some things that bug me about catholics...?

Question

a lot of my friends are catholic but i am protestant. a few things that bug me about catholics include the following

they are contradictory: they believe in worshiping god and the ten commandments yet how do they justify the killing of innocent people during the crusades, robbing people of the money through indulgences and the inquisition. killing, stealing, and torture. those are all sins.

they believe if they screw up, get drunk, get high, do whatever the heck they please they can go to confession and go right back out and do it again.

they are closeminded. jesus wanted everyone to forgive the sinners and said "let all the little childern come to me" however, if you arent catholic they frown upon you. i attend a catholic school and because i am protestant i cant participate in the eucharist in mass and i am unable to give tours of the school to visitors.

my friends came to my church and werent allowed to have comunion because they said it "wasnt like they were having the real eucharist" because the preist wasnt catholic.

in my school i often hear how protestants "arent chrisitan."

i may be wrong but i thought all catholics were christian but all chrisitans arent catholic. they make it seem that if you arent catholic then you arent a christian.

also, one of my teachers flat out told me my cousin was going to hell because he wasnt baptized and how you have to be baptized or no heaven for you.

where does that leave all those poor childern who have never taught them about jesus or those babies who are aborted? i believe god still loves them and takes them up to heaven but they said "you can only pray god has compassion on them"

also, we were asked to pray for our principal who was having surgury. i always pray like "hey god watsup its me again..." but when my teacher asked what prayers id ask, i told them id just pray and they said "you arent worthy to talk to god like that. just say five hail marys and ten our fathers for her and that will be your praying but we as humans arent allowed to have that relationship with god."

also, one of my friends said that the pope was one away from god. i was like umm then what about jesus and the kid looked at me like i was stupid and say "the pope is close enough to be jesus" now that really ticked me off. god and jesus should be at the top. the pope is just a man - an amazing man - but yet just a man who people elected. he isnt "holy" or "sacred" jesus is holy. jesus is perfect and amazing.

well thanks for listening to my rants. i hope i didnt offend anyone i was just sharing my opinion.

i wasnt making a generalization and i know that there are good and bad people in every race and religion. i am just a little ticked off at the people at my school. i hope i dont offend you because that is not what i am trying to do i am just trying to get my anger out at how i am treated at my school for not being catholic. i dont want to offend anyone so please dont take this personally and please dont get mad at me i just needed to get some feelings out.

Answer 1

I'm sorry you've had bad experiences. My advice is to stick to the bible and develop a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. There are always going to be people who will say this, that or the other thing. Don't let them ruffle your feathers.

Any church that insists it's the only way to God, or that you have to participate in their traditions in order to be approved by God, is a church I would seriously advise to stay away from. We come to God through His son, period.

Answer 2

Easy there missy!

The Crusades would take a whole month to discuss by them selves, so would the study of the inquisition, and indulgences, and that dark time of the faith. I have spent the time to study all of them before I became Catholic, in summary, you are saying that all of those things were Catholic Doctrine, they were not, they were mis-guided Catholics (Christians) doing bad things. Actually, at the time your Protestant people were all Catholic, they did not split until after those times, so we can all trace our past to people that have been bad. You have to decide if you are only going to follow a faith of all perfect people or if you can accept that all people are human and imperfect.

Have you found a Protestant congregation that is 100% perfect? If you have, let me know, and I will join it. Jim Jones, Jimmy Swaggart, David Koresh, many more does that mean that all Protestants are bad, of course not that would be ridiculous. So why blame all Catholics and the Catholic faith?

We do NOT believe that we can sin and do whatever we want and confess and go back and do it again, you should learn about our Sacrament of Confession, if you confess with the knowledge that you are going to do it again anyway, that is an invalid confession. You must be serious about amending your life for the confession to be valid in the eyes of God.

I used to be Protestant as well, and I used to feel that they were judging me by not allowing me to participate in the Eucharist, there is however, a real good reason, you look on the Eucharist as a cracker, I did as well. Catholics believe in the transubstantiation of the Eucharist into the very body of Christ. That is something that we hold sacred, Jesus said "This IS my body" If you do not believe in this, then if you participate in the Eucharist, we are throwing his body away. I know it is hard to understand, but PLEASE we are not looking down at you!

I am going through your post point by point, I think that there is more that did not transfer to this page, I strongly suggest that you do a read of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and find our what we REALLY believe and why. It will help you understand us better!

And I am sorry if others make you feel like an outsider.

I was a Protestant for over 20 years and spent the next 20 studying the faith (among others) before joining.

I am not offended, and no problem for letting off some steam I just hope you take the time to at least listen to what Catholics really believe, and I assure you that the kids in your class are not theology experts, it sounds like you have some teachers that are either saying things that they sould not, or you are not understanding them, if they really said those things, talk to your Principal.


Good Luck and God Bless!

Answer 3

I'm not offended. It does sound like you are very angry at your experience in school. It is sad that a teacher would make a judgment about you based on baptism.

You are correct that you can't take communion. I understand how that feels. I used to enjoy attending a Catholic service (on holy days we don't celebrate like Thanksgiving) but always felt very awkward and unwelcome when it came to the communion. I know that the people were glad I was there, it was just my own sense of not belonging.

Such a feeling can really hurt when you are going to school and feel like you are being treated poorly because you are Protestant.

My advice is to:
1. Don't let people in the school define you. You are a child of God and he loves you. Don't let any teacher or student at the school tell you different.

2. Have you told your parents how you feel? I think that our parents should be our best supporters. It would be good if you could share how you feel with them. They might be able to help you with your feelings and find a better way to deal with this.

3. Do as has been suggested learn a little about the Catholic religion. Sometimes we Protestants see some Catholics who misbehave and have a tendency to blame all catholics. When you say that some get drunk, etc go to confession and go right back out and do it again, of course you are right. But there are also Protestants who live like that. The vast majority of Catholics confess their sins and truly repent and try to change. You may also be seeing some bad behavior from friends. If they do bad things and then say confession makes it all right and then continue to do it, they are wrong. They know deep down that isn't what confession is about.

Mainly sister, just remember who you are. You are a child of the Living God and He loves you. You are precious in his eyes. Live your life to the fullest and may God bless you. Thank you for sharing.

Pastor John

Answer 4

I will try to answer your questions as best I can.

Some things in the church's distant and recent past bother me too. Bishops, priests and church members are ordinary people and do, say and think some think they should not.

We are all imperfect and are all sinners. I know it is cliche but we are not perfect, just forgiven.

I am sorry your schoolmates look down on you, I cannot exactly answer why. This is not Catholic teaching. I also cannot answer why you cannot give tours, maybe you should take this up with a teacher or the principal.

Catholic teaching says that the Eucharist IS the body and blood of Christ, it is not a symbol. Catholic teaching says you should not take communion if you do not agree with this teaching. The Catholic church is "in communion" with some Orthodox churches and members can take the sacraments at each other's churches. Apparently the Catholic church is not in communion with your church. This is a bit of theology which is beyond me, I recommend talking to a priest.

I have honestly never heard a Catholic say that a Protestant is not Christian, this is just incorrect. Christianity is the broader term and other churches, such as Catholic, Methodist, Greek Orthodox etc. fall under Christianity.

If a teacher said anyone, and I mean anyone, is going to hell I recommend you take this up with the principal or a priest. I am 100% serious about this.

Catholicism does not have all the answers to every hypothetical. Commonly the answer is "we do not know, that is for God to decide."

Answer 5

You have issues that aren't going to be resolved in this venue, you have a misconception of what it is to be Catholic, possibly from your what seems to be experience from hell which byt he way is not representative of Catholicism and a misunderstanding of what it is to be truly Catholic. I would describe what that is but I reeally dont believe you want to hear that.
Catholicism is based on the principle of Christianity, it is the oldest Christian Church and the foundation of which all other churches sprung from.
Catholics know that our church's history has been filled with false proclamations and we don't deny our history, but we are not the only ones to have had a history of such.
Catholics recieve the tru body and blood of Jesus Christ himself in the Eucharist during communion, that is our belief, and the reason they don't let you recieve communion in the Church is based on this principle, because for you and other protestants it is just a wafer.
True Catholics are never closed minded, that is why we don't question evolutionary thought, theory or science, it has its place, and the mystery of faith also has its place.
And above all we as truly practicing Catholics do not believe that we can confess our sins and continue to commit them and confess them again and that is it. We believe that for true absolution of the sin there must be a change of heart, in which that sin is no longer committed.
I would recommend that before you start spreading untruth, study the Catechism of the Catholic Church and its compendium with the updates, in there you will find truth.
God bless.

Answer 6

+ The Crusades +

Muslim armies had conquered much of northern Africa, Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Spain, which had been some of the most heavily Christian areas in the world.

Thousands, and possibly millions, of Christians died during this drive to eventually bring the entire world under Islam.

The First Crusade was launched in 1095 by Pope Urban II to check the advance of the Muslims and regain control of the city of Jerusalem and the Holy Land.

I am sure that some atrocities were committed by both sides during this war but by most people's judgment this was a just war.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Crusade

+ The Inquisition +

Modern historians have long known that the popular view of the Inquisition is a myth. The Inquisition was actually an attempt by the Catholic Church to stop unjust executions.

Heresy was a capital offense against the state. Rulers of the state, whose authority was believed to come from God, had no patience for heretics. Neither did common people, who saw heretics as dangerous outsiders who would bring down divine wrath.

When someone was accused of heresy in the early Middle Ages, they were brought to the local lord for judgment, just as if they had stolen a pig. It was not to discern whether the accused was really a heretic. The lord needed some basic theological training, very few did. The sad result is that uncounted thousands across Europe were executed by secular authorities without fair trials or a competent judge of the crime.

The Catholic Church's response to this problem was the Inquisition, an attempt to provide fair trials for accused heretics using laws of evidence and presided over by knowledgeable judges.

From the perspective of secular authorities, heretics were traitors to God and the king and therefore deserved death. From the perspective of the Church, however, heretics were lost sheep who had strayed from the flock. As shepherds, the pope and bishops had a duty to bring them back into the fold, just as the Good Shepherd had commanded them. So, while medieval secular leaders were trying to safeguard their kingdoms, the Church was trying to save souls. The Inquisition provided a means for heretics to escape death and return to the community.

Most people tried for heresy by the Inquisition were either acquitted or had their sentences suspended. Those found guilty of grave error were allowed to confess their sin, do penance, and be restored to the Body of Christ. The underlying assumption of the Inquisition was that, like lost sheep, heretics had simply strayed.

If, however, an inquisitor determined that a particular sheep had purposely left the flock, there was nothing more that could be done. Unrepentant or obstinate heretics were excommunicated and given over to secular authorities. Despite popular myth, the Inquisition did not burn heretics. It was the secular authorities that held heresy to be a capital offense, not the Church. The simple fact is that the medieval Inquisition saved uncounted thousands of innocent (and even not-so-innocent) people who would otherwise have been roasted by secular lords or mob rule.

Where did this myth come from? After 1530, the Inquisition began to turn its attention to the new heresy of Lutheranism. It was the Protestant Reformation and the rivalries it spawned that would give birth to the myth. Innumerable books and pamphlets poured from the printing presses of Protestant countries at war with Spain accusing the Spanish Inquisition of inhuman depravity and horrible atrocities in the New World.

For more information, see:
The Real Inquisition, By Thomas F. Madden, National Review (2004) http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/madden200406181026.asp
Inquisition by Edward Peters (1988)
The Spanish Inquisition by Henry Kamen (1997)
The Spanish Inquisition: Fact Versus Fiction, By Marvin R. O'Connell (1996): http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/history/world/wh0026.html

+ With love in Christ.

Answer 7

First of all, the Catholic Church is led by human beings. And as human beings, they make mistakes.

Second, a confession is not valid if the person making it goes in with the intent to "go right back out and do it again."

As far as you not being able to take communion, most if not all Protestant faiths do not believe that when the host and wine are consecrated (blessed) they become the actual body and blood of Christ. Catholics do not receive communion as merely a rememberance.

A good source book is "Why do Catholics Do That?"

Answer 8

You do know that many of the Crusades were before the Protestants broke off from the Catholic Church, right?
And that many of the tenants you mentioned are (at least officially) still the tenants of Protestants?

For someone who criticizes the "Catholics" for being close minded and unforgiving you sure criticize shared Christian history a lot.

Maybe you should work on forgiving yourself. "Doctor heal thyself!"

Answer 9

That's what happens when paganism is allowed to infiltrate the Church. The early Church Fathers were fighting against this very thing. They were taught by the Apostles who were taught by Jesus Christ. They believed that we must repent of our sins and be baptizen in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. Then we will receive the Holy Ghost with the evidence of speaking in an unknown language. The Holy Ghost (power of God) will then teach us. As men were leaning on their own interpretations (gnosism) of scripture instead of being taught by the Holy Ghost they were coming up with all kinds of nonsense. Many times ignoring whole passaged of scripture because they didn't believe it. or didn't want to do it. What a shame. Praise the Lord that He was never left without a witness. There was always someone on the earth that believes the way that the Apostles were taught.

Answer 10

I would get a few books on Catholicism such as The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Catholicism or read up on the actual beliefs of Catholicism on Catholic websites.
Your bigoted rant shows that you have been lied to and brainwashed by your church. When you find out the truth about the Catholic Church, I hope you will go back to your church and ask why they lied to you.
And by the way, I'm not Catholic- just educated.

Answer 11

Seems like you may be listing to opinions and not learning what God says about these issues.
God's word has the final authority on these matters,not man.