Whats the difference between Catholics & Protestants?

Question

Just what are the simple things the belive in which differ from eachother?

Answer 1

"What separates us as believers in Christ is much less than what unites us." (Pope John XXIII)

Almost all important doctrine is completely agreed upon between Catholic Christians and other Christians.

Here is the joint declaration of justification by Catholics (1999), Lutherans (1999), and Methodists (2006):

By grace alone, in faith in Christ's saving work and not because of any merit on our part, we are accepted by God and receive the Holy Spirit, who renews our hearts while equipping us and calling us to good works.

There are many minor doctrine issues and some major cultural traditional differences which, I believe, do not matter that much.

A Catholic worships and follows Christ in the tradition of Catholicism which, among other things, recognizes that Christ made Peter the leader of His new Church and Pope Benedict XVI is Peter's direct successor.

With love in Christ.

Answer 2

OK, here goes. Some of the above answerers have not told you what you wanted to know. I'm not Catholic, but my best friend is, so I'll do my best to explain this as I understand it imperfectly myself.

ALL of the smaller differences can be explained by one major one: most evangelical Protestants accept the Bible alone as the only rule for faith and practice. This position is called "sola Scriptura". Roman Catholics DO accept the Bible as the authentic and inerrant word of God, just as we do. However, they also accept that valid and binding doctrine can come from two other sources: Sacred Tradition, which consists of the teaching of the apostles handed down orally over the centuries, as well as the teaching of the Magisterium. I don't entirely understand that, but that's what the Church teaches.

Almost all of the issues that divide us (the office of the papacy, the role of priests, Marian doctrines, etc.) stem from that one issue. Catholics believe that authoritative doctrine can come from sources outside the text of Holy Scripture; Protestants don't.

There are a few issues that don't originate from that problem, but not many. One major one is the doctrine of the Real Presence: that Christ's body and blood are actually present in the bread and wine of the Communion (Catholics call it the Eucharist). Most Protestants (and also Restorationists / churches of Christ) teach that the Communion elements are only symbolic or memorial representations of His sacrifice on the cross; Catholics and Lutherans (and I assume Anglicans?) teach that the bread and wine are His actual body and blood in some sense (they differ on this). NO, they are NOT sacrificing Him over again every Mass! They are re-enacting the original sacrifice, as though no time has passed... God is outside of time, and to them, the Eucharist is also not bound by time or space.

What's really interesting about this one point -- Jesus says as plain as plain can be, that "This is My Body, broken for you"... and Paul writes that some of the church in Corinth were censured for "failing to discern the Lord's body" in the Communion ceremony... but the Protestants who are normally so adamant about taking the text literally at face value, don't accept this interpretation. (neither did I, until I sat down and really studied it out.... now I'm in the same position as C.S. Lewis who noted that the Lord said, "Take, eat", not "Take, understand." I can accept that He is present and that it is a mystery. Farther than that, I don't know).

However, we share much in common. Both Catholics and Protestants could say all of the Nicene Creed and agree on it entirely. They and we both accept that the Bible is the inspired word of God. Some Protestants and most Catholics recognize one another as brothers and sisters in Christ (sadly, there are some in both groups who don't).

Another interesting note: Evangelicals and Catholics are strongly against abortion, yet there are very few specific Scriptures beyond "Thou shalt not murder" which support this
stand. However, the church has taught that deliberate abortion was wrong *from the first century* onwards -- this is one doctrine that Protestants also accept that was handed down from the apostles to those they discipled, and so onward from Irenaeus and Polycarp and Clement (all of whom knew the Apostle John) down to the present day.

I'm sorry I talked so long... Hopefully, that's useful information. To those who are Catholic -- I explained this the best I could, and hope I didn't mess it up too much.

Answer 3

if you are interested here are some sources that teach the truth of the catholic church,not the anti catholic nonsense the protestants have put forth in their answers,which may i add were not answered with charity,kindness or any christian trait in mind...........

www.scripturecatholic.com
www.catholiceducation.org
www.newadvent.org
www.ewtn.com
www.fisheaters.com
www.salvationhistory.com

a catechism of the catholic church and more importantly the bible.

the catholic church was given to us by jesus himself, he called his church to unity and oneness,this unity and oneness is found only in the catholic church, which is mopre evident when you consider that the protestant faith has over 28,000 denominations, even with several different divisions amongst those under the same umbrella......example baptist,southern baptist etc........each having different laws and truths from the same bible,example some baptists allow female pastors whilst others don't. i was going to go into detail about the main differences but i felt that most people covered it, from reading many of the answers i just wanted to add some perspective from the catholic position. hope this helped and god bless.

Answer 4

You already got some good answers. JennyCute's pasted reply is excellent, (though long), and has the merit of not being a one-sided comment from a Protestant (or even a Catholic) who does not actually know what the other side teaches, only what they have been TOLD the other side teaches. The person who wrote it has actually done some research.

I am Aahotep's best friend who is Catholic, and I'll add a few things I hope are helpful. I am a convert from an Evangelical Protestant background, so I have experienced both sides. There are many differences, of course -- we have been arguing about them since the Protestant Reformation almost 500 years ago -- but I think two areas are crucial. These are the definition of justification, and the source of God's authority for believers. From these two areas can be derived all the other areas of disagreement.

Justification is understood by Catholics to be a process which includes the concept of sanctification -- being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ and made righteous through a process which can include good works which are pleasing to God. God's grace, and His gift of faith, is the source of the initial justification as well as the ability to perform good works pleasing to God. Catholics do not believe that we are saved by good works any more than evangelical Protestants do -- this is a misunderstanding of the Catholic position.

Protestants, of whatever variety, normally understand justification to take place at a single point in time, at which God declares the sinner who has approached in faith to be righteous, based on the righteousness of Christ. Sanctification is a process which follows justification and is seen to be separate from it. While God's grace, and the gift of faith, is necessary for both, only justification by grace through faith at the initial point has any effect on the sinner's eternal salvation.

The other issue is the matter of authority. God's authority for His Church, the Body of Christ, comes only from His Word. Up to the Reformation this was understood to be God's written Word as set forth in the Bible, supplemented by His spoken Word, as passed down orally from the teachings of the apostles as to other things Christ said that are not written in the Gospels, and interpreted by the ordained ministers of the Church, protected from error in their interpretations by the teaching ministry of the Holy Spirit promised in John 16:13. This is still the Catholic understanding. Thus the Catholic Church sees the truth of God's Word to be like a three-legged stool -- Scripture (written), Tradition (oral pass-down), and the interpretations of the leaders of the Church (the Magisterium). The Church is understood to be the "pillar and bulwark of the truth" (I Timothy 3:15)

At the Reformation, Luther and others asserted that the written Word of God (the Bible), should be understood to contain all of God's Word that He wanted us to have, and could be used to accurately interpret itself, relying on the teaching authority of the Holy Spirit promised to believers (John 16:13 again). For a number of reasons, they also looked at the books included at that time in the Bible, and decided to follow the guidance of a first century council of Jewish scholars in removing seven of them. Most Protestant Bibles since that time contain only the 66 books Luther and his colleagues agreed should be in the canon. While evangelical Protestants sincerely try to discern the truth of God's Word from the Bible, their non-recognition of any interpretative authority has resulted in an increasing number of different denominations (many more than 200 -- by some counts the number is as high as 10,000).

Answer 5

Protestants do not need an intercessor between themselves and God except Jesus Christ. We pray directly to Him for our forgiveness. Catholics go through a priest who grants them forgiveness on behalf of the Father. Protestants do not believe that the bread and wine taken at communion (mass for Catholics) literally transforms into the literal flesh and blood of Jesus as it is being injested. Catholics do believe that it does. Catholics have rituals designed to absolve them of their sins. Protestants believe that Christ's sacrifice on the cross was all the work needed for sins to be forgiven. Catholics pray to Mary, the mother of Jesus and therefore (in their view) she is the mother of God since Jesus is God. Protestants pray directly to the Father or to Jesus. Protestants do not pray to Mary or other saints because the Bible says "There is but one mediator between God and man, and that is Jesus Christ." The Catholic Bible also differs from the Protestant Bible. The New Testaments are identical, but the Catholic Bible includes The Apocrypha in their Old Testament. The Protestants do not include these books because the early church fathers determined that because they were not referred to in the New Testament and/or they contained known errors they could not be included in the divinely inspired canon. I hope this helps.

An excellent book that is most helpful in understanding what Catholics believe and why is "Catholic and Christian" by Alan Schreck (a Catholic). You can find it at Barnes & Noble.

I hope this was helpful. I am, if you haven't already guessed, protestant.

Answer 6

Quite a lot really. Different Bibles. Different clergy. Different cermonies and worship services. Different Baptisms. Different beliefs. Different viewpoints. Purgatory?
Fish on fridays. Repentance versus doing "pennance". Confessing your sins to God, or to a priest. The Pope. Many many differences!!!!

Answer 7

One of the first major differences between Catholicism and Protestantism is the issue of the sufficiency and authority of Scripture. Protestants believe that the Bible alone is the sole source of God’s special revelation to mankind, and as such it teaches us all that is necessary for our salvation from sin
Catholics on the other hand reject the doctrine of “Sola Scriptura” and do not believe that the Bible alone is sufficient. They believe that both the Bible and sacred Roman Catholic tradition are equally binding upon the Christian. Many Roman Catholics doctrines, such as purgatory, praying to the saints, worship or veneration of Mary, etc. have little or no basis at all in Scripture, but are based solely on Roman Catholic traditions.
Another major but closely related difference between Catholicism and Protestantism is over the office and authority of the Pope. According to Catholicism the Pope is the “Vicar of Christ” (a vicar is a substitute), and takes the place of Jesus as the visible head of the Church.
A third major difference between Catholicism and Protestantism is how one is saved. Another of the “Five Solas” of the reformation was “Sola Fide” (faith alone), which affirms the biblical doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone because of Christ alone (Ephesians 2:8-10). However, according to Roman Catholicism, man cannot be saved by faith alone in Christ alone. They teach that the Christian must rely on faith plus “meritorious works” in order to be saved.
A third major difference between Catholicism and Protestantism is how one is saved. Another of the “Five Solas” of the reformation was “Sola Fide” (faith alone), which affirms the biblical doctrine of justification by grace alone through faith alone because of Christ alone (Ephesians 2:8-10). However, according to Roman Catholicism, man cannot be saved by faith alone in Christ alone. They teach that the Christian must rely on faith plus “meritorious works” in order to be saved.

Answer 8

The main and most important part of the Catholic Mass is when the bread and wine are truly transformed into the flesh and blood of Christ thru the power of the Holy Spirit.

This is illustrated in the book of John and was taught by the disciple John himself to St. Ignatius in the first century.

John 6:54 "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day."

55 "For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink.

56 "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.

57 "As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me.

This is also illustrated in John 6:66 which tells us of followers of Christ walking away from Him because of this teaching, which protestants claim is symbolic.

66 "As a result of this many of His disciples withdrew and were not walking with Him anymore."


Another major difference is that Catholics believe baptism washes away original sin and saves us, that baptism means being "born again"..as illustrated in the book of 1 Peter.

1 Peter 3:21 "Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you--not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience--through the resurrection of Jesus Christ."

There are too many differences to cover here, but another one of course is that Protestantism was started by man (Martin Luther) in the 16th century...and the Catholic Church was started by Jesus early in the first century. Upon establishing this church, Jesus put Peter in charge of His church here on earth and Peter's successors continue with each new pope. This is illustrated in the book of Matthew.

Matthew 16:18 "And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it."

Matthew 16:19 "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven."

The Catholic Church also follows sacred tradition as given to us by the apostles and early church leaders. Afterall, the Catholic Church existed for nearly 300 years before there was even a new testament scripture. The Church only had oral tradition to go by, as there was no Bible. This is illustrated in the book of 2 Thessalonians.

2 Thessalonians 2:15 "So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us. "

This information should give you a good start. God bless you on your journey.

Answer 9

A good portion of non-Catholics are going to Heaven. Because they have heard The Truth of The Salvation Message... the Majority of Catholics have never heard The Truth of The Salvation Message because the priests are forbidden to teach it... so most catholics will not make it to Heaven.... some will because they have. outside of the teaching of the catholics, found The Way to God.

Answer 10

This is in jest and since my parents are Irish Catholic I'm going to heck for saying it----

"about 5 kids"