Pentalcostals and non-denominationals

[gandolf]

What category do they fall into?

Protestants?

I am a Catholic and the whole family is… execpt my sister who married a pentalcostal…Well on day we were talking I remember calling my brother-in-law a protestant, and he was offended,he replied,“I am a Christian”

How do you answer that?

 

[LDNCatholic]

What category do they fall into?

Protestants?

I am a Catholic and the whole family is… execpt my sister who married a pentalcostal…Well on day we were talking I remember calling my brother-in-law a protestant, and he was offended,he replied,“I am a Christian”

How do you answer that?

They’re protestants, they just refuse to admit it.

 

[bengal_fan]

They’re protestants, they just refuse to admit it.

well, i would say you answer it with more charity than LDN would for starters.

i would then say that yes, we are all Christians: Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox. and his church sprung out of the protestant reformation which is why you addressed him as “protestant”. then ask why he is offended by the term and let him explain why he thinks he isn’t protestant. ultimately though, does it matter whether he thinks of himself as protestant or not? he is not catholic and therefore is not in communion with what catholics would call the one, true church (i wouldn’t say that to him though because that might offend him further since he probably holds to the belief that the church is spiritually united).

 

[ibkc]

Some Pentecostals, notably “Oneness Pentecostals”, will be further offended at any attempt to explain why they are Protestant. These people deny the Trinity and claim that their practices are the “true” early church practices, and since they don’t believe or do what Protestants do, to them that means they’re not Protestant but “true” Christians.

 

[HannahLisa]

When I am asked my religion, I reply that I am a Christian. My denomination is the denomination I attend, but a denomination is NOT a religion, it is a subsection of a religion.

That being said, Christianity has Catholics, Orthodox, and Protestants. Pentecostal and non-denominational churches are Protestant churches because they are not Catholic or Orthodox!

 

[LDNCatholic]

well, i would say you answer it with more charity than LDN would for starters.

Sorry, I just answered whether they were protestants or not (they are) I did not mean to suggest you reply to them like that

 

[BeProf]

Pentecostalism is Protestant by way of the Holiness Movement which grew out of mainline Protestantism in general and Methodism in particular.

Non-denominational (as a denomination) is a bit harder to classify since it’s so hard to say anything that applies across the board. Non-denominational churches do tend, however, to be associated with either Pentecostalism or with Evangelicalism or both.

The only group that has a somewhat legitimate claim to being neither Protestant nor Catholic are the Anabaptist denominations - Mennonites, Amish, and Brethren. They did grow out of the work of Ulrich Zwingli, but their split with him was before Protestants came to be called Protestants, as such. In addition, they were hated and reviled as a group by both the Protestants and the Catholics.

 

[strngrnrth]

Some might think Protestant just means Lutheran or Presbyterian or something.

 

[Fidelis]

By definition, a Protestant is one whose faith tradition embraces the novel doctrines of the Protestant Reformation. These include:

*** The Bible as one’s sole authority in religious matters.The practical corrollary to this is private interpretation (which makes one’s private interpretation of Scripture the final authority). Their conscience is bound by nothing outside this.

• The concept of “the Church” as an invisible body of beleivers.
• Salvation by faith alone with one’s “works” having no role.**

If one holds to these doctrines, he is a Protestant, whether he likes it or not. All other Christians are either Catholic or Orthodox.

 

[bengal_fan]

Sorry, I just answered whether they were protestants or not (they are) I did not mean to suggest you reply to them like that

okay, good to know you do have charity.
sorry i responded so tersely before. it just seems there are many on here who lack charity, i have begun assuming it from most.

 

[inthecloud]

Pentecostals belive in:
Sola Scriptura
Sola Fide
The church as a invible group of believers
A memorialist Lord Supper and Believer Baptism.

All those beliefs come from Luther or Calvin so yes they are Protestants.

 

[sambos671]

I call all Pentacostals a modern take on Montanus! After all they come from the Holiness movement much like the Montanist that were extreme in practice. My primary dispute with Tertullian!

 

[graceandglory]

They’re protestants, they just refuse to admit it.

It’s true.
I have been both pentecostal and non-denominational. The closest I got to a denomination was “Calvary Chapel,” a denomination that is less than 40 years old. (Turns out, Calvary Chapel is a last stop for many a Catholic convert:thumbsup: )

Back then, I never considered myself a protestant. I knew by definition that I was, but I was just a born again, bible believin, hand raisin, bible quotin, street preachin, evangelical Christian.:tiphat: :knight2:

However, the longer I’m Catholic (3+ years now), the more I realize how protestant I actually was.

 

[East_and_West]

Some Pentecostals, notably “Oneness Pentecostals”, will be further offended at any attempt to explain why they are Protestant. These people deny the Trinity and claim that their practices are the “true” early church practices, and since they don’t believe or do what Protestants do, to them that means they’re not Protestant but “true” Christians.

I dated one of these and even went to a UPC worship service. What I saw there was down right demonic. I prayed the Rosary the whole time for protection from myself and the souls of the members of the Church.

 

[heisenburg]

With respect, people who rely on “I’m just a Christian, I don’t need denominations” don’t fully understand 1) the DIS-unity Christianity is in today, and 2) that Denominations are not religions, or even sub religions, but a way to let others know WHAT you believe…

1. Why do I say the Dis unity of Christians? Lets say you just looked at Protestantism. There are almost no agreed upon doctrines. You may get “We all believe in Faith alone” but when you ask them what faith alone means… the answer quickly vary, some are even opposite. Ask a Lutheran what FO means and you will get a different answer than say a Baptist. Both though claim to follow Faith alone.
2. Because of the reasons mentioned above, this is why you have denominations. If you told me you were Methodist, I can go look up what you believe. If you tell me you are Southern Baptist, or Mennonite, I can go look up your beliefs and know what you mean when you say you are a follower of Christ.

Problem is, there is an arrogance growing in many non-denominational types and/or those that say “I am just a Christian” There is always an undertone of I am better than a denomination and don’t need it. I have even heard some “Christian” pastors say things like if you go to a church that claims membership to any particular denomination, that you aren’t a member of a real church. All you are a member of is an institution. This arrogance is then being taught that what being a Christian really means is that all I need is me, and the bible…

Once ANY organization steps in at all, it becomes evil

And next thing you know you believe prosperity gospel.

Anyway… point to all of this is that saying you are “Just a Christian” means absolutely nothing because there are so many possibilities to what “Just a Christian” can mean.

In Christ

 

[pismopal]

I don’t what all the pentecostal groups believe but if the man wants to be called a Christian why not? Chances are he is and should be given that respect at least. He is your brother in law, and besides you have a convert going if you work on it carefully.

 

[inthecloud]

Many pentcostals has not problem with me but.
Errors going on among many pentecostals:

• Montanism (you have to get baptized in the spirit to be saved)
• Chilism + dispensionalism+ christian zionism
• Modalism (Oneness)
• Word of Faith (name it a grab it)

Some are cool with catholics some are very anticatholic.

 

[Zooey]

They’re protestants, they just refuse to admit it.

Actually, this is perfectly true. I never can understand this “allergy” to correct terminology, because they are, of course, Protestants.

well, i would say you answer it with more charity than LDN would for starters.

i would then say that yes, we are all Christians: Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox. and his church sprung out of the protestant reformation which is why you addressed him as “protestant”. then ask why he is offended by the term and let him explain why he thinks he isn’t protestant. ultimately though, does it matter whether he thinks of himself as protestant or not? he is not catholic and therefore is not in communion with what catholics would call the one, true church (i wouldn’t say that to him though because that might offend him further since he probably holds to the belief that the church is spiritually united).

I don’t think that LDN should say what he posted to Protestants; but its perfectly correct.
Your version is more charitably stated…but it still isn’t going to pass muster with a lot of people. That’s:shrug: their problem, IMNSHO; we all need to learn what other people mean by what they say.

 

[khutcheson]

By definition, a Protestant is one whose faith tradition embraces the novel doctrines of the Protestant Reformation. These include:

*** The Bible as one’s sole authority in religious matters.The practical corrollary to this is private interpretation (which makes one’s private interpretation of Scripture the final authority). Their conscience is bound by nothing outside this.**

Not true–at the very least most Protestants would agree that our private interpretation guided by the Holy Spirit is the final authority. To leave the Holy Spirit out of the equation and to imply that we rely on our own knowledge/wisdom completely misstates what most Protestants believe.

Do you question the ability of the Holy Spirit to guide our conscience?

Salvation by faith alone with one’s “works” having no role.

While I agree that most Protestants will say that they believe in sola fide, I think it’s more accurate (not to mention fair) to describe the the Protestant position on salvation more completely. I think you would find a general agreement in Protestant circles that:

A. The 2nd chapter of James is in the Bible.
B. We cannot ever be worthy of or earn our salvation, it is an undeserved gift of the Lord (that’s where the Sola Fide part comes in).
C. Faith without works is dead.
D. If we are saved we WILL do good works.

It’s important to recognise that C and D are as important a part of Protestant theology as sola fide.

 

[Fidelis]

Originally Posted by Fidelis
By definition, a Protestant is one whose faith tradition embraces the novel doctrines of the Protestant Reformation. These include:

Not at all; so I will adjust my description as follows:

• The Bible as one’s sole authority in religious matters.The practical corrollary to this is private interpretation (which makes one’s private interpretation of Scripture – aided by the Holy Spirit-- the final authority). Their conscience is bound by nothing outside this.

Better?

Of course that opens up the classic can of worms where we have different Protestants reading the same Scripture, aided by the same Holy Spirit, coming up with contradictory interpretations. That makes the Holy Spirit either deceptive, fickle, or confused.:hypno:

While I agree that most Protestants will say that they believe in sola fide, I think it’s more accurate (not to mention fair) to describe the the Protestant position on salvation more completely. I think you would find a general agreement in Protestant circles that:

A. The 2nd chapter of James is in the Bible.
B. We cannot ever be worthy of or earn our salvation, it is an undeserved gift of the Lord (that’s where the Sola Fide part comes in).
C. Faith without works is dead.
D. If we are saved we WILL do good works.

It’s important to recognise that C and D are as important a part of Protestant theology as sola fide.

In listing Sola Fide, I was speaking in general terms. There is no one subject that Protestants disagree among themselves more than that of salvation. As in many other things there is no single “Protestant position” since nobody can speak for Protestantism. :tiphat: