Last month, I was at the International Barbecue Festival, manning the booth for the Owensboro Tea Party. I took a break at one point to walk around and scout out the food booths come lunchtime. While doing so, I heard a man with a megaphone giving a hellfire and brimstone sermon. Every year, a street preacher and his entourage show up at the Barbecue Festival. I am not sure what this guy’s purpose is. Maybe he thinks festivals are sinful affairs. Maybe he is trying to increase membership for his church/traveling religion. Whatever his motives are, I think it is safe to say that this street preacher and his group qualify as a fringe group.
Amidst the street preacher’s lengthy sermons and the occasional confrontation, there was one thing he said that got my attention: he referred to Catholics as idol worshippers.
Idol worship is one motive some people have as to why they are prejudiced towards Catholics. But the fact is that Catholics do not worship idols, and that idolatry is forbidden in Catholicism. The reason you see statues, paintings, etc. in Catholic Churches is because it is a way of remembering the person, object, or event. Thus, it is no different than taking a photograph or making a film, television series, or documentary. I should point out that God actually commanded mankind to make statues, as indicated in Exodus 25: 18-20 and First Chronicles 28: 18-19. In addition, other churches also have statues, paintings, and other artistic expressions.
A couple of other reason some people are prejudiced towards Catholics is because of the sexual abuse scandal and the liberalism within the Catholic Church. But the truth of the matter is the Catholic Church is not the only church that has such problems. In fact, when it comes to sexual abuse allegations, other churches have had the same number of cases as the Catholic Church. But for some reason, the Catholic Church is singled out and gets more coverage — perhaps an anti-Catholic bias.
The Catholic Church has had its fair share of liberalism in proportion to other churches (e.g. immigration, social justice, the death penalty). And despite Pope Francis being more liberal than his predecessors, the Catholic Church has stood firm against those who advocate abortion and same-sex marriages.
For more information, you should refer to the Bible, as well as the story of Scott Haan.
You can also look at this website: http://www.catholic.com/.
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