You might like to check out Messianic congregation. There is a practicality about your faith that just might sit well with our approach to scripture.
__________________ Since the Torah is a finite book expressing the will of an infinite God, many lessons must be derivable from each passage from all the infinite angles.
...I am still trying to figure it all out through prayers, studying the Bible, and just reading general theology. I am actually leaning Catholic, but scared since I have been a protestant all my life and have been taught wrongly that Catholicism is "icky". Some big hurdles I am jumping in regards to that right now!
Jesus said to simply "take on my yoke"
He was yoked with (led & taught by) the Holy Spirit.
So, begin by receiving that Spirit as detailed for us in scripture (Acts 2:4, 33, 39; 10:44-46).
Jesus never said we need to wrestle with the theologies of men in order to become his!
Last edited by AllTalkNoAction; 13th September 2009 at 05:34 PM.
Have you considered an Orthodox church? It sounds like you would fit right in, might take some adjustment coming from a Protestant background but God will lead you through things.
i read the bible with m y morfar and he talk abaout Matthew now. i dont see i n church that ministre read
any different.if you are catholic then the Pope he will change this.i dont think the bible should be change.
__________________ yes i d o use spellcheck
the fact we can not find God does not mean he don't exist.
I want to preface this by saying I am a Christian, but I am not sure where as a Christian I belong. First off, I believe in God, The Trinity, Faith, and believe in a lot of concepts of the Bible. However, I do not believe the Bible is the inherant, falliable word of God. I believe some things in the Bible can actually be wrong. It is laced with conradictions, and upon diving into it deeper, I see it as a guide.
Problem is, I am raised Protestant, and always taught that Bible is the only truth and authority, and that it is scripture alone that should be guiding us. However, I see that protestant churches put their twist on things and interpret it externally. I don't blame them since the Bible is full of contradictions and I believe this is easy to do!
Also, I have to admit I am not a fan of modern day praise music and modernism entering the church...I think it is wordly. I would like to also mention that in the Baptist church I went to this morning, works were totally discredited, but I believe works is evidence of faith and should not be discounted.
So, I am totally lost...where do I belong?? I am Christian, but I am not sure if I am a true Protesant, or true anything if I question the Bible. I feel lost and scared...any advice???
Originally Posted by hikingchick77
Thanks for all your help...I am still trying to figure it all out through prayers, studying the Bible, and just reading general theology. I am actually leaning Catholic, but scared since I have been a protestant all my life and have been taught wrongly that Catholicism is "icky". Some big hurdles I am jumping in regards to that right now!
Originally Posted by hikingchick77
Thank you so much!
Suprisingly, I just called a local Catholic church, and the deacon invited me to meet with him, and join the RCIA program. He seemed so friendly and helpful, and I was kinda shocked they responded the same day I inquired.
Anyway, it is new discoveries, that is for sure. Being away from families and friends is discouraging, but suprisingly I am getting a lot of support even from the non-Christian family and friends.
hikingchick77: I can relate to your struggle. I'm working through some of the same issues. I do not know where I belong, either.
I was brought up in the Baptist Church. About 4 years ago, I began to study the history of Judaism, Christianity, and the transmission of Scripture.
Actually, the most shocking book I read was the Bible. Reading the Bible cover-to-cover put things in a different perspective for me. I was shocked by what the Bible does say and shocked by what the Bible does not say.
I have found that much of the Bible contradicts what I was taught in the Baptist Church. I mean no disrespect to the Baptist Forum Members. I just cannot reconcile Baptist doctrine with Scripture.
I was also taught that the Bible is the infallible, inerrant Word of God. After reading the Bible and studying the transmission of Scripture, I no longer see the Bible as inerrant. There are more than 5,000 New Testament Manuscripts, which contain more variants than words in the N.T. Many of the variants are clearly scribal errors. Other variants clearly reveal tampering.
I, too, have found many contradictions in the Bible. I have seen Christians do all sorts of "finagling" in an attempt to prove that all Scripture fits together perfectly. It seems that Scripture is interpreted literally when it fits preconceived beliefs; and interpreted symbolically/allegorically when the literal interpretation contradicts preconceived beliefs.
I, also, do not care for the "modern day praise music and modernism" that you mentioned. It seems like some church services have become a "spectator sport." Millions of dollars are spent every year to keep mega-churches going. I often think of all the help we could give to the poor and needy with those millions of dollars.
Since you are leaning toward Catholicism, I would suggest the Catholic Answers Forums at forums.catholic.com. I think another member of this Thread already suggested the Catholic forums on this website.
I do not believe that Catholicism is right for me, but I do respect the Catholic Faith, and their wealth of knowledge in Church tradition and history. I have learned a lot from Catholic Forums.
I agree that salvation involves more than faith, as "faith without works is dead."
It is very difficult to break free from the indoctrination of our childhood. I urge you to continue to study, and pray for the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
These are some of the differences in beliefs that I think are very important. Maybe finding where you stand on some of these issues would help you in your decision regarding a church. (I originally posted these on another Thread.)
1. Once saved, always saved vs. saved, but failing to keep the Commandments of Christ and "falling away" can cause one to lose their salvation. Salvation by faith alone vs. Salvation by both faith and works.
2. Hell is eternal torment vs. Hell is eternal separation from God vs. Hell is eternal death of both body and soul.
3. The Jews are God's chosen people and all of Israel will be saved by divine revelation vs. all Jews who do not accept Christ within their lifetime are destined for Hell.
4. The New Covenant replaces the Old Covenant--creating a “Replacement Theology” vs. the Jewish People are still included in God's Covenants-both Old and New.
5. The soul is immortal vs. the soul is not immortal, but our spirit returns to God upon our death.
6. Genesis is literal--meaning God created man, all creatures, and the world in six literal days vs. Genesis is symbolic, revealing God as our creator and relaying God's relationship with man, the sin of man, and the need for reconciliation.
7. Scripture, as we know it today, is the infallible inerrant Word of God vs. the autographs were the infallible inerrant Word of God vs. Scripture is man's account of his relationship with God and contains both divine and human elements.
8. The Lord's Supper is symbolic of Christ's body and blood shed for us—and is to be done in remembrance of Christ vs. Holy Communion/Eucharist, in which Christ is entirely present and the bread and wine become the "real" body and "real" blood of Christ and are necessary to be free of mortal sin.
9. Baptism before death is necessary for salvation vs. Baptism is symbolic and is done in obedience to Christ--but failure of a Christian to be baptized before death would not keep a Christian from entering heaven.
10. Christ is our only High Priest and we are only to confess our sins to Christ vs. earthly Priests who receive confession and have the authority to forgive sins.
11. Scripture is our only guide and contains all that is necessary for salvation--any Christian can interpret Scripture by the guidance of the Holy Spirit vs. Scripture must interpreted in light of tradition and authority to interpret Scripture lies in apostolic succession.
12. Christ canceled the Law vs. Christ fulfilled the Law.
13. Circumcision vs. Non-circumcision.
14. Saturday remains the eternal Sabbath vs. Sunday became the new Christian Sabbath.
15. The Jewish feasts, etc. are to be continued by Christians vs. abandonment of all Jewish feasts.
16. The Virgin Mary lacked original sin and her assumption into heaven is to be celebrated/prayers to Mary and the Saints vs. Mary was born with original sin and died/no prayers to Mary or any Saints.
17. The Holy Spirit is received upon “Baptism” vs. The Holy Spirit is received by the "laying on of hands."
18. Universal salvation vs. salvation of the "Elect."
19. Our only chance to accept Christ, as Savior, is during our lifetime on earth vs. Christians can pray for the salvation of the dead vs. all will be given a chance to accept Christ upon resurrection and judgment.
20. Speaking in tounges/tongues vs. not speaking in tounges/tongues.
21. Continued prophesy and revelation vs. prophesy and revelation have ceased.
May God Continue to Lead You in Your Search,
Anna
__________________ Pen Name: Anna Scott
A Humble Servant of Christ, who is our "high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens" (Hebrews 7:26)
If you are considering the Roman Catholic Church, I also would suggest looking into the Episcopal Church. Our approach to theology tends to stand upon Scripture, tradition, and reason/experience. We don't use the words "inerrant" or "infallible" at all, and we tend to interpret the Bible within its historical context. There is liturgy, seven sacraments, priests, the Eucharist, apostolic succession, three-fold ministry etc., all like the Roman Catholic Church. We're also a big tent group as well. Questions are encouraged, and there is a diversity of belief throughout the national church and even within parishes, all of which are welcome. If you have any questions, feel free to shoot me a message.
Like the signs say, The Episcopal Church Welcomes You!
Love your movies. I also loved that list you wrote. It's amazing.
Brian
__________________ Please visit Zach's House ( To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ), a church of small groups between Dallas and Ft. Worth, Texas. Coming soon, two new books: Purple Ducks, a book on belonging, the church and a guy named Jesus and The Yo-Yo Artist: Stories of Spiritual Ups and Downs (a collection of devotionals)
Love that you're searching. I believe Catholicism has a lot of wonderful things to offer. I spent some time at a monastery last night listening to chanting monks just down the road from Texas Stadium where the Dallas Cowboys used to play football.
I am protestant but I could quote Mother Theresa or St. Francis all day. I think you could find a great protestant micro-church somewhere that embraces the spiritual aspects of Catholicism, does good works and allows you to not check your brain at the door in regards to your thoughts on the Bible but still adheres to the teachings of Jesus. We're such a group in the DFW area.
I wish you lived here in Texas. If you ever need to talk about what's going on. Look me up and call. I'm the only Humek in Texas.
Yours in Christ,
Brian
__________________ Please visit Zach's House ( To view links or images in signatures your post count must be 10 or greater. You currently have 0 posts. ), a church of small groups between Dallas and Ft. Worth, Texas. Coming soon, two new books: Purple Ducks, a book on belonging, the church and a guy named Jesus and The Yo-Yo Artist: Stories of Spiritual Ups and Downs (a collection of devotionals)
It sounds to me that you have a reasonable grievance against a certain expression of Protestantism but not against standard Protestantism. For instance, Protestantism does NOT say that works are unimportant just because they don't contribute to our salvation. That doesn't mean that you may not have encountered a congregation in which that distinction was not made clear. And the Bible is NOT full of contraditions; it may, however, appear that way at first glance. Again, a good church would you out a lot with this...and many do. Personally, I also agree with you about modernist music in church, but that's hardly the style preferred by most Protestant churches.
To put it more bluntly, I hope you do not throw the religious baby out with the religious bathwater and allow yourself to be misled by some church that says it has all the answers and that they are sooooo easy--so longs as you accept that particular church's "authority" to decide everything, etc.
A more practical piece of advice might be to visit or investigate one or several of the more mainstream Protestant churches such as the Methodists or Presbyterians, and see if the impression you receive is not quite different from what you've experienced so far.
Location: Leefdaal, Bertem; by Leuven, Flemish Brabant, Belgium
Posts: 74
Blessings: 6,875
My Mood
Reps: 10 (power: 0)
Originally Posted by hikingchick77
I want to preface this by saying I am a Christian, ..., I believe in God, The Trinity, Faith, and believe in a lot of concepts of the Bible. However, I do not believe the Bible is the inherant, falliable word of God. I believe some things in the Bible can actually be wrong. It is laced with conradictions, and upon diving into it deeper, I see it as a guide.
Problem is, I am raised Protestant, and always taught that Bible is the only truth and authority, and that it is scripture alone that should be guiding us. However, I see that protestant churches put their twist on things and interpret it externally. I don't blame them since the Bible is full of contradictions and I believe this is easy to do!
Strange that after 17 replies nobody went deeper into the fact that you do not seem to accept what is really written in the Bible, the Word of God.
In the first instance you thought right: "that Bible is the only truth and authority, and that it is scripture alone that should be guiding us."
And you noticed how people twist those words.
today you think there are contradictions in the Bible and things who do not seem to be right. But is it not because you keep fast to certain doctrines or believes which where pressed into your head?
Have a look in different Bible Translations and do try to find what they realy want to say.
Linear Mode
