Confused catholic

[Lucy23]

Hi, my name is Lucy and I have no idea how any of this works bc I’m new and this is my first post. For the past 6 months I’ve been driving myself bananas because I’m beyond confused and upset. I’ve been raised as a strong Roman Catholic and it is all I know. A majority of my family is Catholic and it’s very important to us. Recently, I’ve began to question things and I’m confused. I’ve been told we are not supposed to pray to Saints, Mary, or have any form of idolizeisum. We are only supposed to pray to God. I’ve also been told we are not supposed to call any man father. Also, we are supposed to read the King James Bible and everything/ all the answers are solely in the Bible but Catholics base alot of their religion on traditions. I just don’t understand why Catholics have their own Bible why are we not following just the King James Bible? I can go on and on but this is just a few things that pop in my head. I’m not sure what to say when I’m asked these things by others bc I never figured this was “wrong” I guess I’ve just been naïve. I just want to do right by God and this new discovery has stressed me out so much I’m worried I’ll go to hell for believing the wrong thing bc it is up to us to find the right answers. I don’t understand why Catholics are doing things that specially say not to do in the Bible?

 

[Basil the Great]

Welcome to the forums, Lucy23. May God bless the time that you spend here. I recommend that you visit the Catholic sub-forum, called One Bread, One Body. That is probably the best place to ask questions about the Catholic faith. Peace be with you.

 

[MariaJLM]

I think it all comes down to a misunderstanding of scripture and theology since none of the things you list are unbiblical. It's all backed up with a wealth of verses and traditions. If the early church did it then we can certainly do it too.

Anyway, that's just my two cents. Welcome to the site. I hope you find answers here.

 

[Jesusismyking87!!]

I stick with the non denom because no matter what it starts with Jesus and ends with Jesus. But welcome and check out the catholic threads on here. God Bless.

 

[HTacianas]

Hi, my name is Lucy and I have no idea how any of this works bc I’m new and this is my first post. For the past 6 months I’ve been driving myself bananas because I’m beyond confused and upset. I’ve been raised as a strong Roman Catholic and it is all I know. A majority of my family is Catholic and it’s very important to us. Recently, I’ve began to question things and I’m confused. I’ve been told we are not supposed to pray to Saints, Mary, or have any form of idolizeisum. We are only supposed to pray to God. I’ve also been told we are not supposed to call any man father. Also, we are supposed to read the King James Bible and everything/ all the answers are solely in the Bible but Catholics base alot of their religion on traditions. I just don’t understand why Catholics have their own Bible why are we not following just the King James Bible? I can go on and on but this is just a few things that pop in my head. I’m not sure what to say when I’m asked these things by others bc I never figured this was “wrong” I guess I’ve just been naïve. I just want to do right by God and this new discovery has stressed me out so much I’m worried I’ll go to hell for believing the wrong thing bc it is up to us to find the right answers. I don’t understand why Catholics are doing things that specially say not to do in the Bible?

It seems you've been talking to protestants.

While welcoming you to the forum, I would suggest that you post each of your questions in a separate thesis. There are a lot of very kind people here who will be glad to help you find the answers.

But something to think about. The king James bible has only been around since 1611. What was read before then considering the Church has been here since the first century?

 

[Jesusismyking87!!]

Ask yourself this do you believe and know that Jesus is lord of your life and is the son of God if so can you say it out loud for the holy spirit is the only thing that can say such words. Again welcome 0

 

[eleos1954]

Hi, my name is Lucy and I have no idea how any of this works bc I’m new and this is my first post. For the past 6 months I’ve been driving myself bananas because I’m beyond confused and upset. I’ve been raised as a strong Roman Catholic and it is all I know. A majority of my family is Catholic and it’s very important to us. Recently, I’ve began to question things and I’m confused. I’ve been told we are not supposed to pray to Saints, Mary, or have any form of idolizeisum. We are only supposed to pray to God. I’ve also been told we are not supposed to call any man father. Also, we are supposed to read the King James Bible and everything/ all the answers are solely in the Bible but Catholics base alot of their religion on traditions. I just don’t understand why Catholics have their own Bible why are we not following just the King James Bible? I can go on and on but this is just a few things that pop in my head. I’m not sure what to say when I’m asked these things by others bc I never figured this was “wrong” I guess I’ve just been naïve. I just want to do right by God and this new discovery has stressed me out so much I’m worried I’ll go to hell for believing the wrong thing bc it is up to us to find the right answers. I don’t understand why Catholics are doing things that specially say not to do in the Bible?

Study Gods Holy Word yourself .... pray the Holy Spirit to lead you to the truth. I used to believe certain things .... and did personal study and found overwhelming errors in what I had been "taught". I certainly don't claim to know everything .... but I am a lot more comfortable now and have good solid biblical reasons why I believe what I believe.
We are each responsible for what we believe ... and that should be on our own study of Gods word. We are to make sure what is being taught is true.

Acts 17

11Now the Bereans were more noble-minded than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if these teachings were true.

Romans 14:12
So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

May the Lord lead us all through the truth of His Holy word. Amen

 

[musicalpilgrim]

Hi, my name is Lucy and I have no idea how any of this works bc I’m new and this is my first post. For the past 6 months I’ve been driving myself bananas because I’m beyond confused and upset. I’ve been raised as a strong Roman Catholic and it is all I know. A majority of my family is Catholic and it’s very important to us. Recently, I’ve began to question things and I’m confused. I’ve been told we are not supposed to pray to Saints, Mary, or have any form of idolizeisum. We are only supposed to pray to God. I’ve also been told we are not supposed to call any man father. Also, we are supposed to read the King James Bible and everything/ all the answers are solely in the Bible but Catholics base alot of their religion on traditions. I just don’t understand why Catholics have their own Bible why are we not following just the King James Bible? I can go on and on but this is just a few things that pop in my head. I’m not sure what to say when I’m asked these things by others bc I never figured this was “wrong” I guess I’ve just been naïve. I just want to do right by God and this new discovery has stressed me out so much I’m worried I’ll go to hell for believing the wrong thing bc it is up to us to find the right answers. I don’t understand why Catholics are doing things that specially say not to do in the Bible?

Hi Lucy, Welcome to the forum in Jesus name, it is a great place to find fellowship and friendships.
There are quite a few different translations of the Bible, the New King James Bible is a little easier to read.

Yes the answers to your questions are all in the Bible, and I have trusted the 'Word of God' all my Christian life. I became a born again Christian when I was around 32 years, it is a wonderful life of trust in a wonderful Saviour.

 

[Serving Zion]

Hi, my name is Lucy and I have no idea how any of this works bc I’m new and this is my first post. For the past 6 months I’ve been driving myself bananas because I’m beyond confused and upset. I’ve been raised as a strong Roman Catholic and it is all I know. A majority of my family is Catholic and it’s very important to us. Recently, I’ve began to question things and I’m confused. I’ve been told we are not supposed to pray to Saints, Mary, or have any form of idolizeisum. We are only supposed to pray to God. I’ve also been told we are not supposed to call any man father. Also, we are supposed to read the King James Bible and everything/ all the answers are solely in the Bible but Catholics base alot of their religion on traditions. I just don’t understand why Catholics have their own Bible why are we not following just the King James Bible? I can go on and on but this is just a few things that pop in my head. I’m not sure what to say when I’m asked these things by others bc I never figured this was “wrong” I guess I’ve just been naïve. I just want to do right by God and this new discovery has stressed me out so much I’m worried I’ll go to hell for believing the wrong thing bc it is up to us to find the right answers. I don’t understand why Catholics are doing things that specially say not to do in the Bible?

Hi Lucy, welcome to CF! .. it is great to see you here and diving right in! If you start a thread in one of the other forums, such as "Christian Advice" or "Exploring Christianity", you'll get some good discussion there. This introduction forum is only to say hi and who you are, why you are here. We are quickly stopped from getting into discussions here.

That said, I do have a few ideas for you to think about!

1. There is a spiritual part of life, that is where we know The Holy Spirit as a personal saviour, Lord and companion (Proverbs 18:24, John 14:16-17). It is unfortunate, but true, that not all Christians have that experience in their faith. This is our current state of reality in the religion (John 12:35, John 14:21, John 8:32).

2. Not all bible translations are translated by a person who has a spiritual relationship with God as I have described. Therefore they are a work of their intellect alone, without the real discernment of The Holy Spirit. Part of the nature of such a person is "contentiousness" and "ambition" - that leads them to want to do things better than everyone else has done. This is not to say that every newer translation is not an improvement, or that the older translation is always better.

3. The King James is actually very good, but there is much more meaning in the original languages that cannot be conveyed through a single English interpretation. This is why when you compare various translations, you will learn greater depth of what the original writer was saying, because the emphasis of each translation focuses on a different aspect of the message.

4. When we come to know God as a personal Lord, we recognise when it is Him speaking to us. Originally, as you might see in the scriptures of St. Paul and St. John, they had purified themselves as vessels for The Holy Spirit, such that they were not hesitant to write with The Father's love: "my dear children, how I am in birth pains until Messiah is formed in you". Likewise, if the early Christians were to have been addressing them as "father Paul" or "father John", they would simply say "father" - for it is Him in them that they are calling father. For this reason, read Jesus' words with prudence:

"call no man your father, for one is your father in heaven".

As for your other questions, about how the Catholic church appears to be teaching differently to the doctrine you expect, you should ask that in the Catholic area of the forum: "One Bread, One Body".

I believe in a universal church of saints, where God's people are united in spirit and found in various places, through different denominations, including the Catholic Church. However, to simplify matters for those who are still learning, one must call themselves Catholic in order to say they belong and to be in communion with the Catholic Church.

There is much more in common between Catholicism and Christianity than most Catholics and Christians know! You might read this booklet that I share in order to see what I am talking about:

Adonai Reigns : The Gospel : God did not send his son to condemn the world!

 

[Devin P]

Hi, my name is Lucy and I have no idea how any of this works bc I’m new and this is my first post. For the past 6 months I’ve been driving myself bananas because I’m beyond confused and upset. I’ve been raised as a strong Roman Catholic and it is all I know. A majority of my family is Catholic and it’s very important to us. Recently, I’ve began to question things and I’m confused. I’ve been told we are not supposed to pray to Saints, Mary, or have any form of idolizeisum. We are only supposed to pray to God. I’ve also been told we are not supposed to call any man father. Also, we are supposed to read the King James Bible and everything/ all the answers are solely in the Bible but Catholics base alot of their religion on traditions. I just don’t understand why Catholics have their own Bible why are we not following just the King James Bible? I can go on and on but this is just a few things that pop in my head. I’m not sure what to say when I’m asked these things by others bc I never figured this was “wrong” I guess I’ve just been naïve. I just want to do right by God and this new discovery has stressed me out so much I’m worried I’ll go to hell for believing the wrong thing bc it is up to us to find the right answers. I don’t understand why Catholics are doing things that specially say not to do in the Bible?

This website for the most part, is very sensitive towards catholicism. So, I would suggest that you research these things on your own, pray to Him, and research.

Since you are asking for our thoughts on this though:

First off, absolutely, read your KJV. Honestly, I'd start from Genesis, and read through to Revelation. Anytime a person or a church tries to get you to stop reading the bible, and instead read their own publication, that should cause definite alarm.

But yeah, we aren't to pray to saints. Catholics employ (by their own authority) "saints" over certain things. Certain saints for education, certain saints for war, certain saints for carpentry, for medicine, etc. They pray to each of them to "help" them in whatever related situation they need. Where in the bible does it say to do this? This is a tradition taken straight from paganism. Especially when you research (and you can even find this in the Catholic Encyclopedia) into how catholicism took many stories of the saints from the "local gods" of the time when they started this tradition. My point is, there's nothing biblical about this, it's a tradition, and even some of the saint's stories have been admittedly taken from pagan deities.

They even admit to changing the biblical sabbath (saturday), to the day most people keep now, which is (sunday).

I'm not saying believe me, not at all. Research into this yourself if you feel led to. The history that's available to us regarding how the early catholic church adopted paganism to sway pagans into their authority is insanely alarming and prevalent.

“I am in all and above all, so that God Himself and I, the vicar of God, hath both one consistory, and I am able to do almost all that God can do..." - Pope Nicholas

“To believe that our Lord God the Pope has not the power to decree as he is decreed, is to be deemed heretical.” (The Gloss extravagances of Pope John XXII Cum. Inter, tit XIV Ad Callem Sexti Decretalium, Paris, 1685)

“For centuries millions of Christians have gathered to worship God on the first day of the week. Graciously He has accepted this worship. He has poured out His blessings upon Christian people as they have sought to serve Him. However, as one searches the Scriptures, he is forced to recognize that Sunday is not a day of God’s appointment… It has no foundation in Scripture, but has arisen entirely as a result of custom,” says Frank H. Yost, Ph.D. in The Early Christian Sabbath.

 

[Brotherly Spirit]

Hello Lucy, I understand your dilemma about denominational differences. I even felt pulled to Catholicism myself and then Messianic Judaism. The truth is there's not any certainty which is the right path to God. Personally I've reached a place where I think it's not necessary to commit to a denomination but accept Christ believing as a Christian. It's my opinion but all denominations seem to have flaws emphasizing certain parts over others from the Bible or speculate to have beliefs not supported and also goes against what's there. So I wouldn't rush away from Catholicism but definitely ask questions and be sure to do the same with other denominations. Hopefully in time you'll have a better idea about the differences and can decide if one is near enough to what you believe.

 

[Devin P]

I am not hating on catholics though, I know catholics that are amazing people. It's not the people that I'm against, it's the traditions of the church itself. We're losing so many people to the falsehoods Jesus freed us from - vain tradition, and people just blindly accept it without doing any research of their own. I was also guilty of it too, it's our nature, but the very fact that you're questioning, is a blessing.

 

[Multifavs]

Hi, my name is Lucy and I have no idea how any of this works bc I’m new and this is my first post. For the past 6 months I’ve been driving myself bananas because I’m beyond confused and upset. I’ve been raised as a strong Roman Catholic and it is all I know. A majority of my family is Catholic and it’s very important to us. Recently, I’ve began to question things and I’m confused. I’ve been told we are not supposed to pray to Saints, Mary, or have any form of idolizeisum. We are only supposed to pray to God. I’ve also been told we are not supposed to call any man father. Also, we are supposed to read the King James Bible and everything/ all the answers are solely in the Bible but Catholics base alot of their religion on traditions. I just don’t understand why Catholics have their own Bible why are we not following just the King James Bible? I can go on and on but this is just a few things that pop in my head. I’m not sure what to say when I’m asked these things by others bc I never figured this was “wrong” I guess I’ve just been naïve. I just want to do right by God and this new discovery has stressed me out so much I’m worried I’ll go to hell for believing the wrong thing bc it is up to us to find the right answers. I don’t understand why Catholics are doing things that specially say not to do in the Bible?

Hello Lucy, welcome to CF! As a fellow cradle Catholic, I think I can give you a few answers to your questions, from the questions that my Catholic Bible specifically answers according to Catholic teaching.

First, Catholics do not pray to Mary and the Saints; rather, we ask them to pray for us. This is different from the prayers we send to God, which are to Him. So we pray to God, and ask those in Heaven to pray for us. If you are worried about statues being idolatry, they are not. Catholic statues are not made to be worshiped as pagan statues are but are made to remind us of the represented image - it's like when you keep photos of your family members; you don't treat them like the actual person, but they are a reminder of the person, which is why you keep them.

Keep in mind that the King James Bible is not the original Bible. It was created many years after the writings that eventually became the Bible. Actually, all Bibles were originally Catholic and so were all Christians.

Tradition has been going on for many, many years, since the day Christ founded the Church. Catholics strive to follow that Tradition even today. The Bible is a source of authority, however we need Tradition to help us interpret it - otherwise Catholics would have many more disagreements on what parts of Scripture mean!

Don't let anyone convince you that the Catholic Church is bad or wrong in any way. Remember, Lucy, that the Catholic Church was the original Church founded by Christ Himself. It was others who later broke off from the Church and created their own ideas and beliefs which were passed down through generations. As a Catholic, you have the whole story!

Finally, don't let anyone convince you that you're living wrongly by practicing your Catholic faith. The Catholic Church will be persecuted for following the teaching of Christ...but stand firm in your faith. It will bring reward in the end!

 

[Multifavs]

Also, I'd welcome you to post any more questions you might have over in One Bread, One Body - Catholic - unfortunately Catholicism is often attacked and persecuted in other areas.

 

[Light of the East]

Well, since the Evangelicals and Fundamentalists started it here, I guess it's time to gird up our loins and get it on!

1. There is no.....I mean zip, nade, zilch.....evidence that the things which Evangelicals and Fundamentalists believe in (such as believer's baptism, grape juice and crackers for Communion, the Rapture, etc) ever existed before they made them up back around 1906. I say this will full confidence as someone who was an E&F for 25 years and believed that all Catholics are going to hell. Then I found out what they were hiding .... that there is NO RECORD of any of the distinctive teachings of F&E found anywhere in the first 19 centuries of Christianity.

2. Jesus only established one Church.....not thousands! That Church was so unified that in the second century, it came to be known as "katholicos" (catholic) meaning "of the fullness." Furthermore, another man by the name of St. Vincent of Lerins said "The catholic faith is that which has been believed everywhere, at all times, and in all places." You cannot say that about the various strains of non-Catholic theology. There are as many doctrines of Evangelicals, Protestants, and Fundamentalists are there are stars in the sky, each one different and they all disagree with each other. Now if there is one truth and one only about Christ, and the Holy Spirit preserves and guards that truth, how then could it be the Holy Spirit guiding all these disagreeing people? Something is very wrong here.

3. Praying to the saints and asking their intercession for us is not idolatry. Those who say this show just how theologically ignorant they really are. Idolatry is putting anything in the place of God and treating it as God, whether it be an animal, like the deceived Hindus do with their elephant "god," or a career, money, or just about anything. Catholics and Orthodox do not "worship" the saints. We worship God alone. Ask yourself this: are the saints alive or dead? If they are dead and can't hear us, that is a pretty sorry salvation gift we are being offered. But if they are in Christ and are truly alive - more than we can even imagine - then yes, living people can hear us. And asking for a saint's help is no different than asking another person in church to pray for you.

4. It is not up to you to "find the right answers" in order to have eternal life. Sit down and read Matthew 25:33-46, Romans 2:5-10, and John 5:28-29. All of these passages speak about Christ giving eternal life to us, and the basis of receiving that gift is doing good to others. I don't see anywhere in the Scriptures that it speaks about eternal life being given to us because we were 100% correct in all our doctrines. Eternal life is being in Christ, and when we do charitable works, we nurture that life within us (which was started at your baptism) and make it grow. Our union with Christ grows as we make a constant choice to obey Him in doing good - and Jesus said that this doing good takes 2 forms. Loving God supremely and loving our neighbor as ourself.

5. If you have been accosted by some Fundamentalist Bible-thumper, do yourself a favor. Get a list of the things he (she?) thinks are wrong and then bring them over to either the Orthodox or Catholic boards and ask us to demolish his stupid objections one at a time. I say this as a former Fundamentalist myself - these people are just dripping with pride. They memorize a few Bible verses and then think they are world-class Bible teachers and their job is to convert as many people as they can to please the Lord. They will not listen to anyone, but the bad part is that they are very convincing if you don't know your faith well (which apparently you don't). Give us specifics to deal with and we will help you understand what the Apostles taught.

6. The Bible says that it is the Church (one, holy, catholic, and apostolic) which is the "pillar and ground of the truth" (1Tim.3:15). Not the Bible, not the opinions of men, but the Church. This is the promise that Jesus gave to the Apostles, that they would be led into all truth (John 16:13). This is why Protestantism in all its forms has hundreds of different teachings and doctrines - the promise was made to the Church, not to those who would break away from the Church.

7. MOST IMPORTANT!! Start reading the Early Fathers of the Church. Find out who they are if you don't know, and then Google their writings. These are men who were taught directly by the Apostles, so what they say, they learned from Jesus. Reading the Early Fathers is how I found out that my Presbyterian Calvinism was A.) heretical B.) not apostolic teaching C.) made up by John Calvin and D.) not ever found in the writings of the Early Church.

And then I converted.

 

[Light of the East]

QUOTE="Devin P,

But yeah, we aren't to pray to saints.

Prove it!

Where in the bible does it say to do this?

Where in the Bible does it teach that Jesus is fully man and full God with two separate and distinct natures for each? Where in the Bible does it teach anything about the existence of Christ's two natures and how they exist within Him?

They even admit to changing the biblical sabbath (saturday), to the day most people keep now, which is (sunday).

Of course, this shows that your have no understanding of the Covenant of God which was made first with the Jews, and then with the Church. The Saturday Sabbath, according to the Bible, belongs to the Jews.

Exo 31:16 Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.

When the Old Covenant ended, the Sabbath ended. (Heb. 8:13). It's really that simple, but you cannot see it.

I'm not saying believe me, not at all. Research into this yourself if you feel led to. The history that's available to us regarding how the early catholic church adopted paganism to sway pagans into their authority is insanely alarming and prevalent.

The amount of lies and distortions that have been told about the Catholic faith (which includes Orthodoxy and Catholicism) by Protestants, is legion. Some of the books that were written, such as Alexander Hislop's THE TWO BABYLONS and Lorraine Boettner's ROMAN CATHOLICISM were so bad and of such shoddy historical workmanship that the publishers divorced themselves from any further association with the writers.

“I am in all and above all, so that God Himself and I, the vicar of God, hath both one consistory, and I am able to do almost all that God can do..." - Pope Nicholas

“To believe that our Lord God the Pope has not the power to decree as he is decreed, is to be deemed heretical.” (The Gloss extravagances of Pope John XXII Cum. Inter, tit XIV Ad Callem Sexti Decretalium, Paris, 1685)

Okay....well, as an Orthodox Christian, I would tend to agree with you here. The sad fact of the matter is that the Roman Church did go sideways after the schism of 1054 AD and we Orthodox are waiting for Her to reject Her errors and return to the fold, but the Catholic faith of the first 10 centuries (which was Eastern Orthodox and Western Roman Catholic) was unified and apostolici in its teaching. What it certainly was not was SDA or any variant thereof.

“For centuries millions of Christians have gathered to worship God on the first day of the week. Graciously He has accepted this worship. He has poured out His blessings upon Christian people as they have sought to serve Him. However, as one searches the Scriptures, he is forced to recognize that Sunday is not a day of God’s appointment… It has no foundation in Scripture, but has arisen entirely as a result of custom,” says Frank H. Yost, Ph.D. in The Early Christian Sabbath.

I showed you the foundation. The Old Covenant is over. The Old Covenant belonged to the Jews and died when they were cast away as being the special people of God (Matthew 21:33-46) St. Paul also speaks of meeting on the "first day" of the week to break bread as a community (the Eucharist).

 

[Anhelyna]

OK folks - this is now waaaaay beyond an introduction and is descending all too rapidly into a debate.

This is not a debate forum - please READ the SoP Statement of Purpose - Introduce Yourself (Please read BEFORE posting)

I am locking this thread now so it can be moved to a more appropriate area.

Anhelyna - Senior Ambassador Member