Catholic Evangelicals

[mrld20]

What does everyone think of the “Catholic Evangelicals” within the Church who try to strive for more of a “personal” relationship with Christ.

“Evangelical Catholic refers to Catholics in complete communion with the Catholic Church who exhibit, according to Alister McGrath, the four characteristics of evangelicalism. The first is a strong theological and devotional emphasis on the Bible. Secondly, Evangelical Catholics stress the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the cause of salvation for all mankind. A personal need for interior conversion is the third defining mark, and, consequently, the fourth is a deep commitment to evangelization.”

What do you guys think of Catholics who hold these beliefs (note: I’m talking about Catholics in good standing with Rome).

 

[Hiskid1973]

Looks good to me…I had a powerful born anew/ conversion experience Aug.73. I lived worked in an Italian catholic town in the last 45 years. In all that time I never had one catholic come and talk to me about the gospel message of Christ…It has always been regular bible church people or JW’s.

 

[po18guy]

What does everyone think of the “Catholic Evangelicals” within the Church who try to strive for more of a “personal” relationship with Christ.

“Evangelical Catholic refers to Catholics in complete communion with the Catholic Church who exhibit, according to Alister McGrath, the four characteristics of evangelicalism. The first is a strong theological and devotional emphasis on the Bible. Secondly, Evangelical Catholics stress the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the cause of salvation for all mankind. A personal need for interior conversion is the third defining mark, and, consequently, the fourth is a deep commitment to evangelization.”

What do you guys think of Catholics who hold these beliefs (note: I’m talking about Catholics in good standing with Rome).

The only caveat I see is the focus on the bible for revelation. God, and His revelation to and through the Catholic Church is not that simple or one-dimensional. It’s kinda fringy, IMO.

 

[Heuchler]

Those all look like great Catholic qualities as long as you do it while following the magisterium to the letter

 

[PiousTemplar]

I cringe.

 

[asd72]

Point 1 - Our devotion is to God revealed in scripture and tradition.

As to the others, they are certainly Catholic teachings. I don’t see a need to add an Evangelical prefix. We just need to live out our Catholism.

Catholism is an evangelical faith. Evangelical is not a subset within Catholism.

 

[Bookcat]

Basically those are all aspects of the Catholic Faith…of course there is much more…but they are all Catholic.

Read the homilies etc for example of Pope Benedict XVI

(hence I would not suggest so much a using of the term for some subgroup)

 

[Bookcat]

“a strong theological and devotional emphasis on the Bible”

Catechism:

V. Sacred Scripture in the Life of the Church

131 "and such is the force and power of the Word of God that it can serve the Church as her support and vigour, and the children of the Church as strength for their faith, food for the soul, and a pure and lasting fount of spiritual life."109 …

132 "Therefore, the study of the sacred page should be the very soul of sacred theology. the ministry of the Word, too - pastoral preaching, catechetics and all forms of Christian instruction, among which the liturgical homily should hold pride of place - is healthily nourished and thrives in holiness through the Word of Scripture."111

133 The Church "forcefully and specifically exhorts all the Christian faithful… to learn the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ, by frequent reading of the divine Scriptures. Ignorance of the Scriptures is ignorance of Christ.112

 

[Stevin_Habba]

Look, ultimately, it’s like this, you can do *whatever *you want as a Catholic so long as whatever it is you do does not contradict the teachings of the Catholic Church (that is, the Church in communion with Rome, obedient to the Pope and the Magisterium of the Catholic Church).​

If there is a teaching in the faith that Catholic Evangelicals are not obeying, then they need to stop that, but if they are obeying each and every official teaching of the Church, they’re all good in my point of view. Some people receive the Eucharist on the tongue some on the hands, we’re still Catholic and we’re still receiving the real presence of the Body & Blood of Christ.​

It is when a Catholic starts to, for example, teach that “female priests” should be allowed, that they need to be exposed for the heretics they are.

 

[Church_Militant]

I agree with what was said above about the fact that Divine Revelation is found in Scripture and Sacred Tradition. One without the other leaves us vulnerable to the same errors of Sola Scriptura and that is intolerable.

Reading the Bible has always been encouraged by the Church, as well as diligent study of the Christian faith. Sooner or later all of us need these things.

Every Christian…Catholic or not is/should be always seeking a deeper personal conversion. That’s what makes one a saint.

Evangelism…faith sharing, whatever one calls it, is, and has always been, a vital part of faithful Christianity. Even a nominal reading of the New Testament and the ECF makes that very clear. It is our love for both Our Lord, and for others that motivates us to "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,“and"And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.””

 

[Contarini]

The only caveat I see is the focus on the bible for revelation. God, and His revelation to and through the Catholic Church is not that simple or one-dimensional.

Not if it’s a devotional emphasis.

The Catechism says that the faithful should be deep in the study of Scripture. Catholic Tradition actually provides the proper basis for the evangelical emphasis on Scriptural study and devotion. The perennial problem in Protestantism has been that we focus on Scripture but have no consensus for how to interpret it. So the more serious we get about it, the more we spin off weird sects that take their own private interpretation and build whole theologies thereon.

But with the framework of Tradition in place, evangelical devotion to Scripture can flourish without these dangers.

It’;s not Scripture against Tradition or apart from Tradition. It’s Scripture as the living, beating heart of Tradition.

Edwin

 

[Church_Militant]

But with the framework of Tradition in place, evangelical devotion to Scripture can flourish without these dangers.

It’;s not Scripture against Tradition or apart from Tradition. It’s Scripture as the living, beating heart of Tradition.

Edwin

Well said Edwin!

 

[Arizona_Mike]

What does everyone think of the “Catholic Evangelicals” within the Church who try to strive for more of a “personal” relationship with Christ.

“Evangelical Catholic refers to Catholics in complete communion with the Catholic Church who exhibit, according to Alister McGrath, the four characteristics of evangelicalism. The first is a strong theological and devotional emphasis on the Bible. Secondly, Evangelical Catholics stress the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the cause of salvation for all mankind. A personal need for interior conversion is the third defining mark, and, consequently, the fourth is a deep commitment to evangelization.”

What do you guys think of Catholics who hold these beliefs (note: I’m talking about Catholics in good standing with Rome).

I’ll tell you what* I* think, pal. There’s a name for Catholics who spread their crazy ideas of studying Holy Scripture, pursuing a Christ-centered soteriology, seeking a deep personal interior life with Jesus, and who, on top of all that, insist on the need to evangelize their new Catholic Faith to others!

They’re called…um…good Catholics.

As a (pardon the term) “cradle Catholic,” I value and admire the dynamism that Evangelical reverts to Catholicism are bringing to the Faith.