Just for CatholicsJust for Catholics

The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever. Isaiah 40:8.

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About

"Just for Catholics" is an evangelical and evangelistic ministry - evangelical (or Protestant) because we uphold the Holy Scripture as our only infallible rule of faith, and because we believe in salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone; it's evangelistic because we want to share the evangel (the gospel, good news) with others, especially with Catholics whom we know and love dearly. This work is not authored by Roman Catholics, but it is intended especially for Catholics. While acknowledging with gratitude the help from my pastor and home church, as well as scores of individual Christians worldwide, I take full responsibility for the contents of this website.

Biography

Dr Joseph MizziI was born in Malta, 1966. My country is a densely populated island in the center of the Mediterranean. Malta is mentioned in the book of Acts (chapter 28) - the vessel taking the apostle Paul to Rome was shipwrecked on our shores.

I am a pediatrician by profession and work as a community paediatrician. I'm married to Joanne, and we have three children, John, Elizabeth and Mari. I am a member of a local Reformed Baptist church (link). If you ever visit Malta, whether for historical and cultural interest or just to enjoy the sun and the sea, you're welcome to visit our fellowship.

I was brought up in a devout Catholic family. I thank God for my parents and my Catholic teachers who taught me the fear of the Lord as best as they knew how.

Early in my teenage years, I was challenged with the Gospel message by my brother Paul, who had recently converted to the Evangelical faith. I turned to the Bible for answers. I wanted to know the true Gospel of Jesus Christ. How can a sinner like me be saved? After two years of studying the Scriptures, it pleased the Lord to show me the glorious truth of the Gospel and give me the gift of faith. From then on, I would not depend on my church, good works, penance or Mary for salvation. Now I trust in the Lord Jesus Christ alone. He alone died for my sins. He alone is my living Saviour who secures the salvation of my soul.

I left the Roman Catholic church a few weeks later, because I felt uneasy in a church that taught salvation by human merit. I still love Roman Catholics dearly. My website is a token of my love for Catholics. There would be some who simply dismiss it as another 'anti-catholic' site. It is not! It is precisely because I love Catholics that I speak out the truth to them, even when it hurts. I do not seek to steal their faith, but only to purify it from the human traditions which choke the message of Christ. My sincere desire is that Catholics - and everyone else, whatever their religion - would trust completely in the Lord Jesus Christ alone and be obedient to his Word.

Some may feel that I misunderstand or misrepresent the Catholic religion. My answer is that I know Catholicism from personal experience; and for many years I continue to study Catholic literature - the creeds, councils, decrees, the catechism and the modern apologists. I do my best to represent catholic doctrine accurately.

My criticism of some aspects of Roman Catholic religion is not an end in itself. In everything, I want to present the biblical truth and lead people to Christ. He saved me and gave me new life. Praise his name! I pray that you too would find salvation and rest at the foot of the cross and worship Christ the Lord.

Statement of Faith

I am happy to set out my beliefs in a doctrinal statement, affirming essential biblical truth and showing doctrinal unity with millions of Christians worldwide and throughout church history. The statement of faith is adopted from the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith, the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds. It emphasizes three vital aspects of Christian doctrine that are generally unknown or even rejected by Catholics, namely, the sufficiency of Scripture, justification by faith alone, and the universality of the church of Christ.

The Apostles' Creed
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord: Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended into hell. The third day He arose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen.

The Holy Scriptures
The Holy Scripture is the all-sufficient, certain and infallible rule or standard of the knowledge, faith and obedience that constitute salvation. The sum total of God's revelation concerning all things essential to His own glory, and to the salvation and faith and life of men, is either explicitly set down or implicitly contained in the Holy Scripture. Nothing, whether a supposed revelation of the Spirit or man's traditions, is ever to be added to Scripture. The authority of the Bible does not depend upon the testimony of any man or church, but entirely upon God, its author, who is truth itself. It is to be received because it is the Word of God.

The testimony of the church of God may influence and persuade us to hold the Scripture in the highest esteem. At the same time, however, we recognize that our full persuasion and assurance of its infallible truth and divine authority is the outcome of the inward work of the Holy Spirit bearing witness by and with the Word in our hearts. All religious controversies are to be settled by Scripture, and by Scripture alone. All decrees of Councils, opinions of ancient writers, and doctrines of men collectively or individually, are similarly to be accepted or rejected according to the verdict of the Scripture given to us by the Holy Spirit. In that verdict faith finds its final rest.

Jesus Christ
We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he became incarnate from the Virgin Mary, and was made man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

Justification
God freely justifies the persons whom He effectually calls. He does this, not by infusing righteousness into them, but by pardoning their sins and by accounting them, and accepting them, as righteous. This He does for Christ's sake alone, and not for anything wrought in them or done by them. The righteousness which is imputed to them, that is, reckoned to their account, is the righteousness of Christ's obedience alone. Those thus justified receive and rest by faith upon Christ's righteousness; and this faith they have, not of themselves, but as the gift of God. The faith which receives and rests on Christ and His righteousness is the sole means of justification. Yet it is never alone in the person justified, but is invariably accompanied by all other saving graces. Nor is it a dead faith, for it works by love.

By His obedience and death Christ paid in full the debt of all those who are justified. By the sacrifice of Himself in His blood-shedding on Calvary, and His suffering on their behalf of the penalty they had incurred, He fully and absolutely satisfied all the claims which God's justice had upon them. Their justification is altogether of free grace, firstly because Christ was the free gift of the Father to act on their behalf; secondly because Christ's obedience and His satisfying the demands of the law was freely accepted on their behalf; and thirdly because nothing in them merited these mercies. Hence God's exact justice and His rich grace are alike rendered glorious in the justification of sinners.

The Church
The catholic (universal) church consists of the whole number of the elect who have been, who are being, or who yet shall be gathered into one under Christ who is the church's head. The church is the wife, the body, the fullness of Christ, who 'fills all in all'.

All persons throughout the world who profess to believe the gospel and to render gospel obedience unto God by Christ are, and may be called, saints, provided that they do not render void their profession of belief by holding fundamental errors or by living unholy lives; and of such persons all local churches should be composed. All believers are under obligation to join themselves to local churches when and where they have opportunity to do so. It follows that all who are admitted to the privileges of church fellowship also become subject to the discipline and government of the church in accordance with the rule of Christ.

Thank you for visiting! Every blessing in Christ,

Joseph Mizzi

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Permissions Unless otherwise indicated, any article on "Just for Catholics" may be duplicated and distributed, and posted on the Internet, provided that the text is not altered. Thank you for your partnership in the proclamation of the gospel. Please include the following statement on every copy or webpage: Copyright Dr Joseph Mizzi www.justforcatholics.org. Used by permission.