Be Proud to be Catholic

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** :sad_yes:The Catholic Church in the US has been attacked by the media because some of the priests have been caught sexually molesting boys under their care. Here is an argument by a Jewish businessman that refutes those accusations and puts the Catholic Church here in the US in a POSITIVE light and reminds us why we should be PROUD to be Catholic!**:bounce:

***Be Proud of Being Catholic

(Excerpts of an article written by Sam Miller, prominent Cleveland
Jewish businessman – NOT Catholic)

Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important
institutions that we have today in the United States, namely, the
Catholic Church?

Do you know – the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students
everyday at the cost to your Church of 10 billion dollars, and a
savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion
dollars. Your graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%,
all at a cost to you… To the rest of the Americans it’s free.

The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. with an
enrollment of 700,000 students. The Catholic Church has a non-profit
hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment
of 1 out of every 5 people – not just Catholics – in the United States
today.

But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every
way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease
of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as
blaming adultery on the institution of marriage.

Let me give you some figures that you as Catholics should know and
remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed
admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged
other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist
Church, 41.8% of clergywomen reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17%
of laywomen have been sexually harassed. Meanwhile, 1.7% of the
Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the
Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not
a Catholic Problem.

A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the
priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that
most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of
all this obnoxious PR the Church has been receiving.

The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony
that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of
the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests
that have probably been totally weeded out by now.

Walk with your shoulders high and your head higher. Be a proud member
of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States .
Then remember what Jeremiah said: ‘Stand by the roads, and look and
ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and
find rest for your souls.’ Be proud to speak up for your faith with
pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other
religions.

Be proud that you’re a Catholic!***
 
:extrahappy::clapping::clapping::tiphat:

if only all Catholics stand together for the Church specially in hard times. but what i see is that some just choose to go with the media and agree that priests should marry.

it is good to hear that a jew defend us. God is good and He is watching over His Church. if some Catholics comes against the Church, God brings outsiders to defend Her. Praises be to our God.
 
If you embrace pride, then you are at odds with critical Catholic principals. Just be at peace. There is much more happiness to be had in relaxation then in beating your chest.
 
Hmm…proud of God having Mercy on mankind???

How about grateful!!!
 
This is how I take this. Everyone likes to beat up on the Church. Most Catholics just keep their mouths shut and take it. We are blamed for everything that is wrong with religion. Can’t tell you how many times I have heard about the crusades, Spanish Inquision, sexual abuse by clergy, it goes on and on. To me this is saying (to Catholics), buck up, you are doing really great things in the world. Don’t be put off or put down by the rhetoric. Sorry, but sometimes it feels overwhelming. I see this as a reminder (to Catholics) that we have a lot to look back on in our history that is really good. Maybe the word pride offends, sorry. I think we are putting too much emphasis on the use of the word pride and missing the overall message of the post.
 
I’m not proud that God chose to have mercy upon us, I’m very very very thankful.

God Bless.

Chris.
 
Ok, either I am a lousy communicator or we are off somewhere. I do not think the article was saying we should take pride in what God has given us, only that as a church we have done some really good things. That is something to **feel good about **(if the word pride offends too much). No where has anyone said that we should feel pride at the free gifts that God offers us. All we tend to hear is the bad stuff we have done. The article is simply saying, hey, you’ve done a lot of good too, so hold your head high, that is all, nothing more.
 
Monica37 said:
Ok, either I am a lousy communicator or we are off somewhere. I do not think the article was saying we should take pride in what God has given us, only that as a church we have done some really good things. That is something to **feel good about **(if the word pride offends too much). No where has anyone said that we should feel pride at the free gifts that God offers us. All we tend to hear is the bad stuff we have done. The article is simply saying, hey, you’ve done a lot of good too, so hold your head high, that is all, nothing more.
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Your communication is perfectly fine, it’s the title ‘Be Proud of Being Catholic’ and it’s finale ‘Be proud that you’re a Catholic!’

The article can by all means point out the benefits and good achievements the Catholic Faith has produced, but to state ‘Be proud that you’re a Catholic!’ is something else.

God Bless.

Chris.
 
I’m so proud to be Catholic, not just because it’s the One True Church founded by Christ, but also because it’s been a beacon of Hope, Peace and Justice throughout the ages(although with a few rotten apples). The very same Church helped save hundereds of thousands of Jews during WWII and it’s helping to dismantle the horrors of communism in Centeral and Eastern Europe

God Bless our Church!
 
Mary_Joy said:
** :sad_yes:The Catholic Church in the US has been attacked by the media because some of the priests have been caught sexually molesting boys under their care. Here is an argument by a Jewish businessman that refutes those accusations and puts the Catholic Church here in the US in a POSITIVE light and reminds us why we should be PROUD to be Catholic!**:bounce:

***Be Proud of Being Catholic

(Excerpts of an article written by Sam Miller, prominent Cleveland
Jewish businessman – NOT Catholic)

Why would newspapers carry on a vendetta on one of the most important
institutions that we have today in the United States, namely, the
Catholic Church?

Do you know – the Catholic Church educates 2.6 million students
everyday at the cost to your Church of 10 billion dollars, and a
savings on the other hand to the American taxpayer of 18 billion
dollars. Your graduates go on to graduate studies at the rate of 92%,
all at a cost to you… To the rest of the Americans it’s free.

The Church has 230 colleges and universities in the U.S. with an
enrollment of 700,000 students. The Catholic Church has a non-profit
hospital system of 637 hospitals, which account for hospital treatment
of 1 out of every 5 people – not just Catholics – in the United States
today.

But the press is vindictive and trying to totally denigrate in every
way the Catholic Church in this country. They have blamed the disease
of pedophilia on the Catholic Church, which is as irresponsible as
blaming adultery on the institution of marriage.

Let me give you some figures that you as Catholics should know and
remember. For example, 12% of the 300 Protestant clergy surveyed
admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner; 38% acknowledged
other inappropriate sexual contact in a study by the United Methodist
Church, 41.8% of clergywomen reported unwanted sexual behavior; 17%
of laywomen have been sexually harassed. Meanwhile, 1.7% of the
Catholic clergy has been found guilty of pedophilia. 10% of the
Protestant ministers have been found guilty of pedophilia. This is not
a Catholic Problem.

A study of American priests showed that most are happy in the
priesthood and find it even better than they had expected, and that
most, if given the choice, would choose to be priests again in face of
all this obnoxious PR the Church has been receiving.

The Catholic Church is bleeding from self-inflicted wounds. The agony
that Catholics have felt and suffered is not necessarily the fault of
the Church. You have been hurt by a small number of wayward priests
that have probably been totally weeded out by now.

Walk with your shoulders high and your head higher. Be a proud member
of the most important non-governmental agency in the United States .
Then remember what Jeremiah said: ‘Stand by the roads, and look and
ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is and walk in it, and
find rest for your souls.’ Be proud to speak up for your faith with
pride and reverence and learn what your Church does for all other
religions.

Be proud that you’re a Catholic!***
Click to expand...
I am and joyfully catholic. You know, there is so much darkness out there. Alot of attacks and it is awful. We are the ones who do so much for everybody and no matter what happens, I am strong in my faith. I love our Catholic faith. God is so good, all the time:)

And it is also so nice to see Catholics and Jews come together. 🙂

God bless us all 🙂

Peace!
 
As I have stated in other threads, I was raised a Southern Baptist and lived, ate, and breathed the anti-Catholic playbook. When I joined the Navy at 17, I lived in a spiritual wasteland for 8 years until I married a great Catholic Lady. It took three years, but this great Lady saved my life and my soul, I converted three years after we were married. It was no easy feat though; there was a lot of bigotry I had to get through. Once I was able to realize the fullness of truth, it was full steam ahead to embracing the Catholic religion. As for women’s roles in the Church, how much more of a noble role can they play in saving a soul? I guess it stands to reason in that they are the ones that give life to the world. So yes I am proud to be a Catholic.
 
The posters going on about pride=evil are being silly. Is it evil to be proud of your children? Proud of your parents? Proud of your accomplishments? You know, it is possible to be Proud and Thankful at the same time. It doesn’t have to be either/or. The statement “Be Proud to be Catholic” isn’t about assuming we created the Catholic Church all on our own without any help from God. It’s about taking pride in the accomplishments of the Church, to be proud of our legacy as Catholics here on this Earth. And I, for one, am quite proud of my Church, of my legacy. I don’t have a heritage outside of the Catholic Church to be proud of, so I thank God every day for giving me such a wonderful spiritual history that I can take pride in.
 
This is a lovely article. Before I share it with my friends, I would like to verify its authenticity. Can you cite where it was originally published?
 
FanChan said:
The posters going on about pride=evil are being silly. Is it evil to be proud of your children? Proud of your parents? Proud of your accomplishments?
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Pride is self-love, also Pride is stated as one of the seven deadly sins, so when you state ‘pride=evil’, it equates.
Catholic Encyclopedia:
Pride:
Pride is the excessive love of one’s own excellence. It is ordinarily accounted one of the seven capital sins. St. Thomas, however, endorsing the appreciation of St. Gregory, considers it the queen of all vices, and puts vainglory in its place as one of the deadly sins.
Click to expand...
Source.

Pride in accomplishments, in your parents and in your children, only the first strikes as what seems to be excessive love of one’s own excellence, if you take love of your own excellence in what you have taught and of how you raised your children, it is Pride.

Using ‘proud’ when referring to your parents/child’s actions does not equate with the excessive love of one’s own excellence, it seems diluted by modern usage.

Looking upon ‘Proud to be Catholic!’ is basically stating the excessive love of one’s self for being in the stated Faith.
40.png
FanChan:
You know, it is possible to be Proud and Thankful at the same time. It doesn’t have to be either/or. The statement “Be Proud to be Catholic” isn’t about assuming we created the Catholic Church all on our own without any help from God. It’s about taking pride in the accomplishments of the Church, to be proud of our legacy as Catholics here on this Earth.
Click to expand...
I highly doubt it, can you honestly say that your proud of God to grant you Grace? It sounds opposite of humility, definitely.

It cannot be pride if it’s not self-love, so we see the word usage in context an error.
40.png
FanChan:
And I, for one, am quite proud of my Church, of my legacy. I don’t have a heritage outside of the Catholic Church to be proud of, so I thank God every day for giving me such a wonderful spiritual history that I can take pride in.
Click to expand...
Unless this Pride is self-love, it cannot be Pride of what has been stated by Scripture.

Superbia is somewhat different from the English translation.

Vainglory however is something that you maybe using.

God Bless.

Chris.
 
Monica37 said:
This is how I take this. Everyone likes to beat up on the Church. Most Catholics just keep their mouths shut and take it. We are blamed for everything that is wrong with religion. Can’t tell you how many times I have heard about the crusades, Spanish Inquision, sexual abuse by clergy, it goes on and on. To me this is saying (to Catholics), buck up, you are doing really great things in the world. Don’t be put off or put down by the rhetoric. Sorry, but sometimes it feels overwhelming. I see this as a reminder (to Catholics) that we have a lot to look back on in our history that is really good. Maybe the word pride offends, sorry. I think we are putting too much emphasis on the use of the word pride and missing the overall message of the post.
Click to expand...
Amen. We are splitting hairs over a word. So the author didn’t go deep into thought on the use of the word. I don’t think he’s asking everyone to be sinfully proud. We just don’t need be ashamed or hide our Catholicism.
 
Here is the definition of PROUD. Note that it has several meanings. Note the meaning I have put in red. Then note my signature.

proud prowd ] (comparative proud·er, superlative proud·est)

adjective

Definition:
  1. pleased and satisfied: feeling pleased and satisfied, e.g. about having done something or about owning something
    I am very proud to be here today to give you this award.
  2. fostering feelings of pride: characterized by feelings of pride
    the proudest moment in your life
  3. having self-respect: having a proper amount of self-respect
  4. arrogant: having an exaggerated opinion of personal worth or abilities
  5. impressive: looking magnificent and impressive, or behaving in an impressive way
    the proud peaks of the Rockies
  6. Midwestern U.S. feeling pleased: feeling pleased, glad, or delighted
  7. high-spirited: high-spirited and strong
    a proud horse
[Pre-12th century. < Old French prud< Latin prodesse “be beneficial,” literally “be for” < esse “be”]
 
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