Why the Anti Catholicism?

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Pathway2

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What s with the anti catholic view, Luther yes I could understand but even in the united states. why?
 
Most anti-Catholicism comes from ignorance. When you strip away everything, most of it comes down to that. There are also a minority of folks who have been hurt in some why by priests or folks who are “uber-Catholics” in their mind. Thus, since those folks are Catholic, the Church as a whole is the Whore of Babylon.
 
The United States at its inception was almost entirely anti-Catholic. Most of the Catholics in US came over in subsequent waves of poor immigrants, and the established Protestants viewed them with the same alarm that they view Muslims coming over today. Many of them thought the Pope was going to take over America.

The US has actually come a very long way and now Catholics are accepted in most places. That didn’t really happen until about the time John Kennedy was elected President. My own grandfather was in a huge anti-Catholic hate group in the US in the 1930s. This group had giant marches on Washington, we’re talking thousands of people marching, and a lot of prominent people belonged to it.
 
Pathway2 said:
What s with the anti catholic view, Luther yes I could understand but even in the united states. why?
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The United States was founded on people (pilgrims) fleeing from European Catholicism. There has been an anti-catholic sentiment here since the first immigrants stepped forth onto the shores. In my research on my own ancestry, I was able to trace back to people coming over during the great migration in the 1600’s. there have been generations of vehement anti-Catholic congregationists in my lineage. I have yet to figure out how any of them became Catholic in the first place!
 
And the Puritans from England were escaping the Church of England which they thought
to still be too Catholic. They were escaping the religious wars that had occurred as well
depending on who was in power and which group - protestants or Catholics were being
persecuted.
 
Not to sound pedantic but there are very few wars in history that can objectively be called “religious wars”. The puritans preceed any real democracy in England which only really starts in 1688 with the glorious revolution. Before that you have a fedual system with no separation of church and state. The national leadership of that time would have seen nothing odd about the concept of an athiest bishop, as an example. Because a bishop had two roles (church and state). Therefore, it’s virtually impossible to objectively say that a person performing two roles was primarily motivated by the weaker one.
 
stupidisasstupiddoes said:
Not to sound pedantic but there are very few wars in history that can objectively be called “religious wars”. The puritans preceed any real democracy in England which only really starts in 1688 with the glorious revolution. Before that you have a fedual system with no separation of church and state. The national leadership of that time would have seen nothing odd about the concept of an athiest bishop, as an example. Because a bishop had two roles (church and state). Therefore, it’s virtually impossible to objectively say that a person performing two roles was primarily motivated by the weaker one.
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I was referring to the religious wars that happened around the Reformation.
 
If the world hate you, know ye, that it hath hated me before you. If you had been of the world, the world would love its own: but because you are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you. Remember my word that I said to you: The servant is not greater than his master. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you: if they have kept my word, they will keep yours also. But all these things they will do to you for my name’s sake: because they know not him who sent me. If I had not come, and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. He that hateth me, hateth my Father also. If I had not done among them the works that no other man hath done, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated both me and my Father. But that the word may be fulfilled which is written in their law: They hated me without cause.

But when the Paraclete cometh, whom I will send you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceedeth from the Father, he shall give testimony of me. And you shall give testimony, because you are with me from the beginning.
 
Sadly the anti-Catholicism started with Luther When the Catholic Church did not accept his doctrines. With that others who wanted to break away from the Catholic Church contributed to the hatred of the Catholic Church even to the point of religious wars. So much of the anti-catholic hatred is due to hatred and also ignorance and misinformation by those promoting hatred of the Catholic Church and its teachings. Unless those who hate the Catholic Church come to understand that this hatred is unChristian and not what Christ taught they won’t change their views. One can argue with them til the moon falls from the shy and one will never win. All one can do is inform and leave it at that.
 
There is a new morality that has been slowly shifting the moral boundaries in this country for a good 50 Years. It’s here now abd it’s pervasive It opposes Catholic morals
 
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The Anti-Catholic view we see in the US today is more about liberalism (moral not political) vs. dogmatic truth. All Protestant churches, many if not most Jewish churches, and of course atheists, agnostics and others who believe the Catholic Church (in its dogmatic principles) fails to be modern, civilized and every other evil that they can connect with that. It is very much like the same persecution that existed in ancient times. The Catholic Church views itself above the state in the hierarchy of Truth and morals. This rubs EVERYONE the wrong way in our liberal West.

However, there is certainly a constant history of Anti-Catholicism in the US (and in Europe) since the Reformation. But in Ancient times this was the norm.

If anything, you can bet that today’s Catholic Church is the same church we had in ancient times, as we witness the same hatred and disgust both then and now.
 
The hate is alive and well in England and I got to constantly stand up for my faith or they just say blatantly abusive things, they are more complementary or fear saying things about Muhammad but Our Lady is fair game.
 
I think there us two very different types of anti Catholics.
  1. The Protestants who actually share a lot of our beliefs and morals. I generally like most of the protestants I know.
    And far worse…
  2. The atheists who mock us, hate us, belittle us, give zero tolerance for us and use politics and media to promote everything we are against (abortion, Nativity scenes, unwed child birth, etc) These same people hate the Baptists et al with the same venom they hate us. (Not all atheists, I’m referring to the militant atheists)
 
As one who spends around 2-3 hours a day on a multi-faith website, anti-Catholicism is rampant, with the largest number of offenders by far being fundamentalist Protestants (“evangelicals”). ITO, Satan took over the church and it fell into apostasy.

BTW, I grew up in one of those churches and left because of the general anti-science and bigoted m.o. Long story.

BTW, I’m not a Catholic.
 
I really do not think most Protestants hate Catholic’s or the Catholic Church. Most maynot know what the catholic Church teaches. That being said it seems to me it is the fringe groups who seemingly want to promote hatred of Catholic’s and the Catholic Church. I also think it starts with their ministers or pastors who preach hate towards the Catholic Church and Catholic’s. Some also comes from ex Catholics who for whatever reason want to get back at the Catholic Church and Catholic’s due to some real or imagined harm done to them, so promogate hated with false stories and lies about the Catholic Church or Catholic’s. Others come to hatred via being ignorant of what the Catholic Church teaches so are led falsely into some fringe demonanational church because of those who interpret bible verses to show that Catholic’s or the Catholic Church does not follow what the Bible says which they use in order to try and convert Catholic’s to their way of thinking. its sad really as its very unChristian to hate and to use hate to or in order to convert others to their church.

There people are taught to use certain verses to show that Catholic;s and the Catholic Church are wrong in their beliefs. They tend to look for catholic’s that are not well versed in Scripture or have not really read Scripture or understand their Catholic belief. Anti-Catholic sites on the internet is ripe with hatred of Catholic’s and the Catholic Church and they will us whatever they can to besmurch and promote hate by whatever means is available to them. One is not going to change their minds but one might by informing cause someone looking at those sites rethink and see that there might be something really good that is the Catholic Church.
 
The IQ2 debate on “Is the Catholic Church a force for Good” is a good start as to understanding why people do not hold a positive view of the Catholic Church. It still continues, as a perceived official policy, to guard its leaders from legal prosecution for crimes against humanity for example. That is one thing that I find is indefensible since they can do something about that now and it has nothing to do with its doctrines for following their religious tenants for spiritual growth.
 
Born and raised in fundamentalist + restorationist holiness church. Anti-Catholic rhetoric was preached and taught almost every week. Same church was my home church for 25 years. So you can imagine being spoonfed rhetoric for 25 years and how that’d affect your view of an entire group of people.

Its taken time, but I’ve slowly been able to accept Catholics as Christians and am now reading the Early Church Fathers. Actually reading “Not By Faith Alone” by Robert Sungenis right now.

As a Protestant, I think most of us live in a echo chamber and the only thing Protestants actually agree on is “The Catholics for sure are wrong”. The more I learn of the Catholic faith the more I like.
 
The US was founded as a Protestant nation. Malcontents, rebels and exiles from the King - Church of England members many of them. They came from an atmosphere where the law of England was that Catholicism was banned, and many Brits were put to death for practicing their Catholic faith.

Protestant hatred and distrust of Catholicism ran deep. Still does in some circles, and is at least implied in all of them. There are Catholic martyrs whose blood has been shed on US soil. Parishes burned. KKK stuff - who were among anti-Catholic leaders in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
 
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It stems from mostly politics. The Catholic Church used to be a significant temporal power. To strip some of that power the Protestant princes attacked the church and fueled fear and hatred against it.
 
I have the opposite experience. The Protestants I know call us idolaters, pagans, corrupters of Christianity etc.

Atheists in my day to day life could care less what I believe.
 
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