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followerofJesus
Guest
What is the difference between Catholic beliefs and non-denominational beliefs?
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twosweetgirls
Guest
As I see it? Practically everything.
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lampstand
Guest
It seems to me that the churches which call themselves non-denominational may ‘have good intentions’ as to being a church that can welcome more people, and love people, but at the same time, when you ask them what their other beliefs are, as to specific doctrines-- they usually do function quite like denominations. Many of them are Biblical literalists, in the sense of being fundamentalists. Many are also Rapture believers. Some other aspects are toss-ups. They keep splitting off from one another… I don’t know what corner of the map they’re hoping to find that hasn’t been found so far. Sad, really.
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TemplarKnight
Guest
Other than a commitment to God, Jesus Christ, The Holy Spirit, and everything Jesus speaks of in the Bible?
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Hisalone
Guest
The first century church was non denominational.
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Roman_Catholic_1
Guest
Which one of the non-denominational churches?
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inthecloud
Guest
Taking in account that the whole denomitanional thing started with the Reformation and that there were no stable Christian belief them, in fact there was no New Testament them there is techincally true.
But there were Jewish Christians, Gentile Christians and Gnostics them. And there were differences. The Early Christians sound to me like primitive Orthodox/Catholics with a bit of Mennonite thrown in.
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Gamera
Guest
Hi, follower of Jesus. I see this is your first post. Welcome!
I will offer two answers.
From the Catholic perspective, the main difference is that Catholics recognize and practice all seven sacraments instituted by Jesus. Non-denomination Christians interpret some differently (such as baptism) and omit some altogether (such as the Eucharist).
From the non-denominational perspective, the biggest differences would probably be the “five solas” of the Reformation (since “non-denomination” Christians usually follow Protestant theology). For instance, “non-denominationals” believe in the doctrine of sola scriptura (“Bible only”) while Catholics believe that God’s word appears in both the Bible and in the Apostolic Tradition (the preaching of the first-century Apostles). Non-denominationals usually believe in sola fide (“faith alone”), whereas Catholics believe that we will be judged by our works (although saved only by God’s grace which Christ won for us on the cross).
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Hisalone
Guest
The one without the pope.
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Rolltide
Guest
You’re right… it was simply one “universal” church united in belief.
Anyone know any good synonyms for “universal”? Anyone?
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Roman_Catholic_1
Guest
I edited my response to this post. It was very unchristian of me and unmerited on your part.The one without the pope.
God bless you Hisalone
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georgehparker
Guest
Hi! In a nutshell, Catholics affirm that the Church which Christ founded upon the Apostles, alone having received His promise and commission, is indefectable; she is the same Church now as she was in the time of the Apostles, like the child that is now a man. Non-denominational churches have two ideas of church: one is the sum of true believers, the other is what they do on Sunday–which involves a lot of talk about how to do church like in the New Testament. If I am not mistaken, it has its origins and primary influences from the Campbellite/Restorationist movement.
Welcome.
Welcome.
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reteeks21
Guest
Could you be anymore rude or arrogant? Could you not have found a decent way to disagree?
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TemplarKnight
Guest
Do you find it a tad bit rude and ironic that you have the effrontery to criticize me for criticizing someone?
Why don’t you read Matthew 7:5-
“Thou hypocrite, cast out first the beam in thy own eye, and then shalt thou see to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye.” -DR
-before you worry about chastising me on how I express my opinion.
Yes, I could very easily have been more rude and arrogant, but I chose not to. If you don’t like my opinion, that’s your problem. I didn’t realize I had to receive your approval on how I may express my opinion.
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NDfan
Guest
And what is the issue with that?? As opposed to the RCC which doesn’t love and welcome more people?? What’s your point.
Quite untrue.
I’ll tell you what’s sad. That you can make generalizations when you obviously don’t know what you are talking about. But I should have known that by your opening words of “it seems to me”
As far as occupying any corner of any map. That’s not the purpose. The purpose is to reach people who have not come to Christ. Not enroll someone in RCIA classes for a year before they can even get baptized. I don’t seem to recall Peter ever doing that in the NT. The Ethiopian did not have to do that either. They found water somewhere on the side of the road and got baptized.
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orrincoolguy
Guest
I attended a nondenominational church for a long time and basically it is a church where you can choose any doctrine from all the other denominations and accept whatever you want. The pastor at the church would sometimes start his sermons by saying he is going to give what he believes is correct but you should always read what the bible says and decide for yourself what you believe. They make it very easy to be a christian but on the positive side they are really good at getting people involved in service in their community and in missions. I admit that this church really got me into reading and studying the Bible which then by the grace of God led me back to the Catholic church where I am really fed the word of God.
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John_Hiner
Guest
Laudatur Iesus Christus.
Dear followerofJesus:
Welcome.
At root, I suspect that the fundamental difference between the Faith of the Church and the beliefs of “non-denominational” groups has to do with the Incarnation of Christ.
The Church is the ongoing physical, social, intellectual, and spiritual effect of things that Jesus Christ did and said while He was physically present on earth, both before and after His resurrection from the dead. Through this institution Christ continues to engage the world at all levels from the smallest baby learning what Christ taught from his mother’s stories or his father’s example, to engaging the “super powers” on issues of peace, poverty, and justice. The Church acknowledges that Christ took physical means to maintain and propagate His presence in the world, and that because they are *physical *they must be continuous from the hands and mouth of Jesus, through the hands and mouths of His students (disciples), and so on through their students even to the present day, when somewhat in excess of 400,000 men have given up family life in favor of acting as Catholic priests, and these in turn are joined by somewhat in excess of one billion others.
All of these people act and worship together, under a hierarchical structure instituted by Christ, to propagate His ministry through His agents in the world. They offer continuous worship and prayer. They provide relief and aid to the poor in every country of the world. They maintain hospitals and medical clinics for the aid of the sick. They teach at the primary, secondary, and University levels throughout the world.
This continuous effect of Christ’s personal Incarnation has miraculously functioned without interruption since Christ’s Ascension and has outlasted every human institution which existed at the time of its founding and many which have risen and fallen since.
Among Christ’s ministries instituted in the Church is the power to forgive or bind sinners and to confect a persistent miracle, parallel to the miracle of the Loves and Fishes, in which the Body and Blood of Christ are made physically present under the forms of bread and wine and offered to the Holy Trinity in true worship. The Church believes that the physical ingestion of this Real Presence is a necessary bodily connection to Christ and to the life of the Holy Trinity.
The “non-denominational” theories and “Protestant” theories generally do not acknowledge this multi-layered and continuous Incarnation of Christ on the earth. Rather, they seek an intellectual connection with Him through parts of the Bible and an emotional and spiritual experience through the “special” intervention of the Holy Spirit.
These connections sought under the Protestant theories, in themselves, are not necessarily incompatible with the Catholic Faith, but because they are so narrow and tenuous, they cause concern, because certain words from Christ’s own mouth lead one to doubt whether they constitute enough of a link with Him to justify or save. Further, many of these “Protestant theories” narrowly address the salvation of the person involved, and not of the whole of creation. This suggests that they are a very partial reflection of Christ’s intentions.
Someone else in this thread suggested: “[T]here were no stable Christian belief
Early in the Acts of the Apostles there is an account of the emergence of the Apostles on the day of Pentecost. The Scripture says:
“And he testified with many other words and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation.” So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls. And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers.” (Acts (RSV) 2:40-42.)
Now consider the situation on that evening. Everyone has gone home. In a single day the numbers in the Church have increased from about 120, who were in the Upper Room at Pentecost that morning, to 3,120 at the end of that day. How would one determine “Christian beliefs?”
Continued . . .
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Hisalone
Guest
Yet you found nothing wrong with the post this was in response to?
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John_Hiner
Guest
Continued . . .
If we went from house to house and asked the converts we might get all sorts of notions, based on the things that Peter and the Apostles said merged with the assumptions brought by each convert from previous religious experience and coupled with what each convert “thought made sense” as an extension of what it all meant. Considering this, there might be any number of theories or assumptions and the rumors must have been rampant; everyone was excited and interested. But, if we went to St. Peter and the Blessed Mother, what would they tell us of the Faith? How close would their understandings match those of the new converts? St. Peter had spent three years or so living with and learning from the Lord; the Virgin Mother had spent over 30 years learning from Him.
The Church’s view is that the Faith was known that night; it was known and understood by the Blessed Mother, by the 12 Apostles, and to a lesser degree by the 100 or so people who had also accompanied Jesus and from whom the 12 had been selected. This was so, even though one would not discover the details or depth of this Faith by talking to “the majority” of those who were members of the Church that night.
What the comment above refers to as denoting “no stable Christian belief” is rather the appearance one would expect as the depth and details of the Faith were gradually disseminated to the new members of the Church. It is the Church’s belief that Christ imparted the Faith to the Apostles in such a way that it was known, understood, and could be taught and explored more and more deeply, guided by the promised help of both the Holy Spirit and Jesus Himself. The Faith, however, was complete and understood by the Apostles (and the Blessed Mother) who handed it on.
Here is another example of this idea: Imagine a fish tank full of clear water. At one corner there is a continuous drip of dark blue dye. The drops of dye fall into the tank at the same place every few seconds. At first the tank is so clear that one might not even notice that the dye is blue. As the dripping continues, the corner of the tank becomes darker and darker, but this gradualy lessens as one looks further away from the place where the drip enters the tank. After hours, the entire tank will be darker and darker blue, as the dye has effect everywhere.
The Faith of the Catholic Church is the same now as on the day of the Ascension. It is not a “belief system” but a continuing effect of and encounter with the Incarnation. For those who engage the multi-layered means which Jesus provided for maintaining His presence in the world, that Faith becomes clearer and deeper, as it permeates them. To those who disregard some, most, or all of these means of engagement with Christ, their understanding becomes dimmer, more confused, and more tenuous.
I hope these comments are helpful.
Pax Christi tecum.
John Hiner
If we went from house to house and asked the converts we might get all sorts of notions, based on the things that Peter and the Apostles said merged with the assumptions brought by each convert from previous religious experience and coupled with what each convert “thought made sense” as an extension of what it all meant. Considering this, there might be any number of theories or assumptions and the rumors must have been rampant; everyone was excited and interested. But, if we went to St. Peter and the Blessed Mother, what would they tell us of the Faith? How close would their understandings match those of the new converts? St. Peter had spent three years or so living with and learning from the Lord; the Virgin Mother had spent over 30 years learning from Him.
The Church’s view is that the Faith was known that night; it was known and understood by the Blessed Mother, by the 12 Apostles, and to a lesser degree by the 100 or so people who had also accompanied Jesus and from whom the 12 had been selected. This was so, even though one would not discover the details or depth of this Faith by talking to “the majority” of those who were members of the Church that night.
What the comment above refers to as denoting “no stable Christian belief
Here is another example of this idea: Imagine a fish tank full of clear water. At one corner there is a continuous drip of dark blue dye. The drops of dye fall into the tank at the same place every few seconds. At first the tank is so clear that one might not even notice that the dye is blue. As the dripping continues, the corner of the tank becomes darker and darker, but this gradualy lessens as one looks further away from the place where the drip enters the tank. After hours, the entire tank will be darker and darker blue, as the dye has effect everywhere.
The Faith of the Catholic Church is the same now as on the day of the Ascension. It is not a “belief system” but a continuing effect of and encounter with the Incarnation. For those who engage the multi-layered means which Jesus provided for maintaining His presence in the world, that Faith becomes clearer and deeper, as it permeates them. To those who disregard some, most, or all of these means of engagement with Christ, their understanding becomes dimmer, more confused, and more tenuous.
I hope these comments are helpful.
Pax Christi tecum.
John Hiner
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Hisalone
Guest
As a nonDenominational I believe that the present Roman Catholic Church does not resmble the congregation that Jesus established. Throughout the centuries this institution has morphized to were it is today. Many of the teachings are unbiblical ie purgatory, celibate prieshood, tradition over scripture, Marian doctrines, etc etc
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