The Lord has preserved and transmitted the apostolic message in the New Testament.

In the Church. The Church wrote the New Testament.

We are not to add to or take away from God's Word.

No, we are not. But the Protestants have done both. They have added extra biblical traditions and taken out 7 books.

There is no oral tradition in addition to the Scriptures.

There are now as there were then and there will always be.

What translation of the Bible says that Scripture is profitable for "passing on oral tradition?"

2 Tim 3:16

Did you not know that to teach is to pass down tradition? Let me show you:
2 Thessalonians 2:15

King James Version (KJV)
¹⁵Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.

2 Thessalonians 2:15

New International Version (NIV)
¹⁵ So then, brothers and sisters, stand firm and hold fast to the teachings^[a] we passed on to you, whether by word of mouth or by letter.
Footnotes:

1. 2 Thessalonians 2:15 Or traditions

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness.

In other words, all Scripture is profitable for passing down Traditions.

He commanded that His words (recorded in Scripture) be taught.

Show me from Scripture.

I don't hear anyone saying to stop teaching Scripture when the Bible is written. We are not to add to what Scripture says through additional teachings not found in Scripture.

Then you need to discard the five alones and the other Protestant Teachings which disagree with Catholic Teaching. NONE of them are in the Bible.

Sincerely,

De Maria

Shall we rephrase to "is building"?

De Maria said:

Scripture tells us that there is an infallible Church out there which Jesus built.

Lutero responded:
Shall we rephrase to "is building"?

De Maria

As the Scripture says:
Ephesians 2:20

King James Version (KJV)
²⁰And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;

Shall we understand this to be a metaphor?

Lutero

DM.......interesting how you pervert that. You give lip service to Jesus being the chief corner stone, yet in practice you deny his authority in the churches. You are a deceiver .

De Maria
That makes no sense. It is because I believe Jesus that I follow the Church which He established. What is your excuse for rejecting the Church which Jesus built?

Luke 10:15-17
King James Version (KJV)¹⁵And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell.¹⁶He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.¹⁷And the seventy returned again with joy, saying, Lord, even the devils are subject unto us through thy name.

Sincerely, 

De Maria 

June 1, 2013

USCCB »  Bible »  Daily Readings

« May 31  |  June 2 »

Memorial of Saint Justin, Martyr 

Read more about St. Justin, Martyr

Lectionary: 352

Reading 1SIR 51:12 CD-20

I thank the LORD and I praise him;
I bless the name of the LORD.

We should always offer our God continual thanks and praise.

When I was young and innocent,
I sought wisdom openly in my prayer
I prayed for her before the temple,
and I will seek her until the end,
and she flourished as a grape soon ripe.

Speaking metaphorically, Sirach says that he sought for wisdom as a man in love seeks a woman.

My heart delighted in her,
My feet kept to the level path
because from earliest youth I was familiar with her.
In the short time I paid heed,
I met with great instruction.
Since in this way I have profited,
I will give my teacher grateful praise.
I became resolutely devoted to her—
the good I persistently strove for.
My soul was tormented in seeking her,
My hand opened her gate
and I came to know her secrets.
I directed my soul to her,
and in cleanness I attained to her.

He sought her persistently and learned much from her.  Finally, after devotedly pursuing her, he caught her.  

This is how we should all seek to the Wisdom of God and God will reward us and grant us the wisdom we seek.  

Responsorial PsalmPS 19:8, 9, 10, 11

R. (9ab) The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The decree of the LORD is trustworthy,
giving wisdom to the simple.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The precepts of the LORD are right,
rejoicing the heart.
The command of the LORD is clear,
enlightening the eye.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever;
The ordinances of the LORD are true,
all of them just.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.
They are more precious than gold,
than a heap of purest gold;
Sweeter also than syrup
or honey from the comb.
R. The precepts of the Lord give joy to the heart.

The precepts of the Lord are from the wisdom of God.  Those who practice His precepts practice wisdom.

GospelMK 11:27-33

Jesus and his disciples returned once more to Jerusalem.

Jesus is Wisdom incarnate.

As he was walking in the temple area,
the chief priests, the scribes, and the elders
approached him and said to him,
“By what authority are you doing these things?
Or who gave you this authority to do them?”

The chief priests and pharisees were jealous of Jesus and sought to catch Him in an error.

Jesus said to them, “I shall ask you one question.
Answer me, and I will tell you by what authority I do these things.

Jesus knew their ruse and replied with a riddle.  

Was John’s baptism of heavenly or of human origin? Answer me.”
They discussed this among themselves and said,
“If we say, ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say,
‘Then why did you not believe him?’
But shall we say, ‘Of human origin’?”–
they feared the crowd,
for they all thought John really was a prophet.
So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.”

So, they tried to sidestep the question.

Then Jesus said to them,
“Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”

Therefore, since they sidestepped His question, He sidestepped theirs.

The difference between prayer, worship and Liturgy

There is very little difference between the words "prayer" and "worship".  But they do not mean exactly the same thing.

The basic difference in this day and age, is that worship is only directed to God but prayer can be directed to either God or the Saints.

So, what is prayer?

Let us begin by studying about the word, "prayer", what it means today and what it used to mean long ago.

To pray is to communicate with God or the Saints, our faith, our love, and our wants.  So, we can say that prayer is communication.

Prayer today is basically considered an act of faith in God.  An act of worship. Catholic and Protestant can agree upon this.  But, for some strange reason, Protestants tend to give a word one meaning and deny the fact that most words have multiple meanings.  Therefore they deny the fact that prayer has another very important definition.  And it is still seen in books which are written in the ancient language.  One of those is the King James Bible:


Luke 14:18
And they all with one consent began to make excuse. The first said unto him, I have bought a piece of ground, and I must needs go and see it: I pray thee have me excused.

Notice that in this verse, the word "pray" is used in the sense of petition, beseeching or begging.  And this is the other sense which the Church recognizes in the word, "prayer".

Therefore, today, there are at least three religious senses to the word "pray".

1.  We can pray to God in the sense of praise, worship or adoration.
2.  We can pray to God in the sense of petition or request.

3. This one requires a bit of further explanation.  As we have seen, a prayer or request can be addressed to anyone, God or man.  In the Old Testament, prayer was addressed to God and man.  But prayer was not addressed to the dead, faithful or not.

However, there is a New Dispensation in the New Testament.  Jesus has shown us that those who die in the state of grace are counted amongst the living:

hn 11:26
And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die….

To prove this, Jesus spoke to Moses and Elijah on the top of the mountain:

Matthew 17
King James Version (KJV)
1  And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart,  2 And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light.  3 And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him.
4 Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias.

And Scripture tells us that all the Baptized are now on top of that mountain with the Saints:

Hebrews 12:21-24
King James Version (KJV)
21 And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)  22 But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,  23 To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect,  24 And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel.

And so, in the New Testament era, we can make prayers of praise and petition to the Saints who went before us to the heavenly Kingdom.

We do not worship them, but we do acknowledge the love of God towards them as we do towards all our fellow men.

So what is worship?

In our explanation of the word "prayer", we used the word "worship" a couple of times already.  Like prayer, worship has a meaning which is universally accepted and another which is no longer used frequently, an archaic sense.

To worship is to acknowledge and praise God's authority and power over us.  In today's world, worship is only directed to God.

However, worship was not always exclusively directed to God.  We can see this in the ancient text of the King James Bible where Joshua worships the angel:

Joshua 5:14
And he said, Nay; but as captain of the host of the Lord am I now come. And Joshua fell on his face to the earth, and did worship, and said unto him, What saith my Lord unto his servant?

However, Joshua was merely showing reverence for an authoritative figure.  In older times, in America and Britain,  Kings and Judges were referred to as "your worship".  Because of the recognition of their authority and power.


The online dictionary says:

archaic honor given to someone in recognition of their merit.
[as title] (His/Your Worship) chiefly British used in addressing or referring to an important or high-ranking person, especially a magistrate or mayor:
we were soon joined by His Worship the Mayor

Today, we no longer use the word, worship, to describe the honor we give anyone but God.  Instead we use the words reverence,  honor and veneration.

I'm sure you've noticed that prayer and worship have much in common.  They are almost synonymous when it comes to prayer directed to God.  Prayer directed to God is the worship of God.  Because any prayer directed to God acknowledges and praises His power and authority over our lives.

Indirectly, prayer directed to the Saints is the worship of God because in doing so, we also acknowledge the great thing which God has done through that Saint.  Much like when we praise a painting.  When we praise a painting we indirectly praise the painter who made the painting.  When we praise a Saint and acknowledge the holiness of the Saint, we indirectly acknowledge the God who made the Saint.

Liturgy

Liturgy is the work of man.  It is frequently called the Mass.  It is the public gathering of the people of God to acknowledge God's authority and power over our lives.  Therefore, worship is the main purpose of the Liturgy.  However, the Liturgy includes every form of prayer we can offer to God.  Praise, glory, honor, thanksgiving, petition, sacrifice, etc.  It also includes rites and rituals which were commanded by God that we should do in remembrance of His Son.

Many people think that private prayer and worship are all that is necessary and that Liturgy is optional.  But that is far wrong.  It is clearly explained in Scripture that God takes great offense with those who do not honor Him in the Liturgy on the appointed day:

Hebrews 10:25-31
King James Version (KJV)
25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
27 But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.
28 He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses:
29 Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
30 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Heavenly Liturgy

What is the heavenly Liturgy?  Scripture reveals that the saints and angels in heaven are always praying to God.  Therefore, we are taught that all our prayers on earth are linked to the prayers of the angels in heaven.

This is especially true in the Mass.  Where we believe that we, humans on earth, join the whole cohort of heaven in proclaiming God's glory.  This is why the Church recommends that we pray continually in order that we may always be united to the Mass and to the heavenly Liturgy of the saints and angels.

With that in mind, through the centuries the Church has given us many tools in order to encourage us to pray continually.

Adoration

The Liturgy of the hours

The Rosary

The Divine Mercy chaplet

and many, many other devotions are taught by and supported by the Church.  We should take advantage of these and to the yearnings in our heart in order to always remain united to God, wherever we may be.

I hope this helps. Let me know if there is anything which needs clarifying.  See also New Dispensation and Prayer for the dead.

Sincerely,

De Maria