I think I will live blog Frank Beckwith’s appearance on CA Live today. It begins at 3pm PDT. You can find the link here. Be watching, as I will update as the program progresses.
   Start: I wonder if Yanni knows CA Live uses his music as their theme?
   Well, that’s interesting. I thought Beckwith did not want to be an apologist, yet, well, he isn’t here just “sharing his journey,” but is acting as an apologist answering questions from the viewpoint of Roman Catholicism—is he not? Sure sounds like it to me.
   President of ETS: personally, Beckwith does not sound “comfortable” in this role. He didn’t on STR, he doesn’t sound confident here, either.
   Didn’t want to resign: I do hope that my breaking the story and immediately calling for his resignation had some impact upon his appropriate decision to do so.
   Fordham is a Jesuit institution. Beckwith is right. He had imbibed fundamentally Roman Catholic concepts of man and grace, and never broke with Rome on these issues. I have pointed to this a number of times.
   Still a Protestant. Did you notice something? Not a word about a conversion experience, a break with Rome, a true move into a position that denied Roman Catholic teachings. He just sorta “slid” into Protestantism—can you actually do that? I don’t believe so.
   The practices of the early church. I wonder if Beckwith will address the differences in the early views of the Supper and those of Rome today? Or will he just keep repeating the same assertions he made on STR?
   What do I lose? How about…the gospel? How about…peace? These are the words of a man who never had a passionate commitment to the gospel of grace, no doubt at all. So ask yourself: how many Christian academics today who call themselves Protestants are exactly where Beckwith was?
   Bad catechesis. I wonder why Rome allowed such a horrible decline in its teachings? Wait…Vatican II led to this? Hmm, how does that work?
   Lorraine Boettner. Hey, let’s go after Boettner. Wait a minute…if Boettner is so bad, wouldn’t Beckwith’s reading of Trent, as we now know he had done, (right?) have made him realize something was wrong?
   Getting Southern Baptists to be Roman Catholic. Again…I thought Beckwith wasn’t going to be an apologist for Rome?
   This is sweet. Again, a person who has found peace in the glorious gospel of grace would not find an invitation to deny that sufficiency of grace and of Christ to be “sweet,” would he or her?
   Christian…but not yet Catholic. Remember James Swan’s posts on how modern Roman Catholics seek to convert people not to Christ, but to Rome? You are hearing that right now.
   Ah, William Lane Craig. The leading proponent of Molinism, even after the Jesuits have abandoned it!
   Developed a love for Mary? “I haven’t prayed the rosary.” Oh, this is heart-breaking! Do you hear this? He clearly and honestly said he has not developed a “love for Mary” as yet. Can you hear the audience gasping as I can? Think about the centrality on EWTN of Mary. Oh he sounds so uncomfortable at this point! He’s almost stuttering he is stumbling for words so badly. He knows the Marian dogmas are completely without foundation. What a horrible shame to listen to this! “I’ve only been a Catholic for four months.” Really? He was raised in it and didn’t know how to pray the Rosary? I assure you, I’m not the only one shaking my head at this point.
   Sola scriptura and Sunday worship. Of course Sunday worship preceded anything in the form of a Roman statement on the topic. Beckwith’s response is very Protestant, to be honest, not Roman. He’s still a Protestant in his thinking at least on issues like this.
   Richard Bennett. An “open air” preacher has called in asking about whether Frank has read Bennett’s work. Beckwith hasn’t. Interesting dialogue, but hardly focused upon what matters. Anyone who has listened to the STR dialogue is now appreciating Greg Koukl’s questions. He got more done in discussing serious theology in three minutes on STR than we have gotten so far in 45 minutes of interview on CA Live.
   Giving the Berean Beacon URL. Sorry, that’s just funny. The smoke coming out of your computer is from the CA guys fuming over someone giving out the Berean Beacon website URL! 🙂
   Finishing up. Well, again, what a massive contrast to the STR program! Almost nothing of substance was said in the past hour. Nothing. Not only did Beckwith struggle mightily with the Marian question, but there was truly nothing in comparison with what was brought up by the studied, in-depth, focused questions Koukl asked. I truly believe those Roman Catholics who were looking for some kind of “celebrity conversion” story that would be compelling are very disappointed at this point. Tim Staples will be on in the next hour, and if he was listening, and I expect he was, he is going to be frustrated, to be sure.

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