Thursday, April 25, 2019

Is Roman Catholicism a Cult?

You know when you're on You Tube and you click on a video, and then You Tube feeds you a whole list of videos on the right hand side that might interest you? So the other day I was googling a random Roman Catholic Mass song, and when I clicked on the You Tube link you'll never guess what caught my eye from the right hand column... 

Is Roman Catholicism a cult? - Ravi Zacharias at Texas A&M's Veritas Forum

Holy Cannoli you guys... I can't make this stuff up! I can only assume that the Holy Spirit places these things in my path so that in my own little way I can respond. The actual question a young man asked was "Is Roman Catholicism another example of how unity does not equal uniformity OR is it at it's core a derivative from true Christianity?" I will be honest, I was disappointed with Ravi's response. Actually, I was kinda "flipping tables” angry, and I may have even said a bad word.

 I don't know much about Ravi Zacharias, but I do know that he is a Christian Apologist who is held in high esteem by many. And what comes with being held in high esteem by followers of Christ? Great responsibility. Unfortunately, his answer without a doubt further perpetuates the ideology that Roman Catholics are not Christians. 

In this video, he defines a Christian as "one who confesses with his mouth and believes in his heart that Jesus Christ is Lord and has risen from the dead." He defines a cult as "anything that deviates from the historic person and work of Jesus Christ or adds to His teaching and is generally at the instruction of one individual who dictates that belief." He goes on to say that "some" Catholics are Christians because they don't subscribe to what the Catholic Church teaches, which really grinds my gears but I'll let that one slide for today.


I want to address his definition of a cult, as he's implying it's relation to the Roman Catholic Church. The problem is that the answer is so multi-faceted and too much information for a non-theologian to explain in a blog post. The quick version would be to say that the Roman Catholic church does NOT "deviate from the historic person and work of Jesus Christ" and we are NOT at the "instruction of one individual who dictates Christian belief." Everything the Roman Catholic Church teaches is based in Sacred Scripture and on Capital T Tradition. Tradition passed down from the apostles. Tradition from the same people who gave us the physical form of the Bible. It's important to remember that there were no physical Bibles in the early Church and Christ's teachings and historical events were passed down through generations by the spoken word. So, in addition to Sacred Scripture, we rely on the information that the early Church has passed down to us.

I have learned over the years not to blindly assume that Protestant beliefs are based on misinterpreted Scripture and I think it's fair to ask the same courtesy in return. We must approach each other with a spirit of gentleness and bear with one another in love. We must view the other with benevolent Good Will, aiming to learn from one another with an openness to the Holy Spirit. When we are seeking Truth, there is no reason to be afraid.

And now, to answer the question of the hour, Is Roman Catholicism a Cult

The answer is unequivocally no! Roman Catholics believe that Jesus is the Son of God, he was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of the Virgin Mary. He died on the Cross for us and for our Salvation. He rose again on the third day, thus conquering death! He is the only Way and His Grace is sufficient. We do not worship the Pope, we do not worship the Saints, we do not worship Mary. You can trace all of the Roman Catholic popes through history back to St. Peter himself, but we are not “followers of the Pope” for Pete’s sake. (No pun intended haha) We are followers of Christ! This is not just "what Katie believes," this is what the Roman Catholic Church teaches and has always taught. People grossly misunderstand the Church's teaching on the pope and the ignorance is truly damaging. I invite you to listen here to learn what the Roman Catholic Church really believes about the Pope and Papal Infallibility. This video isn't meant to convert you to the Catholic way of thinking, I share so that you may better understand that Catholic teaching is based in Scripture. We can agree to disagree, but we can't claim that the other is not in the Word and/or not a Christian. Also, don't be deterred by the length of the video. I find that a great time to listen is in your car, and if you can't find time for the whole video, the first 20 min will at least give you some information on Catholic teaching.

Peace be with you!

"There are not one hundred people in the United States who hate The Catholic Church, but there are millions who hate what they wrongly perceive the Catholic Church to be."
Fulton J. Sheen

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