tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6965911108994118500.post6192353473651182549..comments2016-06-15T04:31:26.640-04:00Comments on Ready with a Reason: Response to Mozartmovement, Part 1Readyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13825613655695520319noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6965911108994118500.post-9749310614284417402009-04-11T07:17:00.000-04:002009-04-11T07:17:00.000-04:00Answering “Ready With a Reason:”I appreciate the t...Answering “Ready With a Reason:”<BR/><BR/>I appreciate the time you’re taking with this discussion. Indeed, I will not hesitate to admit that I respect both you and your position. I think I can agree with WHW, though I will not leave his response as a substitute for my own. <BR/>I am not a scholar or an apologist for Protestantism. I will certainly not stop respecting the Catholic Church or her adherents–-surely that would not be your preference! I have been imagining your “friendly Buddhist.” If he says, “I respect Jesus,” I could say, “that’s where we agree, let’s start our discussion there.” If he is reading Spong not Sproul, maybe we could find some common ground to walk on together. You’re right, my saying “I respect the Catholic Church,” is just the beginning of the thought. I could continue, “but I can’t see myself rejecting my history and brilliant Protestant apologists to join her.” Or I could say, “but Patrick Madrid’s converts take the wrong approach to persuade me.” I will acknowledge my limited vision of truth, still believing that Christians are found in both Catholic and Protestant Churches. For apologetics, I prefer John Piper to Scott Hahn:<BR/>http://www.gracesermons.com/robbeeee/4partbaptism.html<BR/>(I especially like Part 4, under the heading “Immersion or Sprinkling” paragraph 2, which starts: “Local Christian communities...) His point: there are some essentials, but not every legitimate believing community will look the same through the generations. <BR/>Hoping for more later...mozartmovementhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12479311315225422831noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6965911108994118500.post-27186043304278375372009-04-09T15:28:00.000-04:002009-04-09T15:28:00.000-04:00On a Non-Catholic Christian Respecting the Catholi...<B>On a Non-Catholic Christian Respecting the Catholic Church</B><BR/><BR/>I have heard the argument that, from a Catholic perspective, the title of this little essay is impossible, enough times that I think it deserves a response. In this argument, respect seems to have a binary value: either it exists or it does not. And while that is true as far as it goes, I find it an over-simplification. Respect carries <I>degree</I>: two entities can both be respected, but one more so than the other. We respect our Presidents, but not all 44 of them equally. We may say of one or another that he’s “a Ford, not a Lincoln,” as Gerald Ford said of himself, and still respect him. Respect also carries what might be called <I>elements</I>: an entity can be respected in some aspects, and not in others. I am fortunate in that some people respect me: some for one reason, some for another, depending on how they know me. But my athletic “abilities” have been accumulating well-deserved disrespect ever since grade school. Shall I accept the respect given me, partial though it is, or shall I reject it until someone respects everything about me, including my athletic prowess [sic]? I think the latter course would be quite discouraging!<BR/><BR/>Of course these examples do not translate perfectly to the Catholic Church, as it is not a strictly human entity. But respect for it, like respect for any other entity of God’s creation, is rather more complex than a simple yes-or-no. I respect the Catholic Church for her ancientry and her works of mercy around the globe; I respect her for her courageous stand on life issues and the moral standards she upholds; I respect her for the work of the Holy Spirit that I see in the lives of Catholic friends, and I respect her as she preaches her Lord Jesus Christ. I do not respect the Catholic Church’s claim of doctrinal infallibility, or its claim to be the One True Church. If the Catholic Church wishes to add all of this up and conclude that because I do not respect her in all things, I do not respect her at all, that is her right (and my disappointment). Meanwhile, as I accept the respect of people who see my un-respectabilities and respect me in spite of them, I will continue to respect the Catholic Church to the greatest degree that I can, and do my best to encourage and build up my beloved Catholic friends and brethren, the more as I see the Day approaching.<BR/>-whw.whwnoreply@blogger.com