Confused about inclusivity

[rivera01]

Ok, so im in need of some authentic Catholic teaching as far is this are concerned:

How much inclusivity can we have before it starts distorting the authentic Catholic faith?

The reason I ask this is because I have heard from a couple of sources that God and by extension, the Catholic Church is all-inclusive. I finished a diocesan formation class today where the focus was evangelizing. Now, I understand this, as far as the definition of Catholic is, according to dictionary.com:

1. broad or wide-ranging in tastes, interests, or the like; having sympathies with all; broad-minded; liberal.
2. universal in extent; involving all; of interest to all.
3. pertaining to the whole Christian body or church.

I also remember in Fr. Barron’s Catholicism Series mentioning that the Church had the power of inclusivity and, im paraphrasing, is able to get everything that is good about other religions and make it its own and put a Christological teaching behind it, because we as Catholics beleive that everything that is good in the world has its roots in Christ. Ok, this is fine and good. Now, here is the problem that I am seeing.

I have visited a few places, including the one I was in today, where they belong to religious orders. Just browsing the bookstore, books on how to pray the celtic labyrinth’s, books from dissident catholics, books on Buddhist spirituality, some that have new age spirituality, Zen spirituality, centering prayer, etc. This location even had a celtic labyrinth made out of stones. How much can we gather in from other religions before we start distorting our own Catholic spirituality? Im pretty surpised that there is great wealth and vast array of Catholic mysticism that we have to succomb to what is outside of our Church.

Now, I do not know if I am being too closed minded or I do not want to look at anything outside of what the Catholic Church teaches, but this really leaves me scratching my head.

 

[ringil]

books on how to pray the celtic labyrinth’s,.

I can only speak on this and report that a few medieval churches in Europe, including the stunning Chartres (12th. c.) have labyrinths of tile inlaid on the floor so these are evidently a part of ancient Christian practice.

It would be hard (impossible maybe) to really identify how they were incorporated though.

 

[AlanFromWichita]

You mention centering prayer as if it were anti-Catholic. It is not, and objectively so. I know what I’m talking about and there are no Church teachings to say I’m wrong. In fact, Most Rev. Fr. Bernardo Olivera, O.C.S.O, Abbot General of the Cistercian Order of the Strict Observance, brought this to the Vatican’s attention in 1997, advancing the specific practice of centering prayer.

Many on this forum disagree, and it has become a banned topic at the request of a centering prayer practitioner, tired of seeing this practice maligned. They say otherwise because they are misinformed, but they do not understand that it is nothing other than what is described in the ancient mystical (Catholic) masterpiece the Cloud of the Unknowing. May I add, it also seems an orchestrated attack because the erratic information cited about CP in these articles, all match those in each others’ articles. Strange because looking at it statistically, one might think their research was synchronized.

I’m not mentioning it to discuss it. I only mention it so this reference does not go one-sided. Really, honestly, nobody needs to take issue with this post – send me PM instead or I will have to post again about this, and we don’t need this thread closed down. :tsktsk:

Alan