alang1216
Pragmatist
- Jun 21, 2014
- 25,754
- 6,311
I see a fundamental difference between Catholicism and Protestantism. In Protestantism, every man can read and interpret scripture so charismatic men tend to form their own cults. Some survive and become churches and some die off. Catholicism is the opposite, it has a central authority, the Pope, so, if you want to be Catholic, you follow his teachings. That, IMHO, is why there is one Catholic church and many Protestant churches.Looking forward...what is the next best "thing". It's like a virus. Martin Luther was once the "next best thing." Then Joseph Smith became the "next best thing".
Then there is the other "virus"...The past. Catholic and Orthodox always return to, "How did Jesus and the original Apostles" ... parents ... do this?
You also mentioned how little people of faith read and understand their own books. Rather than work through all the past material, it is easier to just go on to the "next best thing". Even when that next best thing is a troubled priest or a con man. This is why the Catholic and Orthodox churches remain strong. We do the reverse, go back to Jesus and the early Church--and once we have a better understanding of that, we tend to go back even further--The Old Testament.
This explains the lack of unification: People choose opposite directions.