What teachings would the Catholic Church have to drop for you to be a catholic

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If they believed, shouldn’t we believe???

ST. IGNATIUS OF ANTIOCH (Alt)

St. Ignatius became the third bishop of Antioch, succeeding St. Evodius, who was the immediate successor of St. Peter. He heard St. John preach when he was a boy and knew St. Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna. Seven of his letters written to various Christian communities have been preserved. Eventually, he received the martyr’s crown as he was thrown to wild beasts in the arena.
Code:
"Consider how contrary to the mind of God are the heterodox in regard to the grace of God which has come to us. They have no regard for charity, none for the widow, the orphan, the oppressed, none for the man in prison, the hungry or the thirsty. They abstain from the Eucharist and from prayer, because they do not admit that the Eucharist is the flesh of our Savior Jesus Christ, the flesh which suffered for our sins and which the Father, in His graciousness, raised from the dead."

"Letter to the Smyrnaeans", paragraph 6. circa 80-110 A.D.

"Come together in common, one and all without exception in charity, in one faith and in one Jesus Christ, who is of the race of David according to the flesh, the son of man, and the Son of God, so that with undivided mind you may obey the bishop and the priests, and break one Bread which is the medicine of immortality and the antidote against death, enabling us to live forever in Jesus Christ."

-"Letter to the Ephesians", paragraph 20, c. 80-110 A.D.

"I have no taste for the food that perishes nor for the pleasures of this life. I want the Bread of God which is the Flesh of Christ, who was the seed of David; and for drink I desire His Blood which is love that cannot be destroyed."

-"Letter to the Romans", paragraph 7, circa 80-110 A.D.

"Take care, then who belong to God and to Jesus Christ - they are with the bishop. And those who repent and come to the unity of the Church - they too shall be of God, and will be living according to Jesus Christ. Do not err, my brethren: if anyone follow a schismatic, he will not inherit the Kingdom of God. If any man walk about with strange doctrine, he cannot lie down with the passion. Take care, then, to use one Eucharist, so that whatever you do, you do according to God: for there is one Flesh of our Lord Jesus Christ, and one cup in the union of His Blood; one altar, as there is one bishop with the presbytery and my fellow servants, the deacons."

-Epistle to the Philadelphians, 3:2-4:1, 110 A.D.
ST. JUSTIN MARTYR (Alt)

St. Justin Martyr was born a pagan but converted to Christianity after studying philosophy. He was a prolific writer and many Church scholars consider him the greatest apologist or defender of the faith from the 2nd century. He was beheaded with six of his companions some time between 163 and 167 A.D.
Code:
"This food we call the Eucharist, of which no one is allowed to partake except one who believes that the things we teach are true, and has received the washing for forgiveness of sins and for rebirth, and who lives as Christ handed down to us. For we do not receive these things as common bread or common drink; but as Jesus Christ our Savior being incarnate by God's Word took flesh and blood for our salvation, so also we have been taught that the food consecrated by the Word of prayer which comes from him, from which our flesh and blood are nourished by transformation, is the flesh and blood of that incarnate Jesus."

"First Apology", Ch. 66, inter A.D. 148-155.

"God has therefore announced in advance that all the sacrifices offered in His name, which Jesus Christ offered, that is, in the Eucharist of the Bread and of the Chalice, which are offered by us Christians in every part of the world, are pleasing to Him."

"Dialogue with Trypho", Ch. 117, circa 130-160 A.D.

Moreover, as I said before, concerning the sacrifices which you at that time offered, God speaks through Malachias, one of the twelve, as follows: 'I have no pleasure in you, says the Lord; and I will not accept your sacrifices from your hands; for from the rising of the sun until its setting, my name has been glorified among the gentiles; and in every place incense is offered to my name, and a clean offering: for great is my name among the gentiles, says the Lord; but you profane it.' It is of the sacrifices offered to Him in every place by us, the gentiles, that is, of the Bread of the Eucharist and likewise of the cup of the Eucharist, that He speaks at that time; and He says that we glorify His name, while you profane it."

-"Dialogue with Trypho", [41: 8-10]
 
Well, hello there, Cinette: Lat time I remember, you were fresh from the bath, with wet hair, so nice to touch base with you! I think that maybe John 6:63-64 explain partly why most(not the Twelve) disciples left! Jesus knew those who didn’t really believe; and those in the crowd who were among the Jewish religious leaders, probably thought he meant, literally gnawing on His arms, legs, etc. They might have also been remembering Leviticus 17:10-11, which forbid the drinking of blood in any form. I didn’t see any verses in John where He repeated Himself, but He did speak of the bread and wine, as His body and blood at the Last Supper.Which begs the question(again), if we non-catholics are each holding a piece of unleavened bread, and holding our own cup, why don’t catholics? The way you do communion, is not the way Christ and the disciples did it, right? One last question, which is off the subject, but would it be a stretch to say that what the disciples, especially Peter did in Acts 2:38-41, an altar call? And how does the catholic church interpret Acts 2:21?
beleevr - I see that others have answered your questions and made comments on your response.

Here are some more questions for you. Please answer individually and not in a bunch as you have done above:
  1. What is Faith?
  2. Do you expect to understand everything God has revealed?
  3. Do you believe everything Jesus says or do you ask Him for proof?
Just three questions my friend beleevr!

Be a good guy and answer me soon please.

Thank you
Cinette:)
 
Originally Posted by joe370 View Post
Christian7801–again, if you choose to answer these questions, please do so without any preconceived notions; remove the teachings of the C.C. FROM YOUR MIND; REMOVE THE TEACHINGS OF YOUR CHURCH FROM YOUR MIND; SIMPLY EMPLOY REASON AND LOGIC TO DRAW YOUR CONCLUSION!!!

Hey Peter, you said:

Yeah … like we should remove from our minds the preconceived notion that Jesus really said the things that are attributed to him in the Gospels.

I wasn’t suggesting that non-Catholics remove from their minds the preconceived notion that Jesus really said the things that are attributed to him in the Gospels; far from it!!!
I know. I decided to call you on your inconsistency.
 
Hi, 1beleevr,

Sounds like it is getting a little ‘mushy’ here… 😃
Hey there, benedictus2, how are you; I hope that our Heavenly Father is keeping you in His loving grace! I guess I completely glossed over posts #924&925! Anyway, I have been part of a non-denominational congregation for some time now;
So, if you don’t mind… let’s move on to the rest of your post…:rolleyes: Let’s see…
Anyway, I have been part of a non-denominational congregation for some time now; easier that way In some ways, it is like being an independent politically.
I realize you are using an analogy here - but, do you have a scriptural basis that actually validates this position? While you are searching, allow me to provide you with a few that came to my mind.

1.) The Parable of the Ten Virgins (Matt 25: 1-13) Five of these gals thought they too would be going to the wedding … and no one doubt that they were ‘good girls’… but, they made a fatal error in the very beginning by not being prepared (bringing any oil). From my understanding of the situation, the oil here is the core Truths taught by Christ and given to His Church (and, that would be the Catholic Church) that will light the path for your feet. Many denominational and non-denominational folks argue about the ***Guidance of the Holy Spirit *** when it comes to interpreting the Bible - but Christ did not promise the Holy Spirit to individuals - only to His Chruch. Besides, private interpretation is expressly forbidden (2Peter 1:20).

2.) The Parable of the Man Without a Wedding Garment (Matt 22: 11-22) This guy apparently thought that just crashing the party was all that was needed. After all, he was in the right place, he was listening to the music, probably talking with the other guests and eating the food - but, he too made this fatal error by not being prepared (wearing the proper garment). From my understanding of the situation, the garment here is Baptism in that it clothes us in the Lord, Jesus Christ. Many denominational and non-denominational folks argue about the ***absolute necessity ***of Baptism.

3.) **The Healing of the Paralytic (John 5: 1-18) **This guy has been a paralytic for 38 years and Christ asks him if he wants to get well. This guy totally misses the point and talks about the stirring of the water at the Pool of Bethesda. So, even after the paralytic is cured - he still misses the point - and the teaching of Christ to sin no more. In gratitude for Christ’s healing miracle, this guy tells the Jews that it was Christ who had told him to take up his mat and walk on the Sabbath. From my understanding of the situation, merely being exposed to healing miracles and being given special Grace by God Himself - will not change a heart unwilling to change. Many denominational and non-denominational folks argue about Christ **NOT **being ***PHYSICALLY PRESENT ***- not just some idea or notion of ‘presentness’ in the Eucharist - yet we have Christ’s repeated words (seven times!) that, “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood you have no life in you.”
At this stage of my Christian walk(getting more blissful every day), I am growing in leaps and bounds, partly due to my serving God and my pastor’s teachings! In spite of what you believe, I truly believe that my pastor is an anointed man of God!
I am very happy for you … but, did you know, that self-deception is so sinister because it really does sneak up on your blind side. While I am happy for you enjoying all of this bliss - Christ’s description of the journey we are to take was really about a road going in the opposite direction that was the cause of sadness (the Rich Young Man [Mark 10:17-24]), hard work (bearing one’s cross daily [Luke 9:22-26]) and even the feelings of loss (Christ felt abandoned on the Cross [Matt 27: 45-46]) i must confess, bliss just isn’t mentioned much in the Bible.

Don’t get me wrong, I am sure your pastor is a great guy. But, tell me, what is the scriptural basis for you thinking he is annointed by God? By the very fact that he is leading a non-denominational group that he (and all of these other similar groups) are picking and choosing from the Word of God - accepting some while rejecting others. God expects His Son’s commands to be followed - and will judge all men by this criteria.

Concerning your street ministry: God bless your works in this area! These are people that seldom get the time of day, much less food and water wthout begging. My prayers are for the success of your outreach program so that more hearts and minds are turned towards Christ.

Ah… you probably could have gone all day without your description of the vivid daydream you had concerning the habit and ruler…:confused: Spare us further flights of immagination.😉
Hey, bottom line, is this; 42 years as a non-catholic, and life couldn’t be better! I am using the gifts that the Holy Spirit gave me, serving in obedience, and married to another amazing servant! By the way, blood pressure this mornin
1beleevr;5017877:
Continue to march! I am concerned about the road you have chosen - as are many others on this list - and, all have expressed this concern:eek: You brag about your ‘deaf ears’ and your current state of un-concern. I would like to invite you just to step back and read your posts for tone and manner - and constrast them with those written by others. There is truly a significant difference. Is such a difference important? Only if you think that following all of God’s Word is what we are to do.

Again, God’s Blessings on your Street Program and bringing the Word of God to others. 🙂
 
Hey, bottom line, is this; 42 years as a non-catholic, and life couldn’t be better!
… remember … our journeys are still in progress … so … follow the truth and take it where it leads you … your tomorrow may be EVEN BETTER.

michel
 
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1beleevr View Post
At this stage of my Christian walk(getting more blissful every day), I am growing in leaps and bounds, partly due to my serving God and my pastor’s teachings! In spite of what you believe, I truly believe that my pastor is an anointed man of God!

You know beleevr, the closer I get to God the more I realise how very small I am. As a Catholic I take comfort in the knowledge that I have access to the Sacraments which are a great source of grace. My husband and I go to Mass every day and pray the Rosary. Yet if you were to ask me if I am religious I would hesitate to respond in the affirmative.

I always feel that I am not doing enough - enough prayer, meditation, sacrifice, penance, reading of scripture… and on and on. I wish I could be like you “growing in leaps and bounds” - for me the closer I get to God the more I feel small and insignificant. I remind myself that perhaps the evil one has his eyes on me because it is those of us who reach out for God and holiness that are his main target.

I am happy that I have reached a stage where I am able to surrender. I am happy to have a grateful heart. I am happy in the realization that the single more important thing in life is my relationship with God.

But I am never satisfied. I strive to overcome my weaknesses which is a daily task. Discipline is required. Prayer. Sacrifice. We have to take up our cross daily and follow Him. Every Lent I make all kinds of resolutions and each day is a struggle.

So beleevr I confess that I experience certain envy of your growth by “leaps and bounds”. I wish I could say the same thing.

May God bless you
Cinette:)
 
Originally Posted by 1beleevr View Post
Hey, bottom line, is this; 42 years as a non-catholic, and life couldn’t be better!

1beleever, wouldn’t it be great if we could ALL say: x amount of years as a Christian belonging to Jesus’ One Body which is totally united to which He is the Head and Savior, and life couldn’t be better, as the Christians did for the first thousand years of Christianity??? That is a mighty long time!!! 👍

Let us all take a moment out of each day and pray, as Jesus did, as Jesus does, as His blessed mother does, as our brothers, the Apostles do, for unity, within Christ’s Mystical Body!!! Perhaps if we all did that, instead of trying to find flaws in each respective church [and I am guilty of doing that too] --perhaps this wouldn’t be such an insurmountable challenge; remember, we are all spiritual brothers and sisters in Christ; He is our spiritual brother, and Jesus’ blessed mother, who He loves so much, is our spiritual mother, just as she was/is to John, and she prays for you even if you don’t embrace her as your spiritual mother! All she knows how to do, is love, and all she does, unceasingly, each one of our temporal days and nights --is point to her son and say: find refuge in my Son, just as she did at Garabandal. She is the perfect paragon of faith and obedience, just as Martin Luther, and the other reformers believed…👍

God bless all…🙂
 
1beleevr, when I said:

He is our spiritual brother, and Jesus’ blessed mother, who He loves so much, is our spiritual mother, just as she was/is to John, and she prays for you even if you don’t embrace her as your spiritual mother!

I didn’t mean you, at all!!! I meant non-Catholics in general; many protestants don’t consider her as such, especially at the church I once belonged…

Just a little clarification…
 
There seems to be so much in common across all Christians that i wondered what would need to be changed about the Catholic church before you would consider converting e.g. stop the focus on Mary as key for many but what else would need to change…
just convert all your churches into museums … your art is the only good thing about it (well OK maybe some of the music is pretty cool, especially if you put a rock beat behind a Gregorian chant, sweet) 😃
 
just convert all your churches into museums … your art is the only good thing about it (well OK maybe some of the music is pretty cool, especially if you put a rock beat behind a Gregorian chant, sweet) 😃
This is the second post of yours that is off topic and detractory to the purpose of the thread. If you want to post here on CAF, you may wish to visit the forum rules, and consider following them.

The OP is asking what teachings of the Church prevent people from embracing the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Faith. A response such as yours does not contribute to forwarding the discussion.

If you wish to post about your lack of faith in God, I urge you to start a new thread.
 
just convert all your churches into museums … your art is the only good thing about it (well OK maybe some of the music is pretty cool, especially if you put a rock beat behind a Gregorian chant, sweet) 😃
I can see how this post reflects the “doubt” part of your user-name, but I’m still struggling with how it reflects the “humble” part. Would you say you actually do possess a significant degree of humility? If you don’t mind my asking, what is humility to you?
 
Hi, Jlhargus,
JL: Christ was not a literal vine, Christ was not a literal lion, Christ was not a literal lamb and rivers of living water do not literally flow out of our bellies. Ask yourself, did any one misunderstand when Christ said any of the above metaphors, or any of the others he used. How many said, “how can this man be a vine?” How many complained, these are hard sayings who can hear them? How many FOLLOWED HIM NO MORE, when he said these things? NONE, because they understood perfectly, he was speaking symbolically.
{…skip
The people of Christ’s day were also outraged, when Christ claimed to be equal to God. For them believing God became flesh was as impossible, as some find believing he is present under appearance of bread and wine. In a sense we are both right, Catholics have the real presents as taught and Protestants have a symbol as they teach.
This was an excellent post. Thanks for sharing your insights.

God bless
 
jlhargus…

I agree with tqualey…excellent post! I hope somebody, other than catholics, reads it…
 
Throughout all these posts, there have been some good suggestions, and some ridiculous ones, but in all actuality, you guys shouldn’t change anything; well maybe introduce some contemporary Christian music int the worship service! And one of the reasons, I am growing closer to the Lord,in “leaps and bounds”, is because of an increase in serving others, in His name! When God sees that you can handle the small things, He will gradually give you bigger projects!and of course my recent spate of increase in service, came from a personal tragedy, when my former fiance tragically and quickly passed away! I never stopped going to church, although a part of me wanted to run and hide. But God, in His infinite wisdom, led me out of the valley, into the light of service(Mark 10:45) I can look back to that day three years ago, and now see her passing as a blessing, for healing, and growth, and a greater understanding of how God restores, and then grows a person! It is not about ability, but availability! And no, I am not a catholic, and never will be, but I respect all Christians, regardless of affiliation! And as far as my salvation, and losing it or not(I believe in OSAS), if we do not have any assurance that we are saved, why get saved in the first place:D
 
Hi, Joe370,
jlhargus…
I agree with tqualey…excellent post! I hope somebody, other than catholics, reads it…
Now, Joe… even those of us in, ‘The Choir’ needs some brushing up on a regular basis - I had no idea that my brain had acquired so much ‘rust’ before I joined this list! 🙂

As we approach the 1,000th post ‘mile marker’ I would like to take the opportunity to thank everyone for their participation on this thread. Personally, I learned a lot - and will be remembering everyone’s intentions at Mass.

God bless,
 
Hi 1beleevr,

I will answer a bit of your post 964 first because you had me laughing so hard I even told my staff about what you wrote.
And as far as my asking about you being a nun; you are more transparent than you may realize In reading many of your posts(not just to me), it is easy to detect a stern, authoratative presence! I sometimes picture you with a habit on, and a ruler or pointer in your hand, trying to get the student to understand your point! I do not say this in a derogatory way, it was just an observation I made!
:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: That was truly funny. I had flashbacks to high school and this nun who disliked me because I always asked difficult questions You are quite way off the track there. First of all I was only in the convent for less than half a year so did not even make profession and never got to wear the habit. Never ever been a teacher either although I tutored kids ranging from prep to high school and honestly, kids love me.

I’ve been conducting a seminar this past few weeks and one of the comments was “ I am always joyful”. So no. Not stern at all. But authoritative? Yeah, I suppose.

Everyone thinks I am this sweet nice miss **UNTIL **they are on the other side of a debate with me.

But since you have decided that I am a stern and authoritative teacher I am quite happy to oblige.

That makes you my pupil so sit up straight and listen up. This is more than just a ruler :nunchuk:. So watch out or :blackeye::stretcher:.
Sincerely, though, benedictus2, as brother and sister in Christ, we should work toadvance the Kingdom, not bicker and put each other down(Romans 14:10-13)
I am not putting you down although I find your reasoning really trying sometimes. And I have no doubt you love our Lord very much. That is quite evident.

But as I have said before, our love for the Lord is not what is being discussed here.

**What we are trying to ferret out is the TRUTH because TRUTH matters **or at least it is supposed to if you truly love the Lord.

That is what this forum is all about. We are not here to be lovey, dovey and cushy wooshy but to debate.
Day-o, day-o, the daylight come and me wanna go home! Thank you Jesus, for Your peace!!! And thank you Doctor benedictus2, for that excellent medical advice; but with a blood pressure reading of 122/78, and cholesterol at 159, I don’t believe I am in danger of bursting a blood vessel
That’s good to know. I don’t’ want anyone suffering a stroke after reading my post.
And yes, I have planks in my eyes also, on occasion, and I realize it.
Carefully take them off when reading my post to better understand them.

As Peter Kreeft once said: what decides issues are good arguments Heated emotional outbursts just derail the discussion.
But planning ahead, as usual, I remembered to put on the full armor of God before re-entering the forum(Eph 6:10-18), especially the “shield of faith, to deflect the fiery arrows of the enemy”. Isay this, because, I believe that sometimes our spiritual battles come from inside the camp, rather than from outside
This has nothing to do with planks in the eyes. Keep to the topic.

Spiritual battles are always internal but this thread is not about our own spiritual battles. The doctrinal issues that we discuss however have ramifications on our spiritual battles.
I have never personally referred to the catholic church as the whore of Babylon; that is very strong language, and defamatory!
I am very pleased to hear that.
Please don’t group all non-catholics together under the same umbrella
I will remember not to.
 
I am, by the grace of God, and the blood of Christ, a member of the Bride of Christ(thank you Jesus! ),
If you have been baptized then yes you are indeed, although imperfectly.
and am anxiously awaiting the return of our Groom! It’s probably just me, but I believe point#2 could be considered blasphemous, as you are telling everyone that there is no salvation, outside the church. So when Phillip saved and baptized the Ethiopian eunuch, was he outside the church?
Aha! This passage actually proves point 1 of my post. The Ethiopian eunuch was baptized INTO THE CATHOLIC CHURCH so the Eunuch became a member of the Catholic Church.

If you dig into history you will come to the same conclusions as Thomas Howard, Scott Hahn and Steve Ray that the Church of Pentecost IS THE CATHOLIC CHURCH.

So here is a very important question. Since the Church that Christ established is still here on earth, why would you want to be a member of any other church, if as you claim you are following Him?

Surely, you would follow him into His Church not some church started by a mere human being.

Doesn’t John 3:16 still mean that ALL who believe in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life? Where did Jesus say that He was building the catholic church, and that there would be exclusivity?
Because Jesus built ONLY ONE (UNO, EINE, UNE) CHURCH. Before His death, He prayed that this church will always remain as one. Read Matthew 16 and ponder on that

So, think about this, if Jesus meant for there to be only one church, who built the others?

And there is no exclusivity. Everyone is welcome to this Church. If you decide right now, a parish priest in your area would be more than happy to get you into RCIA to start you journey HOME.

As a matter of fact we are much more inclusive than you will ever be. The Church teaches that so long as you are baptized in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit then you become a member of the Catholic Church. Even if the one who did the baptizing is an atheist. Yep, you heard me right there.

This is why when Scott Hahn and Kimberley were received into the Church, they did not need to be re-baptized because their original baptisms were valid.

The “formula” for inclusion does not come from man but from Christ that is why even babies are baptized.
Can’t we interpret Peter’s vision in Acts 10:11-19, as God saying, "My grace and salvation is available to ALL, including Gentiles?
You are 100% correct there. The Church is to include all people; even gentiles.
WE are the gentiles because we are not Israelites. The new covenant (between God and all of us) replaces the old covenant (between God and the Israelites). Jews by virtue of birth are part of the old covenant.

But us, gentiles, have to first be incorporated into the Catholic Church and that happens at Baptism. That is when we become sons and daughters of God.
And are you saying that the catholic church does not have homosexual priests, or cardinals, etc. One of the statements, I read at the height of the catholic priest sexual abuse scandal(which I guess is still going on; I heard that cardinal Mahony was testifying at a trial in California)was, “If the catholic church would stop appointing gay priests, this wouldn’t have happened.”
And that is true. We do have gay priests but when they are ordained they make a vow of celibacy, that they will not practice homosexuality. These priests broke their vow but the Church does not say that the homosexual act is okay. Protestant Churches on the other hand say that the homosexual act is as okay and so they ordain ACTIVELY HOMOSEXUAL priests.

You have to differentiate between practice and teaching.

To simplify the distinction for you, it would be like a father telling his son not to lie (but the son lies anyway) as against a father who tells his son that it is okay to lie. The Catholic Church is the former, the protestant churches the latter, that is why they have allowed contraception, divorce, some have even allowed same sex marriage I think, and some even abortion. While this evils are practiced by Catholics, the Church’s teaching has remained the same. Morality is not something we nilly willy change because the Author of moralilty is God.

So here is a question for you. If as most protestants claim, they are also guided by the Holy Spirit, how can the Holy Spirit be guiding them to teachings so contrary to the expressed will of God in scripture? I would like you to really ponder on that.
And divorce; doesn’t it happen in every denomination, even catholic? The congregation I am a member of, does not “allow”, nor condone divorce, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen! And I don’t believe that God hates divorced people, He hates divorce!
Exactly. He hates divorce and that is why He banned it. But protestant denominations have allowed and condone divorce. Perhaps not your congregation but a majority of them do.

A convert from Protestantism (I think it was Bob Sungenis but I may be wrong) said that the reason protestant churches approve of divorce because the protestant churches are themselves illegally divorced from Christ’s church.
Tell me how the catholic church would view this scenario(true story). A friend of mine at work, who happens to be a catholic, which I just found out; is marriedbut is living with, and has fathered two(2) children with a female co-worker. She told me that the father wants to raise the boys as catholics .
The father wanting to raise the boy as a catholic is showing some sense. He may be in a state of denial over his sin but this is plain and simple adultery. He is hypocrite but as Peter Kreeft said hypocricy is the tribute that vice pays to virtue. This father at least has not lowered his teaching to his practice even though he has not elevated his practice to his teaching.
 
And as for abortion, I am personally pro-life, and believe that life begins at the point of conception, because it is God’s hand in the process! No church that I have been personally involved with believes in nor condones abortion!
That is wonderful. And I know that many protestants are against abortion. But there are some like SDA who are not completely against it.

If you are against abortion then really you should also be against contraception.
And when I do street ministry(you should try it sometime, it’s very liberating) we don’t tell anyone that if they just believe in Jesus, they are saved and they don’t have to do anything else. This is the beginning, however; then we refer them to a church or pastor, or some type of spiritual mentor, who can explain the intricacies of the Christian walk!
What you are doing there is indeed quite laudable. What I had a BIG problem with is when you start claiming that THAT IS THE WAY THAT THE CATHOLIC CHURCH SHOULD FOLLOW AS WELL. In this regard you absolutely have no idea what the Church has accomplished and is accomplishing at this very moment.

As I mentioned in point #2 which you took an issue with, YOU ARE A CHRISTIAN NOW BECAUSE OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH. And that is not spin but fact. Every single Christian denomination have their roots in the One Holy Catholic Apostolic Church.

If you study history and trace it all the way back to Pentecost you will know the truth of that statement.
And please do not believe that because I have differences with the way you beieve that I am filled with hatred or anger towards your reigion Hatred and love cannot co-exist in Christ’s Kingdom(1John 4:20) It may not seem like it at times, but I do love all of you guys, even though you consider me an angry, bitter, ignorant liar.
As I have said before, I do know you are ignorant of a lot of things Catholic but that is easily remedied if you stay in this forum. Then you can stop claiming we believe this and that and actually find out what we truly believe.

Yes you were angry when you replied but I do not think that is a perennial state of emotion. A liar, definitely not and I never said you were. I seem to have to keep reminding you to read my post. It is annoying when I have painstakingly explained myself on this matter and you still keep saying I called you a liar. That is why I find dialoguing with you a frustrating exercise.
May we all someday come to a place where love and understanding abound!
We will. There is no “may’ about it. Because God loves us all so very much and He keeps His promises.
 
. But protestant denominations have allowed and condone divorce.
And what about the Roman Catholic Church? They require a couple to get a divorce before they will even consider the petition for a marriage annulment. And once the divorce is in, the tribunal is more or less programmed to give the annulment. You can see that the Catholic Church has been giving out annulments very easily in recent years by looking at the statistics:
Annulments given out by the Catholic Church in the USA:
1930: 9
1989: 61, 416.
Once a marriage annulment is granted, the couple is free to remarry in the Catholic Church. There really is not too much difference between one Church recognising divorces, and the other giving out easy to get marriage annulments. In either case, the couple is free to break away from the family unit and start over again with a new partner in a new marriage. Here’s how Joseph Kennedy explains the Catholic marriage annulment process to his non-Catholic wife: “Of course I think we had a true marriage. But that doesn’t matter now. I don’t believe this stuff. Nobody actually believes it. It’s just Catholic gobbledygook.”
 
There seems to be so much in common across all Christians that i wondered what would need to be changed about the Catholic church before you would consider converting e.g. stop the focus on Mary as key for many but what else would need to change…
The nonsense and completely unbiblical issues of purgatory, confessing your sins to a priest, and the no condemns/contraceptives usage.
 
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