Unfortunately many protestants today (especially non-denominational) fall in the camp of being so afraid of works that they do not empower their people to conquer sin. However, it is not only Catholics that believe in the necessity of sanctification and holiness of believers. Your desire for spiritual accountability can be found in many Protestant denominations, especially the reformed. As for the catholic church being the one true church that Jesus founded, I guess that’s up to historical interpretation. I appreciate and respect your journey and decision. May God sanctify you completely and keep you until the end. God bless.
Thank you for writing this and sharing your faith journey. Thank you for inviting others to discuss these things in the spirit of love and truth-seeking . As a convert to Catholicism from a mainline Protestant Christian denomination, I appreciate your openness and honest dialogue with others. I think we converts to the Catholic Church have a responsibility to share our testimonies with our fellow Christians who are not Catholic so they may come to join in the fullness of the Sacraments Our Lord Jesus Christ has given us in His Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. And of course, we Catholics share The Great Commission with non-Catholic Christians to go and spread the gospel to all nations so that every single person has the opportunity to come to know the love, grace, mercy, and peace of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. For His glory!
Thanks to you for the kind words and support, I really appreciate it. And I fully agree with you, and that was the goal of this article as well: maybe some people outside Catholicism are wrestling with the same questions that I had so maybe my thought process can be helpful for them. God bless you friend! Christ is King
As a Protestant (Church of England), I had assumed that the Catholic faith was itself sharpened by the event of Protestantism, so that it got rid of the more inappropriate elements which had caused the break. It’s a shame we cannot reunite now, to be honest. I expect most of it now is due to tradition, rather than deeply held theological differences, but that is only my ignorance talking. Well done for all that you do. 👍
That's not a bad take at all, the reformation probably pushed the Church to take a look at itself and change some things that needed to be changed. And I fully agree with you, it would be absolutely ideal for all true Christians to reunite under one banner. It seems pretty difficult though, lots of animosity on all ends haha. Thanks for reading and supporting brother! God bless you!
I congratulate you on this well articulated journey. I love how much you are searching and are so self-aware. However, if I may, if you are open to it, may I show you a few things you'll eventually figure out (to shorten your learning curve)?
- You said "somewhere along the line, a man decided that he knew better. He saw what was there and had been there since the time of Christ, and felt himself superiorly gifted to determine the final answers of faith and morals."
This is dead on...and it's exactly why the Protestants broke from the Catholics. For instance, if you'll just look up all the decisions made my Constantine in the 3rd century (he ruined the church forever) and Pope Gregory the Great in the 5th century (who changed the mass and 100's of other things and NO ONE ever questioned any of it until the Reformers) then you'll realize we are NO WHERE EVEN CLOSE to following Jesus' original idea for church life.
- If you want to do your own research, all in one single book, check out Frank Viola's Pagan Christianity?
You won't be able to put it down!!! Each page is half the facts and story of how church history went down (where did the steeple come from? And the robes, and the single pastor, and the buildings, and pews, and youth groups, and the verse numbers, etc) while the bottom half of each page are his footnotes from scholars so you can research further if you want.
This little book - unlike anything else you'll find - will open your eyes to how the PAGAN WORLD brought all of their junk into the church and we just never questioned it (I bet you thought that sermons were biblical and that titheing is for us NT believers)...and then when you add in the moves that godly men made that stuck for centuries (like the sinner's prayer, alter calls, Sunday schools, preaching the gospel at church instead of outside of church gatherings, etc) then you'll begin to REALLY see how neither the Catholics NOR the Protestants are doing church Jesus' way.
- Then you'll come back to your original question: Ok, so then how did Jesus intend for his church to live in the world?
The next book in Viola's series answers that question. As a matter of fact, he just published a one hour summary of the untold story of the NT church and how it formed, bringing together a unified timeline AFTER the resurrection. He goes very slow so that all can understand the divine pattern used to build the church, but you'll see as he gets going that no one else has brought this story together like him. It can be found here.
Thank you for your comment and for the recommendation brother, I'll be sure to take a look at that book, as well as the video. I absolutely need to learn more about Church History, but I keep going back to the logic that unless the Catholic Church is an institution protected by the Holy Spirit ("the gates of Hell shall not prevail"), then there is no way of knowing which branch of Christianity is true, since it'll always come down to personal opinion. Since the likelihood is that when Jesus established the Church, He wouldn't leave it alone to be corrupted by us humans, logic follows that there has to be One True Church, and the likelihood is that it is the Catholic Church, being the only one that can be traced back to Jesus.
Farther more! Why so many writers, or so call Teolgiand have been attacking His Church since the biggining, trying to destroy it? Luther try to come out with a better church, and? Look at the mess, 45,000 Christian denomination!! Let's continue to pray and have more writers like you to bring light to our brothers in Christ, perhaps they will joined Jesus Church! By the way, this is the part 2, that you said you would write?
I more and more drawn to Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy these days. Such a rich well of history, tradition, wisdom, beauty and sacredness. Reading the desert fathers is a particular joy. There is a big influx of young men in particular returning to Catholicism and I say yes and amen.
As a practing Catholic, I can honestly say I am still learning... much can be said about my grammar at times. But I still embrace it, too. The more I learn, the more my Faith grows.
The so-called Catholic leaders (who are liberal priests, bishops...etc.) want our Faith corrupted. Yet, that has been going on for centuries.
Your life with both religions was an interesting read. Blessings to you and yours.
Orthodoxy is good of course. We have a lot in common, but I of course believe the Catholic Church to be the one True Church. I think Orthodoxy is a pretty good approximation to the Truth, but the Catholic Church to be the body of Christ and where the Truth with a capital T is found.
What is the average Protestant Christian's relationship with Judaism these days? I understand not everyone wants to be a Messianic Jew, but with most of the Bible composed of the "Old" Testament, a constant referral to Jewish tradition would be unavoidable, I'd think.
Oooh. You’re so close. There IS a remnant that is Gods faithful and true people who have been keeping the faith and operating how he intended, but it won’t be found in any institution. The Catholics were ruined forever by Constantine. Again, it’s all right there in that book I recommend. I bet you’ll fly through it in a week. Then holler back at me. It’ll change everything for you. The book that follows it changes your entire view of the gospel as well (which the Protestants have also messed up). Brother, things are NOT what they seem.
Correct me if I’m wrong but what I see is that many protestants have little to no spiritual accountability(or church authority) which leads to personal interpretation of the scriptures.
I think there’s spiritual accountability, but no ultimate authority on faith and morals other than personal interpretation which is what’s problematic imo
The thing is that in Catholicism the authority is not the declaration of a man, but of a man led by The Holy Spirit and appointed by the Holy Spirit through unbroken apostolic succession. We believe the apostles were given authority, and that authority is maintained through apostolic succession and safeguarded by the Holy Spirit. So the ultimate authority is not human but divine, as the only structure that gets traced back to Jesus Himself and by His giving of authority to the Apostles.
Ultimately authority's is in scripture and only alone. GOD PRECEDEDEDS AUTHORITY AND AUTHORUTY PROCEDITH HIM. Man, pope, or person cannot fill this seat. Man can only, interpret misinterpret, that which is universal and true.
Even as a Catholic I sometimes felt weird about Mary's prominence. What got me over that is praying the Rosary on the regular. Learning a little of the history of the Rosary, and actually praying 5 Mysteries a day became a revelatory experience for me. It became central to my day, and I hope that never changes.
Listening to true gospels will not assure/guarantee us salvation , but the our GOD who is in heaven when he thinks he will give us salvation at his time and not in our time.
Unfortunately many protestants today (especially non-denominational) fall in the camp of being so afraid of works that they do not empower their people to conquer sin. However, it is not only Catholics that believe in the necessity of sanctification and holiness of believers. Your desire for spiritual accountability can be found in many Protestant denominations, especially the reformed. As for the catholic church being the one true church that Jesus founded, I guess that’s up to historical interpretation. I appreciate and respect your journey and decision. May God sanctify you completely and keep you until the end. God bless.
Thanks for reading brother!! I appreciate your comment as well, I definitely need to keep studying history. May God bless you too friend!
Thank you for writing this and sharing your faith journey. Thank you for inviting others to discuss these things in the spirit of love and truth-seeking . As a convert to Catholicism from a mainline Protestant Christian denomination, I appreciate your openness and honest dialogue with others. I think we converts to the Catholic Church have a responsibility to share our testimonies with our fellow Christians who are not Catholic so they may come to join in the fullness of the Sacraments Our Lord Jesus Christ has given us in His Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. And of course, we Catholics share The Great Commission with non-Catholic Christians to go and spread the gospel to all nations so that every single person has the opportunity to come to know the love, grace, mercy, and peace of Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. For His glory!
Thanks to you for the kind words and support, I really appreciate it. And I fully agree with you, and that was the goal of this article as well: maybe some people outside Catholicism are wrestling with the same questions that I had so maybe my thought process can be helpful for them. God bless you friend! Christ is King
As a Protestant (Church of England), I had assumed that the Catholic faith was itself sharpened by the event of Protestantism, so that it got rid of the more inappropriate elements which had caused the break. It’s a shame we cannot reunite now, to be honest. I expect most of it now is due to tradition, rather than deeply held theological differences, but that is only my ignorance talking. Well done for all that you do. 👍
That's not a bad take at all, the reformation probably pushed the Church to take a look at itself and change some things that needed to be changed. And I fully agree with you, it would be absolutely ideal for all true Christians to reunite under one banner. It seems pretty difficult though, lots of animosity on all ends haha. Thanks for reading and supporting brother! God bless you!
That’s the dream, hard agree
Well stated. I plan to utilize this to gently “wash” over my Protestant brothers and sisters. Pax Christi!
Please do! God bless you brother
Bro,
I congratulate you on this well articulated journey. I love how much you are searching and are so self-aware. However, if I may, if you are open to it, may I show you a few things you'll eventually figure out (to shorten your learning curve)?
- You said "somewhere along the line, a man decided that he knew better. He saw what was there and had been there since the time of Christ, and felt himself superiorly gifted to determine the final answers of faith and morals."
This is dead on...and it's exactly why the Protestants broke from the Catholics. For instance, if you'll just look up all the decisions made my Constantine in the 3rd century (he ruined the church forever) and Pope Gregory the Great in the 5th century (who changed the mass and 100's of other things and NO ONE ever questioned any of it until the Reformers) then you'll realize we are NO WHERE EVEN CLOSE to following Jesus' original idea for church life.
- If you want to do your own research, all in one single book, check out Frank Viola's Pagan Christianity?
You won't be able to put it down!!! Each page is half the facts and story of how church history went down (where did the steeple come from? And the robes, and the single pastor, and the buildings, and pews, and youth groups, and the verse numbers, etc) while the bottom half of each page are his footnotes from scholars so you can research further if you want.
This little book - unlike anything else you'll find - will open your eyes to how the PAGAN WORLD brought all of their junk into the church and we just never questioned it (I bet you thought that sermons were biblical and that titheing is for us NT believers)...and then when you add in the moves that godly men made that stuck for centuries (like the sinner's prayer, alter calls, Sunday schools, preaching the gospel at church instead of outside of church gatherings, etc) then you'll begin to REALLY see how neither the Catholics NOR the Protestants are doing church Jesus' way.
- Then you'll come back to your original question: Ok, so then how did Jesus intend for his church to live in the world?
The next book in Viola's series answers that question. As a matter of fact, he just published a one hour summary of the untold story of the NT church and how it formed, bringing together a unified timeline AFTER the resurrection. He goes very slow so that all can understand the divine pattern used to build the church, but you'll see as he gets going that no one else has brought this story together like him. It can be found here.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhP40BaFjdE
But again, if you want to strip it all down, then you need to read Pagan Christianity?
Bless you in your journey bro!
Thank you for your comment and for the recommendation brother, I'll be sure to take a look at that book, as well as the video. I absolutely need to learn more about Church History, but I keep going back to the logic that unless the Catholic Church is an institution protected by the Holy Spirit ("the gates of Hell shall not prevail"), then there is no way of knowing which branch of Christianity is true, since it'll always come down to personal opinion. Since the likelihood is that when Jesus established the Church, He wouldn't leave it alone to be corrupted by us humans, logic follows that there has to be One True Church, and the likelihood is that it is the Catholic Church, being the only one that can be traced back to Jesus.
Farther more! Why so many writers, or so call Teolgiand have been attacking His Church since the biggining, trying to destroy it? Luther try to come out with a better church, and? Look at the mess, 45,000 Christian denomination!! Let's continue to pray and have more writers like you to bring light to our brothers in Christ, perhaps they will joined Jesus Church! By the way, this is the part 2, that you said you would write?
And many blessings to you too brother! Appreciate you
Thank you
Christ is RISEN!
Grace and peace to you Amigo....
Amen brother, grace and peace to you too!
Ave Christus Rex. He is our leader
I more and more drawn to Roman Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy these days. Such a rich well of history, tradition, wisdom, beauty and sacredness. Reading the desert fathers is a particular joy. There is a big influx of young men in particular returning to Catholicism and I say yes and amen.
That's amazing to hear! If you're looking into Catholicism, highly recommend the book Rome Sweet Home
Great article, thanks for sharing your testimony. May God continue to bless you and guide you on your journey. Happy to hear you made it home to Rome!
Amen brother! Appreciate you. God bless you too!!
As a convert AND a revert shop nos leads a ministry of conversion, I really appreciated your writing. It’s hard to come “back “.
And I left again, but God was so patient with me.
Glad you liked the article. God bless you!
As a practing Catholic, I can honestly say I am still learning... much can be said about my grammar at times. But I still embrace it, too. The more I learn, the more my Faith grows.
The so-called Catholic leaders (who are liberal priests, bishops...etc.) want our Faith corrupted. Yet, that has been going on for centuries.
Your life with both religions was an interesting read. Blessings to you and yours.
Then why not orthodox?
Orthodoxy is good of course. We have a lot in common, but I of course believe the Catholic Church to be the one True Church. I think Orthodoxy is a pretty good approximation to the Truth, but the Catholic Church to be the body of Christ and where the Truth with a capital T is found.
Yea I’m pretty sure Eastern Orthodox Church also traces roots back to Jesus and the apostles
What is the average Protestant Christian's relationship with Judaism these days? I understand not everyone wants to be a Messianic Jew, but with most of the Bible composed of the "Old" Testament, a constant referral to Jewish tradition would be unavoidable, I'd think.
Honestly no idea, I've heard vastly different positions depending on denomination/personal opinion etc.
Oooh. You’re so close. There IS a remnant that is Gods faithful and true people who have been keeping the faith and operating how he intended, but it won’t be found in any institution. The Catholics were ruined forever by Constantine. Again, it’s all right there in that book I recommend. I bet you’ll fly through it in a week. Then holler back at me. It’ll change everything for you. The book that follows it changes your entire view of the gospel as well (which the Protestants have also messed up). Brother, things are NOT what they seem.
Correct me if I’m wrong but what I see is that many protestants have little to no spiritual accountability(or church authority) which leads to personal interpretation of the scriptures.
I think there’s spiritual accountability, but no ultimate authority on faith and morals other than personal interpretation which is what’s problematic imo
But if the ultimate authority in Catholicism is the declaration of a man or men, are you not also just submitting yourself to human interpretation?
The thing is that in Catholicism the authority is not the declaration of a man, but of a man led by The Holy Spirit and appointed by the Holy Spirit through unbroken apostolic succession. We believe the apostles were given authority, and that authority is maintained through apostolic succession and safeguarded by the Holy Spirit. So the ultimate authority is not human but divine, as the only structure that gets traced back to Jesus Himself and by His giving of authority to the Apostles.
Ultimately authority's is in scripture and only alone. GOD PRECEDEDEDS AUTHORITY AND AUTHORUTY PROCEDITH HIM. Man, pope, or person cannot fill this seat. Man can only, interpret misinterpret, that which is universal and true.
Even as a Catholic I sometimes felt weird about Mary's prominence. What got me over that is praying the Rosary on the regular. Learning a little of the history of the Rosary, and actually praying 5 Mysteries a day became a revelatory experience for me. It became central to my day, and I hope that never changes.
Listening to true gospels will not assure/guarantee us salvation , but the our GOD who is in heaven when he thinks he will give us salvation at his time and not in our time.
So we have to wait until time comes.