K
Knight4God
Guest
I don’t know the best way to ask this question so I’ll start with why and then try and explain what I’m asking.
Right now I’m a would-be missionary planning on going to Europe, probably British Isles. In the meantime, I have an opportunity to go on a mission trip to the Philippines. So this question involves a short term necessity, along with helping me figure out my future field. Now the mission board and the “evangelicals” we would be working with in the Philippines are anti-Catholic, in the sense of believing you guys are an apostate church. Actually this is a somewhat common view at this seminary, and I have debated students over it. I, at this point, am conservatively ecumenical. In that, I consider other Churches including Roman Catholic to be true churches, even if I believe them to be in error on many points. This may present a dilemma for me on the trip, I want to help the protestant churches, but I also want to not destroy the catholic churches. I acknowledge however, there are many Protestants and Catholics, who although “attend church”, are not “saved” in that they have no true Faith in Christ. I think we would both agree a Catholic that goes off to pray to Buddha as well as Christ is not truly faithful, or at least there is something seriously wrong (I hear large amounts of syncretism happen over there, and this is sometimes common).
So, how, as a Catholic, do you determine (for the sake of missions, even if you would say we can never really know for sure) if someone is “saved”. I realize you do not use that term exactly how we use it, which is why on mission trips if I’m talking to a Catholic I want to avoid “Protestant jargon” that would not really ask the questions I want to ask. Perhaps the question is from a missions and evangelism standpoint, at what point do you say someone is a lapsed Catholic or become apostate.
If I find someone to have genuine faith in Christ for their salvation (perhaps this is the question? Yet, Mormons would answer yes to this, so I’m thinking of asking if they believe the Nicene Creed). I want to send them back to the Catholic Church and tell them to become a better Catholic. My precedent is from the Billy Graham Association, which I hear does ecumenical evangelism also. So if you were doing mission work, how would you handle it, and I will try to treat Catholics in the same manner you Catholics would. And worry about butting heads with the mission board later!!
I’m not sure if what I’m getting at was come across accurately, or well, but here it goes
Right now I’m a would-be missionary planning on going to Europe, probably British Isles. In the meantime, I have an opportunity to go on a mission trip to the Philippines. So this question involves a short term necessity, along with helping me figure out my future field. Now the mission board and the “evangelicals” we would be working with in the Philippines are anti-Catholic, in the sense of believing you guys are an apostate church. Actually this is a somewhat common view at this seminary, and I have debated students over it. I, at this point, am conservatively ecumenical. In that, I consider other Churches including Roman Catholic to be true churches, even if I believe them to be in error on many points. This may present a dilemma for me on the trip, I want to help the protestant churches, but I also want to not destroy the catholic churches. I acknowledge however, there are many Protestants and Catholics, who although “attend church”, are not “saved” in that they have no true Faith in Christ. I think we would both agree a Catholic that goes off to pray to Buddha as well as Christ is not truly faithful, or at least there is something seriously wrong (I hear large amounts of syncretism happen over there, and this is sometimes common).
So, how, as a Catholic, do you determine (for the sake of missions, even if you would say we can never really know for sure) if someone is “saved”. I realize you do not use that term exactly how we use it, which is why on mission trips if I’m talking to a Catholic I want to avoid “Protestant jargon” that would not really ask the questions I want to ask. Perhaps the question is from a missions and evangelism standpoint, at what point do you say someone is a lapsed Catholic or become apostate.
If I find someone to have genuine faith in Christ for their salvation (perhaps this is the question? Yet, Mormons would answer yes to this, so I’m thinking of asking if they believe the Nicene Creed). I want to send them back to the Catholic Church and tell them to become a better Catholic. My precedent is from the Billy Graham Association, which I hear does ecumenical evangelism also. So if you were doing mission work, how would you handle it, and I will try to treat Catholics in the same manner you Catholics would. And worry about butting heads with the mission board later!!
I’m not sure if what I’m getting at was come across accurately, or well, but here it goes
)–it would be uncharitable for me not to ask you these questions.
