2007-01-03 22:57:51 · 16 answers · asked by rojer f 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Catholics refuse to accept that they do idolatory by praying to the saints because they say that they are only asking the saints to pray for them, they are not worshiping the saints.
They do not see that that bible states that we can now go to God ourselves without a third party (the priest). So being indoctrinated like that, It is only natural for them to ask the saints to pray for them. Even though the bible states that Jesus is our intercessor in heaven.
Saul called up Samuel from the dead and sinned against God. All that Saul did was that he wanted to talk to Samuel. Though it is different in a sense but there is also a similarity. Catholics is talking to the dead. Samuel was dead and so are the saints.(yes, i know that they are alive in heaven but they are no longer here on this earth).
As for images, they say that it is ok to keep photos of your family and friends. So therefore it is ok to have images of Jesus and the saints. The only problem here is that those are not the photos of Jesus and the saints. It is only presume to be. The second problem that Christians have with these images is that sometimes (not all the catholic churches) we can see candles and joss sticks at those images or statues. Yet the Catholics still insist that they are not worshipping the saints.
So probably they are taught that it is ok or they sincerely believe that it is ok. Who knows why they are in denial?
Hope this helps
2007-01-04 16:39:25 · answer #1 · answered by seapc_laos 3 · 0⤊ 3⤋
Pastor Billy says: I don't have to answer this one as so many intelligent Catholics have already given a great account as to why Catholics do not worship idols and why the Catholic Church teaches against idol worship in accord with the scriptures being the first Christian Church.
What I can comment on is the person who poses this question/more like inquisition is just one more voice of the non-catholic community crying out "hey look at us, I'm attempting to create an identity for my newly created group/community and to be different from early Christianity must slander it". This question is a-typical of Protestant taught Christians whom only know a mythical Catholicism instead of the real deal. An examination of official Catholic Church documents, the Catholic catechism (article 2113, 1852) will quickly dispel this misrepresentation of Catholic practise by our budding Catholic critic. Lets be students of history shall we, long before Protestantism showed up Catholicism was already teaching the errors of idolatry and it still does unto this day.
Edit#1 glad to see the additionally offensive comments of the asker have been removed.
2007-01-05 07:20:48 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
+ Idolatry +
Idolatry is divine worship given to an image, but its signification has been extended to all Divine worship given to anyone or anything but the true God.
By definition, a Catholic praying before a crucifix to the true God or a Non-Catholic Christian praying before a cross to the true God is not idolatry.
By definition, a Catholic asking a saint in heaven to pray for him or her in front of a statue of that saint is not idolatry.
+ The Communion of Saints +
Catholics share the belief in the Communion of Saints with many other Christians, including the Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Episcopal, and Methodist Churches.
The Communion of Saints is the belief where all saints are intimately related in the Body of Christ, a family. When you die and go to heaven, you do not leave this family.
Everyone in heaven or on their way to heaven are saints, you, me, my deceased grandmother, Mary the mother of Jesus, and Mother Teresa.
As part of this family, you may ask your family and friends living here on earth to pray for you. Or, you may also ask the Blessed Virgin Mary, Saint Andrew, or your deceased grandmother living in heaven to pray for you.
Prayer to saints in heaven is simple communication, not worship.
+ Graven Images +
Do you have pictures of your loved ones?
Statues and pictures of people we love are not idols.
Statues and paintings of Jesus and the saints are just like pictures of the people we love and respect.
The King James Version of the Bible states in Exodus 20:4: "Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth"
Why were the Jews commanded not to make graven images? Graven images were the standard method of pagan worship. They were representations of false gods.
This is a very clear command.
However God commanded the Jews in Exodus 25:18 and 1 Chronicles 28:18–19, "And thou shalt make two cherubims of gold, of beaten work shalt thou make them"
And in 1 Kings chapter 7 Solomon made bulls and other images out of precious metals.
It seems obvious that the Jews did not worship the cherubims and Solomon did not worship the bulls he had made. These images did not violate the command of God. Therefore, an image not made for worship is acceptable.
In Numbers 21:8-9, "And the LORD said to Moses, "Make a saraph and mount it on a pole, and if anyone who has been bitten looks at it, he will recover." Moses accordingly made a bronze serpent and mounted it on a pole, and whenever anyone who had been bitten by a serpent looked at the bronze serpent, he recovered."
And in John 3:14-15, Jesus says in correlation, "And just as Moses lifted up the [image of a] serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
How can a statue of our Lord Jesus Christ dead on the cross be considered an idol to a false god? A crucifix is the message of the Gospel without words held up for all to see, a visual reminder of the sacrifice of Jesus, no different from a painting, a play, or a movie.
Catholics do not worship statues but the almighty God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
+ With love in Christ.
2007-01-04 15:48:18 · answer #3 · answered by imacatholic2 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
Do Catholics Worship Statues?
"Catholics worship statues!" People still make this ridiculous claim. Because Catholics have statues in their churches, goes the accusation, they are violating God’s commandment: "You shall not make for yourself a graven image or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: you shall not bow down to them or serve them" (Ex. 20:4–5); "Alas, this people have sinned a great sin; they have made for themselves gods of gold" (Ex. 32:31).
It is right to warn people against the sin of idolatry when they are committing it. But calling Catholics idolaters because they have images of Christ and the saints is based on misunderstanding or ignorance of what the Bible says about the purpose and uses (both good and bad) of statues.
Anti-Catholic writer Loraine Boettner, in his book Roman Catholicism, makes the blanket statement, "God has forbidden the use of images in worship" (281). Yet if people were to "search the scriptures" (cf. John 5:39), they would find the opposite is true. God forbade the worship of statues, but he did not forbid the religious use of statues. Instead, he actually commanded their use in religious contexts!
http://www.catholic.com/library/Do_Catholics_Worship_Statues.asp
Catholics are not the only one's who "worship" (and I use that term loosely) idols, Hindu's, Buddists, in fact all of the Eastern religions, all use statuary in their religious ceremonies.
2007-01-03 23:27:33 · answer #4 · answered by silemuirne 2 · 6⤊ 3⤋
Let me put it this way, when a child kneels by thier bed at night and prays to God, are they praying to thier bed? No, of course not.
They are praying to God, not to the bed, therefore- just because you are praying in front of something does not mean you are praying to it.
On the subject of idolatry. Do you have a picture of family at your house, loved ones? Do these pictures mean that you worship these people. No, of course not, it just means you wish to remember these people because of your strong feelings/love for them.
On praying-mary and the saints. Have you ever gone through a tough time and asked someone to pray for your, or has someone else ever asked you to pray for them? Does this mean that you are the mediator between them and God instead of Jesus? No, it just means you are praying along with them in hopes that they will be comforted by God. This is what happens when Mary and the saints are mentioned with prayers. We ask them to pray for us, just like we would ask our family and friends to pray for us in our times of need.
I hope this helped!
2007-01-04 00:56:02 · answer #5 · answered by janet 2 · 7⤊ 2⤋
I think you need to go to a dictionary and learn what the word "idolatry" means.
When someone prays and there's an image of Jesus or someone there, it's not idolatry.
Idolatry is when someone WORSHIPS the image.
We Catholics don't do that.
So, we "hate to accept" it because ... it's not true.
.
2007-01-03 23:26:27 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 4⤊ 3⤋
Jesus said that non can come to the father except through him so,yes,Catholics are doing idolatry by praying to saints
2007-01-03 23:02:09 · answer #7 · answered by Green Lantern 4 · 5⤊ 4⤋
I've often wondered the same thing. Especially with the praying to saints and Mary and all that. Because the Bible makes it very clear that praying to anyone but God is idolatry. But then again, the majority of Catholics don't read the Bible themselves, but instead rely entirely upon what their priests tell them.
2007-01-03 23:01:08 · answer #8 · answered by Eowyn 5 · 5⤊ 5⤋
2 Corinthians 4:3 If, now, the good news we declare is in fact veiled, it is veiled among those who are perishing, 4 among whom the god of this system of things has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, that the illumination of the glorious good news about the Christ, who is the image of God, might not shine through.
Romans 12:2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God; but not according to accurate knowledge; 3 for, because of not knowing the righteousness of God but seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God.
Most believe that what they are doing is right in God's eyes. Remember Paul who used to persecute Jesus' followers, he thought he was doing what was right ...
2007-01-03 23:01:29 · answer #9 · answered by Tomoyo K 4 · 4⤊ 3⤋
We pray to the Virgin Mary and to the saints to intercede for us and pass along our prayers to God.
2007-01-03 23:01:21 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 2⤋