10 things things I've "learned" at CAF

[Jimdandy]

Hey Sephared,

I hope we meet again at God’s gate.

May He always be good to you.

 

[Gottle_of_Geer]

I know that this post might sound somewhat hostile and or negative. I really don’t feel hostile. I just feel … sad when I reflect on some of these things. I decided to list them out here as a FYI. Maybe some of you don’t realize how you appear to a non-catholic reading your posts. Some of you never reflect these negative things, but they are common enough that they come to mind when I think of Catholics now.

1. I’ve learned that there lies a deep resentment and hatred of protestants (not just protestantism) in a large number of Catholics. Even though a huge number of protestants know nothing about Catholics in order to even know if they disagree with Catholicism. Some are outspoken about their anger at us all and others use more sporadic snarky sarcasm thrown in at random.
2. I learned that I am not as charitable as I used to be, and I’m sorry for anyone I offend(ed). I am trying to learn to be bold but not rude. It can be a fine line at times.

**Understood I can’t decide whether the Internet evokes the nastiness in people, or whether it contributes to it. I think it does a very good job of laying bare the corruption in one’s own heart (those of others being inaccessible except to God). **​

As a non-American, I often get the impression that US Christians, of many kinds, tend to be aggressive & often none too gentle - if there is any truth in this (& it may be only a trick of perspective), maybe you’re coming up against a Catholic form of it. It can be very difficult to divine someone’s attitudes & intentions from words alone.

1. I have learned all about the Catholic views on Mary, Birth Control, womens head coverings, Justification, the Magisterium, purgatory, and others too. I have learned to better defend my own faith by discussing these things. Its my hope that people who talk with me learn to defend their faith better as well, and that is why I support this forum.

**Could it be that the criticisms made are, between them, applicable to all sorts of Catholics, without all being applicable to any one sort ? **​

 

[Eden]

God bless you, Sepharad. I pray that the Lord will continue to help you through the healing process of your loss. I’ve enjoyed debating with you… although it’s caused me to spend more time here than I should.

 

[Sepharad]

God bless you, Sepharad. I pray that the Lord will continue to help you through the healing process of your loss. I’ve enjoyed debating with you… although it’s caused me to spend more time here than I should.

Why are you suddenly sounding so nice to me?

 

[Syele]

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**Could it be that the criticisms made are, between them, applicable to all sorts of Catholics, without all being applicable to any one sort ? **​

Of course. the criticisms were never meant to apply to all Catholics, and neither were the compliments I posted. It was just meant to list some common ways people come across *to me *on the forum here. That is why I qualified I was not trying to generalize. Its extremely difficult for me to say “Ive seen xy argument 15 times this week do you know how that sounds to the people you are addressing?” without listing out every person who made xy argument and seeming like I’m just being a crybaby.

 

[Kaninchen]

What CAF teaches is what all large message boards teach - that people on message boards are just people on message boards and message boards, even where the subject matter may be important, are a kind of theatrical soap opera where everybody, from time to time, is trying to get heard in the 25th row.

Real life, it isn’t.

 

[Syele]

What CAF teaches is what all large message boards teach - that people on message boards are just people on message boards and message boards, even where the subject matter may be important, are a kind of theatrical soap opera where everybody, from time to time, is trying to get heard in the 25th row.

Real life, it isn’t.

What does Real Life have to do with any of it?

 

[Cathdefender]

I did qualify it that it was alot and that there are also many who do none of those things. I said them from memory… but I can find quotes for you easily enough.

the magic formulas… read righetousones posts in this thread forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=210146&page=2

oops that one said incantation and not magic… you get the idea though.
The whole “now you know how it feels” attitude is one I see frequently… saw it yesterday but forgot what thread… Ill post it when I see it again.

 

[FAB]

Of course. the criticisms were never meant to apply to all Catholics, and neither were the compliments I posted. It was just meant to list some common ways people come across *to me *on the forum here. That is why I qualified I was not trying to generalize. Its extremely difficult for me to say “Ive seen xy argument 15 times this week do you know how that sounds to the people you are addressing?” without listing out every person who made xy argument and seeming like I’m just being a crybaby.

Actually if I were not Catholic, and got my information from CAF I might be in agreement with your top 10. Being Catholic though, what I have learned fro CAF is that most of these post are extreme and could be considered the fringe of Catholic thinking and do not represent Catholic teaching. There are those that try to strike a moderate tone, but they are overwhelmed. This will of course be taken as that I’m bashing those on CAF but I have come to see that even if you say that the pope is Catholic, there are those who would disagree.
My point is, don’t form your opinion from this site. It would be as unfair as if my only opinion of Protestants came from watching some television evangelist.
Peace,
FAB

 

[Curious]

5 Things I’ve Learned at CAF

1. The Catholic Church is not a cult, nor is it the Whore of Babylon, nor is it a secret society of Mary worshippers, nor a collection of idolaters, nor is their leader the Anti Christ.
2. I’ve learned to stealthy skulk and lurk and secretly tap into the amazing knowledge and fervor exhibited by some Catholics here.
3. I’ve learned there are close minded and incredibly rude people here, both Catholics and Protestants.
4. I’ve learned to completely overlook #3 in favor of focusing on #2.
5. I’ve learned that I won’t be happy until I’m Catholic.

But I do not say these to downplay what Syele is saying - more than a few have been driven off by #3, and it’s very sad.

 

[strngrnrth]

As a non-American, I often get the impression that US Christians, of many kinds, tend to be aggressive & often none too gentle - if there is any truth in this (& it may be only a trick of perspective), maybe you’re coming up against a Catholic form of it. It can be very difficult to divine someone’s attitudes & intentions from words alone.​

In Ireland I often heard questions like, “Why are Americans so aggressive and tough?”
I have picked up that French people in the US think we’re basically gangsters or cowboys deep down (and they misunderstand cowboys). We tend to upset foreign folk all the time without knowing what we did. It’s much more socially acceptable to be forceful and sharp with people here. It usually doesn’t mean anything.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Thankfully my computer is a bit slow tonight or I might have showed a certain personal affront at the OP’s post.

I have posted about a gazillion times on here, and I have posted a great deal about protestants and prostestanism. Some on this thread might have read some of them, and so I have no fear of being contradicted.

I have spoken many times, and I’m not the only one who has, with respect for many protestants and certain aspects of protestantism. Well, yes, I like to tease Lutherans about drinking beer all the time in lieu of superior Irish whiskey, and I have repeated Baptist jokes my Baptist friends have told me. But that’s all in fun. I’m going to repeat what I have said many times. I was raised among Evangelicals and Fundamentalists (primarily Southern Baptists) and, say what one will, most of them I know truly are believers. Of all the things I could possibly say about anyone, that, to me anyway, is the highest expression of respect. But I am also going to say, as I have said before, that most of those folks that I know are, as Flannery O’Connor said, closer to Catholicism in their beliefs than they are to mainline protestantism. If she’s right, and of all the people who ever lived, she surely knew (at least Southern) Fundamentalists better than nearly anyone. Because I know them, I also know that they’re not joking when they say they long to be closer to Jesus. It breaks my heart that there He is, right there in the Eucharist, and they don’t know it or can’t bring themselves to accept it. It’s the answer to their deepest longings. In my area, anyway, there are droves of converts from Fundamentalism and every one will say that’s what brought them to the Church. So, should I disrespect the religion of people who are, to me, true believers who are more than halfway home? No. Not at all. And I don’t.

Some of these things are regional. I have in here defended Evangelicals and Fundamentalists with folks from other regions who do not understand them. If they knew some of my Baptist and Non-denom friends, they wouldn’t feel the way they do. But that’s regional misunderstanding, and those Catholics who wouldn’t know a real Fundamentalist if he or she walked in the door are not to be disparaged because of something they have just read somewhere but have no other means of knowing.

I will say, however, that I find a lot to dislike in some branches of mainline protestantism, and always have. Surely even a protestant would admit that some of them don’t believe in much of anything and are in no way emotionally engaged in their religion.
Not all, certainly. But there is a big difference between them and the Evangelicals and Fundamentalists, and that difference is often one of fervor and the longing that keeps the latter always in search of ways, humble ways, to be closer to God.

I am not receptive either to those protestant claims, mostly mainline, that they and we are really “part of the same Church”.
I’m just as impatient with Catholics who say things like that.
We’re not. I find the Fundamentalists more honest about that. They’re not Catholics, and I’m not a Southern Baptist or a member of the Assemblies of God. They know we’re not part of the same Church. The gap is there and they know it must be crossed or left uncrossed. But when I talk to some of them about what they, or I truly believe are Divine interventions in our lives or in the lives of others we know, I accept their “miracles” for the most part, and they accept mine.

But I will also say that a person can’t come in a place like this and expect Catholics to agree with Proestantism. Most won’t do it. I wouldn’t go into a Baptist blog and expect them to agree with me. Some would get heated in a discussion like that, and I wouldn’t take it ill if they did. I’m in their home, criticizing their furniture from their point of view. If they did, it would not change my mind about them from what I said above.

 

[Pug]

I have learned to better defend my own faith by discussing these things. Its my hope that people who talk with me learn to defend their faith better as well, and that is why I support this forum.

I’ve learned that many of us have no idea how we sound to others. I certainly don’t. I’m repeatedly surprised by how I am taken. I have no idea how to fix it though. This forum does not reveal that answer.

I’ve learned how remarkably tempting it is to think the internet is full of uncharitable loons. I get that response from real life friends when I try to tell them about some discussion I had here, too. I pretend I have my bearings in the type of discourse that seems to be common, but it is really just a pretense. All the social rules seem turned upside down sometimes.

I agree that there is some disagreement on the word “Roman”.

I’m glad you’ve found value from coming here.

 

[jmcrae]

So He sent me here to see just how mean some Catholics can be. He even allowed some of them to use the “christ killer” epithet against me, to bring up all those old memories of being beaten as a child, with those very same words hurled at me.

This is the Internet, and as the saying goes,* nobody knows you’re a dog on the 'net.* I missed the exchange, thankfully, but I doubt the person who said that to you was a Catholic (or a Christian of any other kind) in real life.

Either that, or they were having a really bad day, but in any case, one of the core tenets of Christianity is that we killed Jesus with our sins, and the persons involved in the actual crucifixion, whatever their religion may have been, were simply the means by which we - our sins - did the deed.

 

[Therese_Martin]

Ideally, posts on CAF should be a balance of truth and charity: Truth, in unapologetically proclaiming what is true; charity, in respecting the dignity of other members and of non-believers. If there are posts that egregiously violate this standard, these should be reported to the mod/admin staff by using the post-report feature – the red-and-white triangle icon (forums.catholic-questions.org/images/buttons_cad/report.gif) attached to each post.

CAF also encourages all members to review its Statement of Purpose and Charity Guidelines.

Note:

This thread is now closed. Thanks to all who participated in the discussion.