Posted on 12/03/2014 10:23:22 AM PST by NKP_Vet
In a new video, megachurch leader and author Rick Warren is calling for Christians to unite with Roman Catholics and “Pope Francis,” who Warren recently referred to as the “Holy Father”—a move that is raising concerns among Christians nationwide and is resulting in calls for Warren to repent.
Warren made the comments following his visit to the Vatican last month, where he spoke at an interfaith conference on the “Complementarity of Man and Woman.”
“We have far more in common than what divides us,” he said in the two-minute video released by the Catholic News Service on Wednesday, described as being an outline for “an ecumenical vision for Catholics and Protestants to work together to defend the sanctity of life, sex and marriage.”
“They would all say, ‘We believe in the Trinity; we believe in the Bible; we believe in the resurrection; we believe in salvation through Jesus Christ,” Warren asserted, speaking of the various denominations within Christianity, of which he included Roman Catholicism. “These are the big issues.”
The author of the bestselling book “The Purpose Driven Life” then sought to defend Catholics from those who take issue with the practice of seeking the intercession of Mary and the various deceased persons that have been sainted by the Vatican.
“Sometimes protestants think that Catholics worship Mary like she’s another god, but that’s not exactly Catholic doctrine,” Warren contended. “People say, ‘What are the saints all about? Why are you praying to the saints?’ And when you understand what they mean by what they’re saying, there’s a whole lot more commonality [that we have with Roman Catholics].”
“There’s still real differences—no doubt about that,” Warren stated. “But the most important thing is, if you love Jesus, we’re on the same team.”
He closed by speaking of his belief that Christians and Catholics serve as co-laborers for the cause of defending life and family.
“When it comes to the family, we are co-workers in the field in this for the protection of the sanctity of life, the sanctity of sex and the sanctity of marriage,” Warren said. “So, there’s a great commonality and there’s no division on any of those three.”
But Warren’s comments have raised concern from Christian leaders nationwide, who are now calling the Saddleback leader to repentance. Matt Slick of the Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry (CARM) repudiated each of Warren’s points.
“Sure, there are Catholics who love the real Christ, the one who died on the cross for our sins. That is not the problem,” he said. “The problem is the Roman Catholic Church’s false teachings concerning Mary and salvation.”
“Rick Warren says both the Catholics and the Protestants believe in the Bible. But, there is a significant difference between the Bible of the Protestants and the Roman Catholic Church, which has added seven books,” Slick wrote. “[T]here are numerous problems in the apocryphal books, such as the teaching of salvation by works [and] the offering of money for the sins of the dead.”
“Warren implies that both Protestants and Catholics have the same view of salvation,” he continued. “Though it’s technically correct to say that Catholics believe in salvation through Jesus Christ, they reject justification by faith alone in Christ alone. Instead, it teaches that good works of various kinds are necessary for salvation.”
The Christian apologist then pointed to several Roman Catholic teachings on Mary, mainly from the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), such as that Mary “by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation” and that “[b]y asking Mary to pray for us, we acknowledge ourselves to be poor sinners and we address ourselves to the ‘Mother of Mercy,’ the All-Holy One.”
“Rick Warren has not only failed to recognize the problems in these serious areas, but he has lent his credibility as a Protestant pastor in support of the Roman Catholic Church,” Slick wrote. “This should never be done by any Protestant pastor who takes the Bible seriously. I must conclude that Mr. Warren does not take the word of God seriously and/or he does not understand the damnable teachings of Roman Catholicism regarding salvation.”
“Rick Warren needs to repent,” he said.
The old meaning is Greek, and to say that someone should be anathema due to their teaching, is to say that they should be rejected as a teacher. Yes, rejected strenuously.
If a stretched inference of “anathema” is what you are hanging your hat on, I think I’m done here.
It was condemnation.
Don’t let the door hit you.
Which part of my tagline did you find arrogantly unChristian? That I state socialism creates feral humans? Please do explain.
Yes, indeed it was condemnation. Grab a dictionary, look up “condemnation” and then look up “damnation”. Contemplate the differences and get back to me.
I thought you were done?
The Roman Catholic Church taught there was no Salvation outside of Rome. Your straining at the eye of a gnat won’t change that.
Its Christ's Church. And the last time I checked, your confusion about what a word means doesn't constitute an excuse on my part.
Always getting one’s way through blustering eventually will catch up with one. Then, one will be left alone.
anathema: that which is laid up, i.e. a votive offering Part of Speech: Noun, Neuter
Transliteration: anathema
Phonetic Spelling: (an-ath'-em-ah)
Short Definition: a curse, a cursed thing
Definition: a votive offering, a thing devoted to God; a curse, the thing cursed.
HELPS Word-studies
331 anáthema (from 303 /aná, "up" concluding a process, which intensifies 5087 /títhēmi, "to place") – properly, place up, referring to something pledged (given up) to destruction; a divine curse/ban ("accursed"); an "oath-curse."
b. a man accursed, devoted to the direst woes; to execrate one, 1 Corinthians 12:3
Romans 9:3 (pregnantly equivalent to doomed and so separated from Christ).
http://biblehub.com/greek/331.htm
It may have been at one time, but Rome jumped the shark a LOOOOONG time ago.
Hate?
Personal attack aside I am not fond of any organization that allow priests to molest children and does nothing but protect the priests.
Sleeping well at night?
I said the Church was Christ’s, why did you feel compelled to add RCC for me?
Did see damnation in there. Got anything else?
Was that in a fortune cookie?
As used in the Romans 9:3 passage, ‘anathema’ means ‘separated from Christ.’ How can that not equal damnation? A person cannot be both saved and separated from Christ; that is an impossibility.
Stop posting links and text from websites not allowed in the Religion Forum.
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Discuss the issues all you want, but do not make it personal.
Stating the same accusation over and over to a poster is badgering and personal.
“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.”
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