How do Catholics get to Heaven? How are Catholics saved? Whether you have been asked this before, or you are seeking for answers to the question, you have come to the right place. In this article, we have given reasons and how do Catholics get to Heaven.
Catholic Church, also known as Roman Catholic Church, is a branch of Christianity. It is the largest Christian denomination, with over 1.3 billion baptised Catholics worldwide as of 2019 [1]. Christians who worship in this Church are called Catholics or Roman Catholics.
The Catholic Church is the most criticized Christian denomination on earth due to its beliefs and practices. The Protestant Churches believe the Roman Catholic Church has deviated from the true teachings of the Holy Scriptures. Therefore, I wasn't surprised when I first heard of the question. Some non-Catholics (Protestants) see Catholicism as a different faith and therefore question how a Catholic gets to Heaven.
One Protestant wrote:
Catholics will go to Heaven if they are born again. Anyone born again in Christ Jesus regardless of his religious affiliation goes to Heaven. I feel sorry for the Catholics because they believe in a "works" salvation which is not taught in the Scriptures. A person is saved by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, not his works lest he should boast
In one of our articles, we have compiled a few reasons Protestants should avoid criticizing the Catholic Church. Read it Why you should avoid criticizing the Catholic Church
Let's get back to our question initial question. How do Catholics get to Heaven? The answer is simple, Catholics get to Heaven by grace through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
''So that in the coming ages he must show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness towards us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not results of work so that no one may boast'' (Ephesians 2: 7-9 GNB).
Most Catholics believe that faith is all that matters. Once, you are baptized and believe in the Triune God, your salvation is secured. Others emphasize faith alone is not enough to get one to Heaven.
Catholics are Christians, and therefore get to Heaven the same way as all Christians do. Catholics believe in the Trinity (Father, Son and the Holy Spirit). They believe in Jesus Christ as the only Savior and Redeemer of the world.
Being a Catholic alone is not a guarantee of salvation. You must have faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and also live a virtuous life.
The Catholic Church does not teach that you have to be a Catholic to go to Heaven. The Church rather teaches that, Christians are saved by the grace of God through faith in Christ Jesus, and this grace extends outside of the Catholic Church.
Faith versus Works
Unlike Protestant Churches, the Catholic Church teaches that salvation is achieved through faith in Jesus Christ and good works. This doctrine, according to the Catholic Church is Biblical. Catholics argue that, salvation is not achieved through faith alone, but rather faith and good works. During arguments with Protestants, Catholics often quote James 2: 14-17 to substantiate their claim.
''What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, "Depart in peace, be warmed and filled," but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? This also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead'' (Epistle of James 2: 14-17 NKJV).
Protestants accuse the Catholic Church of taking the verse literally, and that believing in salvation by faith and works means the Bible is contradicting itself.
Pastor Steven J. Cole, the former pastor of Flagstaff Christian Fellowship, in one of his articles wrote:
We are not saved by good works, but we are saved for good works. Those diff prepositions make all the difference in the world! Good works are the evidence of salvation, not the cause of it. If there are no works or change if life to follow salvation, the it should be questioned whether the person is truly saved. [2]
Steven J. Collen further stated that, Jesus taught this very plainly when he warned against false prophets.
"Beware of false prophets, who comes to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor digs from thistles, are they? So every good tree bears good fruit, but the BD tree bears bad fruit (Mathew 7: 15-17).
As you can see from pastor Steven's quote, Protestants do not consider James 2:14-17 and Ephesians 2 as contradicting each other. They assert that James genuine saving faith manifest itself in good deeds. If a person claims to have faith but has no resulting works, his claim is suspect.
Conclusion
In summary, Catholics get to Heaven through repentance and believe in the gospel (Mark 1: 14-15), through faith in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2: 7-9), and baptism (John 5: 5).
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[1] Source : Wikepedia
[2] Source: Bible.org
