Do you like or dislike Father Corapi?

[neat62]

SAILOR - RE UNITARIANS

 About the Unitarians: I respect them but they seem to be too cerebral for me. I like some degree of mystery since life itself is something of a mystery - as is God. And Unitarianis appear to have no room for the more traditional Christians, which mainline Protestant sects include in large numbers. 

 No, I would probably go with, say, the Congregationalists (UCC), Methodists, or Presbyterians. They seem especially inclusive and maintain 'big tents' that honor and even encourage independent thinking, yet lift up Christ as their focus. The Unitarians I have met tend to lump Jesus in with Buddha, Nanak, Muhammad, Moses as more-or-less co-equals. Not me.

 Back to Fr. Corapi, the topic of this thread. To me he grossly violates the spirit of Vatican II and represents the old and antiquated Catholicism of Pius IX who cursed with his anathemas all manner of thinking that did conform to the strictures of the medieval church. **Educated people of today are not going to be lectured in such an arrogant fashion about what they MUST believe. **That smells of the spirit of the inquisition. I guess I've been heavily influenced by the democratic spirit of our beloved nation.

That’s because on average, there are no truly “educated” people today…otherwise they wouldn’t have to be “lectured” about the ONE TRUTH…they would just know it!

 

[mom4truth]

That was AWESOME neat! (I just had to jump in here and say that!)

 

[neat62]

sounds so watered down and wishy-washy. it’s like a fad, like a surface level faith. it’s not that important really, because they don’t need concrete truth, just enough to get them by.

e.g., “so do we believe in abortion or not?” for most it may not matter as much because it doesn’t affect them, but to the young mother-to-be, the salvation of the baby and of her own is very important. if they don’t get a concrete answer, they just make a decision and hope for the best, going by “the spirit”.
this just will not do for me. i want a concrete answer. this is my life, my soul, my salvation. this is serious stuff. i want a church that is as sure about it as they are about God. there can only be one truth. it does not change. it is not unsure.

as you know, this is Fr. Corapi. no BS. there is no compromise, your eternal soul is real and so there is no disagreement when determining heaven or hell. he wants to make sure you know what God is clearly saying to you = His confidence = His peace.

if there was no Catholic Church and all i had were protestant churches, i’d probably leave the religion and seek a definitive truth elsewhere…

Absolutely…and that is exactly why people choose other than the Catholic Fatih…it goes along with that “all about me” attitude that 's so prevelant in society today. People want to do what is easy, because they have no sense of sacrfice for others…they have no sense of self-giving…all they want/know…is “ME, ME, ME”.

Sadly, what they will never know is true JOY - the true joy that comes when you put:

Jesus first
Others second
Yourself LAST!

If having “faith” was easy…we all would have it and we would all be in Heaven already!

 

[mom4truth]

neat:

EXACTLY! You are on a roll today! Keep going! You’re saying a lot of great things in defense of our faith! God bless.

 

[neat62]

That was AWESOME neat! (I just had to jump in here and say that!)

Thanks!

 

[johnnydigit]

The Unitarians might be right up your alley.

As for me, I’ll take the good Fadda and his Truth.

i believe my religion professor was a pastor there or whatever is next up to be the most “liberal”. they are extremely loose. it seems they are looking for a more practical way of living, and look to Jesus as a teacher, rather than the mystical and spiritual side of Christianity. all and well, i was the same way when i first started on my journey, but i then grew out of that phase and saw the spiritual side. that the resurrection was REAL. the miracles were REAL. saints and heaven, demons, hell, and the devil are REAL.

i don’t blame them really. “the rich have already received their reward”. God will judge their hearts. however, i need more. i want the cold, hard truth, no matter how difficult. i won’t stand for anything else. this is Fr. Corapi. it’s not for everyone, and if you can’t understand him, it’s understandable, but rest assured he is the real deal.

 

[Shoshana]

neat:

EXACTLY! You are on a roll today! Keep going! You’re saying a lot of great things in defense of our faith! God bless.

I concur!

:clapping: :clapping: :clapping:

 

[johnnydigit]

MOM4TRUTH - YOU’RE RIGHT!

Yes, you're right! My discussion really does belong on a different thread. I apologize. 

 How did it end up here? Earlier postings of mine re Fr. Corapi led to responses that suggested I was in error for finding the good Father not to my taste. I usually change channels when he comes on. There are, I should add, several other EWTN priests that I deeply respect and look forward to hearing. We can't all find the same personalities likeable. Fr. Corapi comes across as simply too narrow and too judgemental and too critical of those of us who enjoy doing some independent thinking. I can't believe that we are saved by 'theological correctness'. 

 Anyway, my earlier postings led to this one - sort of a follow-up as I wonder aloud whether I belong in the Catholic Church. It's interesting that rather than encourage me most responses say, in essence, "the church says it, so just believe it!'. I guess I'm not built that way. Investigating, exploring, thinking, weighing, dealing with this view or that - all this is part of me and stimulating, so to tell me that I must believe something to be a proper Catholic isn't helpful. Perhaps I do belong in some 'big tent' mainline Protestant denomination - United Church of Christ, Methodist, Episcopal, Presbyterian? - where they seem to tolerate and even offer a variety of theological perspectives.

i can understand perfectly why Fr. Corapi is a bit too much for you. if you are still discerning which Church contains the fullness of truth, he may be a bit too harsh and arrogant. when i first saw Bishop Fulton Sheen, i didn’t get him at all, but i knew he was highly praised, so i was open to listening a few more times. it wasn’t until later that i realized how great of an orator he was, and how deep and meaningful his topics where.

Fr. Corapi is not going to give a variety of perspectives because he is focused on only one - the truth, which is the teachings of the Catholic Church. if you are not even sure about the Church, then it’s no wonder it’s hard to buy what he says. he is more geared to Catholics who have a rocky foundation, to the lukewarm Catholic, who need some concrete mix to solidify their foundation, some gusto and a kick in the pants to wake up and pull the wool from their eyes.

we of course want to encourage you, but the beauty of the Catholic Church with it’s fullness of truth and the multitude and variety of teachings, teachers, and spirituality provide something for everyone, but still adhering to one truth. don’t let Father, who is on the farther extreme, dissuade you. look for someone who can explain things to you on your level and can relate to where you are at your point in this journey.

where ever you end up, always keep your eyes on God and Jesus. we don’t need to convince you of anything, because a sincere search for truth will only lead you to one place. anything else will be because of your own doing. you put in a wishy-washy effort, and you’ll get a wishy-washy church. this is probably why the Church isn’t big on proselytizing. God bless!

 

[AlegreFe]

Hm! The more I read these various threads the more I wonder about the future of the Catholic Church - and whether my future is in the Catholic Church. For most of those who post, it will always triumph because of God’s protection. Perhaps. I’m not as sure of that as many are.

What troubles me most is the absolute authority the church seems to want to exercise over independent thinking.

I guess you didn’t read my previous post to you. Shall I post it here? Surely I will.

The Church has every right to have the “know it all” attitude when it comes to teaching faith & morals. Why? Because the Holy Spirit backs her up. Just the same way that God has every right to be judgemental and jealous, so too the Church has every right to have the “know it all” attitude, because she does “know it all” when it comes to Faith & Morals.

“Independant thought” is what gets us in trouble. That is why we need a “know it all” Church, to get us out of that trouble. If we are left on our own with our “independant thoughts” we get ourselves in a hole that we can’t get out of. That is where the Church comes in. With her guidance and teachings we can live a free & happy life. I say that even though life comes with suffering. The Church teaches us how to cope with suffering in a way that only the Church can. Why? Because of the Holy Spirit backing her up. I say more power to the Church!! Without the Church we’d all be dead.

Another result of “independant thought” is the thousands of denominations we have. Your version of “independant thought” seems to be pride. Pray to the Holy Spirit for the Seven Gifts. You seem to need the Gift of Piety the most. We all need authority in our lives and Piety goes partly to Authority because of what Jesus left behind, His Church on earth.

For example, I have trouble with some of the excessive Mariology I find in the church. Honor Mary, of course. But sometimes and in some places she seems to get more attention than Christ.

I don’t pretend to be a super Bible student, but I’m pretty well acquainted with the scriptures. What has caught my attention years ago is that Paul, the great missionary, wrote all those letters to the early Christians, taught many things and suggested a variety of practices, yet he never once even mentions Mary. Now if Mary were supposed to receive all this adulation from Christians - Queen of the Universe and such - it is reasonable to expect that he would have made at least some reference to that.

Do you know that these letters that Paul wrote were to clarify misunderstandings? These letters were written to people that were already instructed in the faith, hence orally by Sacred Tradition in the Church. They needed these letters to settle disputes and to be instructed as to how to act after already receiving the faith in the Church. Does that tell you anything? Does that make you understand that the people who were already instructed in the faith had no problems with the Mother of God? Since these people had no problems with Mary they did not need further instruction about her. Paul had no reason to mention something that was already understood by people who had a loyalty and love towards Mary. These people already heard about the love that Jesus had for her. They knew that Jesus honored his mother so much that people could not help but honor her too. So no need to be reprimanded by Paul in a letter about Mary.

Perhaps this should exclude me from the Catholic Church. Do I really belong in one of the liberal Protestant sects? Some days I think so. In informal discussions I find that many Catholic friends have the same sort of doubts and questions. They stick with the church for cultural and community reasons but don’t accept this or that or those teachings of the church. They usually suggest that they simply are too well educated today (and too individualist perhaps?) to accept on authority everything the church says and their parents and grandparents believed in the past. They view many teachings as colorful myths spun by ancient and medieval minds, myths that served a purpose in ages past but only symbolic of deeper truths in the world we live in.

This saddens me and I say if you do not want to accept everything Holy Mother Church teaches then leave if that is what you want. We do not need “bad Catholics” in the Church only to infest her. It is because of “bad Catholics” that people leave. If you want to go to a protestant church then I’m sure they will welcome you with open arms. Perhaps God has a plan for you; to leave and realize what you had here with Holy Mother Church and what Jesus left as authority for us, then to come back only to be a strong Catholic who stands up for the Catholic Church and everything she teaches. You sound like my protestant brother who has hardened his heart and has some kind of enmity for Mary. I really hope you don’t hate Mary. I don’t think you do. Please, before leaving, go to Confession and really think about what you believe. Ask Jesus for the graces you need to keep your heart from hardening. Pray, pray and pray some more. You are in my prayers.

 

[dprewett]

I have not read all 32 pages of the thread, But Father Corapi is my favorite on Catholic radio.

 

[Shoshana]

The saddest part of all of this is the fact that we do not try to understand the greatest gift to all of humanity…and that is the Holy Ecuharist! Where else can one go and receive the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ?

I am 57 years old and STILL pondering the great Gift I have received. Thank you Jesus!

 

[anamchara]

This saddens me and I say if you do not want to accept everything Holy Mother Church teaches then leave if that is what you want. We do not need “bad Catholics” in the Church only to infest her. It is because of “bad Catholics” that people leave.

Now this saddens me. I disagree with you. I don’t think it is right to call someone a “bad Catholic” and that we don’t want them “infesting her” that is not very chartiable. When someone is struggling, we don’t push them away with “well leave then” Let’s not forget, many Catholics leave not due to people like Roy but people like the traditionalists. Spend some time in thier forum for a while.

I know how Roy feels. I came from the more liberal side of Protestantism and many times I cringe at some of the stuff I read on this forum. My suggestion to Roy would be, get off CAF, read scripture and spend time with Christ in the tabernacle. Focus on what is important. Read some of the mystics and Saints. There is good, kind and warm holy people in our faith. Latch on to them and they will help guide you. Don’t give up on us Roy!

 

[neat62]

Now this saddens me. I disagree with you. I don’t think it is right to call someone a “bad Catholic” and that we don’t want them “infesting her” that is not very chartiable. When someone is struggling, we don’t push them away with “well leave then” Let’s not forget, many Catholics leave not due to people like Roy but people like the traditionalists. Spend some time in thier forum for a while.

I know how Roy feels. I came from the more liberal side of Protestantism and many times I cringe at some of the stuff I read on this forum. My suggestion to Roy would be, get off CAF, read scripture and spend time with Christ in the tabernacle. Focus on what is important. Read some of the mystics and Saints. There is good, kind and warm holy people in our faith. Latch on to them and they will help guide you. Don’t give up on us Roy!

Well, sure…when you take out of context what was stated as you did and you quote only PART of what was posted…sounds bad. But if you actually read the entire post written and so well done by AlegreFe you would easily see that it was not a “sad” post at all and in fact actually yours mirrored much of hers.

Besides, how can anyone not be offended by the slander of the Most Blessed Mother?

ROY - The Blessed Mother is honored so, because she was the first to say “YES” to Christ…Mary"blessed among women" is all that is humble, modest and pure among women, and above all, she is the mother of Jesus, who is our Lord and our God therefore, no honor is too great to bestow upon her.

 

[johnnydigit]

What troubles me most is the absolute authority the church seems to want to exercise over independent thinking. For example, I have trouble with some of the excessive Mariology I find in the church. Honor Mary, of course. But sometimes and in some places she seems to get more attention than Christ.

what you see as excessive, is actually barely even scratching the surface of Mariology. yes, i am saying the truth is we barely give her enough, and we can never give her more than Jesus does. why? well you gotta get off your bum and learn why. people are too arrogant to realize this because, i think, they are too L-A-Z-Y to read and learn the basics. once you get a glimpse of Mary’s role, it will blow your mind away. even the Church today has barely scratched the surface. does this mean she eclipses Jesus? of course not, it only means that there is even that much more to Jesus than we know now. (you can start with Marian “typology”, it is quite amazing and plenty out there to read.)

I find that many Catholic friends have the same sort of doubts and questions. They stick with the church for cultural and community reasons but don’t accept this or that or those teachings of the church. They usually suggest that they simply are too well educated today (and too individualist perhaps?) to accept on authority everything the church says and their parents and grandparents believed in the past. They view many teachings as colorful myths spun by ancient and medieval minds, myths that served a purpose in ages past but only symbolic of deeper truths in the world we live in.

L-A-Z-Y. these “educated” people who think they know it all haven’t even bothered to read anything about it. they don’t have the time or the motivation to read a silly church document, but they are more than willing to criticize it. you’re right, these Catholics who are more hung up on culture and community, although very important, have no clue about the spiritual and mystical side of the body of Christ. it’s pitiful. all the teachings fit together like a puzzle, and they simply don’t even bother to put in the effort to see its beauty.

the audacity to say something so significant is “just a symbol” or “metaphor” is likened to someone who hasn’t even opened a Bible, saying, “Jesus was just a knowledgeable fellow”.

they do deserve to be “spit out” with the lukewarm, but alas they need our prayers even more. for you this means you shouldn’t be like them and should actually take the time to learn about your eternal soul that God gave you and His plan for it.

Fr. Corapi just isn’t afraid to chastize when given the proper opportunity.

besides, Fr. Corapi is so quick, he can run around the world and punch himself in the back of the head.

 

[johnnydigit]

Fr. Corapi is such a good teacher, he can teach you to divide by zero.

 

[johnnydigit]

I know how Roy feels. I came from the more liberal side of Protestantism and many times I cringe at some of the stuff I read on this forum. My suggestion to Roy would be, get off CAF, read scripture and spend time with Christ in the tabernacle. Focus on what is important. Read some of the mystics and Saints. There is good, kind and warm holy people in our faith. Latch on to them and they will help guide you. Don’t give up on us Roy!

CAF can be like rabid wolves to a baby chick.

http://tbn0.google.com/images?q=tbn:P3qq41VtkONRFM:http://www.tultw.com/pics/eggjr0141.jpg

 

[mom4truth]

Do y’all think we may be crossing a fine line between discussing whether or not we like Fr. Corapi vs. how we feel about Catholicism?

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

Do y’all think we may be crossing a fine line between discussing whether or not we like Fr. Corapi vs. how we feel about Catholicism?

There’s a difference between saying, “I don’t like Fadda’s voice,” and saying, “His message is wrong! So I don’t like him!”

 

[AlegreFe]

Now this saddens me. I disagree with you. I don’t think it is right to call someone a “bad Catholic” and that we don’t want them “infesting her” that is not very chartiable.

I didn’t mean to be uncharitable. I just spoke the TRUTH. We do have “bad infestations” within the Church. And that hurts Jesus. One of the Spiritual Works of Mercy is to admonish the sinner. I am just performing my duties as a Catholic. It is because I care about Roy that I said what I said, hence “work of mercy.” I care about all Christians as they are part of the Body of Christ. I want for all Christians to come to the knowledge of the full truth.

Father Corapi would do the same thing for Roy because he cares. That’s just Father for you, and I love it!

When someone is struggling, we don’t push them away with “well leave then” Let’s not forget, many Catholics leave not due to people like Roy but people like the traditionalists.

Probably both. But those who leave don’t know their faith anyway. Those who don’t believe everything the Church teaches but still choose to stay misinform other people who are not too familiar with the faith. That is why people who don’t choose to accept and believe everything should not stay so as to misinform the already ignorant Catholic. I have heard many people say something like, “well he’s Catholic and he does not believe that so why should I?” or something like, “I heard it from a Catholic so it is true…” even if it’s not what the Church teaches, but since they don’t believe, they misinform people. Do you get it know? Do you understand why I don’t think people should stay if they don’t believe? If a person already has their mind set, there is nothing we can do to convince them otherwise. So the only other thing to do is to suggest they find a church that agrees with what they believe. Of course I will never leave out prayer. In fact that is the only thing that I can do is to pray, in the hopes that the Holy Spirit can guide them back home. I also suggested to Roy that he go to Confession and to pray for graces he needs so that his heart will not harden to the truth. We all need the Holy Spirit so I will pray for Roy. Please pray for me too?

Spend some time in thier their forum for a while.

I’ve never been there. I think I have one time a while back. But since I’m not a “Traditionalist” I don’t go there. I do prefer the Extraordinary Latin Mass over the Novus Ordo Mass but I still don’t consider myself a “Traditionalist.”

… My suggestion to Roy would be, get off CAF, read scripture and spend time with Christ in the tabernacle.

Sounds like great advice to me.

Focus on what is important.

His “important” might not be the same as what would be important for a Catholic who believes and accepts everything Holy Mother Church teaches. As a Catholic we should all know what is important. But since Roy here doesn’t see eye to eye on some of what the Catholic Church teaches, his “important” might not be the same as your “important.” Do you get what I’m trying to say here? I think you do.

Read some of the mystics and Saints. There is good, kind and warm holy people in our faith. Latch on to them and they will help guide you. Don’t give up on us Roy!

If he doesn’t want to “latch on to” Mary what makes you think he’ll want to “latch on to” any of the Saints?

When one “member” commits a sin it affects the “whole body” and that is why it should be a great concern for you that Roy does not infect the whole body. I hope you understand what my goal is as far as the message I want to send to Roy and to any Catholic who does not believe everything the Church teaches.

 

[AlegreFe]

Well, sure…when you take out of context what was stated as you did and you quote only PART of what was posted…sounds bad. But if you actually read the entire post written and so well done by AlegreFe you would easily see that it was not a “sad” post at all and in fact actually yours mirrored much of hers.

Besides, how can anyone not be offended by the slander of the Most Blessed Mother?

Thanks so much. I guess anamchara misunderstood me, don’t know.

And yes, I am offended when people don’t pay honor to Mary the way they should. We just need to pray for Roy and for any Catholic or non-Catholic who cannot accept Mary even in the slightest way.

ROY - The Blessed Mother is honored so, because she was the first to say “YES” to Christ…Mary"blessed among women" is all that is humble, modest and pure among women, and above all, she is the mother of Jesus, who is our Lord and our God therefore, no honor is too great to bestow upon her.

Amen!