Know the Truth about Beliefs of Catholics and Protestants
Catholic
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Protestant
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Authority
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Scripture and tradition
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Sola Scriptura - Scripture alone
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Bible
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Includes apocrypha
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Excludes apocrypha
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Results of Fall
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Corruption and tendency to sin
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Total depravity and guilt
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Free will
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Free to do good or evil
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Free only to do evil
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Predestination
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Related to God's foreknowledge
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Related to God's decrees
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Atonement
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Death of Christ created merit that
is shared with sinners through sacraments
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Death of Christ was a
substitutionary sacrifice that satisfied God's justice
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Divine grace
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Prevenient grace helps one
believe; efficacious grace cooperates with the human will to do good
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Common grace enabling good works
given to all; sufficient grace for salvation given to elect only
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Good works
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Meritorious
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Results of divine grace and
unworthy of merit
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Salvation
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Received at baptism; may be lost
by mortal sin; regained by penance. Those who have never heard of Christ may
be saved. (Catech 847)
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Result of divine grace;
unconditional. Those who have never heard of Christ may be saved.
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The Church
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The Catholic Church is "the
place where humanity must rediscover its unity and salvation" (Catech 845) but those baptized in other
Christian denominations are in communion with the Church (Catech 838).
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There is a distinction between the
visible and invisible church. God saves anyone he chooses, or anyone with
proper faith, regardless of church membership.
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Sacraments
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Convey grace by their operation (ex
opere operato).
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Means of grace only if received
with faith.
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Priests
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A special vocation for some
believers; mediators between God and man
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Priesthood of all believers.
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Transubstantiation
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Affirmed
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Rejected
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Purgatory
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Affirmed
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Denied
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Prayer to saints
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Accepted
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Rejected
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Prayer to Mary
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Accepted
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Rejected
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Pope Authority
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Accepted
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Rejected
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Homosexual
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Neutral
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Neutral [While Some Denominations
Reject]
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Abortion
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Rejected
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Rejected
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Church structure
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Hierarchical
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Democratic
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Apostolic succession
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Believe that present-day priest
ordinations can all be traced back to the original apostles.
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Concept rejected
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Time of origin:
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c. 33 AD
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Approx. 1500 A.D.
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Status of women:
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Variable but treated with respect.
Women are not allowed to be priests. However, they can become nuns.
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Variable. Conservatives and
liberals differ greatly. Variable.
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View of other Abrahamic religions:
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According to Catholic doctrine,
Catholicism is the original Christian Church. Christianity is the true
religion.
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Judaism is a true religion, but
they do not believe Jesus is the Messiah. Islam is a false religion, pagan
religions are also false.
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"Sola Scriptura:" The Bible is the sole authority
for Christian beliefs and practices. The Catholic Church stresses a balance
between Biblical support and the tradition of the Church itself.
"Sola Gratia:" One is saved through grace alone,
given to the believer by God directly.
The Catholic Church also teaches that salvation is implemented by grace
from God alone. However, they stresses that the church sacraments are the
channel for God's grace.
"Sola Fide:" Salvation is by the individual's
faith alone in trusting Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Again, the Catholic
Church stresses the importance of church sacraments.
. "Sola" means "alone" in
Latin
Mary:
Catholics see Mary
as being hand-Picked by God to be the New Testament Ark of the Covenant,
the Mother of God who was always full of grace, the New Eve (who
reversed Eve's action), a Woman Clothed with the sun who fights satan,
and Our Mother. In other words, like Gabriel said before the incarnation, The Lord Is With Thee!
Rev 2:26-27 To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— that one ‘will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery’—just as I have received authority from my Father.
The Bible describes Mary as the physical mother of Jesus, and that she was made
pregnant by God. (Matthew 1:16, Luke 1:26-42, Luke 2:5-19) Mary visited her
cousin Elisabeth (Luke 1:39-56) Mary attended a feast at Jerusalem with her
family. (Luke 2:48-51) Mary is present at a marriage feast. (John 2:1-10) Mary
looked for Jesus when He was teaching inside a house (Matthew 12:46-47, Mark 3:31,
Luke 8:19). Mary went to see Jesus at the cross (John 19:25-27). Mary was
committed to the care of Jesus' disciple John. (John 19:27) Mary lived with the
disciples in Jerusalem for a while (Acts 1:14).
Protestants View God does not have a mother, for
God and Jesus already existed before Mary existed (Isaiah 43:10). Mary was not
God's mother, but simply a channel through which Jesus entered this physical
world.
Protestants refer to Mary as "virgin," they mean she was a virgin
only until Jesus’ birth. They believe that she and Joseph later had
children whom Scripture refers to as "the brethren of the Lord." The
disagreement arises over biblical verses that use the terms "brethren,"
"brother," and "sister."
There are about ten instances in the New Testament where "brothers"
and "sisters" of the Lord are mentioned (Matt. 12:46; Matt. 13:55; Mark
3:31–34; Mark 6:3; Luke 8:19–20; John 2:12, 7:3, 5, 10; Acts 1:14; 1
Cor. 9:5).
While Catholics say Because neither Hebrew nor Aramaic (the language spoken by Christ and
his disciples) had a special word meaning "cousin," speakers of those
languages could use either the word for "brother" or a circumlocution,
such as "the son of my uncle." But circumlocutions are clumsy, so the
Jews often used "brother."In the Septuagint the Hebrew word that includes both brothers and cousins was translated as adelphos,
which in Greek usually has the narrow meaning that the English
"brother" has. Unlike Hebrew or Aramaic, Greek has a separate word for
cousin, anepsios, but the translators of the Septuagint used adelphos, even for true cousins.
You might say they transliterated instead of translated, importing the
Jewish idiom into the Greek Bible. They took an exact equivalent of the
Hebrew word for "brother" and did not use adelphosin one place (for sons of the same parents), and anepsios in
another (for cousins). This same usage was employed by the writers of
the New Testament and passed into English translations of the Bible. To
determine what "brethren" or "brother" or "sister" means in any one
verse, we have to look at the context. When we do that, we see that
insuperable problems arise if we assume that Mary had children other
than Jesus.
Pope:
Catholics view Jesus Christ founded His church upon Peter and the apostles, giving
Peter (the first Pope) the full authority to lead the Church, as we see
in the bible:
"Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona. For flesh and blood has not revealed
this to you, but My Father who is in Heaven. And I tell you, you are
Peter, and on this rock I will build My Church, and the powers of Hell
shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of
Heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in Heaven, and
what you loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven." (Matthew 16:17-19)
Further, Jesus said to Peter and the other apostles,
"Whoever listens to you listens to me. Whoever rejects you rejects me.
And whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me." (Luke 10:16)
A letter written by Ignatius to Christians in Smyrna around 106 AD is the earliest surviving witness to the use of the term "Catholic Church".
Catholic Doctrine says
*********
Jer. 33:17 -
Jeremiah prophesies that David shall never lack a man to sit on the
throne of the earthly House of Israel. Either this is a false prophecy,
or David has a successor of representatives throughout history.
Dan. 2:44 -
Daniel prophesies an earthly kingdom that will never be destroyed.
Either this is a false prophecy, or the earthly kingdom requires
succession.
Isa. 22:20
- in the old Davidic kingdom, Eliakim succeeds Shebna as the chief
steward of the household of God. The kingdom employs a mechanism of
dynastic succession. King David was dead for centuries, but his kingdom
is preserved through a succession of representatives.
Isa. 22:19
- Shebna is described as having an "office" and a "station." An office,
in order for it to be an office, has successors. In order for an
earthly kingdom to last, a succession of representatives is required.
This was the case in the Old Covenant kingdom, and it is the case in the
New Covenant kingdom which fulfills the Old Covenant. Jesus our King is
in heaven, but He has appointed a chief steward over His household with
a plan for a succession of representatives.
Isa. 22:21 -
Eliakim is called “father” or “papa” of God's people. The word Pope
used by Catholics to describe the chief steward of the earthly kingdom
simply means papa or father in Italian. This is why Catholics call the
leader of the Church "Pope." The Pope is the father of God's people, the
chief steward of the earthly kingdom and Christ's representative on
earth.
Isa. 22:22 -
we see that the keys of the kingdom pass from Shebna to Eliakim. Thus,
the keys are used not only as a symbol of authority, but also to
facilitate succession. The keys of Christ's kingdom have passed from
Peter to Linus all the way to our current Pope with an unbroken lineage
for almost 2,000 years.
Acts 1:20 -
we see in the early Church that successors are immediately chosen for
the apostles' offices. Just as the Church replaced Judas, it also
replaced Peter with a successor after Peter's death.
John 21:15-17; Luke 22:31-32
- Jesus' creation of Peter's office as chief shepherd with the keys
passed to Linus, Cletus, Clement I, all the way to our current Holy
Father.
Matt. 23:2 -
this shows that the Jews understood the importance of succession to the
chair and its attendant authority. Here, Jesus respects Moses' seat
("cathedra") of authority which was preserved by succession. In the
Church, Peter's seat is called the "cathedra," and when Peter's
successor speaks officially on a matter of faith or morals, it may rise
to the level of an "ex cathedra" (from the chair) teaching.
Protestants view
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The Pope is a man Catholics have claimed is a mediator between God and mankind.
But as it has been said Jesus is the only mediator between God and mankind (1
Timothy 2:5).
Catholics also claim the Pope is the head of the Church on earth,
but the Bible says Jesus is the head of the Church (Colossians 1:18, Ephesians
1:22, Colossians 2:9-10).
We should not give to any man the honour that belongs
to Jesus alone.
A common Catholic tradition involves kissing and bowing down to images and
statues, The Bible says that is wrong,
and such objects should not even be made (Exodus 20:4-5). Jesus told us to
worship God in Spirit and truth (John 4:23-24). There are many other Catholic
practices and beliefs that can't be found in the Bible.
Purgatory is a place Catholics believe they will go if they die with unpaid
penalties, there they will pay for their penalties by suffering. However, nothing about purgatory can be found in the Bible. Jesus said in the Bible, that He who hears His word and believes
in Him who sent Him, has everlasting life, and will not be judged, but has
passed from death to life (John 5:24). The Bible also says God does not remember
sins that have been forgiven (Hebrews 10:17). The Bible also says that once
Christians die they will be present with God (2 Corinthians 5:8-9), there is no
place in between.
Catholics also teach that the unpaid penalties can cause individuals to be
punished in this life also, in various forms of sufferings, and what remains
unpaid by suffering on earth will be paid in purgatory. The whole concept of Indulgences goes against the Bible, which teaches that
God's Gift of life is free, for the whole punishment for all sin has been paid
for by Jesus once and for all (Hebrews 10:10).
It is often believed among Catholics that a certain group of people called
priests have the power and authority to forgive sins. So sins must be confessed
to priests. But such beliefs are the opposite of what is found in the Bible,
which says Jesus has the power to forgive sins (Matthew 9:6). Also, no human
priest is a mediator between God and man. The
Bible also teaches we can ask God ourselves for forgiveness, and He promises to
forgive us and cleanse us (1 John 1:9). Peter also said in the Bible, that
through Jesus name, whoever believes in Him will receive forgiveness of their
sins (Acts 10:43). The Bible does not teach that today there should be a
special class of people called priests, for God sees all Christians as priests
(1 Peter 2:9).
Conclusion:
Today, you are the temple of God. (1 Corinthians 3:16) And your temple should be a “house of prayer”
The
simple truth is God's gift of life has been fully paid by Jesus on the cross. We
can
receive it in this life by turning from our wrong ways and accepting Jesus as our Lord. we have eternal life when we
put our faith in Jesus, as the Scripture says: "He that believes on the Son has
everlasting life" (John 3:36).
There are only one kind of Christian, those that have made Jesus Lord of their
life, and the simplest definition of a "true" Church is any group of people that
is united by a shared love of Jesus Christ.
No
amount of self-punishment or crying can atone for them. Your sins have
already been punished fully in the body of Jesus. Only His finished work
satisfies God. So change your mind and simply believe that Jesus alone
is the propitiation for your sins!
For God to fulfill His promise, He has to prosper you. You can’t be the heir of the world and be poor or in debt! Not only that, He must keep you healthy because you can’t inherit the world when you are sick and always flat on your back.
Don’t listen to people who tell you that you will only get to enjoy these blessings when you get to heaven one fine day. Why would you need riches in heaven? There, even the streets are made of pure gold. (Revelation 21:21) And why would you need healing in heaven? There is no sickness there. So you need the health and wealth in the here and now!
Beloved, God wants you to be the heir of the world today. So lay hold of your rich inheritance today. Jesus paid for it with His blood. Don’t push it all to the sweet by and by!
Look away from these things and begin to behold the glory of Jesus who
is in you right now, and you will begin to behold the miracles that you
need!
My friend, you don’t have to run to a church leader to get him to pray
“more powerfully” for you. You can pray yourself. Then, take advantage
of Jesus’ intercession for you and say, “Lord Jesus, I don’t know what
else to say… please intercede for me.” Jesus removes all that is superfluous and unclean from our prayers, such as unbelief and self-centeredness.
Jesus our High Priest adds His perfection, beauty, excellence and
fragrance, which the Father so delights in, to our prayers. That is how
He presents our prayers to the Father. That is how He lives to make
intercession for you. And when Jesus gives His personal
touch to your prayer, you can be sure that it will be answered!
His blood speaks for us and puts God on our side. God does not see our rebellion. He sees the blood of His Son and accepts us!
My friend, all that Jesus is in heaven today, you are in this world. All
that belongs to Him belongs to you. That is why it is in your interest
to know Him more, to see Him in all His glory and beauty. And because
Jesus is so rich and glorious, it will take you a lifetime to discover
everything that He has done for you and has for you.
Beloved, you are an heir of the Most High God. You are a joint heir with
Christ Jesus. So find out all the blessings that your rich inheritance
includes and start walking in them today!
Who are the priests today? You and I! In fact, we have more authority to
pronounce good things than the Levitical priests of the Old Testament.
They were just priests. But we are king-priests by the
blood of Jesus! (Revelation 1:5–6) Where the word of the king is, there
is power. (Ecclesiastes 8:4) And by the word of a priest, every
controversy and every assault shall be settled. (Deuteronomy 21:5)
Beloved, God has cleansed you, so pronounce yourself clean! Right now,
put your hand on your heart and pronounce good things over yourself.
Say, “I pronounce myself clean, righteous, healed, whole and prosperous
by the blood of Jesus!” By your word as a king-priest, every assault
against you shall be settled!
“Take My prosperity! Take My favor! Every time you come into My Presence, take, and take some more!”
God, your heavenly Father, wants you to receive like the prodigal son,
who deserved nothing but received everything. (Luke 15:11–24) God
delights in giving freely. And He delights in you receiving freely
because it shows that you value and appreciate His Son’s sacrifice.