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Your comments throughout this discussion have been spot-on.
What is bothersome to me is the ultimate consequence to the sincere people who have posted here. That will happen on the Day of Judgment.

We get a hint of that Day in Revelation 20. We will individually stand before the Lord — for sentencing, not determination of guilt. There will be the “books” [the Bible] and the Book of Life. We will be judged by what is written in the “books.”

Premise: The Lord’s judgment will be sharper than a two-edged sword.

As we give an account of our deeds, we will not be able to use Catechisms, traditions, commentaries, sermons, priests, ministers, pastors, elders, preachers, etc., in our defense. Those may help our understanding of scripture while we are alive; they will be unavailable at our Judgment.

Consider this:
Catholics: Some will appear before the Lord believing and practicing all understandings of Mary, the mother of Jesus, as their service to the Lord..
Protestants: Others will appear before the Lord asserting that they did not believe nor practice such an understanding in their service to the Lord.

These are mutually exclusive beliefs.
The Lord cannot judge them both worthy of salvation.
If the Lord declares the Catholic version to be correct, millions of “Christians” will be condemned.
If the Lord declares the Protestant version to be correct, millions of “Christians” will be condemned.

If the Lord permits both to enter heaven, then the Lord is neither just nor good.

If this is to be resolved so that we all can be confident that the Lord will welcome us into heaven, it must be that we must study the “books” with which the Lord will judge us on that Day.
That study of the “books” will be our source of knowledge, our source of guidance and ultimately, our source of assurance of salvation.

Doesn’t the verse: “Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: “ just shout in your ears?