Offering Help For Mike

(CHT to the reader who e-mailed!)

The above video illustrates the way in which technology is changing evangelization.

Mike is a very thoughtful, sincere young man who is investigating the Catholic faith, and he has used YouTube to request help.

I tried logging in to leave a comment for his video, but for some reason YouTube wouldn’t let me. If some who has a YouTube account could leave a comment for him pointing him to this post, I would be most appreciative.

Mike asks several questions in his video, including why converts became Catholic, why Catholics believe their faith (as opposed to the teachings of other groups of Christians), and what resources he could look to.

Here are my answers:

1) My own conversion story is online HERE.

2) HERE is a treatment of how I’d support Catholicism for someone coming from a Protestant background.

3) I would strongly recommend the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church as a resource offering a brief treatment of Catholic teaching in convenient Q & A format.

I’d also point out that the Catechism itself is online (Mike mentions that he’s planning on buying it).

I’d also recommend going to Catholic.Com for further info, including both its online library and its forums. I’d also note that I answer many questions about the faith here on JimmyAkin.Org.

 

I particularly agree with Mike’s statement that, in investigating the Catholic faith, there is only so much you can teach yourself, and you ultimately need to reach out to others. I’ve been at that point. When I was becoming Catholic, I hit the point at which I had done all I could with books and I needed input from an actual human being who was informed about the faith and who could respond to my questions. At that point there was no Internet, no Catholic radio, and it was hard going. Eventually, I found Catholic Answers, and that was an enormous help. I want to do all I can to help others who have reached the same point in their journey.

Thanks much, and God bless Mike for using the new tools of communication to help him as he pursues God’s will for his life!

20

Author: Jimmy Akin

Jimmy was born in Texas, grew up nominally Protestant, but at age 20 experienced a profound conversion to Christ. Planning on becoming a Protestant seminary professor, he started an intensive study of the Bible. But the more he immersed himself in Scripture the more he found to support the Catholic faith, and in 1992 he entered the Catholic Church. His conversion story, "A Triumph and a Tragedy," is published in Surprised by Truth. Besides being an author, Jimmy is the Senior Apologist at Catholic Answers, a contributing editor to Catholic Answers Magazine, and a weekly guest on "Catholic Answers Live."

67 thoughts on “Offering Help For Mike”

  3. What an admirable young man! He must be so close to Our Lord! Having had barely any positive exposure to the Catholic faith, and much negative, he was inspired to investigate Catholicism. The Holy Spirit must have some great plans for him.
    Let us pray for Mike and his journey.

  5. Eventually, I found Catholic Answers, and that was an enormous help.
    I originally thought Jimmy was one of the folks right at the ground in the founding of Catholic Answers.

  6. He does seem like a really sincere young man. I got a grin out of seeing the Saints game on in the background while he’s mentioning the perception that Catholics worship the saints. The Saints won that game–maybe it’s a sign….

  7. Catherine L,
    That the Saints won that game can only be a sign that we still live in a world where injustice reigns.

  8. If anyone can get this young man’s address, Karl Keeting’s book “Catholicism and Fundamentalism” would be an excellent way to answer a broad range of his questions–especially since he seems so avid a reader already.

  9. If anyone can get this young man’s address, Karl Keeting’s book “Catholicism and Fundamentalism” would be an excellent way to answer a broad range of his questions–especially since he seems so avid a reader already.
    So long as they’re not tapes of Karl actually reading it! ;^)

  10. God bless Mike! (And all who are experiencing what he is now.) He (& they) are in my prayers. May God grant them the grace they need on their journeys to know Him better. May they know the fullness of faith in Christ.

  11. John Henry, That the Saints won that game is a sign that God does answer our prayers.
    On topic, it’s nice to see youtube being used for something so edifying.

  12. Well, this IS Mike. Wow…I can’t believe God has led me to so many people so fast. I appreciate every single comment that has been left and I am amazed that this blog caught on to it. To everyone that has mentioned books, I am indebted to you. I’ll be checking out many of these within the next few weeks. I have just finished reading your own story, Jimmy, and I must say that it has helped a LOT. The refutations of sola scriptura and sola fide have been something that I have been looking for for some time, now.
    I believe I will be registering on the Catholic Answers forums soon, and certainly will be checking those out. Thanks to everyone for all the compliments, but it’s only through God’s grace that I was able to use YouTube to reach all of you. He reached to me to show me the Catholic doctrine, and I reached back, that’s all. It’s amazing what God can do, however, with something as simple as a 5 minute video.
    To you, personally, Jimmy, is there a way I could start a personal conversation with you through email or AIM or something of that nature? If so, my email is linked to my name here. You certainly seem to be an excellent person to talk to on these topics, to say the least. I’ll post a comment on my YouTube video verifying that this actually IS me, by the way. 🙂 Thanks again, to all of you. I will certainly keep you all informed on my progress.

  13. Mike,
    I have a 15 year old, myself (incidentally, I was raised as a Southern Baptist and became a Catholic as an adult, because I became convinced it was the Church Christ founded).
    You are a remarkable young man, in my experience. God bless you in your search for the Truth of Christ.

  14. COOL!
    Just as I thought —
    As I posted many times before, nobody can deny that the work that Jimmy does serves both God and His Church and, of course, this all translates into the actual saving of Souls!

  15. Hmm, is it just me and IE, or is there some weird formatting going on at cin.org? I have my browser maximized, but some things seem to be getting cut off on the right. Yet if I cut and paste the text into notepad I see the whole thing. It’s like I need to scroll further to the right, but I don’t have the scrollbars to do it.

  17. I live in SW Michigan. We have a very passionate, orthodox gentleman who studied theology at a Baptist college before coming home to the Catholic faith. He teaches at a Catholic high school and would be a great resource for this young man if he lives anywhere near Kalamazoo. His name is Kurt Lucas and he also works for the Diocese of Kalamazoo. I am sure he wouldn’t mind this young man contacting him.

  18. The New Evangelization has indeed arrived!!!
    All because of an *insignificant* man (as some detractors would say of him) by the name of John Paul II! God bless that man!

  19. Love that line Jimmy:
    When people confuse the issue of limited papal infallibility with impeccability or with total infallibility, I often draw on these facts by pointing out: “I know of a pope who denied the Christian faith, was publicly rebuked by his greatest cardinal, and then later went on to write two completely infallible encyclicals. His name was Simon Peter and you can find the two encyclicals in the back of your New Testament.”

  20. Thanks for sharing your conversion story Jimmy. Beautiful. Saint Renee pray for us.
    Another intellectual point that stood out for me:
    If I was going to claim that the Church had done its job and picked exactly the right books for the Bible, this meant that the Church had made an infallible decision three hundred years after the apostolic age, a realization which made it believable that the Church could make even later infallible decisions, and that the Church could make such decisions even today.

  21. Truth is so obscure in these times, and falsehood so established, that, unless we love the truth, we cannot know it. – Blaise Pascal
    I recommend Why do Catholics Genuflect? by Al Kresta and anything written by him and anything written by anyone at Catholic Answers.

  22. Jimmy, I also had trouble posting a comment on Youtube. Not that it matters much seeing as I am still huffing on dial-up (viva la low tech).
    Reading your story about how you found Catholic Answers reminded me when I was becoming Catholic and was given a musty old cassette tape featuring some dude named Jimmy Akin debating on a Protestant call-in radio show. I still remember my favorite line:
    “Do only Catholics go to Heaven?”
    “I can’t say only Catholics go to Heaven but I can say that everyone in Heaven is catholic.”
    AH-ZIIING!
    Then I got to read The Salvation Controversy and really started to see how, in becoming Catholic, you give up nothing of your Protestantism but gain everything by entering the fullness of the faith.
    There are no arguments FOR Protestantism only arguments AGAINST Catholicism. If you believe any of these arguments are valid (as all Protestants logically would do) then you have to fill the void of a Catholic-free universe with subjectivism and relativism.
    In other words: self.

  23. I offer my prayers for Mike and offer to answer any questions he might have if he wants to e-mail me. But since he’s already coming to this site, I can’t imagine what else I could tell him.

  25. “… in becoming Catholic, you give up nothing of your Protestantism but gain everything by entering the fullness of the faith.”
    Exactly! There is no positive element in Protestantism that is not present – in spades – within the Catholic Church.
    On becoming Catholic, all that you lose of Protestantism is the protest.

  26. Wow, what a response to God’s grace. Gives me a smile knowing that Mike will get his questions answered.

  27. Howdy Mike,
    I converted from atheism to Baptist/non-denominational Christianity and then to Catholicism. I recommend to you an excellent book by Mark Shea called “By What Authority”. He also converted from Evangelical Protestantism to Catholicism.
    Finally, the hyperlink on my name is my conversion story.
    May God bless you! He who seeks, shall find.

  28. Hi Mike,
    My name is Perry and I saw your video on Jimmy Akin.org. I must admit that you seem like a very mature young man and I really admire your desire to seek out more information regarding the catholic fatih. I will give you a little history of my journey toward catholicism.
    At the age of 17, I started out in the Eastern Orthodox faith. That didn’t last long as 2 years later I moved out from my mother’s house and thought I was going to conquer the world (didn’t happen). Years later I met and married my present wife and we started attending a Baptist church. This lasted for about 5 years until we decided to move to an Assemblies of God church with our friends (this lasted all of a few months as we had a fallen out with the leadership at this church). In 1999, I decided to read about church history and catholicism. I decided to start attending mass in 2000. My wife started attending with me (she is a cradle catholic) and the rest is history. Two years later I took the RCIA courses and on Palm Sunday, 2003, I became a full catholic in communion with the church.
    Mike, I suggest that you read, read, read as I did. It will enrich your knowledge of the catholic faith. I also suggest that you listen to your heart. The holy spirit will guide you in the right direction. Below is a link to the books I have read regarding the catholic faith.
    http://www.amazon.com/Catholic-Books/lm/CTF45JH0L9UM/ref=cm_lm_byauthor_title_full/002-6355955-6204869
    Good luck and God Bless,
    Perry

  29. I like reading conversion stories. Thanks Devin.
    I have heard of similar prayers as yours:
    “God, you know I do not believe in you, but I am in trouble and need help. If you are real, help me.”
    They are both humorous in their irony (God, you know I don’t believe in you) and beautiful in their simplicity (help me).

  30. Hi!
    Hopefully you’re still reading the comments on this site Mike.
    I’m Thomas, I’m 22, I live in SE Michigan, and I am a convert to Catholicism. I wasn’t raised religiously, but I became involved with a Pentecostal youth group in 8th grade. I remained involved with them until the last few months of high school, when I switched to a small, nondenominational church, which was more or less Baptist.
    In my second year of college, I became interested in Catholicism, and the Lord brought a lot of people into my life to help me learn about it, and I read a bunch of books, and in December of 2004 I decided to become Catholic, got into RCIA (caught up with some tutoring), and had my first Holy Communion and Confirmation on the Easter Vigil of 2005.
    There’s more to my story of course, so if you want to talk to a younger guy from Michigan, feel free to contact me. Like the others, I really recommend “By What Authority” by Mark Shea, it is the book which had the single most impact on my own conversion.
    In Christ,
    Thomas

  31. recommendation:
    Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic by David Currie
    You do not have to be a Fundamentalist to find this book beneficial.

  33. Mr.Akin
    Thank you for your use of the Holy Ghost’s Gift of evangalization to all you speak with.
    Another great Catholic resource is The Roman Catechism,edited by St.Charles Borremeo.
    I’ve just finished reading it again and it is a perfect exposition of The Apostles Creed,The Sacraments,The Ten Commandments,everything Catholic’s believe.I also find it much easier to follow than the newer Catechism.
    God bless you.

  34. For Mike and any Other Protestants interested in the Catholic Church, the Coming Home Network actually helps such folks (be they pastors or laymen) in their “journey home” to the Catholic Church.
    They have a great website to go to for help in this regard. Their website is: http://www.chnetwork.org/
    In fact, Marcus Grodi, who is President, hosts a weekly show on EWTN (http://www.ewtn.com) called “The Journey Home”, which features Protestant Converts to the Catholic Faith where these folks actually tell their stories of how and why they became Catholic.
    They also have a section on their website that deals with the typical issues of the Catholic Faith at often misunderstood by Protestants: http://www.chnetwork.org/journal.htm
    The Articles they have here discusses the issues:
    – Mary
    – Eucharist
    – Authority
    – Salvation & Justification
    – Sola Scriptura
    – Necessity of the Church

  35. Dan, I second the recommendation for the Catechism at the St. Charles Borromeo website. It has great search features that allow you to bring up specific paragraphs that contain your search terms, but also allows you to then enter the page containing that paragraph so you can see it in context. Lot of other good stuff there in the lefthand margin as well. I enjoy their weekly Bible Study on the upcoming Sunday’s readings (last link in the Faith Section).
    Esau, I also like the Journey Home. The program can also be listened to via podcast if you don’t have EWTN in your area.

  36. Esau, I also like the Journey Home.
    hear, hear, John E.
    For Those Who Don’t Know:
    The Coming Home Network is actually run by Protestant Converts. In fact, Marcus Grodi is, himself, a Protestant convert. He was once a Lutheran pastor.

  41. “One thread in which we all can get along!!!”
    Dr. Eric,
    Are you saying that one can’t expect civility from one’s fellow comboxers? Shocking!!!

  42. Mike, you’re the man. God is most definitely doing a work in your life! That’s so cool.
    In case you don’t know, Catholic Answers has a radio show called Catholic Answers Live. If you don’t get it in your area or can’t tune in while it’s on the air, you can download archived shows from the CA website or subscribe to it on iTunes for free! The question & answer shows with Jimmy, Tim Staples, Karl Keating, etc. might be of particular interest to you. They are all so very knowledgeable & always charitable! CAL also does shows on all sorts of other topics. I’m a cradle Catholic who reverted to faith in 2000 & I learn something (usually many somethings) every time I listen!
    Also, EWTN’s website, ewtn.com, is a great resource for Catholic Church documents, again for free.
    God bless you, Mike. Again, you’re in my prayers.

  43. Hey Mike!! You made my day!!! I sometimes find myself dreading it when I have to tell people I’m Catholic. I just know many of them will be thinking, “YIKES, she’s a Mary/statue-worshipping anti-Christ follower!!” It’s so great to know that there are non-Catholics who will research before they automatically believe the anti-Catholic stuff they’ve been taught. So, thanks for your open attitude toward Catholicism!!
    I enjoy reading Catholic conversion stories. There are three such informative books I like called Surprised by Truth 1, 2 and 3. You can look at them on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Surprised-Truth-Converts-Biblical-Historical/dp/0964261081/sr=8-1/qid=1169153792/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/002-3611636-0232051?ie=UTF8&s=books
    May God richly bless you on your spiritual journey!!

  44. That’s because UNITY subsists in TRUTH!
    Esau, all I have to say to that is AMEN!!!
    … And TRUTH is NOT a SOMETHING — it’s a SOMEBODY — and His Name is JESUS, the CHRIST!
    That line never tires — God Bless Fr. Corapi!

  45. recommendation:
    Born Fundamentalist, Born Again Catholic by David Currie
    You do not have to be a Fundamentalist to find this book beneficial.
    YES!!!! That’s the other main book that had a HUGE impact on my conversion. I second the recommendation.

  46. Wow, again, I can’t begin to express how much all of this info is helping. To all of you who have sent me emails, I WILL respond to you, it just may take me a day or two to sort through them all. This weekend, I will be taking a trip to the bookstore and I have quiiiite the list to be taking a look for. Hopefully I’ll come home with 2 or 3 selections to pore over for a while.
    This saturday, and for every saturday after that, I’m going to try my hardest to attend the Saturday Mass in the evening. Due to the obligation I am under from my parents, I still have to go to my “normal” church every Sunday, but I talked it over with my mom and she has absolutely no problem with me going on Saturday. Obviously, I cannot participate in the Communion itself, but I can still learn and become accustomed to the different styles and such.
    On the subject that I just mentioned concerning my parents, I cannot BEGIN to say how grateful I am that my mom is completely accepting toward my search. She has said that she does not believe that she would ever turn Catholic, but that if God is telling me that the Catholic Church is right, I should search for it. It was definitely a huge encouragement. I spoke to Jimmy, and I’ll be posting a new YouTube video either tomorrow or Saturday in which I will detail a few more background points and actually ask a few questions for Jimmy to answer. Keep the emails coming. They are a gift from God.
    Thanks again,
    Mike

  48. Hehehehe….sola videola….oh man. That was funny. 😀 Um, I’ll try to state my questions in a written summary as well, for those of you in non-broadband-land. No problem.
    By the way, should be posting it tomorrow. Very busy tonight, so I doubt it’ll be up. I will be going to the bookstore tomorrow, as well, to buy some of these books I’ve been recommended, so it will be up tomorrow NIGHT.
    Mike

  51. Folks have already mentioned some of my favorite books, but I would like to add “Four Witnesses: The Early Church In Her Own Words”. What’s cool about this is that Bennett takes the reader through his own study of the early church in a very readable, engaging manner. In particular, he picks four pivotal early church fathers (Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, and Iraneus of Lyons) who form a continuous slice through the first couple of hundred years of the church.
    By no means exhaustive, but very illuminating and extraordinarily encouraging. In the end, this study was instrumental in Rod Bennett’s own journey home.

  52. Folks have already mentioned some of my favorite books, but I would like to add “Four Witnesses: The Early Church In Her Own Words”. What’s cool about this is that Bennett takes the reader through his own study of the early church in a very readable, engaging manner. In particular, he picks four pivotal early church fathers (Clement of Rome, Ignatius of Antioch, Justin Martyr, and Iraneus of Lyons) who form a continuous slice through the first couple of hundred years of the church.
    By no means exhaustive, but very illuminating and extraordinarily encouraging. In the end, this study was instrumental in Rod Bennett’s own journey home.

  53. Speaking of the Early Church and the Early Church Fathers, you might want to take up Faith of the Early Fathers by William A. Jurgens.
    So many Protestant converts have come to absolutlely admire and embrace these books which details Christianity in its early years.
    Here’s an Amazon.com link to one of the books in the 3-Volume Set:
    http://www.amazon.com/Faith-Early-Fathers-Vol-1/dp/0814604323/sr=8-1/qid=1169248045/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-9882415-2567115?ie=UTF8&s=books
    Furthermore, here’s what Steve Wood, also a Protestant Convert to the Catholic Faith, had to say about this series of books.
    Testimony from Steve Wood about Jurgens’ 3-Volume Set:
    “If I was shipwrecked on a deserted island Robinson Crusoe-fashion and given the choice of three books to bring with me, without a doubt I’d choose the Bible, the Catechism, and the 3-volume set The Faith of the Early Fathers. One of the main reasons I left my career as an Evangelical Protestant minister was because I discovered the truth and historicity of the Catholic faith by reading the Apostolic Fathers. When I read what Fathers such as St. John Chrysostom and St. Ignatius of Antioch had to say about the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, I had no choice but to leave my pastorate and enter the true Church. This set is truly worth its weight in gold – a million times over!
    His Link:
    http://www.familylifecenter.net/cart/product_detail.cfm?Id=297

  54. Esau, I wholeheartedly agree that Jurgens is a great set … I treasure mine as well!
    What I think is helpful about the way Bennett does “four witnesses” is that 1) he does a pretty good job of giving you a feel for the story, by paining a picture of the circumstances and lives of each of these four ECFs, and 2) by picking four contigous, more or less overlapping ECFs he also handily gives a feel for the continuity and coherence of the early church.
    Jurgens, on the other hand, is a far more comprehensive and in-depth treatment of both a wider range of early church fathers, and their writings with that great topical / doctrinal index.
    Both are very good. I think it’s not really an “either or”, but rather “both and” 🙂
    >
    Also might be worth checking out Mike Aquilina’s blog, as well as two short books of his: The Mass of the Early Christians and The Fathers of the Church.
    These are both quick reads and will definitely whet your appetitie for more!
    So many books, so little time 😉

  55. Hello Mike,
    God bless you in this pilgrimage you are about to undertake. I have gone down the same road before (you can read my conversion story on my website in the link below). Please e-mail me and I can also answer some of your questions. My email is: ealfric@comcast.net. I also would recommend (because it is a short answer version) is the Baltimore Catechism and the Compendium to the Cathechism of the Catholic Church. Also, the book, Catholicism for Dummies is a good one too to get you started. The short answer to your question: It is Our Lord’s promise that He will never leave the Church, that the gates of Hell will not prevail against the Church, and the greatest gift He has given to us: Himself in the most Blessed Sacrament of the Altar: the Holy Eucharist. Remember that every dogma of the Church (to include Our Lady) comes from Our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Heart and the very center of the Faith 🙂 God bless you and I will pray for you 🙂

  56. Bob Lozano:
    Thanks for the info on that book — seems interesting after having read your comments regarding it.
    Also, I agree, Aquilina’s books are worth checking — especially since they’re short.

  57. Hehehehehe….yeah, my name is certainly interesting. Darn Polish people. 😛
    Basically, it’s pronounced Mih-Koh-Luh-Check, if anyone understands my poor attempt at writing pronounciation.
    Thanks for the recommendation about the books concerning the faiths of the early Fathers of the Church. That is on my list to get, so I WILL be reading it eventually, I assure you. I’ll be posting that video tomorrow night, so stay tuned. 😀

  58. Alrighty, got it uploaded. Here is the link. I’m not going to embed just yet, because I’ll let Jimmy get to that whenever he finds the time. Here it is, though.
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDy1gfIq94I
    For a quick summary, I basically thank everyone for all of their help, and ask only one real question. Why was Mary born without the taint of original sin? That is the gist of my video, so I’m hoping that I can get an answer on this crucial doctrine. Romans 3:23 states that “all” have sinned, yet Jesus obviously never sinned. “All” must mean something other than, literally, “All”. I would love to see a good response on this. It is the ONLY thing holding me back.
    God bless,
    Mike

  59. The term “all” already implies some special exemptions. For example the severely mentally disabled or those who “are” yet were not allowed to be born by either natural or man-made causes.
    Also, “have sinned” means the sins in question are the sins we chose to do and not Original Sin. So Romans does not really bear on this issue because original sin is the sin we are born with as the members of a fallen race.
    Unless you have access to some sort of time machine, I think it is safe to say none of us chose to eat the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil.
    So the question is essentially this: Is all mankind born with this curse, this punishment from God? Because original sin is the state that causes us to confuse evil for good (and thus do evil) we only need to look around to see the truth of this. Pretty much all are sinning.
    But is it possible there could be exceptions?
    That is almost a silly question. Certainly with God, through Whom all things are possible, exceptions COULD be made.
    Okay, then the next step is to ask: was Mary an exception?
    Possibly! Maybe! Okay, that sounds kind of weak. Does the Church have any proof?
    The answer: an angel told us so.
    (Waiting for your eyes to stop rolling. Go ahead roll them. You know you want to!)
    Luckily the Bible actually records said angel’s words in Luke 1.28 when Gabriel greets Mary “Hail! Full of Grace!” (some translations have something like “(highly) favored one”).
    This is an important utterance for two reasons:
    1) An archangel greets a human with “Hail!” which means the angel is showing the utmost of respect. Usually this is the other way around and humans fall to the earth and actually worship the angels. Mary is recognized as the royalty she is (in the Davidic Kingdom the queen is the mother of the king and not his wife).
    2) The original Greek for “Full of Grace”, Kecharitomine (sp?) means “one who has been perfected in grace.” It not only means that, but in this utterance Gabriel is actually NAMING her Full of Grace. NAMING IS VERY IMPORTANT IN THE BIBLE. Just read in Matthew where Gabriel also says the Christ should be named “Emanuel — God is with us.”
    No other entity human or divine is greeted in a similar fashion anywhere in the Bible. Long story short, we think that name means Mary was preserved from the taint of original sin not because of anything she did but because God wanted to apply the sanctifying grace of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross retro-actively in order to make her a more suitable vessel for Our Lord.
    He had the power to do it, He had the reason to do it, and it was fitting that He do so.
    Tim Staples had a great tape series on this that goes into further detail including Mary’s queenship, and the typology of the New Eve. This is really fascinating and exciting stuff.
    Seek more here:
    http://www.catholic.com/library/Immaculate_Conception_and_Assum.asp
    and here:
    http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07674d.htm
    But most importantly, I suggest you take it up with your (new) queen and mother:
    http://www.theholyrosary.org/
    More later.

  60. Mike,
    Romans 3:23 uses the English word “all” but the original text had the word “Pas”. “Pas” is not the same as “all” because it isn’t so all-encompassing. “Pas” was used in Matthew 3:5-6. And it makes since that Pas means “many but not necessarily all” because surely not ever single person came out to meet Jesus like was said in Matthew 3:5-6.
    I suggest this link:
    http://www.freewebs.com/acatholiclife/ismarysinless.htm

  61. I forgot to mention the other exceptions to being born without the stain of original sin: Adam and Eve.
    As the original original sinners, they could not have been born (or made) with the original sin. For them, it was a matter of choice.
    This is why the typological analysis comparing Mary to the New Eve is so important. With the Incarnation of Christ, the events in the Garden of Eden are replayed — only this time instead of creating a curse upon all mankind, an old wound is healed and mankind is given the power to be made whole again.
    This is really rich stuff. The events are almost an exact echo of those in Genesis. The Garden of Gethsemane replaces the Garden of Eden and the cross replaces the Tree of Knowledge. “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.'” Gal 3.13. Instead of rebellion, you have obedience with Mary uttering her fiat “Let it be done to me according to thy will”.
    “What was sundered and undone shall behold! The two made one!” Okay, that is from the Dark Crystal and not the Bible, but the same dynamic is at play here.
    Again, I would recommend Tim Staples audio set All Generations Will Call Me Blessed (available at fine Catholic bookstores and generous Catholic friends everywhere!)
    Now you will have to forgive me but I have trouble believing this is the ONLY thing keeping you from being Catholic.
    What about: works? communion of the saints? not once-saved-always-saved? holy water? statues? the scandals? the mafia? Mary as the Queen of Heaven? No pre-trib rapture of the faithful? contraception? abortion? male-only priesthood? infallibility? oral tradition? holy orders? a material vs purely spiritual church? transubstantiation? infant baptism? purgatory?
    I think you might have more. Don’t be shy about emailing me.

  62. Thanks to the comments and emails. I’ve really gotten close to the point of accepting the Immaculate Conception after studying some Scripture and reading resources. Thanks again.
    To answer your question, I really don’t have any questions that would prevent me from becoming a Catholic. You must realize, I have been studying these things for over 6 months-a year. I’ve answered a lot of those questions, and the Church is actually quite similar to my Protestant teachings on certain topics such as abortion, male-only priesthood, etc.
    The scandals/mafia and such don’t even bother me. Everyone messes up. I’m not gonna judge a whole religion on what some of their priests do. That’s simply illogical and irrational.
    Holy water/contraception/purgatory and the like will be answered in RCIA, whenever I am able to take it, so I am not TOO concerned. Purgatory has been explained many times to me, so I don’t have too much of a problem with it. The rest I’ve already explained to myself, so I don’t have an issue. Thanks, though. Feel free to email me, however. Thanks again.

  63. This thread and all of its combox correspondence here make me so happy. God bless you Mike, and the rest of you all.

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