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I believe in the Reformation and Sola Scriptura because I believe the men who led the Catholic Church during that time were corrupted by their incredible sociopolitical power and perverted the message of Christ for their own personal gain.

Interesting. So the fact that the Church was successful in the world, led it to become corrupt. Is that what you are saying?

That's not to say that all Catholics today are corrupt or trying to pervert the Word of God -- but it does make me wary of allowing mere sinful men to interpret God's Word for me, and, based on those interpretations, create entire authoritative doctrines that I must follow.

Excepting yourself, of course.

***Interesting. So the fact that the Church was successful in the world, led it to become corrupt. Is that what you are saying?***

I believe I said "the *men who led* the Catholic Church" were corrupted. Unfortunately, your Church places so much emphasis on the authority of those men (Priests, Bishops, Pope) that the Church was necessarily affected by that corruption.

***Excepting yourself, of course.***

The Word is my authoritative doctrine. I don't try to interpret it too deeply, I just read what it says. If I don't understand, I seek instruction from those who understand the history behind the text. But whatever those teachers say must be weighed against the rest of the Word. I do not trust men blindly. In the end, I will answer to God for the way I followed or failed to follow His Word. I choose not to place my salvation in the hands of sinners like myself. I put it squarely in the Lord's hands.