No Thanks, We're Catholic

During my early days as a Christian, I was often engaged with my church in door-to-door activities, whether the goal was evangelism or invitations to special Easter or Christmas programs where the gospel would be preached. We listened to many different responses from those who opened their doors. The most common response - although not at all the majority of responses - was this one: "No thanks, we're Catholic," and the door was closed.

Being good Protestants, we believed Catholics were hard-hearted toward the "true" gospel, believed in salvation by works, and were so mired in their religion of tradition and saint worship that they were as lost as lost could be. We took the closing of the door after their four word reply as yet another rejection of the gospel in their hard-heartedness. If these people could only get a glimpse of Judgment Day.

Over the years, I've greatly softened my view of the spiritual condition of those outside the Reformed, Protestant, Calvinistic tradition. I still hold to many of the distinctives - as a matter of doctrine - but no longer view salvation as being dependent on an intellectual, gnostic type of affirmation of these distinctives. I've come across many believers from other traditions who I think love the Lord just as much as I think that I do, and am now ashamed at my anathematizing of them.

Maybe those four words were just their efficient way of politely saying, "Oh, brother, here come those nutty evangelicals again."