EDITED TITLE: What were some of the most bizarre claims you heard about the Church before converted?

Harpazo · #1 Jun 30, '07, 8:29 am

What were some of the most bizarre claims you heard about the Church before converted? You made the decision that the Catholic Church was the true Church. The claims from those who either were misinformed, ignorant or outright hated the Church.

I myself have heard the usual "Catholics worship Mary" and "Catholics changed the Bible." But what are some others? Did the accusations bring you down, or strengthen your faith?

In Pax Christi
Andrew

uwwhitewater84 · #2 Jun 30, '07, 9:20 am

Someone once said to me "You're not Catholic...I didn't think you could go in there [church building]!"

Teflon93 · #3 Jun 30, '07, 9:31 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harpazo

What were some of the most bizarre claims you heard about the Church before converted? You made the decision that the Catholic Church was the true Church. The claims from those who either were misinformed, ignorant or outright hated the Church.

I myself have heard the usual "Catholics worship Mary" and "Catholics changed the Bible." But what are some others? Did the accusations bring you down, or strengthen your faith?

In Pax Christi
Andrew

Well, you mean beside the Church being the Whore of Babylon administered by the Anti-Christ?

I suppose the weirdest thing was the notion that Catholics are cannibals, because we "want to believe" that the Eucharist is Christ's flesh.

jesusluv · #4 Jun 30, '07, 4:28 pm

My two most bizarre both come from a close friend of mine who is Episcopalian. He told me before I converted that there are many convents with children's graves. Those graves are from babies aborted when priests and nuns have sexual relations.

He also informed me that Catholics pray to the pope. Technically, we do if a particular pope has died and been canonized, because he still retains the title of pope. He meant reigning popes though.

pjn6444 · #5 Jun 30, '07, 4:44 pm

Not from people, but browsing on the internet. Some of the more interesting ones are Jack Chick's attacks on the Catholic Church, one of his pamphlets entitled "The Death Cookie" in which he compares the Eucharist to Egyptian mythology. Also, there are some interesting sites which are apocalyptic literature. Rapture and end times stuff. One of them was how that the Catholic church is the whore of Babylon and the red beast is European Socialism. And how John Paul II worked with Gorbachev to end the soviet union so that european socialism could rise and bring about the end times. The logic was a bit strained and hard to follow.

www.chick.com/reading/tracts/0074/0074_01.asp

Cat · #6 Jun 30, '07, 5:13 pm

I heard a lot of the bizarre things, too--I think the most bizarre was that the Vatican had records of all the non-Catholics and they would "go after" these people and...

But I didn't believe a lot of these claims because they were so bizarre! I knew so many Catholics involved with pro-life work and also Bread for the World, and these people were not involved with anything that weird!

I think that the most dangerous thing I heard was that Catholicism is a religion of works rather than faith. This is enough to scare off most non-Catholics (AKA Protestants or just Christians).

**jmcrae** · #7 Jun 30, '07, 5:23 pm

I heard stories that women weren't allowed to attend Mass because they are considered "dirty," and that priests gave husbands advice to beat up their wives and children.

I also heard that half the people in AA are ex-Catholics, because they drank too much wine at Mass. (I had visions of a Baccinalian festival dancing in my head - dang, was reality ever a disappointment. ---[Me at First Holy Communion: One sip? We only get one sip??!! Where's this orgy of Catholic drunkenness I kept hearing about??!!

] - only kidding

. )

Mitzzi · #8 Jun 30, '07, 5:33 pm

The Catholic Church promotes, alcoholism, homosexuality, not to mention pedaphiles. (sp?) Why would that kind of "church" be acceptable to you and why would you want to raise your children, in such a sick environment.

cpayne · #9 Jul 1, '07, 7:02 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by jesusluv

My two most bizzare both come from a close friend of mine who is Episcopalean(sp?) . He told me before I converted that there are many convents with children's graves. Those graves are from babies aborted when priests and nuns have sexual relations.

Not only heard, but read, the same.

JohnnyReb · #10 Jul 1, '07, 7:38 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by uwwhitewater84

Someone once said to me "You're not Catholic...I didn't think you could go in there [church building]!"

I felt that way, lol

JohnnyReb · #11 Jul 1, '07, 7:41 am

catholics add to the bible, catholics have additional books of the bible (the protestants actually removed them, the catholics did not add them), catholics worship Mary and the saints, catholics believe in traditions that contradict the bible (whereas protestants don't have any) catholic worship is boring, catholic worship does not involve personal participation, catholic church forbids people to study the bible, catholics don't know the bible

cpayne · #12 Jul 1, '07, 7:56 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by JohnnyReb

catholics don't know the bible

In my experience, this part is true. Don't get mad, everybody! I'm not talking about the people who inhabit this forum. But not only do the majority of Catholics I meet not know the Bible, they don't even know the teachings of the CC very well.

jemfinch · #13 Jul 1, '07, 8:26 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by cpayne

In my experience, this part is true. Don't get mad, everybody! I'm not talking about the people who inhabit this forum. But not only do the majority of Catholics I meet not know the Bible, they don't even know the teachings of the CC very well.

Though the same could be said of those who call themselves Protestants

Jeremy

**Church Militant** · #14 Jul 1, '07, 8:39 am

Well, as my testimony says, it was the "You Catholics worship Mary" bit that I knew was dead wrong that really kicked me off on the path home.

Another guy from the same group sat me down and told me I was "too smart to believe all that". I almost said, "And you're too dumb to talk to." but I guess God gave me grace.

A Catholic buddy and I probably heard every cosmic allegation under the sun as we headed home and truth be told, it was the research into the facts of our faith that actually made us the stronger.

It's a weird world...

cpayne · #15 Jul 1, '07, 8:49 am

Quote:

Originally Posted by jemfinch

Though the same could be said of those who call themselves Protestants

Jeremy

That's true. Typical situation and conversation:

Protestant: Why do you believe that (fill in anything)?
Me: The Catholic Church doesn't teach that.
P: All the Catholics I know believe it!
Me: Well, I don't, and the CC doesn't actually teach it, no matter what people believe.
P: Yes, it does! I heard that---

And so on.