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Top Three Anti-Catholic Lies About Catholicism

Top Three Anti-Catholic Lies About Catholicism

Last updated on: October 16, 2026 at 2:32 pm by Dave Armstrong

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Top Three Anti-Catholic Lies About Catholicism 2026-10-16T14:32:06-04:00 Dave Armstrong

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This is my initial transcript for the video, “THE 3 WORST LIES Protestants Believe About Catholicism (Ranked by Dave Armstrong)” (Catholic Bible Highlights with Kenny Burchard, 10-16-26). The video is linked below.

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We continue our three-part treatment of the top ten lies, whoppers, and falsehoods spread about Catholicism. Pretty much every practicing Catholic will be confronted with these at some time or other. We think it’s good to be equipped to provide a good and effective reply to them. It could lead to an opportunity to get beyond the nonsense and to have a serious discussion about the Catholic faith.

#3 Catholics place their Church and tradition above the inspired revelation: the Bible.

The caricature that anti-Catholics offer about Catholic views in this regard, having to do with authority or what is called “the rule of faith”, is to wrongly describe our view as sola Ecclesia (“Church only”) over against their rule of faith, sola Scriptura (the Bible as the only final infallible rule of faith).

They act as if having a Church that makes authoritative pronouncements about the teaching of the Bible reduces to that extreme: the Church is above all, including Scripture. In fact, all Christians interpret the Bible and make many of these “takes” obligatory. That’s what creeds and confessions and Luther’s Small and Large Catechisms are all about.

The real disagreement is where Protestants deny the infallibility of anything but the Bible. Traditionally, Catholics in the first thousand years, and then Catholics and Orthodox for the next five hundred, held that the Church and Sacred Tradition were also infallible, under certain carefully specified conditions. But this was understood as always – I repeat, ALWAYS – in harmony with biblical teaching.

The proper way to describe the actual Catholic view is as a sort of “three-legged stool”: Bible – Church – Tradition: all being necessary and if one is removed, the “stool” of Christianity can no longer stand.

The Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, or Dei Verbum, from Vatican II in 1965, expresses this very precisely and beautifully:

Hence there exists a close connection and communication between sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture. For both of them, flowing from the same divine wellspring, in a certain way merge into a unity and tend toward the same end. For Sacred Scripture is the word of God inasmuch as it is consigned to writing under the inspiration of the divine Spirit, while sacred tradition takes the word of God entrusted by Christ the Lord and the Holy Spirit to the Apostles, and hands it on to their successors in its full purity, so that led by the light of the Spirit of truth, they may in proclaiming it preserve this word of God faithfully, explain it, and make it more widely known. Consequently it is not from Sacred Scripture alone that the Church draws her certainty about everything which has been revealed. Therefore both sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture are to be accepted and venerated with the same sense of loyalty and reverence.

Sacred tradition and Sacred Scripture form one sacred deposit of the word of God, committed to the Church. Holding fast to this deposit the entire holy people united with their shepherds remain always steadfast in the teaching of the Apostles, . . .

But the task of authentically interpreting the word of God, whether written or handed on, has been entrusted exclusively to the living teaching office of the Church, whose authority is exercised in the name of Jesus Christ. This teaching office is not above the word of God, but serves it, teaching only what has been handed on, listening to it devoutly, guarding it scrupulously and explaining it faithfully in accord with a divine commission and with the help of the Holy Spirit, it draws from this one deposit of faith everything which it presents for belief as divinely revealed.

It is clear, therefore, that sacred tradition, Sacred Scripture and the teaching authority of the Church, in accord with God’s most wise design, are so linked and joined together that one cannot stand without the others, and that all together and each in its own way under the action of the one Holy Spirit contribute effectively to the salvation of souls. (Chapter 2, 9-10; from the Holy See Vatican website)

Another way of showing that the Catholic Church doesn’t regard itself as “above” the Bible, is to see how it describes the issue of the canon of the Bible. The First Vatican Council in 1870 decreed:

These the Church holds to be sacred and canonical; not because, having been carefully composed by mere human industry, they were afterward approved by her authority; not because they contain revelation, with no admixture of error; but because, having been written by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, they have God for their author, and have been delivered as such to the Church herself. (Dogmatic Constitution on the Catholic Faith, chapter II; my italics)

Vatican II reaffirmed this:

The divinely-revealed realities which are contained and presented in the text of sacred Scripture, have been written down under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. For Holy Mother Church relying on the faith of the apostolic age, accepts as sacred and canonical the books of the Old and New Testaments, whole and entire, with all their parts, on the grounds that they were written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (cf. Jn. 20:31; 2 Tim. 3:16; 2 Pet. 1:19-21; 3:15-16), they have God as their author, and have been handed on as such to the Church herself. (Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation [Dei Verbum], Chapter III, 11; my italics)

Many Protestants think in stark, “either/or” terms and create false dichotomies where they don’t exist. So they reason, “if the Bible alone isn’t supreme, then Catholics must think that the Church alone is.” That doesn’t follow. There are other choices, and we believe that the Bible reflects the Catholic rule of faith. So for example, Paul writes that the Church is “the pillar and bulwark of the truth” (1 Tim 3:15). To fully do this and not promulgate error, it has to be infallible (not inspired!) as well, as I have argued at length elsewhere.

One might say that the Bible is the “truth” insofar as it is uniquely inspired by the Holy Spirit. The Church is then seen as its support. It holds up and bolsters biblical truth. And we see an authoritative council in Jerusalem in Acts 15, that was infallible, since its decree “seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us” (Acts 15:28). This alone, along with 99 other biblical reasons that I compiled in a book, proves that sola Scriptura is a false and unbiblical principle. It’s not taught in the Bible. Rather, we believe that the Catholic “three-legged stool” is the rule of faith that the Bible expresses.

In any event, our view isn’t “Church alone” above all else. That’s a straw man.

#2 Catholics believe in salvation by works, which is the ancient Pelagian heresy, rather than by grace through faith.

In a way, this is similar in the way it seems to arise in Protestant minds, to the previous matter. Protestants believe in justification and salvation by faith alone (sola fide in Latin). So in trying to understand our rejection of that belief, they assume that we must, therefore, believe in “works alone.” It’s the “either/or” mentality again. They think “works alone” is the only alternate choice. But it’s not.

Here is what we actually believe: we are justified in the beginning by God alone, by His grace alone (and all who make it to heaven – the elect – were predestined by God to do so). This grace brings about our faith, which we then live out by cooperating with God, and genuine faith in turn inevitably brings about good works, without which it is dead, as it says in many ways in James:

James 2:17-18 So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. [18] . . . I by my works will show you my faith.

James 2:20 . . . faith apart from works is barren . . .

James 2:22 . . . faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by works,

James 2:26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so faith apart from works is dead.

These works, done in faith and enabled by grace, are meritorious and play a role in our salvation, alongside an ever-present grace and faith all through the process. So it’s three things working together: grace + faith + works. They’re not opposed to each other. They operate in harmony. What we deny is faith alone. We understand that Protestants aren’t opposed to the necessity and goodness of works in the Christian life. But they do formally separate them from justification and place them in what they regard as a non-salvific category of sanctification.

There are many ways to argue this from the Bible, and I’ve now written more about this topic than anything else, including three books. I’ll offer what I think are the two best arguments among literally several hundred.

Mark 10:17-21 . . . a man ran up and knelt before him, and asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” [18] And Jesus said to him, . . . [19] You know the commandments: `Do not kill, Do not commit adultery, Do not steal, Do not bear false witness, Do not defraud, Honor your father and mother.’” [20] And he said to him, “Teacher, all these I have observed from my youth.” [21] And Jesus . . . said to him, “You lack one thing; go, sell what you have, and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.”

Jesus was asked how one could “inherit eternal life.” If Jesus had been a good Protestant, He would have had to respond, “you can’t do any work to attain eternal life! You must have faith alone!” He didn’t oppose him by asking, “why do you ask me about works? Don’t you know that they have nothing to do with salvation and are done only in gratefulness to God for a salvation already attained?” Rather, Jesus reinforced the man’s train of thought by asking whether he kept the commandments. I can’t imagine any Protestant evangelist street-witnessing ever speaking in those terms (including myself: I did this for nine years).

When the man said that he kept all the commandments, Jesus had a second chance — to affirm, “you must believe in Me with faith alone to attain eternal life.” But He again chose to answer like a Catholic and recommended another meritorious work, selling all that he owned (because he had made money his idol), which was, of course, another work, as opposed to faith and assenting belief.

The point is that Jesus highlighted and made central the very thing that Protestants falsely claim has nothing to do with salvation. Jesus observed, “How hard it will be for those who have riches to enter the kingdom of God!” (10:23). Why is it so “hard”? It is because the work that was required to attain salvation (giving away all that he owned) was difficult.

If faith alone were true and in fact the only way to get to heaven, it seems that Jesus would have said so when directly asked about that very thing. But He didn’t; therefore, “faith alone” is false, since it’s foreign and unknown to Jesus Himself.

Matthew 25:34-36, 40, 46 Then the King will say to those at his right hand, `Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; [35] for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, [36] I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ . . . [40] . . . `Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.’ . . . [46] And they will go away . . . into eternal life.

Once again, all Jesus does in Matthew 25 — a passage about judgment day and going to heaven or hell –, is talk about works. He has no awareness that works have no connection to salvation whatsoever, as Protestants constantly tell us. He doesn’t talk about faith alone and never even mentions faith at all.

I submit that it’s impossible to read these two passages and to harmonize them with faith alone. They are as far away from that viewpoint as one can possibly imagine. And that’s why I think they are the two best ones.

I have tons more material on this topic. Of particular note, for those who want the most direct evidence of the necessity of works for salvation (alongside grace and faith, always) is an article of mine that we’ll link to, where I list 70 different works that the Bible refers to as partial causes of salvation.

For the full biblical and historical argument against faith alone, check out my book called Faith Alone, which collects 525 Bible passages that refute it in one way or another. The argument becomes very strong from the sheer volume of Bible passages that contradict faith alone.

#1 Catholics worship Mary as a goddess, and in effect place her on the level of God.

Ah, the old standby! I think it’s safe to say that our Mariology has probably been lied about, twisted, vastly misunderstood, and distorted more than any other part of our faith. It’s very difficult to be brief regarding this topic, because it’s so multi-faceted and because it always takes a lot more effort to refute a falsehood than to state one. But I’ll try my best.

The first thing to note is so obvious it’s probably not thought of much. But when anti-Catholics start talking like this, it’s striking that they never ever produce any official Catholic document that states what they casually assume to be the case: that Mary is worshiped and adored as God. It’s an argument from silence.

When I started out as a Protestant apologist 45 years ago, the very first thing I learned (in dealing with Jehovah’s Witnesses, my first big research project) was to document opposing views to a tee, and never misrepresent it. And that’s the theme of this series: how that goes on all the time among critics of Catholicism.

Failing any such proof, anti-Catholics typically go to sources like St. Alphonsus de Liguori and St. Louis de Montfort, because they are well-known for writing in the most “flowery” and descriptive way about devotion to and veneration of Mary (which is honor, not worship). I’ve written about them in several articles on my Mary web page, and have documented exactly what they mean. They explain very clearly that they put Jesus front and center, and they have to be interpreted accordingly. But anti-Catholics seemingly never have time to find what I found.

The Dogmatic Constitution On the Church, or Lumen Gentium, from Vatican II (chapter 8, paragraphs 52-69), expresses very precisely how we regard Mary. It’s very far from what anti-Catholics think. Here are some relevant highlights:

. . . honored as being truly the Mother of God and Mother of the Redeemer. Redeemed by reason of the merits of her Son . . . (53)

. . . she far surpasses all creatures, both in heaven and on earth. At the same time, however, because she belongs to the offspring of Adam she is one with all those who are to be saved. (53)

There is but one Mediator as we know from the words of the apostle, “for there is one God and one mediator of God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a redemption for all”. The maternal duty of Mary toward men in no wise obscures or diminishes this unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows His power. . . . It flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on His mediation, depends entirely on it and draws all its power from it. (60)

No creature could ever be counted as equal with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer. (62)

. . . veneration [of Mary] . . . differs essentially from the cult of adoration which is offered to the Incarnate Word, . . . the Mother is honored . . . (66) [translation by Rev. Austin Flannery, O.P., Liturgical Press / Costello Pub. Co., revised edition, 1992]

The Catechism of the Catholic Church [from the Holy See / Vatican website] also makes it clear that only God may be worshiped or adored:

2113 Idolatry not only refers to false pagan worship. It remains a constant temptation to faith. Idolatry consists in divinizing what is not God. Man commits idolatry whenever he honors and reveres a creature in place of God, whether this be gods or demons (for example, satanism), power, pleasure, race, ancestors, the state, money, etc. Jesus says, “You cannot serve God and mammon.” Many martyrs died for not adoring “the Beast” refusing even to simulate such worship. Idolatry rejects the unique Lordship of God; it is therefore incompatible with communion with God.

2114 Human life finds its unity in the adoration of the one God. the commandment to worship the Lord alone integrates man and saves him from an endless disintegration. Idolatry is a perversion of man’s innate religious sense. An idolater is someone who “transfers his indestructible notion of God to anything other than God.”

Thus, the charge that Catholics worship Mary or place her on the level of God is refuted. This is not about the reasons for veneration or honor of the saints (I’ve written hundreds of times about those reasons). I’m strictly responding to the claim that the Catholic Church sanctions the worship of Mary. It’s a lie.

RELATED READING

BOOKS

100 Biblical Arguments Against Sola Scriptura

Biblical Proofs for an Infallible Church and Papacy

“The Catholic Mary”: Quite Contrary to the Bible?

Faith Alone: The “Theological Novum”: Disproofs from 525 Bible Passages & 30 Church Fathers

ARTICLES

NT: 70 Specific Good Works Contribute to Salvation

Bible vs. “Faith Alone”: 120 NT & 30 OT Proofs [from 26 out of the 27 NT Books]

350 Bible Passages vs. Sola Scriptura

Honoring Jesus Thru Mary: 50 Biblical Reasons

WEB PAGES

Salvation, Justification, & “Faith Alone” –

Bible, Tradition, Canon, & “Sola Scriptura” –

Mary: The Blessed Virgin

PREVIOUS VIDEOS IN THIS SERIES

TOP 10 LIES Protestants Believe About Catholicism (Ranked by Dave Armstrong) — Part 1 (Lies 10-7) [53 minutes, 10-2-26]

THREE MORE LIES Protestants Believe About Catholicism (Ranked by Dave Armstrong) — Part 2 (Lies 6-4) [48 minutes, 10-9-26]

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Summary: Do Catholics place the Church and tradition above the Bible? Do we believe in salvation by works? Do we worship Mary as a goddess? We refute each one of these whoppers.

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Practical Matters: This is the most comprehensive and multi-faceted Catholic apologetics blog: rated #1 for Christian sites by leading AI tool, ChatGPT. I offer more than 5,000 free online articles, fifty-nine books, and many scores of videos at the Catholic Bible Highlights YouTube channel (please subscribe!). If you believe my full-time apostolate is worth supporting, please seriously consider financially supporting it. PayPal donations are the easiest: just send to my email address: [email protected]. You’ll see the term “Dave Armstrong Bookstore”. To learn about the different methods of contributing (including Zelle and 100% tax-deductible donations if desired), see my page: About Catholic Apologist Dave Armstrong / Donation Information. Thanks a million!