Question for Catholics about salvation ...?

Question

What is your definition of salvation? What do you think it requires to get into the kingdom of God? If you confess your sins to a priest, are you allowed to confess them to Jesus by yourself? Do you talk to God and pray when you're alone at home by yourself?
Romans 10:9
That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Psalm 69:13
But I pray to you, O LORD, in the time of your favor; in your great love, O God, answer me with your sure salvation.

Isn't it OK to pray by yourself?

PS. This is not a dis on Catholic. I really am open to hear why you go to priests and have other questions as well.

Answer 1

+ What is your definition of salvation?

The short definition of salvation is the forgiveness of sins and restoration of friendship with God, which can be done by God alone.

+ What do you think it requires to get into the kingdom of God?

Baptism and sanctifying grace.

+ If you confess your sins to a priest, are you allowed to confess them to Jesus by yourself?

The Catholic Church believes that "Only God forgives sin."

When a penitent person asks God for forgiveness, his (or her) sins are immediately forgiven.

Catholics also believe that when someone sins they not only hurt their relationship with God, they also injure the entire church, the body of Christ. The Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation not only reconciles the sinner to God but with the entire church, including you and me.

+ Do you talk to God and pray when you're alone at home by yourself? Isn't it OK to pray by yourself?

Yes, all Christians are commanded to pray unceasingly whether you are alone or with a group.

+ With love in Christ.

Answer 2

First off, you might want to go to www.fisheaters.com. This is a pro-catholic site and explains alot of your questions in detail. Now I will do what I can to answer your questions.

1) No well informed Catholic believes that it is the preist himself that forgives sins. It is the Holy Spirit that uses the priest as an intermediary to forgive sins. This is a very important distinction. The sacrement of reconciliation is passed down to priests by Apostolic succession. It is the way it is because that is how Christ set it up! Christ set up this sacrement when he breathed on his disciples and gave them this gift. Minor/venial sins don't need to be absolved in confession. Those can be handled through one on one prayer. Mortal sins must be absolved through confession. The sacrement of reconciliation is wonderful gift! God is more willing to forgive sins than a mother is to rescue her child from a burning house. Someone confesses their sins, does their penance and then is as pure as they were at baptism.

We think that the once saved always saved philosophy of the protestants is wrong. A man can be good but then fall into sin. If he is bad enough, he migh well merit hell. But God understands that we are human and have faults. That is why he gave us this sacrement so that we can start a new.

2) Now as to whether Catholics pray at home or anywhere else - that depends on the Catholic. Are we talking about the type of Catholic that just goes to church for easter and christmas? In that case - probably not. Are are we talking about someone that is very devout? Many catholics read scripture daily, pray daily and try to constantly have Jesus be in their heart and to see the Christ in others. Such a catholic can pray at home, at work, while exercising, outside taking a walk - anywhere! One form of prayer is the Rosary which can be said at home or while traveling. www.rosary-center.org

Hope this helps.

Answer 3

Hello mr friend,

I am a born again Christian who also was baptized into the Catholic Church a few years ago. I pray to Jesus, but not as much as I should. I have never been to confession with a priest, but I do confess to my 'brothers' in Jesus quite often about my sins. The bible says to confess your sins, not necessarily to a priest. I would confess to a priest, if I took the initiative, though. I believe one must first seek Christ, and that need not be in a Catholic Church.

Why do I like the Catholic Church? Because you can go anywhere in the world and step into a Catholic Church and get help. Its true devout members spend a lifetime on their knees praying and meditating, and then they devote their worktime to others. A true blessing in our mixed up world.

Seek and you will find, friend.

The Sandy Beach Bum Wannabe

Answer 4

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says: "Salvation comes from God alone; but because we receive the life of faith through the Church, she is our mother: "We believe the Church as the mother of our new birth, and not in the Church as if she were the author of our salvation." Because she is our mother, she is also our teacher in the faith." (CCC 169)
Yes, it is OK and encouraged for Catholics to pray privately in their homes. We can talk directly to God just as a friend, we don't always need to use structured prayers.
In order to be forgiven for our sins, we need to confess them to a priest who is the instrument through whom God forgives our sins. We just can't tell God that we have sinned, ask for forgiveness, go on our happy littlle way, and not mention it in confession. There are penitential prayers that we say such as the Act of Contrition, the Confeitor, and the Kyrie, which temporarily absolve us of our sins, but we still must receive an official absolution and penance from a priest.

Answer 5

Yes, it's not only okay, but also very important to pray to God on your own. The idea of Christianity is to form a personal connection with God, and this can only be done through prayer.

Confession to priests is good. God granted priests the right to forgive sins ('what you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven,' apostolic succession). The reason why you should go to a priest specifically, is because it's important to confess your sins not only to God in the privacy of your own room, but also in front of people. It a LOT harder, but because of that, I think it means more. Also, the priest will give you a penance to do. This is not only a proof of your repentance but also works to help get you back on the right track. If you stole something, for penance the priest might have you go to the person you stole from and apologize directly. Most of us simply wouldn't have the courage to do that on our own, yet we should.

Catholics believe that even they don't know whether or not they'll go to heaven. Salvation depends not only on your faith in Christ, but also how you live out your faith. Only God knows what the exact standards are, however. The Pharisees had a lot of faith, but it counted for nothing because they didn't do anything with it. They didn't love others or give to the poor or help others find God. James 2:14-17 says "What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister has nothing to wear and has no food for the day, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, keep warm, and eat well," but you do not give them the necessities of the body, what good is it? So also faith of itself, if it does not have works, is dead." I'm only quoting a little bit, but what he says makes sense. Look up the passage and read the rest of it too, if you get the chance. Also, this website has a lot of Bible citations for the justification of faith and workds. It's Mormon, not Catholic, but the same ideas are present. http://www.jefflindsay.com/faith_works_list.html

Peace in Christ.

Answer 6

Salvation is only through Jesus Christ, yes I agree...But the role of the church is to be the Vehicle that 'sanctifies' us through to Christ. and that is what He has set Himself.

In confession for example, He did instruct His apostles (who later ordained other bishops and priests) and tell them "Receive the Holy Spirit, those sins you loose on earth will be loosened in heaven, and those that you bind on earth will be bound in heaven."
So that is why Catholics and Orthodox parisheners go and confess to a priest.

I know what you are thinking, you are probably thinking "Hey that is cool, I can just make-up my confession and I will get forgiveness because I managed to fool the old man in black...
But here is the Trick...yes I did say that a priest will need to read the apsolution to loosen the sin, but you are also correct in regards that one needs to confess and repent from the sin in their heart between themselves and God.

So both are required...God will hear your repentance and support you and will begin to heal the wonds of the sin, but the priest will (through the grace and gift of the Holy Spirit) will loosen your sin and God will forgive it...But If I lie to that old man in black, I may fool him, I but I certainly won't fool the Holy Spirit working within him, and my sins would be greater then.

I hope this helps...and I am more than happy to help you out with even more question...just ask. and If we do not the answer, we can atleast work to find it.

God bless you.

Answer 7

the way such distinct Protestants have managed to transpose works and style in no way ceases to amaze me. enable's analyze what a sacrament *genuinely* is, and rather, who performs a sacrament. A sacrament is an outward signal of an inward grace, which genuinely achieves what it shows. In different words, it really is in the sacraments that we typically get carry of grace. yet who performs a sacrament? A sacrament isn't the artwork of the recipient; that's the artwork of the Holy Spirit, executed by ability of the outward movements of someone *except* the recpient. no individual who receives a sacrament is operating for it; it really is a present from God. without the sacraments, we've the spectacle in Protestant churches of people getting up and giving testemonies to the congregation to exhibit how they repented and "were given proper with God." imagine about that for a second. Salvation for most Protestants has grow to be a psychological workout on the area of the Christian. would not such psychological workouts be, um, *works*??? "For with the help of grace are ye kept by ability of religion and that not of ourselves,that's the present of God not of works lest any guy ought to boast." we are kept with the help of grace. That grace is gained in the sacraments, that are a present from God. the actual element to appreciate about the sacraments is they are *exterior*. i'll't carry out a sacrament on myself; the sacrament should be administered to me with the help of someone performing as God's ambassador. for this reason, I genuinely have not some thing to boast about. i did not baptize myself. i did not forgive myself. i did not provide myself the Eucharist. all of it comes from outdoors of me. Which area of this do not you people get?

Answer 8

The Catholic view:

First, the verse quoted was directed to unbelievers, and does not describe what actions the believer must take to demonstrate his true belief that 'Jesus is Lord'. This belief is truly demonstrated by doing what Jesus commands, in the manner Jesus commanded it.

Jesus exercised his power to forgive sins while he was on earth, and as a man (Jn 8:1-2, Lk 7:48). Mark 2:10 says 'to convince you that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins while He is on earth'. Jesus delegated this authority to his Apostles, 'He breathed on them and said to them "Receive the Holy Spirit, when you forgive men's sins, they are forgiven, when you hold them bound, they are held bound"' (Jn 20:22-23). This power was not used as being from themselves, but from God. "This, as always, is God's doing; it is he who, through Christ, has reconciled us to himself, and ALLOWED US TO MINISTER THIS RECONCILATION OF HIS TO OTHERS" (2 Cor 5:18)

This power was, of necessity, given to the Apostle's successors through the church, since these men carried on after the Apostles had died, for Christ said 'And behold, I am with you always, even to the consumation of the world' (Mt 28:19-20).

Some think that confession is a later 'invention' of the church, thinking it was somehow established at the Fourth Lateran Council of 1215. This council discussed the frequency with which one should go to confession, not the invention of it. We have multiple references to confession from the second , third and fourth century, and the necessity of confessing to a priest. (St. Irenaeus - Adversus Haereses, Origen - In Psalmos homiliae, St. Ambrose - Da paenitentia)

Note also that the power given the Apostles also allowed them to 'hold bound' sins. If all that was required for salvation was to confess belief or to ask forgiveness in private, that power would have no meaning. How could they hold 'bound' sins which were not confessed to them? And how could they 'hold bound' sins if all sins were already forgiven? Christ's redemptive work was accomplished at Calvary, but Christ himself commanded how that redemptive work was to be accomplished in us, not just by the Apostle's testimony, but by baptism and the power to forgive sins.

'There is only one mediator between God and man, Jesus Christ' (1 Tim 2:5), but it was Christ who decides how this mediation is applied to us. When a Catholic goes to confession, he is confessing to God, not to the man behind a screen. It is God who forgives, but the priest who absolves. It's a difficult distinction, but the priest is exercising a power given him by God to act as his agent on earth.

So, by going to confession, we seek forgiveness in the manner Christ taught, we learn a lesson in humility (that is conveniently avoided when confessing privately), and we receive sacramental grace from God to avoid the sin in the future.

Hope this helps, and God Bless.

Answer 9

Jesus Christ Granted the Apostles His Authority to Forgive Sins
John 20:21 - before He grants them the authority to forgive sins, Jesus says to the apostles, "as the Father sent me, so I send you." As Christ was sent by the Father to forgive sins, so Christ sends the apostles and their successors forgive sins.

John 20:22 - the Lord "breathes" on the apostles, and then gives them the power to forgive and retain sins. The only other moment in Scripture where God breathes on man is in Gen. 2:7, when the Lord "breathes" divine life into man. When this happens, a significant transformation takes place.

John 20:23 - Jesus says, "If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven. If you retain the sins of any, they are retained." In order for the apostles to exercise this gift of forgiving sins, the penitents must orally confess their sins to them because the apostles are not mind readers. The text makes this very clear.

Matt. 9:8 - this verse shows that God has given the authority to forgive sins to "men." Hence, those Protestants who acknowledge that the apostles had the authority to forgive sins (which this verse demonstrates) must prove that this gift ended with the apostles. Otherwise, the apostles' successors still possess this gift. Where in Scripture is the gift of authority to forgive sins taken away from the apostles or their successors?

Matt. 9:6; Mark 2:10 - Christ forgave sins as a man (not God) to convince us that the "Son of man" has authority to forgive sins on earth.

Luke 5:24 - Luke also points out that Jesus' authority to forgive sins is as a man, not God. The Gospel writers record this to convince us that God has given this authority to men. This authority has been transferred from Christ to the apostles and their successors.

Matt. 18:18 - the apostles are given authority to bind and loose. The authority to bind and loose includes administering and removing the temporal penalties due to sin. The Jews understood this since the birth of the Church.

John 20:22-23; Matt. 18:18 - the power to remit/retain sin is also the power to remit/retain punishment due to sin. If Christ's ministers can forgive the eternal penalty of sin, they can certainly remit the temporal penalty of sin (which is called an "indulgence").

2 Cor. 2:10 - Paul forgives in the presence of Christ (some translations refer to the presences of Christ as "in persona Christi"). Some say that this may also be a reference to sins.

2 Cor. 5:18 - the ministry of reconciliation was given to the ambassadors of the Church. This ministry of reconciliation refers to the sacrament of reconciliation, also called the sacrament of confession or penance.

James 5:15-16 - in verse 15 we see that sins are forgiven by the priests in the sacrament of the sick. This is another example of man's authority to forgive sins on earth. Then in verse 16, James says “Therefore, confess our sins to one another,” in reference to the men referred to in verse 15, the priests of the Church.

1 Tim. 2:5 - Christ is the only mediator, but He was free to decide how His mediation would be applied to us. The Lord chose to use priests of God to carry out His work of forgiveness.

Lev. 5:4-6; 19:21-22 - even under the Old Covenant, God used priests to forgive and atone for the sins of others.

The Necessity and Practice of Orally Confessing Sins
James 5:16 - James clearly teaches us that we must “confess our sins to one another,” not just privately to God. James 5:16 must be read in the context of James 5:14-15, which is referring to the healing power (both physical and spiritual) of the priests of the Church. Hence, when James says “therefore” in verse 16, he must be referring to the men he was writing about in verses 14 and 15 – these men are the ordained priests of the Church, to whom we must confess our sins.

Acts 19:18 - many came to orally confess sins and divulge their sinful practices. Oral confession was the practice of the early Church just as it is today.

Matt. 3:6; Mark 1:5 - again, this shows people confessing their sins before others as an historical practice (here to John the Baptist).

1 Tim. 6:12 - this verse also refers to the historical practice of confessing both faith and sins in the presence of many witnesses.

1 John 1:9 - if we confess are sins, God is faithful to us and forgives us and cleanse us. But we must confess our sins to one another.

Num. 5:7 - this shows the historical practice of publicly confessing sins, and making public restitution.

2 Sam. 12:14 - even though the sin is forgiven, there is punishment due for the forgiven sin. David is forgiven but his child was still taken (the consequence of his sin).

Neh. 9:2-3 - the Israelites stood before the assembly and confessed sins publicly and interceded for each other.

Sir. 4:26 - God tells us not to be ashamed to confess our sins, and not to try to stop the current of a river. Anyone who has experienced the sacrament of reconciliation understands the import of this verse.

Baruch 1:14 - again, this shows that the people made confession in the house of the Lord, before the assembly.

1 John 5:16-17; Luke 12:47-48 - there is a distinction between mortal and venial sins. This has been the teaching of the Catholic Church for 2,000 years, but, today, most Protestants no longer agree that there is such a distinction. Mortal sins lead to death and must be absolved in the sacrament of reconciliation. Venial sins do not have to be confessed to a priest, but the pious Catholic practice is to do so in order to advance in our journey to holiness.

Matt. 5:19 - Jesus teaches that breaking the least of commandments is venial sin (the person is still saved but is least in the kingdom), versus mortal sin (the person is not saved).