Catholics shouldn't listen to Protestant objection

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Mannyfit75

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It has come to my attention that some Protestants still have **false misconceptions **about the Catholic faith. Some persumed we worship statues, Mary, and believe our sacraments are unbiblical.

No matter how much you explain to them that our belief are in fact Biblical and essential to our Catholic Christian faith, they *still remain viligant with their false misconceptions *about the Catholic faith.

It is a waste of time to preached and explain the Catholic faith to Protestants especially if they listen on deaf ears. Catholics shouldn’t listen to Protestants because many of these Protestants (who claim to be former Catholics) don’t know the Catholic faith.

Don’t** waste your breath or fingers typing and defending your faith**. We** should only preach our Catholic faith **to those **Protestants who want to know the Truth **of our Catholic faith, but don’t preached to our faith those Protestants who are arrogant.
 
Jesus preached to the arrogant, He simply used a different style.

What we must do is practice the proper balance taught in Proverbs:
Pro 26:4 Answer not a fool according to his folly, lest you be like him yourself.
Pro 26:5 Answer a fool according to his folly, lest he be wise in his own eyes.
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We must answer those who do not want to listen up until at least the point at which they have heard all of the facts. Beyond that, it is up to the Holy Spirit. Yet if we fail to provide a Protestant with all of the arguments and evidence that might be helpful to them, then it will be upon our heads.
 
Lazerlike42 said:
Jesus preached to the arrogant, He simply used a different style.

What we must do is practice the proper balance taught in Proverbs:

We must answer those who do not want to listen up until at least the point at which they have heard all of the facts. Beyond that, it is up to the Holy Spirit. Yet if we fail to provide a Protestant with all of the arguments and evidence that might be helpful to them, then it will be upon our heads.
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Protestants can be hard headed and completely arrogant. You can explain to them the Catholic understanding of what we believe, and they will still claim we are wrong. If you been doing apologetics here for over a year, you would probably pick that up by now.

There are Protestants who are arrogant and there are those who are willing to listen and at least try to understand our faith.
 
Mannyfit75 said:
Protestants can be hard headed and completely arrogant. You can explain to them the Catholic understanding of what we believe, and they will still claim we are wrong. If you been doing apologetics here for over a year, you would probably pick that up by now.

There are Protestants who are arrogant and there are those who are willing to listen and at least try to understand our faith.
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Manny, lol, I’ve been doing apologetics here since 2005!

To quote Cardinal O’Malley:
Saint Paul speaking about the preaching ministry in Romans writes: “How can they believe if they have not heard and how can people preach unless they are sent.” As priests and deacons we are anointed and sent to preach so that God’s people can hear His words and hear the assurance that today these words are fulfilled in your hearing. In the letter to Timothy, Paul writes about presbyters who toil in preaching in teaching. Today with religious illiteracy at an all time high we must toil to preach and to teach. We must preach the Word in season and out of season, when convenient and inconvenient.
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Our personal sufferings at the hands of those who are arrogant may be offered up on their behalf, but we may not refrain from preaching the Gospel even when it is not received. We do not need to do this to excess - indeed, doing so may do more harm than good.

My personal feelings or sufferings are irrelevant. It may be, Manny, one small insignificant argument that you don’t get to until hours into a discussion that finally touches someone. Make sure they’ve heard everything. If they really have and they won’t change their minds, well stop debating with them, but keep praying.
 
We do need to defend the Church, but we need not only be on the defensive. We must go on offense and actively and positively preach the truth and point out their false beliefs.
 
Wow. I must admit, I find this post rather offensive.

First of all, the exact same could be said of some Catholics.

Secondly, why does the fact that someone is arrogant free you from the burden of trying to bring them to the Truth? Yes, they may be annoying you beyond tolerance, but that doesn’t mean you get out of loving them. Surely part of loving them is trying to tell them the Truth, whether or not they listen.

You may be the last person they argue with. You may be part of the turning point they make towards the Truth. You really have no way of knowing.
 
HannahLisa said:
Wow. I must admit, I find this post rather offensive.

First of all, the exact same could be said of some Catholics.

Secondly, why does the fact that someone is arrogant free you from the burden of trying to bring them to the Truth? Yes, they may be annoying you beyond tolerance, but that doesn’t mean you get out of loving them. Surely part of loving them is trying to tell them the Truth, whether or not they listen.

You may be the last person they argue with. You may be part of the turning point they make towards the Truth.
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You’re right, HannahLisa, but it seems to me as if the OP is really just venting some frustrations with the hardheadedness of many who come onto these forums to preach to us. We are all hardheaded at times, yes, but many of these people are not interested in a discussion. They’re here to shout. We’ll respond to their objections, and rather than replying to those objections, they’ll repeat what they said before, but more forcefully. What more can we really do?

When someone comes saying, “You worship Mary!” And we say “No we don’t.” And they say “Yes you do! Yes you do! Yes you do!” what are we to do? Many of us will keep trying to knock some sense into them, but it gets frustrating when the argument never moves anywhere at all.

Your profile says you go to school in TX. Either you to to A&M or you know about the weirdness there (I went there). I remember there were two male dorms where the guys would sit outside and yell, “Hey, we’re better than you!!” == “No, we’re better!” Then it would quickly dwindle to “@!$% you!” == “@!$% you more!” That’s how I see these these conversations, at least the futility of them, if not the content.
 
I hear you Manny. If people are willing to have an honest dialog and listen, I’m happy to talk. Lately, it seems that there have been a bunch of people simply trying to stir up trouble for no good reason.

Don’t forget that there are other forces at work here also.
 
Manny…
With respect…

i know you have done well int he past defending, but we must keep in mind that our efforts are NOT in vain. So what if the person we are talking to doesn’t want to hear us. SO what if they wish to continue in ignorances like “Catholics worship sun gods!!!”…

You have to remember that on these forms of debate,
  1. Some people will always be dead set in their beliefs… regardless… Forms of debate such as this tend to leach those people out of the soul and up to the surface
  2. For every one person that posts, there are probably 10 that just read… write your defense for them… If you are truly in a heated discussion with someone like that… regardless of who is right… who do you think the lurker will favor…
The one that is cool headed and charitable… or the one that is hot headed and refuses to actually read/listen to what the other is saying…

Do all things in love…
Let God do the rest…

In Christ
 
Mannyfit75 said:
It has come to my attention that some Protestants still have **false misconceptions **about the Catholic faith. Some persumed we worship statues, Mary, and believe our sacraments are unbiblical.

No matter how much you explain to them that our belief are in fact Biblical and essential to our Catholic Christian faith, they *still remain viligant with their false misconceptions *about the Catholic faith.

It is a waste of time to preached and explain the Catholic faith to Protestants especially if they listen on deaf ears. Catholics shouldn’t listen to Protestants because many of these Protestants (who claim to be former Catholics) don’t know the Catholic faith.

Don’t** waste your breath or fingers typing and defending your faith**. We** should only preach our Catholic faith **to those **Protestants who want to know the Truth **of our Catholic faith, but don’t preached to our faith those Protestants who are arrogant.
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I’ll go with St. Francis on this one: Preach the Gospel, only when absolutely necessary, use words.
 
HannahLisa said:
Wow. I must admit, I find this post rather offensive.
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Offensive? I wrote this out of charity, Hannah. I also distinguish the two types of Protestants, those who listen and try to understand the Catholic faith, and those who do not listen.

If you are those who do not listen, then you have an issue with us explaining our Catholic faith, then this post with be offensive. It becomes your problem.

I would reflect which type of Protestant you are, the one who try to understand us or those who are arrogant.
First of all, the exact same could be said of some Catholics.
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That is also a true statement, I have heard and read Catholics making bold statements concerning Protestants.
Secondly, why does the fact that someone is arrogant free you from the burden of trying to bring them to the Truth? Yes, they may be annoying you beyond tolerance, but that doesn’t mean you get out of loving them. Surely part of loving them is trying to tell them the Truth, whether or not they listen.
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Because those who refused to listen to what Catholics actually beliefs, and not be adamant about their insistence that we believe something we do not believe. It is better for Protestants to know what the true teachings of the Catholic Church is rather than make misconceptions about the Church.

There are Protestants here who read the Catholicism and misinterpret it.
You may be the last person they argue with. You may be part of the turning point they make towards the Truth. You really have no way of knowing.
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I know for 100% sure that the Catholic Church as defined by the Magisterium teaches the Divine Revelation of Jesus Christ. I have heard some Protestants made absurb statements against the Church calling it the whore of babylon, and not to mention a Protestant Evangelical Minister teaches that the Catholic Church teaches false doctrine like John Hagee.
 
I post a lot on a mainly Protestant forum. I am the only one blatantly Catholic on there, and it is obvious from my user name. I have learned to keep in mind that it is not only the person that I am directly conversing with who I am presenting the Catholic faith to, but also the countless lurkers who go about reading forums. That is why we must defend our faith, in charity, and try not to allow anyone to drag us down into the gutter. Through our charity we witness to what it means to be a Catholic person, through our words we witness to what the Catholic faith is.
 
Manny, you make a number of generalizations about n-Cs that are not true.

I know quite a few who are not like you state, and some of them have even become Catholics.

I can think of at least two New Testament scriptures that apply here.

Matthew 28:18 And Jesus coming, spoke to them, saying: All power is given to me in heaven and in earth. 19 Going therefore, teach ye all nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and behold I am with you all days, even to the consummation of the world.

1st Peter 3:13 And who is he that can hurt you, if you be zealous of good? 14 But if also you suffer any thing for justice’ sake, blessed are ye. And be not afraid of their fear, and be not troubled. 15 But sanctify the Lord Christ in your hearts, being ready always to satisfy every one that asketh you a reason of that hope which is in you. 16 But with modesty and fear, having a good conscience: that whereas they speak evil of you, they may be ashamed who falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ. 17 For it is better doing well (if such be the will of God) to suffer, than doing ill.
 
As I think the point is lost on at least some who are reading this thread, I’d like to point out that there’s a difference between understanding what the RCC teaches (and what its constituents believe) and accepting or *agreeing with *it.

For instance, I really do understand that you don’t believe that you’re guilty of idolatry. Likewise, I really do understand that you truly believe that a church with an organized hierarchy is important. I can even sort of place myself in your shoes and understand why you believe those things. All that said, however, it doesn’t mean that I agree that those beliefs are accurate. This is neither blindness nor stubbornness.

In short – it’s possible for two people with honest intentions to come to different conclusions. This is, in part, due to unknowing blindness on the parts of both. For instance, our upbringing and our own cultures can influence our thoughts without us even realizing this.

Now, with all of that, there’s one important point – we are all human. This means that each of us is capable of error in our beliefs. Failure to, or refusal to, listen to the views of another, no matter how stubborn they may be, is simply a sign of stubbornness on our own part.

I understand that it can be frustrating to deal with people who seemingly refuse to accept any semblance of logic or reason (there are several here who I might place in that category) – however, unless your goal is to simply win arguments (which, admittedly is the sorry goal or many apologists), you need to learn to deal with frustration in a way other than refusing to listen.

By the way, here’s something else to ponder, Manny – if you think Protestants are being stubborn and refusing to listen, how do you think Protestants (not me, but others) view you, especially when you have expressly stated you’re not going to listen? Such a post as this can only damage any chance you have of convincing others of the righteousness of what you’re preaching.
 
PC_Master said:
As I think the point is lost on at least some who are reading this thread, I’d like to point out that there’s a difference between understanding what the RCC teaches (and what its constituents believe) and accepting or *agreeing with *it.
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Of course, tell me does this really pertain to you? I mean if you are one of those Protestants who doesn’t grasp the Catholic faith, then you have a problem.
For instance, I really do understand that you don’t believe that you’re guilty of idolatry. Likewise, I really do understand that you truly believe that a church with an organized hierarchy is important. I can even sort of place myself in your shoes and understand why you believe those things. All that said, however, it doesn’t mean that I agree that those beliefs are accurate. This is neither blindness nor stubbornness.
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It is one or the other. Someone here claim we Catholics give thanks to statues.
 
Without straying too far from the thread topic, I’d like to state that while apologetics and evangelisation are all well and good, we should keep in mind that our strongest tool for conversion by far is good old-fashioned prayer. Remember that St. Augustine was a libertine and a reprobate for many years while his mother prayed for his conversion, and her prayers were ultimately granted. I had a friend who had been raised Pentecostal and was very fond of trying to bait me by repeating all the old anti-Catholic nonsense ad nauseum: Mary-worship, idol-worship, simony, calling the Pope the Whore of Babylon, etc. I prayed every day for his conversion and after a lull in our relationship of several years(he lives on the other side of the country), I contacted him again, only to find that he had converted to Catholicism and was quite active in his local parish. So, while our evangelistic activities are worthy and laudable, from the point of view of achieving actual conversions I feel that our time and energy is much better spent on frequent and fervent prayer. We pray often and sincerely that young people will find vocations; why not for conversions?
 
I have to agree with PC Master when he wrote:
As I think the point is lost on at least some who are reading this thread, I’d like to point out that there’s a difference between understanding what the RCC teaches (and what its constituents believe) and accepting or agreeing with it.
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I wish more people were like him with whom we dialog here, it would make things a whole lot easier. 🙂 Thank you PCM. 👍

And I agree when he wrote that many times people have cultural barriers (at least that’s how I read your comments) to accepting the Catholic faith. Catholicism isn’t just a set of beliefs, it’s an entire “worldview” with sub-cultures all its own.

Other Protestants, who keep on denying what Catholics say about our own faith, are often speaking more from emotion than from reason.

The very idea of being wrong scares them because if the Catholic Church is right they would have to reverse themselves completely on several issues or give up some of their own most cherished beliefs, such as being assured of salvation by means of having a “personal relationship” with Jesus. They simply can’t seeing themselves doing those things.

And Jason is so right–we must pray for people because it’s not just psychology or beliefs we are up against, but also darker forces that don’t want people to have all the truth because the truth not only sets us free, it creates great saints. Therefore let us speak/write in charity and pray, pray, pray.
 
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