Would you die for your faith?

[Jeanne_S]

This is a lot of big talk, just pray that you are not going to be tested.

While I agree we should pray not to be tested In this way,I don 't agree that this subject is just a lot of big talk.What is wrong with contemplating what our response to this situation would be,to prayfullyconsider what we would be willing to give up for our faith?

 

[Cristiano]

While I agree we should pray not to be tested In this way,I don 't agree that this subject is just a lot of big talk.What is wrong with contemplating what our response to this situation would be,to prayfully consider what we would be willing to give up for our faith?

I was referring to the statement “If you are willing to deny your beliefs when someone threatens you with death or persecution, then I hope you find some better beliefs, because you have nothing to live for anyways.”.

When I read the Bible I see so many failures from the beginning to the end, a lot of people that talked big and failed miserably. Just look at Peter, the biggest fumbler in the group. At the end he did not choose to die for his faith, he died because he had enough faith. If we had the faith of a mustard seed we could move mountains. My understanding is that our religion is not built on “what if” scenarios, it is built on our acceptance of graces when they are offered to us. The question is not about what we would do, the real question is if we know what we should do, if our conscience is formed well enough.

‘I know God won’t give me anything I can’t handle. I just wish he didn’t trust me so much.’ Bl. Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

 

[mab23]

Hi,

I saw the movie “For Greater Glory” yesterday. Would you die for your faith? And if we refuse to accept the possibility of martyrdom for ourselves can we really call ourselves faithful to the Catholic Church and to Christ? I was thinking about this deeply today.

Pray to all the martyrs of the Church to obtain for us heroic virtue and supernatural faith, hope and love for God, even should it lead to our own deaths.

Joshua

I just recently saw this movie too, and Id like to honestly think I would have no problem dying for my Faith

but my Faith has never gone under such an attack so I cannot say

but right now I could easily say absolutely

Great movie btw

 

[Cathryn]

Those who believe they would die for their faith, I wonder if they would go to daily Mass and Holy Communion for their faith? I am sure some do, but others have lofty ideals about being willing to die, yet don’t really give their all to God on a day to day basis. Just something to ask ourselves. So few Catholics take advantage of all the graces of Holy Mass during the week.

 

[Jeanne_S]

I was referring to the statement “If you are willing to deny your beliefs when someone threatens you with death or persecution, then I hope you find some better beliefs, because you have nothing to live for anyways.”.

When I read the Bible I see so many failures from the beginning to the end, a lot of people that talked big and failed miserably. Just look at Peter, the biggest fumbler in the group. At the end he did not choose to die for his faith, he died because he had enough faith. If we had the faith of a mustard seed we could move mountains. My understanding is that our religion is not built on “what if” scenarios, it is built on our acceptance of graces when they are offered to us. The question is not about what we would do, the real question is if we know what we should do, if our conscience is formed well enough.

‘I know God won’t give me anything I can’t handle. I just wish he didn’t trust me so much.’ Bl. Mother Teresa of Calcutta.

Thank you,good points!

 

[Inquiringperson]

The way the U.S. government is going, we will see how many of us are lying right now.

 

[Bezant]

Hi,

I saw the movie “For Greater Glory” yesterday. Would you die for your faith? And if we refuse to accept the possibility of martyrdom for ourselves can we really call ourselves faithful to the Catholic Church and to Christ? I was thinking about this deeply today.

Pray to all the martyrs of the Church to obtain for us heroic virtue and supernatural faith, hope and love for God, even should it lead to our own deaths.

Joshua

Martyrdom is a virtuous act, but it’s also an exception to our commitment to preserve the life God gave us, and like any virtue (e.g., chastity, sexuality) it can be distorted. To even consider taking that exception, the situation must be so desperate that self-sacrifice is the only way to make a practical contribution for the better.

You can do better alive than dead, and what the Gospel sends us to do, requires that we be alive

 

[Hokomai]

I have no faith. If I were given the option between professing religion or dying, I would profess religion. There would be no value in me doing anything else. The circumstances would communicate to others what my true view was. I might be willing to lose a job, or lots of money, rather than do so. I would certainly not be willing to sacrifice the lives of my children (or anyone else) rather than profess religion. I cannot imagine a situation in which I would be able to give my life to defend religious freedom, but I like to think I would do that, if, say, there was to be a war in which I was able to be a combatant. I would do the same to defend the right not to believe and to express and act on that belief.

 

[Eric_Hyom]

Kouyate42;
Plus, what happens after your death? In many cases no-one else will come to take your place, and you cannot defend them yourself, so your beliefs will often die with you.

Jesus died, and his beliefs did not die with him.

Blessings

Eric

 

[PerfectTiming]

Dying in itself proves little. If you lived your life truly believing every single word of your beliefs and lived them out every single moment you drew breath, and THEN went to the grave, then dying might serve some useful witness, but otherwise it is useless.

Plus, what happens after your death? In many cases no-one else will come to take your place, and you cannot defend them yourself, so your beliefs will often die with you.

If in the face of some danger, you somehow extricated yourself from that danger by deception, and then remained to further strengthen your position, then that’s worth something.

Martyrdom proves that what you believe is so powerful that you would never deny it. It shows that you would rather stand up for what you believe in and die than live being pushed around and frightened into denial. It shows true faith.

There are martyrs about which little else had survived but the fact of their martyrdom. We don’t know what kind of a life they lived but we know that they loved Christ so much that they were willing to die for Him.Their martyrdom has made them remembered and their witness lives on, hundreds of years later.

 

[Contra_Mundum_1]

Dying in itself proves little. If you lived your life truly believing every single word of your beliefs and lived them out every single moment you drew breath, and THEN went to the grave, then dying might serve some useful witness, but otherwise it is useless.

It is not useless. The church grew when persecution was at its worst. (Do you know anything about the Roman martyrs?) It is a paradox, but it is true. Even today, the church is growing at the time when there is growing persecution. (But don’t expect the BBC to comment on this kind of violence, terribly un-PC topic). It may sound crude that the blood of the martyrs builds the church, but I can’t think of a better way to express it at the moment.

As to the question: I pray that I would.

 

[Lost_Wanderer]

I’d rather kill those who’d force such a false dichotomy. Why die… when they can die first?

 

[Contra_Mundum_1]

Those who believe they would die for their faith, I wonder if they would go to daily Mass and Holy Communion for their faith? I am sure some do, but others have lofty ideals about being willing to die, yet don’t really give their all to God on a day to day basis. Just something to ask ourselves. So few Catholics take advantage of all the graces of Holy Mass during the week.

Maybe not, but sometimes even lukewarm faith becomes strong in certain situations. (I’m not saying not attending daily mass means one is lukewarm, by the way.) So even lapsed catholics can die as martyrs.

 

[rfournier103]

I’d rather kill those who’d force such a false dichotomy. Why die… when they can die first?

Love it.

Also… I think no one here can truthfully say one way or the other until faced with such a situation. I would LIKE to think I could, or would, but I have no idea. Truly the ultimate test of faith, no?

If I DID die for my faith, I pray that God would welcome me with open arms. If I were too cowardly to do so, I pray that God would forgive my cowardice and give me the strength to live with my shame.

 

[ConstantineTG]

Hi,

I saw the movie “For Greater Glory” yesterday. Would you die for your faith? And if we refuse to accept the possibility of martyrdom for ourselves can we really call ourselves faithful to the Catholic Church and to Christ? I was thinking about this deeply today.

Pray to all the martyrs of the Church to obtain for us heroic virtue and supernatural faith, hope and love for God, even should it lead to our own deaths.

Joshua

This is the kind of question that can only be honestly answered when you are there at that moment. St. Peter said he would die for Christ at the Last Supper, but cowardice prevailed that night. It is not until decades later when he would be strengthened by the Holy Spirit and fulfill that promise of martyrdom.

 

[akela135]

I’ll admit this isn’t the best way to look at it but I’ve thought this before.

Dying for your faith is easy. It is one simple act and you will spend eternity in heaven for it.

Living for your faith is hard. It means spending every second of every day choosing to follow God and do the right thing, even when it is hard and no one but you (and God) would know if you chose otherwise.

I mean if a man walks up with a gun and says “If you believe in Jesus I’ll shoot you, tell me if you do!” You say you do and are shot in the head. This took less than 5 minutes and hopefully equals eternity with God. That is short and relatively easy. Granted you might be killed in a truly horrific way but the idea is you will be rewarded by getting to be with God.

However when you live for God you are faced with the right and wrong choices every second of every day and have to continually ask yourself if what you are doing will bring greater glory and honor to God. That’s much harder.

Like I said not the best way of looking at it, but I often thought if God would give me the “easy out” of martyrdom I’d be super thankful.

 

[johnnyjones]

“Die for” sounds to quick and clean because we often just think of giving up our lives. More often though martyrdom involves long tortuous agonizing periods of time.

The question I feel that is more difficult to answer is, would you receive torture for your faith?
Think of crucifixions, pendulums, racks, buried alive, extremities cut off , eyes sewed open, eaten by an animal, etc. … till the actual point of death.

I think I could die for Jesus today (I pray) with a life ending shot in the arm or some other rapid method. Torture until death is something very challenging. Many men and women suffered through horrendous tortuous acts for the faith. Just falling down and simply dieing to be with the Lord was not typically part of martyrdom.

 

[Cristiano]

Maybe not, but sometimes even lukewarm faith becomes strong in certain situations. (I’m not saying not attending daily mass means one is lukewarm, by the way.) So even lapsed Catholics can die as martyrs.

You are correct and martyrs die because in the end they knew what is really true.

Nobody gets killed for a theorem, while hundreds of thousands have died for God, in whom they believed without being able to prove the existence: They testified to, which is worth more than proving it.

Giuseppe Prezzolini (1882-1982)

 

[Bezant]

This is the kind of question that can only be honestly answered when you are there at that moment. St. Peter said he would die for Christ at the Last Supper, but cowardice prevailed that night. It is not until decades later when he would be strengthened by the Holy Spirit and fulfill that promise of martyrdom.

I think this is the best response yet.

 

[nickybr38]

I have always been keenly aware of my mortality.

I would like to think that I would be brave enough to die for my faith… but sometimes I feel so much like Peter before the Holy Spirit came upon him that I doubt I would have the courage.