The main differences between Catholics and Protestants

The differences between Catholics and Protestants are fundamental to the history of the Christian religion and the birth of Europe as we know it. Let’s discover what the main ones are.

We know that the Christian religion has developed over the centuries into different religious professions, united by the fact of considering Jesus Christ as its focal point and His Word as the basis of belief. Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant Christians share many of the principles of the Nicene Creed, or Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, defined at the First Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. These precepts are particularly based on the Unity of God, the nature of Jesus, and the Trinity. In particular, both Catholics and Protestants believe in one God in three equal and distinct Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

That said, the differences between Catholics and Protestants are many and significant, ranging from the interpretation of Scriptures to the authority of the Pope and the clergy in general, but also involving many essential Sacraments and dogmas. Over the centuries, these differences have been the cause of clashes and bloody wars, but there have also been attempts at reconciliation between the two groups. Since its inception in the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation has emerged as an explicit and often violent critique of the Catholic Church, in its political organization and in many of its main theological aspects. The separation between Protestants and Catholics has influenced the history of modern Europe for centuries, and the defining of national identities not only from a religious perspective but also political, ethical, social, and civil. When on October 31, 1517, the Augustinian friar Martin Luther affixed his 95 theses to the door of the All Saints’ Church at Wittenberg Castle, he did so with the intention of condemning the shameless sale of indulgences promoted by Pope Leo X. In the eyes of the friar, the promise of the remission of sins in exchange for a cash donation was unacceptable. But from the beginning, it was clear that Luther’s dispute went beyond the sale of indulgences, and in fact, when he was summoned by the Diet of Worms to retract his accusations, he proclaimed his intention to reform Christianity in all its aspects. Thus began the Protestant Reformation, the schism that would split the church and Europe in two and lead to the development of two distinct Christian religions.

Let’s look at the main differences between Catholics and Protestants.

The Sacred Scriptures

Both Catholic and Protestant Christians consider the Word of Jesus as the basis of their doctrine. But Protestants profess the sufficiency and authority of Scripture, the only reliable source of God’s revelation to humanity, the only criterion of reference for the righteous behavior that a good Christian must adopt, the only key to salvation. It is no coincidence that the formula Sola Scriptura is the first of the five sola, the five summary formulas of the theological thought of the Protestant Christian religion. Here they are all:

• Sola Scriptura;
• Sola Fide;
• Sola gratia;
• Solus Christus;
• Soli Deo Gloria.

Unlike Protestants, Catholics recognize the indispensable importance of the Bible, but also that of Tradition, or Sacred Tradition, that is, all those doctrines and dogmas established within the Catholic Church throughout its history, both orally and in written form, recognized as depositum fidei, “deposit of faith,” which Jesus communicated to His Apostles and which the clergy transmitted to the faithful over the centuries. We are talking about Catholic-Roman doctrines elevated to the rank of true dogmas, but also linked to the worship of the Virgin Mary and the Saints.

Authority of the Pope

Another fundamental difference between Protestantism and Catholicism concerns the authority of the Pope, in particular, and of the clergy in general. Catholics consider the Supreme Pontiff the head of the Church, the successor of Saint Peter, to whom Jesus entrusted the guidance of His followers. His authority is based on Sacred Scripture and the sacred Tradition of the Roman Catholic Church.

Protestants, on the other hand, recognize only Christ as the head of the Church of all times. No human being, no matter how enlightened by grace, possesses the infallibility to arrogate this power to themselves. Protestantism does not believe in apostolic succession, upon which Catholics base the authority and infallibility of the Pope; it does not recognize in the Apostles or Peter a greater enlightenment than that which the Holy Spirit sent by God gives to any man. All men are equal, all have the faculty to understand the Sacred Scriptures. Although Protestant pastors occupy a role in the Church, they do not have exclusivity over the Sacraments and do not enjoy privileges over other men.

Purgatory

Protestants do not recognize the existence of Purgatory, as a place designated to expiate the sins of the deceased who did not have time to repent. The Scriptures do not speak of it sufficiently to clarify its existence. For them, there are only Hell and Heaven, and Christ’s death on the cross was sufficient payment to atone for all the sins of men, without the need for momentary punishments.

While Catholic Christians see the path to Salvation in faith, in “meritorious works,” and in the Sacraments, Protestants see in Christ on the cross the only true expiation possible for the sins of men.

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The Sacraments

Protestants recognize only two Sacraments, those instituted by Jesus in the Sacred Scriptures: Baptism and the Eucharist. All others are rituals established by churchmen. However, in the Eucharist, they reject the concept of transubstantiation: Christ is not truly present in the bread and wine, as Catholics believe, but His presence is symbolic, the rite merely a way to remember the Last Supper and His sacrifice.

For Protestantism, Baptism has no intrinsic efficacy but serves only to manifest the faith of the one being baptized, who should access the sacrament only after preparing with catechetical formation. Protestants practice Baptism by immersion, as taught by John the Baptist.

Regarding Confession and Penance, the former has no particular value, as every man must have his own direct dialogue with God, to whom to acknowledge his own sins and limitations. Therefore, no member of the clergy has the right to welcome and listen to the sins of others. The Protestant Christian confesses his own sins in a private prayer to God. Some Protestant churches, however, include in the scope of celebrations a moment of confession of sins prayer. In the Anglican Church, for example, confession and absolution are pronounced collectively during the celebration of the Eucharist.

The Immaculate Conception and the Assumption of Mary

Protestants recognize only devotion to the Triune God. Any form of devotion, whether to the Virgin Mary or to the Saints, is a form of idolatry. They admit that Mary conceived Jesus while remaining a Virgin but reject the Immaculate Conception, that is, her birth without original sin. Being born like everyone else from a man and a woman, she must have been affected by it, and for the same reason, they do not recognize her Assumption into Heaven, as there is no mention of it in the Sacred Scriptures. Mary was a woman of exceptional faith, but she has no power of intercession before God on behalf of men.

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The Saints

Although Catholic Christians also pay close attention to keeping the concept of devotion separate from that of idolatry, as they differentiate veneration, devotion, and adoration, they admit the cult of the Saints (dulía) and that of the Virgin Mary (hyperdulía), different from that addressed only to God (latría).

Protestants do not recognize religious authorities as such, but only that of God, and therefore it is only permissible to Him to raise prayers, supplications, and invocations.