Why Do Protestants Convert Catholics?

[MarkKurallSchuenemann]

I can tell you why some Catholics convert to Protestants.

Many are not practicing, many haven't been told about the grace of God - the undeserved favour he showed us when his son died on the cross for us, and when they have a protestant friend who talks about how amazing it is to know you are saved, it stirs in his heart and he goes there - hears the message of grace, believes, and repents of his sins and devotes his life to God.

You guys shouldn't be so, OMG, he/she left - but rejoice that that person probably never really repented when he was a holiday catholic - and now is on fire for Jesus!

[Livin_the_MASS]

The simple answer is that most Catholic's don't understand the Mass, the Eucharist, Mary. I was raised Catholic but didn't come across teachings until I was older and learned them on my own.

It is what you said. People feel bored at Mass because they don't understand it's meaning and mystery. Most people want things to be entertaining, they want feelings. If they don't "feel good" it must be wrong.

But to those that are learned or taught well know that it's not about having "good feelings" or a "good show".

It's about the Mass and the mysteries contained there in.

[Brother Adam]

[quote name='MarkKurallSchuenemann' timestamp='1295405657' post='2201642']

Many are not practicing, many haven't been told about the grace of God - the undeserved favour he showed us when his son died on the cross for us, and when they have a protestant friend who talks about how amazing it is to know you are saved, it stirs in his heart and he goes there - hears the message of grace, believes, and repents of his sins and devotes his life to God.

[/quote]

That is as much of a problem of a person's lack of attention as it is not being told something. The Gospel is preached every single day in every Catholic Church around the world at Mass. Protestants are great at capturing the attention of our ADD culture with their quick and easy solutions. Catholics can rejoice when a Catholic makes an intellectual choice to believe in Jesus, but we also mourn their loss of the sacramental and covenantal life of the Church, exchanging it for something that is only a shadow of the fullness of the faith. Evangelical is great, [url="http://www.amazon.com/Evangelical-Not-Enough-Worship-Sacrament/dp/0898702216/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295449009&sr=8-1"]but it is not enough[/url]. I will even go as far as saying that John 3:16 may start with the Romans Road, but it does not end there.

[YMNolan]

[quote name='infinitelord1' timestamp='1295331014' post='2201330']
I think its because they get convinced that alls you need to do is believe in Jesus Christ. They also get convinced that you don't need to confess your sins to a priest, and that you can confess your sins directly to God. I think what it all boils down to is that they don't have an understanding of why we (Catholics) do things.
[/quote]

This

[Semper Catholic]

Protestant Mass blows Catholic Mass out of the water in terms of fun. Deal With it.

[Nihil Obstat]

[quote name='Semper Catholic' timestamp='1295450706' post='2201795']
Protestant Mass blows Catholic Mass out of the water in terms of fun. Deal With it.
[/quote]
Oh, sorry. Forgot that the Church's primary mission was amusing you. Won't happen again, bro.

[Semper Catholic]

[quote name='Nihil Obstat' timestamp='1295451255' post='2201803']
Oh, sorry. Forgot that the Church's primary mission was amusing you. Won't happen again, bro.
[/quote]

Not what I said at all. church isn't about being fun. That's the answer to OP's question though, Protestant Church is way way more fun then Catholic Church.

[AudreyGrace]

[quote name='Semper Catholic' timestamp='1295450706' post='2201795']
Protestant Mass blows Catholic Mass out of the water in terms of fun. Deal With it.
[/quote]

Depends on what your idea of fun is...
I find the Truth fun. I think receiving Jesus, body and blood, is more fun than anything else.

To be honest, Protestant services make me feel awkward... It's like "hey let's have alot of fun, then talk about Jesus... as long as we're having fun!"

There's times for fun, and formal services are times for reverence, not "fun".

Plus, I heard a nondenominational preacher once, and in his sermon he talked about all the things God blessed him with and all the awesome thing's he's done. And I was like RIGHT ON until he got SO out of control that one item on his list was "throwin' babies onto balconies." And everyone was still like WOO PRAISE JESUS and I was like.... whaaatt? [img]http://www.phatmass.com/phorum/public/style_emoticons/default/crazy.gif[/img]

[infinitelord1]

[quote name='Nihil Obstat' timestamp='1295333272' post='2201338']
Catholicism is "harder" than most, if not all brands of Protestantism. Understanding Catholicism takes effort. Protestantism, while wrong, can be enticing because in many cases it is simple and easy to understand. Which is easier, "we follow everything the Bible says and nothing else", or "we follow Scripture, Tradition, and Authority read in a hermeneutic of continuity, all of which are infallible, but infallibility has to be properly understood because the Pope is not impeccable, and if he's only expressing his opinions as a theologian rather than speaking ex cathedra... etc., etc., etc.."
You see what I'm saying.
[/quote]

while at the same time they are not really following scripture

[Nihil Obstat]

[quote name='infinitelord1' timestamp='1295472772' post='2201904']
while at the same time they are not really following scripture
[/quote]
Correct. Though it appears so initially.

[infinitelord1]

[quote name='Semper Catholic' timestamp='1295450706' post='2201795']
Protestant Mass blows Catholic Mass out of the water in terms of fun. Deal With it.
[/quote]


LOL...Of course we all understand how rock and roll brings us closer to God than anyone else.

[Tally Marx]

Protestants try to convert Catholics (as opposed to atheists, Buddhists, Mormons, etc) because it is easier to tear down than to build up. If a Protestant were to try to convert an atheist or a Buddhist, they would have to provide arguments for why a god exists, and why there is only One God. However, all a Protestants needs to do to convert a Catholic is to prove the Church wrong (or make it seem so). Very little thought is involved in tearing down.

Protestants succeed in converting Catholics because (1) most Catholics don't know thier Faith. Or, if they know [i]what[/i] they believe, they certainly don't know [i]why [/i]they believe it. So the Protestants arguments, feeble as they are, seem valid in the Catholic victim's (if you will) mind. They can't defend their beliefs. (2) Protestantism takes very little thought. Protestants don't use 6 syllable words like Transubstantiation. It's like Kindergarten. And (3) in a society where everything must be entertaining and make you feel good, Mass is boring and "Holy Days of [i]Obligation[/i]" smacks of work.

[infinitelord1]

[quote name='Tally Marx' timestamp='1295475239' post='2201936']
Protestants try to convert Catholics (as opposed to atheists, Buddhists, Mormons, etc) because it is easier to tear down than to build up. If a Protestant were to try to convert an atheist or a Buddhist, they would have to provide arguments for why a god exists, and why there is only One God. However, all a Protestants needs to do to convert a Catholic is to prove the Church wrong (or make it seem so). Very little thought is involved in tearing down.

Protestants succeed in converting Catholics because (1) most Catholics don't know thier Faith. Or, if they know [i]what[/i] they believe, they certainly don't know [i]why [/i]they believe it. So the Protestants arguments, feeble as they are, seem valid in the Catholic victim's (if you will) mind. They can't defend their beliefs. (2) Protestantism takes very little thought. Protestants don't use 6 syllable words like Transubstantiation. It's like Kindergarten. And (3) in a society where everything must be entertaining and make you feel good, Mass is boring and "Holy Days of [i]Obligation[/i]" smacks of work.
[/quote]


Why do you think most Catholics don't know their Faith?

[dominicansoul]

[quote name='Semper Catholic' timestamp='1295450706' post='2201795']
Protestant Mass blows Catholic Mass out of the water in terms of fun. Deal With it.
[/quote]

I don't think "Protestant Mass" exists...

[Tally Marx]

[quote name='infinitelord1' timestamp='1295480165' post='2201960']
Why do you think most Catholics don't know their Faith?
[/quote]


Their ignorance shows.
When Protestants can lure Catholics away from the Church with arguments like, "Catholics worship Mary and the saints" and "Catholics hate the Bible" and "Jesus meant it figuratively when he said the Bread was His Body" and "Catholics think they must save themselves by their acts" then you know the Catholics don't know their faith. And when you have ex-Catholics saying that they never knew that the "Immaculate Conception" referred to Mary and not Jesus, and that they worshipped the statues at their parish church it is obvious that they didn't learn their faith. And there are MANY ex-Catholics out there. Denominations like the Jehovah's Witnesses (though they aren't Protestant, technically) and the Baptists are made up almost completely of ex-Catholics.

I know parish priests astounded by the fact that their Confirmation kids couldn't name the Third Person of the Blessed Trinity. And there are practicing Catholics--adults--absolutely wowed by the arguments given on this forum and others... basic apologetics. My parents do marriage prep and most of the couples they have mentored think that the Catechism is a Sunday School class; they don't even know it's a publication.