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A Message from Patrick Madrid, Publisher of Envoy Magazine
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Dear Friends,
One month from today, on July 11 at 7:00 p.m., I'll be on Long Island, New
York, to participate in a formal Catholic—Protestant debate on the
communion of saints with James White, a
Protestant author and apologist.
I ask you to please pray for me as I undertake this project, and please
also pray that the debate will be conducted charitably and honorably
by all involved and, by God's grace, that it will lead people closer
to Christ.
The agreed-upon thesis statement for the debate is:
"Prayer to and veneration of
the saints, as well as the veneration of sacred images that represent
them, is compatible with Scripture and Christian Tradition."
I'll be defending the affirmative position,
which means I'll speak first and Jim White, who'll be taking the negative
position, will speak last. Over the course of the three hour exchange, my mission will
be to explain and defend the Catholic Church's teachings on these
subjects; his will be to critique and try to discredit them.
The event will be video-taped, and the debate organizers
have promised to furnish each of us debaters with our own unedited set of
the video masters. This means that both video and audio tapes of the exchange
should be available shortly after the debate. Please check back at www.surprisedbytruth.com for the announcement
of when the tapes are ready to be released.
The Protestant organizers of this annual debate have indicated that it's
generally a well-attended event, usually drawing about 1000 people, most
of whom are Protestants. It would be good to have some Catholics
in attendance, too. So if you'll be in the NYC area on July 11th and would
like to witness the spectacle, please join us. (Also, any parish interested
in hosting one of my apologetics seminars the evening before the
debate, July 10th, please contact
me to make arrangements).
For basic information on the debate, including contact number, venue
location, how to get tickets, etc., please visit www.surprisedbytruth.com, and click
on the "calendar" section.
Again, please pray in a special way for the successful outcome of
this debate. Pray for James, pray for the audience who'll be there,
and please pray for me that, in spite of my deficiencies as a debater, the
beauty and power of the truth of the Catholic teaching on the communion
of saints will shine forth that night from Scripture and the testimony of
Christian Tradition. Join me in praying especially that the grace
of God will abound in a unique way in the hearts and minds of the
audience, Protestant and Catholic (cf. Romans 5:20).
Thank you in advance for supporting me in prayer!
Best wishes in Christ,
Patrick Madrid
Publisher, Envoy Magazine
P.S. Don't forget! If you'd like to attend the debate, just visit www.surprisedbytruth.com,
to get the contact info, location, etc. (it's under the calendar section). God
bless you.
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