“It was you sir who made the accusation against me:”
Yes, and it was true, but that doesn’t mean I’ve kept a list.
“All I asked was what specifically I said that proved I didn’t have knowledge of Catholic teaching.”
I know what you asked for. And I told you I don’t have a list. And I think you know that’s reasonable.
“I opposed them because they are teaching falsehoods that are not God’s Word.”
I know your opinion.
“I was taught in the Roman Catholic church that grace was a “process of justification.””
I don’t think you were. Grace is a thing. A process is a process. Grace is the active and necessary ingredient but it is not the process itself. Right there that tells me you either don’t know what you’re talking about or whoever taught you did not know what they were talking about.
“I was shocked and amazed that Grace is actually the unearned and awesome gift of Christ, who by His sacrifice and death I am justified. Through faith and by Grace, I am saved from Hell itself.”
Shocked. Amazed. Really? I guess no Catholic ever shared even basic Catholic teachings with you then.
Baltimore Catechism #3:
Q. 456. What do you mean by grace?
A. By grace I mean a supernatural gift of God bestowed on us, through the merits of Jesus Christ, for our salvation.
See what I mean? Or how about:
Q. 475. What is actual grace?
A. Actual grace is that help of God which enlightens our mind and moves our will to shun evil and do good.
Q. 476. Is grace necessary to salvation?
A. Grace is necessary to salvation, because without grace we can do nothing to merit heaven.
Or how about the Catechism Explained (published in 1899):
2. The Holy Ghost dispenses the graces which Christ merited by the sacrifice of the cross.
The Holy Ghost produces nothing in addition to what Christ gained for us. He only increases and perfects that work of Christ; just as the sun when shining on a field does not sow new seed, but develops that which is already sown. A grace is a favor granted to a person who has, no claim to the favor of a sovereign grants a reprieve to a criminal under sentence of death, that reprieve is a grace. So, too, God acts with regard to man, granting Him numberless favors without any merit on the part of man (Rom. iii.24). These favors or graces may be temporal, such as health, riches, station; or spiritual, such as forgiveness of our sins. It is with the latter class of favors that we are dealing now, and it was to secure these for us that Christ consented to die on the cross.
SkyPilot, this one example proves my point. I need no other to show that you really don’t know what you’re talking about. Either you were terrible at learning about the faith or simply had terrible CCD teachers or whatever, but your errors today are directly traceable to your lack of knowledge then. You were “shocked” and “amazed”? It was right there in Catholic teaching and always had been. You simply didn’t know it - as you have admitted.
You will NEVER merit Heaven. Take your works and put some ice on that wounded massive ego.
Shocked. Amazed. Really? I guess no Catholic ever shared even basic Catholic teachings with you then.
Yes. Because when I really learned what Grace was, and not the confusing and conflicting RCC teaching of what they present, I was shocked that Christ forgave me and accepted me as I was.
Catechism of the Catholic Church
Grace is a participation in the life of God.......Sanctifying grace is an habitual gift, a stable and supernatural disposition that perfects the soul itself to enable it to live with God....The preparation of man for the reception of grace is already a work of grace. This latter is needed to arouse and sustain our collaboration in justification through faith, and in sanctification through charity.......Grace is first and foremost the gift of the Spirit who justifies and sanctifies us. But grace also includes the gifts that the Spirit grants us to associate us with his work, to enable us to collaborate in the salvation of others and in the growth of the Body of Christ, the Church. There are sacramental graces, gifts proper to the different sacraments. There are furthermore special graces, also called charisms after the Greek term used by St. Paul and meaning "favor," "gratuitous gift," "benefit." Whatever their character - sometimes it is extraordinary, such as the gift of miracles or of tongues - charisms are oriented toward sanctifying grace and are intended for the common good of the Church. They are at the service of charity which builds up the Church. Among the special graces ought to be mentioned the graces of state that accompany the exercise of the responsibilities of the Christian life and of the ministries within the Church.....
That is a bunch of hodge podge double speak. It mixes works with grace, and teaches that there is "sanctifying grace" and "sacramental grace" - and other un-Biblical and heretical concepts.
So yes, I was shocked to learn that Christ saved me by grace, through faith, alone.
And I was quite happy to learn that. You, like most Catholics, don't believe in real Grace. You believe in that mess of a stew in the Catechism posted in the link above.
Read this:
7 Key Differences Between Protestant and Catholic Doctrine
3. Salvation and Grace Protestants often express the idea that salvation is by faith alone, through grace alone, in Christ alone. This assertion views justification as specific point upon which God declares that you are righteous—a point where you enter into the Christian life.
In contrast, the Roman Catholic Church views justification as a process, dependent on the grace you receive by participating in the Church—which is seen as a repository of saving grace. Dr. Svigel explains the Catholic perspective:
“Grace is treated almost as if it’s a substance, something that can be dispensed through various avenues of change and means… You’re saved by grace, but how you receive that grace and what that grace does and whether it’s a one-time entrance into the Christian life or if it’s a constant movement toward salvation—that’s really the big difference between Protestantism and the Roman Catholic Church.”
Not only does the RCC teach "Faith + Works" rather than Faith alone, the RCC teaches that you cannot know if you are saved until the point of your death.
https://www.catholic.com/tract/assurance-of-salvation
"One who dies in the state of friendship with God (the state of grace) will go to heaven. The one who dies in a state of enmity and rebellion against God (the state of mortal sin) will go to hell."
Notwithstanding that "Mortal sin" and "Venial sin" are not Biblical concepts either.
Let's see what the Catechism says:
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm
1022 Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ: either entrance into the blessedness of heaven-through a purification594 or immediately,595 -- or immediate and everlasting damnation.596
Again, that isn't even remotely what the Bible teaches about Grace and Salvation.
So since you believe what the RCC teaches vs. the Holy Bible, I can see why you are confused.
Romans 10: 9-13
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 11 As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” 12 For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, 13 for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
SP, along with the Catholic misunderstanding of what grace is, is the fact that they think it can be merited, or earned.
But what they don't realize is that the minute merit comes into it, it ceases to be grace, it becomes wages due for acts or work performed.
Grace in its very essence is unmerited and freely given.
And Catholics just don't get it.
Where sin abounds grace much more abounds and without sin, there is no grace.