BRUNO SCHULZ
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** Let's see now ' "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners...." - and you're telling me that this is not praying to Mary?!**
IF you can pray for your pastor and visa versa, then the Blessed Mary can pray for everyone!
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**There were many protesting movements before Luther, led by Huss, Waldo, Wycliffe and others, most of whom were killed for their heresies. **
They lodged some legitimate complaints too. Instead of sticking to these issues, they decided to take matters into their own hands by subtracting books from the bible and adding doctrines (5 solas) that clearly are not biblical, and were never heard of prior to the reformation. (with the exception of sola gracia)
**Most of them, like Lutheranism and Calvinism, were led by Catholic priests. When their efforts at reform were ignored - lo, Protestantism emerged.
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I guess the question is, did the reformation succeed? Is it Jesus’ back up plan just in case He fails? Certainly every human can fail, but GOD??? Jesus said He would build a church and that nothing (hell–Satan being the worse case scenario, and he has been diabolical in his attempts to destroy it both internally and externally) —would overcome it. Do you believe Him?
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** ...Church history is complex, and there is no point pretending to be pure. Religion, whether Catholic, Protestant or whatever, has been the source of far too much prejudice, hatred, and even mass murder.**
No one person (member of the C.C. OR THE P.C.‘s) is completely pure; only God. However the church
which is the Body of Christ, with Jesus as the Head, the Church of the Living God and Pillar and Foundation of Truth is completely pure regardless of the heinous acts of individuals claiming to be part of Jesus’ Mystical Body, a member of the church of the living God which again is the pillar and foundation of truth, the church according to Jesus cannot fail! Matthew 16:15-19
.**…It’s time we got beyond that and stopped the childish mantra that ‘my religion is right and yours is wrong’. My guess is that no religion comes near to understanding the true nature of the universe.
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I agree! But, nevertheless, Matthew 16:15-19 does say --there is a church out there that stands out as the one true apostolic church, established by Jesus in the 1st half of the 1st century,
that cannot fail, regardless of human defectibility within that church. And Jesus said He would be with that church “forever” “until the end of time”—He said He “would not leave them orphan.” If Jesus Christ says it exists, then it must! What church do you belong to?
Jesus didn’t say anything about the true nature of the universe; That wasn’t His mission; He came to save us from ourselves.
**…God is too big and too magnificent to be contained in a creed or two, or in a catechism of any length.
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I agree!!!
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**... Since I come from a family tree that has both its Catholic and Protestant branches, I believe I have insight into both. In the Protestant line - for example - a maternal, ancestral grandfather was about to be arrested for heresy in Ghent, Belgium, after embracing Calvinism (a Huguenot). To avoid likely death he and his family fled to England, and his grandchildren were part of the Puritan immigration to New England nearly 100 years later. My dad's side (French Canadian) had to cope with British Protestant rule for generations - though not as repressive as in Ireland.**
Makes you wonder what Jesus must think of all this violence in the name of, well Him! He died on the cross to save our souls and this is how certain individuals thank Him. Lets not forget all those individuals in the church that were quite saintly, and stoically emulated Jesus Christ and His virtues through those tumultuous centuries.
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** ....Why keep these foolish conflicts going, especially when we all claim to be Christians?
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Sadly as long as each respective church (denomination) thinks that they have the all-encompassing “truth” division and dissension are here to stay. Tomorrow, another church will arise claiming that they are the true apostolic church.
**The notion that only one church is the only true church hardly reflects the humility taught by Jesus ('blessed are the meek").
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I agree! However,
Jesus did build a church, according to the bible and the early church leaders. Would Jesus build in vain??? Do all the churches regardless of denomination, make up the true church? If so, shouldn’t all these churches be on the same “truth” page when it comes to the teachings of Jesus Christ?
**…I consider every other Christian, indeed every other citizen of the world, my brother or sister
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That certainly is the right attitude.
*“But he answered and said unto him that told him, Who is my mother? and who are my brethren? And he stretched forth his hand toward his disciples, and said, Behold my mother and my brethren! For whosoever shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and mother.” *Matthew 12:48-50
‘**’’- well, I do have trouble with those Christians, Muslims, Jews, whatever, who think that their faith is superior to all the rest. **
Some members of every Christian denomination, feel that their church is superior to all the rest. The C.C. is no exception. However the catholic church as a whole doesn’t share this sentiment. If it did I wouldn’t belong to it. No one person is spiritually superior to another. Some might have more money or more prestige but this counts for nothing in God’s eyes.
Sorry about that, all of you who continue to think that you belong to the one true and apostolic church founded by Christ himself.