Why do Protestants and Catholics remain in their churches?
142895
Are you crazy?  Only 10% of Catholic even go to church each Sunday.  Are you asking why are they not preaching on street corners, or knocking on doors.  I accept there would be value to that.  \n\nThere are some small groups, Legion of Mary for example that visit homes and encourage prayer and practice.  St Vincent de Paul Society carry out welfare work in the name of the Church as well as praying together.  Orders of Nuns have set up Hospitals.  Many orders (nuns and brothers) set up schools.  Chaplains and lay-people are appointed to help Seaman at ports, the blind, defence forces personal, Scripture lesson at state schools- buy the thousands, the elderly, the deaf, the house bound, prisoners; there are priest scientists, church sponsored counsellors, marriage guidance, pregnancy help, I'll stop...  it surprises me just how many Church Ministries are carried out without making a big fuss.
833428
Many mainline protestant congregations, often in the United Church of Christ or Episcopalian tradition, have gone out on a limb to hide/protect illegal immigrants. This is always at a local level, though; I don't think that the national offices have ever endorsed this.
946843
Other people dont understand the question. Its more like this....\n"Whats the difference between Catholics and (Protestant) Christians?"\n\nCatholics pray to Mary and the Saints even though Jesus said the only way to the Father is through Him. (Catholics also use priests as a link between God and man, therefor replacing Jesus' role.)\n\nCatholics think that the bread and wine is the literal body and blood of Jesus Christ being sacrificed over and over again every week even though Jesus died ONCE so that all sins would be forgiven.\n\nCatholics have statues of Mary, Joseph, Jesus, and the saints despite the second commandment saying that we shall not have any image of that which is in heaven or on earth.\n\nCatholics deal with the last problem by leaving out that commandment and splitting the last one (thou shalt not covet) into two parts...thou shalt not covet thy neighbors wife and thou shalt not covet thy neighbors possessions.\n\nCatholics have added books to the Bible that were viewed as erroneous for hundreds of years.\n\nThere are more but those are a few.\n\nProtestants are called Protestants because they are protesting the errors of the Catholic Church.\n\njudge by ur self
163115
to the catholics and other mainstream religions thought of today, ie the protestant movement, the messenger and everything about his life and what he has toched in life and so forth is so much more important. however, the anabaptists, who are the people who descended, religiously, from the church that is mentioned in the book of acts take the message of the bible more to heart than a cross, a shroud a picture on a wall or any other idol that the catholic, or universal, church uses today to show its predominance and authority. so if you want a religion or church tat is teaching what christ wanted us to know and that is why it is in the bible then find yourself an anabaptist or independant baptist, they are the same thing, church.
611109
Roman Catholics still believe their religion is the ORIGINAL Church founded by Jesus himself some 2,000 years ago. Jesus said that he would never abandon his Church. Is there a point in which Jesus decided to change his mind? The Church is consistent in its teachings concerning morality, dogmas, and Tradition and doesn't compromise its teachings. For example, Catholics still follow the example of Jesus in the Last Supper when he told his Apostles to take and eat his body (the Eucharist you see today at any Catholic mass). It's a Tradition upheld for 2,000 years and because Jesus told the early Church leaders to do it (a command) we still do it to this day. If you agree that Jesus is God, then He should have been able to erect the "right" Church the first time and not have to correct His "flawed" church over and over again.\n\nThe only Church Jesus instituted directly is the Catholic Church and he placed Peter as the first pope. The other churches that sprung up in the 1500s were not established by Christ on earth and most have a founder that isn't divinely sent.\n\nJust about everyone has a religion they're attached with growing up. Just like an ethnicity, race, or nationality...religion is something most people are born with and given by their parents. Some people who chose to take their religious faith to another sick level claim that it's an interpretation of their religious teachings. When one commits a sin to bring about a positive end, the perpetrators' actions are always condemned by God Himself.\n\nPeople who use the Bible as their ONLY base of argument when debating anti-Catholic sentiments tend to downplay ONE big flaw. The very religion that COMPILED the books of the Bible in the standard canon is the Roman Catholic Church. It wasn't King James (and by authority does a secular king have in deciding books in the Bible?) or any other individual. Many Protestants use the Bible against the very institution that compiled it without taking into consideration the aspects of Christianity that weren't written down (Sacred Tradition, in the Catholic Church). Such as, how do we know what happened to the Apostles after the time of the Book of Acts? If it wasn't for the Catholic Church, there wouldn't even be a Bible in the form that we know today. It would probably look very different, if everyone can even agree on a standard format. Christianity would have drastically different claims of what happened, etc.\n\nDon't create a generalization for the billion-plus Catholics out there. It's like blaming the entire US for the mistakes of its leaders in international affairs.
657543
Assuming that you're in reference to baptism and the Lord's supper its because they claim to see only these two in the Bible, and the Bible supposedly being their sole guide in faith and practice, those are the only ones they keep. But not all stop at two. Some keep foot washing as an ordinance, others like the Lutherans actually have confession available for those who desire to avail themselves of it, and some think of ordination as a sacrament. But then there's that other side of the coin too. Strictly speaking a "sacrament" gives grace. Most protestants don't believe that and refer to such practices as church ordinances. I know ... The water just keeps getting muddier. But that's the thing as I understand it. ;-)
513193
Have you read the Bible? Pick any passage you like, and you'll be able to come up with at least two or three ways to interpret it. Even something that seems straightforward, like a bland historical account (So-and-so begat So-and-so, who did this in the 4th year of the reign of...), there's always the question of WHY it's in there. Catholics and Protestants and Mormons don't even use the same Bible! There's a base of knowledge we all share, but it comes from our personal relationships with God as much as from the Bible.
803910
I know that John Bunyan, the author of Pilgrim's Progress, and John Milton, the author of Paradise Lost were puritans. \n\nBy protestants I understand all Christians who are neither catholics nor Orthodox. So all the divisions you mention belong to protestants.\n\nSorry I couldn't help with all parts of your question.
34526
Catholics can be categorized as Christians. The difference is the Catholics believe that their church (via the Pope) has absolute authority in matters of spirituality. The rest of the Christian world (Protestants) believes that spiritual authority comes from the Bible alone.
854848
Most churches (methodist, episcopal, presbyterian), broke away from the catholic church at one time or another over traditions, ceremonies and beliefs that were added to what the Bible taught. Everybody had their on idea of how to do it. The Baptist and Congregational churches separated from them because we accept only the Bible as our guide - traditions are not as important as the Bible.  And we believe that a personal relationship with Jesus is what makes one a Christian - not being a member of a church.
1052180
Those who chose to ignore it are not following the Christian faith.  And most of us do not ignore it.\n\nhttp://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/
476554
Technically, it's a little more complicated than that.  The Roman Catholic Church offers Communion to some Christians who are not Roman Catholics, if their denominations are "reconciled" to the Catholic tradition--this would mean the numerous Eastern Orthodox Churches, the Polish National Church, and the Assyrian and Coptic Churches.  Christians who are members of churches, however, that are understood by Catholic theologians as being in revolt against the Catholic tradition (and that would mean all Protestant and Anabaptist sects) are not permitted to take Catholic Communion.\n\nHere's maybe the simplest way to explain this:  the Catholic Church understands itself to be, in fact, the only apostolic Christian church, the only legitimate successor to the religious movement founded by Jesus and in the Catholic tradition passed on after His death to Peter (whom Catholics regard as the "first Pope," a historically questionable claim to be sure, but important in the theology of the RCC).  The Roman Catholic Church holds that Communion is a sacrament that can only authentically occur within the sanction of that apostolic continuity.  In effect, when Christians from churches not reconciled to the Catholic Church partake of Communion, they are in effect interlopers, inadequately prepared for the miracle of transubstantiation.\n\nAnother way of saying this is that for some purposes, the Catholic Church does not consider Protestant or Anabaptist Christians as true Christians.  If that sounds coarse or narrowminded or shocking, please refer to the reciprocal understanding of Roman Catholicism from the Protestant and Anabaptist perspective, as exemplified in the statement made (I am sure) by an evangelical Protestant on this Yahoo list that the Pope is the antichrist and Catholics aren't Christians.\n\nHope this answer is helpful.
200456
They are really into being Catholic...and it's been that way for generations upon generations ... even when they travel abrode, they keep the faith and lead Catholice lives ... raise their childreen Catholic.
867538
some believe the catholic church
536904
Remember that the Catholic church canonized the bible which had those books in it before the protestant reformation. Catholics didn't add to it, Luther(and others) took them out! Those of you who swear by the King James bible are missing out on several books that are in the Old Testament and of value. We (Catholics) are not "on to something". We just have the complete Bible (and have all along). \nTo my Protestant brothers, check the history of the bible, and see what I'm saying!\nGod bless you for asking this question.
1056845
For mainstream Catholics and Protestants, there are minor disagreements on minor points of doctrine. All of the important stuff, like Jesus is the Messiah, totally agreed upon.\n\nSome Catholics and Protestants on the fringes, blow our few disagreements into huge issues and cause much trouble.\n\nWith love in Christ.
440888
Because the Catholic church (especially in LA) is more concerned with politics and money than it is concerned with morals. Illegal immigrants make up a HUGE percentage of their church and they will support those that bring in the money and the masses.  It's pathetic and they are a disgrace to those Catholics who earnestly seek to follow God.