Good question. One can easily be found in I Corinthians 15:1-4. Without belief in this you cannot claim to be in Christ or saved. You cannot claim to be a Christian or Catholic. Would you agree this would be an essential belief?
I totally agree.
Are the “non-essentials” laid out as well? Where is this list and who determines it? How do I know for sure what the “essentials” are?
Well, I’m not infallible so I’d like to know for sure what the “essentials” are and what the “non-essentials” are. Can you point me to Scripture that lays this list out for me?
Be Baptized (water) in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Wrong. The Church came before the Bible. (the Physical Book).
What does infallibly have to do with this?
Before i do would you agree that this is an essential doctrine?
If you baptized but don’t believe are you saved?
A study of the scriptures would help to determine this. For example the scriptures teach the man is a sinner and will be condmened for them unless he believes in Christ who died and rose again. This would be an essential doctrine because of the ramifications of it.
We are saved if we are baptized (maybe even if we’re not, that’s up to God). The door to Salvation has been opened. Then we have to cooperate with God’s grace. It’s an ongoing process.
That is absolutely not true.
Where is this in Scripture?
Did the church come before Paul’s teachings and the words of our Lord proclaimed in Scripture?
Yes the Church did came before the Bible. When Paul was Saul and he was persecuting the Church, it was before he had written any of his Epistles into scrolls. The Church existed on day of Penecost at the latest.
I’m not speaking of when the collections of God’s inherent Word were put together. I am speaking of the time when Jesus spoke the words contained in the NT and when Paul preached to the Ephesians, Romans, Timothy etc. Paul never spoke of the Catholic church or the Marian doctrines because neither existed. I won’t get into details about the lack of corelation between Biblical teachings and the doctrines of the Catholic church because they are for a different thread.
The Catholic Church did existed then, the first Pope is Peter, the head of the Church is Jesus Christ. The issue then was more about the problem that Paul fought against the heresy of Gnosticism, and Judaizers. I’m very sure the Church was before the Bible.
I can’t say this is essential and this is not. I could be wrong. I’m not an infallible interpreter of Scripture. I’m not my own pope. If I did that, who would you be to tell me I’m wrong? If I said knowing all 13 apostles is essential. What would make you right and me wrong if there is no authoritative interpreter of Scripture? That’s what I mean by me not being infallible.
And this is determined by…you? Could you be wrong? Who told you this is a non-essential? What if you’re standing outside the pearly gates and the only question asked of you is to name all 13 apostles and you must answer correctly to enter Heaven? I would say that knowing all 13 apostles was QUITE essential, wouldn’t you?
How could that be? When the man beside Jesus on the cross confessed his sin to Jesus and asked him to remember him, Jesus said today you will be with me in paradise, that doesn’t even sound remotely Catholic. Truth is, Catholic had nothing to do with it because the Catholic church did not yet exist. Jesus didn’t tell the man to say some Hail Marys and Our Fathers and then maybe someone will help pray you out of Purgatory.