What are ways that Catholic and Evangelicals can have better and more respectful dialogue?

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I think that the best way to have better dialogue is to have confidence that it is possible to have better dialogue. In my opinion, we should have a determined attitude to actively seek respectful dialogue with the other side. One way to ensure that is to remain optimistic that it is possible to have respectful dialogue even if you have not had them in the past.
 
GrantKlentzman said:
Is quoting (in context) the Cathechism of the Catholic Church and other official Catholic sources a good way to show that you care about accurately representing their position? I assume so but it might not be.
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It depends on the person and their familiarity with the Catechism. That is absolutely where you find accurate beliefs of the Church.

I would feel the noncatholic person was making a tremendous effort if they were using the Catechism in an effort to discuss the faith with me. I would not expect someone to familiarize themselves with the Catechism just in order to talk to me.

I have a friend whose husband decided to read it over the summer during college so that he would know how to convert her. He accidentally converted himself to Catholicism. 😀
 
I don’t know if I totally agree with that. If you mean that if an Evangelical totally dismisses you as being a Christian strictly because you say “I’m Catholic,” then I would agree. Where I would disagree is that many evangelicals think that certain theological beliefs that the Roman Catholic Church teaches disqualifies the Church from being Christian. What I’ve heard many say is that if you believe particular doctrines that the Roman Catholic Church teaches, then by definition you are not a Christian. I would rather remain neutral on this issue in this discussion because the main focus of the conversation is how to dialogue better with Catholics.
 
I agree with pretty much everything you said. I apologize for putting this in a bad category. I have only been on the forum for a few days. I will be more careful next time.
 
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GrantKlentzman said:
I would rather remain neutral on this issue in this discussion because the main focus of the conversation is how to dialogue better with Catholics.
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No body wants to rock the boat and come across as non-Christ like to anyone but i think this gets to is the heart of the issue. Either Catholics are or are not Christians and every “Christian” should be united on this idea before “a better dialogue” could possibly emerge. If every non-Catholic were on the same page of this issue it would go a long way open dialogue.

If you think about it you cannot have it both ways. Remaining nutural about the faith of the another has a way of perpetuating an opposite stance and might be viewed as hostile.

Peace!!!
 
adf417 said:
If every non-Catholic were on the same page of this issue it would go a long way open dialogue.
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“non catholics” aren’t a unified “group”, its a bit much to expect them all to be on the same page
 
Its a bit much but it is what Jesus prayed for in John 17 and they do claim to follow Jesus. :man_shrugging:t3:

Peace!!!
 
Well this is a tough one to answer, unless your an ultra conservative like them then you can talk about fox news all day! 🙂
 
We are using two separate languages. Since the 1500s in Europe, terms have widely diverged in meaning. Understanding the other’s terms is crucial. Peruse Hugh (David) Macdonald’s site, whose motto is “Building Bridges - Healing Division” . He is bridging the gap - much of which is convincing bible Christians that Catholics are indeed Christian, of all crazy things.
 
I think we need to accept that some people will see things differently and it’s not always due to a lack of knowledge on Catholicism.
 
Just a few tips based on my experience on both sides of the Tiber:
  • Understand what both sides believe. For Catholics, this includes understanding that Protestantism is very diverse, to the point where even the specifics of the Five Solas are debated, and you shouldn’t assume that the Protestant you’re speaking to is a stereotypical Evangelical or Calvinist.
  • Avoid being easily offended and calmly explain your beliefs. I might have become Catholic sooner if it weren’t for the fact that Catholics seem to always assume malice where it’s just ignorance.
  • Recognize that a lot of our language is different. For instance, “justification” and just about every topic related to it means something completely different depending on if you’re Catholic or Protestant.
  • Avoid bringing up past sins. Both sides have had people that committed atrocities, and both sides have their martyrs at the hand of the other. Stick to the issues and stop acting like your side magically made all of its members pure.
  • Be willing to admit that you don’t know something and stop looking for holes in an argument or defending a position when you don’t adequately understand it. At the same time, though, don’t constantly back down from hard questions. If necessary, do research, but if you refuse to address difficult questions, you’ll come across as wasting the other’s time.
  • Recognize, especially if you’ve been raised on one side, that a lot of the belief requires practicing it to grasp. At the same time, if you converted, bear in mind that you may not have practiced that belief as well as the person you’re dialoguing with.
  • Most importantly, keep 1 Corinthians 13 in mind.
Those are at least a few things I can think of. It may not get down into some of the usual problems with each side’s arguments, but I think those general guides would make dialogue better.
 
For a start, do not think that you know better than the person from that religion.

This involves asking rather than making statements, especially about the doctrine of the person’s religion.

For example - the topic of purgatory. Many Christians do not know what it is but have erroneous preconceived idea about it. There was no effort to ask what it really is but rather using the wrong idea to argue on how wrong it is.
 
So many good responses here!

I especially like the suggestion of listening instead of jumping the gun about something you don’t completely understand, and I second all of ZMystiCat’s list.

My top suggestion for better dialogue, is that at the outset of the conversation, you both firmly agree to look for the Truth. A search for the Truth, and wherever the truth might lead you, either one side or the other, is the first step, in my opinion.

A conversation or debate is pointless if the other person is unwilling to open their mind and be open to the possibility that the other person might be right.

If someone is completely stubborn and unwilling to ponder a different position then their own, then any discussion is fruitless.
 
GrantKlentzman said:
I agree with pretty much everything you said. I apologize for putting this in a bad category. I have only been on the forum for a few days. I will be more careful next time.
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You better. 😜

No biggie, sometimes it’s hard to figure out which category you should post in.

Welcome aboard, happy to have you here. Enjoy the forum.

God Bless
 
GrantKlentzman said:
How can we better dialogue with each other
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Dialogue is not enough, we have to pray together and do things together.

About thirty years ago in our town, we had prayer breakfasts once a month, where all the churches prayed together and prayed for each other. After many years of praying together, we progressed to doing things together.

During the last ten years, the churches in our town have worked together on many social action schemes, that are too big for any one church to do on their own.

During the last year, the churches together group are starting to call themselves, ‘The Church’ and there are sixteen denominations. Sadly the Catholic church is still a bit on the fringe of this progressive unity.
 
I am not saying that I am neutral in my personal beliefs on Catholicism. I am just trying to act neutral so that we can stay on topic as to how Evangelicals and Catholics can have better dialogue. I do however agree that the issue of whether or not evangelicals believe the Roman Catholic Church is Christian is an important discussion. I also agree that you can’t be neutral on whether or not the Roman Catholic Church is Christian. Maybe on some other discussion forum we could talk about that topic.
 
For starters you’ll need to muzzle the Calvinists: Their incendiary rhetoric does more to widen the gulf than all the rest of Protestantism combined.
 
GrantKlentzman said:
I am not saying that I am neutral in my personal beliefs on Catholicism. I am just trying to act neutral so that we can stay on topic as to how Evangelicals and Catholics can have better dialogue. I do however agree that the issue of whether or not evangelicals believe the Roman Catholic Church is Christian is an important discussion. I also agree that you can’t be neutral on whether or not the Roman Catholic Church is Christian. Maybe on some other discussion forum we could talk about that topic.
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Thats good to know so do you not undrstand how this issue could be the main issue that prevents true dialogue?

Peace!!!
 
Prayer is dialogue, and nothing worthwhile can happen without prayer. The more we can pray together and pray for each other, the closer we become.
 
Not really. I think that regardless of whether or not either side thinks the other side is not Christian, we can still have true dialogue.
 
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