RobertoKnox

I also grew up in a country that was 80-90% Catholic. I can tell you that Bible reading was not encouraged in this country, worship of Mary was encouraged, and politics was directed by the religious institution as well. All of that is probably true unfortunately. It sounds like you guys are talking about a Latin American country or the Phillippines. Many of the people there are poor and even illiterate. They depend on the clergy to teach them the faith, but sadly clergy are not always good at being clergy. That still does not change Catholic teaching. Nowhere in the Catechism does it say that Catholics should worship Mary or not read the bible. Roberto

Sorry about that, didn't exactly read the terms of service before posting Roberto, Indulgences are extra-Biblical teaching my friend. The only One that can forgive sins is God through Jesus Christ - not any particular person, institution, or denomination. We as Christians can approach God directly through the Holy Spirit because of the price paid by Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary. There is one Mediator between God and man - Jesus Christ. We are all who claim Christ as Lord and Savior a royal priesthood. 1 Tim. 2:5 For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, 1 Pet. 2:9 But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for his own possession, that you may proclaim the excellencies of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light. So you better understand how WCF works... We welcome everyone who follows our Terms of Service, but we do quickly shut down any thread that is teaching Catholicism before it becomes a battlefield. We believe that there are people in every denomination that are saved, just as we believe there are people in every denomination that are not saved. Salvation does not come through one denomination, but through Christ Jesus. We do welcome any discussion/debate on what is in scripture, while ensuring that extra-biblical beliefs are stated as such. We are more than just a website that discusses Christianity, we are a ministry. It would benefit you to read and understand our Terms of Service so you will know what is expected from every member. It would also benefit you to become familiar with our Statement of Faith. We do not require anyone to believe in our SoF to be a member, but we do require everyone to follow the ToS to remain a member. It would also benefit you to understand that this forum, Worthy Christian Forums, is part of a larger ministry and is privately funded for this purpose. As you can see we do monitor what is being posted. God bless, GE Sorry about that, didn't get to reading the terms of service before posting. Got too excited

Welcome to Worthy. Hope you like it here. Tell me what do you believe about indulgences? God bless, GE I will like it here. I think indulgences are great! (Never got one though). Indulgences are basically freeing you in full (plenary) or part from God's temporal punishment for you for sins you've commited (You've been forgiven by God in Confession or a perfect Act of Contrition, but you still need to be chastised for your sins). There are many different types of indulgences for doing many different things. If you have time to spare, these links pretty much cover everything. (deleted by Candice) Roberto

Thank you all. Sorry for the rather agressive debut

Forgive me if this is on the wrong thread

Hi all, this is my first post, so please bear with me. I'm not trying to convert anyone to Catholicism, but... Many Protestants have misinterpreted Catholic doctrine For one, we DO NOT WORSHIP MARY. WE HAVE NEVER WORSHIPED HER. WE NEVER WILL. This misconception about Catholics is extremely annoying. Walk into a Catholic mass sometime and chances are, you'll probably only hear the word Mary once, during the consecration of the Eucharist. We simply have a great respect for her, but we do not worship her. Worship is for God alone. The Rosary and other Marian based prayers are approved devotions, but they are not something all Catholics must follow. Rosaries and other Marian prayers are not acts of worship to Mary; they are asking Mary to pray for us. At the end of each decade of the Rosary (10 Hail Mary) the prayer "Glory Be" is uttered which goes: "Glory Be to the the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning is now and ever shall will be world without end amen". and then the Fatima Decade Prayer which goes "Oh my Jesus Forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, lead all souls into heaven, especially those in most need of your mercy". The Hail Mary ends with pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death amen" Secondly, yes, we do proclaim Jesus as our Lord and Saviour. Have you ever read the Nicene Creed? It opens with: "I Believe in One God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and Earth, and in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord". Third, Catholicism does not believe works will earn you heaven. We too believe that you need faith in Jesus Christ to be saved. According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church: 452 The name Jesus means “God saves.” The child born of the Virgin Mary is called Jesus, “for he will save his people from their sins” (Mt 1:21): “there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12). (Forgive me for going off on a tangent) Fourth, Catholics are not barred from reading scripture. In fact, it is highly encourged. The reason why many Catholics are biblically illiterate is due to poor catechesis