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I really question your blaming of the Catholics on this forum for not joining the Catholic Church.

I said it was part of the reason. I'd be a fool to make posts on the Religion forum the sole deciding factor. But aside from what I see as false doctrine (none of it so seriously false that I'd call you a heretic, in spite of what I've been called), I see a a lack of focus on Christ -- and that's what really bothers me.

I take chosing a new church very seriously. I can't attend my old denomination, so I'm looking very carefully at other churches. I don't like what I see from Catholics. It's all about their church, not Christ. A Catholic has never asked me what I believe -- only what church I attend. You included.

I'll take sola scriptura any day. Should I trust the word of God or corrupt popes? (Popes of the past -- I don't think Benedict is corrupt, nor was John Paul II.) Should I trust the church fathers -- even when they disagreed with one another? Should I trust the San Francisco archbishop who gave holy communion to gay men dressed as clownish nuns? You think you're immune from error -- you're not. Like most people who think they're free of danger, they're actually more susceptible to it.

As for the Catholic Church having only one interpretation, anyone with even the faintest knowledge of history knows that is false.

I sincerely thank you for wishing me the best on my journey.

**I see a a lack of focus on Christ — and that’s what really bothers me.**

Oh, my goodness! You could not be further from the truth!

Our entire liturgy is focused on Christ. Have you ever attended a Mass (with a good homilist of course!)??

If you haven’t, you don’t know that most of the prayers that the priest says during the Mass are directly from Scripture.

The first part of the Mass is the Liturgy of the Word — focusing on usually the Old Testament, with a reading from any of the Old Testament books. The first reading sometimes has connections with the Gospel. (This last Sunday — the story of the cure of Naaman, the leper, from 2 Kings)

Next comes a Psalm — with either spoken or sung responses to the Psalm for that day. Again straight from the Bible.

Then we have the second readings — many times a reading from one of St. Paul’s letters — this last Sunday, it was from St. Paul to Timothy as quoted in 2 Timothy.

The last part of the Liturgy of the Word is the Gospel. This last Sunday’s Gospel was the story of the curing of ten lepers with only one, a Samaritan, coming back to thank Christ from Luke. (See the connection with the First Readings?)

The second part of the Mass is the Liturgy of the Eucharist which is totally focused on Christ, starting with prayers to refocus our attention on the Eucharist, then quotes from the Last Supper, the consecration of the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ and Communion, then a thanksgiving prayer.. I will post some links for you in the next post to explain this part.

Catholics, indeed, are focused on Christ — more than many Protestants realize.

I would not be teaching a Bible Study on the Book of Matthew right now if I didn’t believe that Christ is the center of ............our Church. Or attending daily Mass.......... or spearheading an effort to support vocations, ...........or evangelizing in my community, or.............

How does this line up with what you believe?