That is a very significant point you’ve made, Luke, in light of NTS’ comment:
Originally posted by me; What you would need to do, NTS, would be to compare conduct in these Catholics before they became Catholic with how they behave after they became Catholic (did they show the fruits of the Spirit after becoming Catholic?). Obviously, that is an impossible task on a venue like the CAFs, so your observation as to how Catholics behave here is truly an irrelevant one.
Your comment above, Luke, shows that we have no idea what a poster’s past is and how this branch of Christianity (i.e. Catholicism) has influenced his conduct.
I’ve been beaten up and left for dead by the princes and principalities of this world. I’ve lived in dark places. I was about ready to throw in the towel on my Catholic faith. However deep prayer and personal reflection has revealed things to me about my personal relationship with God as Father because of who I am…a child of God who is also a recovering alcoholic. I stopped going to AA meetings daily and replaced it with weekly counseling, frequent confession, but most importantly - daily Mass. This formula, I would guarantee would work for anyone struggling with ANYTHING. Have I been saved? NO. I am BEING saved. Christ saves me daily…through the Sacrifice of the Mass…and not just once. There’s only one Church where I can be GUARANTEED salvation if I follow Christ in that Church…and there IS JUST ONE!
That True Church exists - identified by 4 marks - One, Holy, Catholic a.k.a. Universal, and Apostolic. Google One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church - and you will see Catholic Church. But more striking to me is the visual evidence because it has some amazing characteristics too that clearly identify it as being undeniably the Church that Christ founded and is the fulfillment of the faith of Our Father. You can see the continuity of the faith practices of the Chosen People from the Old Testament being fulfilled in the New Testament by the adopted children of God in Christ. The altar did not just disappear - the priesthood did not vanish - the sacrifice didn’t stop - the tabernacle wasn’t removed. Why not? Because Jesus was a Jew - most of the disciples were Jewish and all the Apostles were. He came to make all things new NOT DIFFERENT. He came to fulfil the Law, NOT ABOLISH it. Therefore, being that everything Jesus says is True, Jesus fulfils the Law and does not abolish it because He threaded the faith of His Father into the New Testament Church and that Church is the Church that you can see at any Catholic Mass today. The altar is there, the priest, the Sacrifice, the tabernacle. It is the Old Testament faith in God the Father fulfilled and perfected by the Son. Because Christ Himself said “I come to make all things new.” The Old Testament faith had become worn and heartless. Christ didn’t intend to make it different - He gave Life where there was death. He gave Life to the Altar of Sacrifice because He is the Living Sacrifice that we consume. The Old Testament altar of dead bloody sacrifice was renewed by the altar of living spotless sacrifice in the New Testament. Jesus did what He said He would do and it’s visible in His True Church.
This is also evidence to me that IT MATTERS. Can they not understand that in the True Church will be elements of faith practices found from the Old Testament? It can’t possibly be just preaching from scripture and prayer and songs and meditative pictures from an LCD Projector. There MUST be a PRIEST from the line of the Levitical priesthood. There MUST be an ALTAR for sacrifice. And there MUST be a VICTIM for the sacrifice. Not just once a month, four times a year, or at Easter. The true worship of God - because our Church didn’t just start in the New Testament, will be marked by those elements EVERY day. Because from the “Rising of the Sun, to the setting thereof, a spotless sacrifice is offered” as the prophet proclaims. At every single Catholic Mass, the true worship of God found in the Old Testament is fulfilled and perfected in its celebration. Protestants claim the fact that they know the Bible better than Catholics. If they would stoop to set foot in Catholic Mass, they would see the continuity and if they understood scripture like they say they do, there would be enough VISUAL evidence to know that Christ indeed did begin just ONE CHURCH! …IF they were given the eyes of Faith through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
The ancient traditions from the God given faith of the Old Testament are made new and fulfilled in the New Testament. Even some of the prayers of the Old Testament are uttered by the priest and perfected by the Sacrifice on the Altar as our prayers rise like incense before the Father. It isn’t about how it makes you feel - it’s about what it does. It saves man by the Sacrifice offered. It gives man Life by consuming the Sacrifice. No other Church follows the directive uttered 2000 years ago “Unless you eat My Body and drink My Blood, you cannot have My Life within you” more completely than the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. I hear that all the time from the pastor across the street about how the service made him feel. “You could feel the Presence there today.” Wait? You don’t KNOW the Presence was there? What about days where you didn’t feel the Presence? ITS NOT ABOUT HOW IT MAKES YOU FEEL. ITS ABOUT WHAT IT DOES. When ANY Catholic hears the words Christ spoke coming from the lips of the priest: “Take this and eat, this is My Body…Take this and drink, this is the cup of My Blood” then they KNOW that Christ is perfectly present in His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity. We don’t have to feel anything - or use our feelings to monitor anything. We have faith - faith in the power of the priest given to him by Christ through apostolic succession and priests have the power to bring Christ down on the altar to become that Living Sacrifice…
And the concrete evidence is there in that Mass and in the words of Christ Himself, of a True Church that HE - not some MAN - started. It is scattered through the whole Bible. Because when you read the Bible in context - and consume it as the whole that it is…it stands out like a sore thumb in Scripture and in the evidence that every Catholic Mass presents to the world every day…The Living Sacrifice.
God bless you,
luke1_28
The dude I was a year or so ago - that guy was an idiot. He is pretty famous for his ‘attack modes’ but not on this site. Other less dignified sites. So I don’t attack any more…much less on here where it might be counter-productive to the work of saving souls. I genuinely felt inspired to simply ask what you were doing here. Not to make you feel not welcome - or attacked.