By definition, history and example Protestants take their identity not from what they positively affirm, but rather from that which they denounce.
The most virulent have taken their "Protestation" of the Catholic Church and made it the center of their faith. It is the fulcrum against which every issue of dogma and faith and every historical fact is leveraged. Whatever reflects positively on the Church and whatever the Church affirms they must denounce or lose their identity. It makes them small, petty, pitiful wretches. They do not blame themselves or their beliefs for their fringe status, but rather blame the Church for not accepting them as the intellectual and spiritual equals of the Fathers.
They huddle in their shrinking sects and cults working for the demise of that one entity that stands in the path of their undeserved parity, the Catholic Church.
Fortunately, they are nothing more than an irritant for those who permit them to be.
Anti Catholicism is their Golden Calf. It consumes them into darkness
That's not quite true.
The term Protestant is taken from the "Protestation at Speyer" when a group of German nobles aligned with or sympathetic to Martin Luther signed a letter that began with the words, "We protest" to the Holy Roman Empire's decision to basically destroy Lutheranism.
Do I agree with what Luther did? No, but I have always admired his conviction. Luther's "95 Theses" addressed many LEGITIMATE areas of corruption in the Church, things that have long since been corrected. The Church NEVER sanctioned the sale of indulgences, but a great many in the Church also looked the other way when it happened. There were things that NEEDED to be addressed and it is unfortunate that the outcome was what it was. I have long believed that Luther's desire WAS NOT to divide the Church, but I think he was pressured by a noblemen who had a great deal to gain by having a German Church that was was not subject to the Vatican.
The Augsburg Confession is the fundamental to the Lutheran Church and it is something that Catholics should certainly understand. In the mid-1970s, Pope Benedict XVI expressed his belief that it could possibly be seen as a Catholic document. However, the Augsburg Confession was rejected by other Reformation leaders and this lead to the the division among Protestants.
So basically, I think it is wrong of us to lump Protestants together. While we have our differences, I believe that Lutherans, Anglicans and many who come from this tradition truly are united with Catholics in our belief in One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.