I don't get it...if you are a non-Catholic Christian, then why aren't you a Catholic Christian?

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benedictus2 said:
Okay calm down. My question is why do you do that? Why do you share the Gospel? Now if you believe that all faith’s are equal and your religion is the same as anyone else’s why do you even bother “planting seeds”? Surely, what they believe is sufficient for salvation if all faiths are equal.

Hey, this is not about knocking anyone’s faith. My question is very valid. Why do you evangelize? Surely if every one’s faith is of equal value, then there is no need to evangelize.

As a matter of fact, think about this. If all faiths are equal value, then that means that the religions that came is sufficient for salvation. So why did Christ have to come and die on the cross if all these religions were enough?

He has indeed. Praise be to God.

But do think about my questions. I mean ponder them.
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I am calm:D And knowing about me as you do, I’m surprised you asked me that question;) I share the Gospel and evangelize, because Christ commanded me to! You know Matthew 28:19-20? We are to be His witnesses to the world. I can’t help myself; where once I was silent, I now cannot shut up about Jesus! Belive it or not, I even share my faith with atheists, pagans, and yes even catholics! Actually, it is a lot easier to witness to and evangelize to non-believers; because they don’t have any preconceived ideas about who Jesus is, and what He has promised them! And silly goose, if all religions/faiths were equal, we would all be the same! Christ fulfilled God’s plan for reconciling His children back to Himself, and to save US ALL from the slavery of sin! So, long story short, I witness/evangelize, because the Holy Spirit empowers me to; guiding me, and giving me the words to say! BTW, do you witness to noncatholics or pagans? Evangelize, perhaps?:cool:
 
1beleevr said:
BTW, do you witness to noncatholics or pagans? Evangelize, perhaps?:cool:
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All Catholics are called to evangelize. We also do it because we are commanded to.

The point that is being made, 1beleevr, is that we evangelize because we believe that we have the Truth, and we are sharing that truth with others who do not have it.

So, when you evangelize you are doing this because you believe what you believe is true and you believe that the other person does not have that truth, right?
 
FantomScholar said:
This was in response to PRmerger. We both agreed on this issue. benedictus then responded to the above with a quotation from Matt. 5:17 to argue that the Mosaic Covenant is not abolished. I then responded to him by demonstrating what Jesus meant in Matt. 5:17. The topic of Catholicism did not come up.

My first response, quoted above, was in the context of larkin’s assertion that the Church picks and chooses which OT laws to follow.

What I was referring to as old law is the Mosaic Covenant. It is old because it is replaced by the New Covenant.

I can’t possibly see how describing the Mosaic Covenant as the old law which has passed away can be interpreted as anti-Catholic. It used to be that anti-Catholicism was defined as an unreasonable hatred of the Roman Church, segregation of Catholics in the workplace, persecution of them by governments, etc. Now apparently it’s a conversation about the relationship of the Mosaic Covenant to the Church. Who’d a’thunk it? 🙂

God bless.
My prayers on the situation with your health that you posted about on another thread, Jimmy.
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Thank you FantomScholar for your kind words and your prayers. Sometimes, it is hard to keep up with the posts here. I agree with much of what you have written thus far but I’m a little uncertain, as to what you meant by -

“which rules from the Old Testament that are still binding on the Church? None of them!”**

Now, were you talking about somebody else here, or, are these your beliefs?

*If these are your beliefs, what was meant by “rules”? *
Thank you.
 
Jimmy_B said:
http://fratres.files.wordpress.com/2009/05/pope-benedict-xvi-blessing-of-the-host.jpg
I don’t get it…if you are a non-Catholic Christian, then why aren’t you a Catholic Christian?
This is a serious question, so please post your reason here… Please, don’t be afraid to voice your opinion and to defend your own particular denomination.
I am not the only Catholic here at CAF, or elsewhere, who wonders and wants to know the answer to this question.
If any Catholics, or any converts to Catholicism here, have any insight to the answer, or possible answer(s) to this question, then please post a response here.
Your thoughts?
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PRmerger said:
All Catholics are called to evangelize. We also do it because we are commanded to.

The point that is being made, 1beleevr, is that we evangelize because we believe that we have the Truth, and we are sharing that truth with others who do not have it.

So, when you evangelize you are doing this because you believe what you believe is true and you believe that the other person does not have that truth, right?
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I know the Truth, so I believe that what I tell others is the Truth! Some that I evangelize to, are wide eyed, and like sponges; absorbing all of it!👍
 
1beleevr said:
I know the Truth, so I believe that what I tell others is the Truth! Some that I evangelize to, are wide eyed, and like sponges; absorbing all of it!👍
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So doesn’t that mean that you feel like your faith is* better* than the faith of the person to whom you’re evangelizing?

Otherwise, your “evangelizing” conversation is akin to one person saying, “I like chocolate (i.e Christianity)!” and the responder saying, “Well, I like vanilla (i.e. Hinduism)”

What you’re really saying is: “Here’s a fact, not an opinon. Jesus is the way, the truth and the life.”

If you don’t think iyour faith is better (i.e. “superior”), then you’re merely stating an opinion.

Which brings us, again, full circle, to the topic I’ve been addressing with Larkin: is there an absolute Truth?
 
Jimmy_B said:
Thank you FantomScholar for your kind words and your prayers. Sometimes, it is hard to keep up with the posts here. I agree with much of what you have written thus far but I’m a little uncertain, as to what you meant by -

“which rules from the Old Testament that are still binding on the Church? None of them!”**

Now, were you talking about somebody else here, or, are these your beliefs?

*If these are your beliefs, what was meant by “rules”? *
Thank you.
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I’ll try to clarify, Jimmy.

In Exodus 20, God initiates a covenant with the Israelites at Sinai. This is called the Old Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant or the Book of the Covenant. It’s regulations and “rules” if you will span from Exodus 20 to the end of Deuteronomy. The Ten Commandments were the representative summary of the Mosaic Law. While the Law consisted of many more obligations than the Ten Commandments contained, the Ten Commandments stood for the entire Mosaic Law (Deuteronomy 4:13, 9:9-11). It also included the dietary laws, the sacrificial laws, the ceremonial laws, etc.

When Christ accomplished His purpose of redemption, He inaugurated the New Covenant in His blood at Calvary. The Old Covenant ended when the New Covenant was ushered in. Therefore, the Church is not under the Old Covenant, it is under the laws of the New Covenant, alternately called the Law of Christ. The Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’ other teachings, the instruction of the Apostles, etc. all comprise this New Covenant.
 
FantomScholar said:
I’ll try to clarify, Jimmy.

In Exodus 20, God initiates a covenant with the Israelites at Sinai. This is called the Old Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant or the Book of the Covenant. It’s regulations and “rules” if you will span from Exodus 20 to the end of Deuteronomy. The Ten Commandments were the representative summary of the Mosaic Law. While the Law consisted of many more obligations than the Ten Commandments contained, the Ten Commandments stood for the entire Mosaic Law (Deuteronomy 4:13, 9:9-11). It also included the dietary laws, the sacrificial laws, the ceremonial laws, etc.

When Christ accomplished His purpose of redemption, He inaugurated the New Covenant in His blood at Calvary. The Old Covenant ended when the New Covenant was ushered in. Therefore, the Church is not under the Old Covenant, it is under the laws of the New Covenant, alternately called the Law of Christ. The Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’ other teachings, the instruction of the Apostles, etc. all comprise this New Covenant.
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Excellent, thank you.
 
After posting some other stuff in other threads and reflecting on this question posed now, I would say why would anyone become a catholic christian? A christian is a christian who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, He came down to earth was born of the virgin Mary and was crucified so that we may all live. A faith is lived. The fruits of true belief will shine thru as all of us get tested on earth, nomatter who or what Church we may belong to.Everything else is not relevant to your salvation, with respect to Catholics and your traditions etc. I grew up a Catholic and I have a good inside knowledge of those traditions and practices. However I do not find any evidence to suggest one has to be a Roman Catholic to gain salvation. That is a free gift given to all men for all time if we but choose it.I do respect those who stay in that particular form of worship, but I do not believe that one has to become a Catholic. Mankind has complicated very simple teachings over the ages and it seems to me that if everyone believes the above facts it really does not matter in what form you choose to worship, as long as it is a Christian Fellowship. Just a thought perhaps for those who are confused . We are all called to be brothers and sisters in Christ, to love and serve each other and to reach out to those who do not know Christ at all. Regards, to seek, another fellow traveller.👍
 
FantomScholar said:
I’ll try to clarify, Jimmy.

In Exodus 20, God initiates a covenant with the Israelites at Sinai. This is called the Old Covenant, the Mosaic Covenant or the Book of the Covenant. It’s regulations and “rules” if you will span from Exodus 20 to the end of Deuteronomy. The Ten Commandments were the representative summary of the Mosaic Law. While the Law consisted of many more obligations than the Ten Commandments contained, the Ten Commandments stood for the entire Mosaic Law (Deuteronomy 4:13, 9:9-11). It also included the dietary laws, the sacrificial laws, the ceremonial laws, etc.

When Christ accomplished His purpose of redemption, He inaugurated the New Covenant in His blood at Calvary. The Old Covenant ended when the New Covenant was ushered in. Therefore, the Church is not under the Old Covenant, it is under the laws of the New Covenant, alternately called the Law of Christ. The Sermon on the Mount, Jesus’ other teachings, the instruction of the Apostles, etc. all comprise this New Covenant.
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thanks

Did the New Covenant throw out the old rules?
 
to_seek said:
After posting some other stuff in other threads and reflecting on this question posed now, I would say why would anyone become a catholic christian? A christian is a christian who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, He came down to earth was born of the virgin Mary and was crucified so that we may all live.
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This is a discussion I’ve had with many, many Protestants: the belief that one only has to believe in a few “essentials” to be a Christian.

This is not stated in Scripture. It is a man-made tradition. There is no list in Scripture of “essential doctrines” that are required to be considered a Christian.

If all that’s required to be a Christian is what you’ve listed above, can you be called a Christian if you don’t believe
-there is only one God?
-that God created the world?
-that God is a Trinity–3 persons, 1 God?
-that Jesus had 2 wills and 2 natures?
-that Scripture is inspired and God’s revelation?
 
PRmerger said:
This is a discussion I’ve had with many, many Protestants: the belief that one only has to believe in a few “essentials” to be a Christian.

This is not stated in Scripture. It is a man-made tradition. There is no list in Scripture of “essential doctrines” that are required to be considered a Christian.

If all that’s required to be a Christian is what you’ve listed above, can you be called a Christian if you don’t believe
-there is only one God?
-that God created the world?
-that God is a Trinity–3 persons, 1 God?
-that Jesus had 2 wills and 2 natures?
-that Scripture is inspired and God’s revelation?
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You are a christian if you believe everything in the nicean creed. Thats a fairly simple little list of things and the creed isn’t in scripture either. Does that mean it doesn’t hold water?
 
nhylan said:
You are a christian if you believe everything in the nicean creed. Thats a fairly simple little list of things and the creed isn’t in scripture either. Does that mean it doesn’t hold water?
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Who says that “you are a Christian if you believe everything in the Nicean Creed”?
 
larkin31 said:
thanks

Did the New Covenant throw out the old rules?
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It means they are not applicable to the New Covenant Church. As PR indicated, the regulations of the Old Covenant were fulfilled by Christ, because He kept the regulations perfectly and thus fulfilled the Covenant, thereby ending it.
 
FantomScholar said:
It means they are not applicable to the New Covenant Church. As PR indicated, the regulations of the Old Covenant were fulfilled by Christ, because He kept the regulations perfectly and thus fulfilled the Covenant, thereby ending it.
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does this apply to the Ten Commandments as well?
 
nhylan said:
You are a christian if you believe everything in the nicean creed. Thats a fairly simple little list of things and the creed isn’t in scripture either.
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This is what I was taught in my Protestant household growing up. A “Catholic” document, to boot!
 
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