Catholic Prejudice a serious thing

I feel like someone is trying to destroy my soul

Published on April 7, 2004 By TARSIER In Religion

Do you know what really pisses me off? Some people, even Christians, fail to follow Jesus's law of unconditional love and acceptance. Myself included, but some people on this blog site make me very perturbed. In my short life I have been called a bigot, even by people I know who are on this blog site who I know personally, idol-worshipper, etc. Some people on this blog site have almost open hatred of everyone else besides themselves, including dead musical artists, homosexuals (I am not against homosexuals, that is how God made them, but sex is supposed to be for a male and a female), and especially Catholics. You know exactly who you are. I believe that peace can come through understanding. Many people do not understand or are ignorant of Catholicism. I open this blog up to anyone who has a question, comment, etc. I expect criticism, but if someone just wants to be mean and attack me whatever I respond, I will delete your posts. I know questions will concern Mary the mother of God, (and no, we do not pray to Mary, we ask of her intercession, just like we ask the intercession of saints). I hope my limited theological knowledge wil answer any questions you have. If you want to learn more without asking me a question, I suggest the novel A Philadlephia Catholic in King Jame's Court in which an 18 year old Catholic defends his faith using the Bible and logic. So, feel free to post.

Comments (Page 1)

JeremyG

on Apr 07, 2004

Jesus, did not in fact ever say that he was "THE" son of god, but that he said he was "A" son of god. It was interpralated in the King James Bible to read "the son of god". (that's actually what italics mean, that the words were changed in translation) But the good news of the gospel is, in fact, that were are all sons of god, just like he was. However politically he was pedistalized to as to maintain a standard authoritive religion.

TARSIER

on Apr 07, 2004

Is that a question, could you rephrase that?

shadesofgrey

on Apr 08, 2004

Many people do not understand or are ignorant of Catholicism

I couldn't agree with you more. I can't tell you the number of times that I have been told that I am going to burn in hell for not being Christian (hello--Catholics are Christians).

Good luck trying to education--it's a worthwhile pursuit (just remember that when you are getting frustrated!)

Molly0597

on Apr 27, 2004

I also agree. I am a Catholic with lots of friends who are atheists or agnostics. I an constantly teased for being Catholic by people who don't at all understand the religion. They also assume that because I am Catholic, I must be pro-life when it comes to abortion and I must hate gay people, neither of which is true.

JillUser

on Apr 27, 2004

I need someone to define "Catholic" for me because I hear a lot of things from people who claim to be Catholic that go against everything I learned about Catholicism. For instance, how can you be Catholic and not pro-life? I can understand not hating others. You can hate the sin but love the sinner.

shadesofgrey

on Apr 27, 2004

For instance, how can you be Catholic and not pro-life?

I'm going to defer to Catholics for Free Choice to answer this one:

Most people believe that the Roman Catholic church's position on abortion has remained unchanged for two thousand years. Not true. Church teaching on abortion has varied continually over the course of its history. There has been no unanimous opinion on abortion at any time. While there has been constant general agreement that abortion is almost always evil and sinful, the church has had difficulty in defining the nature of that evil. Members of the Catholic hierarchy have opposed abortion consistently as evidence of sexual sin, but they have not always seen early abortion as homicide. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the "right-to-life" argument is a relatively recent development in church teaching. The debate continues today.

Also contrary to popular belief, no pope has proclaimed the prohibition of abortion an "infallible" teaching. This fact leaves much more room for discussion on abortion than is usually thought, with opinions among theologians and the laity differing widely. In any case, Catholic theology tells individuals to follow their personal conscience in moral matters, even when their conscience is in conflict with hierarchical views.

MasonM

on Apr 27, 2004

TARSIER
It is sad that people tend to judge without knowing the facts, isn't it? While there are things about the Catholic Church I do not agree with, there are things about many denominational things I don't agree with. But to say a person isn't a Christian because they are Catholic is just plain stupid. Protestants either forget or plain don't know that prior to the Reformation ALL Christians were Catholics or Jews.

Just more stupid denominational bickering. Even among Protestants there are those who say if you don't belong to OUR church you aren't saved. OUR'S is the only TRUE Church. These folks need to get real.

I have attended mass in Catholic Churches many times, especially in Italy and found it to be a beautiful thing. There are parts of the Catholic tradition I really enjoy and respect.

I would ask this question, as I have not taken the time to study the Catholic Church in depth; Where, in the bible does it say to ask Mary or the Saints to intercede for us instead of Jesus? This is not a pot-shot by any means. I am truly curious and would like to know this from a Catholic point of view.

Thanks for being willing to field a few honest questions. God Bless you.

Molly0597

on Apr 27, 2004

I'm Catholic and pro-choice. Pretty much the only way I can explain is that my religion tells me that I believe in God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit. It doesn't tell me what to believe about abortion (okay, some people interpret the Bible in different ways and say that it does, but lets not get into that). What other Catholics (bishops, priests, etc.) in the Catholic religion believe about politics is not necessarily my view as well, but that doesn't mean I'm not Catholic. I base my opinions on the matter on other things, and if you want to know about that, there are other threads that discuss abortion.

Catholicism is different from other denominations and that's what makes me Catholic, not political views. It has some different traditions, celebrations, and beliefs. For example, most people don't know that the Catholic religion actually does not believe in the 7 day creation in the Old Testament or in Adam and Eve. Other denominations do and choose to take the Bible word for word.

~Molly

Sherye Hanson

on Apr 27, 2004

In my experience there are Catholics who are very traditional in their faith and practice and others who are more ecumenical. Sometimes it seems as if some Catholics venerate Mary more than Jesus. Other times it seems as if the statues in the church are more than just art but something that some people worship. This seems especially true in poor countries. Personally, I believe that Catholics are Christians, after all they were the first and only Christians until the reformation. On the other hand, there were many practices that weren't Christian and give Protestants a reason for thinking that Catholics have lost the faith of the early church.

How do you view Protestants?

Molly0597

on Apr 27, 2004

I have no problem with Protestants, or with any other relgions really for that matter. I just don't necessarily agree with all of their beliefs. I don't really like that there are Christian denominations because I think, on a more simple level, its all the same thing. We all believe in the same God and Jesus, etc. The Protestant religions were mostly created for political reasons, which is why denominations are kind of annoying. However, I don't agree with a lot of the beliefs that the Protestant religions have, so I am Catholic.

~Molly

JillUser

on Apr 27, 2004

I am not prejudiced about any denomination or religion. I respect anyone who is true to their own beliefs. I have never understood the politics involved between denominations.

Sir Peter Maxwell

on Apr 28, 2004

Why do so many Catholic priests bugger young boys?

This problem seems to involve a disproportionate number of Catholic Priests.

TARSIER

on Apr 29, 2004

I havent been on in a while and havent responded to these as I should have. First off, I am Pro Life 100%, and not just because of the Catholic Church, that is my own belief. Second thing, we ask for intercession from Mary and the Saints for obvious reasons. First off, how is it not a good thing to have people praying for you, and since we believe in eternal life because Christ died for us, they are alive and try to help us, just like if I asked you to pray for me, same general concept. Next thing, some people think that we idolize statues and such, but it is just a symbol to help guide us. Some statues show Mary holding Jesus showing us the love for the Son of God. Is that wrong? You may see people praying BEFORE a statue, but they are not praying to it. It is just a constant reminder. And to Sir Peter, only a very small percentage of priests have been caught in the scandal in relation to the amount of Catholic Priests, but a lot of people try to destructure the Catholic Church any way possible. Yes, it is very wrong, a grave sin, and the amount of scandals are way too much for anyones comfort, but since the Church has human beings in it, it is obvious that there will be scandal. It is a really sad thing though,really sad. I hope that answers peoples questions.

MasonM

on Apr 29, 2004

Thanks TARSIER. That helps me understand that a bit more. I appreciate the response.

Jiggles

on Apr 30, 2004

Catholic for a Free Choice?

No such thing. If you support abortion, you are de facto excommunicated from the Catholic Church. Why do you think that there is a huge issue with John Kerry? Because he believes that he defines what it means to be Catholic, instead of the magisterum. Whenever politicians think they can dictate to the Vatican what to believe, it never turns out right. (See issues: slavery, Nazism, Communism, all of which the Vatican and individual bishops condemned)

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