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blues01
Guest
Do catholics believe they have to confess to God that they are a sinner, ask God to forgive them and ask Jesus to come into their heart and accept Christ as their savior? If not how do they get saved?
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Robert_in_SD
Guest
:tiphat: Hats off to you Vincent. Couldn’t have put it better myself.
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blues01
Guest
my mom says you have to actually ask Jesus into your heart. so you have to confess it with your mouth. do you guys agree?
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mercygate
Guest
What does your mom mean? Does she think Catholics don’t receive Jesus in their hearts? That we don’t ask him to be in our hearts?
Every Catholic says the Creed at Mass on Sunday and “confesses with his mouth” that he believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died and was buried . . . that he rose again on the third day . . . we confess that we believe in the forgiveness of sins and life everlasting.
When Catholics receive Holy Communion, we receive Jesus – Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity – into our heart and into our own flesh . . . Before we receive Him, we say: “Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only speak the word and I shall be healed.”
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itsjustdave1988
Guest
Yes and no.
Sometimes God blesses some due to the faithfulness of others. For example, the paralytic was cured and forgiven of his sin by Jesus Christ not due to him “asking Jesus into his heart” or “confessing it with his mouth” but due to the faith of his friends, right? (cf. Mark ch. 2)
So sinners who are capable, must surely repent and confess their sins, make satisfaction, obey Jesus and strive to sin no more. While others, like infants, who have no sins to repent of, or others that may be on their death bed and are incapable of expressing their faith, they are like the paralytic who was blessed by God due to the faith of his friends.
We pray that these are blessed by God due to the faith of his people who pray sacramentally for such blessings.
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Slow_Burn
Guest
If that were the case, then the logical conclusion would be that mutes could not be saved. Therefore, it is erroneous thinking that a verbal act is required. The acceptance must be with the heart and mind. 
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JGC
Guest
“Are you saved?” asks the Fundamentalist. The Catholic should reply: “As the
Bible says, I am already saved (Rom. 8:24, Eph. 2:5-8), but I’m also being
saved (1 Cor. 1:8, 2 Cor. 2:15, Phil. 2:12), and I have the hope that I will be
saved (Rom. 5:9-10, 1 Cor. 3:12-15).” “I am redeemed,” answers the Catholic,
“and like the Apostle Paul I am working out my salvation in fear and trembling
(Phil. 2:12), with hopeful confidence in the promises of Christ (Rom. 5:2,
2 Tim. 2:11-13)–but not with a false “absolute” assurance about my own
ability to persevere (2 Cor. 13:5). And I do all this as the Catholic Church has
taught, unchanged, from the time of Christ.”
cin.org/archives/cinapol/199804/0183.html (very bottom)
Bible says, I am already saved (Rom. 8:24, Eph. 2:5-8), but I’m also being
saved (1 Cor. 1:8, 2 Cor. 2:15, Phil. 2:12), and I have the hope that I will be
saved (Rom. 5:9-10, 1 Cor. 3:12-15).” “I am redeemed,” answers the Catholic,
“and like the Apostle Paul I am working out my salvation in fear and trembling
(Phil. 2:12), with hopeful confidence in the promises of Christ (Rom. 5:2,
2 Tim. 2:11-13)–but not with a false “absolute” assurance about my own
ability to persevere (2 Cor. 13:5). And I do all this as the Catholic Church has
taught, unchanged, from the time of Christ.”
cin.org/archives/cinapol/199804/0183.html (very bottom)
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carol_marie
Guest
Yes but babies are baptized who haven’t believed or repented so how does that work exactly???
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Vincent
Guest
carol marie:
Babies haven’t “arrived” yet, but God will not turn them away.
In fact, the baptism of infants demonstrates, in a more obvious manner, just how gratuitous salvation *really * is: they are unable to ask for God’s grace, but in the sacrament, God chooses to take the initiative and saves them anyway.
If a person is able to believe and repent, then God invites him to do so.
Babies haven’t “arrived” yet, but God will not turn them away.
In fact, the baptism of infants demonstrates, in a more obvious manner, just how gratuitous salvation *really * is: they are unable to ask for God’s grace, but in the sacrament, God chooses to take the initiative and saves them anyway.
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Chris_W
Guest
carol marie:
Hope that is an adequate response.
When babies are baptized, they receive sanctifying grace and thereby become children of God. If the child then dies, he/she will be recieved by God. The Father receives His child. Does any infant have a cognitive sense of love for the parent? Perhaps not, but the child knows the parent and the parent knows the child. Becoming a child of God is sufficient for the child’s salvation.
Hope that is an adequate response.
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itsjustdave1988
Guest
carol marie:
Ummmmmmmmm… see post #6.
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hlgomez
Guest
Carol M.,
Babies are baptized so they can become children of God. As Catholics, we do believe in original sin. This we inherit from our first parents Adam and Eve, but we didn’t commit this original sin. We inherited it and thus is tainted by it. Scripture tells us that “all have sinned”, so babies are not exempted. Even David in the Plsams testified that while we are yet being formed, we already have that sin, which the Catholic Church defined as original sin. The only way that stain of original sin can be removed is thru baptism.
Jesus said; “Let the children come to me…” In addition, we hold to the Tradition of the Church to baptize babies. In Mark 16:16 - Jesus says to the crowd, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved.” But in reference to the same people, Jesus immediately follows with “He who does not believe will be condemned.” This demonstrates that one can be baptized and still not be a believer. This disproves the Protestant argument that one must be a believer to be baptized. There is nothing in the Bible about a “believer’s baptism.”
In Acts 2:38 - Peter says to the multitude, “Repent and be baptized…” Protestants use this verse to prove one must be a believer (not an infant) to be baptized. In Acts 2:39 - Peter then says baptism is specifically given to children as well as adults. God’s covenant family includes children. The word “children” that Peter used comes from the Greek word “teknon” which also includes infants. In Acts 16:15 - further, Paul baptizes the household based on Lydia’s faith, not the faith of the members of the household. This demonstrates that parents can present their children for baptism based on the parents’ faith, not the children’s faith.
In addition, here are excerpts from the writings of the Early Church Fathers:
Hippolytus: “Baptize first the children, and if they can speak for themselves let them do so. Otherwise, let their parents or other relatives speak for them” (*The Apostolic Tradition *21:16 [A.D. 215]).
Origen: “Every soul that is born into flesh is soiled by the filth of wickedness and sin. . . . In the Church, baptism is given for the remission of sins, and, according to the usage of the Church, baptism is given even to infants. If there were nothing in infants which required the remission of sins and nothing in them pertinent to forgiveness, the grace of baptism would seem superfluous” (*Homilies on Leviticus *8:3 [A.D. 248]).
“The Church received from the apostles the tradition of giving baptism even to infants. The apostles, to whom were committed the secrets of the divine sacraments, knew there are in everyone innate strains of [original] sin, which must be washed away through water and the Spirit” (*Commentaries on Romans *5:9 [A.D. 248]).
Pio
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