Hi Everyone, I'm Jay, from Queensland, Australia. Not sure how I'm feeling about religion at the moment as I have been burnt in the past, BIG TIME. I did get lost in faith for a while, started heading in the opposite direction, but felt the heart strings being pulled back to God, but its still a hard subject and feeling to work through. I believe in God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and all the prophets, etc, but have lost faith in the modern day, Pentecostal, charismatic style churches. I really feel a pull towards the traditional churches of old. Dad was a Catholic, Mum was a Church of England (before the change to Anglican here in Australia) and myself and younger brother were Christened Anglican when I was 10 years old. I never really went to church much after that over the years. Got caught up in a Pentecostal type church in my late teens (because of a girl...lol) but that lasted only a few months. 15 years later, I got in a really bad way and ended up giving my heart to God in yet another Pentecostal, modern church. this lasted a few years but I was hurt in a big way and left. I attended a Gospel church for a few months and then stopped going all together. I got lost again, confused and bitter and ended up not liking the whole religion/church thing altogether. However, I've been pulled back again by someone or something. Realising I never actually lost my faith in God, decided tradition needed to be followed, a solid, long standing foundation was needed. The question is Catholic or Anglican? I'm starting with Anglican as I was Christened Anglican, so we will see how I go with traditional faith. All this has led me here. I'm would enjoy communicating with other like-minded people and please feel free to drop me a message. Thanks for having me.
Welcome Jay. We are in about the same age range. Your story is quite typical of many people in our peer group. Here in the States, I have an encounter at least once with a month with someone who has given up on trendy churches but not on God and wonder's what else there might be. You have the advantage of having got a glimpse of traditional churches at some point. Blessings to you on your exploration.
Welcome. As for Anglican or Catholic, I have some personal insight on that question. I would consider whether you find the need to have to follow hundreds of doctrines that make little Biblical sense. If you can answer yes to that, then be a Catholic. If not, be an Anglican.
From my seat, it sounds a lot like Article VI of the AoR, which places the highest value (rightfully) on Holy Scripture and patristics and tradition (properly) in a secondary, derived place of value. In short, it sounds Anglican. And well put imho.
That is not a true understanding of Sola Scriptura, which always understood that our understanding of the Scriptures would be illuminated by the Fathers and the Great Councils. A contemporary distortion which might better be called Solo Scriptura envisages me and my Bible is all that is needed. The Anglican position - Scripture, Tradition and Reason, with the primary concern that nothing may be required to be believed that can not be supported in Scripture. In that setting the Deutero canonical texts can not be used for determining what must be believed. I don't know much about Anglicanism on the Fraser Coast, I do however know Fr Keith from Bundaberg and I am sure he could give you some advice. http://www.bundaberganglican.org/contact-us
Or 'the sacred tradition' as Catholics mean it the contents of which cannot be demonstrated and have changed over the millenia. Scripture is all we've definitively got and can rely on, for God's Revelation.