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Justy90
Guest
can you give me a T for Truth? I didn’t think so.
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Justy90
Guest
He’s right about you dead on distracted. You are smug, condescending and couldn’t care less about adding anything productive and meaningful to the conversation.
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Justy90
Guest
Well, why not make one up, like X-Catholic.
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PRmerger
Guest
Each Anglican church is under its own leadership and answers to no central authority other than its own. Agree?
Thus, it is its own denomination.
I don’t know why Protestants bristle so vociferously about this statistic (now over 40,000). Why should it matter to you?
Certainly, even 5000 is evidence that the man-made doctrine of “the Holy Spirit will guide you in interpreting Scripture” is false.
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PRmerger
Guest
LOL! That’s actually pretty good! :tiphat:
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Justy90
Guest
The Anglican Communion currently has 39 Primates, not dozens upon dozens. I would like to hear what the tens of thousands of alleged different doctrines and beliefs are in all of these denominations.
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rovimax
Guest
Did somebody already mentioned OBEDIENCE? Obedience to everything Jesus instructed us to do. Anything else?
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PRmerger
Guest
Fair enough. (Who said the Anglican Communion has “dozens and dozens” of Primates?)
Do each of these 39 Primates have a single catechism? If so, can I access it online?
All you need to do is take different permutations of this list below of differing doctrines which have arisen from reading the very same Scriptures (ok, give or take 7 books) and you will easily come up with over 100,000 different possibilities of belief systems.
(Not to mention, this list is not exhaustive, so the actual number of possibilites is astronomical.)
What is original sin and its effects on humanity
Baptism
Rapture
Tongues (some believe others are not saved if they don’t speak in tongues)
Divorce
Abortion
Homosexuality
When to celebrate the Lord’s Day
Once saved, always saved
Music or no music (Singing or no singing)
Women pastors, no women pastors
Hell, or no hell
The Eucharist (Communion)
Sola scriptura/private interpretation
Ordination
Trinity vs. Unitarianism
Death/Soul Sleep
Church leadership, or no leadership
Head coverings or no head coverings
Health and wealth gospel
Drinking allowed, drinking not allowed)
Attend weekly services, don’t have to go to Church
Judge others, don’t judge others
What’s a sin, what is not a sin
Charity or no charity (help one another or let them help
themselves)
Is God‘s Holy Name Jehovah
Predestination
Is it permissible for women to teach Scripture?
(list originally compiled by ProdigalSon)
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Justy90
Guest
So what is the point?? I can put twenty Catholics in a room and get twenty different opinions on all of these subjects. At that point, church doctrine isn’t relavent to the discussion.
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PRmerger
Guest
The point is not what 20 Catholics believe but what the One Holy Catholic church believes.
Do you not find that list of differing doctrines a bit staggering? Does it not give you pause, even a little, Justy?
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Justy90
Guest
Again, I ask you what are the thousands of different doctrines? I don’t see anyone able to produce that. Many of the churches that are listed in those quotes do not differ in doctrine nearly as much as they do in customary or behavioral issues. And many of them are hardly prudent enough to even consider them a church let alone a denomination. This is a hugely overblown and overrated attempt at trying to showcase that every Protestant has an independent belief system
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PRmerger
Guest
That’s an interesting post, Justy.
How is it that you know that these different denominations “do not differ in doctrine nearly as much as they do in customary or behavioral issues”?
If you know what their doctrines are, then why are you asking me to provide their catechisms?
Let me just ask you if looking at that (nonexhaustive) list of differing doctrines tells you that there exists even the possibility, mathematically, of over 100,000 differing permutations of belief systms, why would 40,000 be so unbelievable?
It seems mathematically achievable, does it not?
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PRmerger
Guest
Not overblown at all. Underestimated, in fact.
Here’s something from a non-Catholic Christian affirming this:
Appendix
Email from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary “Global Christianity” to XXX
Received 9/28/2007 11:17 a.m. MST
Hello Ms. XXX
Thank you for your inquiry. [SIGN]I can assure you that the figure of 39,000 is in no way inflated[/SIGN]. This number represents our most current, up-to-date data. As we are constantly updating this figure, it is not published in print form. The figure of 33,800 from the year 2000 was printed in our book World Christian Trends, (Pasadena, CA: William Carey Library, 2001). Part 12 of World Christian Trends (WCT), Table 12-1 gives figures of denominational totals for all 238 countries of the world. These figures are also represented graphically in WCT on page 917, Global Map 14. The definition for denominations used in WCT, and also in our publication World Christian Encyclopedia (Oxford, 2001) is as follows:
“Any agency consisting of a number of congregations or churches voluntarily aligning themselves with it. As a statistical unit in this survey, a ‘denomination’ always refers to one single country. Thus the Roman Catholic Church, although a single organization, is described here as consisting of 236 denominations in the world’s 238 countries.”
More precise listings of denominations can be found in the World Christian Encyclopedia, under the article for each country. These lists are not exhaustive, as there are too many small denominations to list separately, but they should help give a clearer picture. Furthermore, the Southern Baptist Convention has over 40,000 congregations in the US alone; not to mention the Baptist General Conference, Baptist Bible Fellowship International, etc. So we are definitely not counting each congregation as its own denomination. We are also not lumping all Baptists into a single denomination, but counting each organization separately. I hope this information helps.
Justin J. Evans
Research Assistant
Center for the Study of Global Christianity
Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary
130 Essex Street #228
South Hamilton, MA 01982 USA
E-mail: csgc@gcts.edu
www.WorldChristianDatabase.org
www.GlobalChristianity.org
www.GCTS.edu
World Christian Encyclopedia
Source: here(signage added by PRmerger)
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Rocket_Man
Guest
“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, Thou wilt not despise”
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guanophore
Guest
His Holy Word says to “call for the elders of the church”, and that the effectual fervent prayer of the righteous has great power it it’s effects. Is there some reason we would NOT ask those who have already been joined to their heavenly reward?
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guanophore
Guest
Written prayers are not necessarily “rote” or lacking in intimacy. It all depends upon the attitude of the heart. Some of the best pre-written prayers are found in Scripture, and they don’t need to be “rote” “repetitive” “vain” or lacking in intimacy.
The experience of prayer says more about the person praying than the type of prayer. A person whose heart is right with God can pray one of the psalms or canticles with as much fervency and devotion as one can a spontaneous prayer.
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guanophore
Guest
This is as it is meant to be. when we look into the Holy Word, we see our selves reflected. Scripture is the best source of the examination of conscience, as well as prayers of repentance and asking forgiveness.
The Sacrament of confession is where we come after we have been convicted of sin, so that we can have assurance of His forgiveness.
Amen!
However, Scripture does not hold the power of forgiveness.
The Priest does not mediate your eternal salvation, Priscilla. The priest acts in the person of Christ, as He authorized them, “whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven, and whose sins you retain, they are retained”. It is Christ who forgives. He does so through the ministry of reconciliation committed to the Apostles, and they to their successors.
Indeed! He set things up so that we would confess to one another, and we confess to those who have been empowered with the ministry of reconciliation.
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RomanCath379
Guest
Your signature represents Luther, does it not?
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distracted
Guest
this may have been true before she was in Heaven but not now…
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distracted
Guest
hmmm… that’s odd…
I never get called those names (or told such things) whne i am with Jesus in the Real Presence…
hmmm… go figure…
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