I had the privilege of writing the devotion on today’s daily Mass readings at Blessed is She. I even dug into my theology degree for this one!
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When I was in graduate school studying theology, one of my favorite topics was how Church doctrine developed. In the reading from Acts for today, we see an early example of development of doctrine in the conclusion of a council in Jerusalem of the Apostles and first bishops.
They are considering whether Gentiles should be required to fulfill all of the Jewish laws, such as the circumcision of males and other external practices. The Church leaders, directed by the Holy Spirit, realize that certain of the Jewish laws have moral grounds, such as the idolatry of eating animals sacrificed to false gods or unchastity, while other laws pertain to practices symbolic of the Old Covenant before the coming of Christ. The Church was able to step back and see what was really required to be a follower of Christ and began to develop from the traditions of Judaism with freedom from the old law...
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