Posted on 01/22/2012 2:16:36 PM PST by Gamecock
The conversion testimony of Kevin McGrane, elder of Bury St Edmunds Presbyterian church.
I was raised in a Roman Catholic family, my father having been born in Dublin of Roman Catholic ancestry. Baptism, Confession, Holy Communion and Confirmation followed in regular course. After junior education under Ursuline nuns, I moved to a boys' grammar school established by Jesuits. The education was of a high standard (four years of Greek being particularly useful later). However, no student could take an 'O' Level in Religion as every examination board required study of the Bible, which was not permitted. Instead, we were fed a diet of Roman dogma, the sacraments, sacerdotalism, history of the Jesuits, and the Church Fathers. Catechisms instructed that doctrine was not always to be sought in the Bible but in the infallible teaching of the Church. We learned much about Christological heresies, but at no time could we have explained why Christ had died - we supposed that it was that we might have the Mass. Every week the whole school gathered for Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, where we worshipped what we were assured was the Lord Jesus Christ, in appearance as a consecrated wafer fixed into a golden sunburst-style monstrance, borne at arms length by a Jesuit priest amidst clouds of incense. This, we sang, was the 'newer rite' that had superseded the former 'types and shadows'.
From Romanism to Atheism
The great tragedy was that there was never anything more than crumbs of truth to be gathered - a starvation diet of Scripture alongside a surfeit of error. Even my father, who hardly accepted the Vatican II reforms promoting a more enlightened view of the Bible, became critical of this policy when I left the Roman fold. And leave I did. At sixteen, though convincingly devout, I knew this heritage was slipping like sand through my fingers. I had no safe grounds for believing this dogma, and would no longer do so. My parents referred me to the parish priest, who plied me with liquor but could not induce me to recant. For me, the pursuit of truth became an overriding aim, which included opposing error, superstition and hypocrisy. I rapidly drifted into atheism, keenly pointing out to my classmates the unreasonableness of Roman dogma. I refused to attend Mass with my family, or the compulsory Masses at school. I was prepared to accept any sanctions that might be imposed. With regard to truth, I felt this would be found through the scientific enterprise, and thus it was that I became a physics undergraduate at the University of Oxford. It was easier to be a radical atheist at Oxford, away from Roman Catholic pressure, but I was also exposed to those of genuinely Christian convictions: one training for the ministry at Wycliffe Hall; another, John Hughes, a student at my college; and others. I spent many hours discussing theology with them, and also came into contact with the theologian Michael Green, then Rector of St Aldate's. I read books given to me on Christian apologetics, but these, and all the discussions, merely served to sharpen my counter arguments.
Unyielding spiritual blindness
Those who knew me as an atheist have spoken of my unyielding spiritual blindness. My response to evangelism was anything but indifference or apathy, more a reaction of fighting fire with fire. I distributed atheistic tracts, and had a determined zeal to promote atheist ideals. I should add that this was not like the contemporary New Atheist brand, which sneers and peddles weak discredited arguments. The likes of Richard Dawkins or Christopher Hitchens would have dismayed me as much then as now.
But my faith in science as a path to truth was severely shaken when I discovered at Oxford a systemic corruption in the enterprise. Science had a fatal flaw: human nature. This was a devastating and life-changing experience - the second time the bottom had fallen out of my world. Later, coming to understand more of the philosophy of science, I have never resiled from the stand I took against the corruption of science that I glimpsed at Oxford, and have seen with greater clarity since. As an idealist, perhaps, I had a very high view of the scientific enterprise, but I now see that atheism will eventually destroy it.
After leaving Oxford, I started a job in radar engineering in Chelmsford, and some months later arrived in Southampton to pursue further studies in electronics. Three hours after moving to the city, I was confronted by a Christian couple doing door-to-door evangelism. They asked me where I had studied previously. 'Oxford University,' I replied. 'That's interesting,' said the woman, 'Which college?' 'Hertford College,' I answered. 'Really? Did you know a student there called John Hughes?' 'Yes,' I responded, 'He often came to my room for discussions about Christianity.' 'He's my brother,' she replied. 'O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out!' (Rom. 11:33).
I was invited to attend a course of Bible studies, but the leaders were ill-prepared for presentations of alternative persuasive answers to their questions. They eventually asked me to stop attending Bible studies - I mention this to their shame as well as mine, and as an example never to emulate - one of them stating that I was not interested in truth. Such a statement was quite unfair: was it not precisely because the Apostle Paul understood the implications of Christian doctrine and had a passion for what he believed to be the truth that he was so zealous to extirpate the church? Likewise, I was far from apathetic about truth, and had made bold and difficult adjustments in my life in my search for it. Yet it was a zeal not according to knowledge.
I was angered and stung into reading more Christian apologetics. The arguments seemed no more persuasive than before, but now the Scripture verses underpinning them came to me as hammer blows. Why should those sentences leap off the page like a battering ram against the strongholds of my mind? How could these mere words land such devastating blows? Prayer was being made for me, and the Holy Spirit was convicting me of sin, righteousness and judgment, yet also showing me the way of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ - not through the lens of Roman Catholicism, but through the Word of God. The force of truth was irresistible, and I was granted repentance unto life. 'Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness' sake, O LORD' (Psa. 25:7).
From darkness to light
I was given a Bible that day, which I read avidly, and that week I ventured into a Christian bookshop in Southampton and was amazed at the treasury of books available. The Lord, there and then, gave me a love of Reformed truth, and I was delighted to come away that day with Hodge on The Westminster Confession of Faith, Cunningham on The Reformers and the Theology of the Reformation, and a Greek New Testament. Before I returned to Chelmsford I had come to Presbyterian convictions, though such was a rather exotic species in those days.
The reaction of my parents was actually somewhat favourable to begin with: to be a Christian was surely better than to be an atheist. But when it began to dawn that this Christianity was decidedly Protestant, and Calvinist, and that I wanted them to know and believe the gospel, then a certain amount of antagonism became evident. My father quite genuinely enquired whether there were as many as twenty persons in the world who could possibly believe such things.
During my time at Chelmsford I regularly studied biblical truth within the framework of the Westminster Confession with Dennis Lewis and John Titcombe (who served as elders in the London congregations of the Free Presbyterian and Free Church of Scotland respectively before their call to be with the Lord), praying that God would again revive a commitment to full-orbed Reformed truth in England, and in Chelmsford in particular. In 1986 I attended the London Presbyterian Conference, which took the first tentative steps towards a Presbyterian denomination. I married and removed to Bury St Edmunds without yet seeing an answer to those prayers for Chelmsford, but God surely answered them by raising up a Presbyterian church in that town and elsewhere within a few years. Indeed, in 1991 my family, with a number of others, were founder members of Bury St Edmunds Presbyterian Church, where I continue to serve as a ruling elder.
'Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen' (Rev. 7:12).
I was tempted to post that very poem.
Eph. 6:13-17 in power. Thank you!
AMEN!!!
Although, I would say that the salvation is a done deal but walking it out, growing in the grace and knowledge of Christ and becoming ever more conformed to His image, is an ongoing journey.
We are not perfect when we are saved, but we are saved. The perfecting part is what takes time and none of us ever reach it here on earth.
There is a very large contingent of Catholics who have been pushing its religious leaders to appoint Mary as the 4th part of the Trinity for some time now...And it can't be far away...
If I didn't KNOW we were living in what Paul calls "this present evil world" and that Satan is "the prince of the power of the AIR"...I might say 'Golly, this Mary apparition phenomenon might just be real, Just LOOK at all the "miracles". Evidently "Mary" has been chosen by God to proclaim the Kingdom at hand.'...
Fortunately God's Word tells me differently. So I don't have to be swept about with every wind of doctrine that blows around.
Exactly...We have the sure word of prophecy in the scriptures...
No doubt this pope is almost done...The next one is going to be a real doozer...
You got that right. This world has never witnessed the destruction and wrath that is about to be bestowed on them, led by one man.
Especially in light of this.
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2C.HTM 966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death."506
The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians:
In giving birth you kept your virginity; in your Dormition you did not leave the world, O Mother of God, but were joined to the source of Life. You conceived the living God and, by your prayers, will deliver our souls from death.507
. . . she is our Mother in the order of grace
The church already attributes to her power to deliver souls from death by her prayers. It's not a very big step from there.
Yes, that's right...not a big step to take it one step further. Though I'm not so sure all catholics see Mary as the church proclaims. I'm discovering that some catholics, in fact more than not, don't necessarily abide by what Rome dictates, even though they are condemned for not doing so. Many don't even know what the church requires outside the catachism.....and we've already learned even that isn't any guarantee they understand or even abide by....but there's a host of rules and regulations that condems them if they don't agree...so ignorance for many is probably their defense...it's likely better in some minds not to know than to know.
That was an interesting Link....I wasn't aware of it. Though I've read other quotes which are similar.....this one certainly calls it as it is.
I just saw a video of how the catholic nuns habit is similar to the habjab...when you see them side by side there's little difference... Also the Islamists use prayer beads like the Rosary as well....so there's more common rituals and practices which will unite the people, so many similarities rituals, practices and idolatry is so many religions today...and not being done behind closed doors any more..
Ya know we knew this was coming for years....and we saw it's beginnings but mostly behind the scenes...now this unity of religions is fast coming together....fast because the enemy of mens souls knows his time is very short.
I read about that but can't recall now where...However I was visiting the Vatican Website again and again astounded that in many areas she is seen already as the savior of men. Stunning to imagine.
I would hope that when it's actually officially proclaimed the catholics who are genuine Christians will leave before it's too late.
Someone also posted there's conversation between Muslims and Catholics about mohammeds daughter and the relationship likened to catholicism's mary
Another comment was made worth repeating...."Since Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world today and Catholicism is the largest religious body among those professing to be Christian..... If the number of followers was a measure for selecting a religion, then Islam and Catholicism would definitely be the way to go.....But the scriptures tell us differently...
.... Jesus said, "Wide" is the gate and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction and many there be which go in there at..... Because strait is the gate and narrow is the way which leadeth unto life and few there be that find it."
(Mt 7:13,14).
The Son doesn't get much billing, does HE???
I wonder what the name of the Son of the queen of heaven is...
Wow! You are changing a few dots and tittles with that statement.
As compared to the number of "former" Catholics who have also swum the Tiber in the other direction"?
"Catholicism has experienced the greatest net losses as a result of affiliation changes. While nearly one-in-three Americans (31%) were raised in the Catholic faith, today fewer than one-in-four (24%) describe themselves as Catholic."
Hmm. Possibly I understood your meaning. Sorry about that.
RO:As compared to the number of poorly catechized Protestants who swim the Tiber?
OR:As compared to the number of "former" Catholics who have also swum the Tiber in the other direction"?
RO: Hmm. Possibly I understood your meaning. Sorry about that.
I'm having trouble following this whole conversation.
*poorly catechized Protestants*??
Presbyterians, Dutch Reformed, Confessional Baptists, Lutherans, Episcopalians......
‘Tis an issue.
I see.
BTW: Good to see you again, OLD REGGIE! I haven't seen you posting in a while!
Thanks Smvoice....it’s been so interesting reading about the history of how the scriptures came about...but more so the ‘opposition’ along the way to prevent it from getting into the hands of the people....but it’s great to refresh ,especially since the internet allows us to find information much more quickly, and varied sources, so you can investigate the evidence which supports or does not support.
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