FROM BAPTIST TO CATHOLIC - CONVERSION STORY OF BRO. FERDINAND, one of the readers and regular commenters in this blog

The Gesu - Ateneo de Manila Unvierstiy Chapel

 

Ferdinand said... 

 

Thank you Father Abe for even considering my reversion story...  [Sorry Bro. Ferdinand for posting even the part that you were requesting not to display in public. My apology. Now it is deleted as you have requested.]


Some people say that they are Catholics because their faith was challenged. I on the other hand am a Catholic because I didn’t know my faith!

My adventure started during my collage years and ended 25 years later. It is a story of gradual conversion in faith and finally in spiritual life. I went to my fundamentalist friends’ church. The fellowship was great I felt alive and renewed; my new friends started telling me their conversion stories, how they were led by the Holy Spirit to this church, how they were deceived by the “whore of Babylon,” by the “anti-Christ.” How wrong for the Catholic Church to worship Mary, and that Mary had other children, the unbiblical practice of praying the rosary and saints, purgatory, the mass, and the other Church invented doctrines to make money and put the people in slavery. I read these bible verses and started to feel liberated; it felt like I was the first one who really understood the bible (looking back, I thought I was being too arrogant). When my cousins from the US found out that I was attending a fundamentalist church, they sent me Jack Chick materials that propelled my hatred of the Catholic Church. Then another group of friends asked me to join their Bible Baptist church. So I was being indoctrinated by these two churches. I went with them for 5 years.

My sister started to question the church I’ve been attending and warned me that they are very literalist in their interpretation of the bible. I debated her and my uncle and aunts who had the same religious experience but were lead back to the church, about the unbiblical doctrines of the Church; four against one. I told them that the Catholic Church is actually the one who is being very literal in the interpretation of the bible; I cited the carrying of the cross of some people during lent to follow what Christ said that one should carry their own cross. I saw them unable to answer me about the whore of Babylon. It felt so good to be able to win an argument against my sister a cum laude in PUP and against my uncle and aunts who were both bank managers.

Then my fundamentalist and evangelical friends group of friends started debating my other group of friends who happened to be members of INC. I thought that the INC won the debate so I started hanging out with them also. I was confused because all sides were pressing me about their churches and all sides make sense to me. When I was alone with my evangelical and fundamentalist friends, their argument made sense, then when I was alone with my INC friends their arguments made sense.so I prayed to God to show me the truth. Late 1985 we went to Ateneo to play basketball. I sat down with a man who was reading a book about Mary. I started a conversation with him and challenged him about his catholic belief. The man allowed me to talk for almost 10-15 minutes without contradicting or stopping me. Then finally he gave me an advice, "Son it is good that you are searching God at your young age. Keep looking and ask God to open your heart and not to harden it. Pray for this every time you read your bible.“ Then he introduced himself as a priest. He said goodbye and left me. 

St. Justin Martyr

I read and read the NT over and over again probably about 2 dozen times. What really stuck to me are the following bible verses:

MT 16: 18-20,18:17-18, 28: 18-20,

Jn 8:32, 14:6, 16, 26, 16:13 18:37, 10:16, 20:21,

Lk 10:16

1 Jn 4:1-6

1 Tim 3:15, 4:14. 5:22, 2 Tim 2:2.

These are very powerful bible verses that talks about the ONE AUTORITATIVE CHURCH, THE PROTECTION OF THE HOLY SPIRIT OF THIS CHURCH, AND THE TRUTH.

I asked myself these following questions
1. Who are these “WE” and “US” in 1 John 4:6?

2. Who and where is the Church in MT 16:18 and 18:17-18?

3. Who have the keys now in Mt 16:19?

4. If the church is protected by the Holy Spirit why all these confusion and different denominations?

5. If Jesus is the truth, why did he leave his Church divided and competing with one another?

6. Where are these people now in Luke 10:16?

No matter how hard I tried to pray to the Holy Spirit to open the meaning of these bible verses, I can’t properly explain them. I asked about these bible verses to the INC minister and my INC friends, my pastors, my evangelical Baptist and fundamentalist friends, and I wasn’t really surprised that I got different answers, all say that I should believe them since they have the Holy Spirit (my INC friends never claimed that they have the Holy Spirit). So I told myself that I cannot find the truth if I keep on listening to my friends. I have to empty myself and study on my own with the help of the Holy Spirit. I have to find the truth and I believe that I can find the answer in the bible since I believe (at that time) that it is the final authority. I said that I have to stay either a fundamentalist, an evangelical or convert to INC, the Catholic Church wasn’t an option back then since I was totally convinced that it was the “Whore of Babylon.” I spent almost Php 5000 buying Christian history books.

To my surprise I can’t find my fundamentalist/ evangelical belief in the early history of Christianity! My pastors cannot even answer who these Early Church Fathers were! The INC minister I think just dismissed them as pagan corruption (I can’t remember his exact words) and that I should not worry about it since Christ Church was restored in Iglesia Ni Cristo. I read some quotes from Sts. Justin Martyr, Ignatius, Polycarp, Irenaeus, Clement, from Origen, Tertullian, Melito of Sardis, Clement of Alexandria, and so on, and that is just the first 300 years of Christianity. I did not read anything about bible alone, faith alone, once saved always saved, total apostasy, but all about Catholic beliefs that I already rejected!

Then I bought more books about doctrines, theology, Christology. I spent a fortune buying books, most of them were lost since I can’t remember who borrowed them. I was so eager to share the books that opened my mind that I forgot who had what. I slowly started to digest these Christian history books and how they relate to the bible. My world was shaken; I can’t believe why I was rejecting the Church that the bible and the history books support? Why did I believe these pastors and my friends without examining their words? I answered all those questions above by catechizing myself. I did not get any formal catechism at all.

One time I attended a Catholic charismatic seminar in San Carlos Seminary. It was conducted by an Indian priest named Father De Souza. He gave us pamphlets about apologetics written by Peter Kreeft. Then my friend and co- worker explored the possibility of becoming a priest. After a few months I opted not to go because I know that it is not for me. My friend opted out too. 5 years later he explored it again, but opted out again. 

St. Peter the Apostle carrying the Key of Heaven entrusted to him by the Lord

Back in 1988 or 1989, my friend and I read about bishop Lefevre. We both said that this guy was making a fool of himself and leading his flock to hell. Then in 1999, I read about him a gain and I got interested with his ideas, about the sedevacantist. I thought that this group made good arguments, but then again, the issue of authority reminded me that only the Catholic Church can be trusted since the Vicar of Christ is the only one who have possession of the keys of the Kingdom ( aside from the king himself of course). And no bishop can practice or exercise the power of the keys without in union with the Vicar of Christ.

My faith was shaken again around 2001 when I continued reading the Christian History up to 1200. I felt that the Orthodox Church was short changed by the Catholics in history. But reading the history again this time with the help of the Old Testament, and the theological and historical significance of the Keys of the Kingdom, the significance of the INFALLIBILITY DOCTRINE and how it relates to the divine authority of the Church and the protection of the Holy Spirit, everything just suddenly made sense to me, that the Church is REALLY PROTECTED BY THE HOLY SPIRIT, THAT OUR LORD JESUS KEPT HIS PROMISE TO BE WITH HIS CHURCH UNTIL THE END OF TIME, AND THAT THE FATHER IS MAKING THE CHURCH GROW, A TRIPLE PROTECTION FROM THE HOLY TRINITY.

Now I am exploring the possibility of becoming a deacon... a new adventure, maybe when my kids are on their own and I finally am retired. 

June 10, 2011 9:49 AM