So my father is joining this "Iglesia Ni Cristo"...thing...

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trdchubi said:
Sociologically, Filipinos can be easily amused. You can easily dupe the working class into believing practically everything by the way you present yourself. Just like any popular politician do.

So INC employs ministers who speak very fluent tagalog, blurt out verses in the bible in outlandish fashion and make everyone believe they are the authority. Since Filipinos are not keen to details, and never bother to test them, whatever is said against the Catholic Church is fact - the Padre Damaso (fat friar) effect.
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Because they found something in the Bible where they translated the East into the Philippine Islands they only have pull among Filipinos and those who marry into the church. They are all fluent in Tagalog and other Filipino dialects because that is what almost all of them are.

Despite saying all Filipinos are easily lead the INC population is what 3 or 4 percent of the nation? Less then the Sunni population but as large as an collection of other Protestant movements combined.

The OP has an interesting case, like gurneyhallack1 I’ve seen many men go in thinking they can convert for the wedding ceremony and drop the entire INC once they get their bride through immigration and away from papa. At this point the potential convert is getting it from all sides. First most around him will accuse him of getting a mail order bride and most will look at her as a green card prostitute. Banging him own religion is just one more prejudicial factor he will see himself as fighting t back against.

You will not win back the Cradle Catholic who only attends church for a wedding then baptism and maybe Easter by a theological argument in my opinion.
 
He is at their “church” right now, as I type this, for the first of his immersions in their services. I was going to go to divine liturgy at the local OCA this morning, in part to show him that I too am going to church and the INC is not the only game in town no matter what they say, but unfortunately I am sick with a cold! 😦 So thank you for the links and good points, guys. I’ll use this time to study them carefully so that I can better understand how to deal with this. I’m feeling pretty lost right now, honestly. It’s like watching a loved on slide into drug addiction or something: You can hate it all you want, advise against it all you want, remind them that it is bad all you want, but short of physically stopping them from getting it (which is pretty unrealistic when dealing with an adult), what can you actually do about it? Not much of anything, really. 😦

Unfortunately, my gut feeling is that 4Squarebaby is correct about the likelihood of getting him out of this cult by theological argument. Since he is clearly giving up a religion he never knew for one that has many perceived benefits, their theology does not seem to be any sort of problem for him. As no other faith can offer him a replacement for this woman, this really does seem the only way to go. Any argument regarding how this group behaves in the Philippines or any of their tactics or strange beliefs is a moot point, as he is not FIlipino nor Catholic in any way outside of having been born into a Catholic family. He doesn’t know traditional, orthodox Christianity from any other belief system, and since he is unwilling to discuss any religious topic with me (since I refuse to acquiesce to his ideas in the process), getting him to go to Divine Liturgy with me is out of the question (he would not attend Catholic Mass if his life depended on it, I’m sure).
 
dzheremi said:
…I’m feeling pretty lost right now, honestly. It’s like watching a loved on slide into drug addiction or something: You can hate it all you want, advise against it all you want, remind them that it is bad all you want, but short of physically stopping them from getting it (which is pretty unrealistic when dealing with an adult), what can you actually do about it? Not much of anything, really. 😦
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Oh yes there is one thing left, Persistent Prayers coupled with Patience and Love for your father. Praying for his enlightenment is your last resort. If you think this is a hopeless case then lift it up to our Heavenly Father. I’m sure He’ll hear you out. But of course you need a big dose of faith here as well.
 
Filipinos have the worst grasp of catechesis. They usually don’t know the difference between Catholicism and Evangelicalism except for the outward expressions of worship. They’re an extremely tolerant society and perhaps too easy-going about denomination. Missionaries flock my wife’s hometown of Baguio like a swarm of ants! There’s another crazy cult in the Philippines called “El Shaddai.” They’re really ‘interesting!’
trdchubi said:
Sociologically, Filipinos can be easily amused. You can easily dupe the working class into believing practically everything by the way you present yourself. Just like any popular politician do.

So INC employs ministers who speak very fluent tagalog, blurt out verses in the bible in outlandish fashion and make everyone believe they are the authority. Since Filipinos are not keen to details, and never bother to test them, whatever is said against the Catholic Church is fact - the Padre Damaso (fat friar) effect.
Click to expand...
 
gurneyhalleck1 said:
Filipinos have the worst grasp of catechesis. They usually don’t know the difference between Catholicism and Evangelicalism except for the outward expressions of worship. They’re an extremely tolerant society and perhaps too easy-going about denomination. Missionaries flock my wife’s hometown of Baguio like a swarm of ants! There’s another crazy cult in the Philippines called “El Shaddai.” They’re really ‘interesting!’
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I thought El Shaddai was a lay Charismatic Catholic group. I do believe they have a Bishop
 
They held an El Shaddai rally/revival outside the Manila Hotel my first time in the Philippines in 1998. Holy Lord, that was NOT Catholic! I don’t care what Wikipedia says. They could say that El Shaddai is a postulate of Pope Benedict XVI for all I care, that group was like a bunch of Pentecostals. They were running up and getting saved, hallelujahs were uh-flyin’, people were speaking in tongues and ministers in white suits that looked like TBN were running around the stage. It was weird-o-rama. If that’s Catholic, then the Catholic Church is in more trouble than most people have thought! ouch…
4Squarebaby said:
I thought El Shaddai was a lay Charismatic Catholic group. I do believe they have a Bishop
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