How to confront anti-Catholicism

Enjoy!  If you don't know the answer...find it!  Don't let someone put you down because you don't know the answer.  Stand up for your faith!

-E

A response that may help you..

A few days ago I received an e-mail on false teachings of the Catholic Church.  Feel free to read my response below to the website that was given to me
 http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/False%20Religions/Roman%20Catholicism/catholic_vs_bible.htm

 I am very sorry that you have been mislead on the teachings and beliefs of the Catholic Church.

1. Starting with Bowing to Mary:

We believe that all saint, angels, are not dead.  (this includes anyone that has passed and went to Heaven)  We believe that they are more a live then we ever could be here on Earth. Why, because they have Eternal life in Christ.  They are with Christ.  They are completely pure and alive.   

(I will use the KJV)

John 11:25-26

King James Version (KJV)

25 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live:

26 And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?

With that said We pray with saints, not to them. It’s the same as if you were to ask someone here on Earth to pray for you well you do that with people in Heaven because they are more alive then we could ever be.  These saints bring our prayers to God in Revelations.

Revelation 5:8

King James Version (KJV)

Worthy Is the Lamb

8 Now when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

And in 1 Timothy talks about intercessions.

1 Timothy 2

King James Version (KJV)

2 I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men;

2 For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.

3 For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior;

4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.

5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

6 Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

7 Whereunto I am ordained a preacher, and an apostle, (I speak the truth in Christ, and lie not;) a teacher of the Gentiles in faith and verity.

8 I will therefore that men pray every where, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting.

When we knell down we show honor and reference to saints and angles, however we do not worship them, that would be a sin!  We only honor them for the great gifts that they were given through God.  We have to remember that God gave all these people special gifts so that they can spread the word of God.  When we knell down we are also praying with them to God because they are they ones that bring the prayers to Him in Revelations.

Graven Images:

Exodus 20:4: "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of any thing that is inheaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth"

Remember to all of Exodus and not just one verse.  We have to remember that Jews were commanded not to make graven images because they were a standard method of pagan worship.  We are not allowed to use these images for worship. Lets finish reading this part of Exodus and see what  God Commanded this:

The Ark of the Testimony

10 “And they shall make an ark of acacia wood; two and a half cubits shall be its length, a cubit and a half its width, and a cubit and a half its height. 11 And you shall overlay it with pure gold, inside and out you shall overlay it, and shall make on it a molding of gold all around. 12 You shall cast four rings of gold for it, and put them in its four corners; two rings shall be on one side, and two rings on the other side. 13 And you shall make poles of acacia wood, and overlay them with gold. 14 You shall put the poles into the rings on the sides of the ark, that the ark may be carried by them. 15 The poles shall be in the rings of the ark; theyshall not be taken from it. 16 And you shall put into the ark the Testimonywhich I will give you.

17 “You shall make a mercy seat of pure gold; two and a half cubits shall be its length and a cubit and a half its width. 18 And you shall make two cherubim of gold; of hammered work you shall make them at the two ends of the mercy seat. 19 Make one cherub at one end, and the other cherub at the other end; you shall make the cherubim at the two ends of it of one piece with the mercy seat. 20 And the cherubim shall stretch out their wings above, covering the mercy seat with their wings, and they shall face one another; the faces of the cherubim shall be toward the mercy seat. 21 You shall put the mercy seat on top of the ark, and in the ark you shall put the Testimony that I will give you. 22 And there I will meet with you, and I will speak with you from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubim which are on the ark of the Testimony, about everything which I will give you in commandment to the children of Israel.

1 Chronicles 28:18-19 18 And for the altar of incense refined gold by weight; and gold for the pattern of the chariot of the cherubims, that spread out their wings, and covered the ark of the covenant of the Lord.

And in 1 Kings chapter 7 Solomon made bulls and other images out of precious metals.

It is obvious to me that the Jews did not worship the cherubims and Solomon did not worship the bulls he had made. These images did not brake the command of God. Please note the difference. God didn't want us to worship them (which we don't). Ther're pure remembrance of the loved ones that walked with God. They are like a picturethat you may have of a loved one that has passed. You may speak to that person and tell them that you miss and love them. Well that's what we do with saints.

Just like our crucifix, it's a visual reminder of the sacrifice of Jesus. This crucifix is no different from a painting or movie of the sacrifice of Jesus.

Okay sorry I am going on about statues but there are still so many more scripture in the bible where there are statues.

(oh and please look up the Our Lady of Fatima)  There is even a movie about it as well.

2.  The Rosary is Unbiblical and Sinful

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDYdXniraZ0

Catholics believe that the rosary is a prayer for seeing Jesus in the eyes of his mother.  Each of the group of beads is a mystery of Gods life: Joyful mystery (The Annunciation of the Angel to Mary, The visitation of Mary to Saint Elizabeth, The nativity of Jesus in Bethlehem, The presentation of Jesus to the Temple, and the Finding of Jesus in the Temple ) The light Mystery (The baptism  of Jesus, The wedding of Cana, The proclamation of the kingdom of God,  The transfiguration, The institution of the Eucharist) The Sorrowful Mystery (The agony of Jesus in the garden, The scourging of Jesus at the pillar, the crowning with thorns, the Carrying of the cross, the crucifixion and death of Jesus. And last the Glorious mystery (the resurrection of Jesus Christ, the ascension of Jesus to Heaven, the descent of the Holy Ghost, the assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into Heaven, The coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary Queen of Heaven and Earth. ) (Jdt 13,18-20; 15,10) (Rev 12,1)

A lot of people just think is a lot of Our Fathers, and Hail Mary’s but it’s not.  It’s the journey of Jesus’ life.   Have you ever read the Hail Mary.  We don’t worship her in this prayer:

Hail Mary, full of grace.

Our Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women,

and blessed is the fruit of thy womb,

Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God,

pray for us sinners,

now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

This prayer is based on passages from the bible Luke 1:28-35, 42-48.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxCBxGmtUos

There is more to the rosary but it’s would take very much to explain and if you would me to then I would explain it. 

3. False Prophets Forbid Eating Meat and Getting Married

Yes the bible does teach that Peter had a wife in Matthew 8:14.  We see this because he is with his sick mother in law but it never talks about his wife being there.  No where in the bible does it talk about Peters wife.  We believe that Peter’s wife had passed.  Yes we believe that Peter was the first Pope.  So how can Peter be Pope if he was married?  Did you know that there are married priest?  We have priest that their wives have past and are able to devote 110% to the Church.  We also have Priest who were preachers, got married, and had kids but felt they had a calling to Catholicism and a calling to Priesthood.  When a man becomes a priest they are married to the Church.    Number one is that priest imitate Christ in all ways, this means that like Christ priests are not married, remember that Priests stand in the person of Christ in front of the people of God.

People that are not Catholic believe that Catholics HAVE to stop eating meat.  This is false.  During lent they ask that we thinking about giving up something or do something that will help others.  It’s a small sacrifice that we do to give up something we love because Christ gave the largest sacrifices of all, this son.  We try to be like Jesus.  Jesus went 40 days and the least we could do is give up something for forty days.  During this time we pray.  If we have a temptation to eat meat or do something that we give up we pray so that temptation can go away.       

4. Call no man Father

I believe that when God gave this commandment this he didn’t want us to have another god as we would call him father.  I believe this because he calls Abraham father over and over in the bible and Paul calls himself a spiritual father in Acts.  There are so many scriptures in the bible were on of the disciples are calling each other their spiritual father or Jesus himself calls someone else a father.  So when we call our Priest father we believe they are a spiritual father.

“And he called out, “Father Abraham, have mercy upon me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in anguish in this flame.”

“Was not Abraham our father justified by works…” Jas 2:21

“…Abrham our forefather….

….to make him the father of all who believe ….

….like wise the father of the circumcised…..

…the faith which our father Abraham…

….for he is the father of us all….

….’I have made you the father of many nations’….

….he should become the father of many nations….”

Rom 4:1-18

“And Stephen said, ‘Brethren and fathers, here me.”

Acts. 7:2

“For though you have countless guides in  Christ, you do not have many fathers.  For I became you father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” (spiritual fathers which we call Priest)

(1 Cor 4:15)

“…I bow my knees to the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, of whom all paternity in heaven and earth is named…”  (Eph 3:14-15)

The chair that the Pope sits on has an inverted cross on it.  Not because he worships the devil but because he feels that he is not worthy to be compared to Christ.  The cross is called “St. Peters Cross”  When St. Peter was crucified he didn’t want to be crucified like Christ because he felt that he was not worthy, so he was crucified upside down (this is where the upside down cross comes from).  Catholics are not the only ones that may wear this cross.

Roman Catholicism didn’t begin under Pagan Worship.  Trust me if this was the case I would not be so in love with a faith that brought be so close to God.  We believe that when Jesus gave the keys to Heaven to Peter He gave Peter the ATHURITY to the universal Church.

16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. Matthew 16:16-19

17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.

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.

19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall beloosed in heaven.

"See that ye all follow the bishop, even as Christ Jesus does the Father,

and the presbytery as ye would the apostles. Do ye also reverence the

deacons, as those that carry out the appointment of God. Let no man do

anything connected with the Church without the bishop. Let that be deemed

a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by

one to whom he has entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there

let the multitude also be; by the bishop, or by one to whom he has

entrusted it. Wherever the bishop shall appear, there let the multitude

also be; even as, wherever Jesus Christ is, there is the Catholic Church."

Ignatius of Antioch, Epistle to the Smyrneans, 8:2 (c. A.D. 110). A Follower/student of John the Apostle.

Remember that the Catholic Church believes in scripture and sacred tradition (don’t get this wrong with man made tradition) We believe that the Holy Spirit can work through someone on Earth and Heaven.   John 21:25

King James Version (KJV)

25 And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

These traditions have been handed down and entrusted to the Churchs. It is necessary that Christians believe in and follow this tradition as well as the Bible (Luke 10:16). Thetruth of the faith has been given primarily to the leaders of the Church (Eph. 3:5), who, with Christ, form the foundation of the Church (Eph. 2:20). The Church has been guided by the Holy Spirit, who protects this teaching from corruption (John 14:25-26, 16:13).

I don’t mind going to other churches and hearing the word of God but I LOVE my Catholic (katholikos from katholou — throughout the whole, i.e., universal) faith.  Yes I grow up Catholic because my family was but when I was in high school I didn’t understand the church and wanted to know why we do the things we do.  So I left the church and started to go to other churches.  I have been to Methodist, Baptist, Non-non denominational, Protestant and so many other churches but in the end I felt that God was calling me back to the Catholic Church.  After 3 years of studying I felt the calling back home to the Catholic Church.  One of the number one reasons was because I got to receive the BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST, the sacrament that God gave to us so that we may have eternal life.   We don’t believe that this is just a symbol of his body and blood we believe that it IS His body and blood.  There are so many others reason why I love the Catholic Church and I can’t express to you how much The Church has brought me so much closer to God after I understood the meaning behind it.  Please know that I am not arguing with you.  I am showing you what I believe in and what has brought me closer to God.  I do not tell anyone they have to be Catholic.  They have to feel it in their heart.  This is what I believe, love, and cherish with all of my heart.  Someone once asked me (who was not Catholic) "When you get to the gates of Heaven God is going to ask you why you spoke so much about religion (the Catholic faith) and not just about him." And this is what I would say "My God I am in awe of who You are and I am in awe of what You are about. When I would read about You and Your journey in Your book I can't stop thinking about all the beautiful lessons you wanted to teach Your people and all the beautifulgifts that were given through You. My Catholic faith taught me to love those people that You held close and to love the gifts that you gave. Lord, I can't tell you how amazing it is to receive you every Sunday with the Holy Eucharist. I can't tell you how much I love the gift of confession I can't tell you how much I love Adoration. I can't tell you how much I love each and every Sacrament that You gave us. You see and feel my heart. You see how much of this amazing Faith has brought me sooooo much closer to You. I wanted others to feel that. I never pressured anyone to come directly to the Catholic Church. They have to feel it inside their hearts and that's what I feel. I cry because of how beautiful the faith is and how much I love the faith because of how it brought me closer to You. My heart is for You. My love is for You. I am Your Hands, Your Ears, Your Eyes and Your Feet. I work for You. I give because You want me to give. I love because You want me to show Your love. I cry because You want me to Shed my tears. But Lord, I love the Catholic Church because I see You. I feel You. I cry for You. I am touched By You, and I can't keep something so beautiful away from people. If I kept it away my heart would hurt."

-E

Inverted Cross

I recently was asked the questions: “Is the Pope the anti-christ? Why is he wearing an upside down cross?”

Great Questions. Have you ever wondered why the pope’s seat has upside down, an inverted cross on it?

 

The upside down cross that the pope has is called St. Peters Cross. Pope John Paul had this cross placed on this seat in 2000. The inverted cross was called St. Peters Cross because when Peter was crucified he was crucified upside down . He felt that he was not worthy of being crucified the same way Christ was. Some Catholics wear this inverted cross (NO not because they are satan worshipers) because they feel that they are not worthy to even be compared to Christ just like Peter did.

 

No worries guys! All of this has Christian reasoning behind it!



Blessings

-E