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.
Ever hear of the body of Christ attaining to the unity of faith? Eph 4:13
That is all of the body of Christ, not the goats, but the sheep will be united in faith....not those that oppose Christ and his church including those who call him Lord Lord but he says he never knew, but those who fellowship with him from many different denominations.
There's your problem. Salvation is neither easy nor hard for the man, it is quite simply impossible for him. It is entirely out of his power, but in God's alone who makes us both to will and to do of His good pleasure, who brings to us the beginning of faith, forgives us our many sins and flaws, and causes us to persevere. To speak in terms of having a "easy" or a "tough" way to heaven is to speak in meritorious terms, as if a man might earn his way to heaven, which is repulsive to the Gospel.
The believers in Jesus hope he does...you folks can have this flotsam & jetsam.
Narrow is the way, that leadeth unto life...
For soon the night is coming, when no man may work.
I knew the article would bring out the Catholic-haters. They just can’t figure out how any protestant could possibly have good things to say about their version of Satan on earth, i.e. the Catholic Church. It makes them go crazy. Ties their brain in all kinds of knots. Billy Graham is absolutely despised by millions of evangelicals because he always had a good relationship with Catholics, and especially the popes. He would not condemn Catholics to hell and never once has said Catholics were not Christians. He used to end his sermons by telling everyone to come up and accept Christ and then “go back to your churches” and serve the Lord. He would say he didn’t care what denomination someone was, Catholics, Presbyterians, Baptists, Lutherans, etc. For this Billy Graham was blasted his entire life by evangelicals, who said he was not Christian and of course could not possibly know scripture, because after all he was supposed to be sending Catholics to hell in his sermons.
LoL
Ain’t that the truth
Warren ......sesame school Christianity
Muslims do convert to Catholicism. LOL.
Mar 10:26-27 And they were astonished out of measure, saying among themselves, Who then can be saved? And Jesus looking upon them saith, With men it is impossible, but not with God: for with God all things are possible.
I don't have a problem. Move along please.
Why do so many Catholics here think anyone not Catholic is the same or hellbound
You got good and bad Catholics too
JPII or Croatian Ustachi....one a dang good Pope..the other Nazi collaborator murderers of the Pol Pot school
But both quite Catholic
Would I lump them together?
No...never.
So quit doing it.
That’s a bull from the bathtub redneck reverend of Williamson County TN
So you better do right or I’ll send out emmisaries in Carhartt and force you to whistle Dixie and listen to freebird 24/7 ala Noriega
Who are these "millions of evangelicals" that you speak of? Have you been thinking about evangelicals again?
Ahhh, the second most misunderstood verse in Scripture. (v.27)
Not only no, but hell no!!
Really, and when did Catholics "add" those seven books? Last time I checked, they were in the bible canon from the start, then protestants decided to REMOVE seven books in the 1600s.
Sending Roman Catholics to Hell? I think that's above his paygrade.
Got ANY evidence of that assertion?
Links?
Articles?
Stats?
ANYTHING?
Cause that's the first I've ever heard of it and I'll bet the same for every other Evangelical on this board.
So for the sake of the lurkers who might actually be duped into thinking that you are correct in this account and actually correct about what you say, I don't believe this for one minute because I have never seen any evidence to back it up. Until I do, to coin a phrase - You are wrong.
And you heard this where, exactly?
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