As a member of a cultic Judaizing organization (Armstrongism), I am aware that a lot of their propaganda has the express purpose of discrediting Christianity by claiming that it was heavily influenced by Constantine and Roman Catholicism.
I am not a fan of Roman Catholicism, due to their denial of justification by faith alone and sola Scriptura. Besides their denial of these two fundamental doctrines, they have many other issues. However, the attempt by cultists and individuals with other aberrant theologies to associate evangelical Protestantism with Roman Catholicism and/or Constantine is clearly an attempt to employ guilt by association.
I would really encourage Christians to read some good books on church history as a knowledge of church history will help a lot in refuting the cultic claims in this regard. Cults who use these claims have material mistakes in their understanding of church history.
For instance, I have heard Constantine blamed for the doctrine of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity is a proveable, solidly biblical doctrine. Those who deny it commonly blame Constantine and the Council of Nicaea for enforcing it, but the truth is that the council was composed of faithful Christian bishops, some who lost body parts in the persecution that preceded Constantine, and they were hardly lukewarm Christians. Constantine himself was an Arian, and did not believe in the Trinity....he acquiesced to the decision of the council on the deity of Christ in order to maintain unity within the Church and the empire.
I have also heard Constantine blamed for the change in the day of worship from Saturday to Sunday, but the reality is that the vast majority of Christians had abandoned Saturday as the day of worship by about AD140, long before Constantine was born. This abandonment came about partly due to persecution by Jews...Jewish Christians were no longer wanted in the synagogues due to their failure to fight during the siege of Jerusalem in AD70 and the Simon Bar-Kokbvah rebellion circa AD135 (Simon claimed to be Messiah and the Jewish Christians would not support him, so they were heavily persecuted).
As a former Sabbathkeeper, I was heavily indoctrinated in this false view of church history. Be aware that individuals with similar theologies believe the same false teachings and attempt to promulgate them on the forums and in the chat rooms. If you hear individuals who are anti-Trinitarian or Sabbath/festival keepers talking about Constantine or the Roman Catholic church in a negative, conspiratorial manner, and degrading the church as being, basically, neo-Roman Catholics, be aware that their false view of church history is a likely culprit. I have also found that many of them are caught up on conspiracy theories concerning the Illuminati or any other number of speculative, National Enquirer mentality assertions.
I have even been called a covert Jesuit due to explaining my position on Sabbathkeeping and it's inapplicability today. Realize that some Sabbatarians believe that Jesuits are actively influencing individuals within the Protestant churches in order to continue promulgation of Sunday observance or observance of "pagan holidays" such as Christmas and Easter (a lot of these groups assert that Christmas and Easter are pagan).
As I've said before, I don't care if someone else practices calendar or meat law observances, but if they step into the arena of claiming these observances are requirements or conditions or necessary fruits of salvation, and that others are sinning for non-observance, then it becomes an issue. They also make themselves vulnerable to criticism if they are claiming that non-observers are neo-pagan, as their attitude is the same as the Galatians heretics...so there is more ample evidence in Scripture to criticize them...Galatians 1:6-7 indicates that the Galatians heretics were under anathema, or accursedness, for making such claims.
So, if they wish to claim others are neo-pagans, they open themselves up to being labeled as Judaizers.
I am not a fan of Roman Catholicism, due to their denial of justification by faith alone and sola Scriptura. Besides their denial of these two fundamental doctrines, they have many other issues. However, the attempt by cultists and individuals with other aberrant theologies to associate evangelical Protestantism with Roman Catholicism and/or Constantine is clearly an attempt to employ guilt by association.
I would really encourage Christians to read some good books on church history as a knowledge of church history will help a lot in refuting the cultic claims in this regard. Cults who use these claims have material mistakes in their understanding of church history.
For instance, I have heard Constantine blamed for the doctrine of the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity is a proveable, solidly biblical doctrine. Those who deny it commonly blame Constantine and the Council of Nicaea for enforcing it, but the truth is that the council was composed of faithful Christian bishops, some who lost body parts in the persecution that preceded Constantine, and they were hardly lukewarm Christians. Constantine himself was an Arian, and did not believe in the Trinity....he acquiesced to the decision of the council on the deity of Christ in order to maintain unity within the Church and the empire.
I have also heard Constantine blamed for the change in the day of worship from Saturday to Sunday, but the reality is that the vast majority of Christians had abandoned Saturday as the day of worship by about AD140, long before Constantine was born. This abandonment came about partly due to persecution by Jews...Jewish Christians were no longer wanted in the synagogues due to their failure to fight during the siege of Jerusalem in AD70 and the Simon Bar-Kokbvah rebellion circa AD135 (Simon claimed to be Messiah and the Jewish Christians would not support him, so they were heavily persecuted).
As a former Sabbathkeeper, I was heavily indoctrinated in this false view of church history. Be aware that individuals with similar theologies believe the same false teachings and attempt to promulgate them on the forums and in the chat rooms. If you hear individuals who are anti-Trinitarian or Sabbath/festival keepers talking about Constantine or the Roman Catholic church in a negative, conspiratorial manner, and degrading the church as being, basically, neo-Roman Catholics, be aware that their false view of church history is a likely culprit. I have also found that many of them are caught up on conspiracy theories concerning the Illuminati or any other number of speculative, National Enquirer mentality assertions.
I have even been called a covert Jesuit due to explaining my position on Sabbathkeeping and it's inapplicability today. Realize that some Sabbatarians believe that Jesuits are actively influencing individuals within the Protestant churches in order to continue promulgation of Sunday observance or observance of "pagan holidays" such as Christmas and Easter (a lot of these groups assert that Christmas and Easter are pagan).
As I've said before, I don't care if someone else practices calendar or meat law observances, but if they step into the arena of claiming these observances are requirements or conditions or necessary fruits of salvation, and that others are sinning for non-observance, then it becomes an issue. They also make themselves vulnerable to criticism if they are claiming that non-observers are neo-pagan, as their attitude is the same as the Galatians heretics...so there is more ample evidence in Scripture to criticize them...Galatians 1:6-7 indicates that the Galatians heretics were under anathema, or accursedness, for making such claims.
So, if they wish to claim others are neo-pagans, they open themselves up to being labeled as Judaizers.
You will say it all over again next year.