As a former Catholic, my major concern is where Catholicism conflicts with the Word of God. And the conflicts are numerous:
CATHOLIC SCRIPTURAL CONFLICTS / FALLICIES
1. Exclusive Salvation by Traditionalist Catholics (all Protestants are heretics)
2. Idolatry - Veneration of statues, relics and images (an ancient Elcasaite-Jewish tradition which permitted the worship of idols to escape persecution, provided the act was merely an external one, disavowed in the heart.)
3. Church traditions taking precedence over Bible as God's Word
4. Extremely few Bible-carrying/reading Catholics Homosexual / Pedophile priests & cover-up by bishops or re-assignment of offenders to another parish
5. Rapes and abuse of young nuns in convent
6. Magdalene laundries - Forced slavery of women
7. Rosary Beads/ canned repetitive prayer Mat_6:7
8. Canonization of dead saints
9. Regular Church attendance = Salvation (by works)
10. Prayer for the dead
11. Indulgences
12. Purgatory
13. Transubstantiation of the Eucharist
14. Worship of the Sacremental Host
15. Mary worship (Mother of God) Luk_11:27-28
16. (Ever) Virgin Mary Mat_1:25 Mar_6:1-4, Mat_12:46-50, Joh_7:3
17. Immaculate Conception
18. Assumption of Mary
19. Intercessory prayer and veneration of Mary 1Ti_2:5
20. Intercessory prayer by hundreds of dead saints 1Ti_2:5
21. Pagan ceremony & traditions incorporated (Holy days => "Holidays") Sabbath, Easter, Christmas
22. Latin Mass -The Word of God forbids praying and teaching in an unknown tongue 1Co_14:9
23. Yarmulkes, vestments, backwards collars for clergy
24. Women no longer wearing veils
25. Forbidding to marry priests / celibacy 1Ti_3:2,5,12; 1Ti_4:3 Mat_8:14-15, Peter was married
26. Infallibility of the Pope (whose office is never mentioned in the Bible)
27. Pope as "Holy Father"
28. Priests called "Father" - Mat_23:8-10
29. Instituing the wrong Sabbath day
30. Religion of many ignorant and compliant masses (synchronous genuflectors)
31. Lukewarm congregations / half-hearted praise
32. Systematic mass indoctrination of the youth to sacraments
33. Ritualized OT style priesthood
34. Confessions to priests / penance
35. Sprinkling infant baptism
36. Reliance on apparitions from children
37. Veneration of bleeding statues, "sacred" oil spills and food formations resembling Christ/Mary
38. Boring repitive masses w/ two glossed over scriptures, lackluster singing/praise
39. Ruthless Inquistions, Persecutions of Protestants - Foxes Book of Martyrs
40. Sequestering the Word of God and persecuting Bible translators into the common tongues
41. Birth control stance in Third World countries
42. Obeisiance to Idols, Statues, Relics - Deu_12:3
43. Peter "first Pope", No mention in the scriptures or historical records of Peter ever going to Rome
44. Monastery & convents - cloistered existence of monks / nuns
45. Catechism & Missals instead of Bible (canned faith statements)
46. Paucity of priests - no inspiration to serve Church
47. Worshipping false apparitions
48. Kissing the Pope's ring & feet
49. Salvation by works, church attendance & sacraments
50. Crucifix & scapulas worn as charms or fashion statements
51. Burying St. Joseph's idols to sell real estate
52. Holy water, incense, candle lighting
53. Mafia - Roman Catholic connection
54. 501©(3) tax exemption
55. Imprimatur and censorship of acceptable literature
56. Infallible papal ex cathedra pronouncements
57. The Catholic Charities organization is a conduit and protector of illegal Mexican immigrants and also Black Africans, into this country who resist assimulation as Americans and are loyal only to their (Muslim/Catholic) Church and native culture.
58. Jews infiltrating Catholic Church heirarchy
59. Militant Jesuits, Leftist South American/Mexican priests
60. Voodoo condoned in African Catholic churches
61. Richest of the world's religions yet many parishes are closing
62. Bingo & raffles instead of Christian fellowship
63. Failure of papal decree prayer for Russia for promise of World Peace
64. Failure to recognize that there were variances of doctrine & worship practices in early church
65. Papal apologies to Jews
66. No meat (only fish) on Fridays
67. Tonsure of monks, priests & nuns
68. Veneration of dead saints
69. Ordained Priesthood of all believers - 1Pe_2:5, 1Pe_2:9
70. "Mother Church"
72. Self-flagellation and mock crucifixation displays
73. Crucifix displaying Christ forever on the cross
74. Corrupt immoral popes (Anti-popes since 1958)
75. Sanctioning inter-racial marriage
76. Apocryphal books incorporated into the Bible
77. Lighting of candles for prayer requests
78. Confession of sins to priests and prayer penance
This is a long list you have against the Catholic Church. I don't think that all Catholics are bad, but I'm not surprised that the Catholic Church is portrayed as something bad and is being persecuted today. However, regarding the first one on your list....the Traditional Catholics are NOT considered Roman Catholics. They go against the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, and these Catholics are not recognized by the Vatican because they were excommunicated by the late Pope John Paul II. When a group is excommunicated, they have no standing nor recognition with the Roman Catholic Church. Contrary to what these Traditional Catholics teach, the Roman Catholic Church teach that salvation is also possible in the Protestant communities.
When Jesus walked the earth 2000 years ago, He DID lose a large majority of His followers when He taught them about being the Bread of Life (See John 6). Many of His followers left because they could not understand Him when He taught them that they must eat His flesh and drink His blood to have eternal life. There are also many people who left the Roman Catholic Church for the same reason. They don't understand the Church's teachings.
There are many rules in the Catholic Church. But God also had many rules. God view is that of a family. And in the family of God, there are certain rules to follow. Catholics recognize that Jesus Christ Himself wants us to obey certain rules and regulations - namely those that He and the Apostles set forth. This should be true of all Christians.
Christianity is about relationships, particular our relationship with God and with all the members of the Body of Christ. And like any human relationship one has with a wife, husband, parents, sibling, children, co-workers, or friends, how we follow the rules of those relationships matters a great deal to how happy or unhappy those relationships will be.
If you're a parent, you expect your children to obey the rules you've laid down for your household. For example, you have a close, loving, relationsip with your twelve-year old son, but you also expect him to clean up his room, eat dinner with the family, take out the trash, and do his homework. There are certain things he must do and other things - such as don't play with matches, don't tease your sister, and don't lie.These are rules you impose on your children, not because you're "hung up" on rules, but because you know those rules are good for them and, if followed, they will contribute to a happy and harmonious home. In other words, the more we live by the rules, the better our relationships are. And if this is true of a human family, it's even truer of God's family - the Church.
The same is true about other rules the Lord has given us, such as: Give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, visit the imprisoned, shelter the homeless, believe in Me, be baptized for the remission of your sins, eat My flesh and drink My blood in the Eucharist, listen to the teachers I have appointed and commissioned to instruct you, obey the teachings of the Church I established, and so on. St. John echoes the Lord's words saying:
"Beloved, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God; and we receive from him whatever we ask, because we keep His commandments and do what pleases Him. And this is His commandment, that we should believe in the name of His Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as He has commanded us. All who keep His commandments abide in Him, and He in them. And by this we know that He abides in us, by the Spirit which He has given us." (1 John 3:21-24).
By paying attention to the rules the Lord has given to His family, the Church, we are truely living out our relationship with Him and with one another, as He desires us to. By following these rules, God is preparing us for Heaven. Afterall, one can't just do whatever they want in Heaven. God is in command even in Heaven, and we are to follow His rules even in His kingdom.