Why do the catholics on this board always seem to come across as?

Question

far more intelligent that the protestants or evangelicals.

Whenever I ask a question I get a fair and sensible response from the Catholic people.

The others just seem to resort to, spitting out some out of contect bible quotes that they have been thought at Chruch. The worst thing is when you look at the answers you realise that these people are being thought by ministers or pastors who likewise are interpreting the bible the way they want.

i ask about baptisim and I get some person acting like they know the greek when they dont.

Granted their are human failings on all sides but the Catholic Theology is a lot more sound that the protestant.

The bible isint God.

I am evangelical but strongly considering becoming catholic based on the truths of the church.

Example: How can the fool who said the catholic church interprets the bible for catholics and at the same time protestants listed to a 45 minute sermon every sunday that is more often than not interpreted by an untrained layman!!!!!!!!!!!!11

Answer 1

I think who you are referring to may be the same type of people who continually try to slander the Catholic church by asking questions such as why are all priests pedophiles and why did the Pope say the Catholic church is the one true church? I have answered all these questions numerous times with well thought out answers and citations for them to check themselves.
They always pick as best answer the person who says because Catholics are not real Christians or something equally thought provoking.
These people do not want to learn anything new, they memorize Bible verses and that is as far as they have gotten. That is sadly all they know.

Answer 2

Wow, that was an unexpected compliment! Admittedly, this is one Catholic who's gotten a bit defensive over the past year, but for the most part, we're not used to people praising us for our intellectual abilities -- just the opposite, in fact.

Catholicism is not as hung up on certain issues as many Protestant denominations are. Evolution versus Creation is a primary example of this. Some of the more extreme Protestant groups insist that Genesis is the only possible explaination for how we got here. Catholics see God's hand at work in our creation and existence, no matter how He chose to accomplish that goal.

The same thing is true of the insistence that the Bible is the "only" true source of doctrine and religious practices. Many of those who hold that belief sit in Sunday religious services that are barely distinguishable from a Catholic Mass, and yet they are convinced that they haven't borrowed anything from Catholicism and tradition.

Many of us have studied our faith with learned and brilliant men such as the Jesuit fathers. We're encouraged to understand and to know why we believe what we believe. We're not asked to accept a point of doctrine blindly without studying and comprehending it. I think that gives us a little bit of an edge in some ways.

Answer 3

As a Catholic, I am not going to get into an argument like this. It does not do my faith any good for me to speak disparagingly of another's faith.

Evangelicals come in many stripes.

I think on this board we have more than our share of people who want to pick at others beliefs.

Now, what I do think does not make sense is for a person to quote the Bible as the authority to someone who doesn't accept its authority. For instance, Catholics and Protestants can both discuss Scripture and even though they might have a different interpretation, at least they both accept the source.

I have seen quotations from Holy Scripture to answer atheist questions who don't accept the source. You have to approach each person from where they are coming. I saw on Larry King one night a minister of a Christian faith defending his faith to two Jewish Rabbis by quoting the New Testament which is what someone said is like quoting the telephone book to them.

Answer 4

Some Protestants claim the Bible is the only rule of faith, meaning that it contains all of the material one needs for theology and that this material is sufficiently clear that one does not need apostolic tradition or the Church’s magisterium (teaching authority) to help one understand it. In the Protestant view, the whole of Christian truth is found within the Bible’s pages. Anything extraneous to the Bible is simply non-authoritative, unnecessary, or wrong—and may well hinder one in coming to God.

Catholics, on the other hand, recognize that the Bible does not endorse this view and that, in fact, it is repudiated in Scripture. The true "rule of faith"—as expressed in the Bible itself—is Scripture plus apostolic tradition, as manifested in the living teaching authority of the Catholic Church, to which were entrusted the oral teachings of Jesus and the apostles, along with the authority to interpret Scripture correctly.

Answer 5

Well one can not catergory all Protestants into the same group.


Being raised Protestant my baptism (infant) was recognized in the Catholic Church when I converted.

My grandmother and great-aunt were Sunday school teachers.
My siblings and I would go to Bible school during the summer.
But it wasn't to memorize......it was just hearing the word of God.

The authority of the Church rests on three pillars:

Scripture- The Bible is the inerrant word of God and is to be read as the earliest Christians read it: in the light of Tradition and under the guidance of those ordained to teach.

Tradition-the teachings which the Church has preserved and passed down from Christ, His Apostles, and the unanimous teachings of the early Church Fathers .

Magisterium - the teaching authority of the Church under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

The Church has 7 Sacraments -- "outward signs of invisible grace" and media of sanctifying grace. The Sacraments were given to us by Christ so that we may receive His grace and become more like Him. The Seven Sacraments are:

Baptism
Confirmation -Sacrament of the Seal
Eucharist
Penance
Holy Matrimony
Holy Orders
Extreme Unction

The Church teaches by looking not only at Sacred Scripture, but into History and by reading what the earliest Christians have written, what those who've sat on the Chair of Peter have spoken consistently with Scripture and Tradition, and what they've solemnly defined.
To believe that the Bible is our only source of Christian Truth is unbiblical and illogical.

Answer 6

Thank you for the compliment.

I think the issue is salvation.

Certain non-Catholic denominations believe that one needs to do a, b and c and one knows for certain one is "saved."

Once they "decide" they have been saved, then end their reaching.

But Catholics understand that salvation is a grace given freely by God. A grace that can just as freely be taken away. Even though that is biblical, many non-Catholic denominations deny it emphatically.

You know the line. Once saved always saved. It goes directly against the teachings of the bible.

So in general - many Catholics strive to keep learning about faith, salvation and what God desires of his chosen people.

Just thoughts. I could be way off base. But that is the sense I get.

PS: I would avoid Alpha like the plague. Many people, Protestant and Catholic alike, believe it to be demonic. The Holy Spirit does not move people to crawl around the floor barking like dogs.
http://www.pfo.org/alpha-cr.htm
http://www.deceptioninthechurch.com/alpha.html

Answer 7

Catholics benefit from the discipline imposes by direct disciplic succession from Christ through peter,proceeding to the current Holy Father. The Church is venerable,responsible and never engages in rash behavior. Catholics tend to be highly educated and articulate. A great deal of work goes into canon law. We respect our leading theologians and of course the clergy,but also lay workers who achieve great things,such as Dorothy Day who worked with the homeless. Politically we are predominately moderate-progressive. We believe in respect for all persons as beings made in God's image. We do not presume to judge others; that is exclusively the perogative of God.

Answer 8

First of all, one cannot be trained to interpret. Second, whenever I ask a question seeking help, nobody with a religious answer is any help to me at all. Third, you believe what you actually think is true, not what the most sound people believe.

Answer 9

Thanks for the kind words, I do not bash all Protestants, I used to be one myself and know many really good Protestant people.

I think that as Catholics we are blessed with all 7 Sacraments, and we are REALLY blessed that all of our core beliefs are in print, in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. This is the result of 2000 years of study and guidance.

I would suggest an RCIA class this fall, you can look into it deeper before actually joining.

Good Luck and God Bless!

Answer 10

Good luck in your search Bill
I have some friends who are 'Born Again' and they more or less say my faith is wrong.
How do they know what is in my heart and how I have lead my life.
Read about the Early Church it reveals much.
They say ignorance of the Early Church, is ignorance of Christianity.
Better still take a degree-distance learning if you like- in Theology.
It's not biased.Oxford Brookes do a very good course.