Does anyone have info on good Protestant web sites?

[DANIELCORTEZ]

My cousin does not belive that Protestant Churches do NOT believe in the Real Pressence. As such, she doesn’t understand why the Church excludes non-Catholics from Communion. Does anyone know of reputable websites (that are also non-Catholic) that explain Protestant beliefs?

 

[Kevan]

There are various positions from one denomination to another. For the Presbyterian doctrine, see the Catechism, question 170, which says:

** As the body and blood of Christ are not corporally or carnally present in, with, or under the bread and wine in the Lord’s supper, and yet are spiritually present to the faith of the receiver, no less truly and really than the elements themselves are to their outward senses; so they that worthily communicate in the sacrament of the Lord’s supper, do therein feed upon the body and blood of Christ, not after a corporal and carnal, but in a spiritual manner; yet truly and really, while by faith they receive and apply unto themselves Christ crucified, and all the benefits of his death.**

Lutherans will hold to more of the real Presence, Baptists will hold to none at all. (They believe in the Real Absence.) Anglicans (Episcopalians) are all over the map, depending on which one you query.

It would take a lot of web sites to describe all of the doctrines of all of the Protestants. But they usually fall into one of the three positions: Lutheran (the literal body and blood of Christ are present along with the bread and wine), Presbyterian (Christ is especially present at the receiving of the bread and wine), and Baptist (nothing special, it’s just a symbolic act like saluting the flag).

 

[Rand_Al_Thor]

lutherans believe in consubstantiation rather than transubstantiation. the difference is that with consubsantiation it is believed that Jesus’ body and blood is present IN the bread and wine, but they are still essentialy bread and wine. transubstantiation is that the bread and wine completely become the body and blood of Christ, though they appear to still be bread and wine. but, while lutherans may believe in consubstantiation, the ministers cannot perform the consecration because of the broken line of apostolic succession.
kevan is right about the anglicans. they originally believed in transubstantiation and then accepted both trans. and con. and then moved more towards spiritual presence or symbolic rememberance. i’m not sure exactly what they believe now, but one of my history professors is an episcopalian priest, so i’ll ask her about this on tuesday.

 

[CatherineofA]

I suggest www.intouch.org It is the website for the First Baptist Church of Atlanta. The minister is Dr. Charles Stanley who is a former president of the Southern Baptist Convention. I don’t know if you will get your question specifically answered on that site. However, he has written many books and contributed to many publications and that may lead you to what you are looking for about THAT denomination.

 

[Contarini]

DanielCortez,

No Protestant denomination officially believes in the Real Presence exactly as Catholics do. But Anglicans are very close, and Lutherans historically hold strongly to a doctrine of the Real Presence that in some ways is more literal than some versions of transubstantiation. Other Protestants (Presbyterians, Methodists) hold to a spiritual presence which they may refer to as “Real Presence.” So depending on how strictly you’re defining “Real Presence,” your friend was not in fact wrong.

If you’re trying to explain why Protestants are excluded from the Eucharist by claiming that they don’t believe in the Real Presence, then stop. That is a specious argument that is not universally true in the first place, and at any rate does not actually account for the Catholic Church’s position. You do not allow us to receive Communion because our churches are not true particular churches in the fullest sense. We do not have apostolic succession and have, in your eyes, departed to some measure from historic Christianity. Any attempt to water this down or cover it up simply confuses people, and thus offends them far worse in the long run than if you were honest. We could have Benediction and Adoration and all the rest of it (in fact some of us do–Anglo-Catholics, that is) and you would still exclude us.

Edwin

 

[GKC]

Contarini:

DanielCortez,

No Protestant denomination officially believes in the Real Presence exactly as Catholics do. But Anglicans are very close, and Lutherans historically hold strongly to a doctrine of the Real Presence that in some ways is more literal than some versions of transubstantiation. Other Protestants (Presbyterians, Methodists) hold to a spiritual presence which they may refer to as “Real Presence.” So depending on how strictly you’re defining “Real Presence,” your friend was not in fact wrong.

If you’re trying to explain why Protestants are excluded from the Eucharist by claiming that they don’t believe in the Real Presence, then stop. That is a specious argument that is not universally true in the first place, and at any rate does not actually account for the Catholic Church’s position. You do not allow us to receive Communion because our churches are not true particular churches in the fullest sense. We do not have apostolic succession and have, in your eyes, departed to some measure from historic Christianity. Any attempt to water this down or cover it up simply confuses people, and thus offends them far worse in the long run than if you were honest. We could have Benediction and Adoration and all the rest of it (in fact some of us do–Anglo-Catholics, that is) and you would still exclude us.

Edwin

Greetings, Contatini,

Betcha I can find Anglo-Catholics who differ not at all on the RP, right down the line of all 11 Canons of Session XIII of Trent.

GKC

Anglicanus Catholicus

 

[DeFide]

DANIELCORTEZ:

My cousin does not belive that Protestant Churches do NOT believe in the Real Pressence. As such, she doesn’t understand why the Church excludes non-Catholics from Communion. Does anyone know of reputable websites (that are also non-Catholic) that explain Protestant beliefs?

Going beyond your question, you could explain to your cousin that you don’t want her to misrepresent herself by taking the Eucharist, since doing so would be saying, through her actions, that she is in full communion with the Catholic Church and, consequently, accepts everything the Church holds and teaches to be true, including the nature of the Eucharist itself.

If she is OK with that public statement, then she should get herself into RCIA classes and be received into the Church. Otherwise, why would she want to misreprent her beliefs by her actions?