The Highway Forums General Discussion Theology Discussion Forum Roman Catholicism and salvation

You gotta just hate those guys who jump in on a discussion afer 8 pages, but hopefully I have a few things to add that haven't been said before.<br><br>For clarity's sake, I think it would do all of us, especially our Catholic friends, to read this: http://www.the-highway.com/catholic4_Armstrong.html. This is a page right on this website. This page is part of a broader work, whose table of contents can be found at http://www.the-highway.com/catholic-toc_Armstrong.html.<br><br>Read down to the quotes from the council of Trent. For example, <br><br>"Canon 9. If anyone says that the sinner is justified by faith alone. . . , meaning that nothing else is required to cooperate in order to obtain the grace of justification, and that it is not in any way necessary that he be prepared and disposed by the action of his own will, let him be anathema."<br><br>"Canon 12. If anyone says that justifying faith is nothing else than confidence in divine mercy. . . . which remits sins for Christ’s sake, or that it is this confidence alone that justifies us, let him be anathema."<br><br>Compare this with Galatians 3:2-3:<br><br>"I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law or by BELIEVING what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain you goal by human effort?"<br><br>Or vs. 6:<br><br>"Consider Abraham: 'He BELIEVED God, and it was credited to him as righeousness.'"<br><br>Or what about the well-known Eph. 2:8:<br><br>"For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith- AND THIS NOT FROM YOURSELVES, IT IS THE GIFT OF GOD-" etc.<br><br>What is the "this" in "this not from yourselves"? Simple exegesis, or at least basic grammar, shows that this is plainly the aforementioned faith.<br><br>I could go on and on, citing different passages here and there, but be assured, Roman Catholicism and biblical Christianity are two very different things. Arguing over side issues like "we were here first" or whatever is useless. A careful, unbiased look at Roman Catholic doctrine will reveal that it is very different from the doctine taught in Scriptures. Period. There's no way around it. <br><br>This isn't a "Catholic interpretation vs. Reformed interpretation" issue. This is erroneous teaching standing in complete opposition to plain and simple Scripture. One is stretching the very essence of credulity to assert anything past this.<br><br>Edit: made the url's clickable