re: Atlantic op-ed claims Catholic rosary has become ‘an extremist symbol’

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As a Catholic I don't judge other faiths because they don't believe in the ideas that we hold dear. I don't think that just because you don't believe in the Holy Eucharist you are damned or wrong. That is our faith and not yours, focus on your relationship with your faith and God and don't worry so much about others.
Would you apply that statement to Mormons or Jehovah's Witnesses? What about Muslims and Atheists? You very well should "judge" those by calling adherents to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, for without Him, no one will be saved from their sins.

I believe the church of Rome teaches another gospel that isn't even "good news", because one cannot ever have assurance that their works have merited enough. When you change the gospel from God's gracious gift of Christ's work on the cross for salvation for undeserving sinners, then you are no longer a "church" of Jesus Christ.

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Actually the Catholic Church does not think that people of different faiths are damned. The Catholic Church as long held that belief, it is other faiths that condemn people of different beliefs. Many Popes have visited and prayed at the Wailing Wall with Jewish leaders, would he do that if he thought they were all damned.

Do you think that a person living in the rainforest of South America who has never even heard of Jesus is damned? We don't, because it is not our place to judge the faith of others. We focus on our faith and how we can serve the Lord.

I grew up Norwegian Lutheran and went to Catholic schools. My dad was a jew.

I'm so confused.

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Again I ask you, should every belief or teaching in the past be held to the same standards as the present belief or teaching?

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Yes, with bedrock doctrines that pertain to salvation and eternal life.
For a few thousand years the church taught that all those outside the church faith were doomed to Hell. Then one day in the recent past, the magisterium meets in a room over wine and a few cigars and decides,” oops, we were wrong , let those damn heathens come into heaven!”

good ole Catholic vs Protestant debates are always so much fun on this board

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So James taught we are saved by faith alone in James 2:24?

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Yes. James' comments were about works as an evidence of saving faith, not a addition that is separate from saving faith. Paul already mentioned that we are justified apart from the works of the law in Romans chapter 3. Your interpretation of James would be a direct contradiction of Paul.

Instead, if we look at the passage, we can see that James is not saying that the gift of faith in Christ (Eph. 2) is insufficient in itself to save anyone, but that the law cannot be ignored on account of faith, which Paul discusses in Romans chapter 6 in response to his comments about being saved by faith apart from works. Paul's response is that because we have died to sin by being united with Christ in His death (by faith), we are now slaves to Christ and should obey Him.

James even said in verse 10 that a person who breaks one part of the law is guilty of it all. We cannot obey the law to merit salvation (which is the RCC view of "works") because we are already guilty of breaking it all. It's precisely why faith in Christ saves us apart from the law, because we cannot keep the law.

James further explains what he means by "faith" in verse 19: he is referring to believing that "God is one" (He is, in substance), and that being a good thing to believe. However, what this sort of belief is is an intellectual assent or recognition. It's a faith of "knowledge". James follows by saying that even the demons know that "God is one" and shudder at that, because they know His power. But, because the demons do not submit by faith to obey God, that knowledge is for nothing; it doesn't save them. Likewise, an assent to believing in God or even in Jesus is not necessarily a saving faith, because a saving faith comes from the Spirit, and being regenerated (being born again) will make us "slaves" to Christ, and therefore we will evidence that relationship by performing good works (imperfect obedience to the law).

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Paul taught that scripture alone is a wholly sufficient teaching authority?

2 Tim. 3:16–17 doesn't teach sole sufficiency of scripture, but rather its usefulness in preparing the man of God for every good work. Sure, we can exegetically ignore the "useful" part and focus only on the "complete" part, but thats ignoring the verse as a whole to twist it to your belief.

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Yes, Paul is teaching the sufficiency of scripture. It's not just the "complete" part that is in focus here, but the "every good work" part. Is praying to Mary a "good work"? Is honoring the Pope as the successor to Peter a "good work"? If so, then scriptures do not train a man to those good works and Paul is a liar. However, if the scriptures are sufficient to train a man to "every good work", then those things I just mentioned are not "good works", because they are not supported by scripture.

The word for useful or profitable (ophelimos) means helpful, serviceable, or advantageous. The word isn't used to minimize what the scriptures do, but to emphasize what they do. Paul is talking about how good the scriptures are for the life of a pastor and as a Christian, not minimizing them as some trifle that may be helpful at times, which seems to be how the RCC interprets the passage in order to prop up "tradition".

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Paul references oral tradition 3 times in the same letter. 2 Tim. 1:13–14; 2:2; 3:14.

Also Eph. 4:11–15 doesn't mention scripture at all when talking about teaching authorities for Christian perfection.

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2 Tim. 1:13-14 is written in the context of the gospel of verses 8-12.

2 Tim. 2:2 is also within the context of "my gospel" that Paul was preaching. Verses 8-13 provide this gospel.

2 Tim. 3:14 is also within the greater context of the gospel.

Eph. 4:11-15 is speaking of those who taught/teach the Word of God (the scriptures). The prophets were included with the apostles, as the ones who God has provided His revelation to while the evangelists, shepherds/pastors, and teachers are to teach those things to the people. The emphasis here are on those who teach the truth for the building up of the Church, not what the truth specifically is (Paul already touches on that elsewhere).

What is binding is what is found in the scriptures.

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The Bible definitely doesn't teach once saved always saved, but rather a past, present, and future tense of salvation. Why would we need to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling if A) We are double-predestined, and so nothing we do can affect if, and B) If once I'm saved, nothing can change that?

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The Bible certainly does teach that "once saved, always saved" (or "perseverance/preservation of the saints" as I would call it). There are an abundance of passages that teach this doctrine, but here are a few for you to consider: John 3:36; 5:24; 1 John 5:13 ("has" and "have" are in the present tense); John 6:39; 10:28-29; Eph. 1:13-14; 1 Pet. 1:4-5; 1 John. 2:19; Matt. 7:22-23 (Jesus says He "never" knew them).

Those who have been gifted faith by grace (Eph. 2:8) are born again by the Spirit, and therefore are kept by God, since all of salvation belongs to Him. Because we do not "will" ourselves to believe, we cannot "will" ourselves to not believe. Our belief is the response to being born again, and therefore if we believe, we will never not believe (or fall away). Those who fall away are those who were never saved to begin with, but had an appearance of godliness but denied its power (2 Tim. 3:5).

The command to work out our salvation is to motivate us to godliness and assurance: if we have the "fruits of the Spirit" (Gal. 5:22-23) then we evidence a saving faith, while on the other hand, if we have the "desires of the flesh" (vv 19-21), then we should consider whether or not we are saved.

Double-predestination refers to both the salvation of the elect as well as the damnation of the reprobate. Those who have predestinated to eternal life (election) will be brought to a saving faith by the Spirit and will be preserved until they die.

Lastly, while nothing can change our destiny, God is a God of means. He chose to use the means of the death of His son to redeem His people, and He chooses the ordinary means of the preaching of the gospel as the means by which the Spirit works to regenerate the elect. The participation in the ordinary means of grace is how God chooses to strengthen the faith of the elect and to grant them assurance of the salvation that they have.

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I won't go into the age of accountability, as I believe you are of the Westminster confession, and therefore agree with Catholics on that point.

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I agree that there isn't an age of accountability. It is only by the grace of God that anyone is saved, and I believe that God may choose to impart a saving faith to infants and toddlers as well as younger children to save them if that be His prerogative, but I don't believe children are in some state of innocence prior to some arbitrary age.

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I said all of that to say this, Marian dogmas might not be explicitly scriptural, but they neither explicitly or implicitly contradict scripure either. Beliefs such as those in my first quote were not taught and widely accepted for over a millennium after Christ, they contradict scripture, and yet you still cling to them as part of your faith.

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Those things which you quoted do not contradict scripture but are supported by scriptures. The marian dogmas do contradict scripture on several fronts, and even if they didn't, there would be no basis for making them dogmas in the first place if they are not supported by scripture. When the RCC can say that all Christians must believe in the truth of those teachings in order to be saved (by being part of the church), then I'm going to need something more than what you assert.

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there are numerous protestant faiths today that believe if you aren't "born again", you are damned.

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Sorry to tell you this, but this isn’t simply a Protestant belief, these are words straight from Jesus’ mouth.
Nicodemus who was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin and who viewed as a good man was told by Jesus, “ unless you are born again, you’ll never see the kingdom of God.” If being good was enough, why didn’t he simply tell Nicodemus to keep doing what he was doing?
The same thing applies to every soul on earth.

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I find so funny that you are criticizing a faith that once believed if you were not of their faith you were damned when there are numerous protestant faiths today that believe if you aren't "born again", you are damned.

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As Rev said, this isn't a "Protestant" thing but a "Christian" thing, because that is what the scriptures teach.

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So you believe that if a person is not Christian and converts to Christianity they are still doomed because with matters of salvation and eternal life can't be changed?

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No.

The end result can't be changed, but God is the one who changes hearts to believe the truth and receive the promise of eternal life through Christ.

Like I said in a previous post, God is a God of means as well as results. A person is not eternally "damned" before they are born again and then eternally "saved" after they are born again, because "damned" and "saved" are the results, not the means. A person may be an enemy of God before they are saved. Being an enemy and being damned are different things. If an enemy doesn't eventually become a son/daughter through adoption in Christ, then they surely will be damned. But, if an enemy is elected by God unto eternal life, then God will make them a son/daughter through adoption and regeneration by the Spirit before they die. If God ordains that a person be saved, then He will ordain that they will be given faith to believe in Christ by the indwelling of His Spirit (making them "born again").

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This article has given me a great idea for a Christmas gift for my Vietnam veteran uncle.

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I’m getting one for myself, my Dad and my nephew.

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When I say "born again", I mean the way that your faith defines it.

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There is only one way to be born again

Where is Tony Soprano when you need him.