Catholics as Robots

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srferdave

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My girlfriend is a baptist. And we have been talking about the reasons why she chose her religion and the differences with catholicism. One of the things she keeps saying is… Why do Catholics act like robots? Why do they do the same thing every mass? She says more people in her church have fun than in a catholic church. And that people only go to catholic church because they feel like they have to. How do I answer her questions?

Thanks
 
The motions that catholics go through are the same in every mass, i will concede but the readings change and those repetitious movements have deep meaning to them. I would consider asking her why the emphasis in the baptist church is on what the preacher thinks about God rather than the word of God read directly to you so verses can’t be taken out of context to fit an agenda.🤷
 
It’s not about fun–it’s about the Heavenly worship of God. You don’t like monotony? Then you won’t like Heaven because everytime we see it in the Bible those there are always singing that same “Holy, Holy, Holy…” song 😉
 
srferdave said:
My girlfriend is a baptist. And we have been talking about the reasons why she chose her religion and the differences with catholicism. One of the things she keeps saying is… Why do Catholics act like robots? Why do they do the same thing every mass? She says more people in her church have fun than in a catholic church. And that people only go to catholic church because they feel like they have to. How do I answer her questions?

Thanks
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ask her why we keep the same old bible. Why not just write a new set of scriptures… you know, liven up that old book! The point to get at is that the Mass derives from sacred tradition, and much of the language of the mass which gets repeated weekly derives from scripture. Just because you do something over and over again does not make it bad… it can actually highlight how important a certain act is (ie… Communion)
 
We do the same thing every week because Jesus said: ***Do ***this. We do the “same old thing” because the Church is one. Because worship of the One True God is not a freestyle individual spiritual “experience” but a corporate acknowledgement of the supremacy of God. Was it Cardinal Manning who said “You worship God in your way, and I’ll worship him in *his.” *We received our form of worship from the hands of Jesus Christ and it has been passed down to us faithfully through the Church for 2000 years. When we approach him in worship it must be “in spirit and truth” – truth is remarkably stable. THAT is why we do the “same old thing”
 
Tell her Catholics do exactly what the Angels in Heaven do - they worship the Lord days and nights saying the same thing.

If she wants to be fun, Heaven might not be the right place for her. 😃
 
Ask her what she seeks. Does she seek truth? Or fun? If the truth is not “fun” (for her), will she reject it? If fun was my measure, I’d join the Church of the Arcade and Box Seats at the Baseball Stadium.

Then give her a copy of The Lamb’s Supper.
 
I can see her point but it really drives to the difference between the nature of sacred liturgy versus Protestant services. I would take a more positive approach rather than criticizing her way of worship.

Some thoughts come to mind. First, while the mass may seem monotonous to her, for those of us who understand the nature of our liturgy we find it both moving and beautiful. It is anything but boring. Imagine someone pointing out that when she is deep in prayer to Christ that she doesn’t look like she is having much fun. I think she would agree that there is a time and place for fun and contemplative conversation with Christ, or for us the sacred liturgy is probably not the place.

Second, she needs to understand that we believe that the consecration brings Christ to us body, soul and divinity. I would ask her if the nature of their services would change if Christ were truly present on the altar. I think in all honesty it would. And point out to her that just because she doesn’t believe doesn’t mean He isn’t there.

Third, for those of us who make a habit of attending mass when traveling, on vacation, and otherwise away from home, we find great comfort in the consistency of the liturgy. Think about the fact that on any given Sunday hundreds of millions of people (possibly more than a billion) are having the same Mass in their vernacular with the same readings, Gospel, etc. I have noticed that many of my devout Protestant friends don’t attend services when they are away from home because it isn’t their church. It is of the many beautiful aspects of our faith.

Finally, rather than criticizing the fun they have at their service point out that Catholics are a pretty fun loving group of people. Having said that, there are any number of parishes that have evangelical groups that are pretty lively.
 
How can we really know what the truth is? I mean as far as which type of christianity is the true one. Baptist say one thing and Catholics say another. I don’t know who to believe.
 
srferdave said:
My girlfriend is a baptist. And we have been talking about the reasons why she chose her religion and the differences with catholicism. One of the things she keeps saying is… Why do Catholics act like robots? Why do they do the same thing every mass? She says more people in her church have fun than in a catholic church. And that people only go to catholic church because they feel like they have to. How do I answer her questions?

Thanks
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What a load! You guys should come to Mass with me.

Fun? We ain’t there to have fun…we are there to worship Almighty God.

Robots? She must be watching too much Sci-fi channel? You’d have better luck herding cats than trying to get Catholics to be robots about anything.

Moreover, if she really understood what we know is going on there, she’d see why we do what we do.

Ask her if she’d fall on her knees before the Lord?
 
srferdave said:
My girlfriend is a baptist. And we have been talking about the reasons why she chose her religion and the differences with catholicism. One of the things she keeps saying is… Why do Catholics act like robots?
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What do robots act like? I bet I could google up dozens of pictures of baptists “acting like robots”, if I wanted to put an uncharitable face on their behavior.
Why do they do the same thing every mass?
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Why shouldn’t they do the same thing? If it’s the right thing to do in one Mass, why does it become the wrong thing to do in the next Mass? Besides, when I look at non-Catholic Christian worship services on TV, each individual church does “the same thing” each week too. But I don’t fault them for that.
She says more people in her church have fun than in a catholic church.
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Since when is having fun the reason to worship God? Tell her to show you that in the bible!
And that people only go to catholic church because they feel like they have to.
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Is she a mind-reader now? Very un-biblical!
How do I answer her questions?
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Ask her why she assumes over and over the worst explanation for Catholic behavior. Ask her why she shows no charity when interpreting Catholic actions. Focus on her willingness to believe the worst about Catholics before trying to defend the Church.
 
srferdave said:
How can we really know what the truth is? I mean as far as which type of christianity is the true one. Baptist say one thing and Catholics say another. I don’t know who to believe.
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One Church is the Church founded by Christ, led by the Vicar of Christ. The other isn’t.
 
Robots? She must be watching too much Sci-fi channel? You’d have better luck herding cats than trying to get Catholics to be robots about anything.

Danger, Will Robinson, Danger Will Robinson
 
srferdave said:
How can we really know what the truth is? I mean as far as which type of christianity is the true one. Baptist say one thing and Catholics say another. I don’t know who to believe.
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You are in the right place, my friend. If you believe the Bible you are ahead of the game. Perhaps you should start a thread or do a search for “how do you know the truth?” There are numerous well-informed, logical individuals on this forum that can help.

Or, even better, be specific one issue at a time. Select an issue in question (like salvation or grace or purgatory or whatever!) and we can show you Scripturally and historically how to determine the truth.
 
srferdave said:
My girlfriend is a baptist. And we have been talking about the reasons why she chose her religion and the differences with catholicism. One of the things she keeps saying is… Why do Catholics act like robots? Why do they do the same thing every mass? She says more people in her church have fun than in a catholic church. And that people only go to catholic church because they feel like they have to. How do I answer her questions?

Thanks
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Jesus, as a devout Jew, recited “the same thing every service.” Did that make Him a robot?

Pre-written prayers are excellent because centuries of thought have gone into them. Consider the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. What a beautiful expression of Christian faith – much deeper than anything that I could sputter together spontaneously.

I don’t go to Mass to have fun. I go to Mass to glorify Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and especially to unite with Him in the Eucharist. I do experience joy at Mass, but that’s a side-effect, not a goal.
 
denver_faithful said:
The motions that catholics go through are the same in every mass, i will concede but the readings change and those repetitious movements have deep meaning to them. I would consider asking her why the emphasis in the baptist church is on what the preacher thinks about God rather than the word of God read directly to you so verses can’t be taken out of context to fit an agenda.🤷
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I have seen agendas pushed during sermons (both ways) by priests during the homily. We are not perfect on that part either.

And we are not robots, it was mentioned that those things do have meaning which is true. It adds a familiarity and each person does each thing slightly different in their own way but it is still correct.

I find myself in different dioceses each weekend and while most of it is the same each parish is slightly different besides just the readings. It is always interesting to be a visitor and see the small changes each week in each region.
 
How can we really know what the truth is? I mean as far as which type of christianity is the true one. Baptist say one thing and Catholics say another. I don’t know who to believe.
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This is a very important question that you find yourself asking.

I would encourage you to take a look at some of the articles around this site. They do a very good job of explaining why Catholicism is true. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is also a very excellent resource to go to for answers to your questions.

I also think it would be a great idea to pray. The rosary would be a great place to start, but simply talking to God would do just fine. If you are patient you will get your answer. God is wants to give us the truth, that is after all why He sent His Son to us. Ask others to pray as well. I will certainly pray that you find the truth, and the answer to your question. It may also help when you pray to pray for others who may be in your same position.

JBC003
 
Gamera said:
Jesus, as a devout Jew, recited “the same thing every service.” Did that make Him a robot?

Pre-written prayers are excellent because centuries of thought have gone into them. Consider the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed. What a beautiful expression of Christian faith – much deeper than anything that I could sputter together spontaneously.

I don’t go to Mass to have fun. I go to Mass to glorify Jesus Christ, King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and especially to unite with Him in the Eucharist. I do experience joy at Mass, but that’s a side-effect, not a goal.
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Love your username, Gamera!
 
You say we just do the same thing: Jesus instructed the Apsotles “Do this in memory of me” - we are doing what the Lord instructed.

Many non-Catholics have said to me "I don’t like to go to a Catholic Mass, becuase I prefer something more scripture based??? Don’t they realize that through the Mass we cover the entire bible every three years. The Mass is more Christo-centric than any other worship. The entire Mass is devoted to Jesus. The first part of Mass is the liturgy of the word, culminating in the words of Jesus in the Gospel (who is after all the word made flesh). The second half is the liturgy of the eucharist where transubstantiation happens, where we have the REAL PRESCENCE of Jesus - the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus!

We are not robots - we are members of the one true church, begun at Pentecost with Peter as the first Pope (Bishop of Rome) with an unbroken line up to thepresent with Pope B16. Following Scripture and Apostolic Tradition.

God Bless. 👍
 
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