Question by leonz: I am invited by a pagan friend for dinner at his temple. Im a christian, should i go based on the bible?
Im not even sure if the food is sacrificed for the gods or just a celebration dinner. Any ideas fellow brothers and sisters?
Best answer:
Answer by Karianne(:
Sure, just go for the expirence.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
No problem, Christianity is based off old pagans gods and rituals. You’ll feel at home.
*rolls eyes*
Yes…follow the old testament laws and refuse to go celebrate with your friend.
christianity states we should embrace other religions
Sure what ever it says in the bible
I don’t know what your church teaches. The Catholic church ( at least the one I follow ) forbids Catholics to enter the buildings of other religions or participate in other religious groups. They may only attend funerals and weddings to pay respect, but may not participate in anyway. In other words, it would be a mortal sin for me to attend.
I would pray on it.
Could just happen to be their name like mine is!
Go as a friend, not a “Christian”. Show your tolerance for others. Just observe any ritual or ceremony, you won’t be pushed into actually doing anything. Food might be ‘set aside’ on a special altar for either the gods or the ancestors, it is hard to say. Do you know if this dinner is to celebrate one of the pagan holidays? Or a full moon? Or just a social gathering. What it is celebrating will determine what is done. It is obviously an ‘open circle’, so there will be nothing really ‘weird’ about it, I am guessing. Ask your friend for clarification if you are concerned. Be Christ-like and accept what is done gracefully and simply watch.
on the joking side:
if your going for dinner I hope your not on the menu!
Depends.. what’s cooking?
I wouldn’t go to any pagan activity. But you need you show your freind that you still love them even if he is a pagan. HATE the sin not the sinner
i would say sure go as long as you keep in mind if there are any rituals performed that you will not be honestly praying or sacrificing anything to the gods. try to just stay out of them but if you are asked to do anything be clear in your mind that you do not intend to do anything for these gods and you are just doing it for the experience. faith is only real anyway if you are exposed to other ideas.
btw the catholic church doesnt forbid you to enter the houses of other religions. i go to a catholic school and we visited a mosque for a field trip. we also had like a pretend passover ceremony. it was all ok with the school and everything although you dont have to be catholic to go there. you just have to decide what worship is real for you.
Sure, be open to learning about another religion. Ask your friend questions about anything that concerns you before you go.
There is a wide range of variety among Pagans. so I can’t say what your friend’s temple is practicing.
Go. And give thanks to God for the food.
Run in the other direction.
answer: What pagan has an actual temple? I’m jealous! Aren’t you supposed to be an example of your religion? Open, loving and tolerant, yes? If he’s your friend, why would you decline?
I doubt he’ll be doing any religious ceremonies while you’re there. Pagans only offer small bits of food and liquid during ceremonies/rituals.
Go and learn if this isn’t an attempt to joke.
Gee let’s see here
1)Pagan friend(wrong!)
2)Asking if it is ok on Yahoo Answers(not a true Christian!)
3)Calling us “fellow brothers and sisters”(you dont even know us how can you assume we are christians, when you are not even a christian!)
1 Corinthians says that it is fine to go, as long as you do not worship the gods, and it does not harm your conscience. It has a whole section on why it is or is not okay to eat food sacrificed to idols.
It’s only a sin if you are going against your on conscience, wounding the conscience of your host, or one of your fellow Christians.
I am a pagan.. they don’t sacrifice anything for their gods. It is like a potluck affair and people give thanks for the food that they have. They will laugh and have fun. It is a celebration of life.
if it’s at his temple then it is likely entwined somehow with his gods . Don’t go .
When in doubt, go without. We should not partake of pagan traditions, rituals, doctrines, or even learn them.
Why would God care?
Is he worried about what the Pagan Gods would say behind his back if one of his followers went to a witch party?
Well, you will never learn anything by just listening to people you agree with. You might even get a chance to tell them The Word. I think if you go to a pagan temple, then your friend should have to promise to go to one of your church services.
Got an article for you…. take care.
http://www.ecauldron.com/christianpagandialog.php
I think you might be kidding us,
but if this is for real….run form it. and I kid you not. if you want to be dragged into the gutter you just go on and have a ball but the devil will be laughing because he will get a hold on you.
have nothing to do with this mess.
why don’t you ask God whether you should go. what do you think His reply would be to you??
think about it!!
I would go, and bow out of participating in any ceremonies, especially if they involve verbally worshipping or praying to pagan Gods. You can say that you don’t really mean the prayer, but think of all the martyrs of early Christendom. All they had to do was what everybody else was doing and burn some incense to the emperor and say he was a god. They could have just mouthed the words and done the actions, they would not have had to mean it. In return, they could go on living. Christians chose death instead, and usually a very painful one.
Now, this is rather dramatic and of course I’m not saying you’re going to die, but I am just mentioning that, historically, Christians have taken the matter very seriously. Remember, back in Christ’s day, being a Christian was going against popular culture. Standing up for Christ’s name really meant something. Sometimes it meant alienating yourself from friends or family. As Christians, we are to stand firm for Christ, not capitulate to the whims and rules of society around us. Besides, I don’t think your friend or anybody else there would really care. I have had a non-Christian friend go to church with me and she just sat the whole time. Didn’t stand, sing, or pray, or go for Communion. No big deal. Why would pagans mind?
As far as the food at the celebration goes, read 1 Corinthians 8:1-11:1 a few times, pray about it, and see where you stand. It’s not a black and white answer, so I can’t tell you what to do in your own situation, but Scripture does provide us with guidance on this very issue.