Hello everyone,
Yes, it has been a while since I have reponded…I have been very busy with our new baby and had not realized how many people have posted on here.
I have not made any decisions, yet I have to say that all of the hatred back and forth truly saddens me. As someone who is searching for the truth it is sad to see “religious” people go back and forth whith such hatred. I understand that you believe what you believe, and that because of this you will disagree, but can it not be done out of love?
I just say this because it seems as if most not everyone who claims to know the truth acts this way…and it is very sad.
I want to know that what I am believing in is the TRUTH…so I am continuing to search…
I am very thankful to all of you who are praying for me, and to those who have tried to encourage me…
Thank you, and Most Sincerely,
Kristin
I’m a former Protestant myself, albeit from a Presbyterian background. I still remember my old, wise Protestant pastor saying to me that “Protestants tell a lot of lies about Catholics and the Catholic Church”. So it shouldn’t surprise you if Catholics occasionally get a bit cheesed off with some Protesant accusations, often based on misunderstanding at best, and sometimes just sheer hatred, as in the case of Ian Paisley in Northern Ireland for example. Of course both sides are capable of that sort of behaviour, as witness the (Catholic) IRA for example.
The mere fact people get hot tempered over religion does not mean the truth isn’t out there somewhere. In my opinion, the Catholic Church is closest to the truth, with testimonies ranging from the earliest church fathers and continuing to the present day. I believe Christ is present in the Eucharist, that the Pope is Christ’s CEO so to speak and has the authority to bind and loose as stated by Christ (who was setting up an office with authority starting with Peter - it wasn’t all done for Peter’s benefit).
I believe Mary has a role to play and has in fact appeared with alarming messages in the last couple of hundred years in particular, complete with miracles and witnesses (70,000 at Fatima during World War I, and over a million at Zeitoun in Egypty, just 40 years ago). When Christ said to the (unnamed) disciple at the cross, “Behold, your mother” and to his mother, “Behold, your son”, he was speaking in the larger term for all readers of Scripture and not just for John or Mary, just as for example when He said to the disciples “This is my body”, it was addressed to ALL disciples.
The trouble with a lot of Protestants is that they’re happy to pick out the bits that suit their theology, but they ignore or try to explain away the bits that don’t suit them. Thus when we are all expected to accept Mary as our spiritual Mother, some Protestants are busy telling each other such a belief comes from the devil. Yet it was Christ Himself who stated it. The same thing goes for the Petrine office. Christ didn’t go to all that trouble just for Peter, who betrayed Him three times into the bargain. He was setting up an office, with authority.
I mean, what’s the use of having a church if you’re not going to give it any authority?
