I heard from a Protestant minister that Muslims don’t worship the same God as us and go to hell. Is that true?
Short Answer:
Each is judged according to how they respond to whatever they've been given, and God alone makes that judgment of the soul.
Long Answer:
Here’s the true but unpopular Truth: the Catholic Church is like Noah’s Ark, if you’re not on it (or at least clinging to the sides), you’ll drown. Or better put, the Church is like Peter’s fishing boat and it’s our responsibility, as Fishers of Men, to bring souls to Christ.
Jesus is the only way to heaven. He made it possible for us to get to heaven by his death on the cross, which is made present at every sacrifice of the Mass. So it is that the Catholic Church is indispensably linked to the salvation of every person anywhere, of any religion. Jesus sits in Peter’s boat and preaches from there.
There are different degrees of separation from and affiliation to this one True Church. We can hash out our relationship with the Orthodox, Protestants, Hindus, Buddhists and Packer Fans some other time. I’d like to get right to your question on Muslims.
Muslims worship the same One True God that we do. Along with ourselves and the Jews, they profess the faith of Abraham. Nevertheless they do not realize the Trinitarian nature of God: that the one God is three Divine Persons. It’s like they’re listening to the same song that we are on the radio, but they’re miles out with shoddy antennas and don’t have good reception, unable to hear the words and melody that we hear clearly.
God wants everyone to get to heaven, even those with shoddy antennas. That’s what He made us for, though it is within anyone’s power to reject God's desire for us and to go to hell instead. If someone is outside the Catholic Church, salvation is still accessible to them through the grace of God working with them where they're at. This grace has a mysterious relationship to the Church, since God always works through His Church and He reaches outward from His Church to connect to the lives of those outside it.
All then are judged according to how they respond to the graces they are given. This is quite different from the common conception that all religions are something like spokes on a wheel that lead to the same center. It’s not the case that all religions teach the same things but worship in different ways. In fact, we teach different and often contradictory things, while we actually have great similarities in the way that we worship. Incense, altars, priests, singing, sacrifices and sacred texts can be found in most religions.
If someone recognizes the fullness of Truth in the Catholic Church but refuses to enter it (or decides to abandon it), then yes, that is a gravely sinful decision and is a pretty serious place for that soul to reside. Realistically though, most people of other religions probably aren’t Catholic because the Truth has never been fully presented to them, not because of malice. We can’t read the state of souls, so we presume their innocence.
It seems a much more damnable offense to know the Truth and not seek to bring others to it, than to not live by the Truth because no one shared it. If others don’t know the Truth it may be more our own fault than theirs.
We are called to love, not to judge, and so in genuine love we must speak the truth. We must bring onto the boat those souls drowning in ignorance or confusion. All aboard!
Further Reading:
Lumen Gentium sections 14-16.
Monday, May 31, 2010
Saturday, May 8, 2010
Is there a Biblical Basis for Purgatory?
I have been married for 27 years. Both of us are cradle Catholics. My wife and I came to Christ over a decade ago. I read the Bible. I read the Catechism. I read “Catholicism For Dummies.” I went to confession and followed the rules. I would not join in the Eucharist with sin on my soul. Then I started to have questions. My family is currently attending the local Baptist church. But maybe you can convince me to come back.
Question: What is purgatory and is it truly based on scripture?
-Prison Guard
What purgatory isn’t:
-Purgatory isn’t a middle destination for those not ‘good enough for heaven’ or ‘bad enough for hell.’
-It’s not a second chance for damned souls.
-It’s not a place where the dead make up for a lack in the saving work of Christ by their own good deeds.
What purgatory is:
Imagine your mother telling you as a little boy not to touch a hot stove. You touch it anyway and are burnt. She quickly forgives you, of course, but that doesn’t make the burn on your hand go away! The effect of the sin is still there and needs healing. Catholics would look on sin as a sort of BURN on our souls: the Ten Commandments aren’t arbitrary rules, they are a safety net to keep us from the consequences of sin. Purgatory then would be a healing of any ‘burns’ caused by our sinfulness which we have at the time of our death.
It probably involves suffering, because sanctification involves suffering. (Rom. 5:3–5) (Heb. 12:6, 11) Though it is also quite joyful I imagine: freedom from sin and the desire to sin, and having certitude in one’s final salvation in a way unimaginable to us here!
Though it involves suffering, purgatory in no way stands contrary to the fact that Christ’s suffering on the cross is sufficient for our salvation, because those who enter purgatory are already saved. Any pain experienced there doesn't make them 'more redeemed.’ It's a one-way street of becoming acclimatized to Glory.
Where it is and isn’t in the Bible:
You won’t find the word purgatory in your Bible. You also won’t find the words ‘Trinity,’ ‘Incarnation,’ or’ Sola Scriptura.’ (Sola Scriptura being the Protestant teaching that the Scriptures are the exclusive authority for the Christian faith: a teaching not actually found in the Scriptures themselves).
All that being said, here is one argument on your terms:
The book of Revelation in describing heaven, states that "nothing unclean shall enter it." (21:27) I think we would agree that the large majority of people aren’t perfect when they die (I can only think of one or two exceptions). According to this verse then, either there must be some manner of being made clean after death and before entering heaven or else there is no one in heaven except for those who die utterly perfect, with no trace of sin or anything unclean on their soul. This cleansing and sanctification is an application of the purifying power of the cross. Unlike the prison you work in, purgatory is a gift, not a punishment.
Also, check out Mt.5:25-26 and 1Cor.3:12-15 and 1Pet.3:18-20. If these verses aren’t about purgatory, I can’t imagine what exactly they are about.
Write me again if that doesn’t convince you, I’ve got a lot more to say than that, but we can take it one piece at a time.
Purgatory is either going to be there or not when you die, but Christ truly present in the Eucharist is one thing that is certain NOW. Come back to the Catholic Church: if not for yourself then for us, we need men like you.
Question: What is purgatory and is it truly based on scripture?
-Prison Guard
What purgatory isn’t:
-Purgatory isn’t a middle destination for those not ‘good enough for heaven’ or ‘bad enough for hell.’
-It’s not a second chance for damned souls.
-It’s not a place where the dead make up for a lack in the saving work of Christ by their own good deeds.
What purgatory is:
Imagine your mother telling you as a little boy not to touch a hot stove. You touch it anyway and are burnt. She quickly forgives you, of course, but that doesn’t make the burn on your hand go away! The effect of the sin is still there and needs healing. Catholics would look on sin as a sort of BURN on our souls: the Ten Commandments aren’t arbitrary rules, they are a safety net to keep us from the consequences of sin. Purgatory then would be a healing of any ‘burns’ caused by our sinfulness which we have at the time of our death.
It probably involves suffering, because sanctification involves suffering. (Rom. 5:3–5) (Heb. 12:6, 11) Though it is also quite joyful I imagine: freedom from sin and the desire to sin, and having certitude in one’s final salvation in a way unimaginable to us here!
Though it involves suffering, purgatory in no way stands contrary to the fact that Christ’s suffering on the cross is sufficient for our salvation, because those who enter purgatory are already saved. Any pain experienced there doesn't make them 'more redeemed.’ It's a one-way street of becoming acclimatized to Glory.
Where it is and isn’t in the Bible:
You won’t find the word purgatory in your Bible. You also won’t find the words ‘Trinity,’ ‘Incarnation,’ or’ Sola Scriptura.’ (Sola Scriptura being the Protestant teaching that the Scriptures are the exclusive authority for the Christian faith: a teaching not actually found in the Scriptures themselves).
All that being said, here is one argument on your terms:
The book of Revelation in describing heaven, states that "nothing unclean shall enter it." (21:27) I think we would agree that the large majority of people aren’t perfect when they die (I can only think of one or two exceptions). According to this verse then, either there must be some manner of being made clean after death and before entering heaven or else there is no one in heaven except for those who die utterly perfect, with no trace of sin or anything unclean on their soul. This cleansing and sanctification is an application of the purifying power of the cross. Unlike the prison you work in, purgatory is a gift, not a punishment.
Also, check out Mt.5:25-26 and 1Cor.3:12-15 and 1Pet.3:18-20. If these verses aren’t about purgatory, I can’t imagine what exactly they are about.
Write me again if that doesn’t convince you, I’ve got a lot more to say than that, but we can take it one piece at a time.
Purgatory is either going to be there or not when you die, but Christ truly present in the Eucharist is one thing that is certain NOW. Come back to the Catholic Church: if not for yourself then for us, we need men like you.
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