Posted on 05/18/2015 6:05:47 PM PDT by Old Yeller
For years, growing up as a Roman Catholic, we were taught that we were members of the one true church. It was impressed upon us regularly by the parish priest during Mass while giving his homily; by the nuns all throughout my Catholic parochial school years of second through seventh grade.
It was impressed upon us during our preparation to receive for the first time the sacraments of Penance, Communion and Confirmation. And while attending CCD classes all the way through high school. (CCD is the Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, an association established at Rome in 1562 for the purpose of giving religious education, normally designed for children.)
It was an established fact that we understood and we never questioned the validity of it. And to be honest, it was a matter of pride, that we were privileged enough to be members of the correct church, while all others had belonged to something else that didn’t quite measure up to the status of the Roman Catholic Church.
After all, how could it be possible that Roman Catholicism is not the one true church?
Look at what Rome has to offer: It has the priests, the nuns; the bishops; the cardinals; and of course, the Pope. They have the Sacraments; the statues; the holy water; the incense; the Stations of the Cross; the Eucharist - in which Chris supposedly physically manifests Himself into the wafer after the consecration by the priest during the Mass; the Marian apparitions—which appear mainly to Roman Catholics.
And they have the Vatican, where the Vicar of Christ (who they believe is Christ’s representative on earth), governs the faithful and makes infallible proclamations and doctrine. How can this not be the one true church? No other organization on the face of the earth comes close to offering to its flock what Rome provides for its faithful.
But, of course, to be true, one must adhere to what has been established as truth and not teach or practice what is contrary to the truth. We read in Scripture a few passages that declare what is truth and what is not. Jesus proclaimed in John 14:6:
“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me.”
This is unadulterated rubbish. It was the Catholic Church, based on Petrine authority, that affirmed the canonical texts in AD 382. This was the case for eleven centuries. Petrine authority did not vanish live a dove taking flight with the advent of the Reformation.
For example in Matthew 18: 20
“For where two or three are gathered together unto my name, there am I in the midst of them.”
The term “in my name: has royal meaning. It is understood as meaning “in all what I teach.”
Christ taught ONE truth and established ONE Church for ALL times, and it has ONE Credo.
We don’t need 30,000 variations of Protestantism instructing different interpretations.
This is captured very well by Dr. A. David Anders, who was born, raised and educated, as an Evangelical Protestant and studied Wheaton College. He set out deliberately to show why Catholicism was wrong. He ended up a Catholic convert. Here is his short summary of his journey,
PROTESTANTISM: A CONFUSED MASS OF INCONSISTENCIES
AND TORTURED LOGIC
“By the time I finished my Ph.D., I had completely revised my understanding of the Catholic Church. I saw that her sacramental doctrine, her view of salvation, her veneration of Mary and the saints, and her claims to authority were all grounded in Scripture, in the oldest traditions, and in the plain teaching of Christ and the apostles.
I also realized that Protestantism was a confused mass of inconsistencies and tortured logic. Not only was Protestant doctrine untrue, it bred contention, and could not even remain unchanged.
What does grace mean to you?
I’m thinking the one TRUE church has no organization at all. Hmmm.
At this point in our country.....I think you’re right.
In either case, the authority of the Pope does not extend to liquor stores.
That list of Catholic “invented” doctrines is a hoot.
There is not one Protestant PROFESSIONAL historian—i.e., someone who has an actual professional reputation he cares about—who would confirm any of those preposterous statements.
Anti-Catholic screed writers have been doing this for decades, if not centuries. They find a MENTION of a dogma somewhere, and proclaim that it was INVENTED at the time it was MENTIONED.
Give the Catholics some credit. They had the only game in town until a whole lot of people learned to read and write. Then the Catholics gave them something to read, write, and argue about.
Your comment is the reason that FR needs a like button. Also, after a long day at work and a long evening of canning beef stock (suddenly found myself with free grassfed, organic local cow tail) I’m sipping some Stoli Doli. It’s my favorite recipe: Pour a bottle of Stoli into a large container (I use a sun tea jug with a spigot) and add one fresh (skinned!) pineapple. Let mingle for at least a week and then enjoy over ice or mixed with fruit juices. Cheers!
Catholicism is as Catholicism does.
And right now, this Francis fellow is doing more to put that whole ‘infallibility’ thing into question than any Pope since the Renaissance.
The Catholic Church emerged the winner out of the Dark Ages because it preserved Roman culture.
What culture, if any, is the present day Catholic Church and its Pope preserving and promoting?
Well as Mark Twain said: “Man is the only animal that has the True Religion—several of them. ..”
However, I do commend your patience in letting your pagan brew 'mingle' for week and The Bretheren (and Cistern) will need your GPS coordiantes.
Good point.
>Ex cathedra meaning "On the Throne," in various classical languages.
Funny, we never see Mary given the worship, prayers, idols, teachings, studies, in the New Testament as we do in catholicism.....and that "dogma" was invented by catholicism.
Who is this Chris guy that the author is ranting about?
there we go!
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