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What is the difference between what Catholicism and Protestant?
I'm tired of being ignorant about this subject! lol I know that they are both denominations of Christianity, but what are the differences between these two specific denominations?
21 Answers
- Anonymous1 decade agoFavorite Answer
You are correct that they are both denominations of Christianity. Protestantism began as a protest by a Catholic priest, Martin Luther, against abuses in the Catholic Church. There are now many more denominations of protestants including Methodists, Baptists and The Society of Friends (or "Quakers"). All of theses had similar "break-away" moments when their founder protested an issue of doctrine by founding his own denomination.
- Anonymous1 decade ago
I don't think denominations is the right word. The Catholic Church claims to be the Church established by Jesus and the Apostle. It faithfully maintains their teachings of which the Bible is critically important and which contains all that is needed for salvation. The Bible does not include the detail of liturgy and organization that is based on that of the Apostolic era and the times following it. Human are created good and are flawed; with the grace of God their actions and actions of human organizations can be good and holy. The Church teaches that Jesus granted the Apostles authority to teach; it has been handed down and this authority is its authority; it include interpretation of the Bible and its application of Tradition to changing cultures and times. The Church claims that it, its liturgy and its people, and its sacraments are living signs of Christ on earth. There is a particular judgment at death and the body is reunited with the soul at the general resurrection
The Protestants claim that Catholic corruption failed to properly maintain Apostolic Tradition and while it exists, the Bible is the standard against which all practices must be measured. Various Protestants will agree or disagree with individual Catholic beliefs and practices. Some will say that the Church's teaching on salvation and justification is not Biblical. Others will say that there is agreement in the majority of teaching and the Church is not condemned for its differences. The Authority of the Apostles to teach has been dispersed to all individual Christian believers; that under the guidance of the Holy Spirit an individuals reading of scripture is valid and authentic. Some believe that human beings are basically corrupt and that acceptance of Jesus as God and savior puts an acceptable sheen over that corruption. Humans and human organizations are corrupt and rarely act in concert with God. The dead await the general resurrection and are neither in heaven or hell.
Source(s): http://www.religionfacts.com/christianity/charts/c... http://www.amazon.com/Dietrich-Bonhoeffer/e/B001H6... , a Protestant http://www.amazon.com/Thomas-Merton/e/B000AQ6QX4/r... a Catholic - 1 decade ago
Catholics has a long history that has changed in many ways.
Protestants protested against wrong things preached by the Catholic Church
Source(s): Read the full article at this link http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/dif... - 1 decade ago
there are Eastern Orthodox Catholics, Vatican loyalists, various cults and orders claiming to be Catholic, renegade Catholics who marry, ordain women and still practice Mass in Latin. If one claims to be a Christian outside all that is claimed to be Catholic, then one is a Protestant. Protestants are those who have rebelled from existing traditions and theocracies started by Emperor Constantine. So, the history of one's alleged Christianity defines whether one is keeping a "true" line of faith practices or deliberately branching away from Vatican or Istanbul churches. Lutherans were founded by Martin Luther who protested church rules. Anglians were founded by King Henry in England who wanted the freedom to divorce and marry at will. Thousands of Protestant religions including Mormons claim to be inspired away and away further from Vatican rule over faiths. I have never been religious so I am always an Atheist and never a Protestant or Catholic or Jew or Muslim or Hindu or Buddhist or Jain or Shinto or any other cult belief activity of people.
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- loveLv 61 decade ago
They are denominations.but not all of Christianity. They are predominately religions. Catholics believe that one can buy their place in heaven. They require giving so much so as giving all you have for their kingdom to stand. That is why the catholic church is rich and prospering.
Protestant Church believe that sacrifices are made to improve the lives of others at a certain level. They tend more to the needy as a way to get approval. Yet the soul and spirit of a person is poverty stricken because of a lack of the knowledge of God. You can get a education and have great wealth. But you can be spiritually bankrupt.
They preach just enough to get you there but not keep you there.
Matthew 5. We have a beatitude issue. Christianity is what one knows about God and what Jesus knew about us. A breaking and a correcting of mind and heart. A sacrifice of body soul and spirit. a reasonable service to Jesus Christ. God's kingdom come on earth as it is written in heaven. Obedience to every word of God. God's spirit within us. God challenges us to pick up our cross and walk. Stop sinning or something worse will happen to us. Being made whole!
God knows we can not do anything without him. So if we are willing he will do it all for us if we spend time with him. It is not about doing church stuff. It isa bout seeking the will of God. Worship and praise.Not chanting or submitting to men. God is whom we need and he makes it clear with we persevere and be persistent in prayer and asking for his will.
God uses ordinary people. God raises up people for our good. God chooses the rejected and ostracized. God choose people that were uncommon to follow him. God did not require education to be his disciple. Even the religious leaders said who gave you such authority to say these things. How did you learn them you have no education. Jesus did just what God told him to do. God is all knowing and all seeing God. Who can boast about what God can only do for those he chooses?
Mans education knowledge and wisdom, which is finite to God came from him. What God can do; if he put it in man, man would destroy himself. Man is working hard at it now.
God orchestrated all of us and our life before we ever existed on earth. He knew us and he knows them. Jesus was always there,even before he came to earth to look closer at our issues and acts of unrighteousness. He knew us and he knew what we were going to do to him. He had the power to kill us but he made the choice to love us in spite of our mess.
One thing man can not do is kill the spirit and soul. He can kill the body. God takes care of our Spirit and it lives forever in hell or heaven. So why fear man when God makes the final act?
I applaud those that even desire to live godly. So if you just have a desire you will suffer persecution. But you will be blessed and loved by God.
Source(s): There are Christians in most religions. God knows us and he knows them. What is the difference? Love and forgivness that is the difference. God said share the love and forgive the brotheren. You can go to hell well dressed and you can go there poor and dirty. Pray for mankind and pray for the church. - skepsisLv 71 decade ago
Catholics believe in church as a community. They believe that Christians continue to be members of the "body of Christ" even after death and can pray to God on behalf of each other. They also believe that Christ gave his disciples (and by the extension of ordination, to their successors the bishops and priests of the Church) both the power to change bread and wine into his flesh and blood for the spiritual nourishment of Christians, and the power to forgive sins on God's behalf. They also believe that the Church is guided by the Holy Spirit and can define and teach theological and moral doctrines beyond the scope of the Bible.
Protestants believe in many of the same things about Jesus Christ as Catholics, but they do not believe Christ gave anyone supernatural abilities. Nor do they think any human being (aside from Christ) can have any affect the salvation of any other human being. And they deny any human authority to develop doctrines that are not explicitly found in the Bible. Essentially, salvation is a personal matter between the believer, the Bible and Jesus.
The reasons for these differences is due to the unfortunate response of Catholic leaders to a complaint by a priest, a Martin Luther, in the 16th Century. Although the Church was considered infallible, any human leader is not so considered. In this particular incident, these leaders were caught bending doctrine in such a way as to be promising entrance into heaven in exchange for a fee. Luther protested loudly and publicly, embarrassing these leaders, and they responded not by debating the issues with him, but by starting the process of excommunicating him. Realizing his religious credibility and survival was at stake, Luther combed through the scriptures, looking for something that would undermine the the authority of the Roman hierarchy. A narrow reading of a few passages enabled him to formulate two new doctrines. The first, "sola fide", stated that only faith, no human work, could redeem a person. This invalidated most of the functions of the ordained priesthood, as well as the practice of praying to and for the dead. The second, "sola scriptura", stated that nothing could be stated without the backing of scripture. This invalidated any papal, episcopal or conciliar pronouncements that didn't have biblical sources.
Of course, there were other Bible verses that contradicted these assertions (and he ignored the fact that the text of the Bible had been decided by a council), but Luther had enough support from princes and peasants who were sick and tired of Roman heavy-handedness to break away and form a new, decentralized kind of church (since he couldn't reform the existing one). And other protesters began to form their own Protestant churches, beginning a tradition of fracturing that continues to this day.
Luther also had to reject a few minor books of the Bible that were problematic for his new doctrines. Naturally, the Catholics embraced and confirmed these books at their next council, where they also condemned their worst abuses, making it seem as if the reform had been their idea all along. Since then, the pope has continually asserted his administrative authority over all other bishops in the Catholic church. One pope even bullied a council into affirming his "infallibility" in solemnly declaring "doctrines of faith and morals". (Of course, subsequent popes have used this faculty extremely sparingly to avoid potential embarrassment and crisis later on.)
- ?Lv 45 years ago
you will no longer be able to evaluate a guy to a female. each and each is different. yet a guy, and a female, supplement one yet another. In different words, one guy and one female (jointly) is one unit. they seem to be a complementary pair.
- Aegor RLv 41 decade ago
Correct. Catholicism is.
That aside, here's how it went:
For a long time after Jesus, Christians were generally Catholics (they followed the authority of bishops/the Pope). Then there was a religious dispute about the Holy Spirit (one of the persons of God), and the Orthodox faiths broke off.
Later, Martin Luther was tired of "corruption" in the Church and wanted to reform it. He did this by basically excommunicating himself (arguable). Thus Protestantism was born.
Protestants do NOT believe in the Church's role as the Bride of Christ, do NOT accept the Pope's authority, do NOT believe that the Eucharist becomes Body and Blood every Sunday, and are generally less focused on form of worship.
- Anonymous1 decade ago
Protestants do not recognize the authority of the Pope or ask the Virgin Mary or saints for intercession. Most Protestants only recognize two sacraments: baptism and communion. Most Protestants confess their sins to God, rather than a priest or minister. Most Protestants do not believe in the "real presence" of Christ in communion.
Those are the real differences as far as I can see.
- PaulCypLv 71 decade ago
The Catholic Church is the original Christian Church, the only Church Jesus Christ founded, the only Church He intended to exist, and the only Church that did exist for 1,500 years after His death and resurrection. It has taught the fullness of Christian truth in authority for 2,000 years, and will do so until the end of time. Protestantism is a manmade tradition of thousands of unauthorized conflicting denominations, who think that the Bible is the only authority, though they can't agree among themselves on the meaning of a single passage. They have rejected many of the essential beliefs and practices of original, true and complete Christianity, and exist in open defiance of the clearly stated will of Christ "that they all may be ONE".