The "Ask a..." Threads

[ahs]

I find that it gives Catholics an opportunity to evangelize as well. Most of the “Ask a _____” threads are started by people who have very little knowledge of the Catholic faith. You never know what will grow from the seeds being planted.

+1 While I tend to avoid them myself, I think there is merit in them in that 1) some Catholics might better understand the similarities and differences between the various religions/denominations/etc… and 2) therefore be better able to explain the Catholic position to a person with an opposing view.

I started an “Ask a Pentecostal” thread. It wasn’t to proselytize though. I just find that many (not just Catholics) don’t really understand all the nuances of Pentecostalism. I often hear or read very misinformed statements and just wanted to give people the opportunity to get more information from a practicing Pentecostal.

Also, I’m interested in hearing Catholic arguments against what I or other Pentecostals believe. It makes me think more thoroughly about what I believe and why I believe them.

I assume the purpose of the non-Catholic religions forum is for Catholics to receive information about non-Catholic religions. So, I feel that its perfectly ok to offer that information while I’m hear reading all the great threads and learning so much about Catholicism.

Love this post. I have to say, as a Catholic who has been to non-Catholic forums as a minority, it is no small task to put oneself on the spot like that, and no small task to answer the flood of questions to come. Catholics who want to be effective evangelists/apologists for the Faith are only limit themselves by not seeking to understand the other views out there. IF we don’t know our differences, as well as what we have in common, we may as well be arguing to the wall.

 

[flameburns623]

I think our Catholic walk requires several things:

A willingness to dialogue and understand the views of non-Catholics.

An attitude of ecumenical cooperation with those of other faiths where possible.

A readiness to defend the faith when it is incorrectly understood or misrepresented.

And a willingness to teach the Gospel to those prepared to hear and receive it.

The "Ask A . . . . . " threads facilitate the first to goals directly. They also help with the latter two goals by helping us to understand where someone might be starting from

The “Ask A Hare Krshna” thread is being managed largely by a Hindu who seems at times almost ready to receive the Catholic Faith.

The Scientologist thread is being fielded by someone who apparently is Lutheran and has never been a formal Scientologist. It’s a good learning thread.

The Baha’i thread has had some good dialogue though at times it feels as if religious paradigms are talking past one another despite everyone’s best efforts. It’s gotten philosophically above my head but it is mostly good dialogue.

All-in-all, based upon the threads I have participated in, it seems as if these have been mostly constructive threads.

 

[Darryl_B]

I’m curious about all of these “Ask a…” threads. Are these really helpful for evangelization? It seems to me a way for people of other faiths to evangelize on a Catholic forum, instead of the other way around.

I’m just confused on the matter, any help would be appreciated.

If I want to know what a particular religion teaches I can find it on the Internet by going to the sites that are pro that particular persuasion. I can read at leisure what they believe and evaluate it accordingly. (I prefer the pros than the antis).

What I have never understood is why the Catholic forum is such a huge drawcard for such a diverse range of non-Catholics. I mean I would never jump on a Muslim site or a Pentecostal site or a Jewish site or a Pagan site or an Athiest site unless I was somehow drawn to it, unless I felt there was something there, unless I was searching, unless I felt lost.