an important message to all christians

[mpjw2]

My christian brothers and sisters…

There comes a time and a place where one needs to say what is on their heart and this is on of those times.

It is with my sincere prayer that the following message is receives with love and not insult.
It is a message which I believe needs to be said in the love of Jesus’s name.

let me first ask you
who is the JUDGE??

Psalms gives us the answer
But it is God who judges: He brings one down, he exalts another. Psalm 75:7

also Ezekiel
**" 'As for you, my flock, this is what the Sovereign LORD says: I will judge between one sheep and another, and between rams and goats. Ezekiel 34:17 **

and

**I will save my flock, and they will no longer be plundered. I will judge between one sheep and another. Ezekiel 34:22 **

Matthew advises us…
**"Do not judge, or you too will be judged.
Matthew 7:1 **

and in judges
**Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it.
James 4:11 **

Friends, I believe judging one another is one of the reasons why their is disagreement going on between catholics and all other non catholic christians,

am I off base?
I think not…

in the “do you have to be Catholic to get into Heaven” thread

nlm was in discussion with other catholics and there was an issue in which nlm did not respond for a while

PRmerger posted

NLM is walking away from this forum because he doesn’t like the Truth as Catholics are proclaiming it either.

in the thread nlm advised us the reason for his/her absence was a death in the family which of course took 1st priority.

Was PRmerger the only one who felt NLM was running from the truth??
only God knows

and when nlm came back on the thread…

PRmerger said

Yay! You’re back!

and not even a expression of sorrow for nlm’s loss on the thread
Which I am sure nlm would have appreciated more.

I hope that PRmerger at least sent a pm to NLM

cont…

 

[mpjw2]

cont…

Friends I am not just citing catholics…
check out my message to non catholic christians

forums.catholic-questions.org/showthread.php?t=375301

I believe being sensitive and not judging in one of the answers as nlm said in the “do you have to be Catholic to get into Heaven” thread

If more people were sensitive to the needs of others, I believe this would indeed be a better world. If more people took the time to smile or say hello it would go a long way to helping others who may be having a bad day. When the rules are all that matters then the people suffer. There is not enough" touchy-feely "going on in the world.

PRmerger said

Jesus wasn’t all that touchy-feely either

nlm responded

To say Jesus was not touchy-feely. How sad. What was He doing when he welcomed the little children. Why did He cry when His friend Lazarus died? Are these not examples of showing one’s feelings?

distracted then replied

i think there is too much touchy feely… phony touchy feely that is…

i don’t like people always smiling at me walking down the street, saying Hi… I don’t dislike it a lot but it makes me feel uncomfrotable… mabye its because i am Catholic…

yes Jesus offended just about everyone…
and i am following in his footsteps…

I wonder if distracted is the only one who feels this way

distracted or anyone else who believes this way, in due respect, if you believe Jesus wanted to offend people and you want to follow in His footsteps and you want to offend peoplenjust the same …please stick around nlm or MelanieAnne or tweetymon and I believe they will do their best to illustrate the love of Jesus to you

MelanieAnne, bless her heart, replied

Speaking only for myself, if you “love” someone, that means you treat them kindly. Way too many people don’t “get that”. So I thought I’d go on record.

No, Jesus didn’t give me that definition, He just told us to “Love one another” as He loved us.

tweetymom, bless her heart too, replied…

You are right on and you can put me on your record. Sometimes I get carried away and believe me I get in trouble

Get in trouble for loving someone?

what a shame

tweetymom also said to nlm

It is very hard to share or be polite in some places. I am sorry for some of the sarcasm showed to you!

now that is being sensitive to nlm’s needs …bless your heart tweetymom as you continued…

I feel that you are a strong man of God and I wish you well in your journey with Christ. I will always remember and will pray for you and your family. In Christ’s love

nlm summed up his experience on these forums …

It is very difficult to believe that some of these posters profess to be Christ followers. Contrary to what is being posted here, I have never accused anyone of being wrong. I am on record as saying that I respect all denominations and what THEY believe even if it is not what I believe. Being arrogant, sarcatic and nasty is not very christian. Of course WWJD is not in the Bible but are we not instructed to imitate Jesus and the way He lived His life? I do not think sarcasm etc. were the way He dealt with issues even His enemies He forgave He did not ridicule. It is VERY sad for members of any denomination to be so nasty to others. The teachings I do not accept are man made and have nothing to do with the Commandments of God nor His teachings.When any of you walk out of the confessional and have done your penance do you not believe that should you die at that moment you would be saved as you are in a state of grace at that moment?That is what I was taught when I was a Roman Catholic. It’s unbelievable how questions are ignored many times. I have asked what the official position of the RCC is on eulogies. All I received was a sarcastic answer eluding to donations. Anytime I have shared what the liturgy is like in our church no comments are ever made. This tells me that there is a fear on the part of some on this forum to admit that there are other forms of worship which may be pleasing to God. Respect is a word which is laking greatly here. To say Jesus was not touchy-feely. How sad. What was He doing when he welcomed the little children. Why did He cry when His friend Lazarus died? Are these not examples of showing one’s feelings? That is the problem here. Not unlike the Jews in the OT, some are so hung up on the rules that you can’t add any degree of humanity to them. If you are unable to see the value of a smile from your fellow christian in your place of worship then I really do feel sorry for you. Jesus found fault with the jews who could not see around the rules to show compassion. Before you ask me where it says that in the Bible I am referring to healing on the Sabboth. I foolishly thought I had found an opportunity to get answers to ligitimate questions I have had for years. I was wrong.So as hard as I try to get answers to my questions it seems more impossible than ever.I will pray for my RC brothers and sisters as I do daily. My prayer will be that God soften the hearts of some of you and make you more open to sharing what your teachings are all about. I will pray that when ligitimate questions are asked of you that sarcasm does not prevent you from answering the question honestly. I wish you all the best and I want to thank those of you who did show christian values and compassion in your responses
See you in heaven NLM

my experience here is similiar to nlm’s.
There is also an open invitation for all non catholic christians to come home to the one true church Jesus founded the catholic church.

In the thread dburke said

Come back to the church my friend, come back to your Catholic roots, no matter what the reason you left.

I respect that is what catholics believe, I am not going to debate your belief on that.

However, I believe in my heart of hearts that Jesus founded His church of…one of love and not judgement and insensitivity.

Based on some of the threads in these forums,

does one see love?
or
does one see judgement and insensitivity?

I believe all of us have some work to do in showing more love to the lost world. Some of what nlm said hit home with me personally.

How about with you??

May God bless us all with His desire to love one another more

In Jesus name I pray, amen

 

[Roman_Catholic_1]

I think the judging and insensitivity can go both ways. If you don’t believe me I have a story to tell you about my Protestant father-in-law. Try visiting CARM also.

Not that that makes it right, but both are guilty of it.

God bless you

 

[RoryMcKenzie56]

Thanks for sharing. I am going to take the occasion to join similar thoughts mpjw. If one lurker benefits, it may be worth saying. But the phenomenon you cite is what is leading me to gradually forsake this kind of communication. It is too discouraging. All people are much less hateful in person I think. We have to be. As it is on the internet, I think stronger bishops in a better age would tell us laypeople to shut our mouths if we can’t be amiable while presenting the Catholic faith.

Religious message boards are much more often occasions of scandal and misunderstanding than anything positive. This medium tends to bring out the worst in us. If ridicule is an effective evangelistic tool, I have never experienced its blessings. I am a convert. I didn’t come into the Church because people were making offensive remarks about my bad will or ignorance as a Baptist.

In my opinion, the religious message board problem stems from a widespread false assumption on the part of those who think they have discovered the one true faith. When some folks find truth, they think that its opposite is obviously stupid or absurd. But error is not always stupid. Popular error is rarely stupid. Popular error usually has an appealing coherence built over the false presupposition that makes it difficult to see to the roots of problems. In religion, popular error, like its author the devil, masquerades very well in an angelic light. Error is not deserving of respect as error, but as being brilliantly presented to intelligent people who have been persuaded to adopt it, I believe most popular error demands our respect. If we will not try to appreciate why someone else believes differently, they will sense our disdain. They will not hear us.

 

[JRKH]

I can only say to mpjw for this thread.
To those who might take offence I would only remind them that he/she is following Christs instructions on how to deal with disagreements. He/She is bring our error to our attention both privately and by witness of two or three others, (Mt 18:15-18)that we might improve how we treat others.

Thank you for your courage.

May God forgive me for the times I have been unkind on these boards.
For the times I felt Provoked ((voice os small kid) “…he started it…”)
For the times I would make a comment just to “win a point”.
For the times that a comment served only to be a “smart-alec”.
Father take away these desires of mine and replace them with your Holy Love.
May all my posts give Glory to you.
In Jesus name do I ask this.
Amen

Peace
James

 

[rwillenborg]

Rory and mpjw -
You’re both spot on.
The things people say with teh anonymity of the internet…well, it makes me shudder.
Especially because I KNOW people aren’t like that in real life!!
Things start off well enough and then someone has to get snarky.
Maybe they had a bad day.
Maybe someone pushed a button.
Or maybe they weren’t even TRYING to be snarky, but it just came across that way.
In the end, though, this bickering just makes the secular world wag their finger at us and say ‘See? I TOLD you those Christians aren’t any better’
And they’re right.
We’re not.
But the difference is, the difference MUST be, that we are trying desperately to BE better.
Honestly, i blame the medium more than the people. I have seen otherwise kind gentle souls turn into rabid dogs with just a few keystrokes.
But I think both of you are very, very right.

 

[mpjw2]

I think the*** judging and insensitivity can go both ways***. If you don’t believe me I have a story to tell you about my Protestant father-in-law. Try visiting CARM also.

Not that that makes it right, but both are guilty of it.

God bless you

as I expressed in my other thread to non catholic christians

 

[Roman_Catholic_1]

as I expressed in my other thread

I was just mentioning it in this thread before anyone gets carried away with their feelings of just how bad examples of Christ’s love they believe Catholics can be.

God bless you

 

[mpjw2]

thank you all…

your responses tell me this was the right thing to do.

My apologies if my words offended anyone as that was not my intent for posting.

My intent is the hope and desire that we all can see each other with compassion, love and understanding

thank you and God bless all of you

 

[Gabriel_of_12]

My condolences to NLM. From what has been mentioned here has nothing to do with Catholicism nor Protestantism. What has been exposed here are the actions between humanity or the differences of individuals characters communicated.

I hope it is made clear that judgement was NOT passed from one faith to the other. If you review carefully the context of the discussion deals with individual character, not religion.

The Catholic Church has been accused and judged of many negative things from ages past. When put under the microscope, many times you will find individuals acting from their character or out of character which does not represent the body of Jesus Christ in the Catholic Church.

I quote the famous words from Jesus; What is of God’s give to God, what belongs to Ceasar give back to Ceasar.

Peace be with you

 

[mpjw2]

My condolences to NLM. From what has been mentioned here has nothing to do with Catholicism nor Protestantism. What has been exposed here are the actions between humanity or the differences of individuals characters communicated.

I hope it is made clear that judgement was NOT passed from one faith to the other. If you review carefully the context of the discussion deals with individual character, not religion.

The Catholic Church has been accused and judged of many negative things from ages past. When put under the microscope, many times you will find individuals acting from their character or out of character which does not represent the body of Jesus Christ in the Catholic Church.

I quote the famous words from Jesus; What is of God’s give to God, what belongs to Ceasar give back to Ceasar.

Peace be with you

yes Gabriel I believe you believe what you say is true.

However forewhatever reason, it does not away the pain as a result of the actions you speak of.

God gave me a verse I like to share…

may the words of our mouths and meditations of our hearts be pleasing in His sight.
O Lord, our Rock, and our Redeemer Psalm 19:14

I pray this in Jesus name

Amen

God bless you all

 

[Gabriel_of_12]

yes Gabriel I believe you believe what you say is true.

However forewhatever reason, it does not away the pain as a result of the actions you speak of.

God gave me a verse I like to share…

may the words of our mouths and meditations of our hearts be pleasing in His sight.
O Lord, our Rock, and our Redeemer Psalm 19:14

I pray this in Jesus name

Amen

God bless you all

Peace be with you; My position on what you have addressed here supports yours. I just offer another persepective. The truth of the matter is we do not battle against “flesh and blood” but against “powers and principalities”. This is where the real fight begins and ends, not with our fellow brothers and sisters.

All said, you did well to expose this negativity, what brings in the victory is forgiveness, understanding and Love.

 

[geometer]

Matthew advises us…
**"Do not judge, or you too will be judged.
Matthew 7:1 **

Mat 7:15 ¶ Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.

Mat 7:16 Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?

Mat 7:17 Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.

Mat 7:18 A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither [can] a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.

Mat 7:19 Every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire.

Mat 7:20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.