“That would explain their interest in joining Catholicism.”
Yes - in that they are hoping to be relieved of their profound Protestant ignorance. The young wife, for instance, said she was learning more about the Bible in her Catholic Bible class than she ever did as a Protestant. That’s a good thing, of course.
“Though, how this excuses the ignorance of your Priests and Bishops in those days even of the very basics, I know not.”
It doesn’t. I just think that ignorance then is simply more forgivable than ignorance now in an age of mass literacy, free libraries, and the internet - and I believe that in regard to both Catholics and Protestants. I have encountered plenty of ignorant Catholics these days. What I have noticed about those ignorant Catholics though is that they don’t spend their time on the internet pretending to know about the faith. That seems to be an exclusively Protestant anti-Catholic activity in that regard.
““Though, how this excuses the ignorance of your Priests and Bishops in those days even of the very basics, I know not.”
It doesn’t.”
In other words, your statements are utterly irrelevant, and don’t encourage much trust in the vaunted Catholic Church, especially in those days. Thank God though, that the Reformation bid men to be responsible for themselves, as a free society should.