A response to Catholic Critcism

[Pattylt]

For example Catholicism like pre-christian rome is much more ritualistic and legalistic than the rest of Christianity. It’s all about ceremony, gestures, ornate displays, symbols, icons and veneration of those icons.

What on earth does he think Temple worship was? It was ritual. Back then all worship for Jews, Christians and Romans were ritualistic. That’s HOW they worshipped! Imagine coming from that era and being dumped into a modern Evangelical service. Not only would they not recognize what was happening, it would not look like any kind of worship they ever knew. The Evangelical churches have dumbed down religion so much it would be unrecognizable to any ancient worshiper.

This is also why you will see some Pagan practices incorporated into Christianity. You don’t remove a people’s concept of worship, you reinterpret it…otherwise they won’t respond to it. Bowing of the head, prostrations, hymns, rituals…mankind has done these things as a worship no matter what gods they were embracing.

Advice…walk away. He has an agenda and it isn’t trying to understand you or ancient Christianity.

 

[De_Maria]

Just a slight correction…it’s an important and joyous holiday but is not considered a holy one.

Holiday means “holy” day. And its the celebration of a miracle which God performed for His people. If that doesn’t qualify this as a holy day, what does? Just asking.

 

[Pattylt]

Good point! It’s just not considered one of the holy days. They have specific days that are considered holy and Hanukkah isn’t one of them!

Edit to add. It’s not a holy day listed in the Bible as mandatory…that’s just off the top of my head as to why!

 

[MarysLurker]

Some think they were added by the Romans about 380 years after Jesus death. Which would make sense given that this was when the Roman Catholic church was formed officially and those books are what altered Christianity to be palatable to the Roman government. It also makes sense because much of Roman religion was influenced by it’s proximity to Greek society on the Italian peninsula. My theory of Pagan Roman religion being fused with Christianity makes sense

This is the “Constantinian shift” garbage that is the standard Protestant explanation for the 1200+ year gap between Protestantism and Christ. It’s baloney as discussed in this thread.

In 1005 AD, 500 years before the Protestant Reformation, the Orthodox Churches split off from the Catholic Church. They removed the Papacy, but kept everything else. They also removed the Latin language and went back to Greek, the original language of the New Testament and the language actually used by Christ for His quotations of the Old Testament (from the Septuagint). Since they’re rid of Rome, if all the Catholic distinctives are unbiblical as claimed, why did the Orthodox not get rid of them?

 

[fhansen]

Yes, gee, I wonder why the practices in the Eastern Churches are so strikingly similar to Rome’s? Hmm…

 

[steve-b]

Pattylt:

Just a slight correction…it’s an important and joyous holiday but is not considered a holy one.

Holiday means “holy” day. And its the celebration of a miracle which God performed for His people. If that doesn’t qualify this as a holy day, what does? Just asking.