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2,100 years of history and practice, starting with the Great Commission - predating the Holy Writ.

Well now that is a problem considering there is all that Old Testament stuff that predates the "history and practice". I wonder what sort of history and practices they were doing prior to 2,100 years? It sure would be news to King David that he wasn't practicing things correctly or that he wasn't part of God's history. Well, he was only a person who was considered a man after God's heart. And somehow I thought the Old Testament was part of the "Holy Writ"-whatever that means.

That's the problem Catholics have. They can't get their stories straight because of all the baggage. If one goes to New Advent and look up justification, the best Catholics can come up with is pointing to the Council of Trent about 500-600 years ago. Never mind Catholics, including many on this board, have told us:

2) The Early Fathers were bigoted (replacement of Israel).

3) Tell us how well esteemed the Early Fathers were then ignore their writings (justification).

4) Tell us how opinionated the Early Fathers were (predestination) while embracing heretical doctrine like free will.

5) Tell us how Early Fathers were flat out wrong (adoption) while unable to explain scriptural text and early writings.

6) And let's not forget how the Early Fathers told us to use scripture only (as Jerome did) while Catholics then tell us the "Holy Writ" is more important. OUCH!

Catholics then post articles of how wonderful the Early Fathers were and can trace their roots back to them. It reminds me of how Christ condemn the Jewish leaders for killing the prophets and then pretent to laud them.

Mat 23:27 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness.

Mat 23:28 So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

Mat 23:29 "Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous,

Mat 23:30 saying, 'If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.'

Mat 23:31 Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.

Mat 23:32 Fill up, then, the measure of your fathers.

Mat 23:33 You serpents, you brood of vipers, how are you to escape being sentenced to hell?

Sorry if the above quote doesn't sound very ecumenical but it is certainly one that this conversation calls to mind. I'm not the one being fed the "snake oil".