(1)Is it true that the Catholic Church sold the indulge for salvation? Someone told me that this is what Luther spoke out against concerning the Catholic Church.
The Church believes that sin brings both eternal and temporal punishment. Eternal punishment is what protestants are familiar with. However, even after eternal punishment is forgiven and you are, in a sense, back in good graces with God, a just God still requires temporal punishment. You can compare temporal punishment to a parent discipling their child. It’s intended to teach a lesson, and what more, better help you grow as a person and put sin behind you. Temporal punishment can be made up in this life or in the next.
Indulgences only remit temporal punishment. It only applies to sins already forgiven of eternal punishment. It cannot apply to any future sins. Indulgences also were not sold by the Church, though there were official abuses. Let’s say I give alms to the poor out of sincere Christian charity, or donate to a church, or dedicate myself to reading the Bible. These actions are all edifying and can be considered a penance for temporal punishment I’d done with the right disposition and intent. An indulgence can be granted to remit temporal punishment due (for sins already committed and forgiven). The Church never just sold indulgences. They were associated with alms, donations to charities and churches and edifying works of art, if done with the right intent. However, do to obvious and known abuses, the Church no longer offers indulgences for anything that involves giving money, even if it’s alms to the poor, because that was, in some parts of Europe, greatly abuse and misunderstood.
(2) Why does it have to be in the room and why do you have to be told by priest.where in bible say that. Is it the only way to be saved(Absolution/Sacrament of Reconcilation) if you commit a mortal sin? Or any kind of sin?
There are no limits on God. However, God gave his Apostles the powers of binding and loosing, and declared that any sins they forgave would be forgiven, and any sins they retained would be retained. The Apostles, who were not mind readers, would have needed to be told in order to make that determination and evaluate contrition. James also encourages Christians to confess their sins. Confession is also one of the oldest know Christian practices.
All sins can be absolved in Confession, but only mortal sins normally require it. God can of course act how he wishes and forgive any sins he desires outside of the sacrament, but it his desire that we use the sacrament, and if we reject the sacrament and seen’t put in normal circumstances, God may very well not offer forgiveness for mortal sins (though we cannot know). God understood that we are people. We need signs, and actions, and participation. He understood that we are a community. The Church is his body. It’s not even just about reconciling with God, but reconciling with his body here on Earth.
And last, does it need to be in the Bible? (No.)
(3) Why is a protestant church wrong to attend?
Because it is not part of the priesthood Christ established. It teaches heresy. They don’t possess the fullness of truth. Because they are not fully united to Christ’s body. Because they reject the Sacraments God established for us, and the proper form of worship he provided us through Jesus and his Apostles. That said, it would not be a sin to go to a protestant service in and of itself, but it would not meet a Catholic’s Sunday obligation to go to mass, which is not just an assembly, but a sacrifice (quick clarification: Christ is not resacrificed at the mass. His sacrifice on the cross and his resurrection is made present. More can be said on that).
(4) “The priest preached that those those who purchased indulgence would escape punishment for their sins.
And collected lots of money which was wrong.
That’s why Catholic Church is so extravagant and priest are well dressed”
I think I covered the indulgence point. Since no indulgences involve money, it’s hardly a factor in Church aesthetics. For 1500 years of Christendom there was no printing press. For even longer most could not read. The art were visual representations and reminders of these stories, and still, they lift up our hearts today and help dispose ourselves to the heavenly and supernatural that is part of the mass. The value of art and icons has been written on exstensively, especially by Church fathers in defense of it when the Iconoclast heresy started. I would read up on their opinions.
(5)If you don’t mind your offering are used for maintaining the sparkling looking church equipments.
The Catholic Church is one of the largest donaters to charities in the world, and it actively runs many. I would again make the same suggestion I made in point four, as there’s a lot that’s been written in both eastern and western tradition on the subject…
