Mike
Member
- Mar 13, 2010
- 15,286
- 1,475
I didn't know where to place this discussion. I saw other Catholic threads here, so I hope this is appropriate.
First, I have tremendous love for our Catholic Christian brothers and sisters. I believe we are bound by Salvation Issues, and the differences between Catholics and Protestants are outweighed by the important issues in common.
I was raised Catholic and remained for my first 27 years (I'm 43 now). We left for a protestant church due to growing differences in my understanding of theology which I won't go into, but we needed to join a church that practiced what we believed.
My question is: do you see a change in the church for members to be in the Word? Part of my frustration was that there were never any studies of the Bible. When I met with the priest toward the end, he told me this was not something he would encourage. I was beside myself. In my life, I was part of about 5 congregations at home and away at college. This was something never done at any of them. I was told, this stemmed from centuries ago when church leaders were some of the only educated people in their communities. But why does that continue (if it does)? Some of the most amazing Christians I know are Catholic, but they find Bible studies outside of their respective churches. So in summary, it's been 16 years since I've been away. Are Catholic churches promoting Bible study more for lay people these days? Hope so.
First, I have tremendous love for our Catholic Christian brothers and sisters. I believe we are bound by Salvation Issues, and the differences between Catholics and Protestants are outweighed by the important issues in common.
I was raised Catholic and remained for my first 27 years (I'm 43 now). We left for a protestant church due to growing differences in my understanding of theology which I won't go into, but we needed to join a church that practiced what we believed.
My question is: do you see a change in the church for members to be in the Word? Part of my frustration was that there were never any studies of the Bible. When I met with the priest toward the end, he told me this was not something he would encourage. I was beside myself. In my life, I was part of about 5 congregations at home and away at college. This was something never done at any of them. I was told, this stemmed from centuries ago when church leaders were some of the only educated people in their communities. But why does that continue (if it does)? Some of the most amazing Christians I know are Catholic, but they find Bible studies outside of their respective churches. So in summary, it's been 16 years since I've been away. Are Catholic churches promoting Bible study more for lay people these days? Hope so.
