Sign of contradiction

The term is adopted from the New Testament phrase "a sign that is spoken against", found in Luke 2:34[1] and in Acts 28:22,[2] where the texts refer first to Jesus Christ, and then to the early Christians.

"[6] The second biblical phrase is from Acts 28:22, where the writer quotes a Jew in Rome with whom Paul was talking: We desire to hear from you what your views are: for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against.According to Catholic theologians and ecclesiologists like Charles Journet and Kenneth D. Whitehead in One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic: The Early Church was the Catholic Church,[7] the sect being referred to here by the Jews is the early church of Christians.

[9] His defense of life and the human embryo through unprecedented teachings on abortion, euthanasia, and murder as grave sins in the Encyclical Evangelium Vitae, was seen as a sign of contradiction.

[11] Elio Sgreccia, Vice President of the Pontifical Council for Life, said in an article entitled "The Embryo: A Sign of Contradiction": We need only look at the data bank of bioethical and medical writing on the subject to see how this is so.

The theme of the book, according to one review, is "the human encounter with God in a world that seems to contradict the reality of divine power and love.

"[This quote needs a citation] Pope John Paul II says in his conclusion that "It is becoming more and more evident that those words (Luke 2:34) sum up most felicitously the whole truth about Jesus Christ, his mission and his Church."