Subject: Consider Rev 11:19 |
Bible Note: Dear THECROSS, You are absolutely correct, my brother! We are brethren in Christ! All you need to do is to believe in Jesus Christ and that God raised Him from the dead and you will be saved. It doesn't matter if you are Catholic and I am Protestant, we will be holding hands together in heaven, my friend, singing songs of praise to our Lord! There are many things that we agree on, and I do consider you as a Christian and brother in Christ. For instance, you believe that the Bible was inspired by God Himself. I, too, believe this. Also, you believe in the Trinity (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) and I agree with you. However, there are several points of disagreement between us, and our dialogue has brought them to the fore. For instance, you say that the Catholic Church existed before the New Testament was written. I strongly disagree with you on this, my friend. You also state that tradition is important, citing 2 Thess. 2:15, and you are correct- tradition is important. But tradition is not so important as to usurp or trump the authority of God's Holy Word, His perfect, inerrant, and inspired message to mankind. The New Testament was never written by Catholics, the New Testament was written by Christians (Acts 11:26). If the Bible was written by Catholics, then why isn't the word "Catholic" found in the Bible? History also stands on my side here. I am glad that you use the Douay-Rheims and New American Bible. These are both good translations to use as a Catholic. I also firmly believe that the Pope, Cardinals and priests that make up the hierarchy of your church are just human and fallible people (as Mary, the mother of Jesus was) who are capable of sinning. THECROSS, before you respond to any of the above, please answer this question: Is it more important to be a Catholic or more important to be a Christian? You have extended the hand of brotherhood to me, even calling me a brother. And I take your hand and extend to you the same brotherhood. Is it possible that I can be a Christian without being a Catholic? If so, what is the importance of Catholicism to Christianity? Blessings! Nolan |