"Interfaith Services" in a Catholic chapel

[bear06]

There is another system currently working out just fine. Again, not the way I came in but another effective way as shown clearly through Saint Josemaria Escriva.

You show them in your everyday activity in life.

So maybe it was the fantastic Masses, but maybe YOU paved the way for those Masses to nail it.

Dont sell yourself short netmil(name removed by moderator). You are convincing.

You are aware that many cooperators of Opus Dei are not even Catholic, right? It’s a quiet apostolate that doesn’t lead off with pointing out every difference between the Catholic Church and other faiths. There are many events where Catholics and protestants pray together. They’re just not billed as “interfaith prayer services”.

 

[Damascus]

But you’d probably consider anyone else who does that a heretic, right?

#####It was our dear Mother T, not I who said those words so be careful.

Not everyone has the ability to walk into a place where they know they’re not invited (where, indeed, they know they are considered heretics, and that simply speaking to a child will cause mayhem and pandemonium, in case they corrupt the child’s faith), and simply impose themselves upon the priest.

Who is not invited? They can attend Mass.​

For what it’s worth, interfaith services were what helped me get to meet Catholic priests and see them as real human beings. From there, I was able to take the step of talking to them and asking them questions.

####Glad to hear it. You never mentioned if your interfaith service was indeed in a Catholic Church, and even if it was, that really does not make it right even if something good came from it. We know this already from seeing how Protestant looking our Churches have become to make “new converts”
Funny, I was shocked to see little difference in the Parish I now attend from where I used to go as a protestant. Little difference, not much.

 

[Kendy]

If you don’t tell them, or give them the impression by almost endorsing their religion, thats exactly what they are going to assume.

Thats exactly what many are thinking today - they DO think the Catholic Church has changed its position and ‘dropped’ the Dogma of Extra Ecclesiam nulla salus. Because this false ecumenism gives the impression that their faiths are not in error, and that they have no need to convert to the Catholic Faith.

I am with you. A little tired of all the inter-faith stuff.

 

[jmcrae]

Little difference, not much.

There’s only one important difference - Jesus founded the Catholic Church; heretical schismatics founded the others - everything else could be identical, but only Christ’s church is the right church.

 

[jmcrae]

I am with you. A little tired of all the inter-faith stuff.

Yeah - we’re okay - let them go to Hell. Who needs 'em, anyway?

(PS: By the way, you are aware that Catholic Answers is interfaith, right?)

 

[Damascus]

You are aware that many cooperators of Opus Dei are not even Catholic, right? It’s a quiet apostolate that doesn’t lead off with pointing out every difference between the Catholic Church and other faiths. There are many events where Catholics and protestants pray together. They’re just not billed as “interfaith prayer services”.

I am aware of this. Yet the cooperators of OD do a lot more than attend interfaith prayer services. If they even do that at all. they participate in daily work for the work. Not flighty services.

I am not understanding the rest of your reply as it has no bearing on the point I was making and now you are twisting this into something else.

Another poster asked for an idea or a PLAN on how to bring in more non catholics. its a simple plan. Be the light to the world.
Be the salt of the earth.

Got it? Not sell out and kiss goodbye the things that we hold dear to lure the potential convert.

 

[Damascus]

Yeah - we’re okay - let them go to Hell. Who needs 'em, anyway?

(PS: By the way, you are aware that Catholic Answers is interfaith, right?)

jmcrae,

Brother I think you are misunderstanding a lot of what is being said here, and I for one am sorry if you think anyone is against getting more converts to the Church.

Of course we would all love to see unity as Christ asked of us.

Just not in ways that require us to hide who and what we are.

 

[Damascus]

There’s only one important difference - Jesus founded the Catholic Church; heretical schismatics founded the others - everything else could be identical, but only Christ’s church is the right church.

Jesus was not a polygamist. You are correct. We know that other faiths hold some truths. We want and need them to come back to the Bride.

But not if it means we hide her.

 

[Kendy]

As a general rule, I am opposed to interfaith** SERVICES**. I don’t have a problem with people of different faiths or even different religions for that matter praying together outside the context of an actual service. For example praying outside of an abortion clinic would be all right, moving the same thing to a Church and having an actual physical service I think would be wrong.

I also don’t think that a Church or Chapel that is designed as a distinctly Catholic place of worshiop should be used for these gatherings

The reason for that as I see it is simple. I believe that the Catholic Church is the one true Church. I also believe that all other Christian sects and other religions, Islam, Hinduism etc., and others are deficient and cannot have the same efficaciency as does Catholicism. Interfaith services almost never seek to evangelize because of the perceived equality of faiths that so many seem to have now, ie: as long as you believe in something you are all right. They don’t want to offend anyone. So they tend to be bland, and usually rather protestant in nature.

For Catholics to join in more than the most basic of prayers in these gatherings I feel is bad and dangerous.

Also an often overlooked point. Most non-Catholic faiths have doctrines and beliefs that are distinctly non Catholic or even non Christian. To use a Catholic Church or Chapel for services that include their messages is at a bare minimum disrespectful to the memories of the martyrs who died for our faith and at worst blasphemous to the most High God.

For instance, both Judaism and Islam have heard of and accept the life of Christ. Both religions have heard his message. Both religions accept the basic story of his life, with some differences. Both have consciously **REJECTED ** Christ as the Son of God and Savior knowingly and willingly. Mormons have doctrines and beliefs which are in direct contradiction to Christian teaching and Catholic doctrine. Ditto for the various Adventist groups. Most mainline Protestant groups reject the Catholic concept of Baptism as the cleansing of Original Sin and actually mock and disparage the Catholic belief system.

Just my opinion, but to allow people who hold these beliefs to enter into and use distinctly Catholic facilities to preach non Catholic beliefs I feel is completely wrong. If they want to come in and pray to whatever God they worship, fine, but let then have their services in their own places. I see absolutely no value in Catholics attending such gatherings and see the potential for a great deal of harm.

 

[Kendy]

What’s your plan for getting them in?

I think catholics are wrong to assume that protestants are going to be drawn by interfaith service. I find that people who are fond of such things are that way because they lack commitment or understanding of their own faith. Committed protestants, esp. evangelicals, don’t go to such things. I would not have when I was a protestant, and when I came back to the church, I was drawn by catholicism, not by a watered-down interfaith service.

We can evangelize by using media, interacting with people in everyday life, and through our charitable institution. The catholic church converted a whole empire of pagans without interfaith services. We did not need interfaith services to bring catholicism to Latin America, and we don’t need them now. The only thing interfaith services do is foster the “You worship this way, and I worship that way, is it cute?” attitude.

 

[Kendy]

Yeah - we’re okay - let them go to Hell. Who needs 'em, anyway?

(PS: By the way, you are aware that Catholic Answers is interfaith, right?)

I doubt that the organizers of inter-faith are not catholic, but you are welcome to show me otherwise.

As for letting them go to hell, you could not be further from the truth. I I am very concerned about everyone’s soul, but I think all the interfaith stuff has less to do with evangelizing. The real motive is rarely to lead others to the catholic church but to encourage “diversity.”

Kendy

 

[turboEDvo]

This is inconceivable ignorance - as I’ve already said before, and this Ignorance is very rare today, despite what the Modernists and Relativists would like you to believe. Many many people know the Church exists.

I addressed this in my previous post. “Knowing the Church exists” does not equate to “not being ignorant of the Church.” And unfortunately, there are plenty of circumstances that would lead a person to be ignorant of the Catholic Faith. This could range from being wronged by a person of power in the church or not properly being introduced to Catholic beliefs. It is actually pretty easy to be ignorant of the truths of the Church. Knowing the Church exists has nothing to do with faith, nor anything to do with knowing the Church. Knowing the Church involves being exposed to it, learning about it, and being involved.

What you are suggesting is akin to saying that somebody has never seen or heard of the Catholic Church before, and simply mentioning it in passing to them instantaneous means that they should convert and believe. Simply rediculous.

Eamon

 

[CatholicNick]

What you are suggesting is akin to saying that somebody has never seen or heard of the Catholic Church before, and simply mentioning it in passing to them instantaneous means that they should convert and believe. Simply ridiculous.

I would appreciate it, if you would NOT put words into my mouth.

 

[jmcrae]

This is inconceivable ignorance - as I’ve already said before, and this Ignorance is very rare today, despite what the Modernists and Relativists would like you to believe. Many many people know the Church exists.

Before starting to go to Mass for myself, I only knew what we were taught in public school in our Mythologies and Religions of the World class - not very much, and most of it, inaccurate.

The Catholic Church is big, but it’s not as famous as most cradle Catholics seem to assume.

 

[rayne89]

WOW! That is spectacular. I have never seen anything like that in a hospital before.

mayoclinic.org/tradition-heritage-artifacts/images/19-2-med.jpg

This is the hospital chapel at St. Mary’s in Rochester, MN.

Most of the Catholic hospital’s I’ve been to do have a tabernacle in their chapel.

 

[palmas85]

The true definition of interfaith is no real faith at best and lack of commitment and cowardice at worst. If you truly believe in interfaith then you must necessarily respect and accept what others believe, no matter what it is. And if you do that, then you by extension deny the truth of your own faith. For how can you respect a belief that you know in your heart and soul to be wrong or even dangerous? I don’t see how you can do it.

It is most interesting to note that today is the feast of the Vietnamese Martyrs who died for the faith about 160 or so years ago. Just think, if they had heard of interfaith relations and dialogue they would not have had to die. They would have merely clasped hands with their captors, chanted a few verses or prayers of whatever religion they killers adhered to, probably lit some incense and gone home for the evening, secure in the knowledge that they had been charitable, non judgemental and tolerent. .

Too bad they lived back when they did huh?

 

[netmilsmom]

Dont sell yourself short netmil(name removed by moderator). You are convincing.

God Love you!
Actually, I think it was lots of prayers to St. Monica, a green scapular under his side of the matress and telling him that I didn’t want him to turn Catholic for me, he had to want to do it himself. When I attended the “Catholic Community” he didn’t want to.

When I moved to our very traditional parish, our wonderful pastor sent him a copy of the Catechism, books by Scott Hahn and a personal invitation to mass. No one had ever invited him before. When he actually did show up (to see our girls sing in the choir) Fr. Ben gave him such a hearty welcome that I feel he was truly moved.

Now he needs to learn some Latin!

 

[netmilsmom]

What’s your plan for getting them in?

Open the door to the chapel and show an Historically Catholic Mass. That chapel deserves it.
Have the interfaith service directly following in a room across the way afterward.

You may find that many people come to the mass out of curiousity and stay. Scott Hahn did.

 

[netmilsmom]

mayoclinic.org/tradition-heritage-artifacts/images/19-2-med.jpg

This is the hospital chapel at St. Mary’s in Rochester, MN.

Think we could borrow it for 18 & Ryan?
Happy Thanksgiving Lady!

 

[Kielbasi]

I happen to go a hospital chapel once a month for the TLM (the only one in my city is only once a month). On my way out after Mass today (a wonderful Missa Cantata btw) I caught a glance of the chapel’s shedule. Apparently once a week there is something called an “Interfaith Service” there. That chapel is Catholic, in a Catholic hospital- why exactly is there a liberal protestant-style “Interfaith Service” there? Is this allowed?

The chapel is a Catholic chapel in the sense that it is owned by the Catholic Church who owns the hospital.

But its really there to serve all of the staff and patients of the facility, not just the Catholic staff and patients. So in another sense , it isn’t a Catholic chapel at all, but a hospital chapel.

I’m sure there are plenty of non-Catholics that are patients there, and since they can’t leave the facility, I think its a good idea that an interfaith service be held for them, because its unwieldy to have separate services for your Baptists, Methodists, Presbys, etc.