How do I know what is right or wrong? Chapter 1.
The drama of our human existence encompasses interlocking spheres of belief and behavior: the religious sphere, the moral sphere, and the prudential (political) sphere. Today, we will see the different set-ups regarding the Religious sphere.
The Catholic system, proclaimed by Jesus Christ, God and Man, is highly developed and explicit. Within it, there are several systems and spiritualities, that emphasize different details, keeping the same interdependent template. But all have eternal consequences.
The rich man who neglected Lazarus recognized no religious authority (cf. Lk. 16:19-31). Thus, he lived. Thus, he died. Thus, he was judged. The inescapable interlocking combination of the religious, moral, and political spheres determines our eternal destiny.
The Religious Sphere: Identify your beliefs, traditions, and doctrines. It declares who our spiritual authorities. It answers, Is there life after death?
The CATHOLIC RELIGIOUS SPHERE encompasses the entire Deposit of Faith. In it, the Evangelists recorded the testimony of the eyewitnesses of the resurrected Christ. The Church hands down the testimony from every generation. The essentials of the faith are presented to us by the teaching authority of the Church. Tradition, Scriptures, and Magisterium are guardians of the faith.
The Apostles’ Creed sums up the faith. God creates us in His image. Original sin wounded human nature. Jesus saves us from our sins. His Cross and Resurrection redeem us, and our encounter with Him, in the Church and the Sacraments, heal our wounded nature and prepare us for heaven.
The Traditional PROTESTANT RELIGIOUS SPHERE is founded on the “Scriptures alone” belief but includes other implicit traditions and doctrines. Original Sin demolishes (not merely “wounds”) human nature. The Cross and Resurrection save us when we accept Jesus as our personal Lord and Savior. We encounter Jesus in faith alone. They invoke literal interpretations of the Scriptures and trust pastors, often with their conflicting interpretations.
In the ATHEIST (ANTI-) RELIGIOUS SPHERE, God doesn’t exist. Faith is unreasonable, just myths and superstitions. The atheist believes (without evidence) that all existence comes to an end at death.
Oct 27 Mon