If you do not go to Church are you going to Hell?

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beltran21

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This applies to a lot of people and I am wondering because this is very important for Catholics.
 
Well since we are not the judge, only Jesus is, then it is hard to say for certain.
Are you unable to attend? Is your location void of a church? Do you believe in Jesus, the church and the sacrements?
🤷
 
Justice obligates us to give God worship at the appointed time. Not doing so is a grave wrong. Whether someone goes to Hell for it would depend on that person’s subjective culpability, which only God can know. It is certainly possible.
 
It depends on a persons understanding of Christ’s call for us to attend mass, and any other impediments that may factor in.
 
beltran21 said:
This applies to a lot of people and I am wondering because this is very important for Catholics.
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It would probably depend on the reason for not going to Church. If someone is extremely ill, or if there is no Church for them to attend, or if they work at a job that requires them to be present at times when normally they would go to Church, then no, they wouldn’t go to Hell for not going to Church.

However, if someone is perfectly healthy, lives within easy travelling distance of a Catholic Church, and isn’t working at a necessary job at the times when Sunday Mass is available, then, at the very least, God will have something to say to that person.
 
Define “Church”… Do you mean only to speak of the Catholic Church or any “church”?

Define “you”… Does this mean a generic “anyone” or Catholics only or what?

God can save a person who is not Catholic so obviously a person doesn’t necessarily have to go to the Catholic Church to be saved… It is just much easier and more likely that he can get on the road to salvation if he is Catholic… (However, if the person knows the Catholic Church is the right one & fails to join it, he is in trouble…)

If a person is Catholic and knows he is obligated to go to Mass on Sunday and, having no good reason not to go, refuses… wel… i would say there’s a good chance he is on his way to Hell…
As one saint once said, “The Church is Christ”…

It is a mortal sin to miss Mass under those circumstances.
 
The Church is far to wise to make a simplistic statement like that.

God alone knows what is in a person’s heart and why or why not they go to Mass. You will need to study the concepts of Divine Mercy, Forgiveness, Love for Christ, the Eucharist before you can come to an understanding why Mass is so important.
 
distracted said:
How do you know??
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One’s soul is not in danger because one choses not to participate in a religious service. One’s soul is in danger for much more serious reasons than not walking through a meeting house door and sitting on a bench for an hour or so.
 
distracted said:
God can save a person who is not Catholic so obviously a person doesn’t necessarily have to go to the Catholic Church to be saved… It is just much easier and more likely that he can get on the road to salvation if he is Catholic… (However, if the person knows the Catholic Church is the right one & fails to join it, he is in trouble…)
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How could a person KNOW the Catholic Church is the right one, and then fail to join it? For example, say a Baptist was told by his Catholic friend that, “The Catholic Church is the one true church.” The Baptist responds by saying, “I don’t believe that. I will continue going to my Baptist church.” In this case, does the Baptist “know” that the Catholic Church is the right one? Given his failure to join the Catholic Church, is he “in trouble?” Or, does his honest disbelief keep him from “knowing?”
 
beltran21 said:
This applies to a lot of people and I am wondering because this is very important for Catholics.
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I guess my question is, if you believe, why would you not want to go, assuming you are able? It is where one receives the means of grace, the Word and sacraments. For me it strengthens my faith, and helps me live in this world, even if I’m not of it. It is part of sanctification, going because you *want *to, not because you have to.

Jon
 
rick43235 said:
" In this case, does the Baptist “know” that the Catholic Church is the right one? Given his failure to join the Catholic Church, is he “in trouble?” Or, does his honest disbelief keep him from “knowing?”
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his honest disbelief keeps him from knowing… but it is his Christian duty to discover whether or not the Catholic cliams are true… If he “knows” they are not… he is not “in trouble”…

Only God (& the person) knows, however… whether he/she “knows”
 
Publisher said:
. One’s soul is in danger for much more serious reasons than not walking through a meeting house door and sitting on a bench for an hour or so.
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again, how do you know?

It would seem logical that God would not require someone who does not believe to go to a particular church that teaches those beliefs… and the Catholic Church teaches this - that if a person honestly does not believe in the Catholic Church, he is not obligated to adhere to Her teachings/practices… so i guess you would say the Church here is “in sync with logic”…

But there is a danger in thinking that God and/or his Church always must follow human “logic”…

For one thing one man’s logic is another man’s illogic… (if that’s a word & it probably isn’t…🤷 ) Hitler seemed to think it was logical to invade Poland, exterminate the Jews… (etc, etc)

As the Word says:

God’s ways are not our ways…
 
Why are so many believers so hard core about whether they are going to heaven anot ?? :o
Halo…do not always put your thoughts towards this…coz, God already decided who will go heaven…what we need to do is make full use of our short stay on earth to manifest God’s glory to others…
 
happygal said:
Why are so many believers so hard core about whether they are going to heaven anot ?? :o
Halo…do not always put your thoughts towards this…coz, God already decided who will go heaven…what we need to do is make full use of our short stay on earth to manifest God’s glory to others…
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And how exactly do you manifest God’s glory to others by failing to go to His church on Sundays to give Him the worship that is His due? Makes it look like your priorities are on anything and everything BUT God.

Jesus attended Temple and Synagogue on the Sabbath, he is recorded as doing so numerous times in the Gospels, we can do no less.
 
happygal said:
Why are so many believers so hard core about whether they are going to heaven anot ?? :o
Halo…do not always put your thoughts towards this…coz, God already decided who will go heaven…what we need to do is make full use of our short stay on earth to manifest God’s glory to others…
Click to expand...
You have skimmed across that 2000 years of discussion in regard to free-will and God’s supreme knowledge. "God already decided who will go heaven… " is probably the major point of contention between Catholics and Protestants, especially Calvinism and its various forms of thought.
 
sbanks said:
Well since we are not the judge, only Jesus is, then it is hard to say for certain.
Are you unable to attend? Is your location void of a church? Do you believe in Jesus, the church and the sacrements?
🤷
Click to expand...
 
LilyM said:
And how exactly do you manifest God’s glory to others by failing to go to His church on Sundays to give Him the worship that is His due? Makes it look like your priorities are on anything and everything BUT God.

Jesus attended Temple and Synagogue on the Sabbath, he is recorded as doing so numerous times in the Gospels, we can do no less.
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I go to church on Sunday, so i don’t understand where you’re pointing at. Manifesting God’s glory is by allowing others to see that you are little Christ walking on earth, without even pple need to ask whether if you’re a christian/catholic…your personality, thinkings, behaviour…etc…etc is a good example of spiritual walk with him…Pope and Mother Theresa is an extreme good example of pple who truly manifest God’s glory…so it does not mean you go church everyday/sunday…you are a good christian/catholic…
What others see in you is how you portray…
 
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