Respecting other religions

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divinefaith

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I know it would be sinful to be uncharitable towards any other person, regardless of their beliefs. However, what specific teachings state that we must respect other people’s beliefs? E.g. The film on Muhammud was disrespectful in my opinion and it makes me wonder has the Church has ever adressed such issues, either in it’s writings or public speeches?
 
I think Catholicism 101 is respect.

More than that common sense.
 
While I know of no specific teaching - I can say that one needs to differentiate between respecting a thing and respecting people and their free will.

I do not have to respect a “religion”…I can look at it, study it, evaluate it and make determinations about it and what truths it might contain…But Respect?? Nah…

People are another matter. Them I have to love regardless of their choices. Par of Love necessitates respect.
That does not mean we cannot debate or challenge each others beliefs but hat is called evangelization.

As to the current debacle over this movie…From a faith standpoint it is a lose-lose situation. The producers and those espousing the movie have shown themselves to be poor Christian witnesses. Those who have reacted to the movie with such violence have shown themselves to be even worse witnesses to their own faith.

This whole mess has caused our Father much sorrow…

Peace
James
 
There are numerous church documents speaking to this issue and in particular to Islam. For starters look at documents relating to Vatican II which laid out a number of church teachings in regards to respecting other faiths and with specific mentions to Judiasm, Islam, etc.
 
I know it would be sinful to be uncharitable towards any other person, regardless of their beliefs. However, what specific teachings state that we must respect other people’s beliefs? E.g. The film on Muhammud was disrespectful in my opinion and it makes me wonder has the Church has ever adressed such issues, either in it’s writings or public speeches?
If you define “respect” in terms of charity and tolerance, the usual definition, I would say Christianity teaches that. Nonetheless, one need not respect a religion, or cult, that professes violence and incorporates brainwashing techniques to recruit its members. OTOH, if you define “respect” as the total or partial acceptance of the specific beliefs of the religion, which may contradict your own, I don’t think respect is in order in that case. IOW, certainly have respect with regard to tolerance but not with regard to following another religion’s practices.
 
I do not believe we must respect other religions.
Due to the freewill given to us by God I can respect a person who freely chooses to believe in another religion even though I know it to be false but it would ridiculous if I had to respect a false religion.
 
I do not believe we must respect other religions.
Due to the freewill given to us by God I can respect a person who freely chooses to believe in another religion even though I know it to be false but it would ridiculous if I had to respect a false religion.
👍
 
I think some people will feel ‘disrespected’ if you merely have a different viewpoint.

I have friends with widely disparate religions…so much so, I’m not even sure that’s the right word…from pagan to self-created ‘faiths’ that are something like Shintoism to Mormons and very devout Evangelicals. I guess I don’t even think in terms of ‘respecting’ their faith, but rather in terms of respecting them as people. What they have in common (if they’ve remained my friends ;)) is that I see people who somehow arrived at the same core values I hold, of helping others, loving others, being charitable in thought and deed. I know Catholics, sadly, who gossip, swear, yell, and criticize others endlessly. (And these are Catholics who say the daily Rosary and go to daily Mass. 🤷 )

I will never agree, theologically, with these friends, but I trust if they are striving to be good people and treat others well, God will lead them as He sees fit. I don’t try to understand it. I live my faith. If they ask questions about my faith, I answer. I think pushing and cajoling people to convert rarely has any effect.
 
I know it would be sinful to be uncharitable towards any other person, regardless of their beliefs. However, what specific teachings state that we must respect other people’s beliefs? E.g. The film on Muhammud was disrespectful in my opinion and it makes me wonder has the Church has ever adressed such issues, either in it’s writings or public speeches?
Now, I’m no bible thumper nor am i well versed in scripture, however I do recall in the OT times in which people, who followed God, were actually told to inquire and kill those who were believing in another religion…Help me out here folks…does anyone remember what book in the OT this is…or something close to it?
 
Now, I’m no bible thumper nor am i well versed in scripture, however I do recall in the OT times in which people, who followed God, were actually told to inquire and kill those who were believing in another religion…Help me out here folks…does anyone remember what book in the OT this is…or something close to it?
Jesus forbade the throwing of stones in the NT. that’s the valuable lesson to learn.
 
For those of you who are suggesting ‘to not respect false beliefs’ how would you define that? Please give me examples because that’s sounding uncharitable.
 
For those of you who are suggesting ‘to not respect false beliefs’ how would you define that? Please give me examples because that’s sounding uncharitable.
It sounds decidedly less charitable to “respect false beliefs” than it does to reject them IMHO.

I for example have several gay friends. I love them and respect them as human beings. And I think they know and believe that. I do not, however, condone or accept their sexual activities (no more than I do of anyone’s sexual activity outside the confines of marriage).

If they bring it up, and several have, that’s exactly what I tell them.

I don’t bring it up. It is not my job to be anyone elses concience.

It is my job, however, to witness to correct Catholic teaching if questioned on an issue of faith or morals.

Avoiding the truth, or worse yet embrassing a lie, in order to not hurt someones feelings is about the least charitable thing I can think to do.

Chuck
 
I know it would be sinful to be uncharitable towards any other person, regardless of their beliefs. However, what specific teachings state that we must respect other people’s beliefs? E.g. The film on Muhammud was disrespectful in my opinion and it makes me wonder has the Church has ever adressed such issues, either in it’s writings or public speeches?
What is the universal definition of the respect of the other religions in the catholicism (catholic definition)?

In general, as catholic, we have to respect the human nature, I mean the human gender, male and female, and each person (personalist approach) in the respect of the natural moral law of human beings (human dignity and her corollaries).
Otherwise, concerning the religious doctrines, the religious beliefs, the religious mentalities, the religious practices, the religious reasonnings, the religious explainations in many domains (moral, philosophical, theological, political, judicial, juridical, economical, medical, psychological, social, educational, instructional,… and even religious) , we have the right, and sometimes we have the moral duty and the moral obligation to denounce by the speech and the teaching if: the moral natural law of human being is attacked by this doctrines, this beliefs, this mentalities, this practices, this reasonnings, this explainations…etc.
Thus, as catholic we cannot respect, in thought, (interior thinking) a wrong doctrine, a wrong belief, a wrong mentality, a wrong practice, a wrong reasonning, a wrong explanation, a wrong intellectual approach, a wrong heresy or an wrong ideology who is going against the natural moral law of the humanity.

The moral obligation for each catholic and for each other human being is to make the difference between the person and the acts (in largo sensu), and to react differently in function of the nature of wrong doctrine…, in function of the degree of the denaturation of this wrong doctrine…, in the respect of the human dignity of each one.

We have the list of heresies, of ideologies with their corollaries that are denounced by the Roman Catholic Church.

About the unchristian religions, we have to respect only the part of the natural law that is inside of those religions. . The phenomenom of syncretism is wrong and very against the catholic moral, be careful is a nice slogan.

The reaction has to be prudent, moderated, fair (the proportionality) and not absurd.
, objective and realistic.

The difference is between the exterior acts and the thoughts, but the expression of thinking has to be free, by principle.
 
We should treat people with respect and charity; we don’t have to respect their beliefs or actions.
 
If we don’t respect other people’s beliefs then how can there be religious liberty? Religious liberty is what we’re entitled to.
 
From Vatican II (see here):

The Church, therefore, exhorts her sons, that through dialogue and collaboration with the followers of other religions, carried out with prudence and love and in witness to the Christian faith and life, they recognize, preserve and promote the good things, spiritual and moral, as well as the socio-cultural values found among these men.
 
Also from Vatican II (see here):

This Vatican Council declares that the human person has a right to religious freedom. This freedom means that all men are to be immune from coercion on the part of individuals or of social groups and of any human power, in such wise that no one is to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his own beliefs, whether privately or publicly, whether alone or in association with others, within due limits.
 
If we don’t respect other people’s beliefs then how can there be religious liberty? Religious liberty is what we’re entitled to.
This is the great issues since the Vatican II: The religious liberty and may be before, the religious tolerance??? The border line between them is very thin. Religious tolerance or religious liberty???

If the religion is not against the moral natural law, each catholic has to tolerate, in thought, this religion and thus the State has to give the right to practice it for the commun well, in order to avoid the conflict and because the convert system by force, by taxes, by civil law system is against the free will.

But if the religion is against the natural law, also the State has the moral right and the moral duty to ban the negative effects of this religion in the civil society. The key is the different between the exterior acts against the natural law and the thinkings against the natural law.

The human rights, with the verticality and with the horizontality ,in link with the moral natural law
or
The human rights, with only the horizontality, not in link with the natural moral law.

Since last 300 years, the moral natural law in the civil societies is without God, no verticality between God the human beings. This phenomenom is so important that the metaphysic is avoided and attacked by the world.
 
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