Catholic Answers Live #12647 Is Catholicism a Works-Based Salvation? Why Aren’t You Catholic? - Tim Staples
Mar 26, 2026
Tim Staples, longtime Catholic apologist and convert, shares his conversion story and clear takes on Church authority. He explains why Catholicism is rooted in grace, not works. Conversations cover RCIA concerns, Scripture and early Church support for papal primacy, and practical steps for former Jehovah's Witnesses seeking the faith.
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Tim Staples First Easter Vigil Conversion Experience
- Tim Staples recounts entering the Church at the Easter Vigil after OCIA and being overwhelmed receiving his first Eucharist.
- He describes attending Our Lady of the Angels, the liturgical beauty, and crying during his first Communion.
Catholicism Is Grace Based Not Works Based
- Catholicism is a grace-based salvation that requires charity to manifest faith rather than a works-only system.
- Tim Staples cites Ephesians 2:8–9 and 1 Corinthians 13 to show initial justification is a gift, then faith must work through love.
Why The Papacy Convinced A Former Protestant
- Tim describes briefly considering Orthodoxy before the papacy and apostolic succession convinced him of Rome.
- He cites Matthew 16, John 21, Acts 1 and early Church Fathers like Ignatius and Irenaeus as decisive.
