Help to explain

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Catholic361

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I have been talking about our faith to my boyfriend and let him ask questions about it. We have gone back and forth between him getting upset because he was under the impression that we as Catholics are /were better than others and that we tell people that we will go to heaven and that other religions are going to hell when our Lord comes again, I told him that what he heard was incorrect and that we believe that our souls will be in one of three places when we die heaven,purgatory or hell. I explained to him what purgatory is and how we believe that it is a place for people’s souls go to to be cleansed of any sins that they might still have at the time of their death before we are allowed into heaven. He was telling me that he was going to be going to hell because of the sins that he has committed and that was it. I’ve been talking with him about this and he has asked me questions about the Eucharist and the Blood what we as Catholics believe the Eucharist and wine become when they are consecrated .

Is there anything else that I’m missing in trying to explain our faith better to him?
 
It’s good to have a solid understanding of the fundamentals. I think that three of the most important are mercy, charity and penance. Mercy will keep your boyfriend from going to hell, if he receives the mercy. And penance will help someone from becoming attached to material things. Charity is necessary in order to love other people, and show that love.
 
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I’m not sure from your message if your boyfriend is from a different faith, agnostic, etc. I would start with what you have in common and work from there. Typically, the moral precepts are going to be the same among people no matter what they believe spiritually.

God’s love and mercy are boundless, and you do not have to call yourself a Catholic to have the possibility of heaven. How you live your life matters, and as long as you are not actively rejecting God, there is hope of salvation.

What has been his response to what you have told him about the Eucharist?
 
He was confused about what the Eucharist and the blood were , I thnk he is from a protestant faith but didn’t go to church as a child all that much and he was asking me questions about our faith and I was trying to explain what we believe as Catholics . I think he thought i was telling him that he was going to go to hell for his sins and even said that he had herd that we (catholics)were telling people that we were going to heaven and all other religions were going to hell I told him that what he had herd was incorrect and that we don’t think that we are going to heaven while others are going to hell i even went as far as to say that there were probably some Catholics who were in hell and that we believe that when we die our souls will go to one of three places heaven with god purgatory to be cleansed of our sins that we still have at the time of our own death or hell and that God is and was the only one who has that decision.
 
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A small book that covers the catechism in a “nutshell’ so is a lot thinner than the CCC is, is I Believe A Little Catholic Catechism - only 208 pages and " the book is ideal for RCIA programmes and Confirmation groups”. “This Vatican-approved catechism explains the central tenets of the Catholic faith, exploring the Apostles’ Creed, the Seven Sacraments, the Ten Commandments and the Our Father.”
 
Catholic361 said:
he was under the impression that we as Catholics are /were better than others and that we tell people that we will go to heaven and that other religions are going to hell
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This is incorrect, true. However it is fair to say that as Catholics we have more ‘benefits’ in the sense that we have access to the Sacraments especially the Eucharist, and to the saints, who can help us through intercession.
 
Explain it to him like this:

Catholics aren’t better or holier than other people. We’re just as screwed up and in need Jesus as anybody else. Then tell him Catholics can end up in hell too. Then explain what state of grace and state of mortal sin is and tell him Jesus gave us all seven sacraments to help us get to heaven.
 
Catholic361 said:
He was telling me that he was going to be going to hell because of the sins that he has committed and that was it.
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Jesus came and took the penalty of our sins to the cross and opened heaven for us. Your boyfriend can accept this generous gift of redemption like any other sinner. That’s why it’s called good news.
 
Access from your parish or buy an individual subscription to Formed.org

Go through both parts of Symbalon with him.
 
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