Welcome to Becoming Catholic Articles, where we present in article form our defense (apologetic) of the Catholic Faith, as well as the treasures of the Great Tradition of Christendom, from the original sources themselves.
Be sure to check out our Quote Archives and Study Banks as well.
The Latest
#79 | Eucharist Snapshot: Origen on the Guilt of Mishandling the Eucharist (244)
#59 | St. Augustine’s “Hall of Miracles,” Part 2
#78 | Eucharist Snapshot: St. Jerome on Horror at the Fall of a Single Crumb (after 389)
#51 | Eucharist Snapshot: An Ancient Bishop’s Vision of the State of Souls (555)
#76 | Ancient “Ghost Story”: The Soul of a Holy Deacon Appears to Request Prayers from Purgatory
#75 | Eucharist Snapshot: St. Jerome on the “daily sacrifice” (417)
#74 | Eucharist Snapshot: The Didache, a Manual of Apostolic Worship (1st century)
Browse Articles by Topic
General Topics
#2 | The “Big C” Catholic Church in the Church Fathers
#3 | The Church Father Who “Red Pilled” Me on the Catholic Church, Part 1
#5 | The Church Father Who “Red Pilled” Me on the Catholic Church, Part 2
#6 | Typology: How Christ and the Apostles Unlocked the Scriptures
#11 | Which “gospel”? Which “biblical”?
#12 | Why Acts 15 Led Me to the Catholic Church
#15 | “To be deep in history is to cease to be a Protestant”
#28 | Former Calvinist Theologian and Historian Set out to Disprove the Catholic Church, and Becomes Catholic—The Story of Dr. David Anders
#50 | The Bible Verse That Began My Journey to the Catholic Church
#55 | The Oath That Brought Me Into the Church
#60 | Why Protestants Cannot Affirm All of the Nicene Creed, Part 1: The “one, holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church”
Sola Scriptura (“Scripture Alone”) and the Canon
The Eucharist
#1 | The Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist in the Church Fathers
#9 | The Church Fathers, and the Christian Sacrifice of the Eucharist
#13 | St. Justin Martyr, the Mass, and the Church’s Early Eucharistic Doctrine
Eucharist Snapshots
“Eucharist Snapshots” dive into ancient documents, one-by-one, to uncover the ancient, biblical, and historical roots of Catholic belief in the Eucharist.
#74 | Eucharist Snapshot: The Didache, a Manual of Apostolic Worship (1st century)
#79 | Eucharist Snapshot: Origen on the Guilt of Mishandling the Eucharist (244)
#78 | Eucharist Snapshot: St. Jerome on Horror at the Fall of a Single Crumb (after 389)
#75 | Eucharist Snapshot: St. Jerome on the “daily sacrifice” (417)
#51 | Eucharist Snapshot: An Ancient Bishop’s Vision of the State of Souls (555)
Apostolic Succession
#39 | The Biblical Roots of Apostolic Succession, Infallibility, and the Indefectibility of the Church, Part 1: When Jesus Began to Reign as King
#45 | St. Augustine: Apostolic Succession Prophesied in the Psalms (Exposition of Psalm 45)
#53 | St. Irenaeus of Lyon on Apostolic Succession: The Bulwark Against Heresy and Schism (c. 180)
The Papacy
#35 | Victorian Protestant Scholar Praises the Papacy as the Most Enduring Institution in World History
#48 | St. Thomas Aquinas’s Brief Argument for the Papacy
Papal Snapshots
“Papal Snapshots” dive into ancient documents, one-by-one, to uncover the ancient, biblical, and historical roots of the papacy.
#44 | Papal Snapshot: Origen Repents to St. Pope Fabian (mid 200s)
#40 | Papal Snapshot: Pagan Historian Acknowledges “the higher authority of the bishop of the Eternal City” (c. 355)
#41 | Papal Snapshot: St. Jerome, and the One True Church Built on the Rock of Peter and His Successors in Rome (c. 376/377)
#67 | Papal Snapshot: St. Jerome on the Pope Answering Theological Questions from East and West, Letter 123 (382-84)
#65 | Papal Snapshot: St. John Chrysostom on St. Peter, “the master of the whole world” (c. 387-97)
#42 | Papal Snapshot: St. Peter Chrysologus Says the Pope is Required to Settle Doctrinal Disputes (448)
#43 | Papal Snapshot: Papal Authority Affirmed in Emperor Justinian’s Civil Code of Law (533-34)
#61 | Papal Snapshot: St. Isidore of Seville on Obedience to the Pope, Letter 6 (early 600s)
#62 | Papal Snapshot: St. Isidore of Seville on Obedience to the Pope, Letter 8 (early 600s)
#56 | Papal Snapshot: St. Sophronius of Jerusalem and Stephen of Dora at the Lateran Synod (649)
#63 | Papal Snapshot: St. Pope Gregory II Appoints St. Boniface Apostle to the Germans, Letter 4 (719)
#64 | Papal Snapshot: St. Boniface’s Oath to Obey the Popes, Letter 8 (722)
#66 | Papal Snapshot: St. Pope Gregory II Advises St. Boniface on Evangelizing the Germans, Letter 18 (726)
The Blessed Virgin Mary
Coming soon
The Holy Ones: Veneration, Relics, and Intercession of the Saints
Coming soon
The One True Church
What Did the Ancient Church Believe?
The Jewish Roots of the Catholic Church
#19 | The Jewish Roots of Catholic Authority, Part 1: Moses and the Priesthood Speak for God
#20 | The Jewish Roots of Catholic Authority, Part 2: Urim and Thummim
#26 | The Jewish Roots of Catholic Authority, Part 3: “Apostolic Succession” in the Old Testament
#24 | Where is the True Church? A Typological Connection Between Ancient Israel and the Catholic Church
#34 | Jewish Roots of Catholic Authority, Part 4: The Jewish Understanding of “Binding and Loosing”
Faith, Works, and Justification
Purgatory
The Deuterocanonical (“Apocryphal”) Books of the Bible
Family Matters: Marriage and Sexuality
This Sounds Familiar: Protestantism and Ancient Heresies
Judas Within: Enduring Evil Within the Church
Setting the Record Straight: The Truth vs. Anti-Catholic Myths
Angels and Demons, Signs and Wonders
#47 | St. Augustine’s “Hall of Miracles,” Part 1
#59 | St. Augustine’s “Hall of Miracles,” Part 2
#57 | Divine Intervention Stops the Rebuilding of the Jewish Temple
#72 | An Ancient Apparition of Our Lady and St. John to St. Gregory Thaumaturgus (200s)
#73 | Messiah Defeats the Demons: How the Catholic Faith Destroyed Paganism (St. Athanasius)
#76 | Ancient “Ghost Story”: The Soul of a Holy Deacon Appears to Request Prayers from Purgatory
A Great Mountain: The History, Philosophy, and Theology of Christendom
Coming soon
A New Thing Under the Sun: America in the Shadow of Christendom
The Foolishness of God: The End Times
The Treasures of Egypt: Wisdom from the Nations
Great Tradition Treasury (temporary spot, under construction)
St. Ignatius of Antioch | Letter to the Ephesians (c. 107)
St. Ignatius of Antioch | Letter to the Magnesians (c. 107)
St. Ignatius of Antioch | Letter to the Trallians (c. 107)
St. Ignatius of Antioch | Letter to the Romans (c. 107)
St. Ignatius of Antioch | Letter to the Philadelphians (c. 107)
St. Ignatius of Antioch | Letter to the Smyrnaeans (c. 107)
St. Ignatius of Antioch | Letter to St. Polycarp (c. 107)