Episode 14 - Muslims, Infrequent Mass Attendees and Protestants

In this episode, Father Mark Stoll answers questions about the similarities and differences between Christians and Muslims, if once or twice a year Mass attendees are saved, and if Protestants can go to Heaven.

Tune in so we may discover, learn and engage our hearts, souls and minds so we may be illuminated, informed and inspired. Please send your questions to fatherknowsbestshow@yahoo.com.

The program is sponsored by St. Augustine Indian Mission in Winnebago, NE.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

I have questions. I don't understand. I'm confused. What's going on? That's the number one I've learned in the school. What does the church really teach? Welcome to Father Numbers Bush from the studios of 88.1 FM, K-F-A-C, Pampasu City, and K-O-I-A Strommike. Brought to you by the St. Augustine Indian Mission Winobago. We all have questions and curiosity about matters of faith as it is normal for humanity to ask questions and seek answers in the timeless quest for understanding regarding matters of faith in the church. We believe that there is no such thing as a foolish and dumb question. Only opportunities to learn and to connect. And I say the only dumb question is the one that is not asked. And the reality is that the questions you have are like questions others have, and so it is good to ask. Sometimes an answer leads to more questions. Sometimes the questions and answers will lead us to insights we never considered. We at Sudan Catholic Radium want to invite our listeners from Jackson, Nebraska to other points of the code, a strong like Iowa. And everyone in between and beyond, send your questions to us at FatherNillsbest Show at Yahoo.com. Or mail them to FatherNobs Best, Sudan Catholic Radio, 701 West Fifth Street, Sioux City, Iowa 51103. During this time once a week, I or another guest will do our best to answer some of the questions I've received here at the studio so we may discover, learn, and engage our hearts and souls and minds. So we may be illuminated, informed, and inspired. So I thank you for tuning in. We invite you to open your mind, let the questions begin, and let your curiosity find its voice. I'm Father Mark Stoll, priest of the Diocese City, with you today. And once again, this week, joining me is Tim Sudin, Executive Director of Sioux Line Catholic Radio, presenting some of the questions I've received from your listeners. How are you doing? I am doing wonderful today.

SPEAKER_01 1:51

Excellent. It's another wonderful Wednesday, and I always love learning more about the faith.

SPEAKER_00 1:56

Exactly. And I love uh diving into these questions. I learned a lot too. And I know that we have Ann here at the control board, help make it sound good. And again, I think she's learning a lot here too as we meet each of these sessions. So let's dive into our questions that the listeners have sent, and I think we have some interesting questions this evening. So who's our first? Lisa from Sioux City asks, and boy, does this sound like a loaded question.

SPEAKER_01 2:19

Please differentiate between the Christian religion and the Muslim religion.

SPEAKER_00 2:24

Thank you for this question. So let's briefly first talk about the similarities between Christians and Islam, which is the religion of the Muslims. Just as with the Jewish people, Christians and Muslims, we all trace our lineage back to the same patriarch, same person in the Old Testament, name as Abraham. Jews and Christians, of course, we trace our linearity back to the son of Abraham and Sarah, which of course was Isaac. And the Muslims will trace their lineage back to the son of Abraham and Hagai, who was Ishmael. Now there are some similar beliefs between Christians and Islam, which include belief in one God, reverence for Jesus, the importance of prayer, honor for the Virgin Mary, commitment to charity, fasting as a spiritual discipline, belief in the afterlife, emphasis on peace, the Rhine Revelation through holy books, and strong family values. Those similar beliefs, again, we know have some and maybe many nuances between, you know, some, you know, even Christians, but again, in general, just in generality, those are the similarities. But that's basically where we kind of diverge. So let's talk about some of the core theological differences between Christianity and Islam. So first, Christianity and Islam differ on, you know, very fundamentally on their understanding of God, revelation, salvation, and religious practice. So, just in brief, Christianity, which is rooted in the revelation of Jesus Christ as the incarnate Son of God and the second person of the Trinity, teaches that salvation comes through faith in Christ's death and resurrection. On the other hand, Islam would emphasize what they call absolute submission. That's actually the word that brings to us Islam. Islam means submission. And we want to be some, they want to be submissive to the one God, of course, who they refer to as Allah. Now, we also look at the fact that for Islam, Muhammad is the final prophet that delivered the Quran, which is their scriptures, which is what they consider God's unmediated word. And so these distinctions on God and revelation, again, Christianity, we look at the trinity with we are trinitarian monotheists, which means that we believe one God who is three persons. And of course, Islam looks at what we call Unitarian Monotheism, one God united. And of course, we also have, of course, Christ's divine definitive revelation versus the Quran's revelation, which they claim to supersede any prior scriptures. Any prior scriptures are superseded by the Quran. So let's dive a little deeper into their understanding of God. For Christianity, we affirm, again, as I pointed out, one God and three divine persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is what we call the perfect unity of substance. So the Latin word for that is homoousius. This, of course, is not what we call tri-theism, which again would look at three gods. It's one God, but this one God, Trinity, is an eternal dialogue of love. It's love between Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit. And the Catholic Church condemns denials of the Trinity as heretical. On the other hand, Islam professes belief in one indivisible God, and they reject any distinct persons of God. And this is known as, again, I've hopefully pronounced these words right, shirk. Shirk, S-H-I-R-K. Again, it's about an association with God. So again, there's no distinction in God, just one being. They see God is transcendent, merciful, and just with no internal relations. And again, Muslims then adore the one merciful God but no Trinitarian reality. So again, to summarize the key difference, again, Christianity, God is relational, self-revealing through the Son, while Islam's God is solitary submission without incarnation and no trinity. And again, I want to point out that you know we as Christians, as the Jewish people and as Muslims, we do worship the same God, except for we have different theological understandings of who God is. Let's talk a bit about their identity and our identity with Christ. So for Christianity, of course, we see Jesus as the eternal Son of God, true God and true man, conceived by the Holy Spirit, crucified, risen, and the Savior. Our dogma, which again we see stated very clearly in the Nicene Creed, interprets Jesus and His life, his prayer, all his works, as what we call consubstantial with the Father, that is, with the same substance as God the Father. Islam, on the other hand, for Jesus, which they were known as Issa, is seen as a prophet and a messenger. Yes, he is born of the Virgin Mary. Yes, he did perform miracles, but always performed those miracles by God's permission, and is neither divine and not was not crucified, because the Quran denies his death. Now, Jesus also foretold, they believe, foretold the coming of Muhammad, and they believe that Jesus will return to affirm Islam. Again, the key difference here is that Christianity is centered on Christ's divinity and his redemptive sacrifice. While Islam refers and views him as a human prophet, rejecting core Christian doctrines, including incarnation and atonement. Let's look at the scriptures. For the scriptures in Christianity, of course, we see that revelation was fulfilled, culminated in Christ's coming. He's the definitive word. And there has been no further public keyword public revelation. There has been, maybe, and has been some private revelation, such as to St. Faustina, but there's been no more public revelation from God, which means to everybody, the whole world. And of course, we see the scriptures, the Old and New Testament, along with the tradition, to be interpreted by the magisterium, which then forms the deposit of faith. For the people of the Islam religion, again, they see that the Quran is God's verbatim, that is the final revelation that corrects prior corrupted scriptures. And they would consider corrupted scriptures, including the Torah, the first five books of the Bible, and the Gospels. They do see that the Quran fulfills the covenants with Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, which are then sealed by Muhammad's prophethood. Again, we see key differences. Christianity holds Jesus Christ as an important role, as eternal and unrepeatable, while Islam positions the Quran as superior, as superior as to the post-Christian completion and Muhammad as the final prophet. So again, another difference between Christianity and the Islam faith regards salvation and human destiny. For Christianity, we see salvation is achieved by grace through faith in Christ's apaschal mystery, which involves sacraments, repentance, and charity. We also believe that God's judgment and the judgment that we received is with God, considering our response to revelation. How do we respond to what God has presented to us, given to us, for example, in the scriptures? For Islam, Islam, they see salvation is achieved. Achieved by grace through faith. Excuse me, excuse me, achieved through submission. Again, a key word there for their Islam, faith is submission. Again, word is Islam. Salvation is achieved through submission, achieved through faith, which is known as Ayman, and achieved through works, known as din. And this is all done according to clied, you know, their belief, recitation, prayer, fasting, almsgiving, and pilgrimage. And Islam would say that God's decree is what predetermines when they are, you know, when they will be judged and how to be judged in the last day. So again, key differences. Christianity emphasizes transformative union with Christ, while Islam stresses personal obedience to God's law. Then there's also differences regarding religious practice and community. Christianity, for us in the Catholic Church, we see religious practice and community is to be organized by the Church, which, of course, the Church is a universal sacrament, a universal sign of God's presence. We see, of course, this religious practice and community formed by the sacraments, liturgy, and the hierarchy. And we see, of course, the laity contributes to doctrine via census fide, which is, of course, the sense of faith. For the people of Islam, community, known as Uma, is bound by Shari, that is the law which encompasses faith, society, and state. And so for the Islam people, they have five pillars: profession of faith, prayer, almsgiving, fasting, and haji. I believe I pronounced that right. Haji, of course, is that is that annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia, the holy city for the Muslims, where they go to visit the Kaaba, which is the house of Allah. It is a mandatory religious duty for all capable Muslims that they must be carried, it must be carried out at least once in a lifetime by all adults who are physically and financially capable of undertaking that journey. And are then, of course, they have to be able to support their family while they're away from home on this on this pilgrimage. And so for Islam, again, uh it's not merely about religion, it's about a total way of life. Again, key differences again when we when we're talking about religious practice and community. Again, Christianity distinguishes spiritual from the temporal under church guidance. Well, Islam again integrates all under what we call divine law. So kind of starting to summarize here the differences between the Islam and Christianity. We do see that there are areas of perceived commonality, things that we share in common. With the documents of Vatican II, especially Nostra Ate and uh Ayate and Lumengencia, it notes that we share monotheism, prayer, almsgiving, fasting, reverence for Jesus and for Mary, and of course fostering dialogue. There are, however, again, very profound differences, especially regarding Christ, which again presents a huge difference. In the Catholic Church, we of course Christianity proclaims Christ as the way, the truth, and the life. It rejects nothing to be true in other religions and urges fulfillment only in Christ. So, in summary, in Christianity, we see revealed God's Trinitarian love through the incarnate Christ, Christ who came among us in all things but sin, who then offers his salvation via his cross. Well, Islam then calls for submission under the Quran Quran's law through Muhammad. And finally, I would say that our dialogue with people of the Islam religion should respect common elements, but we need to uphold these irres irreconcilable truths, which again, we are all about inviting all people to Christ's fullness. So again, I hope that uh summarizes that. It's kind of a long answer, but covers a lot of territory.

SPEAKER_01 14:15

But that was a very involved question. It was a very involved question. I knew that it would have a lot of tentacles to it. That's not a simple question. Let's move on to our next question. Sounds great. Don from Sioux City sent this question in. If a Catholic only goes to church on Christmas Eve or day andor Easter Sunday, does that meet the basic requirement to be saved?

SPEAKER_00 14:41

Thank you for that question. First, I want to affirm that I'm sure there are many listeners who are aware that there are Catholics who only come to Mass on Christmas Eve or day or on Easter Sunday. And that's of course when we know that when our churches are standing room only oftentimes for those masses. So I want to say too, let's be grateful for those who do attend those masses on Christmas Eve and Day and on Sundays who are present maybe just for those one or two times a year. And again, I think we need to understand that they may likely have their reasons for only attending those masses. And personally, I would believe maybe it's right to assume in many of those cases they're attending those masses due to some sort of family obligation or tradition. Or maybe they lack an understanding in the catechism of the significance of the Sacrament Eucharist. And so the answer to their question is do they meet the basic requirement? The answer is no. And this is the reason. I'm gonna dive a little deeper in this. Because again, attending Mass on Christmas Eve or Sunday morning of Easter, you know, does not meet the requirements for salvation according to Catholic teaching. So we know, of course, Christmas is always a holy day, always a holy day of obligation that requires Mass attendance no matter what day of the week it falls on. And of course, Easter Sunday is also holy day, as it always falls on a Sunday, and of course it's a very high solemnity, big celebration for us as Catholics. The Church, of course, as we know, mandates the participation in Sunday Eucharist each week to be a grave precept, along with active engagement in the full sacramental life of the Church. So habitually, missing Sunday Mass constitutes what we call serious sin that endangers the soul, as it rejects the communal worship central to Christian life and grace. Salvation demands ongoing faith, repentance, and cooperation with grace through this regular celebration, the liturgical celebration and participation. Again, it's not about isolated attendance, meaning that we go once in a while, but formal membership in the church is not enough. And so we know that because even since the earliest time of the church, early time of the church, some time of the apostles, we have believed and practiced that attending and participating in Mass on Sundays and Holy Days is an expression of us belonging to Christ's body of the church. In other sense, attending Mass is not optional. It's a fundamental duty for us as Catholics. St. Paul, in his first letter of Corinthians chapter 12, verses 12 to 27, writes the following. He says basically there, he says, Those who have been baptized become members of the body of Christ, which is the church, and thus we express this common identity, witness to our faith, and strengthen ourselves and one another by sharing the communal celebration of the Eucharist. And so only attending Mass on Christmas Eve or Day or Easter Sunday only fulfills one holy day in that sense, but neglects approximately 52 other Sundays and several other holy days each year. St. John Paul II highlighted the gravity of declining Sunday attendance in the speech he made to the bishops of Austria when they made the Alumino visit back in May of 1988. And there he acknowledged that in that speech he said, There are many Catholics who absent themselves in the Church's sacramental life, particularly in the Sunday Eucharist, and I quote, this wounds the very heart of ecclesiastical communion. And so we also look at Vatican II, 1963 document, Sacrum Concilium, Sacro Sacrament Concilium, kind of Constitutional Security we've talked about before. Again, it calls for full, conscious, active participation, which extends beyond the mere presence being just being at Mass. In other words, while being physically present at Mass is good, more is required in order for us to achieve this what we call union with Christ. And so excuses like inconvenience do not suffice without grave cause, such as illness. Now, even though there may be alternatives like spiritual communion may apply, but again, that's not a substitute for the norm of being physically present and consciously participating in our words and actions. Again, in the Vatican II's document, 1962 document of Lumengensian, which is the dogmatic constitution of the Church, paragraph 11, it says the Eucharist is the source and summit of the whole Christian life. This means the Eucharist is essential for growing in grace and union with God. And neglecting the Eucharist regularly severs one from this vital nourishment. Participation in the Eucharistic sacrifice is a great service to the people of God. Again, week after week, it makes us ever more conscious of the fact that we can draw unlimited strength from the Eucharist. An authentic faith requires constant prayer, active liturgical participation, especially in the Eucharist, and again, regular confession and being engaged in the mission of the church. I know we've talked about this in previous episodes. Again, formal membership alone is insufficient. You know, again, just to having faith in Christ. And again, it requires us to live in communion with God and with one another. This, you know, even for those who are unable to receive communion, such as those who are divorced or remarried, you know, we they still must attend regularly to worship, even though they can't receive Holy Communion. So again, scripture and tradition underscores that while baptism initiates salvation, ongoing sacramental life sustains it so that no one is saved without relationship to God, you know, through the Church of Sacraments. And again, even though we point out that God is not bound to the sacraments, so a habitual absence risks what we call mortal sin, which blocks sanctity and grace that is needed for salvation. And I also may add, too, that remember the third uh commandment talks about we need to keep holy the Sabbath. And part of that commandment is requiring us to gather as a community to worship God. And so again, missing Sunday Mass, even if missing Sunday Mass or other Masses is a grave matter if it's done again with full knowledge and deliberate consent. It does it kind of reflects and probably even you know strongly reflects what we call sacrification. Missing Mass again weakens the ecclesial bounds, uh bonds, I should say. And I just I think use an image. If if we never or rarely attended a family event, such as a Christmas or Easter dinner or a birthday party or anniversary celebration or other family events, again, that would weaken our own family bond. And so weekly attendance of Sunday and Holy Day Mass is necessary for giving us strength, spiritual strength. And so if you or if anyone you know only attends Mass on Christmas Eve or Day or Easter Sunday, your family, the church, invites you with open arms to return. Return to weekly Sunday Mass, to Holy Day Masses, go to confession, and embrace the Eucharist fully. For this is the path that Christ gives us through his church. Again, I thank you for this question. I know that it's on many people's minds too.

SPEAKER_01 21:38

I think a quick follow up on that. My mother in law is in a nursing home and she cannot see. Mm-hmm. So she does not have the opportunity to go to mass, but she watches it on television every Sunday. Right. Is that fulfilling the requirement of attending mass?

SPEAKER_00 21:55

Because again, she's in a nursing home and she's ill, she's in you know, so again. That's one of those exceptions, and I know we've talked about it in the previous episode too. So exactly. If you're just tuning in, you're listening to the Father Knows Best here on Swell and Catholic Radio as I answer your questions about faith in the church. I'm Father Mark Storm and joined by Tim Soudine, who is presenting questions I received from you, our listeners. Let's see if we have time for one more question. I believe we do. Sounds great.

SPEAKER_01 22:21

Another faithful listener asks Can Lutherans or Protestants get to heaven just like Catholics by following the Ten Commandments and God's grace through Jesus. I have non-Catholics in my family, and I have often wondered about that. I keep praying for them, and I sure hope that they can come back, but I would really like a concrete answer to that question.

SPEAKER_00 22:44

Oh, thank you for this question. I know this question plagues the minds of many Catholics who have children and siblings and other family members and friends who have left the practice of the faith of the Catholic Church or even were raised in a Protestant denomination. And the answer surely, as beautifully, is yes. According to Catholic teaching, Lutherans, Protestants can attain heaven through God's grace. Again, that's grace mediated by Jesus Christ. And of course, it includes following the Ten Commandments as a life of faith and charity, again, through salvation, is ultimately entrusted to God's mercy again. And again, this whole mystery is again occurs invisibly through the Catholic Church. So let's dive a little deeper into this question. The reason for this. First, we know, of course, Jesus Christ, who founded the Catholic Church on the Feast of Pentecost almost 2,000 years ago. That's what Jesus did. Since then, we've had other people, including Martin Luther, John Kelvin, John Wycliffe, and many others who founded their own churches, which we call denominations for various reasons. They founded these churches. Yet the Catholic Church still affirms that the basic teachings of our founder, the Lord Jesus Christ, that salvation is found solely in Jesus Christ and his one church. Yet this does not mean that non-Catholics are automatically excluded from heaven. And I mean by non-Catholics, I can also include not only Lutherans and Methodists, but also we can maybe talk about Hindus and Muslims and others. In the Catholic Encyclopedia on the topic of religious tolerance, it says there that the belief that those who are outside the church must, for the very reason, be eternally lost, is a foolish and unchristian belief that has no legitimate conclusion from Catholic dogma. We may remember that over the years, over the centuries, there has been a belief by some people that if you're not a member of the church, you'll be automatically damned. Now, the church has never officially taught this. This is not an official dogma, it's not official teaching. In fact, we believe that the infliction of eternal damnation belongs not to the church but to God, and only God can know a person's conscience and make this judgment, who may or may not satisfy this condition for eternal damnation. On the topic of sanctifying grace, the Catholic Encyclopedia states that God judges each person according to their conscience, knowledge, and response to grace. Thus Protestants, many of whom are receive valid baptism, can be united to the Church invisibly if they sincerely seek God and follow moral truth, such as we find at the Ten Commandments, and live by faith by working through love. Sanctifying grace is the gift from God that we receive through Christ to enable faith, hope, charity, and good works, in accordance with obedience to the Ten Commandments, which basically is again the foundation of Christian morality. We believe as Catholics that prowess who follow the commandments under grace participate in faith, which also includes works of charity, even if their understanding of justification differs from ours. Again, as I've covered in previous episodes, the Council of Trent condemned the notion of justification by faith alone, without clarity, without charity works. And so, again, it's not enough to say, I believe in Christ, believe in Jesus, but we must also must put into practice our faith.

unknown 25:58

St.

SPEAKER_00 25:58

Thomas Aquinas wrote also, God, our Savior, desires all men to be saved, with grace appearing to all men. And again, we know that heaven is a place where we get to see God face to face, and it's open to all who die in God's friendship. So, non-Catholics may obtain heaven through graces for the following reasons. Invincible ignorance, which again means that there are people like non-Catholics who are unaware of the church's necessity through no fault of their own, and thus are not held accountable for what they cannot know. There's also what we call sincere conscience, with which they follow natural law, the Ten Commandments, a cooperative grace. There's also, again, yes, there are some differences from Catholics. You know, we believe in the fuller means, like through sacraments and magisterium. Again, we see Protestants who have a valid baptism and a moral life that can lead to salvation. And of course, bottom line, God's judgment. The church does not declare individuals saved or damned, only God sees the heart. And so, in summary, Lutherans, Protestants can receive heaven just like Catholics, through God through Christ's grace, if they respond sincerely to what they have received. And the church entrusts them to God's mercy, urging all to seek full communion in the church's path. And as we say, there is no salvation except through the church, which includes all of us, no matter who we are, Catholic or non-Catholic, when we pray, do works of charity, and also offer a good example so all persons may enjoy the rewards of heaven, and even help them to join us or come back to the church. So again, I hope this answers your question. Again, resure your non-Catholic family and friends.

SPEAKER_01 27:35

That's a lot. It does help a lot, but it also answers some really deep questions because you're right. There's a lot of parents my age out there who have children who are questioning their faith or even totally inactive in their faith. Right. And I think it's very important to have a path back to that.

SPEAKER_00 27:53

And I always say just, you know, keep praying and be a good example, and that'll be a good help for them. So again, I think we've run out of time. So again, I we really appreciate again you tuning into Siouxland Catholic Radio as we offer both national and local programs, including Faith in Action with Joanna Fox, Catholic Ministries Professional, drawing here with Fred and Kira, Life Plan, Define Richard Chaplain, Sunday Morning Mass. Please also know and check out the Facebook pages of Sue Land Catholic Radio and Father Knows Best for more information about this show, including more information about questions and answers I've addressed and more information that I've not addressed on this show. As we wrap up today's questions and answers session, we extend our heartfelt thanks to all of our listeners for tuning in and sharing your thought-provoking questions, your curiosity, and engagement makes the show possible. And we are always inspired by the incredible range of topics you bring to the table. We hope you found the answers both informative and enlightening, and that you'll carry some of the new insights with you as you go about your week. And if your question wasn't answered today, you may hear your answer to your question next week. If you missed this episode, would like to re-listen to this or other episodes, please visit our website, SueanCatholic Radio.com, and visit the programs drop menu and click on local programs to find this episode and other episodes of Father Knows Best and other local programs. Again, if you have any questions, please send your questions to us at Father Knows Best Show at Yahoo.com or mail them to Father Knows Best, Sioux Line Catholic Radio, 701 West Fifth Street, Sioux City, Iowa, 51103. Again, thank you to our sponsors, St. Augustine Indian Mission, Winnobago. And again, please join us again next Wednesday at 9 p.m. for another round of questions and answers. Until then, stay curious, stay faithful, keep your light shining, and keep those questions coming. May mighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.