what is difference between baptist/catholic religions?

[moneymayweather]

Hello, my name is moneymayweather and i’m new to this forum. I am a baptist and I wish to know the difference between baptist and catholic religions.

 

[Pete_1]

Hello, my name is moneymayweather and i’m new to this forum. I am a baptist and I wish to know the difference between baptist and catholic religions.

Hi, welcome to the forum, maybe you could state some of your key beliefs, then members could explain if/how they differ from Catholic beliefs.

 

[ckempston]

Hello, my name is moneymayweather and i’m new to this forum. I am a baptist and I wish to know the difference between baptist and catholic religions.

It depends on who you ask. Many prominent Baptist preachers believe the Papacy represents the anti-Christ. These guys are, in my opinion, no better than radio shock jocks.

I’m not Catholic myself, but am somewhat familiar with both Catholicism and Bapist religion. Some specific points of difference that I can think of that Catholics practice:

Infant Baptism (by infusion, aka pouring)
Veneration of Icons (Baptists would probably call this idol worship)
Intercession of the Saints (Prayers to Mary, Peter, etc.)
Immaculate Conception (often confused with Virgin Birth - the idea Mary was born free from Original Sin)

The list could go on for pages, I imagine. The Baptist faith is mostly Calvinistic and holds roughly to the TULIP principle introduced by Calvin himself, TULIP stands for:

Total Depravity (of man)
Unconditional Election (not chosen based on merit)
Limited Atonement (Christ’s sacrifice was only for the elect)
Irresistible Grace (God saves regardless of the person’s desire)
Perseverence of the Saints (aka “once saved, always saved”)

 

[reteeks21]

It depends on who you ask. Many prominent Baptist preachers believe the Papacy represents the anti-Christ. These guys are, in my opinion, no better than radio shock jocks.

I’m not Catholic myself, but am somewhat familiar with both Catholicism and Bapist religion. Some specific points of difference that I can think of that Catholics practice:

Infant Baptism (by infusion, aka pouring)
Veneration of Icons (Baptists would probably call this idol worship)
Intercession of the Saints (Prayers to Mary, Peter, etc.)
Immaculate Conception (often confused with Virgin Birth - the idea Mary was born free from Original Sin)

The list could go on for pages, I imagine. The Baptist faith is mostly Calvinistic and holds roughly to the TULIP principle introduced by Calvin himself, TULIP stands for:

Total Depravity (of man)
Unconditional Election (not chosen based on merit)
Limited Atonement (Christ’s sacrifice was only for the elect)
Irresistible Grace (God saves regardless of the person’s desire)
Perseverence of the Saints (aka “once saved, always saved”)

Pretty much right on the head of the nail there. Just to add a little bit to it, in the Southern Baptist Convention their is a rather large dispute between Armenians and Calvinists. It isn’t one of those knock-down drag-out fights, but it is certainly an issue. Many Baptists are upset because they feel like reformed Presbyterian principles are creeping in, which they do not think are conservative enough. I hope that contributes some to the conversation.

 

[AgnosTheist]

i believe the most significant difference is:

• baptists believe that eating bread & wine is only a commemorative ceremony that remembers the passion of the christ.
• catholics on the other hand believe that they are actually eating the flesh & blood of jesus. LITERALLY.

 

[ABostonCatholic]

It depends on who you ask. Many prominent Baptist preachers believe the Papacy represents the anti-Christ. These guys are, in my opinion, no better than radio shock jocks.

I’m not Catholic myself, but am somewhat familiar with both Catholicism and Bapist religion. Some specific points of difference that I can think of that Catholics practice:

Infant Baptism (by infusion, aka pouring)
Veneration of Icons (Baptists would probably call this idol worship)
Intercession of the Saints (Prayers to Mary, Peter, etc.)
Immaculate Conception (often confused with Virgin Birth - the idea Mary was born free from Original Sin)

The list could go on for pages, I imagine. The Baptist faith is mostly Calvinistic and holds roughly to the TULIP principle introduced by Calvin himself, TULIP stands for:

Total Depravity (of man)
Unconditional Election (not chosen based on merit)
Limited Atonement (Christ’s sacrifice was only for the elect)
Irresistible Grace (God saves regardless of the person’s desire)
Perseverence of the Saints (aka “once saved, always saved”)

I am an ex-baptist. The essentials of the Baptist faith are much simpler than the Catholic faith. There are few, rather than many, beliefs that are required among the faithful.

These are:

• Believer’s Baptism
• Autonomy of the local church
• Ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
• Salvation through Grace by faith (alone)
• Scripture as the sole rule of faith

The first two are what truly distinguish Baptists from all other Protestants. I wouldn’t say that the Baptist faith is mostly Calvinist, but there are many Calvinist Baptists (my church certainly wasn’t!)

I was raised Southern Baptist, and information on them can be found at sbc.net/.

 

[ckempston]

i believe the most significant difference is:

• baptists believe that eating bread & wine is only a commemorative ceremony that remembers the passion of the christ.
• catholics on the other hand believe that they are actually eating the flesh & blood of jesus. LITERALLY.

Another good point. I would have to check, but I believe Baptists only take communion once a month, whereas Catholics receive it every time they attend Mass. yes, the understanding there is quite different. Catholics believe in the Real Presence and Transubstantiation. Baptists simply believe it’s bread and wine and meant to be symbolic. I tend to have a Catholic leaning on this topic, because Jesus usually meant what he said in private with his disciples (even if it’s hard to swallow - no pun intended), and what he said was, “this IS my body.” To avoid confusion, he could easily have said, “this represents my body,” but he didn’t.

 

[ABostonCatholic]

Another good point. I would have to check, but I believe Baptists only take communion once a month, whereas Catholics receive it every time they attend Mass. yes, the understanding there is quite different. Catholics believe in the Real Presence and Transubstantiation. Baptists simply believe it’s bread and wine and meant to be symbolic. I tend to have a Catholic leaning on this topic, because Jesus usually meant what he said in private with his disciples (even if it’s hard to swallow - no pun intended), and what he said was, “this IS my body.” To avoid confusion, he could easily have said, “this represents my body,” but he didn’t.

There is no requirement on how often Baptists take the Lord’s Supper. Some do it more regularly than others. Furthermore, many use grape juice rather than wine.

N.B: baptism by immersion is also a necessity. I know of no Baptists who approve of pouring!

 

[AgnosTheist]

I tend to have a Catholic leaning on this topic, because Jesus usually meant what he said in private with his disciples

I definitely agree with the symbolic interpretation because billions of catholics have been eating the host for almost 2 thousand years now and yet there is not one shred of evidence of the supernatural associated with the host or the consumption of it.

 

[ckempston]

• Believer’s Baptism
• Autonomy of the local church
• Ordinances of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper
• Salvation through Grace by faith (alone)
• Scripture as the sole rule of faith

Good list. The only thing I would point out here is that when a Baptist says “baptism” he means something very different from what a Catholic understands. Baptism to a Baptist is not a sacrament, and in some sects does not involve water, but is simply an outward sign. It is considered a “work.” And since salvation is “by faith alone,” according to them, Baptism is not really “required” (per se) for salvation. Sorry for the double-speak there, but it really is a complicated subject if you ever spoke to a Baptist in-depth about it.

I guess the main underlying point here is that Catholics (and I) believe that we willingly participate with God in bringing about our salvation, while Baptists believe God does all the work (though a prayer is often involved, so I’ve never really understood that - if you don’t pray or do an altar call, you can’t be saved, and prayer is as much a work as baptism - maybe someone can explain that).

 

[ckempston]

I definitely agree with the symbolic interpretation because billions of catholics have been eating the host for almost 2 thousand years now and yet there is not one shred of evidence of the supernatural associated with the host or the consumption of it. if you got jesus in between your teeth you got to show something for it.

Do you have a problem with the miraculous/supernatural? Can you point to God? No, you cannot, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t exist.

 

[Contarini]

Another good point. I would have to check, but I believe Baptists only take communion once a month, whereas Catholics receive it every time they attend Mass.

Actually once a month is quite often for Baptists. Once a quarter is more common, and the church I attended for a while as a kid almost never celebrated it because “they didn’t have enough deacons to administer the elements” (at least that’s what my Sunday School teacher told me when I asked her).

Also, while most Catholics today receive communion as often as they attend Mass and are encouraged to receive frequently, this was not always the case. Catholics are only required to receive communion once a year, and at one time most laypeople received no more than three times a year. It is actually Protestants who have historically insisted on receiving communion every time they attend a celebration of the Eucharist–or to put it the other way round, they only celebrate the Eucharist when there are people ready to receive. Unfortunately this eventually led to the idea that a less frequent celebration was preferable in itself–something contrary to the teachings of both Luther and Calvin (Zwingli did favor infrequent celebration).

Edwin

 

[Contarini]

I definitely agree with the symbolic interpretation because billions of catholics have been eating the host for almost 2 thousand years now and yet there is not one shred of evidence of the supernatural associated with the host or the consumption of it.

Do you simply dismiss the accounts of “Eucharistic miracles” as utterly worthless? I don’t. I don’t necessarily accept them either, but I would say that they do constitute at least “shreds of evidence.” It seems to me that you are arguing from, rather than to, your skepticism about the supernatural.

Edwin

 

[AgnosTheist]

Do you have a problem with the miraculous/supernatural? Can you point to God? No, you cannot, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t exist.

i edited my post. can you please edit yours to reflect my change? take off the last sentence. i realized it was quite rude.

anyway, i have zero problem with the miraculous and supernatural. what i have a problem with are the hear-says and baseless superstitions. I cannot point to the real God, but what I can point to is the God of the Catholics: he is right there physically inside your church buildings every sunday. with that fact, what do you have to show for it? anything extraordinary?

 

[Pixie_Dust]

Hello, my name is moneymayweather and i’m new to this forum. I am a baptist and I wish to know the difference between baptist and catholic religions.

Welcome! I was a Baptist for many years, and just officially became Catholic in August of '07. There are actually more similarities in core doctrine than most Baptists will admit to. I learned from the Baptists that the Catholic Church is the Whore of Babylon, that the Pope is the anti-Christ, and all sorts of other nasty things that are not true at all.

The differences, as others have pointed out, have to do with baptism and communion. Both of these are considered symbolic by Baptists and don’t have any real spiritual benefit for the believer. Baptists will deny that baptism is salvific in any way, even though Peter says “baptism now saves you” and in Acts it talks about baptism washing away our sins and the means by which we receive the Holy Spirit. I found that I had to explain away or ignore too many Bible verses to remain Baptist!

You can read my conversion story here and here.

 

[AgnosTheist]

Do you simply dismiss the accounts of “Eucharistic miracles” as utterly worthless? I don’t. I don’t necessarily accept them either, but I would say that they do constitute at least “shreds of evidence.” It seems to me that you are arguing from, rather than to, your skepticism about the supernatural.

No that its ‘utterly worthless’. Ive been there. I value it at least for its placebo effects.

Now Im really interested in the evidences that you have in mind.

 

[Contarini]

No that its ‘utterly worthless’. Ive been there. I value it at least for its placebo effects.

Now Im really interested in the evidences that you have in mind.

Others on this site can provide you with lots of alleged evidence. There are numerous accounts of the Eucharistic elements taking on the appearance of flesh and blood, etc.

Edwin

 

[ABostonCatholic]

Good list. The only thing I would point out here is that when a Baptist says “baptism” he means something very different from what a Catholic understands. Baptism to a Baptist is not a sacrament, and in some sects does not involve water, but is simply an outward sign. It is considered a “work.” And since salvation is “by faith alone,” according to them, Baptism is not really “required” (per se) for salvation. Sorry for the double-speak there, but it really is a complicated subject if you ever spoke to a Baptist in-depth about it.

I guess the main underlying point here is that Catholics (and I) believe that we willingly participate with God in bringing about our salvation, while Baptists believe God does all the work (though a prayer is often involved, so I’ve never really understood that - if you don’t pray or do an altar call, you can’t be saved, and prayer is as much a work as baptism - maybe someone can explain that).

I’ve never heard of water not being necessary (what do they use? oil? vinegar? ketchup?) But most Baptists do believe it is a mere profession of faith. That being said, their baptisms, barring some inevitable exceptions, are still valid.

They do not believe it is necessary for salvation, but it is necessary to receive the Lord’s Supper.

 

[DDClark]

Welcome! I was a Baptist for many years, and just officially became Catholic in August of '07. There are actually more similarities in core doctrine than most Baptists will admit to…

What are some of the similarities that you see?

I wonder, because I was a Baptist, and though I’m not Catholic, I think the same thing. I just don’t think I can put it into words as well as you probably can.

 

[Pixie_Dust]

Others on this site can provide you with lots of alleged evidence. There are numerous accounts of the Eucharistic elements taking on the appearance of flesh and blood, etc.

Not just the appearance of flesh and blood, but became *actual *flesh and blood that was tested in a lab - the blood type is always the same every time it’s been tested.