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Can my gays friends go to Heaven as long as they believe in
God's Word and pray the prayer
of salvation?
Can you give me some Scriptures to back up your answer?
Thanks,
Joshua
{
Can my gay friends be saved if they pray the salvation prayer and can you reply with Scriptures? }
Mike
replied:
Hi, Joshua —
Thanks for the question.
By the design of the Creator, a man was designed
for a woman and a woman was designed for a
man.
This statement is not only supported by the Words
of the Creator Himself in Scriptures: see Matthew 19:4-6 but by medical science itself.
This is a statement based on both faith and science. With this premise laid down let's address your question.
You said: I have a few friends who are gay.
Can gays also go to Heaven as long as they believe in
God's Word and pray the prayer
of salvation?
A true belief manifest itself in actions and words,
not just words.
For most people beyond the age of reason, being
saved requires a formed conscience.
Today, some people do have formed consciences, while
many do not.
What is a formed conscience?
A formed conscience is a conscience that can understand
and is willing and open to comprehending
Catholic Christian principles and teachings. This
involves reading and studying those
principles.
2357 Homosexuality refers to relations
between men or between women who
experience an exclusive or predominant
sexual attraction toward persons
of the same sex. It has taken
a great variety of forms through
the centuries and in different
cultures. Its psychological genesis
remains largely unexplained. Basing
itself on Sacred Scripture, which
presents homosexual acts as acts
of grave depravity, (cf. Genesis 19:1-29; Romans 1:24-27; 1 Corinthians 6:10; 1 Timothy 1:10) tradition
has always declared that homosexual
acts are intrinsically disordered.(Congregation for the Doctrine of the faith, Persona humana 8) They are contrary to the natural
law. They close the sexual act
to the gift of life. They do not
proceed from a genuine affective
and sexual complementarity. Under
no circumstances can they be approved.
2358 The number of men and women
who have deep-seated homosexual
tendencies is not negligible.
This inclination, which is objectively
disordered, constitutes for most
of them a trial. They must be
accepted with respect, compassion,
and sensitivity. Every sign of
unjust discrimination in their
regard should be avoided. These
persons are called to fulfill
God's will in their lives and,
if they are Christians, to unite
to the sacrifice of the Lord's
Cross the difficulties they may
encounter from their condition.
2359 Homosexual persons are called
to chastity. By the virtues of
self-mastery that teach them inner
freedom, at times by the support
of disinterested friendship, by
prayer and sacramental grace, they can and should gradually
and resolutely approach Christian
perfection.
If your friends are beyond the age of reason and
open to understand Catholic Christian principles,
they should be striving to working against this by going to Confession on a regular basis and receiving the Eucharist each Sunday when they renew their Covenant with the Lord. . . if they are in a state of grace.
The culpability of each of your friends will depend
on how much of a formed conscience they have.
If they had parents that never taught them religious
values or principles, while their actions, as the
Catechism states are: intrinsically disordered, the
amount of blame is lessened. Good friends like you should share with the importance of living like
a Catholic Christian. Tell them to visit our site!
If they had parents that did teach them Catholic
Christian principles, yet they ignored them, they
risk losing eternal life for eternal damnation.
We should do the best we can live a sacramental life and stay in a state of grace. That said, again, we will always struggle with the sins of the flesh until we die. The Lord Jesus understands this Biblical truth when He said:
The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. (Matthew 26:41)
That doesn't mean to give up the fight but just do the best you can without rationalizing that a pleasure that was intended to bring forth new life cannot be rationalized as a good for ones own self-pleasure.
We have to be careful
that we don't apply double standards.
People that have same sex attraction are called
to live celibate lives (unless they are attracted
to both sexes and in the later case: get married!! . . . to
the opposite sex of course.) By the same token,
heterosexuals are also called to celibacy unless
they are married.
Most people will commit sexual sin at some point
in their lives; even if it is simply by entertaining
lustful thoughts.
Jesus tells us that if a man looks at a woman with
an adulterous eye, then he's guilty of adultery.
That said, I don't think there are too many people
walking around who, at one time or another, have
not struggled with impure thoughts or actions.
All of this is serious or grave sin, if it is done:
with full consent of the will,
with sufficient time of reflection, and
will full knowledge that it is sin.
The good news is that Christ died for all sin and if we take advantage of the grace He freely gives
us, we can overcome these sins, even if they are
habits. As St. Paul wrote:
If by the Spirit we put to death the deed's
of the flesh . . . (Romans 8:12-13)
Moreover, God is willing to forgive each and every
sin we commit. This holds true for everyone; whether
it be:
those who commit homosexual acts
those who have heterosexual sex outside marriage,
or
those who otherwise struggle with lustful thought
and acts of impurity.
John
Mary
Ann replied:
Just a brief addendum:
Being saved does not require
a formed conscience beyond what light God sends
us and provides us.
Those who are ignorant of truth are not culpable.
However, unless a person lacks reason or has had
serious deformation in his or her formation, a person
can recognize God's will through natural law, which
is our own reason reflecting the truth of God's created
order.
The influences to homosexuality today are very strong,
and include:
childhood abuse
family breakup with loss of a father
feminized masculinity through environmental hormones, and
cultural pressure
All of these can create strong pressures on the
will and even, in cases where formation is lacking,
pressure on the intellect so that it does not realize
something is wrong.
In any case, it is absolutely true that saying the
salvation prayer doesn't save anyone, unless it is
said with a living faith.
Faith is dead without works.
If one accepts Jesus as Lord, then He is Lord of
one's life, and that means you live as He teaches.
Mary Ann
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