Are we absolutely sure that Catholicism is true?

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I was having a conversation with someone that was about whether or not I would have converted to Christianity if I was born into Islam, for example. I said that I would have if I would have been able to (and willing to) searched for the truth wherever it lead me. He then asked me, “So, you’re saying that you know for a fact that Christianity is true?” Which makes me wonder about the Church’s stance on it. If the Church does say that we know for a fact that Christianity is true (which I think it does, but if I’m wrong about that, tell me), then how do we respond to a non-Christian who asks us how we know that with absolute certainty? After all, a lot of the arguments I’ve heard mention that Christianity is the best explanation of the facts, which would imply that it is epistemically possible that Christianity is false.
 
It is a matter of faith. Catholics believe that Jesus Christ was “the only begotten Son of God.” Muslims believe that Christ was only a prophet. Christianity spread by faith, Islam spread by the sword.
 
It’s the only religion in the world who says that God came to earth and dwelled among men as one of his creatures. Suffered, died, was crucified and buried. Descended into hell and on the third day rose again from the dead, ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father the Almighty.

It’s the only religion in the world where many of its original followers were brutally murdered in every country that they lived in for centuries.

A religion that was spread by faith and peace not the sword.

It is also the fulfillment of Judaism in which their whole history foretold him… and the only one besides that one which can claim it was started by God himself.

It’s the only religion where we can clearly see even pagan religions draw parallels to what God would do in the future (some see that as a knock, I see it as God planting the seeds even in these primitive places)

At the end of the day, it’s a matter of faith, but if Catholicism is wrong, then I can’t believe anything else is right.
 
I’m sure.

Even in tough times, never doubted.
Even when “scholars” tried to dissuade me. Nope. Still convinced.
Even when I was mocked for my beliefs. Still convinced.

Thank you Jesus, for this beautiful Church.
Let the church say :amen:

I pray you find the answers you are seeking. God’s peace to you.
 
It is true because it’s founder, Jesus Christ, a man who was born as one of us and died as one of us, rose from the dead to prove his words were true. No other religion on earth can make this claim.
 
Great question. This is ultimately a question of faith but that does not mean that Christianity is without reason, blindly following old doctrine. I think the writings of St. Augustine best summarize this notion. For me, the shear complexity and diversity of life on earth is enough to suggest that there was a divine Creator. Additionally, science has not, and can never disprove the existence of God.

As for Islam being spread by the sword, there were many times in western history that Christianity was forced on populations by force, ie the conquistadors, or the knights Templar.
Neither were truly motivated by Christ.

I suggest reading the Confessions of St. Augustine. He really emphasizes that reason helps strengthen faith.
 
emt_steve88 said:
As for Islam being spread by the sword, there were many times in western history that Christianity was forced on populations by force, ie the conquistadors, or the knights Templar. Neither were truly motivated by Christ.
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Sure, we can always find times where people abused their religion for personal gain. The difference is that Islam was spread by the sword from day 1. Christianity on the other hand was taken to the sword from day 1. Christians were slaughtered and forced to live underground (literally) for centuries. This is unlike any other religion on earth.
 
What is interesting is that at this point in history, where no one is “under the sword” to believe and be Catholic, you can find many people believing voluntarily and stating that they are absolutely sure. In many of those cases these people have faced opposition and threats, yet still believe.

I state that I am not good at making absolute statements of any kind but if there is anything on earth that comes closest to the truth, it would be the truths of the Catholic Church…the other truths are false, wrong, or incomplete.
 
Catholicism is Christianity at its fullest expression.

Catholicism is pre denominational, We are the originals

The Christian identity is a belonging to the Church because to find
Jesus outside of the Church is not possible. Quote. Pope Francis.

This from 2 Timothy 4:3-4 definitely applies to day with the thousands of Protestant denominations.

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths.”
 
I contend that yes, we can believe that Catholicism is true with absolute certainty.

There is NO OTHER religion that can produce so much boundless evidence of its truth without a single solid proof to the contrary. There just isn’t. Everything checks out: the bible, its authors, miracles still occurring today and other supernatural occurrences, the unchanging moral doctrines of the faith (how many religions do you know that haven’t ever changed a single doctrine during a 2000 year history?), and, to back it all up, the Catholic faith is the only faith existing in the world which is **perfectly **aligned with the natural law. Perfectly.

Now, I just said a lot, but I assure you, I can prove it all. It would just take a very great deal of time and background understanding to prove it all, which is why I don’t do it in this one post. It has taken me my entire life to come to the full understanding I have now.
 
CatholicSoxFan said:
I was having a conversation with someone that was about whether or not I would have converted to Christianity if I was born into Islam, for example. I said that I would have if I would have been able to (and willing to) searched for the truth wherever it lead me. He then asked me, “So, you’re saying that you know for a fact that Christianity is true?”
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There is a difference between knowledge of facts and knowledge of faith. I do not know as a verifiable fact in the empirical tradition that Christianity is true. But I believe without doubting that it is true. People who do not have faith are looking for indisputable facts about Christianity, facts they will probably not find because objections to these “facts” can be raised all over the place. Such people, if they are ever going to discover faith, first have to wean themselves away from the demand that indisputable facts in the empirical sense are the only things that will ever persuade them of anything.
 
Celtic_Maiden said:
Catholicism is Christianity at its fullest expression.

Catholicism is pre denominational, We are the originals

The Christian identity is a belonging to the Church because to find
Jesus outside of the Church is not possible. Quote. Pope Francis.

This from 2 Timothy 4:3-4 definitely applies to day with the thousands of Protestant denominations.

“For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own likings and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander into myths.”
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Great response. I would add to that, nowhere do you find the spiritual tools, the guidance, the support, and the forgiveness and love, as in the Catholic Church. My question to YOU is have you ever been to perpetual adoration? The first time I ever walked in the chapel door of a Catholic church with perpetual adoration, I could actually feel the awesome power of the presence of Christ. It was an incredible experience. Everything else, just feels incomplete to me.
 
CatholicSoxFan said:
I was having a conversation with someone that was about whether or not I would have converted to Christianity if I was born into Islam, for example. I said that I would have if I would have been able to (and willing to) searched for the truth wherever it lead me. He then asked me, “So, you’re saying that you know for a fact that Christianity is true?” Which makes me wonder about the Church’s stance on it. If the Church does say that we know for a fact that Christianity is true (which I think it does, but if I’m wrong about that, tell me), then how do we respond to a non-Christian who asks us how we know that with absolute certainty? After all, a lot of the arguments I’ve heard mention that Christianity is the best explanation of the facts, which would imply that it is epistemically possible that Christianity is false.
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The Church is absolutely cerrtain that it is the One True Church founded by Jesus Christ and has always taught this absolutely, with absolute certitude. It is the infallible teaching of the Church and may not be doubted by any Catholic, period. Is that certain enough for you? We cannot account for the disbelief of others, however we should help them to belief by setting an example of sanctity so they will be more inclined to belief.

Linus2nd
 
What we know is:

God is real, acknowledged by every religion (except atheism, which is really a non-religion)

Christ is real, acknowledged by all Christians, and muslims (even though they don’t believe He is God).

The Catholic Church traces its roots back to Christ and the Apostles, a line of popes and bishops all the way back to St. Peter. 2000 years back to the time of Christ, the Catholic Church has been around in Apostolic succession.

What we don’t know is why anyone could doubt its authenticity, when every saint is only verified as such by a documented miracle, when miracles abound in every generation from Christ Himself to the Apostle and many prolific saints such as St Francis, St Anthony, St Catherine, St. Martin De Porres, St Padre Pio, St John Vianny, St Rose of Lima, St Teresa of the Little Flower… and many more whose great works are legendary.

What you can ask yourself is, where are the great miracle workers among the Protestants, among the Muslims or among Buddhists or any other faith. The Jews had them, up to and including Jesus and the Apostles, but what great prophets and miracle workers can they lay claim to now ??? We have them throughout every generation.

So I can say absolutely, YES Catholicism is TRUE. We have it right more so than any other faith.
 
GangGreen said:
Sure, we can always find times where people abused their religion for personal gain. The difference is that Islam was spread by the sword from day 1.
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Untrue, or rather depends on what you count as "day 1. The “Meccan period” is pretty important in Islam, although admittedly they date their calendar from the “Hegira.”

I think it’s fair to say that the “civilizational” or “Constantinian” aspect of Islam is far more central than in Christianity. But if Catholics were to take the same attitude toward the “Constantinian” parts of their own history that many folks take toward Islam, there wouldn’t be much left of Catholicism.
Christianity on the other hand was taken to the sword from day 1. Christians were slaughtered and forced to live underground (literally) for centuries. This is unlike any other religion on earth.
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Christianity was certainly shaped by a period of persecution (even though most of it was sporadic and almost, one might say, absent-minded), during which they lacked both the ability and the desire to fight back with force, more than any other religion I can think of. And I agree that that’s significant. I don’t think it’s enough to prove Christianity to be true, however. For instance, much of the savagery of Christian language about hell can be understood as the resentment of the persecuted against their persecutors–a thoroughly “human” explanation which doesn’t particularly point to that language being inspired.
 
wcknight said:
What we know is:

God is real, acknowledged by every religion (except atheism, which is really a non-religion)

Christ is real, acknowledged by all Christians, and muslims (even though they don’t believe He is God).

The Catholic Church traces its roots back to Christ and the Apostles, a line of popes and bishops all the way back to St. Peter. 2000 years back to the time of Christ, the Catholic Church has been around in Apostolic succession.

What we don’t know is why anyone could doubt its authenticity, when every saint is only verified as such by a documented miracle, when miracles abound in every generation from Christ Himself to the Apostle and many prolific saints such as St Francis, St Anthony, St Catherine, St. Martin De Porres, St Padre Pio, St John Vianny, St Rose of Lima, St Teresa of the Little Flower… and many more whose great works are legendary.

What you can ask yourself is, where are the great miracle workers among the Protestants, among the Muslims or among Buddhists or any other faith. The Jews had them, up to and including Jesus and the Apostles, but what great prophets and miracle workers can they lay claim to now ??? We have them throughout every generation.

So I can say absolutely, YES Catholicism is TRUE. We have it right more so than any other faith.
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There have been plenty of Muslim miracle-workers–shrines to miracle-working saints dot the landscape of the Islamic world (although modern Islamic fundamentalism is hostile to that aspect of Islam, which may be why you haven’t heard of it). Same with Buddhism.

Mainstream Protestantism does conspicuously lack miracle workers (and I tend to agree that this is a serious mark against Anglicanism and other “respectable” forms of Protestantism), but Pentecostalism doesn’t. . . .

Edwin
 
In answer to the OP, St. Thomas Aquinas says that we can’t have “demonstrative” certainty about those matters which pertain strictly to divine revelation. He thinks we can be sure that there is a God, and this was confirmed by Vatican I. However, that doesn’t mean that every individual Christian can have or is required to have such certainty. Most of us, most of the time, are dependent on faith for even those things which the Church says can in principle be proved by reason.

However, contra the invidious definition put forward by atheists, faith doesn’t mean believing against the evidence or without evidence. Faith means that you have a kind of certainty that does not come only from the evidence. You see and weigh the evidence, and you make a decision. Christians believe that this confidence in something one cannot absolutely prove comes from God in the case of the Christian faith. However, Christian apologists have also pointed out (rightly, I think) that it would be hard to get through a day without acting as if something were absolutely certain that from a strictly evidentiary point of view we know may not be true.
 
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