Dear Administrator,

Actually, it wasn't me, but my Latin Catholic high school that provided that "glossy" ecumenical context!

This is why I not only take pains to explain the differences between Catholics and Protestants to my school kids now, but also (and mainly) the differences between East and West.

It is good that you are such a convinced Christian!

Happy Feast of the Conception of St Anne, New Calendarist!

Alex

as an EC who went to a Evangelical (if not outright Fundamentalist) Protestant seminary, I think I have more than two cents to put in here.First of all, it has been duly pointed out that not all Evangelicals are Pentecostals.in fairness to Pentecostals, not all are Catholic baiters. I have known Charismatic Catholics (my sainted Godmother for one) who have had pleasant times of fellowship and sharing with Pentecostals. as far as not having alliances with Evangleicals, let me say that those folks have stood by our side in the cause to save the unborn from abortion, more so than could ever be expected from mainline Protestants. Evangelicals share our view on Christology, which is for me an issue of paramount importance, because Jesus Christ is what our Christian faith is all about. Mainline Protestantism is still tainted with neo-evangelical thought, which has the extremes in some quarters, as seeing Jesus as not being God, but that is another topic. as an EC, it was known of my ecclesiastical leanings at the Seminary, but there was also a gentleman's agreement that the issue would not be raised by myself or the faculty, and it worked. Oh, a splended time was had by all In Church History, especially by yours truly, as the textbook used was fair and factual, and with the exception of a few students,it was accepted that Catholics were in Western Europe as predating Protestantism, and we could go on with most of us already know about Church History. yes there are difference, but there are similarities between them and us. most Evangelicals are quite warm towards Catholics, not as targets for conversion, but as brothers and sisters in Christ. perhaps up there in the North you have problems, but it is great here in Dixie. The only problems I ever had with Evangelicals were those from the North, which seems to be quite telling. I realize that up there, a lot of Catholics and Orthodox still live in ethnic ghettoes, (I know, I lived up there for a number of years) and rarely see a Protestant. believe me, I am astounded to hear some of the misconceptions Catholics and Orthodox have of Protestants, and heaven knows I have seen them even here in this Forum. don't get me wrong, I am disturbed and outraged with the treatment of the young Catholic man at the treatment facility, and if that facility is receiving public funds, I am thinking of a little word: "lawsuit". but don't paint the Evangelicals with a wide brush of dirty paint, it is a gross oversimplification of facts and a smear against our brothers and sisters in Christ who happen to be Protestant.
Much Love,
Jonn

When I was in college, I was strongly approached, I would say, bothered, by an on-campus Christian Youth group. They bothered a friend of mine so much, she stopped eating, and eventually had a breakdown and went home. So I have seen with my own eyes the Bible used as a weapon, and I will never forget it. It was a turn off and did not showcase true Christian values. Surely there's a place in purgatory for those misguided souls.

BUT, at the same time, I really don't think I can make judgements on anyone else's faith walk. I was dragged through a lot of religions as a kid. The ones that turned me off the most were the ones that said "we are superior to everyone else" and or "we alone are going to heaven, and everyone else, including you, is going to hell unless you SUBMIT."

I am still very turned off by that message -- and even if it is absolutely true that there is no salvation outside the Church, I am not here because I fear hell, I'm here because I love Jesus and his Mother.

I know that it is a virtue to correct people who are in error, but I don't think we have enough positive dialog with most protestant denominations to pick on them that way. It seems so clear in my mind that today we have so much more in common, even just as believers, in an increasingly secular world. Not that we should adopt protestant ways, but I like to see places where we can work together as Christians to achieve good works on the earth.