Originally posted by: kinev
No offense Glen, but we can both google cut and paste until the cows come home.
Apparently, some people are saying that my interpretation of Catholic doctrine is wrong. I disagree. The Catholic church teaches that the sacraments are integral to a person's salvation. [Reading Rainbow] But you don't have to take my word for it [/Reading Rainbow].
Catholic.org states:
"The doctrine of the sacraments is the doctrine of the second part of God's way of salvation to us."
"A sacrament, administered properly in the way established by Christ and with the proper intention, gives the grace it signifies."
"The Church Thus Teaches: There are seven sacraments. They were instituted by Christ and given to the Church to administer.
They are necessary for salvation."
Yeah, yeah, I cut and pasted, but that is the official position of the Catholic church. Yes, the Catholic church believes in Jesus, but it's Jesus + sacraments for salvation. You can't really disagree with the fact that the Catholic church teaches this.
Contrast that to Christianity which teaches that faith in Jesus
alone is the way to salvation. No sacraments, no works, just Grace through faith.
This might be a small distinction to atheists, but it is really the core of religion. If Christianity and Catholicism disagree about salvation, how can they be the same? They can't and they aren't.
Like I originally said, the question is dependent on the definition of Christian. If you define Christianity as following the teachings of Jesus and the Bible, then no, people who follow the teachings of the Catholic church are not Christians.
I tried to make a distinction between Catholic and the Catholic church because someone who calls them self a Catholic may not follow the teachings of the Catholic church.