Replies

You kind of didn't answer my question, but that's O.K. I'm asking, for those that died under the old law that the Catholic Church set about eating meat on Fridays, are the redeemed or condemned?

If they died before the Church changed its mind, what chance of redemption did they have?

Do you see my question? Who makes the rules, the Catholic Church or GOD?

And where is the scriptural basis for the rules that the Catholic Church sets?

I am not trying to be difficult, I am trying to understand.

You see, God reveals His Word to me. I need no Pope or Bishop to interpret what God gave to all. And God, well, he does not change the rules in the middle of the game. He is the same, past, present and future - he says as much in scripture.

And I too, have a chance at redemption. I have sins that are truly “grievous unto me” I have told no priest, just my Saviour, Jesus Christ. And I have received penance. The penance of conscience, of the drive to make ammends.

I know that God does not change His mind about sin (as man or institutions will do). If eating meat on Friday is a bibically stated sin on Monday, it will also be a bibically stated sin on Thursday.

I wish I could give you a better answer, but I answered as best as I knew how. Any answer I give you to your current question would be my personal opinion and not based in any theological knowledge. My opinion is that those who ate meat on Fridays knowlingly before the Church changed its rule committed a sin. I hate to use the word “condemned”. It is a Church rule, but the Church is our authority (those baptized Catholic) and we were taught that any rules the Church makes must be obeyed under pain of sin. God gave us the Ten Commandments, which of course must be obeyed to have any hope of salvation. Contraceptives is another Church rule which I don’t believe any other religion condemns, but those who disobey this rule are committing a serious sin. I know where you’re coming from with your questions. I think you already have your answers in your own mind and want to test a Catholic to see how they will respond in a sense to corner them. As Catholics we must obey the 10 Commandments and the additional rules of the Church just as disobeying our parents’ rules, one of the Commandments, is committing a sin.