Who are these "infallible" people I believe in? I trust that those who were ordained by the Apostles taught the same Faith the Apostles taught them, and that the trust of the Apostles was an infallible proof that the Faith of their successors is the true Faith and is interpreted correctly. And, that they could do so before the NT was put together.
So, if we compare what the people such as +Ignatius and +Polycarp taught and wrote, both of whom were disciples of Apostles (+Paul and +John), and what their successors taught and what we still preach, I have a high degree of confidence that it was as close to the true Faith as it gets.
In your case, I just have to trust your claim that yours is an equally valid, correct and providential teaching, even if it is diametrically opposed to that known to the Church from the beginning.
That is a lot of to accept, FK. That is the ultimate in the "me-me-me" way of thinking. Protestantism is a man-made "church," based on individual interpretations of the Bible, which was put together by the the Church, after much human intervention. You trust that the Church must have known what it was doing when it collected the books it deemed inspired into the Bible you believe in, but you don't believe the Church knows how to interpret the same inspired books!
There is no attack here, FK. Just bewilderment at how man can convince himself to be infallible. You expect me to believe that you are guided by the Holy Spirit, because you believe so, but that the Church is guided by fallible men who are not? Based on what? What do you have to offer other than your own conviction? The opinions of other fallible men who agree with you?
OK, I should have said that I think you believe in the infallibility of the writings of these extra-Biblical men.
You trust that the Church must have known what it was doing when it collected the books it deemed inspired into the Bible you believe in, but you don't believe the Church knows how to interpret the same inspired books!
For me to be consistent, I must say that I don't trust at all that the "the Church" knew what it was doing when the Bible was put together. I have said before that it was God alone who arranged that. Nothing against the men who did the physical labor, but I don't think that human decision had anything to do with it.
There is no attack here, FK. Just bewilderment at how man can convince himself to be infallible. You expect me to believe that you are guided by the Holy Spirit, because you believe so, but that the Church is guided by fallible men who are not? Based on what? What do you have to offer other than your own conviction? The opinions of other fallible men who agree with you?
I make no claim to being infallible. I proved it on this thread when I switched from OSAS to PotS. I merely "think" I am right about what I believe. I have an open mind, and if someone can show me a superior teaching that is backed by scripture, I might very well accept it.
Also, I have never said that leaders of the Church are not guided by the Spirit just because they are Catholic or Orthodox! :) I claim no monopoly on the guidance of the Spirit for my side. BUT YOU GUYS DO! :) The only thing I have to offer to support my views is the scripture itself, not what other men say. If the scripture says what it says, and not something drastically different, then I feel confident about my views. If the scripture doesn't say what it says, then anyone could be right.