人家时常问我：“基督教和天主教有何区别？”此问题非常复杂，所以以下所说的只是问题的一小部分。
回答此问题，必须按照神的标准，不要用我的标准、别人的标准或天主教的标准测验天主教。只能用神的标准衡量天主教。
回答此问题，我不怀疑也不批评天主教徒的诚恳和诚实。
权威：天主教的权威是住在梵蒂冈的教皇并且天主教的“传统”。（梵蒂冈或教廷就是罗马教天主的教皇的所在地；英语为Vatican 。）教皇也被称为教宗。基督教的权威是创造宇宙万物人类的神，耶稣基督和《圣经》。天主教也研读《圣经》但是实际上《圣经》并不是他们最高的权威。
彼得：天主教以使徒彼得为教会的磐石；天主教徒相信耶稣把教会建造在彼得的身上。基督教相信耶稣把教会建造在自己的身上；基督是教会的头（请参看以弗所书1:22-23；歌罗西书1:18；马太福音16:13-20）。
玛利亚：天主教非常崇拜耶稣的母亲玛利亚。尊敬伟人的母亲没有关系，但是天主教给玛利亚一个《圣经》并没有给她的高位和角色。天主教不但把玛利亚看为“圣母”，他们还向她祷告——求助、求救等。《圣经》里面没有任何一次有人向玛利亚祷告或奉她的名祷告。基督徒只奉耶稣的名向神祷告。
救恩：《圣经》教导我们，成为基督徒的途径和过程包括以下的几点：听道、信道、悔改过犯和罪孽（包括改变内心和行为）、受洗洗去罪孽（参阅使徒行传第二章）。成为基督徒后，要继续不断地学习神的话《圣经》，更新思想和行为。在日常生活上犯罪时，随时随地悔改，求神赦免，再次下决心过圣洁的生活（请参看约翰一书第一章）。天主教也劝人阅读《圣经》，悔改，但是他们认为小婴孩，因为有“原罪”所以应该受洗。《圣经》里面没有“原罪”一词。《圣经》里的“洗礼”都是全身投入水中的浸礼，但是天主教的洗礼是点水礼。
入教以后呢？如果信徒跌倒犯罪，怎么办？天主教教导信徒说天主教神父拥有权柄赦免信徒的罪，但是在《圣经·新约》里只有耶稣才能够赦免人的罪的。基督徒跌倒犯罪后，要懊悔他的坏行为，认罪悔改，求神赦免他。
原来的教会吗？天主教自称它是历史中最早的教会也是原来耶稣基督所建立的教会。问题是天主教并不是原来的耶稣基督所建立的教会。《圣经》里没有“天主教”一词，没有“教宗”、没有“教皇”、没有“梵蒂冈”、没有“神父”、没有崇拜玛利亚之事、没有“原罪”、没有婴孩洗礼等。
听者（读者）：您不需要听我的！请您自己拜读《圣经·新约》然后把您在天主教堂所看到的所听到的和您在《圣经·新约》所读到的做个对比。您自己会看到天主教和《圣经》里所描述的教会就是不一样。
我不否认也不批评天主教徒的诚恳和诚实。但是我肯定《圣经》为唯一的权威，耶稣为唯一能够赦免人罪的。但愿所有相信耶稣的人都要追求神的真理！
What are the Differences between Christianity and Catholicism?
This is a very complex question, so the following is but a small part of the complete answer. To answer this question, we should seek God’s standard and not my standard or the standard of other people or of the Catholic Church. In answering this question I do not criticize the sincerity or honesty of Catholics.
Authority: The authority of the Catholic Church is the Pope who lives in the Vatican and the “traditions” of the Catholic Church. The Vatican is also called the Holy See. The authority of Christianity is God, Jesus Christ and the Bible. Catholics also study the Bible, but it is not their highest authority.
Peter: Catholics see the apostle Peter as the bedrock of the church; Catholics believe that Jesus built the church on Peter. Christians believe that Jesus built the church on himself; Jesus is the head of the church (see Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:18; Matthew 16:13-20).
Mary: Catholics revere Mary the mother of Jesus. There is nothing wrong with paying respect to the mother of a great person, but Catholics give Mary an especially high place and a role that the Bible does not give her. Catholics refer to Mary as the Holy Mother, and they pray to her. There is not a single example in the Bible of anyone praying to Mary or praying in the name of Mary. Christians pray to God in the name of Jesus.
Salvation: The Bible teaches us that the pathway to becoming a Christian includes the following: Hear the gospel, believe it, repent of wrongdoing and sin (including a change of both heart and life), and be baptized for the forgiveness of sin. After one becomes a Christian, he should study the Bible and renew his thinking and his life (see Acts 2). Whenever one sins in his daily life, he should repent, ask for God’s forgiveness, and once again determine to live a holy life (see 1 John 1). Catholics also encourage people to read the Bible and to repent, but they believe infants should be baptized because of “original sin;” however the term “original sin” is not in the Bible. Baptism in the Bible is total immersion into water; but Catholics practice sprinkling for baptism.
After Becoming a Christian: What happens if a believer falls (sins)? Catholics teach that a priest has the power to forgive sins, however in the New Testament it is only Jesus who can forgive sins. Whenever a Christian sins, he should feel sorry because of his bad action; he should repent and pray to God for forgiveness.
The Original Church? The Catholic Church refers to itself as the earliest church and the original church established by Jesus Christ. The problem however is that the Catholic Church is not the church that Jesus established. Nowhere in the Bible are these terms found: Catholicism, Pope, Vatican, “shen fu” (Chinese Catholic term for priest), veneration of Mary, “original sin,” infant baptism, etc.
【问答】十四：基督教和天主教有何区别？
FAQ’s About Christianity (14): What are the Differences between Christianity and Catholicism?
作者：谢德华 ©By Edward Short
Photo taken by ©Edward Short of the Roman Catholic Cathedral (the duomo) in Milan (Milano), Italy, in 2006.