My Faith: Rep. Keith Ellison (D-MN), from Catholic to Muslim

CNN ^ | 9/1/11 | Chris Welch

[marshmallow]

Minneapolis, Minnesota (CNN) –Prior to 2006, few people even knew that then-Minnesota state legislator Keith Ellison was a Muslim. Because of his English name, he said, no one thought to ask.

But five years ago, when he ran for a seat in the United States House of Representatives - a race he would go on to win - word of his religious affiliation began to spread.

“When I started running for Congress it actually took me by surprise that so many people were fascinated with me being the first Muslim in Congress,” said Ellison, a Democrat now serving his third term in the House.

“But someone said to me, ‘Look Keith, think of a person of Japanese origin running for Congress six years after Pearl Harbor–this might be a news story.’”

Though Ellison's status as the first Muslim elected to Congress is widely known, fewer are aware that he was born into a Catholic family in Detroit and was brought up attending Catholic schools.

But he said he was never comfortable with that faith.

“I just felt it was ritual and dogma,” Ellison said. “Of course, that’s not the reality of Catholicism, but it’s the reality I lived. So I just kind of lost interest and stopped going to Mass unless I was required to.”

It wasn’t until he was a student at Wayne State University in Detroit when Ellison began, “looking for other things.”

[wmfights]

Anyone is Christ belongs to Jesus and has eternal life, not dependent on works or baptism or church membership or affiliation or any such thing.

ICor. 12:13 For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body-whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free-and have all been made to drink into one Spirit. (14)For in fact the body is not one member but many.

One way the RCC tries to control people is through their belief in sacramentalism. The RCC claims it's clergy are given special powers to confer Grace into the individual, baptism and the Lord's Supper being the best examples. Any reader of Scripture immediately sees that this claim is contrary to passages of Scripture such as the one I already noted. However, most people don't read Scripture and are drawn to institutions with a long history figuring if something has been around for a long time it must be good, especially if it claims to be good.

They will never accept or understand being saved by Grace Alone through Faith Alone in Christ Alone as long as they think their church has some special power to save.

[Gamecock]

Islam=works based religion. (5 pillars)
Catholicism=works based religion. (Catholic Sacraments)

[MarkBsnr]

Reformation=man made religion (the God in the mirror)

[wmfights]

Islam=works based religion. (5 pillars) Catholicism=works based religion. (Catholic Sacraments)

One who dies in service to Allah is assured a place in paradise-Islam. One who goes to war in the Crusades is saved-Catholicism.

[marshmallow]

Islam = Irrational, unreasonable, unknowable God. Allah has absolute dominion and we can do nothing but submit.

Calvinism = Irrational, unreasonable, unknowable God. Chooses some to be saved, the rest are abandoned to hell. God has absolute dominion and we can do nothing but submit.

[RnMomof7]

Islam=works based religion. (5 pillars) Catholicism=works based religion. (Catholic Sacraments)

Exactly

Rome has more in common with Islam than it does with Protestantism ... no grace.. just do your works and hope for the best..

[metmom]

By their own admission in the Catechism of the Catholic church.

They are more accepting of islam than Protestantism.

[metmom]

And speaking of bi-polar, how about the extremists in your camp? The ones walking through the shadow of death, fearing no [evil] Catholics. You know, the ones 30 days away from the grave.

And how does that warrant the diagnosis of bipolar?

Do you have a medical degree that enables you to correctly diagnose people?

Does it bother you that someone can face death with peace, and certainty of their destination?

[Salvation]

That’s a strange statement to make. I just did two searches on the Cathecism of the Catholic Church and come up with nothing.

Hmmmm.

http://ccc.scborromeo.org.master.com/texis/master/search/?sufs=0&q=moslem&s=SS

http://ccc.scborromeo.org.master.com/texis/master/search/?sufs=0&q=islam&xsubmit=Search&s=SS

[Salvation]

Another site

another search

Again — nothing.

http://search.usccb.org/search?q=moslem&site=Catechism&btnG=Search&client=default_frontend&proxystylesheet=default_frontend&output=xml_no_dtd&sort=date%3AD%3AL%3Ad1&entqr=3&entsp=a__usccb_policy&lr=lang_en%7Clang_es&oe=UTF-8&ie=UTF-8&ud=1

http://search.usccb.org/search?q=islam&site=Catechism&btnG=Search&client=default_frontend&proxystylesheet=default_frontend&output=xml_no_dtd&sort=date%3AD%3AL%3Ad1&entqr=3&entsp=a__usccb_policy&lr=lang_en%7Clang_es&oe=UTF-8&ie=UTF-8&ud=1

[RnMomof7]

By their own admission in the Catechism of the Catholic church. They are more accepting of islam than Protestantism.

That is because Catholicism does not accept salvation by grace or the finished work of the cross.. Islam mirrors their own theology

[RnMomof7]

Does it bother you that someone can face death with peace, and certainty of their destination?

Of course it does..

[MarkBsnr]

By their own admission in the Catechism of the Catholic church. They are more accepting of islam than Protestantism.

Let us have the admission quoted, please. You claim it; you name it. Have a nice day while you are searching. Don't forget to take a Sherpa.

[MarkBsnr]

Another site another search Again — nothing.

By some odd coincidence, that is exactly how much actual Christianity some of these folks really believe in.

[MarkBsnr]

That is because Catholicism does not accept salvation by grace or the finished work of the cross

Is there a magical number of how many times you must post a falsity before it magically becomes true?

[metmom]

http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P29.HTM

841 The Church's relationship with the Muslims. "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day."330

[metmom]

Sheesh, give a girl a chance. My son was just leaving to go back to college after a day home and I couldn’t get to it immediately.

[MarkBsnr]

One who dies in service to Allah is assured a place in paradise-Islam. One who goes to war in the Crusades is saved-Catholicism.

Interesting from the children of those who allied with the Moslems during their hundred year invasion of Austria and the Balkans, and their 600 year conquest of Spain. Exactly none of you opposed the Moslems then, hoping to pick up the scraps if the Moslems beat the Christians and occupied Europe.

[Gamecock]

Amen.

[boatbums]

Try tweaking your search a wee bit. Muslims instead of Muslim or Islam gives this:

http://ccc.scborromeo.org.master.com/texis/master/search/?sufs=0&q=muslims&s=SS