Are catholics allowed to go to a non-catholics funeral?

[Dauphin]

thanks Jean8

I don’t know what church some of these Catholics are attending, but the churches I’ve been to do not say that God only saves Catholics, and abandons faithful believers of Christ simply because they are not Catholic.

I can’t see God first saving a baby rapist who professes to be a true Catholic, over a good man, who has remained unwaiverinly faithful to Christ, and tried to teach others about Christ’s love and mercy, simply because he’s Baptist.

That’s a rediculous way to think. How can we profess God to be a loving, merciful God, and claim God loves all of his creations great and small… if he abandons those who love him because of the church they are affiliated with?

Like I said, in the bible it states the only way to heaven is through Jesus Christ, our savior… My dad wasn’t Catholic, but he was a faithful servant of Christ.

This simply isn’t the Catholic teaching. The Catholic dogma, which I’ve posted above, is eminently clear; there is no salvation outside the Church. All true Christians, being moved by the grace of God, will join the Church Christ founded.

The only way a person could be saved without explicitly entering the Church is if they were excused through ignorance beyond their control. However, we can still hope that non-Catholics are given a singular grace in their final moments, and are moved to accept the Catholic faith.

 

[BrendanD]

Brendan,
I wasn’t saying this was a belief of Lutherans.
I was giving the definition of the universal church which is catholic, spelled with a lower case c. It doesn’t refer to the RCC.

This is a Catholic forum, specifically a traditional one. If you want to give non-Catholic “definitions”, please do it in the “Non-Catholic Religions” forum.

 

[BrendanD]

I can’t see God first saving a baby rapist who professes to be a true Catholic, over a good man, who has remained unwaiverinly faithful to Christ, and tried to teach others about Christ’s love and mercy, simply because he’s Baptist.

I’m not sure where you’re getting this thing about Catholic baby-rapists being saved Catholics do not believe that all Catholics (nor all priests) are saved.

 

[Mayu]

Point out where in the bible it specifically says…

“The only way to heaven is if you are a Catholic. All other faithful servents of Christ are banished despite how good of a life they live, and how faithfully they serve Christ and try to live a Christ like life for Catholics are God’s chosen people.”

Tell me where in the bible it says that. Don’t quote to me the pope. Show me where in the BIBLE.

It is a VERY wrong belief if you think the church is more important than Christ himself.

You are saying being Catholic is MORE important than faith in Christ.

CHRIST himself is the true church, and it teaches IN THE BIBLE that those who have faith in Christ, follow him and believe that he shed his blood for our sins and rose again that we may too rise… will have favor in heaven.

 

[Mayu]

I’m not sure where you’re getting this thing about Catholic baby-rapists being saved Catholics do not believe that all Catholics (nor all priests) are saved.

read the previous posts. People are basically saying that no matter how good you are, that no matter how faithful of a servant of Christ you are, you have no chance of salvation UNLESS you are Catholic.

By that, that would mean a priest who has molested a child, as long as he repents and remains Catholic…

has a better chance of getting to heaven than my father who was faithful, tried to spread the word of God, and worshiped him fully, simply because he was NOT Catholic.

That is basically the message people are sending. If you’re catholic you have a chance, if you’re not Catholic, you’re screwed.

That is NOT right. It says in the bible that the only way to heaven is through CHRIST. My father was not Catholic, but he was a better Christian than 90% of Catholics who go to church to say “Look what a good person I am” but it’s not in their hearts.

who are Catholics to judge what God will do with those faithful followers of Christ who happen to be Baptist or Lutheren or non-demoninational?

God is the judge. To believe that only Catholics have the right to salvation is passing judgement on other people, which is only for God to do.

Christ himself is the true religion, and ALL those who follow him, love him, and serve him faithfully will have passage into heaven if deemed worthy.

 

[Dauphin]

Point out where in the bible it specifically says…

“The only way to heaven is if you are a Catholic. All other faithful servents of Christ are banished despite how good of a life they live, and how faithfully they serve Christ and try to live a Christ like life for Catholics are God’s chosen people.”

Tell me where in the bible it says that. Don’t quote to me the pope. Show me where in the BIBLE.

It is a VERY wrong belief if you think the church is more important than Christ himself.

You are saying being Catholic is MORE important than faith in Christ.

CHRIST himself is the true church, and it teaches IN THE BIBLE that those who have faith in Christ, follow him and believe that he shed his blood for our sins and rose again that we may too rise… will have favor in heaven.

A true Catholic doesn’t simply dismiss the Sacred Magisterium and demand to be shown “where it is in the Bible”. This attitude is entirely Protestant.

That being said, the Bible doesn’t say that everyone who professes faith in Christ will be saved (even if certain verses seem to say that, they must be interpreted in the context of the rest of scripture and sacred tradition):
*
“Not every one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the will of my Father who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.”* - Matthew 7:21

It is the will of God that we should enter the Church Christ established. Faith must be lived in charity, or else it is no faith at all. One must be conformed entirely to the will of God, which is communicated through the teaching of His only Church.

 

[Mayu]

actually you are proving my point. It is not protestant to say what I’ve said. I have been taught as a Catholic that it is through Christ that we enter heaven. If this is true… than all who believe in Christ and have faith in him should have the same chance.

Like you have said in your own quote…
*
“Not every one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the will of my Father who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.” - Matthew 7:21*

It does not say “Catholics shall enter heaven.” Nor does it say “Catholics shall not enter heaven.”

It says: he that doth the will of my father shall enter the kingdom of heaven.

My father followed the commandments, he tried preaching the word of God to those who would listen, and to those who wouldn’t. He read his bible faithfully on a daily basis, he actually read it several times from cover to cover, he prayed daily, he never questioned God’s will even as he was dying.

So by your own quote… He has just as much of a chance to get into heaven by your own quote, as a Catholic has… and a Catholic has just as much of a chance to NOT get into heaven as a protestant.

*"Jesus says: ‘I am the way and the life. No one comes to my father but through me’ "

• John 14:6*

*"We must trust in Jesus with everything we have and everything we do. “This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference” (Romans 3:22). *

*“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). *

God loves his people… ALL of his people. He does not discriminate.

 

[BrendanD]

Point out where in the bible it specifically says…

I don’t play that game. I don’t believe in sola scriptura.

read the previous posts. People are basically saying that no matter how good you are, that no matter how faithful of a servant of Christ you are, you have no chance of salvation UNLESS you are Catholic.

By that, that would mean a priest who has molested a child, as long as he repents and remains Catholic…

If he repented, what’s the problem? Does God condemn people to eternal hell for a sin they have repented of?

has a better chance of getting to heaven than my father who was faithful, tried to spread the word of God, and worshiped him fully, simply because he was NOT Catholic.

I pray that your father is in heaven. I don’t know if he is, I can’t assume one way or the other, I can only pray.

It’s not useful to play with “well, this person has a better chance at heaven than this person, but these people have a better chance than them.” God decides who goes where.

 

[Dauphin]

actually you are proving my point. It is not protestant to say what I’ve said. I have been taught as a Catholic that it is through Christ that we enter heaven. If this is true… than all who believe in Christ and have faith in him should have the same chance.

You haven’t been taught the Catholic doctrine. Catholic doctrine is as clear as it can be on the matter; there is no salvation outside the Church.

That you so flippantly dismiss the dogmatic teaching of the Church demonstrates that you aren’t Catholic. If you want to present your beliefs and have them debated, you should go to the non-Catholic forum.

Like you have said in your own quote…

“Not every one that saith to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven: but he that doth the will of my Father who is in heaven, he shall enter into the kingdom of heaven.” - Matthew 7:21

It does not say “Catholics shall enter heaven.” Nor does it say “Catholics shall not enter heaven.”

The point of that verse is to demonstrate that not all who profess faith in Christ will be saved. A true faith is lived, which involves conforming oneself entirely to the will of God.

Christ established only one Church. It is his will that we should enter it. A true Christian will be moved by the grace of God to join the true Church.

My father followed the commandments, he tried preaching the word of God to those who would listen, and to those who wouldn’t. He read his bible faithfully on a daily basis, he actually read it several times from cover to cover, he prayed daily, he never questioned God’s will even as he was dying.

He has just as much of a chance to get into heaven by your own quote, as a Catholic has… and a Catholic has just as much of a chance to NOT get into heaven as a protestant.

This isn’t a matter of likelihood, or of how “good” we are as people.

Salvation isn’t awarded through chance, and neither is it earned. It is a gift of God’s grace.

 

[Mayu]

And you think YOU are catholic??

YOU are JUDGING me… you are not my God, you are not Christ, who are you to tell me what kind of a person of faith I am?

That is a mortal sin in itself, thinking you are justified to judge people of faith by saying how Christ would judge them when you have no idea.

You are very prideful thinking you are more right than what appears in the bible.

You are right about one thing though… The church is the only right way.

CHRIST is the church, and those who believe in him stand equal chance of heavenly favor.

He does not discriminate as you do. Judging fellow believers in Christ, or telling someone of faith they are not faithful enough, or telling a Catholic she is not a Catholic… is NOT christian.

 

[hamburglar]

This simply isn’t the Catholic teaching. The Catholic dogma, which I’ve posted above, is eminently clear; there is no salvation outside the Church. All true Christians, being moved by the grace of God, will join the Church Christ founded.

The only way a person could be saved without explicitly entering the Church is if they were excused through ignorance beyond their control. However, we can still hope that non-Catholics are given a singular grace in their final moments, and are moved to accept the Catholic faith.

Dauphin is correct, THAT is the teaching of the Church. There is no salvation outside the Church.

 

[Mayu]

Perhaps it is the teaching of the CHURCH but it is NOT the teaching of Christ himself.

Again I direct you to the fact that it says in the bible that God’s righteousness through the faithfulness of Jesus the savior- for all who believe. For there is no distinction among people in God’s eyes.

 

[Dauphin]

And you think YOU are catholic??

YOU are JUDGING me… you are not my God, you are not Christ, who are you to tell me what kind of a person of faith I am?

That is a mortal sin in itself, thinking you are justified to judge people of faith by saying how Christ would judge them when you have no idea.

You are very prideful thinking you are more right than what appears in the bible.

You are right about one thing though… The church is the only right way.

CHRIST is the church, and those who believe in him stand equal chance of heavenly favor.

He does not discriminate as you do. Judging fellow believers in Christ, or telling someone of faith they are not faithful enough, or telling a Catholic she is not a Catholic… is NOT christian.

I think you need to calm down. What you’re saying isn’t Catholic, so it’s reasonable to conclude that you aren’t a Catholic.

If I said that there is only One God and Mohammad is his prophet, I don’t think it would be unreasonable for you to conclude that I’m a Muslim. Do you understand?

What you’re saying is manifestly contrary to Catholic dogma. The Church is indeed the Body of Christ, but it has an essential institutional element which Christ himself created. The Church was founded upon Peter, and he was given a doctrinal authority over it. This authority endures today in the Magisterium, which teaches dogmatically that there is no salvation outside the Church.

 

[Dauphin]

Perhaps it is the teaching of the CHURCH but it is NOT the teaching of Christ himself.

How can you call yourself Catholic when you believe the Church is teaching something contrary to the truth of the gospel?

 

[hamburglar]

Perhaps it is the teaching of the CHURCH but it is NOT the teaching of Christ himself.

That statement reveals quite a lot. This is heresy at its simplest level.

 

[Mayu]

what I am saying is catholic.

The bible catholics use states the facts I have stated, and have the quotes I have quoted.

It does not say the only way through heaven is through the Catholic church. It states the only way through heaven is through CHRIST HIMSELF.

It does not say being Catholic is guaranteed pass, it does not say not being catholic is a guaranteed denial.

God judges all of his people as equals. that is taught in the catholic bible.

Obviously, you shouldn’t pass blatant judgments on people where you do not know them because, I was born and raised Catholic, I attended a Catholic school, I still attend a catholic church.

however, I do believe that it is through CHRIST we have a chance at salvation. A Baptist and a Catholic who live identical lives in Christ have equal chance at salvation through Christ.

if you truly love thy neighbor as Christ tells you… you do not pass judgement on them as unworthy of God’s salvation, and you pray for them.

Also, if it is true that a child molestor who truly repents, has the chance to enter heaven… Then that stands to reason that any faithful servant of Christ has the same chance.

You can not say, on one hand, not all Catholics will be deemed worthy to get into heaven, but on the otherhand say only Catholics are worthy of entering heaven.

How do you know what judgement God will pass on those who are not Catholics? You don’t.

It says in the bible that God looks at all his children as equals and will judge them equally.

 

[Dauphin]

what I am saying is catholic.

The bible catholics use states the facts I have stated, and have the quotes I have quoted.

It does not say the only way through heaven is through the Catholic church. It states the only way through heaven is through CHRIST HIMSELF.

It does not say being Catholic is guaranteed pass, it does not say not being catholic is a guaranteed denial.

God judges all of his people as equals. that is taught in the catholic bible.

Obviously, you shouldn’t pass blatant judgments on people where you do not know them because, I was born and raised Catholic, I attended a Catholic school, I still attend a catholic church.

however, I do believe that it is through CHRIST we have a chance at salvation. A Baptist and a Catholic who live identical lives in Christ have equal chance at salvation through Christ.

if you truly love thy neighbor as Christ tells you… you do not pass judgement on them as unworthy of God’s salvation, and you pray for them.

Also, if it is true that a child molestor who truly repents, has the chance to enter heaven… Then that stands to reason that any faithful servant of Christ has the same chance.

You can not say, on one hand, not all Catholics will be deemed worthy to get into heaven, but on the otherhand say only Catholics are worthy of entering heaven.

How do you know what judgement God will pass on those who are not Catholics? You don’t.

It says in the bible that God looks at all his children as equals and will judge them equally.

What you’re essentially doing is presenting a Protestant doctrine and calling it Catholic.

Unfortunately, Catholic doctrine isn’t whatever you want it to be. It’s an objective, immutable teaching which is clearly presented in documents of the Magisterium. Catholic doctrine says clearly that there is no salvation outside the Church, whether you like it or not.

Incidentally, the Bible doesn’t contain the teaching you claim it contains. You’ve misinterpreted it because you’ve removed it from its own context, as well as the context of Sacred Tradition and Magisterial teaching. Catholics believe that Christian doctrine is contained in and sustained by all three of these pillars.

 

[Mayu]

this is the last thing I will say about it because it is 2 am and I have to get to sleep.

but here’s the thing… and this is taught in the catholic church.

Our souls belong to God, and it says, in the Catholic version of the bible… that God will judge us equally based on our deeds and our faith in Christ.

Saying that only Catholics are eligable for salvation is damning souls that are not yours to Damn. You are stepping into God’s territory.

A true Catholic would know that.

*No one is elligible to enter the kingdom of heaven, rather the kingdom is within us. If the kingdom is within you, that is a very beautiful and powerful thing. If the kingdom of heaven is within you, you will surely become part of the greater kingdom of heaven within the hearts of others and ultimately one with God’s heart when our bodies are no more.

Matthew 17:21*

 

[hamburglar]

what I am saying is catholic.

The bible catholics use states the facts I have stated, and have the quotes I have quoted.

It does not say the only way through heaven is through the Catholic church. It states the only way through heaven is through CHRIST HIMSELF.

It does not say being Catholic is guaranteed pass, it does not say not being catholic is a guaranteed denial.

God judges all of his people as equals. that is taught in the catholic bible.

Obviously, you shouldn’t pass blatant judgments on people where you do not know them because, I was born and raised Catholic, I attended a Catholic school, I still attend a catholic church.

however, I do believe that it is through CHRIST we have a chance at salvation. A Baptist and a Catholic who live identical lives in Christ have equal chance at salvation through Christ.

if you truly love thy neighbor as Christ tells you… you do not pass judgement on them as unworthy of God’s salvation, and you pray for them.

Also, if it is true that a child molestor who truly repents, has the chance to enter heaven… Then that stands to reason that any faithful servant of Christ has the same chance.

You can not say, on one hand, not all Catholics will be deemed worthy to get into heaven, but on the otherhand say only Catholics are worthy of entering heaven.

How do you know what judgement God will pass on those who are not Catholics? You don’t.

It says in the bible that God looks at all his children as equals and will judge them equally.

Now I’m confused over your choosing of capitalization “catholic.” Often people opposed to the authoritative nature of the Church, which is granted by God, throw around the lowercase word “catholic.” You are combining that with the term “Catholic” and I can’t figure out when you are trying to talk about Christian churches or when you are talking about the Roman Catholic Church.

What you are saying is certainly not the belief of the Roman Catholic Church that Christ founded.

 

[HollyDolly]

I think of it this way.

I was raised Catholic, and I’m a praciticing Catholic… but I fight every day to be worthy of heaven and God’s mercy. I falter all the time, I sin, and I worry about my soul.

My dad didn’t have to fight as hard as I do to be faithful… because he believed with his whole heart. He had no doubt that Christ was the savior and God was almighty, and he didn’t fear death, even when his heart began to fail due to complications from cancer, and he knew he wasn’t long for the world. that only increased his faith in a life after this. His last words in fact, were words of faith, before he fell into a coma and died 24 hours later.

So by what everyone is saying…

The priest who has raped a small child has a better chance of getting into heaven simply because he’s Catholic, than my father who worshiped God, and has faith in Jesus Christ as the savior, simply because he’s baptist.

That’s very scary for those who believe that. It’s prideful to think that Christ would turn away those who believe in him and love him and have blind faith in him, and worship him as the true lord, simply because they are not Catholics. and Pride is a great sin.

It isn’t wrong for Catholics to go to a non Catholic or non Christian funeral .It’s just a funeral, and people are saying goodby to that person,that’s all.As far as the person goes, remember God alone is the judge.The Heavenly Father and His son Jesus will judge us and our actions at the end. We don’t know God’scriteriea for us getting admitted to heaven except that we must love Him and His son,Jesus and believe in Him.

I’m sure your dad was a fine man,.There are many protestants who have given freely of their time and money to help out those who are less fortunate. Many were just ordinary folk who tried to help someone down and out, just as many ordinary Catholics have done so.I think St.James said that faith without works is dead,and that Jesus said What soever you do for the least of mine, you do for me.
I do believe God can admit to Heaven whoever he wants.
This reminds me of something.In the book, the Book of Miracles by Zoltan Aradi,he had the tale of a french priest.He was known as a very holy man, and his cause was before Rome.One day, he accomphanied a man to the scaffold. He exhorted the comdemed to repent .The condemed, did not reply or make any statement to the crowd nor the priest. After the man was executed, the priest told the crowd they were witnessing a soul going to hell.
The priest’s cause was shelved, stopped.Why, because NO MAN knows who is going to heaven or hell, only God, and it was considered presumptious of this priest to think he could judge or know the state of this man’s soul better than God.This man could have made his peace with Jesus and begged His forgiveness before he was executed.

Speaking of the priest and abuse of a child, you ought to look at some of the mediaveal paintings of the last judgement.
They have members of the clergy going to heaven and hell, just like us ordinary folk, and many of these were painted before the Protestant reformation.

Always remember Jesus alone knows the state of our souls, and He is the ultimate judge at the end.