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Riley259
Guest
Secular humanism is the greatest threat to the church these days.
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Cherubino
Guest
As I see it, one of the biggest hurdles facing the Church and all vested-interest ideological institutions nowadays is the information highway, which is inexorably democratic. In this sense, both democracy and an albeit reluctant nod to the principle of free inquiry have already infiltrated the Church in a very serious way. For just as the printing press was an indispensable part of the engine that powered the Reformation 500 years ago, electronic communications are changing the way people see themselves and the world, and at least as fast. Information that once took hours or days to find in a library is now available in seconds. Even the Vatican has a website, and as Marshall McLuhan had it almost half a century ago, the medium IS the message here, and Rome is now just another purveyor of its goods in the open marketplace of ideas. There is no hierarchy in cyberspace, and precepts that were once carved in stone now appear and vanish with a click of the mouse.
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Beaver
Guest
I think these priests and bishops are afraid of you!
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JGC
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Exporter
Guest
In my humble opinion, the Church would start to thrive again IF:
- Sisters went back to looking like Nuns!
- We instituted the Tridentine Mass again.
- The seminaries screened applicants vigorously - ask the questions!
- We had the alter rail and only the Priests dispenced the Host, as we did for so many years.
- We stop all the singing by the laity, it is for choirs!
- That we be Roman Catholics - not Protestant - Catholics.
- Let the Bishops actually be the shepards of the flock! Pop the whip.
This is what made the R. Catholic Church GREAT!
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Mperea75
Guest
+JMJ
One of the greatest threats I think the church has today is Indifference nobody really wants to do anything and when they do want to do something sometimes it is the Priest who stops them cause unfortantly do not want to get involved into something that might be considered either to Concervative or the people have just heard it to many times (i.e. speaking about pro-life issues from the “ambo”)
One of the greatest threats I think the church has today is Indifference nobody really wants to do anything and when they do want to do something sometimes it is the Priest who stops them cause unfortantly do not want to get involved into something that might be considered either to Concervative or the people have just heard it to many times (i.e. speaking about pro-life issues from the “ambo”)
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RMP
Guest
I voted other… only because all of the above was not an option.
They are all heresies (schisms) spawned forth by the EVIL ONE. In some form or another, they all elevate the self before the institution of GOD, his church, founded on the ROCK. They are a reliance on self revelation which destroys unique characteristics of GOD: unity, fidelity, humility, and certitude. They all present a lack of faith in the ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, and APOSTOLIC church, whose sovereign authority was instituted by Christ himself.
And just like the EVIL ONE, they bear forth division, infidelity, self righteousness, and uncertainty.
They are all heresies (schisms) spawned forth by the EVIL ONE. In some form or another, they all elevate the self before the institution of GOD, his church, founded on the ROCK. They are a reliance on self revelation which destroys unique characteristics of GOD: unity, fidelity, humility, and certitude. They all present a lack of faith in the ONE, HOLY, CATHOLIC, and APOSTOLIC church, whose sovereign authority was instituted by Christ himself.
And just like the EVIL ONE, they bear forth division, infidelity, self righteousness, and uncertainty.
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RMP
Guest
LOL… that would become the greatest threat to me!!!
When did they stop using the RULERS?
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destrecht
Guest
Here in the states, I was recently the camera man at our Midwest Catholic Family Conference- I filmed a talk by this guy who told about all the thngs taught here in the 60’s and 70’s at ‘catholic’ schools and it would blow your mind (example- givng kids any grade they wanted in theology, regardless of what they did). He is reformed now, and exposing it, but it really was depressing.I think that the greatest threat to the Church today is the cancer within rather than the Protestants etc without. When so many of the bishops and theologians aren’t faithful to the authentic teachings of the Church how are the laity going to learn their Faith.?
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watkins955
Guest
Apathy!! Without a doubt.
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viktor_aleksndr
Guest
I am one of them. Raised as a Catholic but doesn’t knew any catechism. I am lucky that i found EWTN and this site!
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InnocentIII
Guest
It won’t let me vote, says I’ve already voted
Anyway I think modernism and secularism are related so I would have had difficulty voting anyway, as i would have wanted to vote both.
I would add that i think modernism is a misnomer. Modernists always talk about being at the cutting edge, about being the future, but if you look closely they are really about going back to the past - reclaiming the early church, getting rid of accretions etc etc. The core of modernism is in reality hatred of human development including that of the Church. We were purer when we started. Am I alone in noticing this “back to the future” mentality? Even the proponents of women’s ordination try to argue that Mary Magdelene was an apostle written out by patriarchal priests as a reason why we should allow them now.
Anyway I think modernism and secularism are related so I would have had difficulty voting anyway, as i would have wanted to vote both.
I would add that i think modernism is a misnomer. Modernists always talk about being at the cutting edge, about being the future, but if you look closely they are really about going back to the past - reclaiming the early church, getting rid of accretions etc etc. The core of modernism is in reality hatred of human development including that of the Church. We were purer when we started. Am I alone in noticing this “back to the future” mentality? Even the proponents of women’s ordination try to argue that Mary Magdelene was an apostle written out by patriarchal priests as a reason why we should allow them now.
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Donna_P
Guest
When people decide to become God and choose what is important then we are faced with Chaos. Secularism/ relativism is the root of abortion, euthanasia etc.
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Miserere_Mei
Guest
The greatest THreat to the CHurch of TOday I believe is that many of its leaders are afraid to be intolerant. That most damnable of all flaws!! 
Heaven forbid we assert we ARE the mystical body and none else is except by their degree of association in OUR truth. HEaven Forbid we step on people’s toes by not NEEDING them to be a part of our church!!!
WE should always seek to convert others, but not to the point where we think we’re MISSING out on something by NOT having them! THe Church as the Mystical BOdy is complete in and of itself. If the Church millitant wants to expand its numbers FINE! BUt it should NOT EVER proclaim that it is less of a Church NOW than it was in 33AD!
JPII Seemed to imply that the church needs to breathe with both lungs, east and west. I agree that we Legalistic westerners NEED the stability and unchangeable mysticism of Eastern Orthodox influence, yet WE are NOT LESS the Body of Christ without em!!!
Am I crazy or is it just me that feels the church is not DENYING her truth (Impossible) Just making some of the biggest understatements about it ever made! Sloppiness and inconsistent leadership will not KILL the church, but may take her to a point of barely breathing!
Christ promised the gates of hell will not prevail, but he didn’t promise they wouldn’t take us to within an inch of our life. He promised SURVIVAL. Unfortunately, Survival and THRIVING are not the same thing. People can survive with all their limbs missing and being flayed alive and gutted. Barely.
AM I alone???
Heaven forbid we assert we ARE the mystical body and none else is except by their degree of association in OUR truth. HEaven Forbid we step on people’s toes by not NEEDING them to be a part of our church!!!
WE should always seek to convert others, but not to the point where we think we’re MISSING out on something by NOT having them! THe Church as the Mystical BOdy is complete in and of itself. If the Church millitant wants to expand its numbers FINE! BUt it should NOT EVER proclaim that it is less of a Church NOW than it was in 33AD!
JPII Seemed to imply that the church needs to breathe with both lungs, east and west. I agree that we Legalistic westerners NEED the stability and unchangeable mysticism of Eastern Orthodox influence, yet WE are NOT LESS the Body of Christ without em!!!
Am I crazy or is it just me that feels the church is not DENYING her truth (Impossible) Just making some of the biggest understatements about it ever made! Sloppiness and inconsistent leadership will not KILL the church, but may take her to a point of barely breathing!
Christ promised the gates of hell will not prevail, but he didn’t promise they wouldn’t take us to within an inch of our life. He promised SURVIVAL. Unfortunately, Survival and THRIVING are not the same thing. People can survive with all their limbs missing and being flayed alive and gutted. Barely.
AM I alone???
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AlanFromWichita
Guest
At first I voted “traditionalism” because even though it is the Church’s greatest asset, those who ostensibly practice this also use that label in a divisive fashion to tell less dignified members of the Body, “we don’t need you.”
Which brings me to the real issue, which is universal and not limited to traditionalism.
The real issue is division.
We’ve divided ourselves from God.
God allowed His son to be divided from Him so that Christ could conquer that division, uniting ourselves to each other and to God, through Him. You cannot be united to Christ and God without being united to His Body. All of it, not just the ones who think the way we do.
Therefore, I now choose “other” as a close second, becuase I think the greatest problem is the spirit of division, which is alive and well in all groups from anti-Catholic so cafeterias to “devout” Catholics. We are all human beings, descendents of Adam, and Christ hooked us up with Himself, automatically uniting us with His Dad. Once we are in the family, we should have no more divisive feelings toward any members of the body. Let’s find some pride to want to be the greatest and win the race, so in order to do that Christ says we each have to be the one who serves each other. If I want to be greater than a Catholic of another flavor, I’ll have to find a way to humbly serve that Catholic. Paradoxically this will also put me below that person, but that’s OK cause Jesus said it’s good for me. No servant is greater than his master. Only a pretty messed up bipolar could make sense of Jesus I suspect because His whole consciousness was so different than ours that it weird He even walked the planet. If only I were so messed up, but I ask the Lord to help me in faith, and to help me as I try to remind myself not be so condescending all the time.
Alan
Which brings me to the real issue, which is universal and not limited to traditionalism.
The real issue is division.
We’ve divided ourselves from God.
God allowed His son to be divided from Him so that Christ could conquer that division, uniting ourselves to each other and to God, through Him. You cannot be united to Christ and God without being united to His Body. All of it, not just the ones who think the way we do.
Therefore, I now choose “other” as a close second, becuase I think the greatest problem is the spirit of division, which is alive and well in all groups from anti-Catholic so cafeterias to “devout” Catholics. We are all human beings, descendents of Adam, and Christ hooked us up with Himself, automatically uniting us with His Dad. Once we are in the family, we should have no more divisive feelings toward any members of the body. Let’s find some pride to want to be the greatest and win the race, so in order to do that Christ says we each have to be the one who serves each other. If I want to be greater than a Catholic of another flavor, I’ll have to find a way to humbly serve that Catholic. Paradoxically this will also put me below that person, but that’s OK cause Jesus said it’s good for me. No servant is greater than his master. Only a pretty messed up bipolar could make sense of Jesus I suspect because His whole consciousness was so different than ours that it weird He even walked the planet. If only I were so messed up, but I ask the Lord to help me in faith, and to help me as I try to remind myself not be so condescending all the time.
Alan
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Miserere_Mei
Guest
IS it REALLY possible to separate the body of Christ? Doesn’t the Apostle say : “THose who went out from us were never really a part of us.” ?
We cannot say the Church is divided. Not truly, because truth is indivisible, and the Chruch is the pillar and foundation of the truth. Therefore the church is indivisible.
WHAT IS DIVISIBLE is our understanding and assumptions and physical communion.
However those who leave the church don’t harm it. THey harm themselves. IF they want to cut themselves off from the life of grace, let’s make an effort to save them, sure, but not to the point where we are diluting our identity to accomodate everyone.
We cannot say the Church is divided. Not truly, because truth is indivisible, and the Chruch is the pillar and foundation of the truth. Therefore the church is indivisible.
WHAT IS DIVISIBLE is our understanding and assumptions and physical communion.
However those who leave the church don’t harm it. THey harm themselves. IF they want to cut themselves off from the life of grace, let’s make an effort to save them, sure, but not to the point where we are diluting our identity to accomodate everyone.
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BibleReader
Guest
In my opinion, the greatest threat to the Church is ABC – artificial birth control. In return for repeatedly disobeying Natural Law, the Magisterium and Scripture, by stealing from God sexual pleasure artificially severed from the risk of conception, people get a great big pleasure reward between the legs.
Result: About 95% of the general population which is sexually active, and about 75% of Church-going Catholics, regularly flout Natural Law, the Magisterium and Scripture, and regularly dramatize to themselves, each other and society that Christianity is nonsense, Natural Law is nonsense, the Church is nonsense, and Scripture is nonsense.
The social addiction is SO bad, that millions would rather *kill * than give up access to the ethos of entitlement to “sex fun” which access to ABC generated in our society: When they kill their offspring by abortion, to keep it from burdening their sex fun with responsibility, they are literally killing people to preserve sex fun.
I believe that as more and more and more people marry the ethos of personal entitlement to sex fun artificially disconnected from responsibility, the Church will simply lose more and more members.
Result: About 95% of the general population which is sexually active, and about 75% of Church-going Catholics, regularly flout Natural Law, the Magisterium and Scripture, and regularly dramatize to themselves, each other and society that Christianity is nonsense, Natural Law is nonsense, the Church is nonsense, and Scripture is nonsense.
The social addiction is SO bad, that millions would rather *kill * than give up access to the ethos of entitlement to “sex fun” which access to ABC generated in our society: When they kill their offspring by abortion, to keep it from burdening their sex fun with responsibility, they are literally killing people to preserve sex fun.
I believe that as more and more and more people marry the ethos of personal entitlement to sex fun artificially disconnected from responsibility, the Church will simply lose more and more members.
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otm
Guest
No, it has come after Modernism and there are some related details, but Modernism started over a century ago. It tends to be a catch phrase that is thrown about by people who can not articualte what Modernism was all about, or even who the main practitioners were.
:There are two well known triumverates in Philosophy; but saying that the last of each of those was just the first in different clothes is to show a profound lack of understanding of what their philosophical postions were.
The two: Locke, Barkley and Hume; Fichte, Schelling and Hagel.
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otm
Guest
BILL BRADLEY:
Of course. “There is no one as reactionary as a radical who has achieved their objective.” (And a tip of the hat to whomever I stole that from).
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otm
Guest
Ah yes, the Sacrament in search of a theology. I am inclined to think that his comment is a good reflection on the separation of one of the three Sacraments of Initiation. We might do well to reflect more thoroughly on your liturgical approach to Confirmation.
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