Post by Daniel on Sept 1, 2016 18:45:39 GMT -5
Ecumenical Movement Tries To Push Catholic & Protestant Churches Together
By Tom Olago September 01, 2016
Are there fundamental differences between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism? Do any such differences matter at all? Historical events demonstrate that Protestant belief was in fact birthed out of a major protest or rebellion against theological doctrines held by the Catholic Church that were considered heretical.
Heather Clark for ChristianNews.net recently narrated a summary of the historical chronology of events that led up to the current split. Clark recounted that the Protestant Reformation, which resulted in the Counter-Reformation by the Jesuits, was sparked by a monk and scholar named Martin Luther, who served the Roman Catholic Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
"I think I've found the truth at last," the classic film "Martin Luther" depicts Luther as stating to a Church official. "By faith man lives and is righteous, not by what he does for himself, be it adoration of relics, singing of masses, pilgrimages to Rome, purchase of pardon for his sins, but by faith in what God has done for him already through His Son."
Following the revelation, Luther began to challenge the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church, compiling a list of '95 theses' where he asserted that Catholic doctrine contradicted the Scriptures. He was later summoned to appear before a meeting of the Church and was declared a heretic and excommunicated.
Yet today there is a drive to re-unite the two major but opposite theological camps in an ecumenical exercise that emphasizes unity irrespective of significant doctrinal difference and conflicting Biblical interpretations with regards to the Christian tenets of faith.
In one such example, Clark reported that the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) recently voted overwhelmingly to approve a declaration of unity with the Roman Catholic Church in an endeavor to "enumerate the many points of agreement between Lutherans and Catholics"--a move that some state is contrary to Biblical Christianity.
Coincidentally, the ELCA and Roman Catholicism both teach 'replacement theology', i.e. that the church has replaced Israel and become the heir of all covenants made with her. This could explain the two anti-Israel resolutions passed at the recent ELCA assembly.
The "Declaration on the Way" was approved 931-9 in New Orleans. It "seeks to make more visible the unity we share by gathering together agreements reached on issues of church, Eucharist, and ministry." However, it is called "on the way" because "dialogue has not yet resolved all the church-dividing differences on these topics."
"Dear sisters and brothers, let us pause to honor this historic moment," ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton said in an address to the assembly. "Though we have not yet arrived, we have claimed that we are, in fact, on the way to unity. After 500 years of division and 50 years of dialogue, this action must be understood in the context of other significant agreements we have reached, most notably the 'Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification' in 1999."
While this month's ELCA declaration calls out points of agreement between evangelical Lutherans and Roman Catholics, it also outlines several areas where differences remain between the two entities:
"Roman Catholics believe in transubstantiation, while Lutherans do not believe that communion is transformed "into the [actual] substance of the body and blood of Christ."
"Lutherans question the global papacy, which Roman Catholics assert is of the succession of Peter.
Mike Gendron, a former Roman Catholic who now leads Proclaiming the Gospel Ministries, an organization dedicated to evangelizing Catholics, said that the ECLA is in error in seeking to find common ground with Roman Catholicism despite these doctrinal disparities.
"By seeking unity with the Catholic religion they are departing from the Biblical faith of the Reformers," he told Christian News Network. "They need to know that there can never be Biblical unity between Roman Catholics and denominations which uphold the Gospel of God."
He noted several other integral and fundamental differences between evangelicals and Roman Catholics:
"The Bible teaches justification by faith; Catholicism condemns with anathema those who believe justification is by faith alone (Romans 4);
"The Bible teaches we are born again by the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit; Catholicism teaches regeneration is by water baptism (John 3);
"The Bible teaches we are purified of sin by the blood of Jesus; Catholicism teaches purification is by the fires of purgatory (1 John 1:7);
"The Bible teaches that Jesus is the one Mediator between God and man; Catholicism offers many mediators including Mary and its priests (1 Timothy 2:5).
Gendron said that unity simply for the sake of religious unity is contrary to the Scriptures.
Yet another clear bone of contention is the role of Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ who holds an elevated and revered position in Roman Catholicism. Clark in a separate report stated that Pope Francis recently prayed for Mary to intercede for the oppressed.
The Pope recently urged the thousands gathered to observe what is known as the Roman Catholic "Feast of the Assumption" that Mary had been "assumed into Heaven body and soul."
"To the Queen of Peace, who we contemplate today in heavenly glory, I wish to entrust once again the anxieties and sufferings of the people who, in many parts of the world, are innocent victims of persistent conflict," he said. The Pope also led those gathered in the Magnificat and a recitation of the Angelus Domini.
Gendron held this belief about Mary to be un-Biblical. "The dogma that celebrates the assumption of Mary's body into Heaven is closely tied to another Catholic dogma, which is, the immaculate conception of Mary," he explained. "In 1854, Pope Pius IX declared Mary was conceived free from original sin and she remained free of every personal sin throughout her entire life (Catechism of the Catholic Church, para 491, 493)."
"Two thousand years ago the Pharisees nullified the word of God with their ungodly traditions and were soundly rebuked and called hypocrites by the Lord Jesus (Mark 7:6-14). Catholic bishops have made the same fatal error by rejecting and opposing God's word," Gendron said.
continue reading
www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=608
By Tom Olago September 01, 2016
Are there fundamental differences between Protestantism and Roman Catholicism? Do any such differences matter at all? Historical events demonstrate that Protestant belief was in fact birthed out of a major protest or rebellion against theological doctrines held by the Catholic Church that were considered heretical.
Heather Clark for ChristianNews.net recently narrated a summary of the historical chronology of events that led up to the current split. Clark recounted that the Protestant Reformation, which resulted in the Counter-Reformation by the Jesuits, was sparked by a monk and scholar named Martin Luther, who served the Roman Catholic Church in Wittenberg, Germany.
"I think I've found the truth at last," the classic film "Martin Luther" depicts Luther as stating to a Church official. "By faith man lives and is righteous, not by what he does for himself, be it adoration of relics, singing of masses, pilgrimages to Rome, purchase of pardon for his sins, but by faith in what God has done for him already through His Son."
Following the revelation, Luther began to challenge the doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church, compiling a list of '95 theses' where he asserted that Catholic doctrine contradicted the Scriptures. He was later summoned to appear before a meeting of the Church and was declared a heretic and excommunicated.
Yet today there is a drive to re-unite the two major but opposite theological camps in an ecumenical exercise that emphasizes unity irrespective of significant doctrinal difference and conflicting Biblical interpretations with regards to the Christian tenets of faith.
In one such example, Clark reported that the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) recently voted overwhelmingly to approve a declaration of unity with the Roman Catholic Church in an endeavor to "enumerate the many points of agreement between Lutherans and Catholics"--a move that some state is contrary to Biblical Christianity.
Coincidentally, the ELCA and Roman Catholicism both teach 'replacement theology', i.e. that the church has replaced Israel and become the heir of all covenants made with her. This could explain the two anti-Israel resolutions passed at the recent ELCA assembly.
The "Declaration on the Way" was approved 931-9 in New Orleans. It "seeks to make more visible the unity we share by gathering together agreements reached on issues of church, Eucharist, and ministry." However, it is called "on the way" because "dialogue has not yet resolved all the church-dividing differences on these topics."
"Dear sisters and brothers, let us pause to honor this historic moment," ELCA Presiding Bishop Elizabeth Eaton said in an address to the assembly. "Though we have not yet arrived, we have claimed that we are, in fact, on the way to unity. After 500 years of division and 50 years of dialogue, this action must be understood in the context of other significant agreements we have reached, most notably the 'Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification' in 1999."
While this month's ELCA declaration calls out points of agreement between evangelical Lutherans and Roman Catholics, it also outlines several areas where differences remain between the two entities:
"Roman Catholics believe in transubstantiation, while Lutherans do not believe that communion is transformed "into the [actual] substance of the body and blood of Christ."
"Lutherans question the global papacy, which Roman Catholics assert is of the succession of Peter.
Mike Gendron, a former Roman Catholic who now leads Proclaiming the Gospel Ministries, an organization dedicated to evangelizing Catholics, said that the ECLA is in error in seeking to find common ground with Roman Catholicism despite these doctrinal disparities.
"By seeking unity with the Catholic religion they are departing from the Biblical faith of the Reformers," he told Christian News Network. "They need to know that there can never be Biblical unity between Roman Catholics and denominations which uphold the Gospel of God."
He noted several other integral and fundamental differences between evangelicals and Roman Catholics:
"The Bible teaches justification by faith; Catholicism condemns with anathema those who believe justification is by faith alone (Romans 4);
"The Bible teaches we are born again by the sovereign work of the Holy Spirit; Catholicism teaches regeneration is by water baptism (John 3);
"The Bible teaches we are purified of sin by the blood of Jesus; Catholicism teaches purification is by the fires of purgatory (1 John 1:7);
"The Bible teaches that Jesus is the one Mediator between God and man; Catholicism offers many mediators including Mary and its priests (1 Timothy 2:5).
Gendron said that unity simply for the sake of religious unity is contrary to the Scriptures.
Yet another clear bone of contention is the role of Mary, the mother of Jesus Christ who holds an elevated and revered position in Roman Catholicism. Clark in a separate report stated that Pope Francis recently prayed for Mary to intercede for the oppressed.
The Pope recently urged the thousands gathered to observe what is known as the Roman Catholic "Feast of the Assumption" that Mary had been "assumed into Heaven body and soul."
"To the Queen of Peace, who we contemplate today in heavenly glory, I wish to entrust once again the anxieties and sufferings of the people who, in many parts of the world, are innocent victims of persistent conflict," he said. The Pope also led those gathered in the Magnificat and a recitation of the Angelus Domini.
Gendron held this belief about Mary to be un-Biblical. "The dogma that celebrates the assumption of Mary's body into Heaven is closely tied to another Catholic dogma, which is, the immaculate conception of Mary," he explained. "In 1854, Pope Pius IX declared Mary was conceived free from original sin and she remained free of every personal sin throughout her entire life (Catechism of the Catholic Church, para 491, 493)."
"Two thousand years ago the Pharisees nullified the word of God with their ungodly traditions and were soundly rebuked and called hypocrites by the Lord Jesus (Mark 7:6-14). Catholic bishops have made the same fatal error by rejecting and opposing God's word," Gendron said.
continue reading
www.prophecynewswatch.com/article.cfm?recent_news_id=608
!!
