Lazy Protestantism
Protestant theology and other fairy tales...
You know... just look deep into Protestant theology and you will see just how lazy it is. If I didn't know better, I would swear that Protestants went out of their way to find the easiest way possible for salvation, and everything else concerning their theology. Just look at the biggies of Protestantism, such as
1. Once saved, always saved.
2. Sola Fide ~ Faith alone.
3. Bible alone, no Sacred Tradition ~ Sola Scriptura.
4. The Eucharist is just symbolic, no "Real Presence".
Etc, etc. Every one of the weak argumets they give us are so easily trumped by Catholics who take the time to know The Sacred Scriptures.
One example; a Protestant will show us passage upon passage to support their "Faith Alone" theology. Are there such passages? Sure there are. But here's the rub, Catholicism will always go for the more stringent passages. Specifically;
A Protestant will quote Ephesians 2:8-9. " For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- not by works, so that no one can boast". WOW!! If I didn't know my Holy Bible, I would probably say that The Catholic Church has it all wrong with this "Faith AND Works" stuff.
But I do know my Holy Bible. Here in the Epistle of St. James... now read this whole thing, it's POWERFUL!
"14 What shall it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but hath not works? Shall faith be able to save him? 15 And if a brother or sister be naked, and want daily food:
16 And one of you say to them: Go in peace, be ye warmed and filled; yet give them not those things that are necessary for the body, what shall it profit? 17 So faith also, if it have not works, is dead in itself. 18 But some man will say: Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without works; and I will shew thee, by works, my faith. 19 Thou believest that there is one God. Thou dost well: the devils also believe and tremble. 20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, offering up Isaac his son upon the altar? 22 Seest thou, that faith did co-operate with his works; and by works faith was made perfect? 23 And the scripture was fulfilled, saying: Abraham believed God, and it was reputed to him to justice, and he was called the friend of God. 24 Do you see that by works a man is justified; and not by faith only? 25 And in like manner also Rahab the harlot, was not she justified by works, receiving the messengers, and sending them out another way?
26 For even as the body without the spirit is dead; so also faith without works is dead."
And yes, there are many other examples I could give, but it's up to you, dear blogger, to discover for yourself.
The best analogy I can give is this;
Years ago when I was still on active duty in my Beloved Corps, I was on a particular tour of duty that had to do with the protection of Vital National Assets (fancy talk for nuke stuff). We had three source guard documets, one Marine Corps, one Navy, one Air Force. Every once in awhile, we would run across a situation where the various source documentation would contradict one source from another. Hmmm... what to do? Simple. Whichever specific was the most stringent, that's the one we went with. Just like Catholicism.
Protestant theology and other fairy tales...
You know... just look deep into Protestant theology and you will see just how lazy it is. If I didn't know better, I would swear that Protestants went out of their way to find the easiest way possible for salvation, and everything else concerning their theology. Just look at the biggies of Protestantism, such as
1. Once saved, always saved.
2. Sola Fide ~ Faith alone.
3. Bible alone, no Sacred Tradition ~ Sola Scriptura.
4. The Eucharist is just symbolic, no "Real Presence".
Etc, etc. Every one of the weak argumets they give us are so easily trumped by Catholics who take the time to know The Sacred Scriptures.
One example; a Protestant will show us passage upon passage to support their "Faith Alone" theology. Are there such passages? Sure there are. But here's the rub, Catholicism will always go for the more stringent passages. Specifically;
A Protestant will quote Ephesians 2:8-9. " For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith -- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God -- not by works, so that no one can boast". WOW!! If I didn't know my Holy Bible, I would probably say that The Catholic Church has it all wrong with this "Faith AND Works" stuff.
But I do know my Holy Bible. Here in the Epistle of St. James... now read this whole thing, it's POWERFUL!
"14 What shall it profit, my brethren, if a man say he hath faith, but hath not works? Shall faith be able to save him? 15 And if a brother or sister be naked, and want daily food:
16 And one of you say to them: Go in peace, be ye warmed and filled; yet give them not those things that are necessary for the body, what shall it profit? 17 So faith also, if it have not works, is dead in itself. 18 But some man will say: Thou hast faith, and I have works: shew me thy faith without works; and I will shew thee, by works, my faith. 19 Thou believest that there is one God. Thou dost well: the devils also believe and tremble. 20 But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works, offering up Isaac his son upon the altar? 22 Seest thou, that faith did co-operate with his works; and by works faith was made perfect? 23 And the scripture was fulfilled, saying: Abraham believed God, and it was reputed to him to justice, and he was called the friend of God. 24 Do you see that by works a man is justified; and not by faith only? 25 And in like manner also Rahab the harlot, was not she justified by works, receiving the messengers, and sending them out another way?
26 For even as the body without the spirit is dead; so also faith without works is dead."
And yes, there are many other examples I could give, but it's up to you, dear blogger, to discover for yourself.
The best analogy I can give is this;
Years ago when I was still on active duty in my Beloved Corps, I was on a particular tour of duty that had to do with the protection of Vital National Assets (fancy talk for nuke stuff). We had three source guard documets, one Marine Corps, one Navy, one Air Force. Every once in awhile, we would run across a situation where the various source documentation would contradict one source from another. Hmmm... what to do? Simple. Whichever specific was the most stringent, that's the one we went with. Just like Catholicism.
posted by Kevin Whiteman at
5:26 PM
4 Comments:
Very good. I'll always remember the last paragraph.
Thanks Joe!
There is no such thing as Protestant "theology". Protestantism, in whatever form it takes at the moment, consists of, essentially, a hissy-fit against one, some or most of the traditional Christian doctrine as maintained by the Catholic Church.
Protestantism is, by definition, not Christian. In fact, it is anti-Christian. Since (traditional) Catholicism is the Christian religion and Protestantism "protests" it, that doesnt exactly place them on solid theological ground.
Then I take it that the following statement is true:
The Catholic Church is pure and sin-free in all points.
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