My (rather uninformed) Baptist Uncle

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I shared a Catholic Answers video on my Facebook feed a few days ago - the one that talks about why we ask saints to intercede for us. It was a very good explanation and one that I would think anyone wound understand. My baptist uncle proceeds to respond “This man deceives many people.” He’s also responded to other posts about my Catholic faith in a very negative and ignorant way. I finally had enough of him on Sunday so I blocked him from Facebook. I try to do my best to explain my faith (I converted from baptist) to my non-Catholic family and most of them are very respectful, but my uncle just will not listen to me nor any of my explanations.

I’m curious to know if any one else has had experiences like this where family members or friends just won’t listen to anything you say and only respond with false accusations. What did you do?
 
Some people feel threatened by beliefs they’ve been taught are wrong, and so react in negative ways–a knee jerk reaction, if you will. Don’t think badly about your uncle. He truly believes the things he’s saying, and cannot take in anything else. If he loves God and serves him as he understands it, you need not fear for his salvation, if that is bothering you. The Church tells us that some people are invincibly ignorant, which means they just can’t accept some things the Church teaches because it’s been too engrained in them that the Church is wrong–for whatever reasons. You don’t need to keep him as a friend on Facebook, but be kind to him when you see him and pray for him. Don’t try to impose anything on him because he’s not disposed to hear it, and it may actually lead him to sin by detraction or unjust anger. Let him be. If he wants to talk to you about the Catholic faith, he can. But don’t be surprised if he has no interest apart from objecting to it.
 
jatkins29 said:
I shared a Catholic Answers video on my Facebook feed a few days ago - the one that talks about why we ask saints to intercede for us. It was a very good explanation and one that I would think anyone wound understand. My baptist uncle proceeds to respond “This man deceives many people.” He’s also responded to other posts about my Catholic faith in a very negative and ignorant way. I finally had enough of him on Sunday so I blocked him from Facebook. I try to do my best to explain my faith (I converted from baptist) to my non-Catholic family and most of them are very respectful, but my uncle just will not listen to me nor any of my explanations.

I’m curious to know if any one else has had experiences like this where family members or friends just won’t listen to anything you say and only respond with false accusations. What did you do?
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Not really. Everyone I know pretty much, is Catholic. But when I find offensive posts, I block them, even using the IGNORE function here on CAF.
Be at peace.
 
I have a,…well I don’t know if ignorant is the right word, sanctimonious might be the ticket, Baptist Uncle. I haven’t spoken to him in 17 years, though I saw him at a funeral about two years ago. He and his kids wont speak to me, and I think we are all fine with that.

If he or they wanted to talk to me and bury the hatchet, I am just fine with that, but they wont, and I know them well enough to say they wont ever change. Now I would not want that for you or anyone, but I am ok with this. If I felt angry at them, or that there was a real chance to become close with them, I would reach out. But I know they won’t, and I am not mad at them.

They think my side of the family is all hell bound due to our religious choices. No wiggle room at all, they think the whole lot of us are going to hell for not being Baptist. My Uncle’s mother, my Grandmother, also Baptist was a Saint herself. She was wonderful. What a woman. She passed out Bibles and fed people at her back door during the depression. She… is in heaven. Her memory is enough for me as far as that side of the family goes.

Very sad, but that’s just how life is sometimes. I’ll pray for them again, since you brought this to my mind, and really for now, that is all you can do for YOUR Uncle. Just remember life does go by fast. Maybe time will change things, but you have to member, it might not.
 
Della said:
Some people feel threatened by beliefs they’ve been taught are wrong, and so react in negative ways–a knee jerk reaction, if you will. Don’t think badly about your uncle. He truly believes the things he’s saying, and cannot take in anything else. If he loves God and serves him as he understands it, you need not fear for his salvation, if that is bothering you. The Church tells us that some people are invincibly ignorant, which means they just can’t accept some things the Church teaches because it’s been too engrained in them that the Church is wrong–for whatever reasons. You don’t need to keep him as a friend on Facebook, but be kind to him when you see him and pray for him. Don’t try to impose anything on him because he’s not disposed to hear it, and it may actually lead him to sin by detraction or unjust anger. Let him be. If he wants to talk to you about the Catholic faith, he can. But don’t be surprised if he has no interest apart from objecting to it.
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Thank you Della. I’m sure I come across that way when responding to something a non-Catholic says too.
 
esieffe said:
I have a,…well I don’t know if ignorant is the right word, sanctimonious might be the ticket, Baptist Uncle. I haven’t spoken to him in 17 years, though I saw him at a funeral about two years ago. He and his kids wont speak to me, and I think we are all fine with that.

If he or they wanted to talk to me and bury the hatchet, I am just fine with that, but they wont, and I know them well enough to say they wont ever change. Now I would not want that for you or anyone, but I am ok with this. If I felt angry at them, or that there was a real chance to become close with them, I would reach out. But I know they won’t, and I am not mad at them.

They think my side of the family is all hell bound due to our religious choices. No wiggle room at all, they think the whole lot of us are going to hell for not being Baptist. My Uncle’s mother, my Grandmother, also Baptist was a Saint herself. She was wonderful. What a woman. She passed out Bibles and fed people at her back door during the depression. She… is in heaven. Her memory is enough for me as far as that side of the family goes.

Very sad, but that’s just how life is sometimes. I’ll pray for them again, since you brought this to my mind, and really for now, that is all you can do for YOUR Uncle. Just remember life does go by fast. Maybe time will change things, but you have to member, it might not.
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Thanks, I appreciate the prayers. I don’t expect him to convert to Catholicism. But, I have told him he needs to respond to me respectfully if he disagrees with something I’ve said. He’s done nothing but attack everything up to this point. I grew up in Georgia so I understand why he’s challenging the things he’s challenging. All I can do is continue to defend the faith and pray for him.
 
It’s always fascinated me how sure and confident people are in their own interpretation of a text that is thousands of years old.

Your uncle means well but has misguided zeal.

But if he is going to be disrespectful , it was probably best to block him.

Pray for him

Once he softens up some, invite him to friendly chat about faith. Answer his objections logically, but also stay on the offensive with him. Answer a question, then ask your own question.

Before i ever considered converting to the faith, i first had to have some objections answered before i considered Catholicism to be a valid Christian faith. Once he gets to that point, you wont have anymore issues with him…

Pax
 
jatkins29 said:
I shared a Catholic Answers video on my Facebook feed a few days ago - the one that talks about why we ask saints to intercede for us. It was a very good explanation and one that I would think anyone wound understand. My baptist uncle proceeds to respond “This man deceives many people.”
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Use historical quotes on praying for the intercession of saints, the real Eucharistic presence, and anything that he chooses to try to refute.

Don’t get too deep into the Church itself, like papal infallibility, the Treasury of Merits, and things of the sort. Those can be either confusing, possibly hard to defend (I wouldn’t know; I’ve never done as such), or seem odd. You should be okay! 👍
 
jatkins29 said:
I shared a Catholic Answers video on my Facebook feed a few days ago - the one that talks about why we ask saints to intercede for us. It was a very good explanation and one that I would think anyone wound understand. My baptist uncle proceeds to respond “This man deceives many people.” He’s also responded to other posts about my Catholic faith in a very negative and ignorant way. I finally had enough of him on Sunday so I blocked him from Facebook. I try to do my best to explain my faith (I converted from baptist) to my non-Catholic family and most of them are very respectful, but my uncle just will not listen to me nor any of my explanations.

I’m curious to know if any one else has had experiences like this where family members or friends just won’t listen to anything you say and only respond with false accusations. What did you do?
Click to expand...
Rather insulting but funny thread title (in a dark humorish way).
But My Big Fat Baptist Uncle would have been far worse.
😃
 
Perhaps describing your Uncle as Ignorant is less than charitable. I was raised Baptist, in old South Carolina(pre-northern immigration) and i can thoroughly understand his stance regarding Catholicism. Anyone raised in a different denomination, with little knowledge of the Church and Her history, Theology and Dogma will find Catholicism to be questionable. Especially in the evangelistic denominations. Arguments will not work. Charity and truth must be the guiding principles in discussions, along with sound references. Also, considering the ecumenism of the Church today, technically we are all fellow travelers on the Path to God. Pray for Unity in the Body of Christ.
 
Pulvis said:
Perhaps describing your Uncle as Ignorant is less than charitable. I was raised Baptist, in old South Carolina(pre-northern immigration) and i can thoroughly understand his stance regarding Catholicism. Anyone raised in a different denomination, with little knowledge of the Church and Her history, Theology and Dogma will find Catholicism to be questionable. Especially in the evangelistic denominations. Arguments will not work. Charity and truth must be the guiding principles in discussions, along with sound references. Also, considering the ecumenism of the Church today, technically we are all fellow travelers on the Path to God. Pray for Unity in the Body of Christ.
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Maybe not charitable but probably accurate.

Most of these cases are fundamentalists having a warped interpretation of the scriptures and and at least partial misconceptions about what the Catholic Church actually teaches. So yeah, ignorance.
 
Lenten_ashes said:
Maybe not charitable but probably accurate.

Most of these cases are fundamentalists having a warped interpretation of the scriptures and and at least partial misconceptions about what the Catholic Church actually teaches. So yeah, ignorance.
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True.

The true teachings of the Catholic Church is out there available for people to learn. It’s not like a hidden secret. Somehow people manage to insist on and persist in their ignorance.
 
Pulvis said:
Perhaps describing your Uncle as Ignorant is less than charitable. I was raised Baptist, in old South Carolinapre-northern immigration) and i can thoroughly understand his stance regarding Catholicism. Anyone raised in a different denomination, with little knowledge of the Church and Her history, Theology and Dogma will find Catholicism to be questionable. Especially in the evangelistic denominations. Arguments will not work. Charity and truth must be the guiding principles in discussions, along with sound references. Also, considering the ecumenism of the Church today, technically we are all fellow travelers on the Path to God. Pray for Unity in the Body of Christ.
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Well, I can understand the thought process, but the word “ignorant” shouldn’t necessarily be seen as demeaning or uncharitable.

Many people do use it much of the time as a synonym for “lacking intelligence” or “unsophisticated,” or something similar. That doesn’t seem to be the meaning the OP is using here, though, as “ignorant” also means, “lacking knowledge or information about something.” And that’s the way I read it.

I’m ignorant about plenty of things. Such as Baptist beliefs. 🤷 😃
 
CatholicRaven said:
Well, I can understand the thought process, but the word “ignorant” shouldn’t necessarily be seen as demeaning or uncharitable.

Many people do use it much of the time as a synonym for “lacking intelligence” or “unsophisticated,” or something similar. That doesn’t seem to be the meaning the OP is using here, though, as “ignorant” also means, “lacking knowledge or information about something.” And that’s the way I read it.

I’m ignorant about plenty of things. Such as Baptist beliefs. 🤷 😃
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In the city I grew up in they pronounced it “ig-nernt” and it meant being rude.
 
Lenten_ashes said:
Maybe not charitable but probably accurate.

Most of these cases are fundamentalists having a warped interpretation of the scriptures and and at least partial misconceptions about what the Catholic Church actually teaches. So yeah, ignorance.
Click to expand...
 
Lenten_ashes said:
Maybe not charitable but probably accurate.

Most of these cases are fundamentalists having a warped interpretation of the scriptures and and at least partial misconceptions about what the Catholic Church actually teaches. So yeah, ignorance.
Click to expand...
With a certain level of trepidation I will say for myself that I do not see myself as a Fundementalist with a warped interpretation of the scriptures…this you may not agree with which is your perogative. I approached CAF aware that I probably had misconceptions about what the Catholic Church teaches and while I feel I have learned lots by participating here I am also becoming aware that a lot of Catholics also have misconceptions of what their Church actually teaches as is borne out repeatedly by Don Ruggero in other posts. So yeah,ignorance!
 
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