Catholicism, It’s The Original
March 16, 2011 by OneBillionStories.com
Filed under Catholics Come Home, History, One Billion Stories, Testimonies
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Great point, the Catholic Church is the original Church God gave us. I love this information for the EWTN website. Thought I would share for those who have not seen it. Blessings.
How Old Is Your Church?
If you are a Lutheran, your religion was founded by Martin Luther, an ex- monk of the Catholic Church, in the year 1517.
If you belong to the Church of England, your religion was founded by King Henry VIII in the year 1534 because the Pope would not grant him a divorce with the right to remarry.
If you are a Presbyterian, your religion was founded by John Knox in Scotland in the year 1560.
If you are a Protestant Episcopalian, your religion was an offshoot of the Church of England founded by Samuel Seabury in the American colonies in the 17th century.
If you are a Congregationalist, your religion was originated by Robert Brown in Holland in 1582.
If you are a Methodist, your religion was launched by John and Charles Wesley in England in 1744.
If you are a Unitarian, Theophilus Lindley founded your church in London in 1774.
If you are a Mormon (Latter Day Saints), Joseph Smith started your religion in Palmyra, N.Y., in 1829.
If you are a Baptist, you owe the tenets of your religion to John Smyth, who launched it in Amsterdam in 1605.
If you are of the Dutch Reformed church, you recognize Michaelis Jones as founder, because he originated your religion in New York in 1628.
If you worship with the Salvation Army, your sect began with William Booth in London in 1865.
If you are a Christian Scientist, you look to 1879 as the year in which your religion was born and to Mrs. Mary Baker Eddy as its founder.
If you belong to one of the religious organizations known as ‘Church of the Nazarene,” “Pentecostal Gospel.” “Holiness Church,” “Pilgrim Holiness Church,” “Jehovah’s Witnesses,” your religion is one of the hundreds of new sects founded by men within the past century.
If you are Catholic, you know that your religion was founded in the year 33 by Jesus Christ the Son of God, and it is still the same Church.
Hello Seth,
I watched your interview on EWTN, and on Life on the Rock. As a result of those shows, you inspired me. So, I decided I would do the same thing with the people I know through 5 years of RCIA facilitation. As soon as I learn how to video properly, I will begin recording. I have lots of stories. I believe I am going to call the web site, “Rediscovering Your Faith.”
Because of my age I would like to remain close to the Southern Dioceses. I may just refer the out of town ones to you.
I am a “revert” and came home on Easter Vigil, 2007, at St. Joseph, Macon, GA, because of my grammar school Catholic training. MY CONVERSION STORY - (http://cbcourtois.newsvine.com/_news/2008/09/19/1885942-a-matter-of-faith-inspiration)is in three parts.
Essentially, I came back to the Church because the Lord tugged on my heart and I returned after 57 years of being a secularized person. I am very happy to be home.
May God Bless you for all that you are accomplishing for the Kingdom of God.
Your Brother in Christ,
Charlie Courtois
What about Judaism? Hinduism? Aboriginal Animism? Religion dates back to the earliest of human civilizations, that said can Christianity/Catholicism really be called the original?
Chad: Yes, it can. Catholicism is actually not so far separated from Judaism as you might think - it is rather a fulfillment and transformation of the Jewish faith. Jesus was the Messiah who had been prophesied in the Books of the Prophets in the Torah (Old Testament). Thus, it was God’s intent that all Jews should follow Jesus (i.e. be Christians) as a fulfillment of their Jewish faith in the coming of the Messiah. Jesus established the Catholic Church as his Church on earth, intending for all of his followers to be a part of it. The only reason Judaism continued to exist (and still exists to this day) is due to the imperfection of man, the lack of realization or recognition that Jesus actually is the foretold Messiah and that the Catholic Church is his Church on earth.
So yes, Catholicism can be called “the original” in that it is the more-fulfilled form, the intended goal, of Judaism. Also, within Christianity, the Catholic Church is obviously the single original Christian denomination - we have plenty of proof of that.
David Casper and anyone else who wants to join in: No doubt that Jesus was prophesied in the Torah but in Judaism the Messiah has a number of attributes that Jesus did not fulfill, thus to this group he could not have been the divine Messiah that had been prophesied in the Torah. So clearly this is a fundamental difference in Judaism and Catholicism. So… I agree Catholicism is the original form of Christianity but I am still not convinced it is the ‘original’.
As I stated earlier the existence of human civilization breeds religion in order to elucidate the unknown/not visible/things not yet explained by science. Religions do evolve through time as you stated (Judaism evolving into Catholicism), so is there a source (such as Hinduism) that is the original?
Can/should someone believe in a Faith simply because it is the ‘original’?
May I say that the messianic prophesies were viewed by the early Christian writers to be taken too literally by those that received them. For instance, the temple that was to be rebuilt in three days we read in the Big Book as being a reference to the temple that is the body and, in this case, the body being the body of Jesus, thus it being raised in three days.
It is rather common spiritual guidance that when we receive words from the Divine (or a Word of Knowledge, as our brothers and sisters in the charismatic circles might call it) it is passed through our “human minds” that try to piece it together in “human terms” and what we get in the end is indeed the truth, but not infallible due to mis”interpretation”.
Does that make any sense?
And a word to science: your religion was outlined by Rene Descartes in 1637.
(Note: riddled with my personal opinion.) lol
“As I stated earlier the existence of human civilization breeds religion in order to elucidate the unknown/not visible/things not yet explained by science.”
Chad, I find this statement disagreeable because of how you dichotomize religion and science. This apparent dichotomy could have only happened in modern times since the ancient civilizations (who we historically find to be religious) knew nothing of science (at least in terms of the scientific method which you and I are taking for granted). So it’s not fair to project “our science” into their way of life. It makes no sense to say that the ancients had things that were not yet explained by science, therefore their civilizations just associated the unknown with religious aspects.
God created a magnificent universe.It is difficult to argue about that.He gave us His Son-Jesus Christ- Who founded a universal Church.He gave us the Holy Spirit.Why waste time arguing.Go forth and spread His Word.
Joseph R.-
Was there science in ancient times? OF COURSE we are way ahead with ‘our science’ but that isn’t to say that they didn’t have science. Maybe there science involved when to plant certain seeds and what seasons were best for traveling to certain areas but this is still science. So what I am saying is the things outside of this ‘simple thinking’ of when to plant/travel etc ‘science’, things that cannot be seen and calculated, this is what the ancient humans needed explained, through Religion.
It is ignorant to state that these early societies knew nothing of science, most likely us Modern Smart Humans would not have been able to survive back in the day (ancient day).
Daniel, What is the purpose of arguing? I hope it is not to win but to learn, that is why people ‘waste time arguing’.
Chad,you are right.I stand corrected.In arguing, facts are given,points of view are rendered,reasoning takes place.Learning is the result.