Questions For Catholics.

[MrZetterlund]

I’m protestant, and I’ve been investigating in Catholosism since I’ve been impressed with answers I’ve recieved to previous questions. I want to ask some questions, and if you can, give me a scriptual response. Of cousre, I won’t limit you to scripture, But if you could, just give me a good explanation:

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

Please feel free to respond. God Bless.

 

[Nominefili]

I’m protestant, and I’ve been investigating in Catholosism since I’ve been impressed with answers I’ve recieved to previous questions. I want to ask some questions, and if you can, give me a scriptual response. Of cousre, I won’t limit you to scripture, But if you could, just give me a good explanation:

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

Please feel free to respond. God Bless.

I can answer a couple of these for you.

1. The ordained clergy was given the office of the keys to forgive or retain sins on behalf of Christ. See John 20:19

On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you!” After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord. Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

Also, Matthew 16:13 and following:

When Jesus came to the region of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say the Son of Man is?” They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” “But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ,** the Son of the living God.” Jesus replied, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. And I tell you that you are Peter,[c] and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades[d] will not overcome it.[e] I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be[f] bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be[g] loosed in heaven.” Then he warned his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Christ. **

As you can see, Jesus gave special permission for the Apostles (and therefore for the others who would become priests in Christ’s church) to forgive the sins of penitent Christians, as we Lutherans say, “in the stead and by the command of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

1. Yes, there are homilies during Mass. They are generally much shorter than you would expect from a Baptist service though.

1. Anyone who disagrees with the Pope is outside the Church until such time as their viewpoint is corrected and they repent of their disobedience.

 

[Roman_Catholic_1]

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

I don’t. I pray to God and I ask Mary to also pray for me to God. This is a false premise. It is not one or the other and the Catholic Church does not say anyone has to ask the saints to pray for us. They are there for us, but no one is any more, or any less, of a Catholic because they do or don’t ask the saints to pray for us.

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

Again, I do both. You may want to search the apologetics thread on CA as this has been covered in great detail. Or you can start another thread.

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

Another question which probably needs its own thread. If you are looking for the Catholic answers and not a debate on it I would recommend you open the thread up in the Apologetics forum.

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

I am not sure what this question is asking? I, myself, have not preached during Mass. I go to Mass to hear the Word of God and take part in the Eucharist.

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

Another question which would probably be better with its own thread.

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

When he speaks in regards to faith and morals? Yes.

God bless

 

[CHESTERTONRULES]

I’m protestant, and I’ve been investigating in Catholosism since I’ve been impressed with answers I’ve recieved to previous questions. I want to ask some questions, and if you can, give me a scriptual response. Of cousre, I won’t limit you to scripture, But if you could, just give me a good explanation:

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

Please feel free to respond. God Bless.

My personal answers, as a convert to Catholicism. (You’ll get better answers if you ask the apologists here at Catholic Answers, however.)

1. Catholics consider the Saints to be prayer partners. It is no different than you asking me to pray for you. We believe that those who die in God’s good grace are with him in heaven and are therefore 100% righteous. Scripture tells us that the prayer of the righteous is powerful and effective.
2. We do both. We believe that oral confession was a teaching of the early Church and that is is biblical.

• John 20 *21Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” 22And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. 23If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”

1. Jesus wants us to be one as he and the father are one. If we disagree about what is true or moral, then we are not one as he and the father are one. Unity of faith and morals is only possible with a single Church led by a single authority.

Jesus gave Peter alone the keys to the Kingdom.

1. Mass consists the liturgy of the word(incl. bible readings and a sermon)
   , and then the liturgy of the Eucharist.
2. It is biblical and traditional
3. The Pope is only infallible in very specific circumstances. Popes are sinners like everyone else.

Good article on the papacy:

catholic-pages.com/pope/hahn.asp

 

[Lizziebel]

Hi! I’ll do my best to answer whatever questions I can.

#1 - This isn’t an either/or thing. Catholics also pray to God. But we also ask for Mary to pray on our behalf. Our Lord and Savior listens to His mother, and she leads us to Him!

#2 - This is because Jesus told us to confess our sins to each other. Also, he gave his apostles authority to forgive or retain sin. And priests are their successors, so they, too, carry this out and act in the person of Christ. Confession is really a special sacrament in which we are able to confess those sins, receive spiritual graces (along with some good spiritual advice from the priest) to help strengthen us to avoid the sin in the future. So, it helps us grow spiritually. Not to mention, it’s very powerful physically hearing the words of absolution from God through the priest.

#3 - Ok, this is a long one I’d best leave to others to answer .

#4 - During Mass, there is also a homily (sermon) by the priest after the readings.

#5 and #6 - Again, I’ll leave it to others to tackle these.

 

[twopekinguys]

I’m protestant, and I’ve been investigating in Catholosism since I’ve been impressed with answers I’ve recieved to previous questions. I want to ask some questions, and if you can, give me a scriptual response. Of cousre, I won’t limit you to scripture, But if you could, just give me a good explanation:

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

Please feel free to respond. God Bless.

I think I can fill in a few blanks here.

1. When we pray “to” Mary, as you put it, we are actually asking for her intercession. We are asking her to take our prayers to Jesus, God, and the Holy Spirit. We are not praying to her in the sense that she can grant prayers. She cannot. That is reserved for the Blessed Trinity.
2. I believe Nominefili addressed this quite well.
3. The Pope is the successor to Peter. Remember the verse, You are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my Church. Peter was the first visible representative of Christ’s Church on Earth after Jesus ascended to heaven. That position has been passed down to the remaining Popes. As far as the Saints go, I’m not 100% sure what you’re going for here, but…The Saints are those people who the Church teaches are in heaven based on their virtuos lives lived on Earth.
4. Yes, there is plenty of preaching. In fact, it is a requirement for a valid Mass that there be a homily (sermon) The homily is based on the readings that have been proclaimed during that particular Mass.
5. The annointing with oils is based on several versus of the Bible that refer to annointing in various ways.
6. That is a tricky question. When the Pope speaks on faith and morals, then his teachings are infallible, and we are rquired to adhere to those teachings. With that said, there are times (many in fact) where the Pope is not speaking on those issues, and ultimately could make a fallible statement. Although it isn’t likely.

I hope this helps fill in some of the blanks.

 

[Tantum_ergo]

1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

We don’t. We pray to Mary (prayer being a communication and not limited specifically to being to God alone, as is shown by the use of the word ‘pray thee’ even as recently as Shakespeare’s plays and meaning, "I ask’ and being addressed to normal, living human beings; we pray to God, we pray to other saints and to our departed friends and family etc. (as Scripture tells us that God is God of the living and that those who have died are alive in Christ). But it is never an 'either you pray to God OR to Mary. It’s both/and. We pray to God in worship, petition, thanksgiving etc.; we pray to Mary and the other saints in heaven pretty much because they (already being ‘with God’) have the full knowledge of God (for then we see ‘face to face’ in heaven) and can help join our prayers (as we are told the prayer of a righteous man availeth much).

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?
Well, because God gave the apostles the power to bind and loose and that power remains (for God is eternal and does not change); it is through that power that God has arranged that His forgiveness (his, not the priest’s) can be given THROUGH the priest. That’s the way He arranged it. So again, we are confessing to God THROUGH the priest. God forgives us, HIMSELF, through the priest.

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?
Pope is simply ‘papa’ (and don’t start with the ‘call no man father’, it’s been done to death and there’s a tract in the library here that answers it’). The Pope is simply the ‘first among equals’. he is a bishop (they DID have bishops/presbyters etc. in Scripture), and historically and traditionally speaking, the bishop who succeeds Peter (to whom Christ gave ‘the keys of the kingdom’ and ON WHOM was built the Church) is that ‘first’ bishop.

As for saints, Scripture speaks of all who are in Christ as saints. But as early as the first century of the Church–when it was still ‘underground’ (literally), being persecuted, those who suffered and died as martyrs were spoken of as saints. . . and PRAYED to. Yes, there are inscriptions in the catacombs that show this. The very first saints are those martyrs.

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?
Lay people don’t preach in the church. Of course there are plenty of opportunities outside the Mass for us to engage in Bible studies, ‘church school’ for the youth, and for adults, etc. The priest gives a homily at all Masses --and that is indeed ‘preaching’ or teaching on the scriptures.

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?
You mean in Baptism, in Holy Orders, in the Sacrament of the Sick? Well, annointing with oil is very Biblical and has a specific purpose. It is associated with the Holy Spirit (Himself often referred to as spiritual oil).

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?
When he speaks on matters of faith and morals, either with the charism of infallibility ex cathedra, or in union with the entire bishops, or with the ordinary infallibility of the magesterium. . .yes. At any other time–for example, if the Pope is speaking about the World Series, or about economics, or even about the Bible, if it isn’t specifically under any of the above, it is as ‘fallible’ as that of any other person. Naturally one would have respect for the Pope (just as one would have respect say for one’s pastor), but if your pastor said for example that the Yankees were the world’s finest and everybody should pray for them to win the series, and you happened to be a phillies fan, you would NOT have to ‘agree’ with what the Pope said, even though he’s the Pope!

 

[Tony_Souza]

1. Anyone who disagrees with the Pope is outside the Church until such time as their viewpoint is corrected and they repent of their disobedience.

Though I am sure this is well intentioned, it is incorrect.

The charism of infallibility is a very specific and limited power. It only applies when the pope speaks on matters of faith and morals. He has to be speaking “ex cathedra” which means, literally, “from the chair,” i.e. of Peter. This means he has to unequivically state that what he is about to say is an infallible proclamation, and not his opinion on something. Most of what the popes say is not infallible. In fact most popes have never actually used this priviledge. So most of the time, there is no problem if someone disagrees with the pope, unless of course the pope is speaking on well established Catholic truths. If Benedict XVI comes out tomorrow and says that it was a good thing the Yankees won the Series again, I would whole heartedly disagree, and it would be just fine.

 

[Nominefili]

Though I am sure this is well intentioned, it is incorrect.

The charism of infallibility is a very specific and limited power. It only applies when the pope speaks on matters of faith and morals. He has to be speaking “ex cathedra” which means, literally, “from the chair,” i.e. of Peter. This means he has to unequivically state that what he is about to say is an infallible proclamation, and not his opinion on something. Most of what the popes say is not infallible. In fact most popes have never actually used this priviledge. So most of the time, there is no problem if someone disagrees with the pope, unless of course the pope is speaking on well established Catholic truths. If Benedict XVI comes out tomorrow and says that it was a good thing the Yankees won the Series again, I would whole heartedly disagree, and it would be just fine.

Thank you for the clarification. As you can see I’m not Catholic, so I was just doing my best to help.

 

[choy]

let me put in some of my own answers

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

we don’t pray to Mary RATHER than to God
we pray to Mary to pray for us to God, on top of praying to God as well

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

we confess to a preist because sin not only damages our relationship to God, it also damages our relationship to the Church of Jesus Christ. if we pray to God and sincerely in our hearts we are repentant, God may forgive our sins and we are reconcilled with God. but we must also reconcile with the Church and this is done through confession to a priest because Jesus passed on this authority to the apostles and their successors. here are the three paragraphs from the CCC

Reconciliation with the Church

1443 During his public life Jesus not only forgave sins, but also made plain the effect of this forgiveness: he reintegrated forgiven sinners into the community of the People of God from which sin had alienated or even excluded them. A remarkable sign of this is the fact that Jesus receives sinners at his table, a gesture that expresses in an astonishing way both God’s forgiveness and the return to the bosom of the People of God.44

1444 In imparting to his apostles his own power to forgive sins the Lord also gives them the authority to reconcile sinners with the Church. This ecclesial dimension of their task is expressed most notably in Christ’s solemn words to Simon Peter: "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven."45 "The office of binding and loosing which was given to Peter was also assigned to the college of the apostles united to its head."46

1445 The words bind and loose mean: whomever you exclude from your communion, will be excluded from communion with God; whomever you receive anew into your communion, God will welcome back into his. Reconciliation with the Church is inseparable from reconciliation with God.

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

Peter is the leader of the Apostles and to whom Jesus entrusted the keys of Heaven and upon whom He built His Church. the Pope is merely the successor of Peter

Saints are everyone in heaven. The Catholic Church just recognize a few of them so that the faithful may have human example on how to be more Christ-like. A lot of people can easily say that its hard to follow what Jesus did and its easy for Him because He is God. But if we’re presented with a human being like Mother Theresa (not yet recognized as a saint but in my mind i know she already is) who lived among us in modern times and yet did the work of Jesus, it should inspire us to do the same. hey, she’s human like you and me and she was able to do it, so why can’t we?

Plus, knowing these people already in the presence of God, we can ask them to pray for us as their prayers are more effective being already in the presence of God in Heaven

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

the priest would deliver a Homily after the Gospel has been read
there are also many other activities in the Church which would provide scriptural learning. I belong to a small parish but every night of the week there’s something going on, like Bible Studies, learning about Pope John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, Catechism classes, RCIA which is opened not only for those wishing to join the Catholic Church but also for Catholics who would want to understand their faith better

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

from the CCC (chapter on Confirmation)

1289 Very early, the better to signify the gift of the Holy Spirit, an anointing with perfumed oil (chrism) was added to the laying on of hands. This anointing highlights the name “Christian,” which means “anointed” and derives from that of Christ himself whom God "anointed with the Holy Spirit."100 This rite of anointing has continued ever since, in both East and West. For this reason the Eastern Churches call this sacrament Chrismation, anointing with chrism, or myron which means “chrism.” In the West, the term Confirmation suggests that this sacrament both confirms and strengthens baptismal grace.

1293 In treating the rite of Confirmation, it is fitting to consider the sign of anointing and what it signifies and imprints: a spiritual seal.

Anointing, in Biblical and other ancient symbolism, is rich in meaning: oil is a sign of abundance and joy;103 it cleanses (anointing before and after a bath) and limbers (the anointing of athletes and wrestlers); oil is a sign of healing, since it is soothing to bruises and wounds;104 and it makes radiant with beauty, health, and strength.

1294 Anointing with oil has all these meanings in the sacramental life. The pre-baptismal anointing with the oil of catechumens signifies cleansing and strengthening; the anointing of the sick expresses healing and comfort. The post-baptismal anointing with sacred chrism in Confirmation and ordination is the sign of consecration. By Confirmation Christians, that is, those who are anointed, share more completely in the mission of Jesus Christ and the fullness of the Holy Spirit with which he is filled, so that their lives may give off "the aroma of Christ."105

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

there are those who object. but in our hearts we believe that the Pope merely carries out what the Holy Spirit directs him to do or say. and yet the Pope is also human and subject to temptation and mistakes. that is why all Catholics should pray for the Pope every single minute, that may he remain faithful to the teachings if Jesus and lead us all to Him.

 

[John92]

I’m protestant, and I’ve been investigating in Catholosism since I’ve been impressed with answers I’ve recieved to previous questions. I want to ask some questions, and if you can, give me a scriptual response. Of cousre, I won’t limit you to scripture, But if you could, just give me a good explanation:

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

Please feel free to respond. God Bless.

I’d be glad to answer

#1. We do pray directly to God, of course, and most Catholics probably pray to God more than we do to saints and Mary. But even when we do pray to the saints the idea is that they offer up our prayers to God - just like me asking you to pray for me or whatever. Now, obviously, strictly speaking we don’t “need” to pray to saints: God can hear us just fine. We pray to saints/Mary for two reasons: 1.) When we pray to a saint we are reminded of the saint’s life and how he or she lived like Christ: all the goodness in the saints is a reflection of the goodness of God, but most saints “specialized” (for lack of a better word) in certain areas. For example, St. Augustine was a great preacher. St. Dominic had a great love for Mary and was an extremely humble man. St. Francis lived a joyous but devout life and say the goodness in God’s creatures (not just men but nature and animals as well); etc. etc. 2.) It’s nice to remind ourselves of the other people, regular men and women like us, who are now in Heaven. We commune with them in our prayers just like we commune with the faithful living now on Earth. The Saints in Heaven are as much a part of the Church as we here are: they, too, are part of the ekklesia, the assembly of those called. There are also specific Bible verses which point to this - such as a line in Revelation where John sees the Saints “offering up the prayers of the faithful to God.”

1. We do confess to God by confessing to the Priest. Jesus Christ gave his apostles to forgive sins and this power was passed on through the sacrament of Holy Orders. scripturecatholic.com/ does a good job of showing the scriptural basis for both these sacraments - not to mention the writings of the earliest Christians, which all speak of auricular confession (though in those days it was done in Church in front of everyone - ack!) Confessing sins to another person humbles us in a way that “confessing to God” cannot, and the Priest gives us good advice on how to fight our sins - not to mention the work of the Holy Spirit which forgives us through the sacrament.
2. The Pope is the successor of St. Peter. It’s his job to keep the Bishops together and in communion - Christ wanted us to be one, so the primacy of Peter was passed on by Peter’s successors (once again, check out scripturecatholic, he does a good job of this). As for saints, all that a “saint” is is someone who we are reasonably certain is now in Heaven. They’re holy men and women, martyrs and confessors, and we try to imitate them just like we try to imitate Christ, because they, to the extent that they succeeded, were models of Christ-like behavior (though imperfect ones, with the exception of Mary, who was preserved from any sin by the grace of God).
3. Yup! The Sermon is a regular feature of the Mass. The main purpose of Mass is to receive the Body and Blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ, but we also hear readings from the scripture and the Priest’s explanation, as well as advice about how we can live out the message of scripture in our daily lives.
4. James 5:14 - “Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the Church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer of faith will save the wick man, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed.”
5. With what the Pope solemnly declares - yes, and understand that this is a very rare occurrence, it’s only happened twice in the past 200 years and only around 10 times in the entire history of the Church. When the Pope reaffirms a doctrine already solemnly declared, or one put forth by an ecumenical council - that too. And in general we respect the Pope’s opinion, but we are not required to agree with everything he says - just those things which are solemnly declared.

 

[MrZetterlund]

Alright… Getting a good feel of it so far. Accept perhaps number six on as to whether or not you’ll always agree with the Pope. Most of you answered “yes” when dealing with faith and morality.
But once I heard that the Pope declared that condums should not be permitted to help stop the spread of aids in Africa. And another when they made this doctrine so that the vadicant can protect the priest in a molestation charge. I don’t know if I agree with that. Like when Jesus said it was more lawful to heal someone on the Sabbath than to turn a blind eye. And to not judge by mere appearences and make the right judgement.

 

[kimmielittle]

First: Everyone has done a great job answering.

1: IMHO people misunderstand the “to” part of intercessory prayer.
Holy Mary and the Saints aren’t here…they are with God.

If I wish you to pray ** with ** me in intercession. I send a request “to” you.

I might even go ‘to’ your Church to ask you.
BUT I’m not praying ‘to’ you…we are praying together.

I hope this helps

 

[Lizziebel]

Alright… Getting a good feel of it so far. Accept perhaps number six on as to whether or not you’ll always agree with the Pope. Most of you answered “yes” when dealing with faith and morality.
But once I heard that the Pope declared that condums should not be permitted to help stop the spread of aids in Africa. I don’t know if I agree with that. Like when Jesus said it was more lawful to heal someone on the Sabbath than to turn a blind eye. And to not judge by mere appearences and make the right judgement.

I wouldn’t put your example of the Pope’s declaration in the same category as the example of Jesus healing someone on the Sabbath.

The Pope’s declaration wasn’t about mere appearances, not by a long stretch. If people think that it’s all right to just go ahead and have sex and that they will be protected by condoms, it puts them at risk spiritually and physically. So, as was pointed out, the Pope was speaking in line with Church teaching on the matter.

As for the physical part, condoms can break. And when this happens, AIDS spreads. But people who had the false idea that the condoms would protect them, took risks they otherwise may not have and discovered that they had contracted the deadly virus. To encourage that would be like saying that it’s all right to play Russian Roulette with your life.

 

[Alindawyl]

Alright… Getting a good feel of it so far. Accept perhaps number six on as to whether or not you’ll always agree with the Pope. Most of you answered “yes” when dealing with faith and morality.
But once I heard that the Pope declared that condums should not be permitted to help stop the spread of aids in Africa. And another when they made this doctrine so that the vadicant can protect the priest in a molestation charge. I don’t know if I agree with that. Like when Jesus said it was more lawful to heal someone on the Sabbath than to turn a blind eye. And to not judge by mere appearences and make the right judgement.

A doctrine that the Vatican can protect priests against a molestation charge? Source, please, so we can see what this “doctrine” is and what it actually says.

As to condoms, Church teaching doesn’t support their use for birth control or any other purpose.

 

[jmcrae]

Alright… Getting a good feel of it so far. Accept perhaps number six on as to whether or not you’ll always agree with the Pope. Most of you answered “yes” when dealing with faith and morality.
But once I heard that the Pope declared that condums should not be permitted to help stop the spread of aids in Africa.

Condoms aren’t stopping the spread of AIDS anywhere else - what’s so magical about Africa? Sex is for married people, and married people have sex for two reasons: 1, to become physically united (which a condom prevents, since it is a barrier between the man and the woman, physically) and 2, to have children (which again the condom prevents, or is intended to prevent). But if you are not having sex in order to be unified, nor in order to have children, then you are misusing your sexuality, and probably abusing the other person in some way, as well, so it is forbidden to use condoms or any other form of birth control.

And another when they made this doctrine so that the vadicant can protect the priest in a molestation charge.

Quite the opposite, actually - the Vatican was furious, and wanted the names of every priest involved, in order to remove them from their duties permanently. There were certain Bishops who were trying to hide the problems, but the Vatican itself was not a participant in any of that.

 

[jmcrae]

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

You should go to a Mass in a Catholic Church so that you can see for yourself what actually happens.

 

[ralphinal]

Alright… Getting a good feel of it so far. Accept perhaps number six on as to whether or not you’ll always agree with the Pope. Most of you answered “yes” when dealing with faith and morality.
But once I heard that the Pope declared that condums should not be permitted to help stop the spread of aids in Africa. And another when they made this doctrine so that the vadicant can protect the priest in a molestation charge. I don’t know if I agree with that. Like when Jesus said it was more lawful to heal someone on the Sabbath than to turn a blind eye. And to not judge by mere appearences and make the right judgement.

There is more to the Pope’s statement than no condoms in Africa. Part, perhaps the biggest problem, of the issue in sub-Saharan Africa is the idea that having sex with multiple partners makes you more masculine. The more manly you are, the more sex you have with the most people possible. This is a major cultural issue. That needs to be addressed. Indiscriminate sex with a condom is still a major issue. In fact, condoms are more likely to prevent pregnancy than AIDS. Rome even commented on that, saying that it looks more like an attempt to thin the population than to stop the disease. Now, the media has spun this to say that Rome wants Africans to die. Not true at all.

THe policy about the abuse charges is also incorrect. Rome did issue a policy about when the abuse occured during confession. Because of the rules of confession, the person’s identity cannot be disclosed. So, secrecy had to be in place for both the victim and the accused, lest anyone figure out who it was.

 

[oneGODoneCHURCH]

=MrZetterlund;5909782]I’m protestant, and I’ve been investigating in Catholosism since I’ve been impressed with answers I’ve recieved to previous questions. I want to ask some questions, and if you can, give me a scriptual response. Of cousre, I won’t limit you to scripture, But if you could, just give me a good explanation:

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

The word pray means to ask. So the answer is we do both. I think you are realy wanting to know if we give worship to The blessed Virgin. the Answwer to that is no. We ask The She Join us in Pray to God.

#2: Why do you confess to a priest rather than to God?

As we read In the Gospel Jesus sent out the Apostles, Telling they to spread the Good New healing the sick and forgiving sins. Bisops of the Catholic Church share in the Authoity give to the Apostles by Christ and the Preist shares in the Authority of his bishop

#3: What’s the deal with having a pope and saints?

The word Pope means father. HE is the head of the Church on earth Successor to ST Peter the Apostel.
The Saints are all those in Heaven. As for Statues ans pictures of them they are are Family in Chirst and just as you have pictures of you family and friends it is the same thing. As for Prayers to the Saints refer to answer on Mary and you can read in ST. John Revelation on the Saints taking the Prayers to the Thrown of God.

#4: Do you preach in your churches or is it all ritual?

Yes the Priest gives a Homily(sermon) noramly focued on the Scripture reading for that day.

#5: Why do you annoint with oil?

Mark 6:13 - the apostles anointed the sick with oil and cured them.

#6: Do you always agree with what the pope declares or says?

This is a hard one to answer as not everything that the Pope says falls into the Docturine of infallilblity. As a matter of fact there have only been 2 things declared Truth by Papal infallibillty Catholics are free to Disagree but we are not free to oppose. The Church does not opperate as totalitariian regiem. There are things that we are bond to and things that we are not.

Please feel free to respond. God Bless.

 

[crazzeto]

I’m protestant, and I’ve been investigating in Catholosism since I’ve been impressed with answers I’ve recieved to previous questions. I want to ask some questions, and if you can, give me a scriptual response. Of cousre, I won’t limit you to scripture, But if you could, just give me a good explanation:

#1: Why do you pray to Mary rather than God?

As a devout Catholic, I tell you that this is a literal impossibility. One can not pray to any saint (including angels) instead of God. Your prayer “to the saint (including angle)” is received by them through God. That answers your direct question.

Next, why are we asking Saints to pray for us. Let me start answering this by asking you this question. Have you ever, asked any one to pray for you? Any one at all? A loved one? Family member? Minister? If the the answer here is “well yes of course”, then I ask why? Well obviously it’s because it was for something important, you really need Gods help.

Well we would pray to the Saints for the same reason, knowing that having the Saint pray for you is better than having anyone on earth pray for you. Why?

16 Confess therefore your sins one to another: and pray one for another, that you may be saved. For the continual prayer of a just man availeth much.

Saints are just, you see the very definition of a Saint is “someone who is in heaven”. This is why all angels are automatically saints. If they are in heaven, then they either are, or have been made perfect. There is no one more just than a saint. Now I’m not going to leave you with just one quote from the bible, I’ll give you a couple of examples, from the bible of intercessory prayer:

From Job 42
drbo.org/cgi-bin/d?b=drb&bk=20&ch=42&l=8&f=s#x

8 Take unto you therefore seven oxen, and seven rams, and go to my servant Job, and offer for yourselves a holocaust: and my servant Job shall pray for you: his face I will accept, that folly be not imputed to you: for you have not spoken right things before me, as my servant Job hath. 9 So Eliphaz the Themanite, and Baldad the Suhite, and Sophar the Naamathite went, and did as the Lord had spoken to them, and the Lord accepted the face of Job. 10 The Lord also was turned at the penance of Job, when he prayed for his friends. And the Lord gave Job twice as much as he had before.

Here God is telling Eliphaz the Themanite, and Baldad the Suhite, and Sophar the Naamathite that thier prayers will not be accepted for they have so offended God. But Job’s prayers will be accepted, so here he send them to Job, so he can pray for them. And it’s Job’s prayers which will be accepted.

And now just one more example, I use this one because it is a terrific example of intercessory prayer, which by the way is exactly what you’re doing when you ask someone else to pray for you.

And Amalec came, and fought against Israel in Raphidim. 9 And Moses said to Josue: Choose out men: and go out and fight against Amalec: tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill having the rod of God in my hand. 10 Josue did as Moses had spoken, and he fought against Amalec; but Moses, and Aaron, and Hur went up upon the top of the hill.

11 And when Moses lifted up his hands, Israel overcame: but if he let them down a little, Amalec overcame. 12 And Moses’ hands were heavy: so they took a stone, and put under him, and he sat on it: and Aaron and Hur stayed up his hands on both sides. And it came to pass that his hands were not weary until sunset.

I highlighted two bits here. First of all notice that it was as long as Moses had his hands up, as long as he was praying that the Iraelites were doing better in battle. I don’t know about you, but I have to beleive that every Israelite on the field was also praying. Our Lord, God the Father was only listening to Moses, why? I have to think it was because in the field, the Israelite army was made up of individuals who were not very just. These were among those who kept falling back and worshiping false idol despite seeing first hand the greatness of God simply because they were uncomfortable.

Now the great analogy here of the Communion of Saints, is Aaron and Hur holding up the hands of Moses. This is, in a sense what the Communion is doing for you, when you ask them to pray for you. They are helping you hold your hands up to God, in prayer for whatever it is you need.

Now I probably just threw a whole lot of inter-related theological idea’s at you, and I’m sorry for not building this up a little more. My goal here is to give you a firm idea of what is truely happen when you “pray to Mary”.

Now incidently, it should be noted that we Roman Catholics pray to God all the time. We just happen to also pray to the Saints for help.

End Part 1