Comments on: All Roads Lead to Rome – part 5

By: David

David — Mon, 06 Jun 2011 14:22:15 +0000

This is a common misconception about the Catholic Church – that it is based on works and not faith. What the Church has always taught is that works cannot and do not save you, however, without “works” your faith is dead, or nonexistent. Dead faith cannot save anyone. The “works” that are required are the ones that Christ Himself said that we must do – be baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – and to receive His Body and Blood.

The misconception that Catholics believe in salvation by works often go hand-in-hand with the idea that certain devotions such as novenas, Rosaries, etc. are somehow required. They are not.

Because I do not fit your definition of a Christian does not make me not a Christian. As evinced by the Wikipedia definition of “Christian”, many people have different opinions of what it means to be a Christian. The traditional definition of Christian is one who believes in and follows the teachings of Christ. Also included in this were a belief in the Holy Trinity (which includes the divinity of Christ), and a belief in the redemptive nature of the sacrifice that Jesus made on the Cross.

Today, because of the diverse doctrinal beliefs among various sects within Christianity, there are those who would say if you don’t believe in (for instance) the Baptist doctrine of eternal security (“once saved always saved”) that you are not a Christian. In your case, you are saying that because I believe that works can merit anything, I am not a Christian.

To do this not only does violence to the traditional meaning of the word, it also makes you the arbiter of what is true. This makes clear the inherent impossibility of each person being able to interpret all of the Scripture for him- or herself. Basically, you can argue that the Holy Spirit told you “X” is true, and so if anyone else says that the Holy Spirit told them “not X” is true, you feel justified in saying that he/she is not Christian.

This is also why the pillar and foundation of truth is the Church – which is infallibly guided by the Holy Spirit. Not to say that individual men and women in the Church cannot make mistakes, but that the Church Herself cannot teach error. There is One Baptism, One Faith, and One Spirit.

By: Michael Nathan

Michael Nathan — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 03:58:50 +0000

This man was never a true Christian. If he had been then he could never have left the truth which is a relationship with God for the false which is a religion based on works righteousness.

By: Christine Sanders

Christine Sanders — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 18:13:01 +0000

Well done! This is the site I will refer my friends and family to when they decide they want to convert. You have said it so nicely and to the point. God bless you!

By: David (blog author)

David (blog author) — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 21:16:54 +0000

Thanks for the comment! May God bless you and your family.

By: Wendy

Wendy — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 00:30:57 +0000

Thank you for publishing this article. I can now see why my husband’s family disliked me so much. Being Catholic all of my life, I had not seen just how far some religions could take their hatred. I was told not to tell my husband’s maternal grandparent’s that I was Catholic before the engagement was announced. They found out. I was going to take their grandson to hell in a handbasket. They refused to attend the wedding if we had it in the Catholic Church. I gave up one part of my dream, that I had since childhood, to try to help them accept me. They always brought up my religion at every family gathering. They said things that made me questions their own beliefs. I could not believe that Christians could stand before another Christian and condemn them to hell. I was always taught that only God could judge pass judgement. They sent their preacher to the house right after we were married. He informed me that if I was not saved I was going to hell. I promptly told him that I had received all the sacraments and I accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior. He basically told me that my religion was a lie. The grandparents would never say things in front of my husband. I endured years of this until my first child was born. My husband’s grandmother had been diagnosed with cancer again. It was terminal. Ashamed as I am to say this, I could not let go of the hurt and anger that had built up inside of me. All of the pretending to like me until my husband left the room had taken it’s toll. She died before my son’s first birthday. My husband’s grandfather never really had a relationship with my children like the other Baptist grandchildren, especially when my husband converted after the birth of our second son. He was basically an outcast too but they would never say it to his face. They just put up that front and talk about us behind our back. I have let go of the anger and hurt with a lot of help from Mary and all the saints. Imagine that. My relationship with God is great. I only pray that they see the light!