Not to mention that most Protestant denominations just don’t have that much to offer in comparison to the Catholic Church. They don’t have the Eucharist (or most of the other sacraments), the tradition, the depth of theology, the saints, or any number of the things that set the Church apart and make it so incredibly rich.
I’m not sure which denominations (if any) don’t have Communion, but mine certainly does. Whether it is bread and wine or unleavened cracker and grape juice, or if it uses intinction (dipping the bread into the wine) or not, or having individual breads/crackers and cups, is irrelevant. It’s the symbol that is important.
What I was referring to is the Catholic belief in transubstantiation. It’s not just a symbol. It is the physical presence of Christ himself, as testified to in Scripture (John 6, the Last Supper narratives) and the Fathers of the Church (including St. Ignatius of Antioch and Justin Martyr in the early-mid 1st century). Yet only the Catholic and Orthodox Churches have retained this belief.
And no, I don’t turn to or reference the saints in prayer. I pray to my Father, my Savior, and the Spirit. Jesus intercedes for me, and the Spirit empowers me. I don’t need additional intercessors. And, for another thing, God is omniscient; the saints are not, so I’m not sure how that works given the number of people here who simultaneously pray constantly.
I was referring more to the example and the writings of the saints than their intercession, to be clear. The saints may not be omniscient, but they are also in heaven, which means that they are not necessarily bound by time in the same way we are on earth.
if we boil down the Christian faith to what we all have in common, we’re not left with a whole lot of substance.
What we’re left with is: We are imperfect, and sinful, and God is absolutely pure and holy. But God loves you. He loves you so much that He sacrificed His own child—His own self, on a Roman cross, as the penalty to redeem you from your our own sin and selfishness. We don’t deserve it, but it is given to us freely and all we need to do is accept His sacrifice and His forgiveness. Then the Spirit gives us power; and the Scripture, given power, is made clear as the Spirit reveals it to us. By that power, we are called to become more like Him, and to share the good news of His sacrifice to the world.
And that is really what is important.
If only we had that much in common. Jehovah’s Witnesses, for instance, do not believe that Jesus was truly God’s son. Armstrongists don’t believe in a divine Holy Spirit. Various Christians throughout history have rejected these beliefs as well. Scripture varies between Christians. Some early Christians rejected much of the New Testament as we know it. Different Orthodox Churches also have variations in their New Testament. The Scriptures do not seem to be made clear across denominations, as there are so many interpretations of it.
I agree with you that what you listed as core Christian doctrine is more important than, say, whether or not contraception is moral, or whether or not Jesus had two wills and two natures, or whether bishops are distinct from priests in more ways than just jurdically. I don’t think you can say that it’s the only thing that’s important though. Jesus gave many specific instructions and teachings, as did the apostles, that not all Christians accept today. Why would he bother to teach these things if they were simply not important?