How far may one participate in Non-Catholic faiths?

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ScrupulousMonk

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(Please provide an answer as well as a citation from the catechism, Bible, Church document, etc.)

Recently, my family and I went on vacation to various Buddhist shrines/temples in Thailand. I do not know exactly why, but my parents decided to donate some money to one of the shrines (I think as a courtesy for being permitted to visit in the first place). In response, one of the Buddhist monks decided to give us a blessing of sorts (I was not sure what it was). We had to kneel, bow our heads, and clasp our hands as he chanted and splattered water on our faces using a bundle of sticks. I felt really uncomfortable with this and decided to leave as he was doing this. The rest of my family participated until the end (they each received a white wristband made of string afterwards.

After the rest of my family finished with their “ritual blessing?” they admonished me for being disrespectful and being too “black and white.” They said that because we were not entirely sure what it was in the first place and we did not invest ourselves religiously into it, it was not a sin to participate in it. They said we were simply trying to experience other cultures. However, they said I have sinned for being disrespectful to the monk and Thai cultures/religions by not receiving his blessing.

After receiving their admonishments, I regretted what I have done. I should have acted as Blessed John Paul II did when he kissed the Koran, not because he agreed with Islam, but because he respected the Islamic people (correct me if the info in this sentence eas wrong).

Now, I would like to ask the people of this forum to help me better form my conscience on this issue. Please explain to me how far a Catholic may go in participating in the Faiths of others. Please cite the catechism and other Catholic sources. Also, please tell me if any of my family members or myself are in the wrong and why. I would very much like to avoid making mistakes inthe future so please help me to form my conscience.

God bless and thanks in advance.
 
Very interesting. My personal feelings are with you but I await others.🍿
 
To TARRAT

Thank you for your reply. It is good to know someone is paying attention to my desire for guidance. If I may ask, what exactly did you find interesting and what did you empathize with me on?
 
St. Paul discusses a similar issue in 1 Corinthians (viz., meats offered to idols). He warns the Christians not to participate in any such ceremonies, and while the food formerly used in pagan ceremonies is not intrinsically bad to eat, if another person reveals that it is idol meat, then one should abstain in order to avoid scandal.
 
You made the correct choice. Your family should be ashamed for casting Our Lord to the side so easily. Don’t get caught up in false ecumenism.

Posted from Catholic.com App for Android
 
:eek: I’m surprised that a family would scold their kin for following his gut feeling. :eek:

I agree with the others on your decision. Even though your family did not intend to spiritually invest in the ritual, the danger is still there. Look at occult boards; the users use it just for fun, yet the demons still arrive.

I’m going to counter the points your family put forward.


  1. *]Being disrespectful and being too black and white.

    *]We were not entirely sure what it was in the first place and we did not invest ourselves religiously into it, so it was not a sin to participate in it.

    *]We were simply trying to experience other cultures. You have sinned for being disrespectful to the monk and Thai cultures/religions by not receiving his blessing.

    • *]There is a difference between respecting another person and respecting that person’s religious beliefs. Your family could have respectfully rejected the monk’s invitation.

      If your family is scared of being attacked for rejecting such invitations, then review the lives of the martyrs.

      When it comes to God, there certainly is a black and white. Heaven or Hell?

      *] Innocent ignorance is not a sin, but ignorance as a result of denying certain truths can lead to sin. The opening passages of Paul’s letter to the Romans highlights this point. The pagans had knowledge of the Divine, but suppressed that knowledge and desensitized themselves to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. They let themselves continue to be ignorant, and so their ignorance is sin.

      *]#1 applies. It isn’t a sin to prevent yourself from plunging into a potential spiritual trap. We must be willing to honor God above Men and man-made traditions, while continuing to hold respect for certain traditions.

      Hopefully this article will shed some light. A snippet from it is below.
      vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p3s2c1a1.htm

      👍
      The social duty of religion and the right to religious freedom
      2106 "Nobody may be forced to act against his convictions, nor is anyone to be restrained from acting in accordance with his conscience in religious matters in private or in public, alone or in association with others, within due limits."34 This right is based on the very nature of the human person, whose dignity enables him freely to assent to the divine truth which transcends the temporal order. For this reason it "continues to exist even in those who do not live up to their obligation of seeking the truth and adhering to it."35
      👍
 
To All

Thank you all for your replies. Judging by what I read from your posts, it would seem that I was right to not participate in this “ritual blessing.” But now I have a different problem: how do I explain to my family this? This may seem trivial, but please understand my position (stop me if I detract):

-my parents profess to a liberal form of Catholicism (I am liberal too, but I had to mention this)(its probably not their fault, I deduced from prior conversations with them that they were raised that way)
-my brother has a special interest in Ancient Astronaut Theory and New Age thought (the History Channel)(he is slightly mentally challenged, so please have mercy on him)
-my scrupulousity has caused unnecessary stress on my family in the past and they would probably think I am just being scrupulous again if I explain my position on this issue
-I have already apologized to my family saying that I would not di something like that again, so it would be awkward if I changed my mind as a result of getting advice from the internet
-my father insists that I do not trust him enough (he was probably the most irritated when I just left tge blessing)

So what should I do? I am afraid that pressure from my family may just make me go through the same situation again and I would actually go through with it the next time around. If ever I should be in the same situation again, should I just go through with it just to appease my family? If not, then what should I do? It realy hurts me to go against my family, especially my parents. If there is something morally permissible that I can do that cab solve this problem without me confronting my parents, then please let me know. If you have no such advice, then any Info would be accepted.

(And please do not judge or harbor grudges against my family. We are all sinners after all)
 
I’m glad others have chimed in and helped you when you asked for guidance.

In your original post you said you started to take part in the event(?). That is where you may have stepped in “it”. I can see how it could be seen as a disrespectful thing to do in the eyes of buddhist involved. Probably the best thing to do would have been to excuse yourself before it started.

As far as the family getting mad at you perhaps you can convince them that you should be able to make your own decesions concerning you faith and that you thought it not right to partake in another religious rite other than your own. If your family is “liberal” this may not work. Most of the liberals I know want to be free to have their beliefs and they want you to be free to have their beliefs also.

I think you have been given some good advice here. Stick true to your beliefs.

God Bless.
 
First off I would sit down and speak to your priest about this.

Second, if the subject comes up with the family tell them you are uncomfortable doing so, end of story. It has to do with you and your conscience, which you are working on forming appropriately.

Not everyone is tempted by the same things, or liable to the same levels of devotion and action. If you family is able to act as they do out of respect only and it it no temptation to them, that is fine, they can act with a clear conscience.

I think that giving a donation for the upkeep of the physical temple if one visits as a tourist is appropriate. If one feels this is a moral issue, it is best for them to not visit the temple at all.

As far as the blessing goes I understand your reservation, and I think it is good that you followed your conscience. AND I am sure the monk understood and was not in any way upset by it. Any religious leader,especially one of good will would be fine with that.

No priest would take it personally if a member of another faith did not want a blessing from him.

Is it necessary to “confront” them again on this particular issue? If so, tell them that you are considering all aspects of it and are seeking the advice of a priest. I think speaking to the priest can help you in understanding what is respectful to God, your faith, and your family properly, and it is a sign to your family that you are open to learning and seeking appropriate guidance, not just making mountains out of molehills.
 
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ScrupulousMonk:
To All

Thank you all for your replies. Judging by what I read from your posts, it would seem that I was right to not participate in this “ritual blessing.” But now I have a different problem: how do I explain to my family this? This may seem trivial, but please understand my position (stop me if I detract):

-my parents profess to a liberal form of Catholicism (I am liberal too, but I had to mention this)(its probably not their fault, I deduced from prior conversations with them that they were raised that way)
-my brother has a special interest in Ancient Astronaut Theory and New Age thought (the History Channel)(he is slightly mentally challenged, so please have mercy on him)
-my scrupulousity has caused unnecessary stress on my family in the past and they would probably think I am just being scrupulous again if I explain my position on this issue
-I have already apologized to my family saying that I would not di something like that again, so it would be awkward if I changed my mind as a result of getting advice from the internet
-my father insists that I do not trust him enough (he was probably the most irritated when I just left tge blessing)

So what should I do? I am afraid that pressure from my family may just make me go through the same situation again and I would actually go through with it the next time around. If ever I should be in the same situation again, should I just go through with it just to appease my family? If not, then what should I do? It realy hurts me to go against my family, especially my parents. If there is something morally permissible that I can do that cab solve this problem without me confronting my parents, then please let me know. If you have no such advice, then any Info would be accepted.

(And please do not judge or harbor grudges against my family. We are all sinners after all)
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Print off applicable quotes from past popes, saints, and Church teaching. Simply present the facts. BTW there is no such thing as a liberal Catholic. You are Catholic or you are not Catholic.

Posted from Catholic.com App for Android
 
I think you did the right thing. I personally would not take part in a non-Catholic ceremony if I didn’t know what was going on. I would tell my family if a similar situation comes up again to count me out from the beginning.
 
TO ALL

Thank you all for your replies. It would probably be difficult to do so, but I know that the Lord will provide me all that is necessary to do the right thing.

Oh, and I fear that we got off topic. May someone please answer the title question? I would appreciate it.
 
ScrupulousMonk said:
TO ALL

Thank you all for your replies. It would probably be difficult to do so, but I know that the Lord will provide me all that is necessary to do the right thing.

Oh, and I fear that we got off topic. May someone please answer the title question? I would appreciate it.
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To answer your question, first of all we have to distinguish between “participate in”, and “pray with”.

I believe it is almost always OK to pray with people of other faiths, provide you aren’t praying for something against the faith. Obviously our prayers may have more in common with an Anglican than say, a Hindu, but if there was a local gathering of all faiths to pray for peace for instance, surely it would be OK to join.

“Participate in” would mean, I think, participating in the rituals of another faith. The best example is taking communion in a faith that doesn’t share apostolic succession and thus have a valid Eucharist. This one is obvious.

But obviously there’s a grey zone. For instance at one Oblate’s congress, we had both Anglican and Orthodox Vespers. Though neither follow the Catholic version of these liturgies, there was nothing inherently “wrong” with the prayers; Anglican Vespers (or Evensong as they call it), is similar in structure to us: psalms, Bible verses, etc. Nothing inherently wrong with that! It of course wouldn’t fulfill the obligation for those bound to the Office. Given that this Congress was approved at the highest level and had liturgies presided by a cardinal of the Curia, I suspect that this was OK! And yes the Anglican bishop that presided did give all a final blessing.

Now to get to the situation that made you feel uncomfortable: obviously one should be wary of things that make us uncomfortable; however I am one to believe that occasionally it is worthwhile to go outside one’s comfort zone. If I am to understand from your username correctly, you may have issues with scrupulosity. I think sometimes we tend to over-think things.

In your blessing situation, you visited, as a tourist, a Buddhist site, which is OK. There is nothing wrong with visiting such sites, with learning about other faiths, and entering dialogue with other faiths.

The monk in question imparted a blessing, and this made you feel uncomfortable. Keep in mind that he was not doing this to convert you nor disturb you. He was doing it out of courtesy and to wish you well. This blessing may not have had the effect of a blessing from a member of the Catholic clergy, but nor did it do any harm. In short, he meant well, and by imparting his blessing was intending to transmit these good wishes to you. I think one should be grateful, and if one is secure in one’s faith, what is the worry?

You also have “monk” in your username, and perhaps it would be worthwhile and make you feel more comfortable if you saw how monks deal with this.I am attached to a Benedictine monastery that receives people of all faiths and a while back some Buddhist monks did visit; their abbot shared our abbot’s table, and they mutually blessed each other.

I can understand your discomfort, there was a time when I would have similar discomfort in similar circumstances. But I feel secure in my faith these days (it hasn’t always been…).

If you are feeling insecure in your faith then indeed if the situation makes you feel uncomfortable and insecure you should recuse yourself. But otherwise, my suggestion is to take it at face value: the monk believed what he was doing; he was showing gratitude for the offering, and wanting to wish you and your family well according to his traditions. Reverse the situation for a minute: if a non-Catholic came to visit a Catholic holy site, and showed kindness to a priest showing him or her around, should the priest unconditionally bless that person?

I do think as Catholics we have to be open to the world. Be not afraid, and trust in the Lord to watch over you.
 
Faxero said:
If your family is scared of being attacked for rejecting such invitations, then review the lives of the martyrs.
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:rotfl: This was funny.

In the first centuries, the roman emperors came up with a brilliant idea to root out Christians. They ordered periods of worship to the Caesar. The people were expected to burn incense at an altar dedicated to the emperor. Everyone who would do this, would receive a written paper attesting to this. Who was caught without the paper, was tried and sentenced to death, for not worshiping the emperor. Of course, Christians were the only ones who would not and could not do this, for it stands against the first commandment. They could have pretended to burn the incense, without making an internal commitment, but they knew very well, that it would still be a mortal sin. Christians were not liked, because they would not recognize the divinity and lordship of the emperor.
Now, Scrupulous Monk, don’t you think that placing money or participating in the rituals of another religion is a direct contradiction to the first commandment, and is a serious matter?
 
ScrupulousMonk said:
(Please provide an answer as well as a citation from the catechism, Bible, Church document, etc.)

Recently, my family and I went on vacation to various Buddhist shrines/temples in Thailand. I do not know exactly why, but my parents decided to donate some money to one of the shrines (I think as a courtesy for being permitted to visit in the first place). In response, one of the Buddhist monks decided to give us a blessing of sorts (I was not sure what it was). We had to kneel, bow our heads, and clasp our hands as he chanted and splattered water on our faces using a bundle of sticks. I felt really uncomfortable with this and decided to leave as he was doing this. The rest of my family participated until the end (they each received a white wristband made of string afterwards.

After the rest of my family finished with their “ritual blessing?” they admonished me for being disrespectful and being too “black and white.” They said that because we were not entirely sure what it was in the first place and we did not invest ourselves religiously into it, it was not a sin to participate in it. They said we were simply trying to experience other cultures. However, they said I have sinned for being disrespectful to the monk and Thai cultures/religions by not receiving his blessing.

After receiving their admonishments, I regretted what I have done. I should have acted as Blessed John Paul II did when he kissed the Koran, not because he agreed with Islam, but because he respected the Islamic people (correct me if the info in this sentence eas wrong).

Now, I would like to ask the people of this forum to help me better form my conscience on this issue. Please explain to me how far a Catholic may go in participating in the Faiths of others. Please cite the catechism and other Catholic sources. Also, please tell me if any of my family members or myself are in the wrong and why. I would very much like to avoid making mistakes inthe future so please help me to form my conscience.

God bless and thanks in advance.
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As for non-Catholic mainstream Christian church services Catholics may attend baptisms, weddings and funerals. Outside that if they attend a worship service they must not participate in anythings that contradicts Church teachings.
As for non-Christian faiths all their beliefs contradict Church teachings and in my opinion that means we should not be attending them at all.
 
To All

Once again thank you for your replies. I am also glad we are actually answering the question, too lol. Please keep it coming.

Also, an Apologist gracefully answered my question; however, I can not help but feel his answer is a bit ambiguous in regards to my situation (perhaps because I was not as descriptive when I asked him). I would like for people to share their thoughts on the Apologist’s answer and determine how his answer would apply to my situation. Here is the link: forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=894109

Also again, I would like to also see comments on OraLabora’s reply.

To OraLabora

I found your answer quite interesting. Yours was the only answer that seemed to imply that participation in this Buddhist “ritual blessing” that I described might have been morally permissible. Everyone else seemed to think it was absolutely wrong. I would like to hear more answers like this or at least someone countering/supporting your assertions.
 
ScrupulousMonk said:
To All

Once again thank you for your replies. I am also glad we are actually answering the question, too lol. Please keep it coming.

Also, an Apologist gracefully answered my question; however, I can not help but feel his answer is a bit ambiguous in regards to my situation (perhaps because I was not as descriptive when I asked him). I would like for people to share their thoughts on the Apologist’s answer and determine how his answer would apply to my situation. Here is the link: forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=894109

Also again, I would like to also see comments on OraLabora’s reply.

To OraLabora

I found your answer quite interesting. Yours was the only answer that seemed to imply that participation in this Buddhist “ritual blessing” that I described might have been morally permissible. Everyone else seemed to think it was absolutely wrong. I would like to hear more answers like this or at least someone countering/supporting your assertions.
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I think its pretty clear that Catholics should NOT be participating in non-Christian services or anything that entails, including blessings. Sorry but I don’t see any ambiguity in Father Grondin’s comments. He is saying STAY AWAY from non-Christian services.
Buddhist are atheists. Why would you possibly think its okay to receive a blessing from an atheist.
 
ScrupulousMonk said:
To All

Also again, I would like to also see comments on OraLabora’s reply.

To OraLabora

I found your answer quite interesting. Yours was the only answer that seemed to imply that participation in this Buddhist “ritual blessing” that I described might have been morally permissible. Everyone else seemed to think it was absolutely wrong. I would like to hear more answers like this or at least someone countering/supporting your assertions.
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As I said earlier it is possible to over-think this. Consider that this was a spur-of-the-moment event; I think it is important that we always show respect to members of other faiths. Inter-religious dialogue is vitally important and is approved at the highest levels in the Church which in fact maintains a Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue. It is paramount to dialogue that we treat one another with respect. Being disrespectful to someone who is only trying to convey his best wishes on you will not further the cause of dialogue, which won’t win anyone over to the faith. As Christians we are ambassadors to the Church wherever we go. Allowing the monk said his blessing does not convey approval, nor indicate that you think the blessing is in any way theologically efficacious at imparting God’s grace. It merely means that you are being polite.

The correct thing to do, IMHO, is to simply say “thank you” and move on. If you are traveling in a foreign country you are bound to encounter folks of a different faith background. You may perhaps even share a meal with them and they may pray/say a blessing at the meal. If I share a meal with Protestant friends in a Protestant home, I let them say the blessing.

One cannot cut one’s self off from the world, nor can we always foresee circumstances like what happened to you where you were put “on the spot” as it were. No harm was intended, therefore no harm was done. I can understand the discomfort because there was a time in my faith walk that I would have felt exactly as you did.

Put another way you didn’t mortally sin by being there when the event happened. Mortal sin requires cooperation of the will. You didn’t plan to attend a Buddhist ritual that day, you didn’t go out and say “I think I’ll flirt with the Buddhist faith today”.
 
I understood the Apologists reply to mean that you did the right thing by not participating, you respected your faith as well as the faith of the monk. You took his faith seriously enough to not risk possibly disrespecting it by participating without full understanding and acceptance.

Though I understand on an emotional level that your family felt embarrassed and took your behavior as rude. I truly believe the monk did not think it rude and was not insulted. People who are secure in their faith, and respect it highly do not take insult when another person does not participate in it. The Apologist pointed that out as well.

I think you did bring up a very important issue with this thread. I have had Catholic family members encourage me to participate in Catholicism in a degree that I feel would disrespect my own faith as well as the Church. I have had people of other faiths also ask me to do so, and I have chosen to refrain. Some of them DID take offense, as they didn’t understand my reservation.

My choosing to not participate was not intended to say their faith is unworthy. But I don’t believe religions are like dresses, try on this one or that one, sometimes just for fun, sometimes with the intent of eventually buying one.

As far as your family allowing the blessing, it brings another issue to mind, that of people of differing faiths praying for one another, or asking for prayers. I feel it is similar to receiving a blessing. My response when someone of another faith asks me to pray for them, is that I commend them to their god.
 
To All

Thank you all for your replies. I really do like the answers I am getting here. Please reply to each other’s comments if possible. I would like to see how much more answers I can get.

Also, I plan that, if my parents ask or command me to participate in another foreign ritual again, I plan to simply choose not to (I just hope I actually go through with it, but I know the Lord wil give me all the strength and courage I need).
 
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