Hello, questions

[distracted]

I am gonna research some topics like:

Peter and the rock, to see how you explain it.
Popacy, although I kidna see that now, but still, the idea of one man in charge of me, other than Jesus is kinda disturbing.

i can definitely understand that… but really Peter and his successors are not the absolute head of the Church… They are just the earthly ones… Jesus is the true Head of the Church in Heaven… but that is exactly why we NEED a visible head on Earth… becasue Christ said that He would never leave us…(St. Matthew 28:20, etc.). He knew we would have questions & doubts… He knew that without answers (that we could trust), we would fall away from Him… He knew human nature… He was human… still is… (I heard that Jesus kept his “human-ness” into eternity… don’t know what the Church would have to say aobut that officially… but sounds right…)

I used to think that a person should study Catholicism before spending time in Christ’s Real Presence in the Church… but now i am thinking differently… Being humna, i have doubts and questions about this and that… and sometimes i am inclined to… go away from certain things about the Church ( long, weird story…)… but the Real Presence is the one thing i will alwyas hang onto… the thing that is the most real about my faith… I have spent hours There… and everyone should… everyone… whether Catholic or Protestant… I can’t describe adequately in words, all that happens to my soul and mind and heart while There… but suffice it to say that… well, one important thing is that Jesus gets personal with me… I am special There… All my concerns, etc… are important to Him There… and i feel that to be so… I don’t feel that outside of His Presence, to speak of… When i am out in the world, i am seen as a big Nobody (another long story)…I feel liike a big nobody… a lot of the time… but never There…

This woman told me once that “God loves you like you were his only child…” I feel this most profoundly while in the Real Presence…

 

[distracted]

I am honestly liking Catholocism, I mean so much makes sense that I thought was crazy/stupid before.

***your open-ness to the Faith is very refreshing…

It would so nice if every Protestant who comes here had the same attitude… ***
God bless…

 

[JRKH]

I think I have made a mistake here. I didn’t mean bow, I meant get on hands and knees, or something of that sort. Sorry for being a fool, sorry. I hope this hasn’t angered/confused some of you, cause I am confusing to myself too much anyways.

@zoeey: lol count all of the books lol, I am gonna get a bible like that hopefully soon, but um, whats it called? lol

ChristianKnight,
You just keep asking questions!!! We get a little testy at times, but you are realy and honest and a breath of fresh air.

As to the bible title issue. It is Called The Holy Bible no more and no less. If you go into a store and ask about one, ask for a catholic edition. Hopefully the person will know what you mean. Then check the "number of books’ there should be 73. (If it has 1 and 2 Maccabees it’s probably the right one)

Actually don’t get your hopes up too much on the issue of the extra books. They are all in the OT. The NT is the same in the Catholic and Protestant Bibles. The reason that we point out the differences in the number of books is to show that “The Bible” has been tampered with. The Church held these 73 book as sacred since around 400 AD. These books were canonized and confirmed by several Church councils between 400 AD and 1500 AD. Martin Luther, on his own, removed 7+ books from the OT and would have removed some from the NT (including revelation) if he could have gotten away with it. Coming from a Baptist background could you imagine a Bible without Revelations in it?
Once a person, such as yourself, begins to look into the history and development of the bible they can quickly discover the importance of the Catholic Church in God’s Plan.

Peace
James

 

[ChristianKnight]

Without revelations, that’d be creepy, cause then a lot of the future would be unknown.

That’s why I want a Catholic edition, if it has all the books, then I want it just to be on the safe side, cause honestly, not all the books in the bible, disturbs me a lot.

Eh, I love to ask questions. I am gonna start researching tonight since tommorrow is sunday and I do not attend church much anymore, and mass is not allowed, I will keep kinda aging my parents about mass, not bothering em but mentioning it every now and then.

Glad to be here

 

[grandfather]

Without revelations, that’d be creepy, cause then a lot of the future would be unknown.

That’s why I want a Catholic edition, if it has all the books, then I want it just to be on the safe side, cause honestly, not all the books in the bible, disturbs me a lot.

Eh, I love to ask questions. I am gonna start researching tonight since tommorrow is sunday and I do not attend church much anymore, and mass is not allowed, I will keep kinda aging my parents about mass, not bothering em but mentioning it every now and then.

Glad to be here

CK,
We call Jesus our savior and our king. Nowadays we don’t like kings and elect presidents, but Jesus is still king of kings, presidents and all other types of rulers. He is the Lord.

In days when there were kings there was always a second in command called the prime minister, translated better would be first servant. The prime minister is the kings first servant. The king wore a crown to signify his office and the prime minister wore a chain around his neck with keys on it, called the keys of the kingdom. That told all the other subjects of the king that he was very important in his high office. When the king left his domain, maybe to travel to visit some other place or to lead his army in war the prime minister was left in charge of the kingdom. Everything he did was done in the name of the king and with the kings authority backing him up. He had all the authority of the king when the king was not around.

So when King Jesus said to Peter that He gives him the keys of His kingdom he is making Peter His prime minister. That is a symbol of Peter’s authority given to Him by Jesus. Then Jesus said, whatever you bind on earth I will bind in heaven. Whoever’s sins you forgive will be forgiven and whoever’s sins you hold bound will be held bound.

King Jesus was preparing to leave for awhile and He put Peter in charge. He also siad to His apostles that there was much that He wanted to tell them, but they could not bear it yet. Then He said He would be with them until the end of time and send the Holy Spirit to lead them into all truth.

Time is not ended and they are all dead. But Jesus promised to be with Peter and the rest forever and lead them into all truth. So Catholics believe the Church’s doctrines are guaranteed as free from error forever, by Jesus’s promises. He will not let us believe lies. He protects us in the truths of faith through His promises to His prime minister for all time.

Peter was the bishop of Rome, so we believe the bishop of Rome is Peter’s successor. He holds Peter’s office, or sits in Peter’s seat of authority. The Latin word for seat is cathedra. So wherever there is a bishop there is a cathedral.
.
Then Jesus said to Peter and His apostles that they should go into all the world and teach all nations the things He taught them. He said “Whoever hears you hears me. Whoever refises to hear you refuses to hear me.” Remember that he promised to be with them untl the end of time. So there is a teaching authority in the Church given by Jesus. Protestants say all authority is in the Bible, but the Bible says Jesus gave authority to his apsotles and especially Peter. We learn the truths of the faith from the Church and also receive the Bible from the Church. If that is true, don’t you think the Church has the authority to tell us what the Bible means?

 

[ChristianKnight]

CK,
We call Jesus our savior and our king. Nowadays we don’t like kings and elect presidents, but Jesus is still king of kings, presidents and all other types of rulers. He is the Lord.

In days when there were kings there was always a second in command called the prime minister, translated better would be first servant. The prime minister is the kings first servant. The king wore a crown to signify his office and the prime minister wore a chain around his neck with keys on it, called the keys of the kingdom. That told all the other subjects of the king that he was very important in his high office. When the king left his domain, maybe to travel to visit some other place or to lead his army in war the prime minister was left in charge of the kingdom. Everything he did was done in the name of the king and with the kings authority backing him up. He had all the authority of the king when the king was not around.

So when King Jesus said to Peter that He gives him the keys of His kingdom he is making Peter His prime minister. That is a symbol of Peter’s authority given to Him by Jesus. Then Jesus said, whatever you bind on earth I will bind in heaven. Whoever’s sins you forgive will be forgiven and whoever’s sins you hold bound will be held bound.

King Jesus was preparing to leave for awhile and He put Peter in charge. He also siad to His apostles that there was much that He wanted to tell them, but they could not bear it yet. Then He said He would be with them until the end of time and send the Holy Spirit to lead them into all truth.

Time is not ended and they are all dead. But Jesus promised to be with Peter and the rest forever and lead them into all truth. So Catholics believe the Church’s doctrines are guaranteed as free from error forever, by Jesus’s promises. He will not let us believe lies. He protects us in the truths of faith through His promises to His prime minister for all time.

Peter was the bishop of Rome, so we believe the bishop of Rome is Peter’s successor. He holds Peter’s office, or sits in Peter’s seat of authority. The Latin word for seat is cathedra. So wherever there is a bishop there is a cathedral.
.
Then Jesus said to Peter and His apostles that they should go into all the world and teach all nations the things He taught them. He said “Whoever hears you hears me. Whoever refises to hear you refuses to hear me.” Remember that he promised to be with them untl the end of time. So there is a teaching authority in the Church given by Jesus. Protestants say all authority is in the Bible, but the Bible says Jesus gave authority to his apsotles and especially Peter. We learn the truths of the faith from the Church and also receive the Bible from the Church. If that is true, don’t you think the Church has the authority to tell us what the Bible means?

I would rather like to read the bible, and see what it means to me first.

 

[grandfather]

I would rather like to read the bible, and see what it means to me first.

One of the things that Jesus commands of His followers is unity.
You can read that in the Bible especially on the night before He was crucified. Paul also says we are to be of one mind and agree on all things.

If every person reads the Bible on His own to make up his mind what it means for himself, as Protestants do, they come up with many different interpretations and doctrines that do not agree with one another. The result is thousands of denominations, some say over 30,000.

Jesus tells us to be one so that the world will know that it is He who sends us, but Christendom is divided into thousands of parts with many people who have decided to start churches on their own. But Jesus founded a Church and gave authority to His apostles to run it for Him. The Bible does not give anyone authority to start a Church, yet many who claim the Bible is their authority have done that, breaking unity.

We all need to read the Bible with the mind of the Chuch.

 

[ChristianKnight]

One of the things that Jesus commands of His followers is unity.
You can read that in the Bible especially on the night before He was crucified. Paul also says we are to be of one mind and agree on all things.

If every person reads the Bible on His own to make up his mind what it means for himself, as Protestants do, they come up with many different interpretations and doctrines that do not agree with one another. The result is thousands of denominations, some say over 30,000.

Jesus tells us to be one so that the world will know that it is He who sends us, but Christendom is divided into thousands of parts with many people who have decided to start churches on their own. But Jesus founded a Church and gave authority to His apostles to run it for Him. The Bible does not give anyone authority to start a Church, yet many who claim the Bible is their authority have done that, breaking unity.

We all need to read the Bible with the mind of the Chuch.

I choose to read it for myself first, whether or not the church agrees with that, I do not care. I will read it, and if the Church is about the same, sure, if its not then I’ll just try to see how they view it, but I will not change because someone tells me to…

 

[grandfather]

I choose to read it for myself first, whether or not the church agrees with that, I do not care. I will read it, and if the Church is about the same, sure, if its not then I’ll just try to see how they view it, but I will not change because someone tells me to…

You are on your own.

 

[ChristianKnight]

You are on your own.

No one is ever alone. Jesus Christ is with all, even if they are satan worshippers, or if they are a Baptist Minister, or if they are a pagan, or if they are a Cardinal. Jesus doesn’t just stay with the good or the bad, he is with everyone, especially the bad.

 

[Gottle_of_Geer]

I am a Protest-Baptist, and I do not believen Catholocism for many reasons, here are some questions I’d like answered:

1. What makes the pope so important?

The Will of Christ for His Church, is one answer ​

1. Didn’t yall believe he couldn’t commit sin once a time?

No - can you elaborate ?​

1. What is Catholic views on Protest-Baptists?

Complicated ​

1. Do Catholics believe you have to pray through the saints? Why?

“Have to” in what sense ? If you mean “Is one damned if one does not ?”, no.​

 

[jen_fla]

No one is ever alone. Jesus Christ is with all, even if they are satan worshippers, or if they are a Baptist Minister, or if they are a pagan, or if they are a Cardinal. Jesus doesn’t just stay with the good or the bad, he is with everyone, especially the bad.

i don’t think he meant it that way. of course read the Bible, but just know that it is very complex and easy to misunderstand. without any guidance from the Church, how are you to know which parts you should take literal? When is Jesus speaking in parables? when is he using hyperbole to make a point?

there are some parts in the OT that were for that time only and only for the tribe of israel. we would have a lot of people committing violence today in the name of God if they weren’t aware of that. it can be very dangerous to interpret scripture on your own. one of the biggest dangers is that someone will read something and say “that makes no sense” and give up. the end. and that’s sad. they gave up something so profound because they could not understand it.

the only thing i can say is to keep persevering! God knows you are on a journey and things take time. you are going to hear plenty of accusations against the Church that are going to confuse you, so feel free to keep on with all the questions! i don’t think you have ever been rude. you seem to be someone that is just telling it like you see it and want to get to the truth of the matter.

may the good Lord bless you as you seek out fact from fiction!

 

[Rolltide]

I choose to read it for myself first, whether or not the church agrees with that, I do not care. I will read it, and if the Church is about the same, sure, if its not then I’ll just try to see how they view it, but I will not change because someone tells me to…

No one is saying that you can’t read the Bible on your own. In fact, the Catholic Church highly encourages reading the Bible! BUT… one of the main differences between Catholicism and Protestantism is that of personal interpretation. Protestants are allowed to interpret the Bible any way they see fit. This may seem good, but the problem is that there is no way to determine whether your interpretation is correct or not. How can you possibly ever have a guarantee that your view isn’t wrong? This has resulted in the fragmentation of Christianity into thousands of denominations, shattering Christian unity. The Bible is NOT an easy book to interpret without help. You need to be aware of the history, culture, and customs of the time, you need to know ancient languages and the meanings of certain words that are hard to translate, and you need to know about expressions and customs that may no longer be used. The Catholic Church believes that it is guaranteed to have a correct interpretation through the aid and protection of the Holy Spirit. (It also has the aid of tens of thousands of the most brilliant Biblical scholars of the last 2000 years.) Without the protection of an institution, how can one possibly know if they are reading the Bible correctly? This is why in my earlier post I emphasized that the Catholic Church compiled the Bible. That same power to compile it is the same power that it holds to interpret it. Now, that’s not to say that every passage has an official interpretation. Many passages are still open to speculation. However, others are explained in a very specific way.

Catholics are more apt to read a study Bible, and find out precisely why our church holds the particular views that it does. If I find that the Church interprets the Bible about 90% the same as I do, I’m willing to change my opinion the last 10%, because I know that I am fallible, while the Church is protected and created the Bible in the first place. Who am I to know better than the Holy Spirit?

 

[ChristianKnight]

Hey, got another question fro yall.

What is with confession? Like why?

 

[JRKH]

Hey, got another question fro yall.

What is with confession? Like why?

Here is a LINK to confession as described in the Catechism. You might want to read through this and then ask any questions you have.

For myself confession, or reconsiliation, is a way to physically go before Our Lord (represented by the Priest) and bare my failures to Him. He then forgives me and gives me absolution, again through the priest.

Peace
James

 

[Deconi]

Here is a LINK to confession as described in the Catechism. You might want to read through this and then ask any questions you have.

For myself confession, or reconsiliation, is a way to physically go before Our Lord (represented by the Priest) and bare my failures to Him. ** He then forgives me and gives me absolution, again through the priest. **

Peace
James

…or he may NOT give you absolution.

 

[grandfather]

Hey, got another question fro yall.

What is with confession? Like why?

In the Bible, Jesus gave His apostles the power to forgive sins. He alse said that they had the power to hold people’s sins bound. They were given the power by Jesus to bind and loose sins according to the Bible.

When Jesus was here on earth He said words to people that were astonishing. He said to certain people, “Your sins are forgiven”.

So when Jesus left this earth He left His apostles in charge of His Church and told them they had the power to forgive sins also, according to the Bible.

If you want to have your sins forgiven, or know for sure if your sins are forgiven, and you could find someone Jesus gave the power to forgive sins maybe they would use the power and set you free from your sins, acting in His name as He told them to do.

In order for such a person to forgive your sins they would have to know what they are so they could know what they were forgiving, and also they would have to know if your were repentant. The only way that they could know what they are is if you told them and said you wanted forgiveness, or confess them.

Maybe you wanted to be forgiven, but were still in the sin and not sorry for it, so they would hold your sin bound.

In the Christian life we all struggle with certain sins. Everyone is different, but we all are fallen and do battle with sin. The Sacrament of Confession for people who take it seriously, is a place where we meet God and He gives us spiritual power to overcome our sins and get victory over them.

When I said you are on your own, what I meant was that you have your Bible and the power of your own intellect to come to a right understanding of many things, like confession, the bread and wine, Peter the pope, what is moral and what is sinful, how to get to heaven and many other important things. You said you would read the Bible for yourself to figure it all out. So it is you and your Bible and you will make up your own mind apart from the guidance of the Church Jesus established and promised to lead into all truth. You will form your own beliefs based on what your personal undersatanding of the Bible is. What guarantee will you have that you will get it right? How important is it that what you believe about the spiritual life is true? How do any of us know what we believe is true? Many Christians believe all kinds of things and do not agree with one another. They can’t all be right. They all use the Bible as their personal guide to form their doctrines and they end up disagreeing and divided into sects. All this approach did was get them to disagree with one another. You have chosen that same way.

Catholics claim, based on the Bible, that we need the Church in order to have unity in faith, and be guaranteed by God that what we all believe doctrinally is true.

Best wishes on your personal journey. God bless you.

 

[JRKH]

…or he may NOT give you absolution.

THINK POSITIVE

 

[distracted]

Hey, got another question fro yall.

What is with confession? Like why?

St. John 20:19.

Jesus went to Heaven so He established His Church to be His Presence on Earth… (St. Matthew 28:20 - (He said he woiuld never leave us) He breathed on the Apostles and gave them the HOly Spirit… and the power to forgive sins. Yes, you can confess your sins directly to God and you should (immediatley). But when a person sins, he also sins against the Body of Christ, otherwise known as other Church members. Wehn we sin, even if no one technically finds out about it, we offend other human beings… OUr sins affect others… so we go to another human being for absolution. That being said, it is still Christ who forgives, working thoruhg the power of the priest… There is amazing power in the words “I absolve you of your sins.” Jesus knew we neededto hear those words… (coming from a fellow sinner)

 

[placido]

I suppose you’re trying to make some obscure point that if Love is more powerful than Death (questionable), then I must be able to talk to dead people.

The problem is, unless Mary is omniscient and omnipresent, she cannot hear millions of prayers at once.

I try to understand the state of the dead this way.
Firstly, heaven is not a place but a state.
Those who are in heaven are with God.
God is everywhere.
So, those who are with God (Who is everywhere) are not placed in a cage somewhere or on a faraway planet. They are with God (God is everywhere, here and now). Those who are with God (here and now) can hear us!