Yes anecdotal information is not always reliable. Actually I prefer to rely on research and sound polling. Pew reports for instance, that most RC’s leave the church over doctrinal issues. I accord this high acclaim since it denotes an intelligent, thinking laity is at work in the RCC. Protestants on the other hand, leave Protestantism for other denominations for much more frivolous reasons.
I’m most aware of the fact that most of the right wing Catholic establishment claims that one of their three main excuses why people leave RCC is because they want to get away with something not permitted in the church. That would mean for me, that I must be a lesbian, who used contraception that failed, wants to get an abortion, wants to marry my partner, and then wants to be a priest. Unfortunately not a single one applies to me, but those are the essential reasons I left the RCC. I know its so much nicer to believe that I am lazy, or improperly catechized–the other two excuses posited upon those of us who have left.
I guess one might be angry with the RCC if one remained unhappy in one’s new faith community. I haven’t met anyone in my church who is. But as I said, anecdotal information is sometimes not reliable.
Essentially aren’t we as Christians supposed to conform ourselves to Christ, trust in His Church and be changed by HIM not expect Him to be changed by US? Seriously, isn’t religion supposed to change us? Isn’t Christianity about obedience? Just because we, in our human weakness and misplaced pity, want gays and lesbians to marry, does it necessarily mean that God believes that? We see nothing anywhere in scripture in OT and NT supporting anything of the sort…quite the contrary. Or female priestesses, contraception, abortion, divorce, etc. etc. All the issues you name are condemned by scripture repeatedly, condemned by tradition, and can be condemned by reason…and yet, because you are not comfortable with them, you leave Catholicism. Is that true religion? Going to a place that confirms what you already believed to be true? That’s just like looking into a mirror and calling it Jesus? Isn’t that idolatry? It’s Church-shopping, trying to find the group that believes what I believe.
Contrary to the liberal thinking, many Catholics were pro-contraception and divorce, even pro abortion and pro gay, and then had an encounter with Christ or read scripture, were called by the Holy Spirit, and Catholicism found them. I’ve had to throw away some of my misconceptions about social issues or lifestyle because the Faith, Bible, and Church challenged what I believed.
When I was younger, I was pro-choice. I was ok with gays, could’ve cared less. Birth control pills were absolutely good to go with me. I thought a lot of more left-leaning ideals. But as I encountered the Bible as a fallen-away Catholic in other churches I discovered that to be a Christian believing in those sinful, wordly ways was incompatible with Christianity and Catholicism called me and challenged me and made me admit I was wrong.
Religion shapes, molds, changes, doesn’t reaffirm. The Holy Spirit is a changing agent, not status quo for secularism. God tells us “My ways are not your ways.”
What you’re saying is, “Oprah and the Secular Liberal media’s ways will be your ways, it’s just common sense, Lord!” I can’t buy that…
As an Anglican I was taught the three-legged stool: scripture, tradition, reason
I figured that they were each about 33%. I notice in Episcopalians “reason” (liberal reason) gets about 85% and it’s mostly modern reasoning devoid of the other legs
I prefer the Catholic three legged stool: scripture, tradition, magisterium—can’t go wrong that way…
With abortion especially, why can’t you just at least err on the side of caution?
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