Catholicism vs Protestant Christianity (Baptist)

[dwdean]

ground rules;

-if you girls start whining at each other, this thread gets shut down
-don't hate on the beliefs of others
-if you disagree, AWESOME... now give me proof
-for proof, lets stick with solely the Bible OR another text which we all agree is valid and infallible


what exactly are the main differences between Catholicism and Protestantism?
who is correct in their beliefs?

go nuts, pm me if you'd like

[Des Essientes]

I find Roman Catholicism to be superior to Protestantism because the latter was founded by burghers and peasants that didn't understand that Christianity is not to be taken seriously as it is based upon the misguided mythology of the Hebrews who were the most uptight and unfortunate of the ancient Near Eastern cultures. What also makes Catholicism superior to Protestantism is the Cult of the Virgin which satisfies humanity's most heartfelt religious impulse which is reverence for the Mother Goddess. Protestantism is a total sausage party and its iconoclasm resulted in drab churches that resemble courthouses. Catholicism maintains the beautiful spectacle that religion should have. I do not believe the Bible to be infallable either and so I apologize in advance to this thread's starter, if he has fetishized all the words in the bronze age tome, and my post has thus offended him.

[dwdean]

no offense taken.
the Bible is, however, level playing ground for the debate and i merely thought to establish fair play. that is all.
i will keep my personal beliefs to myself unless the conversation so dictates they be shared.

again, no offense taken. i wish to see an open and honest pursuit of knowledge rather than political correctness here...

[G L Wilson]

I find Roman Catholicism to be superior to Protestantism because the latter was founded by burghers and peasants that didn't understand that Christianity is not to be taken seriously as it is based upon the misguided mythology of the Hebrews who were the most uptight and unfortunate of the ancient Near Eastern cultures. What also makes Catholicism superior to Protestantism is the Cult of the Virgin which satisfies humanity's most heartfelt religious impulse which is reverence for the Mother Goddess. Protestantism is a total sausage party and its iconoclasm resulted in drab churches that resemble courthouses. Catholicism maintains the beautiful spectacle that religion should have. I do not believe the Bible to be infallable either and so I apologize in advance to this thread's starter, if he has fetishized all the words in the bronze age tome, and my post has thus offended him.

I find Protestant churches beautiful. I find Catholic churches vulgar. Each to his own, I suppose.

[dwdean]

I find Protestant churches beautiful. I find Catholic churches vulgar. Each to his own, I suppose.

why do you find Protestant churches to be beautiful, and why the contrast with your view of catholic churches?
G L, do you say this in regard to the actual church building or the doctrine promoted within those buildings? or perhaps to the lifestyle/beliefs of the people therein?

[G L Wilson]

why do you find Protestant churches to be beautiful, and why the contrast with your view of catholic churches?
G L, do you say this in regard to the actual church building or the doctrine promoted within those buildings? or perhaps to the lifestyle/beliefs of the people therein?

I say this in regard to the churches being forms of art and regard them for no other reason but for their beauty or lack thereof.

How vulgar, how pathetic? can be said of beauty as much as anything else but you would be tricking yourself to say it of beauty.

[dwdean]

I say this in regard to the churches being forms of art and regard them for no other reason but for their beauty or lack thereof.

How vulgar, how pathetic? can be said of beauty as much as anything else but you would be tricking yourself to say it of beauty.

i now understand

[Panglossian]

Catholicism vs Protestant Christianity? Sounds like a boxing match. What we need is a double knockout.

[DNCancio]

I think that both Churches are valid churches in that they both serve God, but I dare go with the Catholic church on this one. First, Catholic means Universal meaning that an all making, all loving, and all powerful God welcomes all through this church. Second, Catholics believe in free will and not predestination meaning that God has decided who is damned and who is saved. Free Will allows for Human beings to decide which path they take and whether they can be saved. Also, even though man falls short of the Glory of God, it is only homage to God that human beings try to honor him by good works. Although God's grace is enough to save humanity, the Catholic Dogma is that because we have the power to honor God with works, we should attempt to do so despite falling short of Glory. Third, Predestination cannot be the will of God because an All-Loving God cannot damn a human being to Hell without Humanity choosing to be from him. When God asked for Adam and Eve in the Garden, he knew where they were, but because of their sin, they choose to be from his Grace.

[dwdean]

I think that both Churches are valid churches in that they both serve God, but I dare go with the Catholic church on this one. First, Catholic means Universal meaning that an all making, all loving, and all powerful God welcomes all through this church. Second, Catholics believe in free will and not predestination meaning that God has decided who is damned and who is saved. Free Will allows for Human beings to decide which path they take and whether they can be saved. Also, even though man falls short of the Glory of God, it is only homage to God that human beings try to honor him by good works. Although God's grace is enough to save humanity, the Catholic Dogma is that because we have the power to honor God with works, we should attempt to do so despite falling short of Glory. Third, Predestination cannot be the will of God because an All-Loving God cannot damn a human being to Hell without Humanity choosing to be from him. When God asked for Adam and Eve in the Garden, he knew where they were, but because of their sin, they choose to be from his Grace.

outstanding work Cancio, quite impressed. one must take into consideration, however, that not all Protestants uphold the idea of predestination. other than that i see little discrepancy in the views of Catholicism and Protestantism.

another thought; most protestants (in my experience) hold the belief that salvation is attained through full reliance and submission to God; acknowledging that salvation and, consequently, an eternity spent in heaven with God may only be obtained by trusting in the sacrifice of Jesus. this is, again, the protestant view.
does this differ from that of catholicism and if so, how?

[The Atheist]

what exactly are the main differences between Catholicism and Protestantism?

The Roman Catholic Church is one organisation, while protestantism is made up of many, many different sects, all of whom have minor or major disagreements on scripture and/or what the god really wants.

I think you need to be more specific, because otherwise it becomes a strawman argument.

That said, the standout difference between the RCC and most protestant churches is their approach to the Old Testament. The RCC does not treat it literally, as most protestant churches do.


who is correct in their beliefs?

All of them, according to the churches.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

Well, one has pedophile priests and the other doesn't, or at least not as many. That has to count for something.

[dwdean]

Well, one has pedophile priests and the other doesn't, or at least not as many. That has to count for something.

cheap shot M&M...

ok well if the firing range is too broad, lets switch this from a debate to a search for knowledge. to those with experience with the RCC, what are their core beliefs?

[G L Wilson]

There is no difference between the Churches in that they are both full of hypocrites.

[dwdean]

There is no difference between the Churches in that they are both full of hypocrites.

gross generalization.
this thread is becoming tedious.
Cancio, we need you!

[G L Wilson]

gross generalization.
this thread is becoming tedious.
Cancio, we need you!

It may be a generalisation, however it is not untrue.

[Mutatis-Mutandis]

cheap shot M&M...
Why is it a cheap shot? Is it not true? Should one not take into account the behavior of a religion's representatives when weighing that religions merits, esepcially when the religion is almost entirely built on what the church says is right and wrong?

[The Atheist]

Well, one has pedophile priests and the other doesn't, or at least not as many. That has to count for something.

But is it true?

Google seems to indicate a large number of Baptist paedophile pastors (http://www.google.co.nz/search?q=paedophile+baptist+pastor&rls=com.microsoft:en-nz&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&startIndex=&startPage=1&rlz=1I7GGLL_en) have been locked up.

Taking into account that the RCC is many times larger than all the Protestant (http://www.adherents.com/adh_branches.html#Christianity) religions added together, I'd want to see some solid evidence that they offend more often than any other sect/religion.


cheap shot M&M...

ok well if the firing range is too broad, lets switch this from a debate to a search for knowledge. to those with experience with the RCC, what are their core beliefs?

That no matter what sins one commits, forgiveness by Jesus is possible.
That Jesus was resurrected and taken to heaven to be with his dad.
That the word of Jesus is infallible.
That T Aquinas' summa theologica (http://www.newadvent.org/summa/) is the correct and only true vision of god.
That evolution is consistent with their beliefs.
That you can eat meat on Fridays.
That using contraception is a sin.
That their god can intervene in human affairs and perform miracles.

Those are some of the official beliefs of the RCC - belief among individual members may [?] differ. I think you could say those ones cover the core beliefs of Catholicism - plus a couple of spurious but still correct ones - although I'll bow to any RCC priests that may pop in.

:D

[OrphanPip]

Protestant churches are often ornate as well.

http://www.imtl.org/image/big/st_james_church_montreal.jpg

This is the second largest protestant church in Montreal, it was initially a Methodist church, it is now operated by the United Church of Canada.

The Anglican Cathedral is the largest (there are practically no Anglicans in Montreal, but they happened to be quite rich).

http://archiseek.com/wp-content/gallery/canada-qc-montreal/cathedral_anglican_lge.jpg

I do love the look of Catholic churches though, and there are too many to count here in Montreal. Mark Twain said that in Montreal you couldn't throw a rock without hitting a church.