Since my concern is a theologian one, I have done my homework on this issue. Having read, not only the Catholic Catechism, but have also listened to some scholarly Catholic theologians, Trent Horn, for example, and also other sources such as the catholicanswers.com. Still, I have a problem with the issues below…
Mary Doctrine
Scripture does acknowledge that Mary was a woman, unlike any other woman on earth. Hence as much as I take issues with my evangelical brothers for not giving Mary enough credit, I also am severely concerned by the way the Catholic Church has elevated her. It is well-known that Mary is believed to be the mediator between God and man. Just in case somebody thinks I am misrepresenting all this, these are the words of Pope Leo XII, “By the will of God, Mary is the intermediary through whom is distributed unto us this immense treasure gathered by God…Thus as no man goeth to the Father but by the Son, so man goeth to Christ but by His mother.” Therefore, according to that theology, prayers are addressed to Mary, not directly to Jesus our Lord. That is why the rosary is all about the prayers to the “blessed Virgin.” That, beloved, is serious, because my Bible is clear that “there is One Mediator between God and man, it’s not Mary at all; its Christ alone (1 Tim 2:5). Hence I believe it’s dangerous for any Church to replace Christ as our only direct link and access point to the Father; the only One who makes intercession on our behalf. By doing that, I believe, it not only takes away from the glory that Christ deserves but also confuses the Gospel message all the more – further alienating souls from their only chance of salvation. And how does Mary manage to hear the prayers of all Catholics worldwide simultaneously, unless she is believed to possess divine attributes like the Almighty?
Veneration of dead saints/ prayers for the dead
Since I speak from experience, no one can deny what I have witnessed in Catholic funerals. “Mary mother of God, receive your child…his dead ancestors receive your child…” were some of the things I heard with my ears. At least – according to me – that means the Catholic doctrine has room for a belief in dead people having a connection somehow with the living. That is exactly what Scripture forbids; the same template with what traditional Africans believe; that our dead relatives have somehow been promoted into amadlozi (ancestors that protect & help us).
Upon consulting the Catholic Catechism, this is what I found, “There is a mysterious solidarity in Christ between those who have already passed to the other life and we pilgrims in this one: our deceased loved ones continue to take care of us from heaven. They pray for us and we pray for them and we pray with them (CCC 2683)” According to a Catholic Answers Youtube video, asking dead saints to pray for us is the same as asking our friends around us to pray for us as we always do in time of need. Indeed, Scripture does encourage believers to pray for each other (living ones), and it strongly forbids any communication or prayer towards those who have passed on (Deut 18:10-12).
Purgatory
Again, the Catechism of the Catholic Church defines purgatory as a place where “all who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death, they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven (CCC 1030).” What concerns me the most is the implications the doctrine of purgatory has on the work of Christ. It means that His work “imperfectly purifies” us; it can never make us complete believers who are instantly made righteous and ready for heaven the moment we believe, just as the Gospel teaches. No friends, there is no middle place for “purification.” We are purified, made holy and perfect by the blood of Jesus once and forever; right here on earth the day we believe. Hence we do not need another place to purge us, because Christ finished that work at Calvary. Check out this verse 1 John 1:5 - But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. I also encourage us to always meditate on this verse: Hebrews 10:10 - By his will we have been made holy through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once and for all.
Praying/ Bowing to statues
According to a Catholic Truth Youtube video, statues are a simple “visual reminder” of the real thing, just like the pictures of our families hanging on our walls. Hence as much as it’s not a sin to kiss the picture of your wife, it’s the same with kissing or bowing before the Mary statue. “It’s not worship at all!” My observation is that there is a major difference between me hugging the picture of my wife and hugging the picture of Mary. That is, one has no spiritual aspect all at and the other has a spiritual element to it – thus where the word “worship” comes into effect. That means the person who kneels before that object (even as a visual reminder) believes it edifies Him spiritually; it’s not just a meaningless physical stick but it’s believed to be a substitute for a spiritual being. Therefore, that is worship! And it’s an abomination to God. There is no way around it.
The Catholic 10 commandments
There is a difference between the 10 commandments you find in the Catholic Bible with that of other Bibles, for example, my Bible. Here is what’s missing, “You shall not make for yourself a carved image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth (Exo 20:4)” I have listened to all the Catholic apologists about this and have not found any convincing explanation. I mean, why would they alter the Biblical text the way it is in the original manuscript and teach people a wrong version of the Law of God? That is a serious offense, in my opinion.
The Apocrypha
The Bible that most of us are perhaps used to contains 39 books of the Old Testament. The Catholic Bible, however, has more books than that. It has books such as Judith, Sirach, and Tobit among others. Those “other books” are called the Apocrypha. My major problem about the Apocryphal books is that none of them is found in the Hebrew version of the Old Testament, which is the original Scripture document that even Jews use; the same that our Lord read from. In fact, the Apocrypha was written many years after the Hebrew canon was already in circulation. For that reason, I do not believe those books are in any way close to Scripture, even though they might contain some wonderful insights.
Conclusion
These are my main concerns about the Catholic Church, although I could also mention other extra-biblical practices like praying the rosary, baby baptism, veneration of relics (bones, sticks), and a few more. Therefore, I would not, in good conscience, recommend the Catholic Church to anyone. Because I think these issues (mentioned above) have a huge effect upon the purity of the Gospel. To believers who are part of Catholicism, I advise; you are free to also test your denomination with what the Bible says then you decide for yourself if I have misrepresented your faith or not. I thank you.
Sinothi Ncube
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