Hi Lapey, I’m not sure you do. This has nothing to do with me. I haven’t been inside a Catholic Church for 7 mos. This has to do with those Catholics who voted in a manner in which, if I read you right, you say they shouldn’t have voted. Their votes were among those which has caused the topic of this thread. You’re a deacon so I know you are aware of who the Catholic Church teaches is a Catholic. I’ve concluded you say if they leave after rejecting what you tell them, it is their choice. Ironically this reminded me of the same young priest I previously spoke of. Perhaps it was in the same homily in which he gave his answer to the poor. I’m not sure because I heard him preach on a few different occasions before I exited that parish. But I recall him saying people meet with him and leave the meeting because they don’t like what he said. Anyway now that I understand your viewpoint is that they choose to leave, my question is since we both know the answer to who is considered a Catholic according to the answer given by the Catholic Church, how do the 50% of those Baptized and confirmed Catholics who voted for Barack Obama and against Mitt Romney and the conservatives or those who don’t otherwise listen to what you and others teach them, leave? Doesn’t OCAC still apply? It no longer works that way that a Baptized, confirrmed Catholic is considered to be a Catholic? I thought you previously said in another thread once that it did. I’m wondering now if maybe you’re confusing leaving the practice of the faith with not being a Catholic.
I’m not quite sure where you are heading with this post, but I’ll try. If you haven’t been in a Catholic Church in 7 months this is what I am talking about. You left because you didn’t like what you heard; I don’t by the “terrible priest” story that is what you used as your excuse to physically leave what you had already left spiritually. There are bad priests, deacons, and bishops. There is no bad Catholic Church.
If they all were Catholics with properly formed consciences, 50% of Catholics would not have voted for Obama; I would bet most of those Catholics haven’t heard the truth preached about abortion and HHS mandates etc., I would bet most don’t even know about the duties of following one’s conscience and the responsibility which comes with that to form it properly.
You have concluded something but not sure what. You take my words and express opinions of them to compare me to the “terrible” priest you mention repeatedly. If my preaching the truth of divorce and remarriage causes someone to leave and not try to be reconciled with the Church, how can I fix that? Do I not preach Jesus’ teaching on divorce and marriage? What good would that do? Do you want to hear a homily that is just sweet and nice? What good is that? We are in a spiritual battle for souls, this is not a pass time which you and I participate in, and this is real. Hell is real! Sin is real!
A person can choose to stay in their sin without trying to reconcile, or they can learn, discern and conform as Jesus asks every one of us to do. There are many issues which are hard to preach, that’s why the past preachers for the most part have left them alone. I preached a homily about a month ago about the evils of contraception, and the fact that it is mortal sin to use ABC for the purpose they are intended. There are legitimate medical reasons to use them; birth control is not one of them. I was direct and passionate; can you guess how many negative comments I got? You’re right, none. I had many women of child bearing years send me emails or tell me face to face, thank you for that message I’ve never heard that before; what a shame.
As far as meeting with the priest and the people leaving, if people don’t get the answers they like, often times they leave. Imagine a couple married civilly after the wife was divorced from Catholic marriage come in for that meeting after in his homily he tells them they should not present themselves for Communion if they are in this state. Do you think it will be a good meeting when the priest tells them that they are wrong? To leave that couple in the state of mortal sin, and not correct them in itself is sinful, that would be my sin and I’m not willing to take on sins of others. They must learn and discern then conform to the truth. Now what must come with this is love and charity to help them understand, and ways of preparing themselves to “fix” the situation. However, sometimes they just leave, unfortunate but true. I cannot lie to them in order to keep them in the pew, that would not do me or them any good.
Doesn’t OCAC still apply? Yes, and if anyone ever tells you differently let them know they are not truth full. If this is not true then the Church lies when She teaches of the indelible mark placed on the soul at baptism; and I don’t buy that. But that doesn’t mean you are a Catholic in good standing, one may also be excommunicated, but still Catholic. People will say you are not Catholic, but what they mean is not in good standing.
By the way, the trend in this generation has been to be baptized then never be brought to Mass anymore. Many of the younger generation will not be confirmed, many of the last generation have not been confirmed, and so to think that the 50% Catholic vote for Obama were confirmed Catholics is just wrong. If we did a better job catechizing and bringing people to the truth of the sacraments, I would bet 50% of Catholics would not have voted the way they did.