Questions for Fellow Catholics or a online Priests

[creed227]

Hello,

I am a convert Catholic almost 6 years now and have some questions. I am just not sure where to go to get answers. My Priest is pretty busy to talk as I have tried to set up time with him so I am coming back to here for answers. My mother who I was real close to passed away in April of this year from complications of a car accident my parents were involved in. The accident happened in March of this year and she passed away in April. I have been in so much grief and not sure what to really do. My questions are:

1.) My parents are Protestant (Baptist) and I know from their minister that she talked about not surviving and she was ready as my parents are good Christians. But I have done reading on so many christian websites about death and I have become confused and adding more confusion is view from Catholics. I have read stuff from going right to heaven to just sleeping until Christ comes again. I would home my mom would be in heaven but I am so confused. Also Catholics believe in Purgatory and is that the true way or belief? If your not Catholic do you still go to a Purgatory? If someone could help me understand I would greatly appreciate it.

2,) What is the Catholic teachings on the end of the world and the rapture? As I know protestants feel Catholics have and spread false doctrine which I do not feel by far and know the Catholic Church is Christ’s true church. Please provide me with what Catholics feel about the end times and this Rapture.

3.) Also I know protestants read the bible and it clearly talks about the Saints but they criticize Catholics when we mention the Saints like its more Idolatry or something. How do I ask for intercession of the Saints to comfort me or help me and also how do I ask our Blessed Mother Mary for intercession or help. I never really did that before because of my protestant background years ago before I converted.

4.) Can I ask Jesus or the Saints or our Blessed Mother to tell my mom i miss her and love her so. As like I said i am so confused with the point of death on what happens to us do we go to Heaven or Purgatory or are we just laying the ground till the return I dont know and feel so lost. I know my faith has slipped some with my mothers death and need to get back with God again. I go to Mass but do not take the Eucharist because I feel not in the frame of mind and would be committing a blasphemy if I partake I just ask God during that time in Mass to please forgive me and ask for Mercy. I have not been to confession in a long time as with my frame of mind I feel that if I keep sinning from the sadness and anger from my moms death and questioning God that I would have to keep going back again and again until I can start feeling better and really make a change in my life for the better and get back better with the church…

Thank you all for your help and so sorry this post was so long.

God Bless

 

[Tis_Bearself]

Hello. I’m very sorry about the loss of your beloved mom. Please accept my condolences. I’m not a priest, but I am a Catholic who has lost my own Catholic parents as well as beloved Protestant relatives (grandma and 2 parents-in-law). I’ll try to answer some of your questions.

1.) My parents are Protestant (Baptist) and I know from their minister that she talked about not surviving and she was ready as my parents are good Christians. But I have done reading on so many christian websites about death and I have become confused and adding more confusion is view from Catholics. I have read stuff from going right to heaven to just sleeping until Christ comes again. I would home my mom would be in heaven but I am so confused. Also Catholics believe in Purgatory and is that the true way or belief? If your not Catholic do you still go to a Purgatory? If someone could help me understand I would greatly appreciate it.

Catholics believe that after death, the person’s soul goes either to Heaven if it’s ready for that, Purgatory if the person is saved but not yet ready for Heaven, or to Hell if it’s damned. We do not believe in souls sleeping till the last day. On the last day our PHYSICAL bodies will be resurrected, in a perfected form, and our souls rejoined to them. More discussion here:
catholic.com/tract/resurrection-of-the-body

Catholics believe that Purgatory applies equally to everybody. Therefore, non-Catholics who were saved, but not yet ready to enter Heaven, would go there just like Catholics would. You can offer prayers and Masses for your Mom in purgatory; if she has already left Purgatory and gone to Heaven, the prayers go to help someone else there who does not have anyone to pray for them.

For your second question on end of the world, the link I just posted also addresses that. We believe that Christ will perform a general judgment then, but we don’t typically use the term “rapture”. See this article for more about rapture; you can skip to the section dealing with the “Catholic position”.

catholic.com/tract/the-rapture

How do I ask for intercession of the Saints to comfort me or help me and also how do I ask our Blessed Mother Mary for intercession or help. I never really did that before because of my protestant background years ago before I converted.

A simple “Saint so-and-so, please help me with (mention what you need)” is sufficient. If you want to say prayers directed to a certain saint, google “Prayers to St. (name)” and you will likely get some pages with formal prayers or novenas to them. Many people like to pray frequently to the patron saint of their country or profession, or to a saint whose life story they especially like. You can google “Lists of patron saints” to find which saint is a patron of something specific (example: patron saint of lost articles is Saint Anthony, patron saint of police officers is Saint Michael, etc.)

Or you can just say generally, “Saint (so and so), pray for us”. I sometimes do this for long lists of saints.

As for the Blessed Mother, the best prayers to speak to her include the Hail Mary, the Rosary, the Memorare (the oldest Mary prayer), and the Hail Holy Queen. But you can also pray to her as you would to a saint, e.g. “Dear Mother Mary, please help me,” or “Blessed Mother, pray for us” etc. You can talk to her as you would a mother and tell her what’s on your mind and ask her to help you by giving you her grace, intercede with Jesus for you, and pray for you.

4.) Can I ask Jesus or the Saints or our Blessed Mother to tell my mom i miss her and love her so.

You sure can. My mother died a couple years ago. I ask things like this all the time.

I go to Mass but do not take the Eucharist because I feel not in the frame of mind and would be committing a blasphemy if I partake I just ask God during that time in Mass to please forgive me and ask for Mercy. I have not been to confession in a long time as with my frame of mind I feel that if I keep sinning from the sadness and anger from my moms death and questioning God that I would have to keep going back again and again until I can start feeling better and really make a change in my life for the better and get back better with the church…

I urge you to please go to Confession. Tell the priest what you said here just now. Confession provides graces that help us to deal with things like the difficult loss of a parent. It’s normal to have some doubts or questions when a beloved person dies. Don’t let that drive you away from God. If you confess you can also go back to receiving Eucharist, which will give you even more graces. And if you slip up, just confess again. You don’t need to wait until you are sure you wouldn’t sin any more to go to Confession. That’s not how it works and not what it’s for. Confession is to help and encourage sinners, not for people who are sure they won’t be committing any sins going forward. You can go every week if you need to, and in fact it’s encouraged that we go often, because no one will ever be in a position where they are not going to be committing any sins. There will always be something.

Good luck and once again…please get back to the Sacraments…they help in times of grief even if you do not feel any better griefwise after receiving them. Take it from someone who has been in your shoes. God bless you. I’ll pray for you and your Mom.

 

[1Lord1Faith]

Hi, I’m sorry for your loss. Losing someone unexpectedly is certainly traumatic, and a little anger and resentment is normal. God understands and loves you!

1. Catholics believe that all people, Catholic or not, go to purgatory, heaven or hell. Most go to purgatory, a few go straight to heaven. I have heard that there are levels of purgatory, but that’s another subject I guess.
2. Rapture? No. Maybe someone else can expand on this one.
3. Just ask a particular Saint, or Mary, to pray for you and your mother. Ask in the same reverent manner as you would when you pray to God. The Hail Mary is a good prayer to start with.
4. Yes, of course.

Try making an appointment with your priest for a confession. You may be able to talk about some other things as well since he has set some time aside for you.

 

[TheDoctor]

The posters above gave great answers so let me add just a thought or two.

…My mother who I was real close to passed away in April of this year from complications of a car accident my parents were involved in. The accident happened in March of this year and she passed away in April. I have been in so much grief and not sure what to really do…I would home my mom would be in heaven but I am so confused. God Bless

I am sorry for your loss and will keep you and your mom in my prayers tonight. For yourself: Have you looked into a grief support group at Church? Many of us have been down the road of the loss of a parent and you may find comfort in having others to listen and lean on. For your mom: Judgement is left to God alone and God knows what was not only mom’s mind but what was in her heart as well. God loves us more than we love ourselves and his mercy is endless. Pray for mom and trust in God.

Please provide me with what Catholics feel about the end times and this Rapture.

Catholics don’t believe in the “Rapture” as most fundamental Christians do. Rapture theology did not exist until the late 1800’s if I recall correctly (sorry, too busy to look it up). At the end of the world Jesus returns for Final Judgement, Purgatory is emptied and God reigns in Heaven and on Earth.

3.) Also I know protestants read the bible and it clearly talks about the Saints but they criticize Catholics when we mention the Saints like its more Idolatry or something. How do I ask for intercession of the Saints to comfort me or help me and also how do I ask our Blessed Mother Mary for intercession or help. I never really did that before because of my protestant background years ago before I converted.

You can use prayers that others have written or just talk to them. Mary and the Saints are alive and God permits them to hear us. Something simple as “Mother Mary, my heart aches and I miss my mom so, please help me”. The Mother of God had her heart broken watching her son die and knows your pain and anguish.

4.) Can I ask Jesus or the Saints or our Blessed Mother to tell my mom i miss her and love her so.

Sure, but you can talk to her as well. God will permit her to hear you if it is His will at this moment. Talk to her. Pray for her. Offer your good works for her. Offer your struggles for her. Take a breath. Grieve. Bring your cross to the foot of the altar where you will find the King of Universe wants nothing more than to bend down and help you carry it.

Bless you too.

 

[MrsAngelala]

I’m so sorry for your loss. I prayed for peace for your mom, and for comfort for you.

I’m only going to address #3.

I believe that most if not all Protestants do a lot of “extemporaneous” prayer - so your background probably includes that? As in, talking to God in your own words at the moment? This is how I pray to the saints. My pastor commonly refers to them as our “big brothers and sisters,” so that’s how I think of them. I talk to them like I talk with my closest friend about our Lord.

An exercise that might be fun and enlightening for you: look up the saints that match your names (first, middle, Confirmation). If there’s more than one saint for one of your names, pick the one that seems most like you. Read up on him or her. When you know more about the saints you’re praying to, it’s easier to talk to them. You really might have a lot of fun if you try this! I looked up my patron saint for the first time earlier this year (Angela Merici), and I was BLOWN AWAY by the similarities between us. If you can find a saint that’s an especial match for you, it’s a great way to ease yourself into it.

The first time I prayed to or with a saint was less than a year ago. I’m a cradle Catholic but spent several years fallen-away, and during that time I absorbed the Protestant prejudice against the saints. Last year, while I was trying to reform my conscience on this subject, my husband and I went to a funeral for a Protestant pastor at Husband’s church. It really, really disturbed me that everyone who got up to speak expressed their opinion that the pastor immediately went to God as if it were fact. (It might have been! I can’t know!) I kept thinking, *Nobody is going to pray for this man. What if he’s not with Jesus yet? No one will ever pray for him! *

So I started praying. Immediately I realized it was much too big a task for me. * What can I do? Who can I ask for help?* I spent a few minutes trying to swallow what I pretty much knew I would have to do. Finally, * … Mother Mary, will you pray for PK with me? St. Catherine, will you pray for this man with me?* And I spent the rest of the service with Mary and Catherine, praying to Jesus for the repose of the pastor’s soul.

It can be that simple. It was actually pretty nice. I know it seems intimidating, but just try it.

 

[tafan]

2,) What is the Catholic teachings on the end of the world and the rapture? As I know protestants feel Catholics have and spread false doctrine which I do not feel by far and know the Catholic Church is Christ’s true church. Please provide me with what Catholics feel about the end times and this Rapture.

God Bless

I will take a stab at number 2. Catholic teaching as to the end of the world did not differ from almost all Protestant teaching until around 1800 (IIRC). That is when SOME protestants started following the newly minted “dispensationalist” theology, ie the rapture. Many (if not most) protestants world-wide still are inline with Catholic teaching which is as follows:

• We are living in the end times. The end times are defined as the time between the last public revelation (the death of St John) and the second coming of Christ.
• Before the second coming of Christ, three things will occur: 1) The jewish people will make a final decision regarding the acceptance of Christ 2) The Gospel must be preached to all nations 3) The Church will undergo a great tribulation (persecution). It is my understanding (and I may be wrong), that the Church has no official teaching on if any of these three things have occurred.
• We do not know when Christ will come again. We are all to look forward to the second coming and are all to work for it by spreading the Gospel.

 

[po18guy]

Very sorry for your loss. Eternal rest grant unto her, Oh Lord!

As to your questions, if you can, tune in to EWTN’s daily radio show “Called to Communion” featuring host Dr. David Anders. He deals with these questions on a daily basis. I watch him streamed on YouTube. You can call, email or even text your questions.

As to Catholicism, an excellent resource for you is Catholicism for Dummies, by Fr. John Trigilio and Fr. Kenneth Brighenti. It is a good, basic catechism that clearly states Catholic teaching and the reasons for those teachings.

Dive into your faith! Christianity was not founded in Germany in 1517. The rapture is one of the most clearly man-made doctrines of the past 500 years. It is wishful thinking.

 

[Tis_Bearself]

my husband and I went to a funeral for a Protestant pastor at Husband’s church. It really, really disturbed me that everyone who got up to speak expressed their opinion that the pastor immediately went to God as if it were fact. (It might have been! I can’t know!) I kept thinking, *Nobody is going to pray for this man. What if he’s not with Jesus yet? No one will ever pray for him! *

So I started praying.

This drives me nuts too, the fact that Protestants don’t think the prayers are necessary. Even at the funeral home, they had to put out the kneeler just for me because I was the only Catholic going to be there and I expected to pray. I said to my husband, “what in heck do you normally do in front of a casket” because I can’t imagine doing anything else BUT kneeling down and saying a prayer for the soul of the deceased.

I feel like it’s my responsibility to pray for my recently deceased Protestant in-laws just in case. I did get my non-Catholic husband to say one rosary for each of his deceased parents with me so it would be a “family group” for purposes of trying to get them the plenary indulgence. I also had the Gregorian masses said for my father in law and about to order them for my mother in law. I just want to be sure I have done all I can do as a good daughter-in-law.

 

[pianistclare]

NO such thing as the Rapture.

 

[Reuben_J]

Hello,

I am a convert Catholic almost 6 years now and have some questions. I am just not sure where to go to get answers. My Priest is pretty busy to talk as I have tried to set up time with him so I am coming back to here for answers. My mother who I was real close to passed away in April of this year from complications of a car accident my parents were involved in. The accident happened in March of this year and she passed away in April. I have been in so much grief and not sure what to really do. My questions are:

1.) My parents are Protestant (Baptist) and I know from their minister that she talked about not surviving and she was ready as my parents are good Christians. But I have done reading on so many christian websites about death and I have become confused and adding more confusion is view from Catholics. I have read stuff from going right to heaven to just sleeping until Christ comes again. I would home my mom would be in heaven but I am so confused. Also Catholics believe in Purgatory and is that the true way or belief? If your not Catholic do you still go to a Purgatory? If someone could help me understand I would greatly appreciate it.

2,) What is the Catholic teachings on the end of the world and the rapture? As I know protestants feel Catholics have and spread false doctrine which I do not feel by far and know the Catholic Church is Christ’s true church. Please provide me with what Catholics feel about the end times and this Rapture.

3.) Also I know protestants read the bible and it clearly talks about the Saints but they criticize Catholics when we mention the Saints like its more Idolatry or something. How do I ask for intercession of the Saints to comfort me or help me and also how do I ask our Blessed Mother Mary for intercession or help. I never really did that before because of my protestant background years ago before I converted.

4.) Can I ask Jesus or the Saints or our Blessed Mother to tell my mom i miss her and love her so. As like I said i am so confused with the point of death on what happens to us do we go to Heaven or Purgatory or are we just laying the ground till the return I dont know and feel so lost. I know my faith has slipped some with my mothers death and need to get back with God again. I go to Mass but do not take the Eucharist because I feel not in the frame of mind and would be committing a blasphemy if I partake I just ask God during that time in Mass to please forgive me and ask for Mercy. I have not been to confession in a long time as with my frame of mind I feel that if I keep sinning from the sadness and anger from my moms death and questioning God that I would have to keep going back again and again until I can start feeling better and really make a change in my life for the better and get back better with the church…

Thank you all for your help and so sorry this post was so long.

God Bless

MY condolences on your loss and may her soul rest in peace.

1. Yes, purgatory is a Catholic belief. It is for those who are destined to go to heaven but needed to be purified first (in purgatory) into perfection before entering heaven. As such, it is not for Catholics only, but for all those whom in God’s judgment can enter heaven.

As for the departed, we can count on God’s mercy and forgiveness, and therefore we can be hopeful that anyone can go to heaven, as it’s God’s prerogative.

1. As Catholics, we take the position that we do not know the time and the day of the end of the world, which can be at any time of God’s choice. You can use Biblical references like Mathew 25 on the coming of the Son of Man and the judgment of the separation of the sheep and goats; and maybe 1 Thes 4 - 5, about the coming of the Lord and those who sleep (died) a nd alive will rise to meet Him in the cloud.

We do not have the teaching on ‘rapture’. However, I am not familiar with it too, if it is a Protestant belief.

1. Yes, we can ask the saints and Mary to intercede for us, just like we ask our friends to pray for us. You can bring your petition to them. We are a big family of God, both the living and the dead.

You can pray the ‘Hail Mary’ to ask Mother Mary to pray for you.

1. If it make you feel better, yes, you can pray and tell God you miss your mum. We all do. Death is a sad reality in life which nobody can avoid. As Catholics however, we can pray for the souls of our loved ones who have departed, putting them at God’s mercy and forgiveness. God listens to the prayers of His faithful, His children. It may not change anything because we cannot tell God what to do but we can always let Him hears us, and He does.

God bless you.

 

[steve_b]

Hello,

I am a convert Catholic almost 6 years now and have some questions. I am just not sure where to go to get answers. My Priest is pretty busy to talk as I have tried to set up time with him so I am coming back to here for answers. My mother who I was real close to passed away in April of this year from complications of a car accident my parents were involved in. The accident happened in March of this year and she passed away in April. I have been in so much grief and not sure what to really do. My questions are:

I’m adding you and your parents to my daily mass and Rosary

creed:

1.) My parents are Protestant (Baptist) and I know from their minister that she talked about not surviving and she was ready as my parents are good Christians. But I have done reading on so many christian websites about death and I have become confused and adding more confusion is view from Catholics. I have read stuff from going right to heaven to just sleeping until Christ comes again.

Few people are perfect when they die. Purgatory is a blessing. Everyone who goes through that purification, goes to heaven.

Re: Soul sleep.

it is apparent that a person continues in a state of self-awareness and existence after death; one can refer to Luke 16:19-31] ; 2 Corinthians 5:1-10] ;

when a person dies, they are immediately judged. Those who are saved, and don’t go straight to heaven, go through a process of purification (purgatory) 1 Corinthians 3:12-15]

That is only for those who die in a state of grace.

creed:

2,) What is the Catholic teachings on the end of the world and the rapture? As I know protestants feel Catholics have and spread false doctrine which I do not feel by far and know the Catholic Church is Christ’s true church. Please provide me with what Catholics feel about the end times and this Rapture.

catholic.com/tract/the-rapture

creed:

3.) Also I know protestants read the bible and it clearly talks about the Saints but they criticize Catholics when we mention the Saints like its more Idolatry or something. How do I ask for intercession of the Saints to comfort me or help me and also how do I ask our Blessed Mother Mary for intercession or help. I never really did that before because of my protestant background years ago before I converted.

1. 
   *]It directly answers the point, Saints aren’t dead. They are more alive than we are.
   *]Since those in heaven are the righteous, and scripture says the prayers of the righteous avail much, then ask any and all of the saints to pray for you and your intentions.
   
   
   creed:
   

   4.) I go to Mass but do not take the Eucharist because I feel not in the frame of mind and would be committing a blasphemy if I partake I just ask God during that time in Mass to please forgive me and ask for Mercy. I have not been to confession in a long time as with my frame of mind I feel that if I keep sinning from the sadness and anger from my moms death and questioning God that I would have to keep going back again and again until I can start feeling better and really make a change in my life for the better and get back better with the church…

   Go to confession asap, and get back to receiving the Eucharist.