In light of a recent short article I wrote on the Pope, where I exclaimed that I wasn’t a Catholic but a Christian instead, I thought it would be fitting to write about Protestantism and what we are actually Protesting. After all, someone in the comment section did tell me they hope I “come home to Rome.” We Protestants do not believe in the infallible authority of the Pope although most of us do fear and respect ecclesiastical hierarchy. We do not believe in the ability of a priest to absolve your sins after confession although we do indeed practice James 5:16 where we confess our sins to one another for the sake of repentance and sanctification. Finally, we believe we are justified in Christ through sola fide (faith alone) and sola scriptura (scripture alone), not faith plus works and grace plus merit.
Out of all points, however, the last one is the most central. Many Protestants focus on the ancillary workings of the Catholic Church and not on the main point that separates the Catholic from the bare bone Christian: justification. This is not to say there are no Catholics who have a heart after God and are children of the Kingdom, this article is written especially to edify our minds so that next time someone asks what the difference is you can actually be informed. If you are a Catholic I would implore you to cross-examine your stance on justification with the scripture and see what it has to say about it. If you are going by what the Church high officials tell you and not by what the scripture shows you, then are you fearing men before you fear God? Do you consider the Pope and his men infallible while you give latitude to the Word?
