If you are a christian and used to be a protestant but converted to catholicism...why did you decide to do that? do you feel that what you did was right? Has your faith in God changed much?
2006-09-21 20:49:18 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Let me share with you a story.
I was a Protestant. Life was simply beautiful with Jesus. Everything is just about Jesus. From the moment I wake up, it's just Praise to Jesus. Till the moment I brush my teeth, thank you Jesus for everything. Reading the Bible amplify and magnify my faith in the Lord. Such faith is tremendous.
... "I can do all things through Christ"....
... "If God is on my side, who can be against me?"...
Believing in Jesus made me a Son of God worthy of the Kingdom of Heaven because I was cleansed by His precious blood. Every moment, it was all about being the First and not the Last. It's all about Conquering everything in the name of Jesus. It's all about the blessings that God has given to his chosen ones. And because of this, we need to share with others. We need to care. Better still, we want to share! And so, I went around from door to door, standing at the road, going through everywhere from schools to shopping malls to anywhere you can think of, just sharing news about Jesus to other people.
The community lifestyle in a Protestant environment is simply overwhelming. Every night it was Bible night with lots of prayer of worship and praises. I ever remember that we read passages from the Bible about how David conquered Goliath the giant. It was all because of the blessings of God.
But seriously, it's beautiful of a different kind. Praising God, loving God differently. There's lots of active, jumping fun worshiping God in the Assembly of God Protestant community.
Next, I looked into the Catholic Beliefs and I start to condemn them. Condemn their worship of Mother Mary, condemn them for calling their priest "Father"... and the list goes on...
Then I read more about why they believed in Saints, why they call their priests Father. Why they did what they do. I tried to understand them and finally I understand now.
Then, I fell in love with they way they love God. It is again a different kind of beauty. But this time it is deeper, it is more intense, it is more serious, more enriching. Until finally, it captured my heart and I could not turn back. It was the most beautiful way of loving God. My life was changed and things will never be the same. The measure of humility that the Catholic Church has .... is immense. Attending Mass can sometimes put me to tears. Can you ever imagine something that can just put you to tears. Can you ever imagine what must it take to capture your heart and put you to tears? It is only with tears can I express how great is the way the Catholic Church love God.
Today, I am a Catholic and I'm proud to be one. But only proud in the sense that God has found me, took me into his arms and shown me how great is his love for us in a very sacrificial way. He suffered because He loves. To suffer like Christ did is something really serious, serious enough until I can feel His love in His suffering.
It is really different from the scenario of a Protestant. They draw their strength from God, they celebrate always with joy, singging, shouting, jumping and dancing. Very alive, aggressive and active.
But in the life of a Catholic, it is more serene, gentle and contemplative. It's more like looking at the green leave with a dew drops on it and suddenly see how beautiful God has made the world. It is also more like looking into a chaotic life with poverty and sin and lots of pain and anger and yet notice that all is not lost as Christ himself went through the same trials. Steadfast and perseverence is what God asked of us. It's simply beautiful.
In summary, I'm not saying that Protestant does not have the sort of serenity that Catholic has. They do. But it is really of a different kind. It feels different. Well at least to me, it all feels different and I will not condemn any of them for I have accepted that it is just of a different kind. The leg cannot tell the hand the it is greater for they all belong to the same body. Christ is just as real to me when I was a protestant as when I am a Catholic now.
What I will say is this... fill your live with love just as Christ loves. No matter whether you are a Catholic or Protestant or an atheist. No point fighting or argue if you have no love in your heart. Really.... there's no point if you don't love because God is love.
2006-09-22 07:22:26 · answer #1 · answered by frankenstein3000 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I was fundamentalist turned Catholic. I read Martin Luther and he convinced me to be Catholic. Luther was not originally anti-Catholic and the Catholic Church ended up adopting everything he was complaining about. I am sure what I did was right. My faith is much deeper than it could have been in a Protestant Church. Protestantism often lacks depth. All Protestant Churches have an analog in the Catholic Church but the reverse is not true. I see it this way, there are 46,000 Protestant denominations, each one believing it is correct and but one Catholic Church proclaiming the same message today it did in the first century. Protestants go to conference and change their views all the time. Protestantism is disintigrating into a set of social groups that are smaller and smaller every day. Each one is building groups that think alike instead of one group that thinks differently. The strength of Catholicism is that you do not have to share a world view to be Catholic. You can be from a stone age society or a neurosurgeon from New York and be Catholic. Protestants demand conformity or you need to change denominations. Catholics do not have that type of internal conformity. The only requirement is that you love one another, which is what the word Catholic means in Greek, all embracing. The translation as universal is really not a good translation.
2006-09-22 00:28:48 · answer #2 · answered by OPM 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I have been involved in RCIA (The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) for over 20 years now. The overwhelming majority of people who convert to Catholicism come from a Protestant faith background. We do get people with no religious background at all but not often. The wonderful thing about the program is that we all learn from each others faith and thereby deepen our own. It takes from 9 months to a year to become Catholic, depending on where the individual is on their faith journey.
2006-09-21 21:04:35 · answer #3 · answered by Robert L 4 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Protestants and Catholics are both Christians.And have the same fundamental beliefs. God never changes........humans can change the way they worship, but in the end we all have the same Christ and God. If there is any change in a person it is a personal choice.
2006-09-21 20:54:21 · answer #4 · answered by clcalifornia 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
read the book, "crossing the tiber" i found it last week, its about a family raised as protestant christians, and eventually converted to catholic... it was a nice book...
they say every person who goes back to the catholic fold has their own reason, but the fundamentals are in thier book...
i find interesting and have learned something also...
2006-09-21 21:51:56 · answer #5 · answered by BHEEELLAAATTT!!!!!! 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I think it's quite unusual but most likely the other way round, catholic turned protestant.
However, in England, when the Church accepted female priests, some priests converted to catholocism in protest.
2006-09-21 20:51:35 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
It was a calling and a coming home. I found what I had been missing in my life and what I was seeking. I answered that call and received another which has led me here. My faith is sufficient and indeed stronger.
2006-09-21 23:38:54 · answer #7 · answered by hiddenforlove 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
no I do not know any one that has we have some excathoics in our church but I am not sure they found God yet but at least they are still searching
2006-09-21 20:57:28 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋