From Geneva to Rome?

Friends of ours in Oklahoma, whose friendship we greatly appreciated then, and still treasure today, shocked us recently with the news that they had converted to Roman Catholicism.

They had worshiped at the church I served in Norman, and, like most people who find their way to OPC churches, were card-carrying Protestants and Calvinists. So the news of their new ecclesiastical commitment was surprising, to say the least.

Now, I was sure as soon as I heard of it that their decision was well-thought out. Neal is a thinker, very articulate, and well-read theologically. In fact, he teaches philosophy at the University of Oklahoma. So, I knew it couldn't be the case that they left the Protestant faith on a whim, or for some flimsy reason.

But this meant I was very curious to know what were the reasons that compelled Neal to lead his family into the Roman Catholic Church. So I've been reading his blog, in which he details the theological journey that led him Rome-ward. And, I've asked him many questions by e-mail (to which he usually responds the next day with an e-mail twice as long as mine! I thought pastors were the ones who are supposed to be loquacious!).

This has been a learning experience for me. I have to admit that I really don't know a whole lot about Roman Catholic theology. At seminary, I was immersed in the Reformed tradition (and rightly so, since it is a Reformed seminary!). The emphasis there was not to highlight what separates the Protestants from the Catholics, or the conservatives from the liberals, though obviously due attention was paid to those concerns. Rather, the emphasis was on positive instruction in biblical exegesis, apologetics, and systematic theology. All of this came from a distinctively Protestant and Reformed perspective, of course, but that perspective was given not so much in contradistinction to Catholic theology, but as the faithful and true expression of the teaching of Scripture.

Now, as a result of my interaction with Neal, I have been doing some deeper thinking about some of the tenets of Protestant theology that I have in some ways taken as a matter of course. To be sure, I am still deeply committed to the system of doctrine expressed in the Reformed confessions of faith. In my heart and my mind, when it comes to such things as justification by faith alone, sola scriptura, and other doctrines, I am convinced as ever the Reformers got it right.

At the same time, hearing a former Calvinist and now Catholic give his reasons for doubting these teachings has prompted me to try and understand better the biblical principles undergirding the system of doctrine expressed by the Reformed faith. What is at stake in our understanding of justification? What was the principle that led the Reformers to insist upon the doctrine of sola scriptura? What is the nature of Christ's church?

I do believe our friends are true Christians, and they believe the same about us. At the same time, there are some significant differences between Catholics and Protestants that cannot simply be brushed aside by good will. And, when the issue at hand is nothing less than understanding the Christian faith, which alone can save sinners from sin and death, the pursuit of truth demands honest discussion.