Protestantism—The Longest Running Heresy by Jeff Callaway

 

Protestantism—The Longest Running Heresy

by Jeff Callaway

Texas Outlaw Poet

Introduction:

I wasn’t born Catholic. I was raised Baptist in a small Texas church, the kind where salvation was a moment you marked on the calendar and then pretended you had it all together. I was saved at age ten, and by twelve I had over seventy-five Bible verses memorized. But even as a kid, I began to see the cracks. The same people who thundered about grace knew nothing of forgiveness. They were merciless judges, blind to their own sins, wagging fingers at everyone else. Their “worship” was hollow—no sacrifice, no mystery, just Bible study and fear-mongering sermons about hellfire. Sunday morning they were Mr. and Mrs. Perfect, but by Monday morning they were chasing the same world as everybody else. And I knew—deep down—I wasn’t seeing the true Church of Christ.

By the time I hit high school, I was searching. I chased every path I could find. I dug into Greek and Roman mythology, Buddhist chants, New Age mysticism, and eventually I found myself staring into the black mirror of the Satanic Bible at fifteen years old. I cut my flesh, signed my pact in blood, and I thought I had found power. I joined a coven. I got things I asked for, sure—but every gift carried a hook. I lived decades in rebellion, and it hollowed me out. After my heart attack at forty-four, I knew the devil had nothing left to offer me but an early grave. And then came something darker: I found myself chained by a demonic presence that would not leave me alone. Nightmares, oppression, a suffocating despair. I tried every trick I knew, every false religion, but the noose only tightened. Finally, I wanted to end it all.

And that’s when she came. The Blessed Virgin Mary. She appeared to me, not in sentiment or dream, but in truth. She showed me every vile thing I had done, every rebellion, every sin—and then she showed me Jesus Christ. Not as an idea, not as a verse in a book, but face-to-face. He looked at me, a man who had blasphemed His name for decades, and said, “All is forgiven. I love you. Never say again that you want to give up.” That was the moment I knew: grace is real, mercy is real, and the Catholic Church is not a manmade invention, but the one ark of salvation Christ Himself built.

The very next day Mary guided me to a priest. I walked into the confessional broken and bound, told him what had happened, and he prayed over me. And just like that—the demon was gone. I was free. For the first time in my life, I tasted the truth of Christ’s promise: “If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). From that day forward, I knew with absolute certainty that the Roman Catholic Church is the one true Church of Jesus Christ—the only Church armed with the authority to wield the sword of Christ against the gates of hell.

And that’s why I write this. Because history proves it, Scripture affirms it, and my own life bears witness: there was one Church, undivided, for fifteen centuries after the resurrection of Christ. It was the Catholic Church, built on Peter, the rock (Matthew 16:18). Christ promised the Spirit would guide her into all truth (John 16:13), and He promised the gates of hell would not prevail. Heresies came—Arianism, Gnosticism, Nestorianism—and they were crushed at the councils. Corruption came, as it always does when men are involved, but the foundation never cracked. The Church endured because Christ was her cornerstone.

Then came the sixteenth century and Martin Luther—the excommunicated friar turned heresiarch. He began with indulgences, but he ended by tearing the very heart out of Christendom. His doctrine of sola scriptura contradicted Scripture itself: “no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation” (2 Peter 1:20). His doctrine of sola fide flatly denied the Word of God: “You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone” (James 2:24). He spat venom at the papacy, calling it Antichrist, and in his pride he fractured the unity Christ prayed for when He said: “that they may all be one” (John 17:21).

The result? Not reformation, but chaos. Wars of religion. Brother against brother. The blood of millions soaking Europe. And today—thirty thousand denominations, each one claiming the Spirit, each one contradicting the other, each one proof that when you cut yourself off from the vine, you wither (John 15:5). Scripture says it plain: “God is not a God of confusion but of peace” (1 Corinthians 14:33). Division is not a fruit of the Spirit. Division is the stench of heresy (Galatians 5:20).

That’s why I call Protestantism what it is: the longest-running heresy in history. Born of disobedience, carried on by distortion, and kept alive through rebellion. And that’s why I write with fire in my veins—because I know what it means to be deceived, to taste lies dressed as truth. And I know what it means to be set free by the only true Church Christ founded: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic (Ephesians 4:4–5).

This article will pull no punches. I will show you the errors of Luther and his children. I will prove that the Catholic Church alone carries the fullness of Christ’s authority. And I will confront, head-on, the false accusations flung against the Bride of Christ. Because in the end, just as in the days of Noah, there is only one ark of salvation—not many (1 Peter 3:20–21). Step outside it, and you step into the flood.

Part I. The Rise of the Heresy

Martin Luther: The Excommunicated Friar

Martin Luther wasn’t the first monk to struggle with questions of faith, corruption, and reform inside the Church. Plenty had before him—Augustine fought the Donatists, Jerome battled the Arians, and councils rose up again and again to defend the truth. But the difference is this: Luther did not return to the fold. He turned his rebellion into a permanent break with Christ’s Bride. In 1517, when he nailed his Ninety-Five Theses to the church door in Wittenberg, it began as a critique of indulgences, but pride and stubbornness quickly carried him further. By 1520, Pope Leo X issued Exsurge Domine, condemning his teachings. When Luther refused to repent, he was excommunicated in 1521. At the Diet of Worms that same year, he declared, “Here I stand, I can do no other.” But the truth is, he was not standing on the rock of Peter (Matthew 16:18), but on shifting sands, despite Scripture’s warning: “whoever rebels against authority is rebelling against what God has instituted” (Romans 13:2).

From there, Luther began spreading doctrines that flatly contradicted the Apostles. His sola scriptura—“Scripture alone”—sounds noble, but it ripped away the teaching authority Christ gave His Church. Yet the Bible itself teaches the opposite: “So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word of mouth or by letter from us” (2 Thessalonians 2:15). Tradition and Scripture go hand in hand, not one without the other.

Then came his second war cry, sola fide—“faith alone.” But the Word of God never says salvation is by faith alone. In fact, it says the exact opposite: “You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone” (James 2:24). Luther knew this so well that when he translated Romans 3:28 into German, he added the word “alone” where it never existed in the Greek. Scripture warns, “You shall not add to the word which I command you, nor take from it” (Deuteronomy 4:2). Luther ignored that.

And then came his venom toward the papacy itself. He called the pope the “Antichrist,” forgetting the command to “obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls” (Hebrews 13:17). Christ Himself established the papacy when He gave Peter the keys of the kingdom (Matthew 16:19). Luther wasn’t reforming—it was revolt, pure and simple. A rebellion dressed in Bible language, but cut off from the Church that gave us the very Bible he was quoting.

Consequences of the Reformation

The fallout came fast. Europe, once united under one faith, was split down the middle. Peasants rose up in bloody revolt in 1524–25. The Schmalkaldic War followed in 1546–47. A century later, the Thirty Years’ War ripped the continent apart, leaving millions dead. Scripture had already warned: “Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and no city or house divided against itself will stand” (Matthew 12:25). Luther’s rebellion was the spark, and Europe burned.

But worse than the bloodshed was the fragmentation. Luther didn’t just leave Rome—he splintered even from his own followers. Out of his revolt came Calvinism, Zwinglianism, Anabaptism, and from those, a thousand more. Today, over 30,000 denominations claim the Bible as their sole authority, yet contradict one another at every turn. Christ prayed, “that they may all be one… so that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:21). Protestantism, with its endless divisions, testifies not to Christ’s unity but to man’s rebellion.

And when man replaces God’s authority with his own judgment, the floodgates of secularism burst open. Once Tradition was rejected, once the Pope was cast aside, once every man became his own “pope,” truth itself became relative. Out of the Reformation eventually came rationalism, Enlightenment skepticism, and the hollowing-out of faith across the West. The tree was severed from its root, and it began to wither.

So let us be clear: the so-called “Reformation” was no return to biblical Christianity. It was the beginning of disunity, secularism, and spiritual confusion. The Bible saw it coming: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions” (2 Timothy 4:3). That time began in the sixteenth century, and the world still bears its scars.

Part II. Top 15 Protestant Errors (Modern-Day Heresies)

The Top 10 Ways Protestantism is a Heresy

1. Rejection of Apostolic Succession

From the beginning, Christ entrusted His authority to the Apostles, who in turn laid hands on their successors, forming an unbroken chain of bishops safeguarding the faith (Acts 1:20–26; 2 Timothy 2:2). Protestantism broke this chain, denying the necessity of apostolic succession for valid ministry. Without that lineage, their pastors lack the sacramental authority Christ gave to His Church. By rejecting this, Luther and others cut themselves off from the very foundation of Christian continuity, creating churches rooted in human appointment rather than divine ordination.

2. Sola Scriptura and Interpretive Chaos

Protestants claim Scripture alone is the rule of faith, yet the Bible itself never teaches “Scripture alone.” Instead, Paul commands believers to “stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us, either by word of mouth or by letter” (2 Thessalonians 2:15). By elevating private interpretation over Sacred Tradition, Luther unleashed a torrent of conflicting doctrines—resulting in tens of thousands of denominations, each claiming to hold the “true” biblical teaching. This is precisely what Peter warned against when he said that “no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation” (2 Peter 1:20).

3. Denial of Papal Authority and the Petrine Office

Jesus entrusted Peter with the keys of the Kingdom, declaring: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18–19). The papacy is not a man-made invention, but a divine office established by Christ Himself for unity and governance. Luther’s rejection of the papacy, calling it the “Antichrist,” was therefore a rejection of Christ’s own design for His Church. In rejecting Peter’s successor, Protestants denied the visible shepherd entrusted to feed Christ’s sheep (John 21:15–17).

4. Rejection of the Eucharist and the Real Presence

Catholics have always believed Christ’s words at the Last Supper: “This is My Body… This is My Blood” (Matthew 26:26–28). The Church Fathers unanimously testified to the Real Presence, yet Luther and subsequent Reformers reduced the Eucharist to a mere symbol or, at best, a diminished form of presence. By denying transubstantiation, Protestants stripped the sacrament of its divine reality, leaving followers with bread and wine instead of the Body and Blood of Christ—contrary to John 6:53, where Jesus insists: “Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.”

5. Sola Fide and the Denial of Works in Salvation

Luther’s doctrine of “faith alone” (sola fide) directly contradicts Scripture. He even altered Romans 3:28 by inserting the word “alone,” which does not appear in the text. Scripture, however, is clear: “You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone” (James 2:24). While salvation begins with grace, it must be lived out through obedience, sacraments, and good works. By rejecting this balance, Protestants promote a distorted gospel, one that Paul condemned when he wrote: “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means!” (Romans 6:1–2).

6. Denial of Purgatory and Prayers for the Dead

The Catholic doctrine of purgatory rests on both Scripture and tradition. In 2 Maccabees 12:44–46, prayer and sacrifice for the dead are declared “holy and pious.” Jesus Himself speaks of sins forgiven “in the age to come” (Matthew 12:32), and Paul implies post-death purification when he says some “will be saved, but only as through fire” (1 Corinthians 3:15). Luther rejected purgatory outright and even removed 2 Maccabees from the canon to eliminate its support. By doing so, he severed believers from a profound expression of Christian charity—praying for the faithful departed.

7. Rejection of the Intercession of Saints and the Role of Mary

Catholics honor the saints as members of the Body of Christ who intercede for us (Revelation 5:8). Mary, in particular, is hailed as “blessed among women” (Luke 1:42) and entrusted to the whole Church by Christ Himself at the Cross: “Behold your mother” (John 19:27). Luther began by honoring Mary but eventually participated in stripping devotion to her and the saints. Protestants argue that intercession detracts from Christ’s mediation, yet Scripture shows otherwise—Paul urges believers to intercede for one another (1 Timothy 2:1), proving intercession is not competition but participation in Christ’s one mediation.

8. Invalid Sacraments and Loss of Priesthood

Christ instituted seven sacraments as visible signs of His grace. Yet most Protestants recognize only two—baptism and the Lord’s Supper—and even these are celebrated without valid holy orders. Because they reject apostolic succession, their ministers cannot confect the Eucharist, absolve sins, or anoint the sick with sacramental grace (John 20:21–23; James 5:14). This creates what Catholics call invalid sacraments, leaving Protestant communities without the sacramental life Christ gave His Church. In this way, Luther’s rejection of priesthood unraveled the sacramental economy itself.

9. Division and Sectarianism Against Christ’s Prayer for Unity

Jesus prayed, “That they may all be one… so that the world may believe that you have sent me” (John 17:21). The Catholic Church, despite internal struggles, has remained one in doctrine, sacraments, and governance for two millennia. Protestantism, however, fragmented the Body of Christ into endless sects, each claiming biblical authority. This schism undermines Christianity’s witness, replacing unity with individualism. The chaos of denominationalism—now numbering over 30,000 sects—stands as direct contradiction to Christ’s will for His Church to be visibly united.

10. Rejection of Sacred Tradition as Authoritative

Protestants dismiss oral tradition, yet Paul explicitly commands: “Hold fast to the traditions you received from us, whether by word or by letter” (2 Thessalonians 2:15). The Catholic Church has always preserved both Scripture and Tradition as the twin pillars of divine revelation. Luther’s rejection of Tradition severed Protestantism from the wisdom of the Church Fathers, the ecumenical councils, and the lived faith of the saints. The irony is that even the biblical canon itself comes from Tradition—without the Catholic Church’s authority, Protestants would not even know which books belong to Scripture.

Part III. The Catholic Answer: The True Church of Christ

1. Founded Directly by Christ

Unlike every denomination that began with a man—Luther, Calvin, Wesley—the Catholic Church was established directly by Jesus Christ Himself. When He declared to Peter, “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18), He wasn’t speaking metaphorically. He was giving visible authority to one man, the head of the apostles, and through him to the entire Church. The Catholic Church alone claims an unbroken lineage back to this founding moment, making it not a human invention, but Christ’s own institution.

2. Apostolic Succession and Continuity

The Catholic Church has preserved the unbroken chain of bishops stretching back to the apostles themselves. As Paul reminded Timothy, the faith is to be passed on through “the laying on of hands” (2 Timothy 1:6; Titus 1:5). No Protestant community can trace its leadership directly back to the apostles, while the Catholic Church can historically document this succession from Peter to Pope Francis. This guarantees that what Christ handed to the apostles has been faithfully preserved, not reinvented by men centuries later.

3. The Infallible Magisterium Guided by the Spirit

Christ did not leave His Church vulnerable to error. He promised the apostles: “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13). The Catholic Church uniquely teaches that its Magisterium (teaching office) is preserved from error in matters of faith and morals when teaching definitively. This is not arrogance, but trust in Christ’s promise that the Church would not lead His flock astray. Other Christian bodies fracture endlessly because they lack this safeguard.

4. The Bible Came From the Catholic Church

The very Bible Protestants quote was compiled, preserved, and canonized by the Catholic Church. Councils such as Hippo (393 AD) and Carthage (397 AD) discerned which books were inspired. Without the Church’s authority, there would be no universally recognized New Testament canon. As Paul says, the Church is “the pillar and bulwark of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:15), not Scripture alone. The irony is that those who reject the Catholic Church rely on the book it preserved to argue against her.

5. Visible and Institutional Unity

Jesus prayed “that they may all be one” (John 17:21). The Catholic Church, with its global unity under the papacy, visibly fulfills this prayer. Despite cultural and linguistic diversity, Catholics profess the same creed, celebrate the same sacraments, and obey the same authority. Protestantism, in contrast, has splintered into over 30,000 denominations, each claiming to follow the Bible. Unity is not optional in Christianity—it is a mark of the true Church.

6. The Fullness of Grace in the Seven Sacraments

The Catholic Church alone preserves all seven sacraments instituted by Christ: Baptism, Eucharist, Confirmation, Confession, Marriage, Holy Orders, and Anointing of the Sick. Each is explicitly rooted in Scripture (John 20:23, James 5:14, John 6:53, etc.) and channels God’s grace to the faithful. Most Protestant groups reduced the sacraments to only two or symbolic rituals, cutting themselves off from the fullness of divine life Christ intended for His Church.

7. Historical Presence Since Pentecost

The Catholic Church traces its existence directly back to Acts 2, when the Spirit descended on the apostles at Pentecost. Early Church Fathers such as Ignatius of Antioch (c. 107 AD) explicitly used the term “Catholic Church” to describe the one true faith. This continuity is unmatched. No Protestant denomination can claim a presence before the 16th century. The Catholic Church is not a reform movement or a splinter group—it is the Church that has always been.

8. Universality: The Catholic (Universal) Mission

The very word “Catholic” means “universal.” Christ commanded His Church: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19). Today, the Catholic Church is the only Christian body that truly exists in every corner of the world, transcending race, culture, and nationality. Protestant groups tend to be regional or sectarian, while the Catholic Church embodies the universality Christ intended.

9. Produces Saints and Miracles

From the incorruptible bodies of saints to Eucharistic miracles verified by science, the Catholic Church demonstrates ongoing divine favor. Christ said, “You will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16). The canonized saints provide models of holiness across centuries—Francis of Assisi, Teresa of Ávila, Maximilian Kolbe, Mother Teresa. Protestantism, rejecting the communion of saints, has no parallel treasury of holy witnesses confirmed by miracles.

10. The Gates of Hell Have Not Prevailed

Despite persecutions, scandals, heresies, and schisms, the Catholic Church still stands as the largest body of Christians on earth. Empires have risen and fallen, but Christ’s promise has endured: “The gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). This indefectibility—the guarantee that the Church will never be destroyed—marks it as the true, living Body of Christ on earth.

Part IV. Slamming the False Accusations Against Catholicism

One of the oldest lies slung at Catholics is that we “worship Mary.” No, brother — we worship God alone, as Christ commanded: “You shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve” (Matthew 4:10). But honor is not worship. Scripture shows this plain: when Elizabeth greets her cousin Mary, she cries, “And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?” (Luke 1:43). That’s not idolatry — that’s honor, grounded in the truth of who her Son is. The Fourth Commandment demands honor for father and mother (Exodus 20:12), and Jesus Himself honored Mary and Joseph (Luke 2:51). If Christ obeyed His own command, who are we to dishonor His mother? Even the Hail Mary comes straight from Scripture: “Hail, full of grace” (Luke 1:28) and “Blessed are you among women” (Luke 1:42). Catholics don’t worship Mary — we echo the words of Gabriel and Elizabeth, we follow the footsteps of Christ Himself.

And then they say, “You bow to statues.” Another distortion. Did God ban sacred images? No. He commanded Moses: “Make two cherubim of gold” for the Ark (Exodus 25:18–20). Solomon carved angels, palm trees, and flowers into the Temple walls (1 Kings 6:29). Were Israelites idolaters for obeying God? Of course not. The difference is clear: idolatry is “worshiping and serving the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25). A crucifix is no more idolatry than a wedding ring is adultery. It’s a sign, a reminder, a doorway that lifts our eyes beyond wood and stone to the living God.

And then comes the thunder: “You worship the Pope.” False. The Pope is not God; he is the shepherd chosen by Christ through Peter. Jesus said: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). He gave Peter the keys (Matthew 16:19). He commanded him three times, “Feed my sheep” (John 21:15–17). The papacy is Christ’s design, not man’s invention. Catholics honor the Pope the way Israel honored Moses — a man chosen, flawed, but filled with divine commission. The Pope is not an idol but the servant of God’s servants.

Then the mudslinging shifts: “But the Church is corrupt.” As if sin disproves divinity. Judas walked with Christ and betrayed Him, yet the betrayal did not cancel the mission. If failure of men undoes the Church, then no Christian denomination would stand, because “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Yet Christ promised His Church would endure: “The gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). Protestant megachurches collapse under scandals, secular governments fail their children, abuse festers in schools and foster systems — yet no one declares democracy or education “false.” Why the double standard with Catholicism?

Then the conspiracy theorists enter with their shadow-whispers: “The Catholic Church is just a man-made system.” Really? Two thousand years, across empires, persecutions, schisms, revolutions — and still alive, still spreading, still one body? That’s no conspiracy, that’s Christ keeping His word: “I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). And God confirms it with signs. Protestantism offers sermons; Catholicism offers miracles: Eucharistic hosts that bleed, incorruptible saints, apparitions that call sinners home, exorcisms that make devils howl at the holy name of Jesus spoken by Catholic priests. If this was human trickery, it would have collapsed centuries ago.

And last, the dagger-claims: purgatory, the communion of saints, “Catholics added books to the Bible.” Lies. Scripture itself points to purification after death: “Nothing unclean shall enter heaven” (Revelation 21:27). 2 Maccabees 12:45 records prayers for the dead — and Paul himself prays for the departed Onesiphorus: “May the Lord grant him mercy on that day” (2 Timothy 1:18). Hebrews 12:1 declares “we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses.” That’s the saints, alive in Christ, interceding for us. And as for the Bible, it was the Catholic Church that safeguarded the canon at Hippo (393) and Carthage (397). No monks, no councils, no Catholic scribes — no Bible. Protestants didn’t give the world Scripture; they inherited it from the very Church they attack.

The verdict is clear: the accusations crumble. Catholics don’t worship idols, Mary, or the Pope. We don’t fabricate doctrines out of thin air. We stand on Scripture, Tradition, and the authority Christ gave His Church. We stand on 2,000 years of unbroken faith. The Catholic Church is not a conspiracy — it is the Bride of Christ, the pillar and foundation of truth (1 Timothy 3:15), alive and unshaken while heresies rise and fall.

Part V. How Catholicism Has Changed Me

If you want proof of Catholic truth, don’t just look to councils or catechisms—look at me. I am living evidence that grace works. I was raised in a Protestant world where “faith alone” was shouted from pulpits, but it never gave me the power to change. It gave me empty words, promises with no anchor, prayers with no form, forgiveness with no substance. They told me all I had to do was “believe,” but what I saw was a system that excused sin, a religion that never demanded confession, never demanded accountability, never demanded the narrow road Christ spoke of (Matthew 7:14).

Since becoming Catholic, everything is different. I am an avid churchgoer now—not out of obligation, but because the Mass is Heaven touching earth. Like Blessed Carlo Acutis, I see the Eucharist as my “highway to Heaven.” In that consecrated Host, I have encountered Christ Himself, the Living Bread come down from Heaven (John 6:51). When I kneel before Him in adoration, I know I am not play-acting religion—I am standing on holy ground.

And the people I worship with? They are the realest, truest Christians I have ever known. I used to think churchgoers were all masks and hypocrisy, because that was my Protestant upbringing—judgmental faces, fearmongering sermons, and a Christianity that felt more like a courtroom than a family. But here in the Catholic Church, I have met brothers and sisters who actually live the Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12). They are merciful, humble, poor in spirit, hungry for righteousness. For the first time in my life, I believe that Christianity is not only true—it is alive.

Even deeper than that, Christ is reshaping me every single day. I feel Him working from the inside out, carving away the old man so the new creature can rise (2 Corinthians 5:17). I feel a repugnance toward sin I never knew before—sin isn’t just “bad choices” anymore, it’s a betrayal of the God who loves me. And the sacrament of Confession has become my lifeline. It is not vague, it is not pretend. I have a structure now, a real system for naming my sins, confessing them, and hearing the words of absolution spoken by Christ through His priest: “I absolve you.” That moment is thunder from Heaven breaking chains on earth (John 20:23).

In Protestantism, I never once heard someone openly admit their sins. Not once. It was always a culture of “we’re already saved,” as if pride itself had baptized their consciences. It reminded me of what Donald Trump once said—he never felt the need to ask God for forgiveness. That kind of pride isn’t holiness—it’s one of Satan’s oldest calling cards (Isaiah 14:13-14). I truly believe Satan whispered in Martin Luther’s ear, “You don’t need the Church, you don’t need confession, you don’t need authority—be your own pope.” And millions have followed him into that deception.

But not me. Not anymore. Because here in the Catholic Church, Christ is breaking me and remaking me. Every Mass, every Confession, every prayer of the Rosary, every act of penance—it is chiseling away the stone around my heart. I am not who I was. I am becoming what He calls me to be. A son of the Church. A soldier of Christ. A new creature in the hands of the Potter who will not stop until the work is finished (Philippians 1:6).

Conclusion

Protestantism is a man-made rebellion, born of pride, fear, and error. It splintered what Christ intended to be one, scattering souls into endless division, doctrinal chaos, and hollow worship. Its leaders may speak Scripture, but their interpretations are shackled to human arrogance rather than guided by the Spirit. The proof is everywhere: thirty thousand denominations, all claiming truth, yet all contradicting one another at every turn.

Catholicism, by contrast, is the ark of salvation. It is the Church Christ Himself founded, alive and active in the world, sustaining believers through the sacraments, tradition, and the indwelling Spirit. It unites, sanctifies, and strengthens. It transforms hearts, tames sin, and equips the faithful with tools for true repentance and growth in holiness. Its saints, its miracles, its fidelity to Christ through every storm of history testify to its divine origin.

We are not strangers here. We are not lost. We are fellow citizens in God’s household, bound together across time and space, inheriting the fullness of the faith passed down from the apostles (Ephesians 2:19). Protestantism may scatter and confuse, but Catholicism gathers, heals, and endures—forever.

Protestantism built towers of pride on sinking sand, shouting “truth” while drowning in division. Catholicism stands unshaken—the Rock, the ark, the fire that won’t go out. Bow to nothing but Christ, follow His Church, and you’ll never wander lost in the dark again.

~ Jeff Callaway

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