C
CivisRomanusSum
Guest
Hi. I am quite worried about a few of our fellow Catholics who might be misinformed about our faith or in “malpractice” of it. How am I supposed to react when I hear a Catholic (or read what he or she has written) who claims to adore or worship Mary, for instance.
e.g. “but the Spirit with-in Mother Mary is God(“Hail Mary full of Grace, the LORD is WITH YOU”)we worship Mother Mary by the SPIRIT… please pardon us if we are wrong.”
or
“Mother Mary manifest your power over us and pls help me in my petition. im feeling like its a dead end for jesse and me. manifest your healing power for both of us and guide us to the front of your altar wherein we experience your blessings and protection for our life together.”
I am well-versed about our faith and I completely understand and agree with the distinctions between latria, hyperdulia, and dulia. However, I am very disturbed when I hear fellow Catholics exaggerate their devotions to the point of evicting God altogether and making the saint in question the sole object of their love from whom springs the power to end their miseries (as if they were God).
I become so paranoid about this that my prayers tend to be carefully-worded so that my practice of communion with the saints, whom I love of course, is done by, through, and for God. Because of these I think to be “heretical” (correct me if I’m mistaken) devotions of our fellow Catholics, my prayers to the saints become less and less casual and more and more technical so as not to cross the line from dulia to latria (or in Mary’s case, hyperdulia to latria).
Help me please. I love God’s saints very much and I do not want to insult them by being so apprehensive when praying to them. I equally do not want to insult them by attributing to them that which belongs to God alone.
I believe that these instances of “accidental worship” are not forgivable and natural effects of popular devotion and should be stamped out and corrected immediately. It pains me to hear a protestant accuse us of idolatry because I know that it’s not true. But it pains me more to see a Catholic actually committing it, consciously or unconsciously.
So do you have any advice for me as to how to deal with this paranoia/concern? And what is your view on these exaggerated devotions?
May Mary’s Immaculate Heart triumph and see all Christians worshiping God in His One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic Church.
Ave Maria! Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!
e.g. “but the Spirit with-in Mother Mary is God(“Hail Mary full of Grace, the LORD is WITH YOU”)we worship Mother Mary by the SPIRIT… please pardon us if we are wrong.”
or
“Mother Mary manifest your power over us and pls help me in my petition. im feeling like its a dead end for jesse and me. manifest your healing power for both of us and guide us to the front of your altar wherein we experience your blessings and protection for our life together.”
I am well-versed about our faith and I completely understand and agree with the distinctions between latria, hyperdulia, and dulia. However, I am very disturbed when I hear fellow Catholics exaggerate their devotions to the point of evicting God altogether and making the saint in question the sole object of their love from whom springs the power to end their miseries (as if they were God).
I become so paranoid about this that my prayers tend to be carefully-worded so that my practice of communion with the saints, whom I love of course, is done by, through, and for God. Because of these I think to be “heretical” (correct me if I’m mistaken) devotions of our fellow Catholics, my prayers to the saints become less and less casual and more and more technical so as not to cross the line from dulia to latria (or in Mary’s case, hyperdulia to latria).
Help me please. I love God’s saints very much and I do not want to insult them by being so apprehensive when praying to them. I equally do not want to insult them by attributing to them that which belongs to God alone.
I believe that these instances of “accidental worship” are not forgivable and natural effects of popular devotion and should be stamped out and corrected immediately. It pains me to hear a protestant accuse us of idolatry because I know that it’s not true. But it pains me more to see a Catholic actually committing it, consciously or unconsciously.
So do you have any advice for me as to how to deal with this paranoia/concern? And what is your view on these exaggerated devotions?
May Mary’s Immaculate Heart triumph and see all Christians worshiping God in His One, Holy, Catholic, Apostolic Church.
Ave Maria! Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam!
It comes from the heart. Those you see only exteriorly may well have their hearts properly disposed. By the same token, someone who you might hear saying “non-prone-to-worship-words” to a saint might have their heart in the wrong place.