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After my explanations of common objections to Catholicism below, Amy had replies. See the end of the post.

I want to address her closing comment:

I understand what you are saying, that you feel Candy supporting this woman (or any woman) defying the faith of her husband is divisive, but I do not agree. While we are called to love all people, we are not called to unite with them. The Bible warns against uniting with those who teach a false doctrine (Matthew 7:15-20),

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9 “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but underneath are ravenous wolves.
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By their fruits you will know them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?
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Just so, every good tree bears good fruit, and a rotten tree bears bad fruit.
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A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a rotten tree bear good fruit.
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Every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.
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So by their fruits you will know them.

which is what I believe the Catholic Church to be.

Let’s look at the fruits of the Catholic Church. It is the most consistent pro-life Church, holding the line against contraception, abortion, divorce; upholding family values; largest charity providing food, clothing, medical care throughout the world. It is also the oldest Christian church.

So while I respectfully differ from your views, I cannot say we are part of the same body because a house divided against itself cannot stand (Matthew 12:25). We cannot be so theologically opposed and be part of the same triune church.

Is not the Protestant, nonCatholic, nonOrthodox branch of Christianity already deeply divided and splintered just among themselves? Not a question really, more of an observation.

My citations from the Bible are there to show why I could never believe the Catholic doctrines, just as your citations were an attempt to prove fundamentalism wrong. You are right that it is a matter of exegesis and authority of the Bible, and we could never agree on major matters because of the opposite stands here.

I think we can agree to disagree. I think all Christians can at least affirm the basics of the Nicene Creed and treat each others as brothers and sisters in Christ. Amy’s next statement showed me that probably is not possible because they do not see Catholics as brothers and sisters in Christ.

I do see the Catholic church reaching out to try and create unity worldwide, but I will have no part in that as I believe it to be part of the great apostasy in the last days- a Christ-less world religion, just like a world government.

I did some reading up today on this. If Amy and other Christians like her understood how Christ-centered the Catholic Church was they would not fear it as a Christ-less religion.

So the verse Jesus gave us that families will be divided is true (Luke 12:51-52), because those who hold completely to the inerrant nature of the Bible cannot unite with those who do not.

Christ of course was speaking of divisions between believers and nonbelievers. Amy quoting this to me isn’t compelling or persuasive, but to my mind as a practicing Catholic, is ridiculous.

Some other verses came to my mind as I was reading this:

Mark 9
38″Teacher,” said John, “we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.”
39″Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, 40for whoever is not against us is for us. 41I tell you the truth, anyone who gives you a cup of water in my name because you belong to Christ will certainly not lose his reward.

This is the essence of ecumenism.

John 17

“I pray not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me through their word,
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so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.
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And I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one

What we as Christians should be striving for.

I have answers to all of Amy’s counter comments. I may put them up here later but I do not feel the urgent need to answer the as a dialogue. Dialogue implies that two parties are listening to each other, evaluating and weighing each other’s points. As has happened to me several times on these types of blogs, that type of analysis just doesn’t happen. It just doesn’t. It’s a waste of energy to pursue.

This entire conversation came about as I objected to Candy Brauer’s advice to a woman married to a Catholic husband. Amy says she did not see anything that was persecutation to Catholics in the post. Let me point them out.

“However….I have a problem. My husband isn’t religious at all–but he will not want to change his faith. His parents are very popular in our church, and they tend to be controlling of our family, and they are also my daughter’s godparents. My mother-in-law will want to make sure my children are getting a good Catholic upbringing.

I’m almost terrified to even bring this up with my husband, because I know he’ll get upset, and I don’t want to cause any strife. I want to raise my children correctly, but I feel like I just have to keep things as they are so that everyone will be happy.

I’m very torn right now, I don’t want to have to hide my faith, but I don’t want to cause a fight with my husband, or a rift with his family either. I just don’t know what to do. -Emily”

Emily, you are in my prayers. Also know that you are not alone. I have been in contact with many readers here who have unbelieving or Roman Catholic husbands. One of my reader’s Roman Catholic husband gets mad every time he sees her reading her Bible.

You have found the truth – you know that you are not “being saved” through “the church.” You know that you ARE SAVED. Bought with the blood of Christ, and as Jesus said – “It is finished!” Those of us who are saved, are forgiven, and are clean from sin in the sight of God. Therefore, the Bible refers to us as saints.

There is something else that Jesus said, that I think is very pertinent to your situation:

Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division: For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three. -Luke 12:51-52

When one becomes a saved, born again Christian, there will be turmoil in their life. When I first got saved, my hubby (who was just my boyfriend at the time) was Roman Catholic. Meanwhile, my dad was a closet Christian at the time, my mom an unbeliever, and I lost all of my friends at that time, because I had became a “fanatic Jesus person.”

For quite a while, my friends thought I was going through some stage, and my parents thought I joined some cult. The change in me was so instant, that it scared most of those who knew me. My boyfriend (future hubby) liked the change, but kept his thoughts to himself until after he got saved a few months later.

What did I do? I lived my faith, but was also very patient and tried to be understanding. If your spiritual eyes were fully opened, you’d see a big battle going on in your house. It’s a fight over your husband’s soul.

The Bible tells us that if a wife is with an unbelieving husband, and she can’t convince him with the Bible, then she should at least live a good Christian life for him to see. God lead me to certain scriptures to read to my hubby, which really spoke to him. Many of those are the scripture in my God vs. the Vatican article in the left hand column. My husband (then boyfriend) also saw the instant change in me the very next day, and that made him think there really is something to this “saved thing.”

You need to let your husband know that you became a saved, born again Christian. This way, as he sees the changes in you, God gets the glory, instead of coincidence and circumstances. Make sure you include how you received that peace that “passeth all understanding” (as the Bible puts it) and how you now feel clean. Tell him when and how you got saved, and see how he reacts. If he is angry, then leave it alone for a while, and let him think it over and come to you. If you end up having to take this road, make sure that you memorize all of the descriptions of love (KJV – “charity” – love in action) from 1 Corinthians 13, and follow those descriptions. This will really minister to your husband’s heart. If he seems willing, tell him the salvation message, and invite him to say the prayer of salvation with you.

Yes, you’ll have turmoil, because you are no longer of this world, and the current god of this world is Satan.

However, Romans 8 gives us a promise – all things will work out for the good for you, if you continue to abide in Christ. Follow the advice in Psalm 37, and trust in, and wait on the Lord.

Today the kids and I studied Matthew chapter 19. In that chapter, we learned that it is impossible to get saved, but that God is a God of miracles, and one’s getting saved is the impossible being made possible via a God-created miracle.

It was a miracle that I got saved. It was a miracle that you got saved. Plant a seed of salvation, and see if the miracle doesn’t eventually happen to your husband.

His being saved is impossible, so it may not happen, but miracles do happen – it happened to you and I.

Meanwhile, each time you go to a Roman Catholic Church you are out on a mission field. You are certainly surrounded by people who are ignorant of what the Bible tells us about how to really get saved.

I have a heart for Roman Catholics to know the truth. You have been given a job to work in that mission field as well. A great way to start is to leave Christian tracts laying about the Roman Catholic Church. A GREAT one is called “Why is Mary Crying?” You can read that tract online for free from here.

Meanwhile, see if you can start up a Bible study group, and make sure you use your KJV Bible, because Roman Catholic versions lean heavily on the Latin Vulgate and the Alexandrian texts, which are heavily corrupted – missing verses, words switched around that change meanings, etc.

Ask your husband if your family could do family Bible readings together from your KJV Bible. Start in the book of Luke, and you’ll quickly see that Mary calls Jesus HER Saviour as well – meaning that she too needed to be saved from her sins. And remember, 1 Timothy tells us that we have ONE mediator between God, and us and that mediator is Christ (not Mary). The Sermon on the Mount in Matthew warns against praying in repetition (like the hail Mary’s and what not). Just reading through the New Testament with a heart to know God will lead many from the Catholic Church “come out her!” says the book of Revelation. You have come out of the Roman Catholic Church. Your husband may be next. Plant the seed in his heart – tell him the Truth (Jesus says in John that HE is THE way, THE truth, and THE life, and that NO one comes to God BY HIM (not Mary).

I’ll let you the reader decide if my assessment of this was correct or not.

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