#12564 Can Muslims Pray to the Same God? Mary and Conversion Issues - William Albrecht

“Are prayers to Mary problematic?” This question opens a discussion on the significance of prayers like the Hail Holy Queen and the Act of Consecration to Mary, especially in light of concerns about scandal. Other topics include reconciling free will with God’s prophets, the Catholic view of salvation, and the nature of miracles in relation to scientific laws. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 01:02 – There are two prayers to Mary that we get calls about, and wanted you to talk through them here, and also see if Catholics should stop saying these prayers if they cause too much scandal. Hail Holy Queen and the Act of Consecration to Mary 12:42 – How do you reconcile free will with the prophets sent by God? 21:05 – I’m in RCIA. The Catholic view of salvation seems fragile. Why would missing a holy day of obligation cause me to go to hell? 29:49 – Do miracles need to break the laws of science or can they break only the laws we don’t understand to be considered miracles? 42:00 – Did Mary have children? 51:27 – How do I distinguish between venial and mortal sin to a protestant?

“How do you know you’ve committed the unforgivable sin?” This question opens a discussion on the nature of sin and forgiveness, while also addressing varied topics such as the validity of the Immaculate Conception, the order of the New Testament gospels, and the moral implications of assisted suicide. Each question reflects the complexities of faith and understanding within the Catholic tradition. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 00:56 – How do you know you’ve committed the unforgivable sin against the spirit? 08:13 – I’m in a bit of a crisis. I was set on being Catholic. Then I learned about the Immaculate Conception. How can we verify a tradition if it wasn’t a common teaching in the early church? I’ve heard there were seven popes that denied that teaching. 28:42 – Do any NT manuscripts possess the 4 gospels in a different order? 33:39 – My friend wishes she could have used assistant suicide with her parents. How could I explain to her that this is not a good option? 43:18 – How do I counter my SDA friend’s argument saying since Paul was an acceptable prophet, Ellen White is also a valid argument? 50:19 – My 11 YO wants to know, at what moment did God decide when to create humans or the universe in general?

“How do I prove the Catholic Church was founded by God?” This question opens a discussion on the Church’s divine origins, addressing challenges such as converting from Oneness Pentecostalism to Catholicism and responding to Protestant friends seeking biblical evidence for Catholic claims. Other topics include the removal of books from the Bible and the doctrine of the papacy. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 02:25 – How would one convert from Oneness Pentecostalism to Catholicism given how far apart they are from each other? 21:30 – My two friends who are protestants. I told them that Catholicism was the only Church founded by God. They asked me to prove it through the bible. How do I respond? 29:35 – Why did the reforms feel like they needed to remove books from the bible? 37:14 – My Protestant friend asked this: Did Raphael lie to Tobit? 49:51 – How do I prove the doctrine of the papacy?

“Is Lent works-based superstition?” This question opens a discussion on the nature of Lent and its significance in Catholic practice. Other topics include guidance for those considering confession, the complexities of excommunication related to abortion, and the relationship between Tradition and Scripture. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 01:24 – Is Lent works-based Catholic superstition? 04:41 – I’m leaning towards Catholicism. If I decide to go to confession, what’s the best way of going about it? 12:18 – Why if you help someone get an abortion, you’re automatically excommunicated but not if you murder someone? 15:21 – How can I bring the gospel to my family? 29:48 – If Tradition and scripture are of equal authority, then why can tradition change and evolve but scripture can’t? 42:38 – I’m looking into Catholicism, but my Catholic friends won’t talk to me about it. I even went to a Catholic Church and even the priest wouldn’t give me more resources. Can you shed some light on this?

“Can Muslims pray to the same God?” This question opens a discussion on the theological connections and differences between Islam and Christianity. The conversation also touches on the implications of John 14:6 in light of the Quran’s view of the Gospels, the Catholic response to Jesus’ separation from God in Matthew 24:36, and effective approaches to engaging with cradle Muslims and converts. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 01:47 – Since the Quran gives positive credit to the Gospels, what do they think of John 14:6? 05:33 – Muslims quote Mt 24:36 as Jesus separating himself from God. What’s the Catholic response? 12:21 – Sunan abi dawud 44:52. Is there any evidence for the four-witness claim? 16:35 – What’s the most effective approach to cradle Muslims and Muslim converts? 19:40 – Sure Muslims pray to the same God but He doesn’t hear them since they don’t pray in Jesus’ name. 23:40 – What does the Quran sawilliam alby about God being love? 28:45 – Did Islam come from Hagar and Ishmael 32:01 – What do you think about the theory that a gnostic offshoot of Catholicism prepared Mohammed to start Islam to foil the economic plans by the Jewish authorities that were challenging the growth of Catholicism? 33:23 – Do you ever discuss the Cappadocian fathers to Muslims? 40:23 – My friend is marrying a Muslim woman. She is going to convert to Christianity. Does it make a difference if she goes either Catholic or Orthodox? 45:17 – What was Islam before Mohammed? 48:16 – Where did Muslim veneration for Mary come from?

“What is the Islamic Dilemma?” addresses the complexities surrounding Sharia law and its implications for evangelization. The discussion also touches on the theological differences in naming Jesus, the reasons behind seeking common ground with Islam, and the misconceptions surrounding sharia law as a scare tactic. Additionally, the episode examines whether Muslims believe all Christians must convert or face dire consequences. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 01:30 – What is the Islamic Dilemma? 16:07 – What are the theological differences in calling Jesus Yeshua and Eisaa apart from the linguistic differences? 23:37 – Why does our leadership try to find so much common ground with Islam instead of highlighting the controversial side of it? 32:41 – My sister converted to Islam. She sent us a video saying that sharia law is actually a scare tactic made up by Christians. What are your thoughts on this? 37:32 – Do Muslims believe all Christians need to convert or be killed? 43:53 – Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God? What about Christians and Jews? 50:44 – What is the best way to evangelize Muslims?

“Why doesn’t the Bible say Mary was a perpetual virgin?” This question opens a discussion on the nuances of biblical interpretation and tradition. Other topics include the nature of perfect contrition and its implications for confession, as well as the concept of the treasury of merit and its origins. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 02:40 – If the Beatific Vision is a gift that God gives us, then it would seem that God could create us with that gift. But why doesn’t he? Creating us with this gift would ensure that no moral evil exists. How would you answer that question? 12:22 – Can you explain what perfect contrition is? How does it affect confession? Can non-Catholics have perfect contrition? 21:32 – What is the treasury of merit and where do we get it from? 28:59 – Why doesn’t the bible just come out and say that Mary was a perpetual virgin? 35:24 – Where do we find co-remptrix in the Bible? 41:57 – No divine justice for non-human animals does not make sense to me. 51:39 – Is there anything in our faith about exactly how Jesus was born?

“How do we bring young people back to the Church?” This question resonates with many parents concerned about their young adult children drifting away from the Faith. The discussion also touches on how to share Catholic beliefs with classmates at a Protestant school, the importance of not pressuring individuals into faith, and the dynamics of interacting with Protestant friends. Join the Catholic Answers Live Club Newsletter Invite our apologists to speak at your parish! Visit Catholicanswersspeakers.com Questions Covered: 04:27 – We hear from a lot of parents about their young adult children leaving the Faith, how do we get them back? 13:30 – I go to a protestant school. How do I bring my classmates the Catholic faith? 18:00 – I suggest that we don’t pressure them into the Faith. 29:27 – How would you interact with protestants you are friends with? 37:25 – Is evangelization safe if it always makes us question our faith and look for other options? 45:14 – Why does the Church take its time on evangelizing and catechizing people even when they fall away and return? 50:32 – Is it appropriate for a Catholic to say ‘I am saved’ when evangelizing protestants?

Questions Covered: 02:51 – What are your thoughts on ancient civilizations like Atlantis and Lemuria existing 10,000 years ago and ending up destroyed sending civilization into the dark ages. The theory is survivors from those civilizations spread out through the world in brought technology to build the great wonders like pyramids and temples. 17:06 – Are there, as some people think, a race of folks who are inherently evil through their DNA because they are descendants of either Cain, the giants, or both? 28:53 – Why do you think Jesus instituted the Eucharist with bread and wine, instead of something like lamb meat (and blood?)? 32:57 – Is it theoretically possible for the saints to save ‘everyone’ through ‘time travel prayer’, so that hell ends up being empty? 39:55 – Do SOME catholic priests perform remote viewing on people during confession? Padre Pio or the Cure of Ars for example 47:24 – How many bison have been sucked into tornados? 48:49 – Is the “Angel of the Lord” in the Old Testament, Jesus? 52:02 – Opinion question: assuming human beings on Earth are the only intelligent life in creation, if a total extinction event were to occur, would you expect time in this reality to continue on (our sun eventually maturing into a Red Giant etc…) or would you expect the general physical resurrection to be triggered by the last human death?

Questions Covered: 02:40 – If a pagan god were to meet Jesus and convert to Christianity, would they go to heaven if they died? 13:11 – As far as I understand it, current physics tells us that information cannot travel faster than the speed of light since, if it did, you would (among other problems) get paradoxes. However, it seems like an angel could convey information faster than light. For example, Aquinas argues that an angel, in moving from place A to place B, can choose whether it traverses the space in between those places or not. Thus, an angel could observe, say, a supernova happening lightyears away from Earth and then travel instantaneously to Earth and tell us about it before the light from the supernova got here. What do you think of this? Should we think that even an angel couldn’t convey information faster than light? Or, should we discard the idea that information can’t be communicated faster than light? Or maybe some third option? Thanks! 23:46 – Your recent episodes on demons and the different beliefs on how people get possessed made me think. Could the dark forces be targeting powerful latent “psychic” individuals? It would fit with your demons being opportunists, and with Amorth’s Curse model. I would like to see a scientific study that would test people who have been validly possessed and exorcised to see if they test higher than a sample group. 35:22 – In the case of Ash Wednesday when fasting and abstinence is required, would receiving communion break one’s fast or count as a smaller meal? In other words, can one receive communion in addition to eating one full meal and two smaller meals? Thanks Jimmy! 39:16 – Let’s say we made contact with an alternate timeline whose divergence point is after the year 100. They have a recognizable continuing Petrine ministry. Does their pope (probably called something else) have immediate and universal jurisdiction in our timeline, and ours in theirs? Are we bound by each other’s infallible declarations of doctrine if we’ve defined something they haven’t, or vice versa? 46:12 – Do stage magicians have actual preternatural gifts?