Uniting the Three Branches

[Garland-Green]

Thank you for writing us and making use of this sub forum. Catholicism and Orthodoxy as it is today can't be represented in this guild on equal footing with denominations that are Protestant. The differences that caused the Reformation are more or less still the same today as they where back then. The main/chief reason for this is that the mode of Salvation differs within these three. The Sacraments in the Catholic church is the mode through which God saves people, in Protestantism salvation is by faith. The hierarchy and practices vary too much between the two and can't be reconciled. By attempting to unify these for the sake of unity we have to smooth over some rather large differences and ignore some pretty big truths. We would have to ignore statements of Pope's made in ex cathedra concerning those that don't belonging to the mother church. Then there is the matter of the titles bestowed to head of the Catholic church despite explicit warnings against such titles in Scripture. The usage of imagery to represent God. The priest's ability to absolve sin - stepping into Jesus unique position as the one and only mediator between God and man. I can't allow for that without going against my own conscience and against the warnings in Scripture. We shouldn't have unity for the sake of unity with someone claiming the name of Christ unless there is an actual reason for this unity in the beliefs concerning the nature of Christ and the practices of that particular church or denomination. Does this mean I think that Catholics can't be saved? No it doesn't, but I believe they are not saved because they are Catholics but despite of being a Catholic. Despite of what the Catholic church teaches.