Why Us

[d40gmar]

I am coming back to the church after many years. Im my studies though I have found there are many groups out there who do not like us. There are theories out there that the Pope is the antichrist and the like. I was wondering why? One never hears this kind of stuff from say the Lutherins. So why are we the Target. I hope some one can help.

 

[Cat]

I’m an ex-evangelical Protestant who came into the Catholic Church in 2004.

When I read your question, my first thought was rather a dramatic one which some might say demonstrates an over-active imagination.

I think that Satan puts a lot of energy into getting people to attack the Catholic Church because he knows it is the True Church, the Church of Jesus Christ. No wonder Satan wants to bust it up!

He has all kinds of clever strategies–spreading false information about the Catholic Church, getting Catholics to doubt the teachings of their Church so that they quit and become zealous ex-Catholics, tempting priests to give in to their sexual weaknesses and commit sins against the innocent, getting Protestants to believe false things about the Church, etc.

So is my idea too silly?

 

[water]

I’m an ex-evangelical Protestant who came into the Catholic Church in 2004.

When I read your question, my first thought was rather a dramatic one which some might say demonstrates an over-active imagination.

I think that Satan puts a lot of energy into getting people to attack the Catholic Church because he knows it is the True Church, the Church of Jesus Christ. No wonder Satan wants to bust it up!

He has all kinds of clever strategies–spreading false information about the Catholic Church, getting Catholics to doubt the teachings of their Church so that they quit and become zealous ex-Catholics, tempting priests to give in to their sexual weaknesses and commit sins against the innocent, getting Protestants to believe false things about the Church, etc.

So is my idea too silly?

Your idea is not silly. Satan is that wicked - his purpose is to divide us, to take our focus from what we want to do.

A priest says on the radio - go to the group that has more attacks; that is the right group for you to join.

 

[Ave_Maria_1]

Welcome home! Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament has been waiting for you!

Why us? Here is the bottom line :IT IS THE MASS THAT MATTERS!

Always the devil must attack the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
Through it, the offering of the Son to God the Father, flows all the graces that sustain the world. As St. Padre Pio said, The world could more easily exist without the sun than without the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass."

So the attack is against the Catholic church because of the Mass. And then the attack against the priesthood as well.
No need to come after any of the 40,000 or so protestant denominations for they already have lost the Mass and sacramental life. The Church will always be persecuted from within and without.

Do not care a bit what some say or think about all this; that is not what matters. Your holiness and your path on the sacramental life to Christ is what matters. The doctrines and dogmas have NOT changed, although some might say differently. Read the Scripture and a Catholic Study guide with it and read the Catechism and steep yourself in good holy readings of the Church and the Saints. Fall in love with Jesus in the Holy Eucharist. Pray the rosary and come to adoration when you can. So much awaits a true Catholic!

Ave Maria!

 

[myfavoritmartin]

Or comments like this could lead people to that end…

In a passage which is included in the Roman Catholic Canon Law, or Corpus Juris Canonici, Pope Innocent III declares that the Roman pontiff is “the vicegerent upon earth, not of a mere man, but of very God;”

Found here.
ccel.org/ccel/white/controversy.xlv.html

 

[DeFide]

I am coming back to the church after many years. Im my studies though I have found there are many groups out there who do not like us. There are theories out there that the Pope is the antichrist and the like. I was wondering why? One never hears this kind of stuff from say the Lutherins. So why are we the Target. I hope some one can help.

It’s a matter of history. From The Antichrist article by Jimmy Akin:

It is important for the Catholic apologist to have a good handle on what Scripture does and does not say regarding the Antichrist because the opponents of the Catholic faith have often depicted the pope as the Antichrist.

This was a psychological necessity for the early Protestant leaders because they were in the process of breaking away from what their contemporaries universally recognized as the authentic Church of Christ, governed by the authentic Vicar of Christ. Since breaking with such a body is inconceivable to any one determined to follow Christ’s will, it was necessary for Protestant leaders to deny that the Catholic Church and the pope were these things.

The recognition of the Catholic Church as the one Christ established was so strong—given its centuries of existence, its ubiquity in Europe, and the absence of any plausible rival in tracing its roots back to Christ—that it created severe cognitive dissonance that Protestant leaders had to find ways to overcome. “If it’s not the Bride of Christ then what is it? How can it be explained otherwise?” would be logical questions.

Protestant leaders cast about in Scripture for alternative explanations for a large, false religious system expected to exist during the Christian age. They chose the religious system associated with the beast from Revelation, whom they identified as the Antichrist. They further identified this religious system with the Whore of Babylon, who in Revelation is in contrast to the Church, the Bride of Christ.

They thus came to portray the Church as the Whore of Babylon and the pope as the beast/Antichrist. Only in such a way could breaking away from what everyone recognized as the true Church of Christ be psychologically justified.

 

[DeFide]

Or comments like this could lead people to that end…

In a passage which is included in the Roman Catholic Canon Law, or Corpus Juris Canonici, Pope Innocent III declares that the Roman pontiff is “the vicegerent upon earth, not of a mere man, but of very God;”

Vicegerent is the official administrative deputy of a ruler. Are you denying that Christ is God?

 

[Randy_Carson]

I’m an ex-evangelical Protestant who came into the Catholic Church in 2004.

When I read your question, my first thought was rather a dramatic one which some might say demonstrates an over-active imagination.

I think that Satan puts a lot of energy into getting people to attack the Catholic Church because he knows it is the True Church, the Church of Jesus Christ. No wonder Satan wants to bust it up!

He has all kinds of clever strategies–spreading false information about the Catholic Church, getting Catholics to doubt the teachings of their Church so that they quit and become zealous ex-Catholics, tempting priests to give in to their sexual weaknesses and commit sins against the innocent, getting Protestants to believe false things about the Church, etc.

So is my idea too silly?

This is dead on the money.

Satan doesn’t waste time going after small prizes…he has plenty of minions for that. He focuses his full attention on attacking the Body of Christ, the Catholic Church.

This is why Pope Leo XIII composed the prayer to St. Michael.

For some background: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prayer_to_Saint_Michael

 

[Randy_Carson]

Or comments like this could lead people to that end…

In a passage which is included in the Roman Catholic Canon Law, or Corpus Juris Canonici, Pope Innocent III declares that the Roman pontiff is “the vicegerent upon earth, not of a mere man, but of very God;”

Found here.
ccel.org/ccel/white/controversy.xlv.html

This is MFM’s “attack du jour”…he’s posted this in multiple threads.

 

[ALLFORHIM]

Hi,

The only thing I can think of is also a reason why born again christians are given a bad wrap:

The CC is held to a higher standard by all, so when someone sins ,because they are human, people just have a field day with it.
The CC claims to be the One True Church and therefore automatically held up to human scrutiny.

We are all really hypocrites when you think about it but when you put yourself out there as a religious person and then sin—watch out–the mud is going to start flying

As a protestant, I do not agree with all the doctrine or dogma of the CC but I would never go around saying they are the whore of babylon or the Pope is the Ant-Christ

When people find out I call myself a born-again christian–Im sure they automatically hold me to a higher standard. That is why I have to constantly be aware of my behavior. I want to stand out as a light to the world but it does come with a high price. In the end, I choose Christ standards over any human standards.

 

[hoosierdaddy]

Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.???

This is something I seriously disagree with. I don’t claim to know everything about the Mass but I know enough about Jesus Christ and His once for all sacrifice on the cross to know that any perceived sacrifice in the Mass is blasphemous. Christ sacrificed on the cross once for all! Nowhere in John 6 as you guys like to point out, does it ever say anything about sacrificing Christ again and again until He returns. What it does say is “do this in remembrance of me” (until He returns).

There are plenty of reasons why some people believe the pope is the anti-christ. I’m sure you can figure them out.

 

[hoosierdaddy]

No need to come after any of the 40,000 or so protestant denominations for they already have lost the Mass and sacramental life. The Church will always be persecuted from within and without.

So you maintain that Protestants are never attacked by the devil? You then affirm that it was **God’s will **that the Catholics killed Protestants many times in the history of the Church? I’ve been attacked by satan and so has every other Protestant. You don’t know what I’ve been through, you don’t know what they’ve been through, and frankly, you just don’t know much of anything when it comes to this issue.

I’d also like you to list off all 40,000 (or so) Protestant denominations. Until one person does this, this accusation needs to cease. So come on…go for it.

 

[johnnycatholic]

Hi,

The only thing I can think of is also a reason why born again christians are given a bad wrap:

The CC is held to a higher standard by all, so when someone sins ,because they are human, people just have a field day with it.
The CC claims to be the One True Church and therefore automatically held up to human scrutiny.

We are all really hypocrites when you think about it but when you put yourself out there as a religious person and then sin—watch out–the mud is going to start flying

As a protestant, I do not agree with all the doctrine or dogma of the CC but I would never go around saying they are the whore of babylon or the Pope is the Ant-Christ

When people find out I call myself a born-again christian–Im sure they automatically hold me to a higher standard. That is why I have to constantly be aware of my behavior. I want to stand out as a light to the world but it does come with a high price. In the end, I choose Christ standards over any human standards.

I disagree we are hypocrites necessarily. I am a sinner and fall daily, but i confess my sins and make amends to those i wrong. I would consider myself a hypocrite only if I expect from others what i won’t do myself. If I told others to use nfp but secretly used condoms, I would be both a sinner and a hypocrite.

 

[ALLFORHIM]

I disagree we are hypocrites necessarily. I am a sinner and fall daily, but i confess my sins and make amends to those i wrong. I would consider myself a hypocrite only if I expect from others what i won’t do myself. If I told others to use nfp but secretly used condoms, I would be both a sinner and a hypocrite.

Hi,

Not on a daily basis of course. I just mean and should clarify that we have all been hypocrites at one point in our lives.

 

[Veritas41]

I’m an ex-evangelical Protestant who came into the Catholic Church in 2004.

When I read your question, my first thought was rather a dramatic one which some might say demonstrates an over-active imagination.

I think that Satan puts a lot of energy into getting people to attack the Catholic Church because he knows it is the True Church, the Church of Jesus Christ. No wonder Satan wants to bust it up!

He has all kinds of clever strategies–spreading false information about the Catholic Church, getting Catholics to doubt the teachings of their Church so that they quit and become zealous ex-Catholics, tempting priests to give in to their sexual weaknesses and commit sins against the innocent, getting Protestants to believe false things about the Church, etc.

So is my idea too silly?

Not at all – I think the same thing myself. I’m a former Protestant, and one of the things I noticed about the Catholic Church is how much it’s attacked by everyone. And I noticed that anti-Catholics spend little or no time attacking the Eastern Orthodox churches, even though they believe almost all the same things Catholics do that the anti-Catholics rail against.

 

[colliric]

I am coming back to the church after many years. Im my studies though I have found there are many groups out there who do not like us. There are theories out there that the Pope is the antichrist and the like. I was wondering why? One never hears this kind of stuff from say the Lutherins. So why are we the Target. I hope some one can help.

Simple answer is that the Catholic faith dwarfs all the other denominations put together. It is simple human instinct to attack the biggest, strongest, most recognized target first. I am wondering if Jesus’s words “and the gates of hell shall not prevail” are talking also of these anti-catholic attacks and if his words give catholics solace these attacks will fail. To me it does.

 

[ALLFORHIM]

So you maintain that Protestants are never attacked by the devil? You then affirm that it was **God’s will **that the Catholics killed Protestants many times in the history of the Church? I’ve been attacked by satan and so has every other Protestant. You don’t know what I’ve been through, you don’t know what they’ve been through, and frankly, you just don’t know much of anything when it comes to this issue.

I’d also like you to list off all 40,000 (or so) Protestant denominations. Until one person does this, this accusation needs to cease. So come on…go for it.

Hi,
This is how I understand it. I am a believer–The minute I became a believer I was sealed with the Holy Spirit till the day of redemption–Because I am a believer Satan attacks me daily in every aspect of my life He does not attack non-believers–well–because He already has them in his back pocket

Satan hates me because He cant get me or have me anymore because I belong to God now. Therefore, the only thing Satan can do to me is cause me to stumble and look like a hyocrite to the rest of the world–so they can say HA she is not a christian look what she did–a christian wouldnt do that If Satan can make my behavior look bad and it causes one person to turn away from God because of it then Satan has won(For Now).IMHO

 

[hoosierdaddy]

Simple answer is that the Catholic faith dwarfs all the other denominations put together. It is simple human instinct to attack the biggest, strongest, most recognized target first. I am wondering if Jesus’s words “and the gates of hell shall not prevail” are talking also of these anti-catholic attacks and if his words give catholics solace these attacks will fail. To me it does.

Did Jesus say His one true Church would attack genuine Christians? Or is it your “Tradition” that tells you to do that?

 

[hoosierdaddy]

AllforHim>>The minute I became a believer I was sealed with the Holy Spirit till the day of redemption–Because I am a believer Satan attacks me daily in every aspect of my life…

In the manner of another brother on here, to save space I will only include the part I wish to comment on. Although I agreed with your entire post, I really wanted to agree with you on this part that you said. You are so right.

 

[myfavoritmartin]

Hi,
This is how I understand it. I am a believer–The minute I became a believer I was sealed with the Holy Spirit till the day of redemption–Because I am a believer Satan attacks me daily in every aspect of my life He does not attack non-believers–well–because He already has them in his back pocket

Satan hates me because He cant get me or have me anymore because I belong to God now. Therefore, the only thing Satan can do to me is cause me to stumble and look like a hyocrite to the rest of the world–so they can say HA she is not a christian look what she did–a christian wouldnt do that If Satan can make my behavior look bad and it causes one person to turn away from God because of it then Satan has won(For Now).IMHO

I like this analogy,
Thanks.