Who knows the contents of the Bible better, Catholics or non-Catholics?

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Publisher said:
I figured it really doesn’t matter who knows the Bible better, if the qualities and principles aren’t adhered to…I mean with the “parrot” comment and “only one verse” Protestants know…I thought it was quite appropriate for this discussion…knowing isn’t doing or living.🤷

“though I speak with the tongue of men and angels and understand all mysteries…and have not love…”

Love is something we do, not what we feel. “Love is never rude…love is never puffed up…love always hopes…is always kind…always patient.”
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I’ve often said, every scoundral I’ve ever met in my life has been…waving a Bible.
Bible “knowledge” can only go so far.
Didn’t Paul say something about being “living Epistles”?
 
Catholics for sure.
Protestants I know quote their founders or have their founder as the interpreter of Scripture.
Some name their Church denomination after their founder thus showing their interpretation of the Bible is based on that person’s thoughts and interpretations
That person is just another reformer with their particular flavor of reform.
Many Protestant know a select set of Bible verses they have memorized only to be
surprised to meet a Catholic who knows their faith and can quote scriptures they have no answer for and it seems they have never heard in my own experience.
Catholics for sure.
.

We have the Holy Spirit guiding the Magisterium.
Mary.

Mary.
 
Publisher said:
Perhaps one should ask “who follows the content” better? Who exemplifies the fruit of the Spirit better…who lives 1 Cor 13 better? Who embraces the principles of the Sermon on the Mount better?

Now…let’s have a contest of doing, instead of pointing.🙂
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But, this is meaningless without proper interpretation. Who has that authority? Who did God choose, versus who chose and sent themselves?
 
OK, I’m feeling like a target today.

Bible Christians know more about less of the bible.
Catholics know less about more of the bible.

The question is broad, so it must be painted with a broad brush.
 
By non-Catholics do you mean other christian denominations? Or all other religions and also including people with no faith and atheist.
 
mikelionheart said:
Catholics.

Although Evangelicals are very good at repeating the Bible parrot-like.

Well done, Evangelicals, you have the gift of memorisation.
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Wow, feel the love! There are many protestants who know the bible rather well, and not just parrot.
 
Christian_Unity said:
It’s just a question:

Who knows the contents of the Bible better, the average Catholic or average non-Catholic? 🍿
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the question should be who is interpreting it better?

For instance, when I read Jesus instituting the Sacraments of The Eucharist and the Priesthood at the Last Supper, I can’t figure out what they don’t get (those that don’t believe in those Sacraments)?
 
batman1973 said:
Wow, feel the love! There are many protestants who know the bible rather well, and not just parrot.
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I think he was trying to respond to the thread’s topic which is a non-starter as we really cannot quantify the answer to it.

The generalization perhaps comes from personal experience where many Catholics ‘suffer’ at the hands of evangelizing Protestants who freely throw biblical verses around, as if they were premeditated. Thus - the term ‘parroting’. So Catholics are ignorant of the Bible and Protestants well educated in it. Of course that is not true. There are people from both sides of both. 😉
 
Reuben_J said:
I think he was trying to respond to the thread’s topic which is a non-starter as we really cannot quantify the answer to it.

The generalization perhaps comes from personal experience where many Catholics ‘suffer’ at the hands of evangelizing Protestants who freely throw biblical verses around, as if they were premeditated. Thus - the term ‘parroting’. So Catholics are ignorant of the Bible and Protestants well educated in it. Of course that is not true. There are people from both sides of both. 😉
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Agreed
 
Christian_Unity said:
It’s just a question:

Who knows the contents of the Bible better, the average Catholic or average non-Catholic? 🍿
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Neither, because many non-Catholics are ignorant about religion in general, and there are some Christians who know the bible far better than Catholics. They are evangelicals, who take the bible very seriously. Some of them know it very well, even memorizing parts of it.

The great majority of Catholics are completely illiterate when it comes to bible study.
 
I saw a study once that had professing Catholics and professing Protestants at dismal low numbers of proficiency levels, both under 20% or so, while the Mormons were around 70% proficient, so what does it all matter?

I find that most Catholics are concerned with their own personal journey as pilgrims, and not so bent on pointing out the speck in other peoples eyes!
 
onemangang said:
I saw a study once that had professing Catholics and professing Protestants at dismal low numbers of proficiency levels, both under 20% or so, while the Mormons were around 70% proficient, so what does it all matter?

I find that most Catholics are concerned with their own personal journey as pilgrims, and not so bent on pointing out the speck in other peoples eyes!
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Actually, I don’t find that to be true, onemangang.

Mormons generally know their own scriptures far better than the know the Bible, although they know certain sections of the bible that they use for evangelization purposes on other Christians.

Many evangelicals are very well versed in the bible. They do a lot of devotional bible-reading and their long and often very well-done sermons are often on scriptural topics.

Many Catholics know a lot about Catholic culture but much less about basic Christianity–what the point of it is, and so on. And Catholic bible knowledge is generally very poor. Catholics don’t really read scripture much on average. Many of them seem almost frightened by it.
 
iloveangels said:
Many Catholics know a lot about Catholic culture but much less about basic Christianity–what the point of it is, and so on. And Catholic bible knowledge is generally very poor. Catholics don’t really read scripture much on average. Many of them seem almost frightened by it.
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A bit of exaggeration there, aren’t we iloveangels?😉

I think Catholics on the whole are much better in Bible knowledge than we seem to think of. Most Catholics own Bibles nowadays and they seem to read them too. Perhaps not as much as we would like them to but I think it is more difficult for Protestants to bluff us Catholics with biblical verses today. Even if they cannot answer them outright, they would not concede there and then and many of them would go back and try to find those verses in the Bible or discuss with their friends. Definitely the second time around they would be much better in term of knowing and remembering some of the content of the Bible.

And for that matter, Protestants are not that proficient with the Bible either. The term ‘parroting’ to an extent seems to apply to some of them. Perhaps you are referring to cafeteria Catholics or Sunday Christians - those Catholics who go t mass on Sundays only out of cultural obligation. But ordinary serious Catholics do know a bit of the Bible and I think it certainly does not frighten them. I think they love the Bible.🙂
 
Reuben_J said:
A bit of exaggeration there, aren’t we iloveangels?😉
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Not at all.
Reuben_J said:
I think Catholics on the whole are much better in Bible knowledge than we seem to think of. Most Catholics own Bibles nowadays and they seem to read them too. Perhaps not as much as we would like them to but I think it is more difficult for Protestants to bluff us Catholics with biblical verses today. Even if they cannot answer them outright, they would not concede there and then and many of them would go back and try to find those verses in the Bible or discuss with their friends. Definitely the second time around they would be much better in term of knowing and remembering some of the content of the Bible.
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I heartily disagree.
Reuben_J said:
And for that matter, Protestants are not that proficient with the Bible either. The term ‘parroting’ to an extent seems to apply to some of them. Perhaps you are referring to cafeteria Catholics or Sunday Christians - those Catholics who go t mass on Sundays only out of cultural obligation. But ordinary serious Catholics do know a bit of the Bible and I think it certainly does not frighten them. I think they love the Bible.🙂
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Again, I heartily disagree. Catholics like to say they read the bible but most of them do not. And most of them have absolutely no idea how to use bible study tools.

There are very, very few genuine Catholic bible studies in parishes too. I"m not talking about “see a little video, eat cookies, and pretend.” I’m talking about in-depth multiple-year-long bible studies with a lot of detail – and expectations that people will do some substantial work and reading.
 
iloveangels said:
Not at all.

I heartily disagree.

Again, I heartily disagree. Catholics like to say they read the bible but most of them do not. And most of them have absolutely no idea how to use bible study tools.

There are very, very few genuine Catholic bible studies in parishes too. I"m not talking about “see a little video, eat cookies, and pretend.” I’m talking about in-depth multiple-year-long bible studies with a lot of detail – and expectations that people will do some substantial work and reading.
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I agree with you though. My observation is from what I can see personally and I get my idea from them. And I think it is not an accurate conclusion.

We probably have about slightly more than one billion Catholics today. The balance of power in Catholicism has changed a bit. While it was Europe then, now the shift begins toward the third world countries. It will not come as a surprise when priests and religious are from Africa and Asia to help the Church in the West.

Similarly about Catholics behavior throughout the world. You may have a very zealous parish while there are also dead parishes. You may have your churches packed and overflowing during mass while in others you can count a few gray hairs. You can have Catholics brandishing their Bibles while with others they are stored in the attic covered with dust. You have Bible study well attended by Spirit-filled Catholics while in some parishes you may not have it at all.

So I can only say with a little certainty on what I see and I do not know what I do not see. And I concede this point and you may be right after all.
 
Christian_Unity said:
That’s a good point. Is the Bible the Word of God because the Catholic Church canonized it? Or is the Bible the Word of God because it is simply God-breathed revelation from above in which Christians already knew it to be as coming from above? For example, OT Scripture was used by Jesus and the Apostles as Scripture way before the Catholic Church declared to it to be canonized.
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CU,

If it was recgonized by Christians that knew it what did those Christians believe?
 
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