Catholicism doesn’t merely call us to be “saved”.
This was a thought I had in the shower this morning.
Thing is, most of us Catholic Christians got that whole “personal relationship with God” and “accepting Jesus into your heart as Lord and Saviour” part a long time ago.
Perhaps it’s just so ingrained into our being as a “matter of fact” that whenever we get asked that question, what should be a simple “yes of course” answer turns into a defensive confusion against strawman accusations.
You see, any Catholic who has studied deeply enough into the history and theology of the Catholic Faith would know that we aren’t the ones who need to defend the origins and practices of our faith.
But unfortunately, we often find ourselves doing just that, even when we give what should be a satisfactory “yes” to the question “Are you Saved?”.
Every other early Church, even the ones not in communion with Rome, all have the same 7 sacraments, baptising of infants, the same reverence of the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the same teachings on justification.
It wasn’t until the Protestant Reformation started in 1517 by Martin Luther that these ideas of “Scripture Alone, Faith Alone, Once Saved Always Saved” were popularised. What is surprising however, is that Martin Luther still believed in many of the teachings of the Catholic Church. One example being, the belief that contraception is immoral. The fact is, that if you went to a Church that was established during the earlier period of the Protestant Reformation, you will see that even these early Protestant denominations such as the Lutheran Church and the Anglican Church will appear to have a lot more in common with Catholicism than modern day Protestantism. Some Anglicans even pray the Rosary.
So how did it come to megachurches, thousands of denominations that don’t agree with each other, and “non-denominational Christianity”?
This is the unavoidable consequence of redefining the entire idea of Christianity to a matter of one’s personal interpretation of scripture. You will inevitably get an environment where people are allowed to pick and choose what they want to believe, and if they don’t like what a certain pastor at a certain church is teaching, they can just leave and change church. This is not an uncommon practice, and perhaps this is why the concept of “non-denominational Christianity” has become so popular. There will never be a church that will completely align with what you personally want the Bible to say or mean, for that is after all, the modern day definition of Christianity.
Who defines what exactly is “Biblical” and “Unbiblical”?
That’s a tough question and reality that gets uncomfortably close to “rigid authority systems”, especially for a freedom-loving, authority-despising, patriotic American.
Hence, it is no wonder why many have decided to identify as being “non-denominational”, perhaps finally settling down after having previously identified as Methodist, Baptist, Pentecostal, Apostolic, and perhaps even Catholic once upon a time. At last, they would be completely free of the burden of having to conform to the teachings of any specific denomination. You would be just like the early Christians, the ones the Catholics apparently killed, so says the anti-Catholic propaganda that is rampant in Protestant-majority America.
Just you and the Bible. Even though the early Christians didn’t have a Bible until the authority of the Catholic Church put the Bible together.
So the fact of the matter is, that if you’re a Protestant, you say that you know better than 2000 years of Church History. You are saying that your personal interpretation of scripture trumps everyone else’s, because God has specifically chosen to reveal his truth to you personally, just as he did with the Prophet Muhammad of Islam or the Prophet Mormon.
Maybe you’re be okay with the fact that you disagree with 1500 years of history, or perhaps even with your fellow Protestants on some “small theological differences”. After all, at least all Christians are still united in the fact that Jesus saves, and that’s what truly matters, right?
But here’s the thing.
For us Catholics, our faith doesn’t merely call us to be “saved”.
Most of us got that part a long time ago.
Catholicism calls us to be Saints.
“Thou believest that there is one God. Thou dost well: the devils also believe and tremble.” James 2:19
