Any Catholics "in name only" here?

[Workman]

If one reads the Sermon On the Mount (Matthew ch. 12-14) and the Parable of the Sheep & Goats (Matthew ch. 25), one can see the "works" that are expected of us by Jesus.

Could you please explain this?

Do you know what the difference is with Christianity and Catholic?..

The Catholic Religion have Respect for ‘Virgin Mary’. She is there For Respect....and as the Mother of Jesus. It is said; to pray for Mary(Rosary); to pray to God. This is True.

’Virgin Mary’ is the symbolism for ‘THAT BE HERS’..which means she Represents ALL Females...physical & and also Spiritually..
The Message through her..is to say RESPECT for FEMALES which lacks Today,
Females should be as equals to Male..and that is NOT what I see of today. That is a Males world.

The ‘Human Body’ has two parts...
‘The mind’ is the unconscious and if you did not know.. It also represents more of the male gender. Whereas ‘The Body’ is consciousness and more of the female gender...this is why you can see the difference between the genders..all males are all for in common, as well Females have their common ways to. Females speak more from the Heart(Body/conscious) whilst Male find it Hard to express themselves; instead they tend to speak more from the mind..there are no right or wrong by it..The Problem is there is NO connection/togetherness to it. The Law that occurs gives dominant more for the Males which makes Females less important.

Which is why Jesus chose ‘Mary’ to symbolise Females..Mary means to have Respect for women, to speak more out of the heart and not always from the mind.

We are all sensitive beings..sensitive comes from the Heart(Body/conscious/Female)..we should not ignore it..because pride will grow in the mind and ego with it..this is how suicide creates..from forgetting your own Heart. And to Me..that is why ‘Virgin Mary’ was the key.

And also to mention..’Virgin Mary’ symbolised ‘The Body’ which is our consciousness..and the CROSS is to symbolise as the Body..Jesus died on the Cross..meaning the message was Jesus who is in the Body/consciousness/Love/Female/sensitive..
And all by these are the lack of TODAY.
And therefore must make ourselves work for it...Your Love will determine you.


God bless

 

[Workman]

I think some Catholics make it a point to be more counter cultural than necessary. Wearing a bunch of large holy medals comes to mind. Or abstaining from meat but only on Fridays (the way I grew up;s we were supposed to replace meat with something else if we wanted to, but few actually do). Crossing oneself before grace before meals while in public. In some places it seems that just having more than three young children makes people ask if the family is Catholic.

For me, family tradition is off the Polish Catholic flavor, so there to are intertwined.

Ritual is a biggie. Going to Mass and knowing what to do and say when apparently is a big deal for those unfamiliar with it. And going to Mass on designated days of "obligation".

Good works seems like a double edged sword for me. The Catholic Church is the only one I've found to be painterly and unapologetically pro-life when it comes to abortion. I was actually shocked to find out there are Christian pastors and churches that fail to see that it's wrong to stop a beating heart, but I digress. There are works I would designate as anti-good in the anti-LGBTQ rhetoric that comes from the church. Even issues that are clearly Catholic, like welcoming the stranger (refugee, immigrant) are not well received among the more well to do, majority White parishes. And in spite of clear church teaching about care for Creation and the current Pope's teachings, most Catholics I know fight any such effort as "left wing political". So... No, I don't think the potential for good works is sufficient for the Catholic lifestyle, since individual issues are not always seen as good works.

And I personally think a belief in God is central, though I've heard of atheists who continue to "get something" out of periodic visits to church or Mass attendance

The first two words confirmed the rest. And that is of whom your now to (think)..IN. And whom(mind) that will create You.

What you say is what you are..
And what you think is only what you know..
So why(mind) are you? What you are?
For NoT who you be!

 

[pearl]

For me, family tradition is off the Polish Catholic flavor, so there to are intertwined.

I always admired the Polish tradition of passing the oplatek on Christmas Eve.

Ritual is a biggie. Going to Mass and knowing what to do and say when apparently is a big deal for those unfamiliar with it. And going to Mass on designated days of "obligation".

And the uniqueness of the ritual of Catholic Liturgy is that it is the exact same throughout the world.

No, I don't think the potential for good works is sufficient for the Catholic lifestyle, since individual issues are not always seen as good works.

As with Jesus, the invitation is not always accepted. Many Catholics unfortunately dismiss anything that is not presented as an infallible teaching and don't consider protecting the environment a moral obligation. As with Justice Scalia when he voted in favor of the death penalty, being raised Catholic he insisted the CCC and the pope were wrong.

And I personally think a belief in God is central,

Central? Why would anyone attend any church either Catholic or a denomination without belief, at least on some level, in God?

 

[Karolina]

Central? Why would anyone attend any church either Catholic or a denomination without belief, at least on some level, in God?

Right. I used to think so too. But apparently Quakers and Unitarian Universalist don't necessarily believe in God. UU literature doesn't even mention God in some churches. In an effort to be accommodating to people, God got pushed out. :/

 

[metis]

I gotta be very brief, but I'll do my best.

A contrast to some other local group that is either explicitly non-Catholic or widely understood to be separate and distinct from Catholics (Protestants, for instance)

We help and cooperate with non-Catholics a great deal. For one example, our Capuchin Food Kitchen in Detroit is the largest in the metropolitan area, and yet most a of the people whom are fed there are not Catholic. My oldest daughter and our two grandkids volunteer there, and they're Jewish and involved in their synagogue, and I've helped their synagogue with helping the poor as well.

Family tradition and legacy, perhaps with specific reference roles that might sometimes be difficult for blood relatives to fulfill being exerced by priests or other people with a clear connection to the Church

I'm not sure what you mean by this. Can you maybe give an example of what you're looking for?

Ritual, understood here as the simple willingness to go along with general expectations of participation in meetings, masses, and other situations that invite people to take a visible role and show some measure of commitment to the community of Catholics

Absolutely, although nothing is forced.

Actual belief in Church doctrine, including some effort at understanding the core teachings and deciding to which degree one considers those valid in either a literal or figurative sense

Again, one has the power of discernment as a parishioner, but if one teaches within the Church they must not deviate from Church teachings.

Appreciaton of the potential for good works that comes from the collective effort encouraged and managed by the Church and its priests

Yes, but so much is left up to the laity as well.

Beliefs in some form of Supernatural reality and/or entities

Yes.

 

[metis]

Do you know what the difference is with Christianity and Catholic?..

Since I used to teach a comparative religions course, and since I also have taught Catholic theology for 15 years, yes.

The Catholic Religion have Respect for ‘Virgin Mary’.

Catholicism is not a religion-- it's a Christian denomination.

Females should be as equals to Male..and that is NOT what I see of today. That is a Males world.

There can be and sometimes are different roles.

God bless

And God bless you & yours as well.

 

[pearl]

Right. I used to think so too. But apparently Quakers and Unitarian Universalist don't necessarily believe in God. UU literature doesn't even mention God in some churches. In an effort to be accommodating to people, God got pushed out. :/

Or maybe they just don't believe in God as defined by most. Quoting from a Catholic theologian at a gathering I attended many years ago;

"The word "God" is a bit of shorthand, a stand-in which functions in Christian theology almost as "X" functions in algebra. When working an algebraic problem, one's concern is "X." But "X" is the stand-in for the thing one doesn't know. That is how God functions in Christian theology. It is the name of the Mystery that lies at the root of all that exists. We must never for get that we are talking about mystery."

So at the root of all that exists, God is incomprehensible Mystery. But I have absolutely no idea of either Quaker or Unitarian beliefs are concerning the purpose for their gathering.

 

[Workman]

Since I used to teach a comparative religions course, and since I also have taught Catholic theology for 15 years, yes.

Catholicism is not a religion-- it's a Christian denomination.

There can be and sometimes are different roles.

And God bless you & yours as well.

Thank you for sharing.

 

[Karolina]

"The word "God" is a bit of shorthand, a stand-in which functions in Christian theology almost as "X" functions in algebra. When working an algebraic problem, one's concern is "X." But "X" is the stand-in for the thing one doesn't know. That is how God functions in Christian theology. It is the name of the Mystery that lies at the root of all that exists. We must never for get that we are talking about mystery."

Thank you, I love this!!

 

[Steven Merten]

Hello Karolina, Wow! You really have stimulated a great deal of conversation. Great!

I am a Cradle Catholic. I go to Mass on Sunday, and have done so all my life. There have been rough spots in my view of Church leadership, especially when I needed it. See my post in the meet and greet, above.

It seems you are seeking? I wanted to ask you to take some time to contemplate the signs of the times. Jesus and the Blessed Mother, through locution to St. Faustina (1930s), and elsewhere, have told us that Jesus' Second Coming is soon. Jesus, in scriptures, describes His Second Coming as the greatest tribulation on earth, that has ever been or will ever come again. Jesus' big gun, (Jesus' lips binding sinners to their sins) will be deployed, as Jesus many times describes His apocalyptic angels bundling up the (unrepentant) wicked for burning, upon His Second Coming. Jesus left the Power of His binding and loosting of sins, in the hands, or shall I say on the lips, of His Catholic Apostolic Successors. Jesus wants us all to receive His Divine Mercy Sunday Feast Day, which is receiving the Sacraments of Reconciliation (Jesus' lips loosting sins) and Eucharist, on the Second Sunday of Easter. Jesus, very much, desires us to do this, in preparation for His Second Coming as 'Just Judge, not merciful Savior (Jesus' Words)' . In our present era, it is a really, really good time to be Catholic, regardless of other issues, in preparation for what is coming, soon.

 

[Cooky]

I always admired the Polish tradition of passing the oplatek on Christmas Eve.

The Slovaks also do that.