Expert: Kit Goins - 4/27/2007

Question
Dear Kit,

                Look what you said:If you worship more of mary than you do Jesus...then I would have to say you are not saved. If you believe that it is Mary that will save you, and not Jesus, then again i would say you are not saved.Okay Kit this is my catholic belief: If you confess your sins and expect forgiveness of those sins to and from priests, then i would again say you are not saved.What it comes down to is that Christ is the one true mediator between God and man. But how he accomplishes the mediation is his choice. Upon ascending into heaven Christ instituted a church that would be his earthly guide for all nations. A church that would be protected and guided by the Holy Spirit, to preserve his Christian truths and guide all men to Jesus for their salvation. Essentially, this is where the Catholic Church came from. It was founded on Peter, the first of the popes by Jesus the High Priest God choose Peter to become a Pope. In the gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells Simon after his confession of faith:

"Blessed are you, Simon, son of Jonah. For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my heavenly father. And so I say to you, you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church and the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys to the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven; and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." --Matthew 16:17-19

Basically, in this passage Jesus does a curious thing. He changes Simon's name to Peter. Peter translated into Aramaic (the language of Jesus and his apostles) is Kepha, or rock. So what Jesus did was say that Peter is the rock. Not just any rock, but the rock on which he will build his church. Jesus also says that the church would be infallible and would preserve his truths when he says "the gates of the netherworld shall not prevail against it..." (knowing the truth of Christianity certainly is necessary to be saved). He also gives Peter binding and loosing powers as well as the keys of heaven (strong symbols of authority) thus giving Peter ultimate teaching authority over the church. In order to preserve this authority and give the gift of teaching to the church, it had to be preserved from error in the future. This is why the successors of Peter have always been the leaders of the Church.

True ability to interpret scripture and preserve the teachings of Christ are only fully possible within the Catholic Church. This is evidenced by the wide array of Protestantism, which hold a large amount of conflicting teachings (an example is the necessity of Baptism) even though all claim to be interpreting the Bible correctly. Although much truth exists in other Christian religions, the only infallible truth lies within the Bible and the Traditions of the Catholic Church. If Christ had not established a teaching, living, apostolic church then how could we properly understand the doctrines of the Bible? Note that 2 Peter 1:20 says "know this first of all, that there is no prophecy of scripture that is a matter of personal interpretation". And even the Ethiopian eunuch on his way to Damascus while trying to interpret scripture asks for Philip's help (who is ordained as a priest in Acts 6:5). "Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" He replied "How can I unless someone instructs me?" (Acts 8:30-31) Thus the church has the authority to properly teach the doctrines of faith for our salvation. This is why I am Catholic. Because without the Church I can't be sure that Christ's teachings are being properly preserved. If you read the Father's of the Church their writings correlate with Catholic views on a ministerial priesthood, the sacraments and many other Catholic doctrines. The first Christians themselves were Catholics. Acts 6:1-6 shows the establishment of the priesthood under the apostles of the Church.

In the end, it is the divinely ordained teaching authority of the Church that assures me of the validity and necessity of the Christian Sacraments; especially that of Confession.  The sacrament of reconcilliation (confession), the Church teaches, is the normative, necessary means by which a Christian receives the forgiveness of God.  The efficacy of confession is derived from Christ’s sacrificial death on the cross, where he served as the divine substitute for our transgressions.   Not only does the Church teach the need of regular confession, but the Bible also records Christ’s institution of the sacrament following his resurrection from the dead when he first appeared to the assembly of apostles (John 20:19-23):  

On the evening of the first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.”  When he had said this he showed them his hands and his side.  The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you.  As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”  And when he said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the holy Spirit.  Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”  

This moment, when Jesus breathed on his apostles, constituted both the institution of the Catholic ministerial priesthood and the sacrament of confession.   Christ gave his first priests, the apostles, the authority to forgive and retain sins.  It was his intention that all sin be forgiven though the Church by aural confession of sins to the priests.  We should realize that in Holy Scripture God breathed on man only twice: once when he breathed life into the clay of earth to create man (Genesis 2:7) and the second time when he breathed the life of grace into his Church.  Both instances were that of an intimate, riveting moment between God and man.  It is clear that the ability to forgive and retain sin given to the apostles, requires that each of us (even to this day)  confess our sins to the priests of the Church so that our sins can be forgiven or retained.  

As Christ well knew, confession of sins to a priest requires humility, trust in God and the Church, and contrition of heart.  Confession of sins to a priest gives us the assurance that our sins are forgiven, even though we may not be perfectly penitent.  For that is what God requires outside the bounds of sacramental confession: a man who goes directly to God for forgiveness of sin can be forgiven, but only if he is perfectly contrite and resolved to sin no more.  Those who are outside the Church by birth and circumstance can still be saved and forgiven of sins, but only if they are perfectly penitent and are unaware of the divine institution of the Church.  A Catholic who will not consent to a sacramental confession, is the man the Church grieves for the most.   He has all the instruments of salvation laid out at his feet, but he will not lay his pride down at the foot of the Cross to pick them up.  

I know sacramental confession often seems like a frightening, humiliating act for those who have neglected the sacrament for many years.  I myself, after deciding to return to full communion with the Church, had to endure a heart-pounding moment of decision in which I laid down my pride and returned to the confessional.  I found that the priest was compassionate, gentle and welcoming.  He realized that my presence there was an act of God’s grace.  No priest will ever condemn a penitent man; and since then I have always found this to be the rule.  Over time, confessions become less frightening; but they always require a measure of humility and resolve.  Yet, nothing in the world can compare to the joy of the soul after a good confession.  The veil of sin falls away and the light of grace fills the soul.  In the end, nothing in the world is as precious as the forgiveness of sin through the Sacrament of Reconcilliation.If you asked a hundred Catholics what it means to be Catholic, you probably wouldn't get a universal answer! If you picked apart their answers, though, you'd find a few things in common.

1. God in Person. Being a Catholic means following Jesus Christ. We trust in Jesus as the "Christ," the Messiah, the one chosen by God to save us. We also believe that Jesus was God come down from heaven who "became flesh and made his dwelling among us" (John 1:14).

2. Sacramental Sense. Catholics have a very sensitive sacramental outlook. We can see just about anything in this world as pointing to God. This stems from our belief that God became human, with all the weaknesses and limitations that entails. So every limited and imperfect thing is a potential sign of God's presence ("grace"). Creation itself is blessed by God from the Big Bang onward, a sign of God's generous love.

3. God Pointers. Because we see things and actions as symbols pointing to God, we tend to have a lot of things and actions in our worship. Among these, seven combinations of "things and actions" are termed Sacraments, with a capital "S"—Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Reconciliation (Confession), Anointing of the Sick, Matrimony and Holy Orders. All these things are in the New and old testament!

4. God's People. We believe that people can also point us to God. Some are the "hall of famers" in heaven, like the Virgin Mary and the saints. Others are ordinary people who help show us the way here on earth. Some people say that Catholics worship these saints and the Virgin Mary, but we just honor them as guides and helpers.

5. God's Family. Christian community is Jesus' own school of divine experience. You find God there in relationship with other people. The best evidence of God still around is loving and being loved by others.

6. God's Wisdom. Christians hold on to the Bible, finding in its stories, dialogues and poems wisdom for all times and places. But Catholics don't believe that the Holy Spirit stopped working when the Bible was complete. The Spirit has always been with the Church, inspiring men and women of faith to speak further about God's plan for human beings. The result is what we call the tradition of the Church. This tradition includes essential teachings such as the Immaculate Conception and a vast wealth of history and practices. Not everything that happened in this history was good. Church leaders also burned witches and sponsored the Inquisition but that yes was wrong again we are people but Jesus founded Catholicism if you dont believe me fine but I am telling the truth. What we now treasure is only the good things which have survived the test of time.

7. God's Training. So much wisdom about spirituality is found in Catholic tradition. Meditation, finding God in nature, uncovering your own potential, learning not to be afraid of death: All these are found in Catholic tradition. The Church teaches the disciplines of prayer, spiritual reading and sharing the faith.

8. In God's Image. Church teaching calls you to respect and do good to others, both those close to you and strangers. This way, you yourself become the love-filled people God wants you to be.

9. God of Second Chances. God is extraordinarily merciful. The Church has always been a hospital for sinners and not a house of perfect saints.

Teenagers from St. Joseph Parish in Lebanon, Indiana, previewed the complete manuscript of this Youth Update and asked these questions.Q. You mention the Big Bang. In school, the Big Bang seems to exclude God. What do Catholics believe about the beginning of the world? A. The main thing Catholics believe about the beginning of the world is that God was behind it. How that happened is given to us to discover. When scientists speak of the Big Bang, they are trying to read the signs of the universe for some clue as to how it all began. Catholic scientists do exactly the same, only they recognize what they see as the design of a loving Creator. Even if it does not explicitly give credit to God for the wonders of the universe, science is compatible with Catholic faith. Pope John Paul II himself has declared that Catholics may and often do believe in the theory of evolution as a sign of God's marvelous power at work in the world. You don't have to hear God mentioned to know he is involved!
Q. I didn't know we sponsored the Inquisition nor do I know much about it. What did we do wrong?
A. Catholics believe in Original Sin—a wounded part of our nature that steers us toward doing the wrong thing instead of the right even when we know better. Church leaders are not exempt. During the time of the Inquisition, especially in Spain in the 15th and 16th centuries, Church leaders tried forcibly to convert Jews, Muslims and others to orthodox Roman Catholic Christianity, at times even using torture and the threat of it. What made this possible was two sad things—a history of anti-Jewish prejudice in Catholic Europe and the idea that those "in error"—who did not agree with the Catholic Church—had no rights. Since that time, the Church has renounced such anti-Jewish prejudice and Anti Catholic Prejudice, has recognized the human and religious rights of those of different religions, and has apologized for the evil that was done. The wrongs in the Church's history cannot be undone. But a knowledge of what happened can teach us to be better people today, both individually and as a community of faith.Q. People who aren't Catholic such as yourself often tell me stuff about my faith that I know isn't so--like what you said about us worshiping Mary and the saints. Where do you think they get such ideas? A. Sometimes it's pure prejudice—fear of people different than you. We dont worship Mary okay we honor her she is the blessed Mother of God. She is a holy woman divinly pretected from original sin!
Especially where Catholics are few, legends still persist that we have horns or are cannibals come on stop attacking my faith. Some fiction about Catholics is based on misunderstandings or exaggerations of what people hear and see we take the bible seriously and Jesus seriously even when  you see a priest wearing a red Chasubal that is the color of the holy spirit on pentecost. Catholics who don't own—or use—a Bible might give others the impression that we don't believe in it That is not true. Devotions to saints can sound so strong that it may appear to others that a saint is part of the Trinity And there not there just humble people that we try to have dedicated on there lives that they live for christ there not Gods or GODDESSES there extraordinary people with a christlike life which we try to copy off of them and learn from there view of Christ teachings on Humble and Godliness. How I describe MY religion to others is important. A little study and using the right words can help head off some misunderstandings. The rest is out of our control.  

Answer
Greetings...

You do, what alot of people do...you do one of or both of the following, when reading the bible..
you either try to make the bible say what you want it to say, or you take one or two sentences and take them completely out
of context with the rest of the paragraph. And this is the major reason there are so many arguements which causes division among the body of christ, as a whole.

First of all, i hope and pray you are reading from the KJV
(king james version) of God's word.
Second, look again at Matthew 16:17-19...read it very carefully, beginning at verse 15...not 17.
What do you see now?

It was NOT that peter would become that rock that Jesus would build the church, at all....it was the knowledge of WHO Jesus WAS that would become the rock and/or foundation of the church.

I'm not going to sit here and battle with you or anyone regarding what is right or wrong teaching, as far as catholic beliefs go... cause we could debate this for ages...and you would become so arrogant and prideful in the end, of always being right, no matter what i or anyone says.

I've just proved you wrong about that first idea of peter being the rock...that should be enough for you, then, to begin a new study for yourself, based on that truth now revealed to you. I hope and pray that God's Spirit open your eyes and ears before it is too late.

May God bless the hearing of this message of truth, to you
and other catholics today and everyday till Jesus comes again. Please do not take me wrong here, I love you all as brothers and sisters and children of the living God. I just know the real truth the whole truth about the fallicies of Catholic belief system. And I don't think I have to drag into this brief discussion, about the many sins of catholic priests these days....cause they are not the only system involved in this....but most of them tend to be catholic.
Also if you knew prophecy at all...you would then understand  that the catholic system plays a major role in the end times
as being part of the beast system to destroy and kill alot of christians...before Jesus comes to put an end to the slaughter. I am only sharing this info with you as a means to push you further into studying God's word more and correctly. Another reason the world is like it is today..is that people only read God's word (when they have time) they don't STUDY it, as commanded in God's word.

2Ti 2:15  "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

I hope this helps..
In His Service, and Love
Bro.  Kit