by changeling 120 Replies latest jw friends
On another thread I asked:
"f I do not renounce my atheism, repent and start believing in and worshipping the christian god, what will happen to me?"
I do not want your judgement or your opinion I want to know what your church/faith teaches on the subject or the fate of unbelievers.
No platitudes, please. Just spell it out. I won't hold it against you.
changeling :)
Hey! I gave my answer on the other thread!
I'm agnostic so I'm not really qualified to answer. My opinion is simply this: IF there is an after life that is dealt in response to our time in this one, I would hope that our good deeds will suffice. I can't imagine any "god" would care how many Hail Marys we said or if our prayers were in the exact direction of Mecca. I would think she would just want us to be good to each other. Why get all complicated with it?
I just took a look at my church's statement of belief, and confirmed what I thought I remembered: it doesn't say anything at all about non-believers.
I do not want your judgement or your opinion I want to know what your church/faith teaches on the subject or the fate of unbelievers.
No platitudes, please. Just spell it out. I won't hold it against you.
Why don't you read the original source yourself? You are not afraid of a book are you?
I don't believe in the book or it's supposed source, I want to know what YOU believe.
changeling :)
I don't believe in the book or it's supposed source, I want to know what YOU believe.
Then why do you care what I, or any other Christian, for that matter, believes?
Honesty matters to me. Be honest, what do you believe/were taught will happen to unbelievers?
changeling :)
I want to know what your church/faith teaches on the subject or the fate of unbelievers.
Catechism of the Catholic Church:
839 "Those who have not yet received the Gospel are related to the People of God in various ways." 325
The relationship of the Church with the Jewish People. When she delves into her own mystery, the Church, the People of God in the New Covenant, discovers her link with the Jewish People, 326 "the first to hear the Word of God." 327 The Jewish faith, unlike other non-Christian religions, is already a response to God's revelation in the Old Covenant. To the Jews "belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises; to them belong the patriarchs, and of their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ", 328 "for the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable." 329
840 And when one considers the future, God's People of the Old Covenant and the new People of God tend towards similar goals: expectation of the coming (or the return) of the Messiah. But one awaits the return of the Messiah who died and rose from the dead and is recognized as Lord and Son of God; the other awaits the coming of a Messiah, whose features remain hidden till the end of time; and the latter waiting is accompanied by the drama of not knowing or of misunderstanding Christ Jesus.
841 The Church's relationship with the Muslims. "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day." 330
842 The Church's bond with non-Christian religions is in the first place the common origin and end of the human race:
- All nations form but one community. This is so because all stem from the one stock which God created to people the entire earth, and also because all share a common destiny, namely God. His providence, evident goodness, and saving designs extend to all against the day when the elect are gathered together in the holy city. . . 331
843 The Catholic Church recognizes in other religions that search, among shadows and images, for the God who is unknown yet near since he gives life and breath and all things and wants all men to be saved. Thus, the Church considers all goodness and truth found in these religions as "a preparation for the Gospel and given by him who enlightens all men that they may at length have life." 332
844 In their religious behavior, however, men also display the limits and errors that disfigure the image of God in them:
- Very often, deceived by the Evil One, men have become vain in their reasonings, and have exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and served the creature rather than the Creator. Or else, living and dying in this world without God, they are exposed to ultimate despair. 333
and
Atheism
2123 "Many . . . of our contemporaries either do not at all perceive, or explicitly reject, this intimate and vital bond of man to God. Atheism must therefore be regarded as one of the most serious problems of our time." 58
2124 The name "atheism" covers many very different phenomena. One common form is the practical materialism which restricts its needs and aspirations to space and time. Atheistic humanism falsely considers man to be "an end to himself, and the sole maker, with supreme control, of his own history." 59 Another form of contemporary atheism looks for the liberation of man through economic and social liberation. "It holds that religion, of its very nature, thwarts such emancipation by raising man's hopes in a future life, thus both deceiving him and discouraging him from working for a better form of life on earth." 60
2125 Since it rejects or denies the existence of God, atheism is a sin against the virtue of religion. 61 The imputability of this offense can be significantly diminished in virtue of the intentions and the circumstances. "Believers can have more than a little to do with the rise of atheism. To the extent that they are careless about their instruction in the faith, or present its teaching falsely, or even fail in their religious, moral, or social life, they must be said to conceal rather than to reveal the true nature of God and of religion." 62
2126 Atheism is often based on a false conception of human autonomy, exaggerated to the point of refusing any dependence on God. 63 Yet, "to acknowledge God is in no way to oppose the dignity of man, since such dignity is grounded and brought to perfection in God. . . . " 64 "For the Church knows full well that her message is in harmony with the most secret desires of the human heart." 65
There is more in other official sources besides.
BTS
So we have a Christian who doesn't want to share what they believe? What's the world coming to?
I'm not a Christian, but I thought this diagram of Catholic belief was rather nice:
