What's Wrong With Being Christian?

[CathChemNerd]

mrs_abbott:

Thanks CCN! I will definitely look into it.
To everyone else reading this thread: I am still very interested in Catholicism and finding some solid facts behind certain beliefs.
I just don’t like it when Catholics criticize Protestants for their take on religion. Protestants can see what Catholics do and what they believe and if/when they ask questions, they should be directed to the clergy or RCIA for further knowledge.
Protestants are people too and it’s wrong to tell them that their religion is basically ****, whether it’s true or not.

No prob, Mrs. A. And if you want “solid facts behind certain beliefs” in a really understandable way, I strongly recommend Scott and Kimberly Hahn’s story of conversion. It’s called “Rome Sweet Home,” and it is a fabulous read. Scott is a distinguished scripture scholar, and he can explain the facts for which you seek answers. I give it 6 out of 5 stars.

CCN

 

[JSmitty2005]

mrs_abbott:

To everyone else reading this thread: I am still very interested in Catholicism and finding some solid facts behind certain beliefs.

I apologize if I came off as a little harsh. I was not intending to attack you even though you perceived my posts as such. I was, however, addressing philosophies that you seemed to espouse. I was under the mistaken impression that you were an ex-Catholic here to “save” us rather than an individual genuinely interested in examining Catholicism objectively. I’m glad to hear you’re the latter.

 

[mikew262]

“passing judgement” :crying: boohoo

Yes, it is sad.

 

[JSmitty2005]

mikew262:

Yes, it is sad.

Very, very sad indeed that you’ve set “judgmentalism” up as a false devil. Being “judgmental” is seen as one of the greatest of all sins these days. But remember that we were warned that some men would “call good evil.” You see, my friend, your fear of being “judgmental” is really rooted in the sinister. Go here and read Satan’s second strategy. I think Chesterton summed it up well when he said, “Idolatry is committed, not merely by setting up false gods, but also by setting up false devils; by making men afraid of war or alcohol, or economic law, when they should be afraid of spiritual corruption and cowardice.”

 

[mikew262]

mrs_abbott:

Thanks, mikew! You helped me re-verify my point. Stay clear of this post if you don’t want to get ripped to shreads. Apparently, it’s wrong to be a non-Catholic Christian, according to several posts.

Oh, folks try to slam me all the time. If you have an opinion that goes against the flow, you need to have a thick skin, because you will get slammed. Most of the the posters here are well meaning devout Catholics who are just defending what they believe. It doesn’t mean they are right all the time, and some can get rather judgmental/rude, but hang in there and don’t be afraid to say what you mean.

 

[mikew262]

mrs_abbott:

WHAT’S WRONG WITH BEING CHRISTIAN???

Nothing. As I said before, I encourage you to try and re-engage your Catholic Faith as the way to practice your Christianity, but if thats not possible, be as devout as possible in whatever worship method you choose.

 

[mikew262]

JSmitty2005:

It really comes down to this:

If Jesus established a Church, then why wouldn’t you want to be a part of it?

You’ve missed her point completely. She feels she is part of the Church Jesus established. The “Christian” Church. I don’t completely agree with her, but she is partially right, if I understood her correctly. We are all Christians, we just have disagreements on how to worship God.

 

[JSmitty2005]

mikew262:

You’ve missed her point completely. She feels she is part of the Church Jesus established. The “Christian” Church. I don’t completely agree with her, but she is partially right, if I understood her correctly. We are all Christians, we just have disagreements on how to worship God.

Why don’t you allow her to speak for herself so that I am answering her and not you? The nature of the Church seems to be the topic that I was leading into, but she didn’t respond in that manner, so I’ll wait till it comes up to address it. Thanks for your concern.

 

[mikew262]

JSmitty2005:

Very, very sad indeed that you’ve set “judgmentalism” up as a false devil. Being “judgmental” is seen as one of the greatest of all sins these days. But remember that we were warned that some men would “call good evil.” You see, my friend, your fear of being “judgmental” is really rooted in the sinister. Go here and read Satan’s second strategy. I think Chesterton summed it up well when he said, “Idolatry is committed, not merely by setting up false gods, but also by setting up false devils; by making men afraid of war or alcohol, or economic law, when they should be afraid of spiritual corruption and cowardice.”

Some day God may give you his feelings about being judgmental. Good luck with that.

 

[JSmitty2005]

mikew262:

Some day God may give you his feelings about being judgmental. Good luck with that.

My friend, he already has. Everything else must be judged against His Deposit of Faith.

 

[mikew262]

JSmitty2005:

Why don’t you allow her to speak for herself so that I am answering her and not you? The nature of the Church seems to be the topic that I was leading into, but she didn’t respond in that manner, so I’ll wait till it comes up to address it. Thanks for your concern.

She’s answered you plenty already. You either don’t get it or just don’t agree with it.

 

[JSmitty2005]

mikew262:

She’s answered you plenty already. You either don’t get it or just don’t agree with it.

Actually, I’ve witnessed more avoidance of the issues that I bring up more than I’ve seen them addressed, but maybe that’s just me. (see posts 46, 64, 69, & 75)

 

[mikew262]

JSmitty2005:

My friend, he already has. Everything else must be judged against His Deposit of Faith.

But has he appointed you the judge? I think not. However, you do what you think best, as we all should. God will eventually let us know how we did.

 

[JSmitty2005]

mikew262:

But has he appointed you the judge? I think not. However, you do what you think best, as we all should. God will eventually let us know how we did.

Actually, all believers are appointed to judge our brethren in their actions/beliefs for their own spiritual well-being. If we do not do so, we will be held equally guilty of their sin.

 

[Eden]

mikew262:

You’ve missed her point completely. She feels she is part of the Church Jesus established. The “Christian” Church. I don’t completely agree with her, but she is partially right, if I understood her correctly. We are all Christians, we just have disagreements on how to worship God.

Am I reading this correctly? You believe the difference between the Catholic Church and all other Christian churches is just a “difference in how we worship”?

I hope I am reading this incorrectly! Please reassure me.

 

[mrs_abbott]

scylla:

That is a good point, sometimes charity is lacking. Many noncatholics have a sincere love for Jesus, and often it is filled with emotion. If we just denounce and point out faults then all they will do is react and not even listen.

Truth is absolute and we need to look to see how we can connect, or else by our pointing out of faults, correction and preaching we can drive away those who we are trying to unite with. That is the appeal of some of the non-denominational churches, since they welcome all without much discussion then people are gradually led into their theology, which is much more appealing.

Sometimes Catholics in their zeal for truth just hit people with pointing out why the truth matters so much before reaching out to form a common understanding.
This is why I have saved on my ebook Paul’s explanation on how he became like the Jews to win them over,
Corinthians 9:20-21
"to the Jews I became like a Jew to win over Jews; to those under the law I became like one under the law–though I myself am not under the law–to win over those under the law.
To those outside the law I became like one outside the law–though I am not outside God’s law but within the law of Christ–to win over those outside the law. "

God Bless
Scylla

Wow Scylla, you got it! Thanks! I think that’s the overall point I was trying to get to.

 

[mrs_abbott]

mikew262:

But has he appointed you the judge? I think not. However, you do what you think best, as we all should. God will eventually let us know how we did.

I blocked Smitty so I can’t read what he wrote anymore but by catching the fragments that you’re quoting from him, sounds like you’re going round and round like I did.
Thanks for at least understanding my point of view on this, even if you don’t fully agree. If we all agreed on everything, life would be simple. Plus, God made us all unique for a reason.

 

[mikew262]

Eden:

Am I reading this correctly? You believe the difference between the Catholic Church and all other Christian churches is just a “difference in how we worship”?

I hope I am reading this incorrectly! Please reassure me.

This has been discussed in depth already in other threads. IMO, while I believe the Catholic Church comes the closest to what God had in mind, I don’t condemn non-Catholic Christians for how they worship and I don’t think God does either.

Catholics believe the Catholic Church has the fullness of Truth, however, non-Catholic Christians believe their Church knows the Truth. Each has their own interpretation. We all have many things in common. How one can condemn a Church that gathers in Jesus’ name?

Now I know this position is hard for some Catholics to swallow, but that is how I feel. I’ve had indepth discussions about this on other threads; some agree with me, many don’t and so be it.

 

[mikew262]

JSmitty2005:

Actually, all believers are appointed to judge our brethren in their actions/beliefs for their own spiritual well-being. If we do not do so, we will be held equally guilty of their sin.

I disagree.

 

[mrs_abbott]

mikew262:

Nothing. As I said before, I encourage you to try and re-engage your Catholic Faith as the way to practice your Christianity, but if thats not possible, be as devout as possible in whatever worship method you choose.

I intend to re-engage and I’m searching for answers right now. It seems like the more I search, the more questions I have. This could take awhile. When and if I go back, I want to steer away from being a “cafeteria” Catholic because that’s what I was shortly before I quit going to Church all together.
Thanks for your support and encouragement!!!