Why do Protestants hate the Catholic Church?

[pianistclare]

The premise of the OP is somewhat disparaging in itself.

We can’t make such blanket statements or we are the same as those who “hate” the Church.

 

[Gabbanelli911]

The other Christian religions have rules, too–some of them more strict, rigid, and harder to follow than the Catholic church.
So that is hardly the reason.

Besides, OP, your example doesn’t seem to be of someone who “hates” the Catholic church–but just thinks it is incorrect and not “the fullness of truth” etc.

I think if you were trying to evangelize a Protestant toward being Catholic, you would also talk about how Protestant teachings were not correct…just as your friend at work does re Catholic teachings.
Would that mean you “hate” the Protestant churches?

.

Thanks all for your answers. I’ve been told by some people, people who approach me, that they hate the Catholic Church because it is not Christian. Hate is a big word, but that’s exactly what they told me. Others have not told me that they hate it, but why, even without them knowing that I’m Catholic, would they began their preaching by saying bad things about the Catholic Church? It seems that this denominations have a big weight on their back (the Catholic Church) and they want to feel better by making the Church look bad.

I’ve asked some of this people if they were Catholics before and most say yes. So I asked them why they left the church and their answers are just out there. Some say that because we celebrate the Mass and that it is not biblical. I ask them how is it not biblical but they don’t know what to answer. A lady told me that she left the Catholic Church because of Mary. I asked her why and she said that because pay too much attention to her.

I’m not trying to put any one down, but I sometimes I try to put myself in their position and I just don’t see what they are thinking or how they get their thinking.

God bless all.

 

[Johann_du_Toit]

Because the Church is the Truth and the way to Christ. Nuff said.

 

[Bonnie]

…I’m sorry but as a Protestant with many in my family Protestants as well, most don’t even think about the Catholic Church…
I’m sorry if any of you have experienced hatred or contempt from Evangelical Christians…That is not taught in the majority of Protestant churches.

God bless!!

Rita

Thank you for saying this so I didn’t have to! As a Protestant I never really thought about the Catholic Church even tho one of my best friends was Catholic. I don’t remember hearing anything negative about the Catholic Church until long after I became Catholic. A friend of my mother’s was asked to translate an anti-Catholic book into German, but even tho she needed the money, she refused.

No way do “most” Protestants hate the Catholic Church. And Gabbanelli, most of those who go door-to-door are not your average Protestant. Most of them are SDA (who have some odd beliefs) or Mormon (who are not Christian).

 

[Johann_du_Toit]

Thank you for saying this so I didn’t have to! As a Protestant I never really thought about the Catholic Church even tho one of my best friends was Catholic. I don’t remember hearing anything negative about the Catholic Church until long after I became Catholic. A friend of my mother’s was asked to translate an anti-Catholic book into German, but even tho she needed the money, she refused.

No way do “most” Protestants hate the Catholic Church. And Gabbanelli, most of those who go door-to-door are not your average Protestant. Most of them are SDA (who have some odd beliefs) or Mormon (who are not Christian).

I come from a Protestant family and we get along fine (except when we start arguing about subjects like abortion, euthanasia and embryonic stem cell research).

I’m the only Catholic in my workplace, my boss is Anglican and my other 2 co-workers are Dutch Reformed. We get along find and our discussions on religion are usually incidental (like them asking what I gave up for Lent this year).

 

[brian_custer]

the protestant church has really petered out as an “enemy” of the catholic church; the “protestant church” if it ever existed in the first place is a splintered, broken thing; it just couldn’t hold itself together

pastor joel, pastor bob, pastor elaine; rock & roll concerts as sunday services, yeesh…

the real threat to catholicism is secular humanism and of course radical islam which has been very successful in wiping out "catholcism in the middle east;

 

[SecretGarden]

I’m from a strong Protestant background and so it comes down to four aspects.

1. Inherited Catholic and Protestant divide that leads to misunderstanding. This goes both ways. I have seen this quite a lot on this forum from the Catholics who don’t understand the Protestant teachings
2. We have lots of former catholics who left the church and say terrible things, most of which is rooted in the fact they weren’t properly catechised in the first place.
3. Some people have been hurt by the Catholic church and say terrible things about the church that was true 20 to 50 year ago but today it is false.
4. Everyone wants to be right and teach the teachings from Christ that they don’t understand that there is a unity in the teachings of Christ that we all share and a diversity in how it is manifested and lived.

In the end, it comes down to misunderstanding and simply not knowing the other and the mentality that we always have to be “right” which is terrible to say but that is unfortunately the root to the problem you and the Christian church is experiencing today.

 

[Mystophilus]

It can be hard to change their minds to say the least, but by our patience, our love, and God’s Grace, those who are open to considering alternative view points will receive the Truth.

This tends to be the way with prejudice. If they come to know some good people of the group against whom they are prejudiced, they may first learn that not all of the group are bad, then that many of the group are not bad, and finally that no more of that group than of any other group are bad. The process can take a long time, however.

 

[Hannouch]

In the Early Church, that expression does not actually mean “the church centred in Rome”: it means “the whole church”.

Having said that, your church is an evolved version of part of that church, and so dates back to the first century.

And in the time you are referring to there was only one ‘whole church’ which was the Catholic Church, as it was and still is centred around Rome with the succession of Popes since St Peter. There was no other succession, in fact, it is one of the longest lasting of rulers in history. If Catholics can claim this then of course there was no other ‘catholic’ church and no other succession holds a claim to it.

Just a friendly note, the Catholic Church is not only the Latin Church but also includes 22 other Eastern Catholic churches to it, along with myself being a Maronite Catholic. Previously, before the Great Schism, it also binded the Eastern Orthodox Church from whom many been re-united over multiple efforts and formed most of the Eastern Catholic Churches, which indeed consist of more history to the roots of the 12 apostles and first converts to Christianity than anyone else. We pray that in the near future we re-unite the Orthodox Church completely with the Catholic Church as we had been in the first millenium and also unite the Protestants as they had also been one with the Catholic Church.

It’s time to open up more dialogue and prayer to dispel myths and false understandings of each other, so that we can have fruitful and faithful experiences with Christ and His Church.

 

[Ignatius]

Why is it that most non-catholics (protestants) hate the Catholic Church? Every time someone knocks on my door, the first thing out of their mouths is something bad about the Catholic Church.

Jesus Himself prophesied that this would happen:

John 15:18-21 ““If the world hates you, know that it has hated me before it hated you.[c] 19 If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. 20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; . . . 21 But all this they will do to you on my account, because they do not know Him who sent me.”

Matthew 10:21-22 “Brother will deliver up brother to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death; 2and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake.”

You see, they do not know that it is Jesus who founded The Catholic Church and that it is Him who sends us.

 

[McCartney]

The thing is they don’t hate the Catholic Church.

They hate what they think the Catholic Church is. But their opinion is usually based on falsehoods, misinterpretations and misunderstandings, and on stereotypes. I think Fulton Sheen said something along those lines.

“There are only about 100 people in the world who hate the Catholic Church, but there are Millions who hate what they think is the Catholic Church” - Fulton Sheen.

Ulf Ekman was a pastor who built a mega church called “The Word of Life”. He operated in Sweden, Denmark, Russia, etc. He built hundreds of Pentecostal churches. In March 2014 he announced to his congelation that he was becoming a Catholic. He said that he had heard a lot of negatives from the opponents of the Catholic Church. However, when he sought the truth from the Catholics themselves he realised that he had to belong to the true Church.

Google his name and read all about it.

 

[Dorothy]

“There are only about 100 people in the world who hate the Catholic Church, but there are Millions who hate what they think is the Catholic Church” - Fulton Sheen.

Ulf Ekman was a pastor who built a mega church called “The Word of Life”. He operated in Sweden, Denmark, Russia, etc. He built hundreds of Pentecostal churches. In March 2014 he announced to his congelation that he was becoming a Catholic. He said that he had heard a lot of negatives from the opponents of the Catholic Church. However, when he sought the truth from the Catholics themselves he realised that he had to belong to the true Church.

Google his name and read all about it.

Thanks be to the Lord!

 

[JonNC]

=brian custer;12801282]many protestants are afraid, jealous and ignorant about the catholic church.

Hi Brian,
Many more protestants are simply ambivalent about the Catholic Church. Many view the CC as another church on the corner of the next block that a coworker or classmate goes to. They no more hate the CC than they do the Methodist church the next street over.

their religion is divided into a tens of thousands of splinter

This assumes that, at one time, there was one “Protestant Church”. That is, at best, an over simplification. There never was just one Protestant Church.

s; they see the catholic church as a monolithic monstrosity, rather than The One True Church that has survived the eons & that the gates of Hell will never prevail against

I just don’t think this is the case for most. They see the Catholic Church as just another church. They see “The Church” prevailing against the gates of Hell as meaning the believers, all of them. For many, its an invisible church.

when “Pastor Bob” passes, well then there is always the gathering across the street

That’s perhaps true in some cases, but within most western non-Catholic traditions, its more of a caricature. Methodists, Anglicans, Reformed, Lutherans, and many others have, to one degree or another, an established set of doctrines that their pastors serve, not create.

Jon

 

[ignatius777]

Why is it that most non-catholics (protestants) hate the Catholic Church? Every time someone knocks on my door, the first thing out of their mouths is something bad about the Catholic Church. I have a co-worker who, every time he sees me at work, he starts talking about the Catholic Church and how the Catholic teachings are not correct. I like hearing him because every time he tells me something (about salvation and works, Mary, the Eucharist, praying to the Saints, etc), I look it up and found information that makes me believe my Catholic faith even more.

His latest talk was about how the Catholic Church was created in 600 A.D. I said no, that it had been instituted by Christ and that it was born in Pentecost. He said that the CHURCH was born in Pentecost but that the Catholic Church was born 600 A.D. He then said that the Bible was formalized by the Council of Laodicea and that it has nothing to say about the Catholic Church.

So, I looked it up, and to my surprise, the Council of Laodicea does not include the books taken out by the Protestant Churches (Maccabees, Judith, Tobit, etc.) So I was confused. But upon carefully reading about the Canon in the Council of Laodicea, I found that the Book of Revelation was also not included in the Canon! So I did more research and found that the Canon was revised and in the Council of Carthrage (419 A.D.) added the book of Revelation along with Maccabees, Judith, etc. into the Canon. I also found that in many early Councils, especially on the Council of Nicea, the Catholic Church is mentioned.

So why do this protestant churches believe this??? Can’t they read??? Let’s become ONE STRONG CHURCH!

The best thing to do is familiarize yourself with the church fathers. What the fathers show is that in the very earliest days of the CHURCH, as your co worker calls it, was very catholic.

 

[Restless_Heart_1]

The thing is they don’t hate the Catholic Church.

They hate what they think the Catholic Church is. But their opinion is usually based on falsehoods, misinterpretations and misunderstandings, and on stereotypes. I think Fulton Sheen said something along those lines.

Very well said.

 

[OraLabora]

“There are only about 100 people in the world who hate the Catholic Church, but there are Millions who hate what they think is the Catholic Church” - Fulton Sheen.

Ulf Ekman was a pastor who built a mega church called “The Word of Life”. He operated in Sweden, Denmark, Russia, etc. He built hundreds of Pentecostal churches. In March 2014 he announced to his congelation that he was becoming a Catholic. He said that he had heard a lot of negatives from the opponents of the Catholic Church. However, when he sought the truth from the Catholics themselves he realised that he had to belong to the true Church.

Google his name and read all about it.

Deo gratias!

 

[1377Louis]

Referencing the post made by ‘BOY WONDER’… the phrase "at a tender age’ struck a loud chord. In my childhood there was not nearly enough proper and substantial “formation” about Catholicism. I was being ‘sacramentalized’ and NOT ‘evangelized’ as I should have been. In brief…still today, this scenario exists…maybe less so than before, but the fact remains that children of any ‘Faith’ are not being given a proper “formation”. The broken world we endure today isn’t the world I grew up in, no doubt. Shouldn’t the Catholic heirarchy be putting more emphasis on the “formation” of the young ? And… what can I as a ‘lay’ person do to help this situation ? I am in the “late hours of my life”, but I stand ready to do all that I can to pursue effort to educate the young and prevent misunderstandings due to lack of primary education dealing with ‘THE TRUTH’. These thoughts must be viewed from a Protestant perspective as well. If civilization is to continue to exist,… hatred, aggressive behavior, unnecessary ‘uneducated’ perspectives, etc. must be overcome. Meanwhile… let us PRAY !

 

[Snowwhite16]

In conversations with non-Catholics my take away is they view us as worshiping Mary and Saints which goes against 'have no other Gods above me"

They believe we pray to statues.

They believe we sin Mon-Saturday, confess on Saturday afternoon and start all over just sinning away until confession time.

Everything we do is wrong wrong wrong.

 

[ignatius777]

In conversations with non-Catholics my take away is they view us as worshiping Mary and Saints which goes against 'have no other Gods above me"

They believe we pray to statues.

They believe we sin Mon-Saturday, confess on Saturday afternoon and start all over just sinning away until confession time.

Everything we do is wrong wrong wrong.

They have been indoctrinated by their teachings to believe we pray to statues.

They believe their sins are irrelevant.

Only the truth can make people so hateful.

 

[michaelhutto]

Hello all, I was raised Sourhern Baptist and am looking for God’s Church. I was never told to hate the Catholic Church, and I am sorry that any one has experienced that from any other Christian. I believe there is much misunderstanding between the various forms of the faith. I will admit there is much I don’t understand about the Catholic faith, but I want to learn. I believe my Father will tell me what is good and true. My our Father bless and keep you all.
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