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Church_Militant
Guest
I kinda suspected that because it didn’t jive with your usual style of posting JP.
My prayers are with you in dealing with her.
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My prayers are with you in dealing with her.
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JackPaul
Guest
Well, I am sorry if you guys got your feathers ruffled, but hey, you are on an apologist forum and you all need the practice. So, lighten up… and if I can convince my wife that there is a difference by your comments, and then it was all worth it, right?
My wife is a Hispanic, cultural Catholic and she has five sisters who have left the faith and all joined protestant religions. I am constantly battling why there is a difference in her sister’s faiths and ours. She is always on the phone with one of six, who constantly try to convince her that their way is the correct way. I am a lone catholic convert that has an uphill battle of trying to convince her that she is in the right church. I converter Ted through RCIA about four years ago and I have been on fire since. However, I am at a new and different place than my wife. She has been living a ho hum Catholic exisistance for forty + years and I am brand new. Well, I did have a batiste upbringing, and converted later, so I aint totally new. But, she seems to think that she has a lifetime of Church experience and that she knows best. Jesus finished it all on the cross and the “Church” stuff is all unnecessary (her words). So, I am trying to convince her to become more Catholic and less like that richening that she is hearing from her sisters. So, if you guys didn’t like my approach, well, it was less hostile that some others that you have answered and Jesus is happy with your effort. I thank you for your time and would appreciate any thoughts of how to handle this spouse of mine…
Love, jack
My wife is a Hispanic, cultural Catholic and she has five sisters who have left the faith and all joined protestant religions. I am constantly battling why there is a difference in her sister’s faiths and ours. She is always on the phone with one of six, who constantly try to convince her that their way is the correct way. I am a lone catholic convert that has an uphill battle of trying to convince her that she is in the right church. I converter Ted through RCIA about four years ago and I have been on fire since. However, I am at a new and different place than my wife. She has been living a ho hum Catholic exisistance for forty + years and I am brand new. Well, I did have a batiste upbringing, and converted later, so I aint totally new. But, she seems to think that she has a lifetime of Church experience and that she knows best. Jesus finished it all on the cross and the “Church” stuff is all unnecessary (her words). So, I am trying to convince her to become more Catholic and less like that richening that she is hearing from her sisters. So, if you guys didn’t like my approach, well, it was less hostile that some others that you have answered and Jesus is happy with your effort. I thank you for your time and would appreciate any thoughts of how to handle this spouse of mine…
Love, jack
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Tonks40
Guest
Hey JackPaul -
One of the things I’ve learned as a revert to the Catholic faith is that we are always being called to be renewed in Christ. Whenever we partake in any of the sacraments, this gives us that renewal, especially the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist. You may want to express just how awesome that is - that the Real Presence of Christ is always available to us in the Catholic Church. I know when I came back, this realization struck me so hard, I find it difficult now to receive the Eucharist without choking up.
God Bless!
One of the things I’ve learned as a revert to the Catholic faith is that we are always being called to be renewed in Christ. Whenever we partake in any of the sacraments, this gives us that renewal, especially the Sacrament of Reconciliation and the Eucharist. You may want to express just how awesome that is - that the Real Presence of Christ is always available to us in the Catholic Church. I know when I came back, this realization struck me so hard, I find it difficult now to receive the Eucharist without choking up.
God Bless!
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reganq
Guest
These sentences really stuck out to me.
Let me ask you, if I was asking for the same advice from you and then said those two comments. What would your advice be to me?
Our family will be praying for you.
John
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JackPaul
Guest
Great point… I too take the sacrements very seriously and I have a real emotional experience with them. But, with others in my immediate family, they find it hard to understand why they need to confess their sins to a man when their sisters don’t have to. After all, Jesus finished it on the cross so why do we fret about it all. If you have a lack of confidence in him, you don’t get the message, and you don’t need to be worrying about confession… this is the argument and how it goes when I go to confession… I really need to find a short and easy to listen to audio series that would convince her about the Catholic position of salvation…
Any ideas?
Jack
Any ideas?
Jack
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johnq
Guest
These sentences really stuck out to me.
Let me ask you, if I was asking for the same advice from you and then said those two comments. What would your advice be to me?
Our family will be praying for you.
John
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RobHom
Guest
Really, thats surprising. All of the Catholics I know are pretty humble and unpretentious about their faith.
A great deal of difference. Rationale like that is a breeding ground for cults and other misguided theologies. The Catholic Church is the one true church that has stayed true to the bible for its entire history. Steadfast and non-wavering. No “B-K” practices here.
Not so. The Catholic Church is all about Christ and living according to God’s Word. We’re caught up in doing what is right according to His Word. Works prove the life in faith. What good is mere faith, if you are unwilling to live that faith according to His Word, and that Word says that Faith without works is dead!
Sounds like someone has been “brainwashed”…
All religions are “man-made”…except in the case of the Catholic Church, the “man” who made it was God.
OK, since I know your particular situation… I can add this. I fell away from the Church, and to my shame I tried some others. I felt a complete and total emptiness… and it seemed to me that the other so-called “christian churches” seemed obsessed with trashing Catholicism…not worshiping God. I came back to the Church, and my heart and soul are at peace once again.
Tell your wife not to fall prey to peer pressure. It can be fatal to her soul.
Being a Catholic isn’t the easiest thing in the world. Joining a Burger-King have it your way mentality religion is easy… Kinda like joining Flip Wilson’s fictional “Church of Whats Happening Now”…where whatever makes you feel good is ok… Not good.
Stay the course and encourage your wife to do the same.
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tomarin
Guest
this is tough, because it sounds as if despite growing up catholic she is predisposed to view things the way protestants do. she doesn’t understand that when she confesses it is not simply to “a man” but a representative of christ. and the differences between her sisters’ churches and hers should be glaringly self-evident.
she needs to deepen her faith so i would recommend you bring orthodox catholic media into the house whether it’s television, dvd’s, audiotapes, or whatever, that she will be exposed to as you are watching or listening. then maybe there’s a chance the message will begin to sink in. or at least you can discuss the topics of the programs (since she doesn’t seem indifferent to the question of religion) in reference to clear authoritative statements about what we believe and how it is different from other christians.
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Fidelis
Guest
The fifth, eleventh and thirteenth talks down the page on the following link should help:
Bible Christian Society - Apologetics - Free Audio Downloads
biblechristiansociety.com/download
There are also study guides available for most of these talks found elsewhere on the same site.
That should get you started. Let us know if you need more.
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BOBKAT
Guest
Hi Jack,
First off calm down, we cannot convert anyone that is the job of the Holy Spirit, that being said what you can do is love her and pray for her. Our job as I see it is that of a gardner and we are called to constantly tend to that garden so as long as you are doing you gardning with love as a fertilizer you can rest assure that Jesus will see to it that it grows. I too have those frustrations only it is with my sister and brother I learned the hard way not to be so blunt and am now listening more and I do pray for them. We need to also live our faith and live it well people will be drawn to us through our JOY and unless we let go of the things that frustrate us so we cannot show the JOY as it is meant to be shown. In other words don’t worry be happy…
God Bless
Kathleen
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FrankLawrence
Guest
Hey Jack,
In my opinion, the first and foremost thing to do, to prevent someone from falling into the trap of Protestantism is to debunk Sola-Scriptura. While Christ’s Church is built on the Rock of Peter, Protestantism is built on the quicksand of Sola-Scriptura. Some key verses in debunking Sola-Scriptura are Matthew 16:17-19, John 16:13, 1 Timothy 3:15, 2 Peter 3:16, 2 Thessalonians 2:15, and Proverbs 3:5. Not to mention, anyone who knows anything about Christian history knows that Sola-Scriptura is a mere tradition of man, popularized by Martin Luther.
Since she is your wife, you could try the old Ephesians 5:24 routine, but I would NOT recommend that, as it is probably the LEAST favorite verse in all of Scripture for married women who are either not fully devoted to Christ, or who have husbands who are not fully devoted to Christ. That verse will more likely cause a fight with her than help the situation.
In my opinion, the first and foremost thing to do, to prevent someone from falling into the trap of Protestantism is to debunk Sola-Scriptura. While Christ’s Church is built on the Rock of Peter, Protestantism is built on the quicksand of Sola-Scriptura. Some key verses in debunking Sola-Scriptura are Matthew 16:17-19, John 16:13, 1 Timothy 3:15, 2 Peter 3:16, 2 Thessalonians 2:15, and Proverbs 3:5. Not to mention, anyone who knows anything about Christian history knows that Sola-Scriptura is a mere tradition of man, popularized by Martin Luther.
Since she is your wife, you could try the old Ephesians 5:24 routine, but I would NOT recommend that, as it is probably the LEAST favorite verse in all of Scripture for married women who are either not fully devoted to Christ, or who have husbands who are not fully devoted to Christ. That verse will more likely cause a fight with her than help the situation.
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angelusm
Guest
It makes a big difference. How can you obey Jesus if you reject the only Church founded by Jesus??? It looks like you are a protestant so you aren’t even a member of any church, but just a religious community (sorry, protestant communities are not churches), obviously man-made. Do you think that we don’t accept Jesus as our Lord and Saviour? We know our priorities, we serve our Church SO we serve Jesus. God bless, brother.
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rwoehmke
Guest
I have known a number of women over the years who have belonged to a baptist or evangelical church. I even attended, at their invitation, a 3 day teaching forum on living by the Bible. My wife and I are Catholics and the teaching about wives being submissive to their husbands did blow her stack, but our non-Catholic friends lapped it up. If she is leaning towards her sisters so strongly I would just guess they would support Ephesians 5:24f to a great extent.
If your marriage bond is quite strong and there are no other troubles except her sisters, you could consider the reading about being unequally yoked from Paul. She needs to follow you in your Faith as the husband to be equally yoked. However if there is the least chance she might jump ship and go for a divorce that is not to be recommended.
I once had a co-worker and close friend who was married to a Hispanic woman who left for some other Bible Church. He eventually followed after a short time, got control of his alcoholism, and everything seemed to be going well. The fly in the ointment was that they would get into a disagreement with the small biblical church they were in over something and leave for another outfit. For years now they have bounced from church to church and never really found peace that lasted.
I will include you and your wife in my Rosaries. ****
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maryj
Guest
It is finished…zuserver2.star.ucl.ac.uk/~vgg/rc/aplgtc/hahn/m4/4cp.html
Have her read this. Our redemption was complete when Christ rose from the dead It is finished speaks of the Passover sacrifice.
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NotWorthy
Guest
C’mon Angelusm!!! Catch up!!! Read the rest of the thread and then you’ll get, (insert your best Paul Harvey voice here) “The Rest of the Story”!!!
Good… Day!
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Pier
Guest
Thank you for explaining - you had me going there for a minute!
Well, please remind those in your family that Jesus said to, “Do this in memory of me.”
One of the best definitions of our religion was (simplified) - that Catholicism is a religion of sacraments - the sacraments are recorded in the Bible, as set up by Christ - therefore, Catholicism is the Bible in action, when we live our faith as we should.
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