Catholic to Anabaptist

[Judas Maccabeus]

Funny.
i suppose this earlier topic, link below, was a lot about, or all about, Catholic to Anabaptist (and Protestant) beliefs ..
starting long before the 1500’s. Starting before LABELS were assigned.

Video: A Lamp in the Dark
viewtopic.php?t=3138

This topic is aimed at personal testimonies, also witnessed third party accounts.
Going ‘way back makes a lot of sense, too.

Reminders of earliest roots.

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P.4: A Lamp ..

i’m not sure where to put this article.
i’ve never seen anything like it.

Catholic Answers / Anabaptists
Violent and extremely radical body of ecclesiastico-civil reformers
https://www.catholic.com/encyclopedia/anabaptists

^^i just never heard Anabaptists described as violent before.

Whoever wrote this does not seem even to have looked at even a secular history book. I will use as an example my, now falling apart "The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century" by Roland Bainton. He would say that the Anabaptist movement was "The church withdrawn" . As to Munster "The whole ugly episode discredited anabaptism. Despite the fact that they had been for the first ten years under frightful provocation they had been without offense, yet when a handful of the fanatics ran amuck, the entire party was besmirched by with the excesses of the lunatic fringe, and well into the nineteenth century historians of the reformation did little but recount the aberrations of the saints rampant. (Pg. 106.)

so there you have it. He is a secular historian, his book a text in a state university history class in the 70s,

They are making the exception the rule. The Munsterites were outliers, by far. Much of this occurred because the more moderate leadership was killed off by the catholics and the lutherans. The result was that the fringe took over in that area for that brief moment. Sattler, Manz, Blaurock Sattler, all dead. Whatever did they expect. They also find a way to talk about the movement, without even mentioning the Phillips brothers and Menno Simons. However did they do that. This is, to say the least intellectually dishonest, and was cherry picking. There is also no mention of the Anabaptists of Nikolsberg.

This piece is dishonest. Period.

[temporal1]

i’m hoping for more Catholic to Anabaptist examples. Contemporary or from history.
First person is great, like the OP example, STEPHEN RUSSELL. Not required.

[Judas Maccabeus]

Whoever wrote this does not seem even to have looked at even a secular history book.

I will use as an example my, now falling apart "The Reformation of the Sixteenth Century" by Roland Bainton. He would say that the Anabaptist movement was "The church withdrawn" . As to Munster "The whole ugly episode discredited anabaptism. Despite the fact that they had been for the first ten years under frightful provocation they had been without offense, yet when a handful of the fanatics ran amuck, the entire party was besmirched by with the excesses of the lunatic fringe, and well into the nineteenth century historians of the reformation did little but recount the aberrations of the saints rampant. (Pg. 106.)

so there you have it. He is a secular historian, his book a text in a state university history class in the 70s,

They are making the exception the rule. The Munsterites were outliers, by far.

Much of this occurred because the more moderate leadership was killed off by the catholics and the lutherans. The result was that the fringe took over in that area for that brief moment. Sattler, Manz, Blaurock Sattler, all dead. Whatever did they expect. They also find a way to talk about the movement, without even mentioning the Phillips brothers and Menno Simons. However did they do that.

This is, to say the least intellectually dishonest, and was cherry picking. There is also no mention of the Anabaptists of Nikolsberg.

This piece is dishonest. Period.

Thanks. i found the report ghastly and shocking.
The presentation belies the content. i don’t know anything about the source (Catholic Answers / Catholic.com).

Did you notice Menno (Simonis) mentioned in the last paragraph?

Also, at the very bottom:

Catholic Answers is pleased to provide this unabridged entry from the original Catholic Encyclopedia, published between 1907 and 1912. It is a valuable resource for subjects related to theology, philosophy, history, culture, and more. Like most works that are more than a century old, though, it may occasionally use anachronistic language or present outdated scientific information.
Accordingly, in offering this resource Catholic Answers does not thereby endorse every assertion or phrase in it.

I missed that. I was so incensed at what I had read that I got my old college textbook from the shelf.

I think I know where our foul mouth friend got some of his ideas,,,,,,,Looked at some of the other entries, there is a cornucopia of rather false claims there, the people publishing that website were right to disclaim it.

[barnhart]

I know nominal Catholics who joined Mennonite churches over the years. Some stay and others drift on.

[MaxPC]

I know nominal Catholics who joined Mennonite churches over the years. Some stay and others drift on.

I agree. The key word here is nominal. I have also seen the reverse to be true, nominal Mennonites who become Catholic and then move on to Orthodox and finally further afield. Each seems to be looking for something different, regardless of their beginnings.

Then there are those few who cannot seem to fit in with any group. They nitpick a fight and leave, claiming to be the victim. Some of them have emotional problems in which they always play the victim. Some of them simply like to troll trouble.

[temporal1]

I know nominal Catholics who joined Mennonite churches over the years. Some stay and others drift on.

Thanks for staying on topic. i didn’t anticipate it would be difficult.

i think i understand what you intend by “nominal” in your experience, i’m not sure those noted in this thread so far would care to be thought of in that way .. certainly, the earliest Catholic to Anabaptists were fervent believers, willing to die for their faith. Not lukewarm.

For instance, i wouldn’t think of using that word to describe J.M.

[JayP]

I think those of you who have never been Catholic fail the understand the difference in how both American society and individuals use the qualifier Catholic different from most other religions.

Most of the former Catholics I met in Anabaptist circles were not Catholic in the same way I was,
They were, as someone noted, nominal. People who had been perhaps baptized Catholic as children but never really practiced or knew the Catholic faith. In fact, the most strident anti Catholic “ex Catholics “ I knew in Anabaptist circles actually knew less about Catholicism than the former Protestants.

If you poll Americans, what is your religion, a person baptized say Methodist who has not been to church in forty years says none. The same situation with virtually any Italian or Irishman in he same situation says Catholic.

Understand, I am simply pointing out the term former Catholic simply means little. For myself, when I was a member in a Mennonite church I focused much less on what infant versus believer’s baptism means compared to “what is God asking me to do as I live my life today”. Not rejecting how our theology forms the belief structure that forms the foundation of our practical daily living as a Christian, but sometimes the former is over emphasized to the point the latter falls aside.

[mike]

We have good friends who made the journey from Catholic to Evangelical to Anabaptist. They grew up in a strongly Catholic area and family culture, including the large family ethos. I think that the Catholic priest scandal-ridden era (locally and nationally) had a strong impact on their seeking other faith traditions. Among other things.

[Soloist]

I think those of you who have never been Catholic fail the understand the difference in how both American society and individuals use the qualifier Catholic different from most other religions.

Most of the former Catholics I met in Anabaptist circles were not Catholic in the same way I was,
They were, as someone noted, nominal. People who had been perhaps baptized Catholic as children but never really practiced or knew the Catholic faith. In fact, the most strident anti Catholic “ex Catholics “ I knew in Anabaptist circles actually knew less about Catholicism than the former Protestants.

If you poll Americans, what is your religion, a person baptized say Methodist who has not been to church in forty years says none. The same situation with virtually any Italian or Irishman in he same situation says Catholic.

Understand, I am simply pointing out the term former Catholic simply means little. For myself, when I was a member in a Mennonite church I focused much less on what infant versus believer’s baptism means compared to “what is God asking me to do as I live my life today”. Not rejecting how our theology forms the belief structure that forms the foundation of our practical daily living as a Christian, but sometimes the former is over emphasized to the point the latter falls aside.

I would tend to agree. Generally it takes a crisis to change views or you were apathetic to begin with. I don’t think people tend to change views when they feel stable and secure.

[temporal1]

JayP:
.. Understand, I am simply pointing out the term former Catholic simply means little. ..

Thanks. Your input is appreciated.
This topic isn’t about judgment or dislike of Catholics, but intended to cite examples of occurrences.

Do you have an example? Are you an example? Are you Anabaptist to Catholic? If so, would you begin that topic?

Naturally, devout Catholics would question the faith of converts to Anabaptism. “They don’t count. They weren’t Catholic, anyway.”
History would support that from earliest examples, in abundance. But that’s not the topic here.

No doubt many who claim any denom faith are likely “nominal” believers, politicians are prime examples!
That’s not the topic.

This topic isn’t about judging genuine faith.
Just looking for examples of “Catholic to Anabaptist” conversions, taken at face value, not angling to judge authenticity, which Jesus claims is His domain. Romans 14:4