I'm not going to debate what's what and who's who. You are saying that you were taught in Catholic school that the the Bible is full of untrue stories and parables, and I am saying that Evangelicals, Baptists, Pentecostals, and most other Christian denominations do not hold this view. We take the Bible at its Word.
My first wife was a Catholic. My current wife's family consists of mostly Catholics (Sicilian family), although most have renounced Catholicism and became born again Christians, as they never even opened their Bibles while Catholics. I have been to many masses over the years, celebrated the Eucharist, and studied the religion quite a bit, so I do know what I'm talking about.
For entertainment and historical purposes, I read some of the books that the Catholic Church includes as canonical, but are not recognized as such by the Protestant Bible. I love reading 1st and 2nd Maccabes, Tobit, and Wisdom, for example. They are not included in the Torah because they were not considered inspired words of God, but were historically accurate and significant.
I also study the vast differences between Catholicism and Christianity. We love our Catholic brethren, but the differences in how we worship are like night and day.
I suggest reading "The Signs of The Coming of Christ" by Gary Frazier to give you an idea of what is going on behind the scenes at the Vatican, and with the Catholic Church's attempt at a "one-world religion," with tolerance for just about everyone. It is not Catholics that we have a problem with, it is the leadership at the top levels which most Catholics and other Christians are completely naive about.
And yes, the book of Revelation is considered "symbolic only" by the Catholic Church, although many are changing their viewpoint on this of late. It says so right in the Catholic Bible sitting beside me. In your Catholic Bible, refer to the Introduction to The Revalation to John, in the first five paragraphs especially, where it tells us that the book cannot be adaquately understood except for historical background, and that it applies to the Roman persecution of the early church. This view is only held by Catholics and the Orthodox Churches, not the Protestant denominations.
Here are some places which discuss the differences between Catholicism and mainstream Christianity:
http://christianprogress.com/12.htm
Please read this one for sure!:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/chr_capr.htm
And this one for even more clarity:
http://www.raleighccc.org/HarvestJou...ristianity.htm
Pay particular attention to the conclusion of the above article.
By the way, I am one of the Christians that feel we are all brothers working for the common good, when you come to that one!
