***I’m not about to concede that the RC edifice has a monopoly on “catholic.” ***
It’s not about you. It’s about God.
***I don’t think the whole edifice any longer qualifies as a bonafide Christian Church. ***
You are entitled to your opinion. But it’s just an opinion.
***That’s the REALITY from my perspective***
It’s your perspective.
***This is NOT some mutually flattering context of a cozy Parish hall or friendly BINGO game.
DEAL WITH IT. ***
Some of us are.
***This is a somewhat moderated free-for all of RELIGIOUS ideas, convictions, perspectives, realities etc. ***
There is only one Triune God. Jesus came down from Heaven, was made man, was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. On the third day, He rose again. He ascended into Heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
And He established a teaching group known as the Apostles in order to bring His Good News of Salvation to all the world. You can either follow it, or else you proclaim to follow one of its documents, but not it, or follow something else entirely.
That’s it. An individual that believes different than the Church of Jesus Christ teaches does not follow Him. You are welcome to all the opinions that you may formulate, yet Christian is a description of those who follow Christ and His commands. That’s it.
That’s it. An individual that believes different than the Church of Jesus Christ teaches does not follow Him.
We on this side of things do not, for a microsecond, believe that the 400 year-johnny-come-lately theological political power mongers in Rome founded THE Church that Jesus founded--at all. The solid historically accurate evidence indicates wholesale otherwise.
Jesus Himself said that those WHO LOVED HIM, WHO DID THE WILL OF THE FATHER were His disciples. That slices through a lot of the walls of the RC edifice 144 ways to Sunday and beyond. The New Testament is clear about those who believe that Jesus came in the flesh . . . etc. are in concorde with Holy Spirit. . . .
Given
HOLY SPIRIT ENLIVENED SIGNS FOLLOWING
MANY OTHER CLUSTERS OF PEOPLE WHO LOVE JESUS EARNESTLY AS FULLY AS THEY KNOW HOW . . .
God seems to disagree with that perspective.
I'll trust God's judgment in the matter over that of the RC magicsterical any day, week, month, year, decade, century, millenium.
What kind of guppy gobbler are you?
Don’t you know the Catholic Church came up with the Creeds so they wouldn’t have to let the illiterate peasants read the Bible ;o)