Protestants go to heaven, Catholics go to hell?

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NoelFitz

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Some time ago a Protestant friend told me he would go to heaven because he had accepted Jesus, who redeemed him and died for him and will save him. His spouse married him for better or for worse and will stick by him, so will God.

But a Catholic will be condemned to hell for all eternity for disobeying God or his Church, in a grievous way, with clear knowledge and full consent. Examples of mortal sins for Catholics include missing Mass, without good reason, on Sunday, ‘bad’ thoughts, masturbation, sex outside marriage, non-Catholic marriage, divorce and contraception. The Catholic is the ‘slave of Christ’, and is not free to make up her/his own mind about what to do or avoid. The Protestant can decide what is moral and what is not.

Is this so? I hope not.

The answer for me is that we cannot know the mind of God and must trust in his mercy. We judge God from our point of view, but he judges us in his way. In the end his mercy may prevail, and all may be saved.

What do you think?
 
We don’t get to make up our own religion and then be judged by it. If “once saved, always saved” were true, it would apply to both Catholics and Protestants, not just Protestants–and of course vice versa. God judges us by what is objectively true–of course taking into account our subjective cupability, etc.–not by whatever standard we personally have chosen.

The Catholic doctrine on salvation is the true one, since the Protestant one mentioned in the OP is a recent novelty. Catholics and Protestants are both called to be saved in that same way. There are no other paths to choose that lead to salvation.
 
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Well, Catholics can only go to hell for unrepentant mortal sin

If you kill someone in a premeditated manner and then collapse and realize what you’ve done and beg God for mercy, you have a better chance of getting to Heaven (IMO) than the serial killer who giggles after killing another victim
 
It’s really for God to decide which Catholic or Protestant goes to heaven or hell. We must trust in Jesus and Mercy.

That would be my answer, since your friend won’t listen to any other answer. When he is ready to listen, explain what the Sacrament of Reconcilliation is all about.
 
NoelFitz said:
The Catholic is the ‘slave of Christ’, and is not free to make up her/his own mind about what to do or avoid
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This is interesting as the New Testament clearly states Jesus came as a slave and the Apostles were slaves for Jesus and His Church. Sounds like your Protestant friend needs to more closely read his Bible! Of course God is merciful, but we have a duty to obey him in all things. Just because we don’t like that and it is difficult doesn’t make it not our obligation.
 
I think the kunundrum that is at the heart of this type of thread, lies with knowledge of God’s laws as they truly exist and the additional accountability that comes with that “knowing”. Protestants that violate the law out of ignorance are indeed still held accountable, but to a lessor degree PERHAPS than those who are properly educated on the law. Why? Depending on the sin, one of the three rules for mortal sin is of course, knowing that it is wrong.

I struggled with this lament for a long while, and I suspect many do, but the answer lies in part I think, in understanding that while not knowing the laws might mitigate a particular sin, it is far better to know of them, repent if we break them, and be forgiven.

We cannot possibly know completely how divine justice and our Lord’s mercy works. Far better to know about and deal with sin the Catholic way, which removes a great deal of guesswork, than to take the Protestant plunge into the unknown. I hope everyone understands the points I am trying to make.
 
Thanks for all the replies, but none really satisfies me.

1ke

Many thanks for your brief reply.

It reminds me for what a priest in our parish said, ‘for every difficult
question there is a simple answer and it is usually wrong’.

God wants you to be saved, God is almighty. Therefore, you are saved.

*And this is the will of the one who sent me, that I should not lose
anything of what he gave me, but that I should raise it [on] the last
day. *(Jn.
6:39 NAB)

This has nothing to do with relativism. An absolute truth can be considered
‘we are saved by the merits of Jesus’.

Genesis,

Good reply, thanks.

As I claimed in my OP - God is God, not us. We are all subject to God and
can only hope in his mercy.

Brittany,

None of us can make our own truth, except (perhaps) Humpty Dumpty.

“When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, ‘it
means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.’ ’The question
is,’ said Alice, ‘whether you can make words mean so many different
things.’ ’The question is,’ said Humpty Dumpty, ‘which is to be master —
that’s all.”

Exnihilo,

You agree we are slaves of Christ/God, as was St Paul. We are not free to
do as we want. Life is tough.

*2Towers *

You wrote ‘We cannot possibly know completely how divine justice and our
Lord’s mercy works’. I agree.

But ‘when ignorance is bliss tis folly to be wise’.

*Ray *

I disagree with you. For a Catholic repentance is not enough, the sacrament
of penance is needed (except in the case of perfect contrition, which is
rare).

R…

You are half right.

You wrote:

It’s really for God to decide which Catholic or Protestant goes to heaven
or hell. We must trust in Jesus and Mercy.

Mary is not our savio(u)r.

There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name
under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved." (Acts
4:12 NAB)

Jeff,

I disagree with you. We need God’s grace. Living a perfectly lawful life,
obeying all the laws will not save us.

we need Jesus.
 
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I think your friend is insulting the cross upon which Jesus died by thinking he can do whatever he wants and still reach glory.
 
GladTidings,
Thanks for two posts.

My friend is not me.

He has no intention, I believe, in insulting the cross. I consider him to be a very respected and sincere person.
Perhaps there are two extremes, one centered on faith, one on works, and the truth lies towards the middle. Perhaps Catholics should have more confidence in God’s mercy and his desire to save us.

This is good and pleasing to God our savior, who wills everyone to be saved and to come to knowledge of the truth. For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and the human race, Christ Jesus, himself human, who gave himself as ransom for all. (1 Tim. 2:3-6a NAB)
 
You seem to suggest that a protestant will go to heaven because he believes he will and God will respect that wish.

(That is 1 I believe I have 2 more).

A protestant should also be able to believe that they will win the Lottery, and they will indeed win the Lottery, for God desires their greater good.

(That is 2 I believe I have 1 more).

World peace.

(Just saying).
 
We must first address an important point. Protestantism isn’t a uniform homogeneous group.
NoelFitz said:
Some time ago a Protestant friend told me he would go to heaven because he had accepted Jesus, who redeemed him and died for him and will save him. His spouse married him for better or for worse and will stick by him, so will God.
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Based on the word choice, it would be safe to say your friend is likely an Evangelical. And even then Evangelicalism isn’t a uniform homogeneous group itself either.
One would have to consider the soteriology behind it in this case. Example:



One mistake some make is the assumption that one can keep on sinning. That’s not what’s being taught regardless of which Protestant soteriological view on holds (except for universalism). I blame this mistake that one can keep on sinning and still get saved on the poor wording and sloganeering some employ.
A person who is born-again strives to avoid sin otherwise the person is not truly Christian. Good works are evidence of whether or not a person a true Christian but ultimately God knows. A real Christian would not do whatever he or she pleases. Someone who is being transformed by the Holy Spirit would not see the rules as rules but something he or she desires to do because they truly love God with all their hearts, souls and minds. They know how costly Jesus’ sacrifice on the Cross was.
 
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NoelFitz said:
This has nothing to do with relativism. An absolute truth can be considered ‘we are saved by the merits of Jesus’.
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The idea of “decid[ing] what is moral or not” for oneself in the first place clearly does have to do with relativism. It is also a grave offence against hope to presume God’s mercy on the grounds that Jesus died for all of us (which is true, of course, but it does NOT mean all will be saved). Imagine claiming faith in Christ and in salvation yet at the same time willfully denying His commandments, all the while believing morality is for man, not God, our Creator and Lord to decide. That is not Christian.

God’s grace, to quote St. John Paul II, “enables each person to attain salvation through his or her free cooperation.” That cooperation does not consist in rejecting God or His commandments.
NoelFitz said:
Mary is not our savio(u)r.
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“Mercy” is what the user you quoted said.
 
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God bless every readers of the CAF.
.
THE CATHOLIC SOTERIOLOGY IS THE BEST AND THE CLEAREST ON THE SUBJECT.
.
The Catholic Church affirms predestination as a DE FIDE Dogma (the highest level of binding theological certainty).

CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA

THE CATHOLIC DOGMA. – The predestination of the elect.
.
Consequently, the whole future membership of heaven, down to its minutest details, has

been IRREVOCABLY FIXED FROM ALL ETERNITY. Nor could it be otherwise. For if it

were possible that a predestined individual should after all be CAST INTO HELL or that

one not predestined should in the end REACH HEAVEN, then God would have been

MISTAKEN in his foreknowledge of future events; He would NO LONGER be omniscient.
.
.
(2) The second quality of predestination, the DEFINITENESS of the number of the elect,

follows NATURALLY from the first. For if the eternal counsel of God regarding the

predestined is UNCHANGEABLE, then the number of the predestined must likewise be

UNCHANGEABLE and DEFINITE, subject NEITHER to ADDITIONS nor to

CANCELLATIONS. Anything indefinite in the number would eo ipso imply a lack of

certitude in God’s knowledge and would DESTROY His omniscience.

.
THE THEORY OF PREDESTINATION prævisa merita

THIS THEORY, CHAMPIONED BY all Thomists and a few Molinists (as Bellarmine, Francisco Suárez, Francis de Lugo):

Asserts that God, by an absolute decree and without regard to any future supernatural merits, predestined from all eternity certain men to the glory of heaven, and then, in consequence of this decree, decided to give them all the graces necessary for its accomplishment. End quote.
.
.
IT IS ALSO INFALLIBLE TEACHINGS OF THE TRENT AND FORMAL TEACHINGS OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH:

Every child/elect of God receives God’s special grace The Gift of Final Perseverance, which is an INFALLIBLE PROTECTION of the salvation of every child/elect of God.

Furthermore, without the above protection/God’s undeserved gift of special grace every child/elect of God would end up in hell.
There is no salvation without God’s special grace The Gift of Final Perseverance.
.
I believe the above Catholic teaching is the clearest in among all different denominations soteriology.

In my opinion, our Catholic Soteriology is the best.
.

God bless every readers of the CAF.

Latin
 
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NoelFitz said:
This has nothing to do with relativism. An absolute truth can be considered

‘we are saved by the merits of Jesus’.
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He who believes in the Son has eternal life; he who does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God rests upon him. John3:36

Faith means more than conscience belief. It means believing that Jesus is The Lord God Almighty and that He has the authority to command obedience. Disobedience shows that one rejects His authority or His ability to determine what is good and what is evil. It is the sin of Adam who knew God yet rejected His authority so he could decide for himself what is good and what is evil. We are saved by the merits of Jesus, He came to free us and give us the capability of following what is good and rejecting what is evil. Freely deciding for ourselves that we can do what is evil is rejecting Jesus’ sacrifice. It is relatvism to think one is saved by the belief that Jesus is God and died to save one from thier sins and that they will be saved even though they freely choose to continue to sin (deciding for one’s self what is good and what is evil).
 
One of the funniest things about Prots is they think they are saved just by saying they believe in Christ and that nothing they say or do can change that.

But, Catholics, who profess a belief in Christ cannot be saved because Catholics do “bad” things like supposedly worship mary, and statues and pray to saints.

They don’t realize how conflicting those statements are.
 
If once saved always saved were true the parables of Jesus would be tiny or even wouldn’t exist. Ten wedding attendants would end with all ten making it through, oil or no oil. Jesus would say “I was hungry and you didn’t feed me” etc. and then say but you believed in me so come in.
 
Does anyone know which denominations teach “once saved always saved”…I used to be a Pentecostal decades ago…I had never heard that…we did believe that through the atoning death of Christ on the cross that by his shed blood we had been saved…while we didn’t have to confess our sins to a priest we still had to show contrition for our sins and ask God for forgiveness…I had never thought of that as “once saved always saved”…I wouldn’t think that the more mainstream Protestant churches…Anglican…Lutheran…Methodist would agree with that “once saved” theory…maybe the more Evangelical churches might…but even there…there are so many different Protestant churches with differing interpretations it’s hard to say
 
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