Pentecostal is a recently emerged Christian event that conveys the importance of God through baptism with the holy spirit.
Pentecostal believers claim that speaking in tongues, prophecy, and healing are the gifts to experience God directly.
Albeit, Catholics are profundity knowledge on the universal faith of humanity concept. The other way out of both is the Christian community’s jubilant philosophy.
Key Takeaways
- Pentecostalism emphasizes the direct personal experience of God through the Holy Spirit, while Catholicism focuses on sacraments and rituals to obtain grace.
- Pentecostals exhibit charismatic practices such as speaking in tongues and divine healing, whereas Catholics place more emphasis on traditional liturgical worship.
- While both Pentecostals and Catholics believe in the Holy Trinity, the former stresses the importance of individual spiritual experiences. At the same time, the latter highlights the role of the Church and its hierarchy.
Pentecostal vs Catholic
Pentecostal Christians are members of the Church that believe in the Holy Trinity: Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. They believe in the text of the Bible without questioning it. Catholics believe in Jesus Christ and practice of the Western Church. They strictly follow the bible as their principles to life.
Undoubtedly, the Pentecostals are conscientious about their beliefs on experience rather than through rituals or thinking. With this in mind, Pentecostal is covered in the Book of Acts of the Apostles, Chapter two of the Bible.
On the other hand, Catholics are nothing but believers in Western Church activities. They consider the Bishops as the highest arbiter of the community. As mentioned above, Catholics avow the universal truth of God or their sacred home, the Church.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | Pentecostal | Catholic |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Pentecostalism is a community communicating directly to the Lord through Baptism with the Holy Spirit. They are purely devoted to God, believing in the presence of God personally and are gifted to speak in Tongues. | Catholic is a community that believes in the practice of the Western Church. Catholics are another group of baptized Christians who ultimately believe Jesus as their sole reason for existence. They consider bishops the highest officials within the Christian religion, a prominent role to Priests and Deacons. |
| When it started | It is assumed that the practice of Pentecostal began in 1901 when a school student (Agnes Ozman) started to speak in tongues that too in Chinese; where she is an English woman- believing speaking in tongue is a divine gift sign of Baptism in the spirit given from Lord Jesus. | According to the Catholic community, Catholicism was founded by Jesus Christ in the 1st Century Holy Land, Roman Empire and is assumed to be nearly 2000 years after the formation of the Catholic. |
| Groups | Pentecostals formed like a movement among indigent people in the USA and Texas, engendering a spiritual revival in late 1905. More than 700+ Pentecostal churches are established all over the world. Still, some groups like Evangelical renounce the creeds of Pentecostal. | Catholic is the oldest and widespread religion all over the world. Catholic became the largest following within the Christian religions, which consist of Roman and Greek. |
| Beliefs | Pentecostals believe that speaking in tongues is a divine gift from God as a sign of baptism in the holy spirit. They don’t have any intermediate connection with the Lord, as they are directly involved with God. | Catholic believe Jesus Christ is the son of God, who came to cure human sin. Bishops, priests, and Deacons follow God’s instruction in the bible and play an intermediate between God and humanity. |
| Growth | Pentecostal communities accreted widespread across the world. Establishing Churches with 280 million fellowships, gaining a Pentecostal denomination worldwide in various countries. | Catholic is a growing Christian religious community, estimated to be around 17.5 per cent of the world’s population. Catholic is expected to be 1.63 billion by 2050. |
| Follows | Many rituals they follow to give their respect to God. Water baptism, salvation, and foot washing are considered an Ordinance of Humility. Prayer clothes that are soaked in water help in healing a wound. Precarious activities were also conducted in Olden Days, like drinking snake poisons to mitigate the pain. | They don’t engage in sexual activities and devote themselves as Saints to the God Jesus Christ. They also follow the seven Sacraments – Baptism, reconciliation, marriage, last days, confirmation and Eucharist. |
What is Pentecostal?
The Pentecostalism practice began during the late 19th and early 20th centuries by emphasizing baptism in the holy spirit.
Initially, it was about studying the Bible by speaking in tongues and eventually believed this as the evidence for the baptism in the holy spirit.
Pentecostals are now credited with being the fastest-growing significant religious movement. Pentecostals believe in the manifestations of the Holy Spirit.
It includes the message of wisdom, knowledge, faith, powers, and tongues conscience.
The community started its belief on January 1st, 1901, at Bethel Bible School, followed by baptism in the holy spirit, speaking in tongues, conversion, and sanctification.
In light of rising racial and gender congregation, Pentecostal is famously known as a Charismatic community.
Per the pentecostalism teachings, a prescription from dancing, alcohol, drugs, and restrictions on ignoble dresses and appearance.
They fully embrace themselves in the Bible and activities to reach salvation through faith in Jesus.
Additionally, it claims that Jesus will be rejuvenating sooner or later. They pray aloud for needs, healing, blessings, and gratitude.
What is Catholic?
Catholics manifest the idea of the universal faith of humanity through the Church’s authorities.
Meanwhile, Catholic Church is the oldest institution in the world, almost 2000 years old.
There are millions of Catholics worldwide, populated explicitly in the US, the Philippines, and countries of central and South America. They promulgate the concepts of faith in Jesus Christ and the papacy.
As asserted earlier, Catholics give more importance to popes and Bishops and consider them as the successor of the community.
Nevertheless, they believe that Jesus Christ, the son of God, created men to redeem humanity’s sins through Jesus’s death and resurrection.
Catholics consider popes their top priority, followed by cardinals, archbishops, bishops, priests, etc.
Furthermore, their teachings are preferably based on the scriptures and Church’s rituals, not from outside sources. By all means, Catholics use the cross, kneeling, and bowing as their essential gestures to glorify Jesus Christ.
Unlike Pentecostals, Catholics don’t worship any idols for salvation.
Main Differences Between Pentecostal and Catholic
- Pentecostals speaking in tongues consider a divine gift from God Jesus, whereas Catholics believe in the Bible’s instruction as principles of living.
- Pentecostals strictly follow the rituals, where they visit Church every day- reciting Bible verses regularly. Catholic visit church only in any circumstance of getting married or seeking to apologize to God for their sins.
- Pentecostals practice many activities such as water baptism, foot washing, drinking poisons and healing wounds, although Catholics pursue the highest official to practice such activities.
- Catholic is assumed to be the first and oldest community created by God Jesus Christ. In contrast, Pentecostal was formed in 1907 by Agnes Ozman, a student at Charles F. Parham’s Bethel Bible School.
- Catholic has a strict hierarchy- Bishops, Priests and Deacons, which are intermediate between humans and Gods. But in Pentecostal- people speak in tongues directly with God.
- https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.anthro.32.061002.093421
- https://books.google.co.in/books?hl=en&lr=&id=fpVOVDCoi6MC&oi=fnd&pg=PR9&dq=catholic&ots=epO8TVruKS&sig=zHRttVfgJKNwS7vb-lHXpctylzA
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