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In reply to your letter, I will answer on a Web Page so All people can hear my words, for others have said the same words as you.
"You said; I cannot believe in some of the things you teach. I am a Catholic, & I cannot compromise my faith."
These words I speak to you in Christian Love, Sue
I walked the path you are walking now, and thought your thoughts. I was also born and raised Catholic, but I was raised under the "Old Time" Catholics that taught it was a Mortal sin if you entered any church but the Catholic, that when you died if you had a mortal sin on your soul, that you didn't confess to the priest first, you went to hell, & if you were a good Catholic when you died,& didn't have any mortal sins on your soul, just venial sins, that you went to purgatory to burn them off before you went to heaven. I was Baptised as a baby, made my first communion & confirmation. I thought I was all set. I was a good Catholic. I didn't know any different. I was always taught Catholicism, & nothing else.
I knew about Jesus of course, & that he died for the sins of the world, but I knew of Him with my Head, Not in my Heart. I was taught the reason you prayed to Mary and the saints was because God was busy & they would give him the message since they were closer to him then we were. I was taught a lot more, but if you are Catholic you have been taught the same things I'm sure.
I thought I was right. In fact, I "Knew" I was. I felt sorry for anyone who was not a good Catholic.
Please bear with me as you read this, for I love you in Jesus perfect love & it is so important you listen to what I'm saying, for even now you are thinking I am misled, and Satan is trying to get you Not to Read my Words.
The same things you disagree with, I disagreed with at one time. I have a testimony that I wrote after God set my feet upon the path I am on now in this Gospel Ministry, and it will explain what happened to change my thinking, & what I went thru.
I know Satan is putting in your Mind ...Delete... Delete.. because he definately doesn't want me talking to you, but I Plead the Blood of Jesus on him. The precious Blood that Our Lord and Savior Shed on the Cross at Calvery for our sins.
This may well be the Most important message you ever receive, as was the knock on my door that night that changed my life. No matter what spiritual changes you are going through now, you will go through more as you read this. For you will feel both Satan, and the Holy Spirit working in your Soul, talking to you. Satan arguing, trying to get you to delete this & not read any further, but the Holy Spirit encouraging, reasoning, and loving you, telling you my Words are His Words and to Listen to them.
I will speak more to you after you read my Testimony. It's just below. Remember, I love you, and so does Jesus very much, & I am always here for you if you want to talk about anything.
My Testamony..."Sue"
I was Raised Catholic. One day a Baptist preacher knocked on my door. He had a black Bible under his arm. That was the first thing that caught my eye. I didn't want to hear it. I was Catholic! My husband let him in,(they had pre-planned this) and asked him to have a seat. The Baptist preacher actually reached over & turned off my t.v. program. I looked at him like he was crazy. He just smiled at me in a sweet understanding way, which for some reason, upset me all the more! He was the pastor of the Landmark Baptist Church in town. They were having a Revival starting the Next Sunday. (I had No idea what a Revival was.)
He said, he came by to ask me a question? (I figured it must be a good one since he turned off my t.v. program.) "If Something happened to you tonight, and you died, where would you go?" he asked. I didn't even hesitate. "To Heaven, of Course;" I replied. "Why do you say you'll go to Heaven?" he asked.
"Because I am a Catholic;" I answered with assurance. He didn't even crack a smile!
"Do you believe the Bible is God's Holy Word?" he asked me.
I told him I did. and he asked me if he could show me what Jesus said, about how to Be Born Again in the Holy Spirit of God. That puzzled me, because we were not encouraged to read the Bible. The priest told us everything we needed to know. I figured he wasn't going to leave unless I let him show me whatever it was he wanted me to see, so I said, All right. He turned to the book of Roman's, and took me down what's Called...
"The Roman Road to Salvation."
Romans 3:23~ All have sinned & come short of the Glory of God.
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Romans 5:12 Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:
Romans 10:9-13
That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed. For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
When the little Baptist preacher who said his name was Brother Reddick was finished, I realized I understood the words he showed me and I felt a deep confusion. I suddenly wanted him to leave my house. I went thru a long week of Misery, confusion, and guilt as the Fleshly Nature Battled with the Spirit over being Born Again in Jesus. I found myself on my knees by the side of the bed trying to pray, but it seemed my prayers were not being heard. Mary didn't seem to be listening and if she was she wasn't answering me. I was in misery, while my husband slept peacefully.
On Sunday night my husband dragged me to the first night of the Revival. He physically made me get in the car. I didn't want to go. It was a Mortal Sin. I was going to split Hell wide open for going in another Church that wasn't Catholic.What would the priest say? I was a Mess. I Was Confused!
We arrived in front of a medium sized red brick church. Light spilled out from the many windows and seemed to welcome me but I was scared. I felt strange walking into a church that wasn't Catholic, and expected God to strike me dead at any minute, but my husband took my arm Firmly and ushered me thru the double doors of the church that stood wide open. Smiling men in dark suits welcomed us. As we walked into a large auditoium I was surprised it was so light, and not dark & quiet like the Catholic church. Smiles greeted me as I entered, and a low murmer could be heard as people talked softly with each other. Several people walked up to me and introduced themselves and told me how glad they were that I was there. I felt myself relaxing.
My husband took my arm and steared me toward the front of the church. I tried to hold back."Lets sit back here;" I said. He wasn't having it and proceeded down the isle to the third row, which i slipped into real quick, and sat down before he went to the first row.
It wasn't long until the church filled with people, the front doors were shut, and Brother Reddick and another man walked up onto a raised platform at the front of the church. Brother Reddick welcomed everyone and asked the visitors to please stand so the church could welcome them. My husband instantly stood up and smiled. When he realised I wasn't with him he frowned, took my elbow and with a look that told me I better stand, I grudingly stood also. I have to admit everyone was so friendly and seemed to be so filled with Love. I wondered why they were so happy when I was so miserable? We sat back down, and the choir sang a couple of beautiful songs I had never heard before, then Brother Reddick started to preach.
He seemed to be speaking just to me and I was convinced that if I didn't ask Jesus into my heart I was going to split Hell wide open for real, Catholic or Not.
After the sermon, which seemed to last forever, the choir started singing "Just as I am". Brother Reddick asked if anyone wanted to Be Born Again Spiritually in Jesus to come forward.
By this time, I knew I was Lost because I had never Actually Asked Jesus Personally to forgive my sins and come into my heart & Soul. I had always prayed to Mary or asked the Priest to forgive my sins in confession, & then done my penance for them, but I couldn't seem to get my feet to move in order to go to the front of the church. They felt like led weights. A voice kept whispering,You'll be all right once you get out of here".
Finally the service was over & we left, but the feeling that I was Lost stayed with me. I hoped God didn't strike me dead before I got this straightened out.
The second night my husband dragged me back. We got in an argument over it. He made me go anyway. Brother Riddick preached another sermon and again I was convicted in my Soul that even though I was Catholic I was still Lost. When they gave the invitation I wanted to go down front and have the preacher show me how to be born again in Jesus, but my feet seemed glued to the floor. A lady next to me said; "If You take One step, God Will Take Two." Boy thats a lie, I thought. I took a step toward the Isle to go down front, to prove her wrong, but she was right.
I felt the Holy Spirit so strongly that it felt like He was pushing me down the isle of the church. I knelt down at the first pew with the pastor kneeling beside me and he guided me through asking Jesus into my heart & Soul.
He asked me if I Believed that Jesus Died to pay the Sin Debt for me and that He Rose Again from the dead on the third day.
I said yes, I believed that in my heart. Then he helped me to pray the sinners prayer. I felt the Spirit surge through me as I told Jesus I was sorry for all my sins, and asked him to send the Holy Spirit into my Soul and to save me, and make me His. I Felt so Clean.There was No Doubt about what had just Happened. "I Was Born Again Spiritually!"
It was a Rocky Road I traveled with that little preacher, as I took him thru all kinds of changes regarding the lies I had been taught for 22 years of my life. He hung in there for Jesus, and I promised Jesus I would do all I could to make sure those who had been lied to like I was, learned the Truth. That's My Testimony for Jesus.
Jesus set my Feet on a New Path & Put a Song of Praise in my Heart. He filled My Heart with Love for all people & gave me a Desire to Reach as many as Possible with The Truth of His Word. He is My Lord and Savior. He is Y'shua, Jesus the Christ, the Son of God, the king of kings, and the Prince of Peace!
I learned it was a matter of Public Historical Record that Peter wasn't the first Pope, that the Catholic Church was started in the Early Third century a.d. when the Roman Emperor Constitine saw a vision of a firey red cross in the sky. He took it to mean if he would combine the Christian churches of the day, that seemed to keep growing no matter how many christians the Roman Gov't killed or persecuted that the Roman Empire would never fall, as it was threatening to do.
So Emperor Constitine set forth a decree to the Christian churches of the day to join forces with the Roman Empire. At the time, the churches had a division among themselves over Baptism. Some of them decided that since Jesus spoke about Baptism so much that it must be important so they started baptising babies and small children. The true churches knew you had to make a decision to Serve Jesus first, & ask him into your heart & Soul, and then follow him in Baptism. which was by immersion signifying the death, burial, & reserection of Our Lord, and of us being buried with Him, raised to walk a new life for Him.
It was also a statement to the world that we Served Jesus Now, and the first work we did for him after being Born Again. A small child or baby was innocent and safe in him until they reached the age of accountability & therefore couldn't be baptised.So the Christian churches withdrew fellowship from those who had started baptising babies and children. When the Emperor Constitine set forth the decree to the churches of the day those who had been put out of the fellowship of the other churches joined the Roman Empire & became the Roman Church. This is a matter of Public Record at any Library.
"The Trail of Blood, History of the Roman Catholic Church, or any number of other historical publications."
The Roman Empire continued to persecute & kill those who would not join the Empire church.They had to flee into the rocks and mountains to hide in order to worship together, but they flourished and grew in the Truth of the Word of God. The Empire started calling them Ani-Baptists because they rebaptized any converts from the Roman Church. Constitine was frustrated. Even his wife slipped away to meet with the Rebel Christians.
Meanwhile, the Empire was having problems, and even with the christians who had joined to the Roman Empire it still eventually fell. But the Roman Church continued and grew stronger. Their headquarters stayed in Rome even after the Empire Fell.
That church is the Roman "Catholic" (which means universal) church. Down through the middle ages they added and took away from the doctrine of the church. They added the worship of Mary and the Saints, the infallability of the Pope, and in the 1100's at the Council of Trent instituted the idea of purgatory where people could go to burn off their sins before going to heaven.Their family could also pay the priest for masses to help their loved ones get out of purgatory faster & this would be a source of revenue for the church. In the ninth Century people started dissagreeing with things the Roman Church was teaching, and started their own church. ALL Churches today are branches off the Ani-Baptists or the Roman Church.
Jesus Loves you. He died for you and wants you to come to him, asking forgiveness. His church is called the Kingdom of God. It is Spiritual, not in a man made building, but within the Soul of the Believer. The words I speak are His words.
I am Sue, and I Serve Only Jesus!
John 8:32~And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Testimonies for Jesus
Testimony From a Former Catholic
I Testify that All statements on this page are true, and the facts about the Roman Church can be verified at any Public Library. In Jesus precious name I Love you, Sue
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Edited 7/16/01
