Pentecostalism is a large, diverse group of Christians. Most Pentecostals do not speak in the Church-goer language that Catholics do. They do not consider the Catholic Church to be bad, or incomplete. They think it is perfect, but they don’t feel like they need to be Christian because of it.
This article will talk about why some Pentecostals think the Catholic Church is bad. It will also talk about why some Pentecostals think the Catholic Church is perfect, and why we should appreciate it for what it is, rather than compare it to another church.
This article will focus on blogs and articles written by non-Pentecostals, so read with care! If you are a Christian who isn’t Pentecostal, please pay attention to this article to help understand what makes a church good and bad.
Contents:
They think we are false prophets
Pentecostals often criticize the Catholic Church for its teachings on divorce, remarriage after divorce, and moral values. They claim these doctrines are “false” and “superfluous” because of the abundance of divorcees, divorced people, and moral nonconformists in their congregations.
They make this argument for several reasons. One is that many Pentecostals have been divorced themselves. Another is that they think the Catholic Church was too lax on sexual morality during the past few decades.
But why do they think this? Why do they think the Catholic Church was wrong to focus so much attention on sexual morality during the past few decades?
The answer can be found in a theory called sociophilosophy, which was originally developed by sociologist Auguste Comte more than 200 years ago. In his work, Comte believed that human society is divided into three layers: political, religious, and social. He believed that each layer had its own culture of thought and practice. (For more on this concept, see my article about sociophilosophy.)
Because of this separation of culture from government, religion has a hard time imposing its moral codes on government. And because of this separation of culture from government, there has been a loss of respect for governments that don’t adhere to such standards. This kind of thinking even affects politics as well as religion and morality. It leads people to look down upon governments that don’t focus only on military or economic goals.
They think we are immoral
For example, in the book The Purpose-Driven Adult by Charles Berrill, he talks about how a person who is very religious but does not follow the practices that are moral in nature, such as smoking or drinking, demonstrates poor purpose-driven behavior.
He states that when people who are moral in nature do things that are not good, such as smoke or drink, they demonstrate an internal weakness and are disfunctional in their personal and public life. This can lead to him to think that they are immoral.
This is what Pentecostals think of the Catholic Church. They believe the Catholic Church is bad because it has beliefs they do not agree with. They feel like they cannot be true Christians unless they get rid of some of their Christian beliefs.
This is why they have been attacking the pope and his family since 2013 and 2014, claiming that he is immoral.
They think our worship is demonic
More than any other faith community, Pentecostals think Catholic Church is bad. They’re right! Heaps of Pentecostal churches and baptist conventions are strongly influenced by the theology of charismatic Christianity, which blends the ideas of spirituality, psychology, and science.
This makes sense — many charismatic Christians have abandoned traditional Protestantism for its emphasis on doctrine and embraced Orthodox Christianity, where spirituality and theology blend.
Many priests who leave traditional Catholicism adopt this new style of worship, which they call contemporary catholicity. Many people find it appealing because it is naturalistic and spiritual, but also because it focuses more on people than just one entity or thing.
Unfortunately, some Pentecostals gain a negative image of the Catholic Church as a result of this style of worship. They view contemporary catholicity as devil-worship due to no true belief in God being claimed. This contributes to their negative image of the Catholic Church.
This article will go into detail about how they think Catholics are bad and why they think contemporary catholicity is devil-worship.
They believe the Catholic Church is persecuting them
Pentecostals believe the Catholic Church is too diplomatic and moderate in its teachings. They believe the Catholic Church is persecuting them and that the conservative elements within it are controlling their faith.
This can be true as some Pentecostals have been moved away from traditional worship to more modern styles. More frequently, however, they think Catholics are judgmental and secretive.
These beliefs may be rooted in a time when people believed what was written in the Bible was literally true. Since then, many have realized that isn’t always the case. However, they believe it is with religion and that’s why they are giving people hell–fire churches like the Catholic one.
This may be why some Pentecostals don’t go to any services at all. They feel like they are being judged by others based on their beliefs. They feel like they are being persecuted by those who do not agree with them.
They disagree with some of our beliefs
Pentecostals believe that the Catholic Church is wrong in its teachings about homosexuality, divorce, and remarriage. They also believe that the Catholic Church is against modern technology and entertainment.
These beliefs may be out of tradition, or because they do not agree with current church teaching. Many see the Catholic Church as stuck in the past, with hard-line conservatives ruling and promoting their views.
Both points are true: The conservative wing does rule, and members do get promoted based on what they like. But it can be difficult to identify who is really wise and who is just being politically correct.
Modern Pentecostals often use media and technology to keep themselves updated on new church teachings.
We differ on how we view scripture
There are several reasons why many denominations of Christianity think the Catholic Church is evil. One reason is because they disagree about how scripture should be interpreted.
Many believe the Bible is the only source of accurate guidance, whereas others recognize that it can be Interpreted in various ways. As a result, these individuals do not consider the Catholic Church to be an error in scripture, but rather a correct interpretation.
This difference in interpretation comes from a difference in how the bible was originally written and what people understood it to mean. Some people believed it meant one thing, but later writings clarified it to mean another.
As a result, some people claim certain parts of the bible are irrelevant and/or outdated.
Some of their beliefs include spirits and ghosts
While many people in non-Christian religions believe in spirits, Catholic doctrine includes the concept of a ghost. This is a powerful way for believers to explain why things look different after death and why we aren’t completely gone.
Traditionally, ghosts would visit people at night to do good and help them. They would stay for a short time and leave when someone prayed for them.
Many people think that Catholic church is bad because of these concepts, but they are present in both Christian denominations and non-denominational churches. People just don’t talk about them very much!
These concepts are present in Christian theology for a reason: To help make sense of life after death. Most Christians believe that when we die, our spirit goes to heaven, meets God, and is rewarded with fullness of possession of Jesus, eternal life, and glory.
These concepts help explain how someone could be convinced that Catholic church is bad because they don’t include God as an entity with power over us but instead believe in saints who do this on their own.