The spirit of the age encourages us to believe that all religions are basically the same.
And certainly, it's considered rude to think that Catholicism and Protestantism have fundamental differences on vital questions.
But have you actually looked into it? Here, for example, is one of the things the Pope sincerely believes and practises:
http://reformedperspective.ca/jorges-heresy/
Perhaps your point might be better made if you supplied a link that accurately expressed Catholic teaching rarther than the one you have chosen.
ReplyDeleteJohn, if merely reporting what the Pope says and does is illegitimate as a way of critiquing Catholicism then, well, you now have two problems.
ReplyDeleteI had in mind the incorrect notion in your link implying the Catholicism teaches the worship or adoration of Mary. You may believe that is the case, but just even a bit of research on your part would educate you enough to know that is not the case. It is a common error that seems to plague those that are sometimes too lazy to to do actual research to support their criticisms.
ReplyDeleteOn the contrary, John, you appear to have made a lazy copy/paste criticism that is relevant neither to the focus of the article, nor to the point that I made from it. It's very possible - and the article has successfully done it - to critique the Pope for an unbiblical/unwarranted view of Mary, without entering at all into the hair-splitting (and also unbiblical/unwarranted) distinctions that are made in terms of the different sorts of worship/adoration that can (supposedly) be offered to different entities.
ReplyDeleteExcuse me. What did I copy and paste? Be specific. Your post seemed to have the desire to show one of the differences between Catholicism and Protestantism. The link you provided in your post to point out one of the differences implies that the Church teaches the worship of Mary. Would you not agree that is implied in the link you had in your post? As you should know that is not in fact what the Church teaches. Perhaps you should read the article you linked again and the consult the Catechism of the Catholic Church to see what the Church actually teaches regarding Mary. I do not mind that you criticize the Church, but your arguments might carry more weight if they accurately portray what Church teaches.
ReplyDeleteJohn, everything you say has already been addressed in my previous comments. If you want me to publish your next comment, you need to respond to what's actually been said, and add something to the issue addressed in my blog and in the article, instead of trying to divert into a different debate.
ReplyDeleteTo be clear: the blog post points out that Protestantism and Catholicism have significant, meaningful differences. The article highlights the role that Mary plays in the Pope's faith, as testified to by his own statements and practices. Whether or not these practices qualify technically as "worship" (and especially whether Rome's hair-splitting definitions concerning different sorts of worship) is not discussed by the article, and only minimally relevant to the structure or validity of its argument and conclusion. You appear to be indulging in boiler-plate criticism that doesn't respond to the article's argument.