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In Christianity, are other religions considered evil or wicked?
One would have to make some sort of survey to answer the question regarding the two alternatives offered, by the question, regarding Christians.
To my own mind, it is clear what Jesus Christ's values were in that his most vigorous and his most comprehensive censuring was against neither of the above but against hypocrisy. I can think of no stronger words which he uttered on this earth which were so condemnatory against particular characteristics.
Jesus of Nazareth pronounced an eight fold 'Woe' (a witness to the four corners of the earth) against the leaders of religion, in the days of his flesh upon earth, which leaders held the outward positions of religious power over the people yet rejected the real kingdom of heaven, selfishly coveting their own power and their own position despite that it was sheer hypocrisy for them to maintain it in the face of the witness of both John the Baptist and Jesus of Nazareth to their falsity and their greed and their covetousness :
But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in.
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves.
Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 17Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon.
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel.
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers.
Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the damnation of hell?
Matthew 23 : 13-23 KJV
I would argue for atheism.
Satanists are certainly opposed to God... but they recognize that God, or at least Satan, exists. "You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!" (James 2:19)
Many atheists are adamantly opposed to Christianity and are quite zealous to convince Christians that God-belief is delusional... when it is they themselves that are deluded. "18For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. 19For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them. 20For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse." (Romans 1) "10...they refused to love the truth and so be saved. 18Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false..." (2 Thessalonians 2)
Both groups oppose God and promote all manner of evil. Both proselytize... but the persecution from atheists is, in my experience, more vicious, and their denial of Truth more complete.
No. Christians are followers of the Christ (i.e., Jesus, the King). If a group does not do that, it is not a Christian group.
Now, Jesus says this:
Then John said in reply, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name and we tried to prevent him because he does not follow in our company.” Jesus said to him, “Do not prevent him, for whoever is not against you is for you.”
Luke 9:49-50 - NABRE
and it doesn't take a rocket scholar to complete the syllogism that whoever is against you is not for you.
Now, this is a sort of good question because other "semi-Christian influenced groups" Islam, Manicheanism, Catharism, maybe Buddhism, Scientology and other clearly Christian groups Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons and Christian Scientists, have varying overlaps Buddhists being probably about 20% and Mormons 90%.
I know nothing about Satanism, and I don't want to, I would think that an evil god would be possible to conjure up without any Christian influence, there are plenty in the Old Testament. What isn't possible without Christian influence is a black mass or some such blasphemy, so in that sense, yes they tie themselves to an opposition of the True Faith and commit their atrocities in that light.
In order to answer this question, we need to make some careful distinctions, and we also need to define the terms properly.
First of all for something to be “demonic” or “Satanic,” it has to be more than simply evil; if it is demonic, it needs to be associated with the active influence of an fallen angel (i.e, a “demon”); in general, “Satanic” refers to activities that render cult (that is, worship) to the chief demon, or Satan. For instance, embezzling money is evil (it is an injustice), but probably not demonic (the person is likely motivated by simple greed, not demonic influence); and certainly not Satanic.
Regarding non-Catholic Christians and non-Christians, therefore, we need make some observations. First of all, the Catholic Church does believe that she has been entrusted with the fullness of the means of salvation; that is what Lumen Gentium (LG) means when it says that the one Church of Christ subsists in the Catholic Church (no. 8).
That means, of course, that non-Catholics, to differing degrees, are lacking in the fullness of the means of salvation. This privation is, in fact, a type of evil (because evil, by definition, is the privation of a due good). It does not follow, however, that every aspect of non-Catholic religions is completely deprived of truth and goodness.
In fact, Lumen Gentium, in the same number clarifies as follows:
many elements of sanctification and of truth are found outside of its [the Church’s] visible structure. These elements, as gifts belonging to the Church of Christ, are forces impelling toward catholic unity.
What Lumen Gentium has in mind, for example, is the fact that all truly Christian communities have at least some of the Sacraments (at a minimum, Baptism and Holy Matrimony; and the apostolic churches have all seven). To the degree that their doctrine is compatible with Catholic doctrine, it is true and good. (For instance, all Christians believe in one God, in the Holy Trinity, and in the Incarnation—and in so doing, they believe in the truth.)
Even in the case of non-Christians, although it is true that their degree of deviation from the truth and the good is greater, some degree of truth and goodness is nevertheless to be found there. (For example Jews and Muslims steadfastly believe in the oneness of God, and that is to their credit.)
Thus, it is true that non-Catholic groups are deprived in different degrees from the fullness of the Catholic Church—and in that sense there is “evil” in them. In the vast majority of cases, it is much more difficult to establish truly demonic influence in these groups. For truly Christian communities (i.e., those who practice true baptism and believe in the Trinity and the Incarnation), the possibility of truly demonic influence is to be excluded; and it is probably to be excluded from most main-stream religions. (The failure to reach the fullness that is in the Catholic Church is likely to be explained by human weakness, not so much by demonic influence.)
The situation is more complicated for religions that make use of occult practices, like New Age religions: there, demonic influence is not only possible, but probable.
As I mentioned, however, a religion is only Satanic if it renders cult to the Evil One; that, fortunately, is restricted to those few fringe groups who actually render such a cult.
So non-Catholic religions do have a certain admixture of evil (privation of the due good), because they do not have the fullness of the means of salvation, which is to be found in the Catholic Church. Calling them “demonic” or “satanic,” however, would be imprecise.
It should be noted that it is generally not a good idea, when one is engaged in respectful ecumenical dialogue, to call the other party simply “evil,” since—apart from not being altogether true, as I mentioned—that would naturally make reconciliation with the Catholic Church more difficult.
the simple answer to your question is that the Roman Catholic Church does not find any non-Catholic sects / churches evil, demonic and satanic. Only radical traditionalists might want to claim that. Perhaps your reference to "sects" rather than non-catholic churches could do with a review, as some sects (Catholic or otherwise) may just be of questionable or objectionable character. Generally - and speaking from personal experience of Catholic priests and bishops in many countries - there is the distinct human trait of tolerance and mercy towards Non-Catholics. This, of course, is in direct conflict with some modern religious legalism - the kind which was practiced by the Pharisees in Jesus" time. For more information please also refer to "Catholic Answers" on the web. You might also wish to consult the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), clauses 841 and 842.
841 The Church's relationship with the Muslims. "The plan of salvation also includes those who acknowledge the Creator, in the first place amongst whom are the Muslims; these profess to hold the faith of Abraham, and together with us they adore the one, merciful God, mankind's judge on the last day." (Lumen Gentium, 16, 3)
842 The Church's bond with non-Christian religions is in the first place the common origin and end of the human race:
All nations form but one community. This is so because all stem from the one stock which God created to people the entire earth, and also because all share a common destiny, namely God. His providence, evident goodness, and saving designs extend to all against the day when the elect are gathered together in the holy city. (Nostra Aetate)
A born again Christian friend of mine, who is a biblical literalist, would be calling fairly peaceful and generally 'chill' religions like Buddhism, Hinduism and Sikhism as satanic or evil. Why? Because they just plainly go against her religion. Even yoga is satanic to her. She is a really nice, friendly person. But this view of hers just disappoints me.
I say "in Christianity", because she argues that anything against the bible or Christianity is demonic and wicked. Are her beliefs biblical? Do other Christians (particularly Protestants/born again Christians) also share this view?
P.S. I'm an agnostic with some 'cultural Christian' leanings. To me, not all religions are equally bad --Some are pretty peaceful (i.e. Taoism, Confucianism).
Anton LaVey, author of "The Satanic Bible", tells us that to be a Satanist, we need not worship the devil. Rather, a Satanist worships themself as their own god. Satanists work magic rituals through which they attempt to gain things like wealth, love, or revenge. A Satanist's primary concern must be their own welfare. If a Satanist were to utter a prayer, then, it might very well be something like "Make me rich, make me happy, let me have a great sex life, protect me from bad luck. Give me the job I want, the car I want, give me this and that. Give give give give give."
It occurs to me that most Christians these days, in churches or in private, pray something like this: "God, please give me the job I want, the car I want, the love life I want. Please give give give to me me me." Or, they might pray something like this: "God, please make this church great and successful in Jesus name. Please cause lots of people to donate and let us increase in members. Please give give give to us us us us us."
The prayers aren't very different, are they? In fact, by the definition of Satanic Bible, Christians who pray like this would pretty much be Satanists! Even the Christian Bible seems to agree, with Jesus accusing the Pharisees of being "white-washed tombs" because, even though they had the appearance of being holy, they were only in it for themselves. They desired the "high seats" and "being called Rabbi"; for them it was all about "me me me". This is very strange, considering that Christianity and Satanism should be polar opposites. Let's compare this though to some of the prayers of Jesus: we read that he prayed "Give us the bread we need for each day, forgive us our sins as we forgive others"; it is never recorded that he particularly prayed for wealth or things of that sort, as he was separate from the world. He also prayed "Let your will be done hear on earth as it is in heaven." In another passage, shortly before his crucifixion, he prayed, "If possible, let this trial pass from me, but not my will, your will."
Have you spotted the vital difference between the prayers of Christ and these others I mentioned? Christ effectively said to God: if it is your will for me to suffer, I am willing to suffer, because I esteem your will above my own. Do you see that it is not about what God can do for YOU, it never was. It is about what YOU can do for Him.
So how do you pray? Do you pray "Me me me me me" like the Satanist? Do you pray "us us us us us" like the common church-going Christian, or even the Pharisee? Or, will you pray "not me, God, but YOU" like Jesus did? Are you willing to say to God: "Here is the job I want, and here is the car I want, here is the wealth, or the love life,or the success, or the members of my church, or whatever it is that I deeply desire, but if it is not your will to give me these, please do your will, not mine- I have faith that, like Christ being crucified, this too must be for the greater good." Or, even better than that, is this: "God, I only pray that your will be done in this world, and your will be done for me, whether it is to happiness or to suffering, even as Christ or Job suffered. All I ask is that you show me what YOU want from me, because that is more important than anything I, or we, could want from you. Help me to be a better person than I am, for your sake; please teach me to pray in a way that pleases you; please help me to never put anything above you; please keep me from being selfish."
In the Old Testament a good man utters a prayer to God, something like this: "make me not too rich, lest I become proud; make me not too poor, lest I steal and disgrace thy name. Only give me enough, that I may serve thee as I ought." Like Christ, his concern is not for himself, but for God. If he thought he could best serve God poor, he would have prayed "God, make me poor!" I wonder how many Christians have prayed to be made poor, so that they can focus more on prayer? Virtually none.
Christians- stop praying for yourselves only! Stop praying for the things you want! Stop putting priority on the job, the car, the money, the donations, the social life; let the world seek after these, but as Christians you are called to put God above all. If there is even one thing you are unwilling to give up for God, then that is lukewarmness. You cannot hope to enter a deeper spiritual life.
I will also warn you of this: the blood of Christ is not a free ticket out of being judged for your actions. Christ died so that we could receive forgiveness of sins when we repent of them, not so that we could live happy, worldly lives and only put God second. Christ dying on the cross means you can claim forgiveness of sins if you truly repent of them, and are intent on never commiting them again. But if you want to say "Christ already died for me" as an excuse to live however you want, then I tell you now there is no forgiveness. None.
As Christians you are not free from judgement; on the contrary your judgement increases because you have the light: more is expected of you. "You must be better than the Pharisees if you want to enter the kingdom of heaven". On God's day of judgement, when he condemns sinners for their selfishness, he will also condemn those sinners who thought they were Christians; "Did you really take upon yourself the name of Christ, and yet did nothing for my name except what would also benefit yourselves? You are worse than the sinners who never called themselves Christians to begin with."
Is this you? Are you more concerned about your happy, worldly life than about the things of God? Is T.V. and Internet and entertainment more important to you than humble prayer? Do you spend more time reading Harry Potter than the Word of God? Are you more concerned with serving your church than the Lord? Yes, it's good to serve your church, but would God rather you gave those donations of 10% to a rich church or to the homeless on the street? Would God rather you sung hymns and read Bible verses and hung out with your church-friends on Sundays or that you spend private time alone with him, in solemn prayer? Have you even bothered to ask? If you haven't even bothered to ask, then have you really been living rightly up to now? Have you really been praying in a way and going about your life in a way that pleases God? It's up to you to discover the answer to these and no man can do it for you: it's up to YOU, to pray right NOW, "God, if I have sinned, I now repent. What do you want from me? I'm willing to do whatever you require; to give up to you whatever you want. Only make me better than I am now." Perhaps all God wants is for you to spend a few moments in respectful silence.
The main point I want to get across is this: "The one who gives up his life will find true life, the one who loves this life forsakes true life" forever. If this makes you uncomfortable or worse yet, angry and bitter, it is a sure sign that maybe you have placed too much value on worldly things, and too little value on God.
Blessed is the one who is not offended by me... or by this word.