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Why stay Protestant?
Medium Corporation ^ | 01/22/18 | Matthew Schultz

Posted on 06/21/2018 9:48:25 PM PDT by boatbums

Over the years, I’ve had several Catholic friends and converts ask why I ultimately didn’t convert to their denomination. During my first two years of college, I spent a significant amount of time with Catholics, including at the (then?) US Opus Dei headquarters in NYC. I attended these gatherings with a good friend, who eventually decided to convert from Evangelicalism. I came close to converting, but ultimately decided against it. This has surprised some Catholics. I suspect this is because the standard narrative is that Protestants, especially Evangelicals, are crossing the Tiber in great droves.

Statistically, the narrative isn’t quite so neat: in recent years, Catholicism has lost millions of adherents, most of these converting to a kind of nonreligious spiritualism/secularism or to Protestantism, while millions more Protestants remain Protestant. For every one person who converts to Catholicism, about six leave the church.

Still, the notion that Catholicism is attracting large numbers of Protestant converts, with no movement in the other direction, can create the impression that there is something irresistible about Catholicism to anyone who studies it. My reasons for remaining Protestant haven’t changed a great deal, although they have become more refined, especially since seminary. I would like to share some of them here.

(Excerpt) Read more at medium.com ...


TOPICS: Apologetics
KEYWORDS: catholicism; pathstogod; protestant; religion; tickytackytrolling
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To: Elsie
Little Office STUFF
261 posted on 06/24/2018 4:56:35 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Luircin

.
Collossians 2:16 is confused by the italicised corruptions that were added to the KJV, and later added to every “modern” translation.

The true reading is simply Let no man but the body of Yeshua pass judgement on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath.

This advice can also be extended to any other doctrinal issue.

Of course you have been subject to the same twisted doctrine that I was, so I recognize how much effort is involved in connecting with the truth in the environment of a ‘christian’ church.


262 posted on 06/24/2018 2:57:58 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: boatbums

.
I know that this is hard for you, but you are hung up on Pharisee nonsense. “The Law of Moses” has absolutely nothing to do with Moses, nor the Torah. It is the contra-biblical nonsense of the Pharisees’ Takanot and Ma’assim.

As used in the Greek translations of NT writings, it always is the case.

If you take the time to study John’s first epistle, it will guide you to a clear vision of our only path to the righteousness required to be included in the wedding feast.

“The Works of the Law” never refers to Torah in the NT; it is always Phariseeism. John somehow* managed to write his first epistle in a way not subject to that corruption. (*Holy Spirit)

James also managed to convey truth without Pharisee corruption in his epistle.

Time is short. truth is needed.
.


263 posted on 06/24/2018 3:11:23 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: Elsie

.
If you love those days more than his word, he’ll surely allow you to stick with them!

He never pulls anyone away from what they really love.


264 posted on 06/24/2018 3:19:39 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: editor-surveyor

*Yawn*

I’ve read the original Greek, bucko, and your claims are so ignorant as to be laughable.

So LOL.

And yes, it’s the original GREEK, not Hebrew like a certain not-really-truthful psuedo-Hebrew prevaricator with a name that rhymes with ‘nude’ claims.


265 posted on 06/24/2018 3:45:03 PM PDT by Luircin
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To: Luircin

.
The original is definitely not Greek!

As Paul said, The Oracles of God were given to Judah. Judah’s language is Hebrew.

Greek is a translated language used in the 3rd and 4th centuries.

MS copies of the original Hebrew are now on-line for much of the NT in the Vatican archives (not copies of the corrupt Greek)


266 posted on 06/24/2018 3:50:28 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: Luircin

.
P.S.

None of the NT authors were literate in Greek.


267 posted on 06/24/2018 3:54:02 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: editor-surveyor; Luircin

Odd how the Apostle Paul was also so confused, wasn’t it? He didn’t know the difference between the “Law” and “the Law of Moses”???

Save your accursed, false gospel rationalizations - genuine Christians know who we believe in and why we believe it and it is NOT the twisted, self-righteous babblings of Roodians and other cults. Time indeed grows short and you have been given the truth of God’s word over and over. How you respond to it is up to you.


268 posted on 06/24/2018 4:20:42 PM PDT by boatbums (The Law is a storm which wrecks your hopes of self-salvation, but washes you upon the Rock of Ages.)
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To: Trailerpark Badass
As to whether or not I’m not a faithful RC, lol, for what, believing Protestants are saved, I’ll let the RCs here come tell me that.

It was not restricted to that, but you general attitude of non-submission to Rome, in the light of traditional RC teaching and those who espouse it.

Forgive me for not just taking your word for it And if all it consisted of was what I said, then you would have a valid objection. However, I provided you with extensive official RC teaching on this issue of .

Everyday, after 10-14 hours on my feet, starting a second career, at 50, from the bottom, having a beer and a pipe out on my deck, I pray to God and thank him for a beautiful family, a roof over my head, food to eat, no artillery shells raining down on us, things I’ve done nothing to deserve other than to believe it’s all thanks to him...if it took you going to a different church to feel that, I’m just glad you feel it, too.

It is not just about a mystical experience, but conversion based on what Scripture teaches, of a day of salvation, not by being baptized as an infant as per Catholicism, nor the typical and perfunctory professions of parishioners, and becoming actually good enough to enter Heaven via RC purgatory, but conviction of sin, righteousness and judgment, and casting all one';s faith on the risen Son of God to save you as a damned and destitute sinner, on His account, on His merits, by His sinless shed blood. And then following Him. To His glory.

269 posted on 06/24/2018 4:26:25 PM PDT by daniel1212 (Trust the risen Lord Jesus to save you as a damned and destitute sinner + be baptized + follow Him)
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To: editor-surveyor

Yeah, uh-huh, whatever.

Find me some ancient Hebrew texts from the NT—specifically the Pauline epistles—and I might believe you. Say, like as old as the earliest Greek texts? MAYBE I’ll believe you if you show me those.

PS: They don’t exist. Lol.


270 posted on 06/24/2018 7:07:26 PM PDT by Luircin
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To: editor-surveyor

PS: Ahahahahah BS.

I’m sure you believe that because the fake rabbi told you so and don’t have any evidence other than that.


271 posted on 06/24/2018 7:11:05 PM PDT by Luircin
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To: Biggirl
....."What about the tribulation saints who became Christians and died martyrs?"....

Yes, the saints that come to Jesus after the Rapture are found in Revelation under the Altar crying out for Vengeance. Many Christians will be left behind to face the Beast. There are numerous Scriptures that say things like "Didn't we prophesy and cast out demons in your name", and Jesus told them "I never knew you." The foolish virgins are also Christians left behind. There are many Christians in name only that don't live the life and have not been in the presence of God for Him to know them. These are NOT lost people, however, their flesh lived on after Baptism. A person is to die in Baptism to be resurrected as a new creature when they come up from the water. You must be "Born Again" as Jesus told Nicodemus. There will be 2 types of resurrected saints in Heaven. The Bride that leaves in the Rapture, and the servants left behind to physically die at the hands of the Beast. The many parables in Scripture dealing with servants are those people. The only people who will be Raptured are the people that love Jesus and His coming.

Have you ever heard a Christian say, I hope Jesus wait's till next Fall to come because I have a cruise scheduled this summer? I have. There are some that say they want to see their Grand babies grow up. They will most likely be able to. There are some that say the Rapture will be after the Tribulation. They will be left behind because Scripture says, you must be watching for His coming or He will come as a thief.

The people that go in the Rapture will be the ones that Love Jesus and look forward to His coming. Jesus said, "If you love me, do my commandments." If you have one foot in the world and the other in the Kingdom, that won't work as you are double minded. If we examine ourselves, we must truly live our lives for Christ and not the world. Most people have no idea, and not much inclination to be a follower of Christ. As Paul noticed in Corinth, most of them were still on the milk and had no idea about the meat. All of the Apostles, save John perished for Christ, and John spent his life in prison for Him. Most "Christians are hit and miss at even attending worship services, never volunteer for any extra work, never read the Bible on their own, and have little desire to ever serve Jesus. Is the the type of wife you would marry? Neither would Jesus. Being a servant is easier except for the beheading part. Of course you could also take the "easy way" of denying Christ and taking the mark. Then you get to live no more than 3 more years and die of some plague and burn in hell for eternity. But at least you got to buy and sell a little longer.

Following the commands of Jesus should be easy for a Christian, but for some reason, people just want to keep living like they did while still in the flesh.

272 posted on 06/24/2018 8:44:43 PM PDT by chuckles
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To: editor-surveyor; Luircin; boatbums

“None of the NT authors were literate in Greek.”

That’s a big statement!
While I do admit that most probably spoke/wrote Hebrew that still doesn’t mean they couldn’t be literate in two languages. With that being said the Septuagint was translated because there was a LOT of Greek speaking Jews.

If we look back at Papias we get a small glimpse into a couple of NT authors and guess what one of them was multilingual, so your statement could be more of a guess than a reality.

Papias wrote
Mark had been the interpreter (or translator) for Peter

Matthew compiled the sayings (logia) of the Lord in the Hebrew language. But everyone interpreted (or translated) them as he could

The book of Daniel is written in two languages, so to label “all Hebrew” is careless at best.

None of us can really debate this very well as we don’t have any Hebrew or Greek original autographs, but we know this we have ALL that our Lord wants us to have no more or no less.

“As Paul said, The Oracles of God were given to Judah. Judah’s language is Hebrew.”

Paul was from tribe of Benjamin not Judah, but the Oracles were given through the Jew. There is a huge caveat though all the oracles were given to the Jew, but were dictated by at least one Gentile that being Luke. Luke was a Gentile, but only wrote what was given him from the eyewitness of Jesus. There the mystery is solved of how all the Oracles of God was given through the Jew, but yet a Gentile put some of them to paper.

“not copies of the corrupt Greek”

Oh please the message of the Gospel and Cross is still the same even if you are right or wrong...
it’s the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

Romans 10:9-11 King James Version (KJV)
9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.
10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.
11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.


273 posted on 06/24/2018 10:05:44 PM PDT by mrobisr
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To: mrobisr

And on top of that, the language of the Jews in Jesus’s time was Aramaic anyways, not Hebrew!


274 posted on 06/24/2018 10:25:07 PM PDT by Luircin
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To: editor-surveyor
He never pulls anyone away from what they really love.

Except for that Paul/Saul fella.

275 posted on 06/25/2018 3:29:00 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: Elsie

.
Paul believed that he was doing the will of the Father.

He repented when he was shown the truth.

You just get sarcastic when shown the truth.
.


276 posted on 06/25/2018 9:35:43 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: mrobisr

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The disciples and apostles were mostly common working class men. They had no reason nor opportunity to study languages.

Only Matthew and Paul were educated men.

Now that ms copies of the Hebrew original gospels are available, there is no profit in clinging to the errors and lies of the elite critics of the word.

Mark’s and Luke’s gospels obviously used Matthew’s work to prepare.

Only John’s gospel stands alone.

We don’t have original autographs of any NT writing, nor will we likely ever have them, but we do have quality copies of most of each of them now. They do not have the sloppy problems of the Greek translations.

All of the writings of Daniel are in Hebrew; only the 4th chapter which was Nebuchadnezar’s own testimony, not Daniel’s work, was in Aramaic, his native language.

The tribe of Benjamin is a part of the House of Judah, as were the Cohen and scribes that lived among them, so Paul was “Judah.”

All discussion of “Luke” is supposition and outright propaganda. He wasn’t called to write of himself; he wrote the handbook of how the new converts were taught Torah, by emulating the apostles worship.

That is why The Acts is mostly about the Sabbath and the appointed times.

.


277 posted on 06/25/2018 9:57:35 PM PDT by editor-surveyor (Freepers: Not as smart as I'd hoped they'd be)
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To: editor-surveyor
You just get sarcastic when shown the truth.

You get defensive when shown something that disagrees with what you've claimed.

278 posted on 06/26/2018 4:28:16 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: editor-surveyor
Now that ms copies of the Hebrew original gospels are available, there is no profit in clinging to the errors and lies of the elite critics of the word.

PLEASE!!!

Avail us!

279 posted on 06/26/2018 4:29:16 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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To: editor-surveyor
That is why The Acts is mostly about the Sabbath and the appointed times.

Especially that darned 15th chapter...


 

Acts 15

The Council at Jerusalem
 1 Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the believers: "Unless you are circumcised, according to the custom taught by Moses, you cannot be saved." 2 This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question. 3 The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted. This news made all the believers very glad. 4 When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.

 5 Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, "The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to keep the law of Moses."

 6 The apostles and elders met to consider this question. 7 After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: "Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us. 9 He did not discriminate between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith. 10 Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of Gentiles a yoke that neither we nor our ancestors have been able to bear? 11 No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are."

 12 The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them. 13 When they finished, James spoke up. "Brothers," he said, "listen to me. 14 Simon has described to us how God first intervened to choose a people for his name from the Gentiles. 15 The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:

 16 "'After this I will return
   and rebuild David's fallen tent.
Its ruins I will rebuild,
   and I will restore it,
17 that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
   even all the Gentiles who bear my name,
says the Lord, who does these things'
 18 things known from long ago.

 19 "It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20 Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals and from blood. 21 For the law of Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath."

The Council's Letter to Gentile Believers
 22 Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas, men who were leaders among the believers. 23 With them they sent the following letter:

   The apostles and elders, your brothers,

   To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:

   Greetings.

 24 We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. 25 So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28 It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29 You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.

   Farewell.

 30 So the men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. 31 The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. 32 Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the believers. 33 After spending some time there, they were sent off by the believers with the blessing of peace to return to those who had sent them. [34] 35 But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.

Disagreement Between Paul and Barnabas
 36 Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing." 37 Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, 38 but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40 but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord. 41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.

280 posted on 06/26/2018 4:33:51 AM PDT by Elsie (Heck is where people, who don't believe in Gosh, think they are not going...)
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