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Devout Catholics Only Please:
I had a conversation with an aquaintence one day. She was a "party girl'. She was telling me how she went to a Christian college but left because they were too strict. (She was caught living with a boy off campus that violated one of the school rules.)
Surprised, I said, Are you a Christian? She said, "Hell no, I'm a Catholic!
Which made me wonder about her statement.

I read that Catholics do not believe in the teaching of Jesus Christ that a person is "saved by grace." by believing in Jesus is Lord.
Instead, they believe that you have to abide by the twelve sacrements of the Catholic Church to get to heaven.

According to the bible, that is a "works" faith. Trying to gain heaven by the works you do rather than believing in salvation through the grace of Jesus Christ.

SO....If they do not really follow the teachings of Jesus, are they then not really Christians?? Wouldn't they just be worshipers of God? Please help with this.

2007-09-01 12:11:59 · 11 answers · asked by blogdog123 4 in Society & Culture Religion & Spirituality

11 answers

Catholics are born again saved Christians and believe in salvation by grace.

Here is the joint declaration of justification by Catholics (1999), Lutherans (1999), and Methodists (2006):

By grace alone, in faith in Christ's saving work and not because of any merit on our part, we are accepted by God and receive the Holy Spirit, who renews our hearts while equipping us and calling us to good works.

As you can see, Catholics believe in salvation by faith alone.

But as a result of that Salvation and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, we are called to do good works.

Jesus even commands us to perform works of mercy toward our neighbor in Matthew 25:34:

Then the King will say to those at his right hand, ’Come, O blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’

Then the righteous will answer him, ’Lord, when did we see thee hungry and feed thee, or thirsty and give thee drink?’

And the king will answer them, ’Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of my brethren, you did it to me.’

The Corporal Works of Mercy are:
- Feed the hungry
- Give drink to the thirsty
- Clothe the naked
- Shelter the homeless
- Visit the sick
- Visit those in prison
- Bury the dead

With love in Christ.

2007-09-02 09:29:27 · answer #1 · answered by imacatholic2 7 · 2 0

Well, I read this quickly, but, let me see if I can correct what you mean. Catholic was the first of the Christians. All other religion that are Christian, just means 'Christ believers.' There was a man called martin Luther. (not king..lol) He was a christian and felt that he did not believe in all that was being taught (at that time it was only Catholics) He started a new religion based on the catholic faith, added with his beliefs such as: The host (Communion) does not have Christ within. I believe he also felt that priests should marry. He turned Catholicism into Lutheran. (Martin Luther)

Also, getting to your question further, Catholics believe that even if you break the laws of God that Salvation can come in forgiveness. Forgiveness comes to people who are genuinely SORRY for sin's. That is what Jesus was for. A way to be forgiven.

2007-09-01 15:39:58 · answer #2 · answered by LaDyDi 1 · 1 0

Catholics do belive in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. There are only seven sacriments (baptism, reconciliation, communion, confermation, anointing of the sick, Holy orders, and marriage) Catholics are Christians because Catholics where the first group of christians. So everyone elce broke away form the church. I've listed some websites that have good info about the Catholic church.

2007-09-01 13:41:43 · answer #3 · answered by pepgurli 7 · 1 0

Sorry, not a Catholic and imacatholic2 is the best at answering these questions. But, Catholics follow the teachings of Christ just like other Christians, the church was founded by Jesus himself and St. Peter and the current Pope can be traced directly back to Peter.

2007-09-01 12:17:57 · answer #4 · answered by Team Captain 5 · 2 0

1) Salvation is a process, not an event.

2) Jesus paid the price on the Cross, "becoming obedient, even unto death..." All of us were "saved" - Good Friday afternoon, 33 A.D. - at about 3:00 P.M., Jerusalem Standard Time.

3) Wow...where did we get the other 5 Sacraments from? There are Seven...and they are the means of Grace and the hope of Glory.

Please...take a class before you hurt yourself coming up with such convoluted nonsense.

2007-09-01 12:21:14 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 1 0

Catholics are very much part of the Christian community. All true Christians try to live by the 10 commandments.

2007-09-01 12:22:42 · answer #6 · answered by normy in garden city 6 · 1 0

Depends on how you interpret it. The catholics do indeed follow Jesus Christ, and that is enough to call them Christians. The 12 sacraments are important, but I don't recall that Catholics ignore grace either. Depends on the person I think.

2007-09-01 12:18:17 · answer #7 · answered by Swiftwind 3 · 1 1

It's seven sacraments, not 12.

The Church teaches that we are indeed saved by grace through faith, not by works. But this is not in the sense that it's a one-time, ask-Jesus-into-your-heart, you-are-saved-no-matter-what event. We are to respond to that grace by living out our faith. "Faith without works is dead", yes?

As for your friend responding that she was not Christian but Catholic, she was either poorly taught about her faith or just using common terminology, in that (in the US, particularly) "Christian" is often taken to mean Protestant. Personally, I think Catholics do themselves and their faith a disservice by responding in this way -- for they are certainly Christian.

2007-09-01 12:25:02 · answer #8 · answered by Clare † 5 · 2 0

Hmmm... If you really want to know more on the subject, I suggest a couple of titles. One is a classic available online here:

The Two Babylons by Alexander Hislop http://philologos.org/__eb-ttb/

and the other a book by Dave Hunt called A Woman Rides the Beast available here:
http://www.amazon.com/Woman-Rides-Beast-Catholic-Church/dp/1565071999

2007-09-01 12:19:13 · answer #9 · answered by Mutations Killed Darwin Fish 7 · 0 1

Well see... "It is not a matter of putting a person into heaven; it is a matter of putting heaven into a person." Kinda makes your query... I don't know... mute... maybe... Perhaps work on developing beliefs of your own that not only are you comfortable with, but also allows you to be comfortable in this life and just let others have their beliefs.

2007-09-01 12:22:35 · answer #10 · answered by Richard15 4 · 0 0

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