I’m Protestant. Change my mind

  • Thread starter Thread starter Magnus97
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
M

Magnus97

Guest
Hello All,

I apologize if this is the wrong category for this kind of thread, but as the title suggests, I am Protestant. Now, I am a non denominational Protestant who is looking for a denomination to call home, if you will. This said though, I am also open to hearing the Catholic side of things. I have a very minute experience of Catholicism admittedly, with one year of Catholic school as a child. Being raised Protestant, when we were asked to recite Particular Catholic doctrinal sayings or anything of the like, I had no idea what to do. You can guess how popular I was with the other kids in my school, many of whom had been doing this kind of thing their whole lives. I only went to the school for one year, and whether or not it’s justified or not, this experience put me off from the whole idea of Catholicism for a long time.

Also, as a Protestant, I have a few questions or concerns when it comes to particular doctrinal beliefs within the Catholic Church. Mainly, the concept of immaculate conception, infallibility of the Pope, the concept and practice of confession through a priestly medium, and the practice of praying to saints. I have other areas of question or concern, these are just a few.

Finally, please know that if I have stated anything erroneous in this post, that it was and is not my intention to do so. I only know what I know at the time of writing, and like I said, My experience and knowledge on Catholicism is rather limited. I truly just want a discussion on the matter, and to know more about the faith. And who knows, maybe you all will change my mind…
 
Have you not heard - the forum will close shortly. So probably not the place to kick this off…
 
Whoops, I haven’t. Just created my account a couple minutes ago haha…
 
What is another site where this kind of conversation could be had?
 
Magnus97 said:
What is another site where this kind of conversation could be had?
Click to expand...
you could go around to a parish and ask to speak to a priest or catechist, or just go to a bible study at the parish. Most folks around a parish are glad to have people with questions. It’s much better to speak with people “in the real” than anonymously.
good luck and God bless
 
Hmm… I believe in order for the Jedi Mind Trick to work, I have to actually see you wave your hand.
 
Each of the talking points you mentioned have had many threads posted here. If you use the search function and type in Immaculate Conception or infallibility of the Pope, you will get a wide range of discussions…some are probably more on point than others, though.

Try that…read a bit…then you can come back with any specific questions.

From my reading and interacting here, you will need to understand that Catholisism isn’t Bible only. It’s a three pointed faith based on scripture, Tradition and the Magesterium. All three are based on each other and one main point of difference is authority. Protestantism is based on the Bible and each interpreting as they see best but the CC sees itself as the authority given by Jesus to them. They did write and canonize the Bible you hold sacred after all. Good luck.
 
Magnus 97,

Yes this forum will be closing on December 31.

But you can get answers to your questions at this site if you explore it:

https://www.catholic.com/

I believe that all the questions you have can be answered there.
 
Hi Friend!

As others have said, this forum is closing down.

But the biggest suggestion I’d make, if it’s available at your local Catholic parish during the pandemic, is sitting personally with Jesus in Eucharistic adoration.

Also reaching out to your local Catholics for community-based learning opportunities. Catholicism is a face-to-face, organic, real-person Church. It’s not just about ‘arguments’ or the intellect (although there’s a rich intellectual Tradition to engage with, and you’ll find plenty of Catholics keen on chit-chatting through that side of things with you).

At the core of the faith though is Jesus. And he is physically, transubstantially, present in the Eucharist, in every Catholic Church. And it’s often possible to go and sit with him (pandemic of course being the complicating factor right now). So going and praying there would be my advice. On top of reaching out to your local, flesh-and-blood Catholics via the local parish secretary or a Catholic young adults group (etc).

P.S. my note about sitting in Eucharistic adoration is that, while I also did the intellectual prep work beforehand – and I mean, for an extended period of time, researching and trying to understand what Catholics meant by ‘transubstantiation’ and what Eucharistic adoration is all about – it was Jesus himself who “changed my mind” about his Eucharistic presence, during Eucharistic adoration. Just hearing people talk about it, even wrapping my mind around what it would conceptually mean, from a distance, didn’t persuade me it was true.

It was sitting with Jesus (indeed, only after sitting with Jesus a few separate times) that I realized it was in fact Jesus who was sitting with me.
 
Last edited:
Still a good three weeks for discussion, debate, and argument. Enjoy!
 
In a nutshell: Jesus founded a Church with Peter at its head. That is the Catholic Church. It can trace back to Jesus. Protestantism dates to the 1500s and unless you are willing to accept that Jesus intended a gap in the deposit of faith and practice of 1500 years, you should not be a Protestant.
 
As already said, there are many forums about this and articles defending the Catholic view on the normal Catholic Answers website.

That said, there are still some weeks before the forums close. Peruse these resources, and then get back with us with the troubles/problems you have remaining. We will gladly help a brother join the fullness of Truth!
 
My marginally useful advice:
  1. Trace Church history back to Christ - then move forward.
  2. Get a copy of Catholicism for Dummies.
  3. Find a Catholic forum, that will still be here as you journey along.
  4. Maybe even call your local parish and speak with the priest or the faith formation director with questions or for resource materials.
  5. Watch EWTN on TV if you have it.
  6. Listen to Catholic radio as much as you can.
  7. Watch Catholic videos on YouTube*
*make sure that it is genuine, obedient, orthodox Catholicism that you are watching - there are many these days who may lead you astray.
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top