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mitex
Guest
Recently one of my friends who I am RCIA with said he joined the Communist Party. Is it mortal sin or anything like that to be a Communist?
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Big_Ro
Guest
The Catholic Church, in my understanding, is opposed to Communism and Socialism.
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JRKH
Guest
It is impossible for us to say whether your friend is in Mortal sin or not.
A mortal sin has three requirements. Full knowledge that something is a sin, full consent to the sin, and the sin is grave matter. Since your friend is in RCIA it is entirely possible that he has not met these requirements.
However he IS in grave danger. Communism as generally understood and practiced is atheistic in nature. The catechism mentions communism one time…
2425 The Church has rejected the totalitarian and atheistic ideologies associated in modem times with “communism” or “socialism.” She has likewise refused to accept, in the practice of “capitalism,” individualism and the absolute primacy of the law of the marketplace over human labor. Regulating the economy solely by centralized planning perverts the basis of social bonds; regulating it solely by the law of the marketplace fails social justice, for “there are many human needs which cannot be satisfied by the market.” Reasonable regulation of the marketplace and economic initiatives, in keeping with a just hierarchy of values and a view to the common good, is to be commended.
(Bolding mine)
Since we have no reason to assume that the “Communist party” that your friend has joined has rejected these notions - no matter how they might be cloaked - your friend would be wise to disassociate himself from the group.
Peace
James
A mortal sin has three requirements. Full knowledge that something is a sin, full consent to the sin, and the sin is grave matter. Since your friend is in RCIA it is entirely possible that he has not met these requirements.
However he IS in grave danger. Communism as generally understood and practiced is atheistic in nature. The catechism mentions communism one time…
2425 The Church has rejected the totalitarian and atheistic ideologies associated in modem times with “communism” or “socialism.” She has likewise refused to accept, in the practice of “capitalism,” individualism and the absolute primacy of the law of the marketplace over human labor. Regulating the economy solely by centralized planning perverts the basis of social bonds; regulating it solely by the law of the marketplace fails social justice, for “there are many human needs which cannot be satisfied by the market.” Reasonable regulation of the marketplace and economic initiatives, in keeping with a just hierarchy of values and a view to the common good, is to be commended.
(Bolding mine)
Since we have no reason to assume that the “Communist party” that your friend has joined has rejected these notions - no matter how they might be cloaked - your friend would be wise to disassociate himself from the group.
Peace
James
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GEddie
Guest
It used to be excommunicable to become a Communist. However, if one is in RCIA, they are not yet in the Church, so cannot become excommunicated.
Because one must profess atheism to become a Communist, it constitutes apostasy.
ICXC NIKA
Because one must profess atheism to become a Communist, it constitutes apostasy.
ICXC NIKA
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George_Stegmeir
Guest
What’s the matter with your friend? Is it that they are a lover of lost causes, or are they just a garden variety of masochist?
Some people never get the word!!!
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GEddie
Guest
You never know. Years ago, I asked some university Communists what they felt about the collapse of the CCCP; they answered: “Oh, the CCCP were never really Communist”.What’s the matter with your friend? Is it that they are a lover of lost causes, or are they just a garden variety of masochist?
Some people never get the word!!!
ICXC NIKA
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Julian0404
Guest
Communist remove GOD and replace HIM with “The State”. In China “The State” is appointing catholic Bishops and they expect the Holy See to accept The State appointees - keep your eye on this, I believe the Pope has actually accepted one of the appointees
Communism stands in direct opposition to the Catholic Faith by NOT allowing the free practice and exercise of said Faith - much like what Pres BHO is orchrestrating with his attempt to replace the Faith of the Catholic Church in the US with “The States” prescribed mandate on birth control - “No, the Catholic Church may not be allowed to practice their theology of GOD having control over birth, as “The State” declares that the Catholic Church must stop behaving in such a manner and now permit “The States” prescribed behavior and beliefs to be the dominat force in the theology of birth with in US Catholic Church”
f your friend truly believes in “Communism” then he already stands opposed to the Church. This does not mean “mortal sin”, it means he either does not understand the Catholic Faith (which is why he is in RCIA) and/or he does not understand the Communist Party doctrine/history/attacks on the Church.
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Jim_Dandy
Guest
Is the person in RCIA not familiar with the fact that John Paul II is credited with bringing an end to Communism in the Soviet Union, along with Reagan and Thatcher? The future Pope suffered under Communism growing up and as a young man. He trained to become a priest surreptitiously, in secret classes underground, because of it. His role in ending Communism is one of the reasons he is known as John Paul the Great.
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JRKH
Guest
Have to say I agree with this. The CCCP never really was communist. Neither is “Communist” China. In actuality they were/are more socialist and totalitarian regardless of what they try to call it.
(Note - that doesn’t mean that communism would work out any better…just sayin…)
Peace
James
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empther
Guest
Tell your friend what Communism is really about.
I have a book about Bishop Sheen. It’s called “Life Is Worth Living”. It contains the transcripts from two seasons of his TV show Live is Worth Living.
One of the episodes was “The Philosophy of Communism”.
He gives a brief bio of Karl Marx and how his thought developed…
Marx studied philosophy and wrote his doctorate on Hegel. Hegel believed in the “dialectic synthesis” of thought and ideas. Basically, there is a thesis, than an antithesis and there is conflict between them which eventually results in synthesis, a new idea or thought. Hegel built a career on this theory. This is all hogwash but Marx believed it.
Next. Marx read a book by somebody who said there was only matter. Marx became a materialist. He then became obsessed with his new idea: dialectic materialism. What’s that? His adaptation of Hegel’s dialectal thought. Marx said matter itself is in conflict with matter. Human beings are nothing but matter, so matter is in conflict with matter which generates new kinds of society. Screwball idea? Sure. What did you expect?
Next, Marx went to Paris to talk to a famous sociologist, Foucault. This clown said there was a “class struggle” between the the owners of capital and the workers. Marx tried to convince him that what he really was talking about was “dialectic materialism”, but the sociologist wouldn’t buy it.
Next, Marx went to England and researched economics to write “Das Kapital”…
All right. That’s the background.
Now Bishop Sheen gets down to the nitty gritty.
What is Communism? Is it an economic system?
WRONG, DINOSAUR BREATH !!!
:banghead:
Communism is about the destruction of man’s social and spiritual freedom. :sad_bye:
Man’s social freedom is destroyed by having the state own all means of production. Without property rights there are no personal rights. The individual must come crawling on his hand and knees to the dictator begging for bread.
Man’s spiritual freedom is taken away by atheism. “Atheism is the heart of Communism” said Engels, Marx’s sponsor. If man has no dignity and worth as a child of God, if he’s nothing but an animal, then anything is justified in supporting the state. Anything is good if it helps Communism.
And that in a nutshell is Communism.
I have a book about Bishop Sheen. It’s called “Life Is Worth Living”. It contains the transcripts from two seasons of his TV show Live is Worth Living.
One of the episodes was “The Philosophy of Communism”.
He gives a brief bio of Karl Marx and how his thought developed…
Marx studied philosophy and wrote his doctorate on Hegel. Hegel believed in the “dialectic synthesis” of thought and ideas. Basically, there is a thesis, than an antithesis and there is conflict between them which eventually results in synthesis, a new idea or thought. Hegel built a career on this theory. This is all hogwash but Marx believed it.
Next. Marx read a book by somebody who said there was only matter. Marx became a materialist. He then became obsessed with his new idea: dialectic materialism. What’s that? His adaptation of Hegel’s dialectal thought. Marx said matter itself is in conflict with matter. Human beings are nothing but matter, so matter is in conflict with matter which generates new kinds of society. Screwball idea? Sure. What did you expect?
Next, Marx went to Paris to talk to a famous sociologist, Foucault. This clown said there was a “class struggle” between the the owners of capital and the workers. Marx tried to convince him that what he really was talking about was “dialectic materialism”, but the sociologist wouldn’t buy it.
Next, Marx went to England and researched economics to write “Das Kapital”…
All right. That’s the background.
Now Bishop Sheen gets down to the nitty gritty.
What is Communism? Is it an economic system?
WRONG, DINOSAUR BREATH !!!
:banghead:Communism is about the destruction of man’s social and spiritual freedom. :sad_bye:
Man’s social freedom is destroyed by having the state own all means of production. Without property rights there are no personal rights. The individual must come crawling on his hand and knees to the dictator begging for bread.
Man’s spiritual freedom is taken away by atheism. “Atheism is the heart of Communism” said Engels, Marx’s sponsor. If man has no dignity and worth as a child of God, if he’s nothing but an animal, then anything is justified in supporting the state. Anything is good if it helps Communism.
And that in a nutshell is Communism.
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Abba
Guest
Nice post.Tell your friend what Communism is really about.
I have a book about Bishop Sheen. It’s called “Life Is Worth Living”. It contains the transcripts from two seasons of his TV show Live is Worth Living.
One of the episodes was “The Philosophy of Communism”.
He gives a brief bio of Karl Marx and how his thought developed…
Marx studied philosophy and wrote his doctorate on Hegel. Hegel believed in the “dialectic synthesis” of thought and ideas. Basically, there is a thesis, than an antithesis and there is conflict between them which eventually results in synthesis, a new idea or thought. Hegel built a career on this theory. This is all hogwash but Marx believed it.
Next. Marx read a book by somebody who said there was only matter. Marx became a materialist. He then became obsessed with his new idea: dialectic materialism. What’s that? His adaptation of Hegel’s dialectal thought. Marx said matter itself is in conflict with matter. Human beings are nothing but matter, so matter is in conflict with matter which generates new kinds of society. Screwball idea? Sure. What did you expect?
Next, Marx went to Paris to talk to a famous sociologist, Foucault. This clown said there was a “class struggle” between the the owners of capital and the workers. Marx tried to convince him that what he really was talking about was “dialectic materialism”, but the sociologist wouldn’t buy it.
Next, Marx went to England and researched economics to write “Das Kapital”…
All right. That’s the background.
Now Bishop Sheen gets down to the nitty gritty.
What is Communism? Is it an economic system?
WRONG, DINOSAUR BREATH !!!
Communism is about the destruction of man’s social and spiritual freedom. :sad_bye:
Man’s social freedom is destroyed by having the state own all means of production. Without property rights there are no personal rights. The individual must come crawling on his hand and knees to the dictator begging for bread.
Man’s spiritual freedom is taken away by atheism. “Atheism is the heart of Communism” said Engels, Marx’s sponsor. If man has no dignity and worth as a child of God, if he’s nothing but an animal, then anything is justified in supporting the state. Anything is good if it helps Communism.
And that in a nutshell is Communism.
Btw, I had to look up CCCP.
It’s the abbreviation for Сою́з Сове́тских Социалисти́ческих Респу́блик which is Russian for Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR).I like the point Fyodor Dostoyevsky made in one of his books regarding how communism denies people the opportunity to exercise charity.
Btw, Pope Benedict XVI will be going to Cuba this spring. Interesting. I hope his visit has an impact and the people of Cuba will be allowed to more freely practice their faith and the clergy will be permitted to open up Don Bosco Schools.
christianpost.com/news/pope-benedict-xvi-to-visit-cuba-in-2012-64548/
Here is a well written article about communism in Lithuania. I love the conclusion:
"I am a Catholic. My life has been closely connected with religion and the Church since infancy. No proofs that God does not exist will damage my faith. If I will have to, I will choose death rather than give up my faith. I, as a Catholic, eagerly attend church and meet many priests. But none are like the priests described by the press. They magnify and loudly proclaim every mistake made by a priest. Of course, among a great number of priests, one or two can be like the priests that you portray. But does this mean that all are like that? I am only twenty and all of my life is still before me … I find much good in life today. I work and I go to school. … But I cannot divide my heart in two when it all belongs to the Church. Religion is my very heart and to take away my religion is to tear out my heart."Communism's struggle with Religion in Lithuania - A. Mickevicius
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Befink
Guest
It’s true that communism in theory is different than in practice. In the real world it’s a miserably failed experiment. In theory some people believe it can bring better equality to society. It’s true that the original authors such as Marx envisioned a world without religion but wondering if all communists believe that or only some of them. Also wondering if someone such as your friend is really at risk if he’s in RCIA. As you’re well aware, it’s quite the commitment to religion. Also what does “joining” really mean? In the U.S. most people just check a box when they register to vote.
It’s also my experience that most communists I know get off by going against the grain of society. They would become disinterested if the majority suddenly agreed with them.
It’s also my experience that most communists I know get off by going against the grain of society. They would become disinterested if the majority suddenly agreed with them.
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empther
Guest
It is natural for many people to feel a need to commit themselves to some great cause.
For soldiers the cause is defending their country.
For religious people it is promoting their religion.
For young, naive Communists, the cause is the promises of Karl Marx. He claimed that Man was oppressed by the owners of capital who crushed the workers, and by relligions that crushed the fearful believers. Marx promised to liberate men by eliminating their oppressors, that is, capital and religions.
Well, he did eliminate private ownership and religion, but the result was something infinitely worse: total enslavement of everybody with a few ruthless men on the top.
Did Marx foresee this? Yes. In another article, Bishop Sheen gave more details about Marx’s life. He hated everybody, and everybody hated him. Even his own mother couldn’t stand him. Only twelve people showed up at his funeral. ( probably reporters!
)Marx wasn’t naive. He knew what Communism would really do. Nice guy!
The novelist Dosteosky predicted that Russia would descend into a dictatorship with no personal rights. It’s hard for Americans to imagine a society that would drift in this direction, but Europe is not America.
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