What are the differences between...?

Question

Protestants and Catholics, and how did they come to be

Answer 1

protestants believe different than catholics. We don't have as many ceremonies and most protestants don't baptise babies. We don't have a central leader like the pope.

Answer 2

Protestants are Christians

Catholics are of the Anit-Christ

Protestants obey THE Bible

Catholics have their own version of the Bible

Catholics pray to dead ppl which is an abomination to God as found in Deut. 18

Catholics believe that you must belong to the church and do their sacraments to be saved.

Protestants know that all you must do to be saved is repent of your sins and believe in your heart that Jesus is the Son of God.

IT'S THAT SIMPLE.

Of course there are many many other things Catholics do that go against scripture like make graven images and bow down to them, call a priest father etc.

Answer 3

the Catholiics were selling notes of indulgence , and that is not a Biblically correct practice, Martin Luther called them on it (the Bibal was kept out of the hands of the masses b4 that) and the catholic hierarchy would not listen so he wrote a paper it got circulated there was a revolt and eventually a split. This is what happens when the leadership puts itself above accountability. The Bible says the leaders are accountable Mat 18 and the letters to TIM.

Answer 4

different religions are always born of someone wanting something that the others don't believe in so something new springs up, catholics and protestants arose out of someone wanting to divorce someone and the catholics didn't believe in it I think this is one of the reasons.

Answer 5

We protestants believe, that the only way to Father (GOD) is the Son (JESUS) as the Bible says, and we believe each word of the Bible which is our manual of life (& we read the bible very frequenty), no body can be sure what is blivieng, if not read the bible.

Answer 6

Primary Differences :

* Catholics believe that the traditions of man are equally as valid as the words of God.
* They also believe the Pope is Christ's vicar (ie: someone who acts in place of someone else) on earth, and any decision he makes while sitting on his throne is infallible (that is, it is the very word of God, and therefore cannot be morally, spiritually, physically, or logically wrong).
* They believe Peter was the first Pope, and is the founder of the Church (Note: Church with a capital "C" means all followers... the people themselves.... church with a lowercase "c" means a building or a denomination [group] of followers).
* They include books that are not inspired in their version of the Bible (called the Deuterocanon [meaning: second rules] by Catholics, called the Apocrypha [meaning: hidden writings] by Protestants).
* For recitation purposes, in the Ten Commandments, commandment #2 ("Thou shalt not make for thyself any graven image and worship it") is ignored while commandment #10 is split into two ("Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife or servant" / "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's ox, donkey, or anything that is thy neighbor's").
* Catholics recognize certain people who work miracles to be Saints.
* Catholics must confess their sins to a priest.
* Catholics hold to the concept that repetition of a formulated prayer is equal to, if not more worthy than, a single heartfelt prayer (ie repeating the Lord's prayer, word-for-word, in an indifferent manner is more valuable than saying, "Thanks for the food, God. Whatever you want to do, I'm all for it. I forgive so-and-so for stealing my bike. Please forgive me for getting angry at him" in a truly heartfelt manner).
* Catholic clergy (the priests, nuns, etc) forbid marriage.
* Catholics hold Mary in extreme respect, and there have been several attempts to promote her to co-mediatrix (that is, she does the work of salvation right along side with Jesus), and entitle her "Mary, mother of God".
* Catholics also believe in Purgatory, a place where all people enter before going to heaven, so that their sins are removed, and that praying for them, and donations to the church or the needy, will help them get out faster.
* Catholics also believe that babies should be baptized, and if they die before they are baptized, they enter a place called Limbo, which is, in essence, the same non-existance they were in before they were born.
* They also use water that has been blessed by a priest, and call it holy water, which has uses for everything from the common cold, to exorcism, to blessings, to cancer.
* Catholics also have a system called, "indulgances" : these are essentially, if you sin (or are about it), you pay the church some money, and you are forgiven of it.
* Catholics also believe that during Communion (that is, eating and drinking wine and a wafer of bread that represents the Last Supper), Jesus' flesh and blood literally becomes the bread and the wine (this process they call 'Transmutation').
* Catholics pray to angels, archangels, and saints, as well as God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit.
* Catholics kneel and adore statues of significant people (such as a saint, Mary, Jesus, etc).
* Catholics tend to see visions, particularly those of Mary, or of Jesus telling them to listen to Mary.
* Catholics use the imagery of the crucifix (that is, Jesus upon the cross, bloodied, humiliated, and dead/dying).
* Catholics believe you must belong to the Catholic church, in addition to repentance, forgiveness, and trust in Jesus, to be saved.
* Catholics call their priests 'Father'.

Protestants came around during the 16th century as a result of Martin Luther. He went and actually read the Bible, and saw how the Catholic church was run, and that it did not accurately represent the Church that Jesus and the disciples had set up.
* We believe in a concept called "Sola Scriptura", that is, 'scripture alone'. The Bible is the be-all end-all of our faith. Man makes mistakes; God doesn't. Jesus condemned those who put their traditions above the word of God (consider the passage where Jesus said that the Pharisees wouldn't allow a person who promised money to the church, use it instead on their parents who had fallen into hardship, simply because of their tradition)
* We do not believe anyone has the right to proclaim himself as the sole representative of Christ. Each of us represent Him, but none of us are to replace Him. We also do not believe that man is infallible, no matter if they are sitting on a throne dedicated to God, or not.
* We do not believe Peter founded the Church, but rather, Jesus founded the Church, and used Peter's faith to set an example of what was needed to get the Church up and going.
* Although some of us value the history within the Apocrypha, we believe it to be uninspired, and should not be included with the Bible.
* We divide the 10 Commandments in the Jewish manner (that is, #2 is about graven idols, while #10 is both coveting people and material possessions).
* We realize that all believers are saints, and none are more or less special than the next, irrespective of miracles or none.
* We confess our sins right to Christ or God Himself, as per Jesus' own statements.
* We hold that a heartfelt prayer is priceless, while one said in repetition is worthless. The number of words doesn't matter, but rather, the condition of the heart is what matters.
* Marriage for clergy is a personal decision. If you can spend the rest of your days celibate, then good for you. It'll bring your walk closer to God. But, if that life it not for you, then to prevent lust and other sins, then it would be far better to marry. This is per Paul's advice (not a command, but mere advice).
* While we respect Mary, and note that she is indeed blessed among women for simply being Christ's mom, we realize that she is not high and mighty, nor should be elevated as such. She has no role in the act of salvation, nor is a viable means of reaching or communing with God.
* We have no concept of Purgatory. You are judged the moment you die, and will receive final judgement at the end of time.
* Baptism is a symbol of your conscious and willfull decision to follow Christ your entire life. It neither cleans old sins, nor can it apply to babies or young children (since they are too young to willingly make that decision). We also have no concept of Limbo.
* We do not use holy water. Plain old tap water is just as holy as water that's been blessed by devout priests for weeks.
* We feel indulgances are best left to chocolates, ice cream, and potato chips, and in any other way, are an insult to the believer, the church, the Church, and to God. Money or good deeds do not erase sin, especially so if you know beforehand you're going to do it. Only Christ can wash away sin.
* We believe the bread and wine (or grape juice, in some Protestant groups) are mere symbols, representing our need for God and salvation are just as important as the food we eat or the drinks we drink. Both Protestants and Catholics partake of Communion to remember Christ, and what He did for us.
* We Protestants pray only to God, to Jesus Christ, and to the Holy Spirit. (Note, however, that not all Protestants pray to Jesus or the Holy Spirit, namely Jehovah's Witnesses and other non-trinitarian groups). Praying to anything else is futile, as prayer is a symbol of worship, and it is far better to speak to the 'Head Honcho' than to speak to a mere 'worker' to get any job done.
* We do not use statues for any purpose other than mere decoration.
* We rarely receive non-personal/large group visions, and next to none of Mary (those who do tend to have Catholic upbringings or relations), and none of Christ (because of the fact that He has not returned yet, but when He does, every eye, believer and non-believer alike, will see Him). We however, are given other miraculous gifts, such as prophecy, healing, and tongues, in general.
* We use the imagery of the cross, the fish, or the suffering servant (that is : a cross bearing no image, representing Christ arisen; the fish for evangelists like myself; or the man bearing the cross on Christ's behalf for missionaries).
* We believe that anyone who has repented of their sins, asked forgiveness for them, and places their trust in God and Jesus, are forgiven, no matter what denomination they're in.
* We know that, Biblically, no one, outside of your literal father (including step-father, father in law, etc), is to be called "Father" except for God.