Counter point… many people who claim to be practicing catholics are simply “going with the flow”. They follow mindless rules for the sake of rules. They honor authority for authority’s sake.
What does that have to do with anything? Implicit in my remarks was that the individual was a practicing person of faith. Therefore, “going with the flow” meant putting aside the teachings of the faith, which I admit can be done without physically leaving the Church, and in fact,is a common occurrence. BTW, I personally honor the Church’s authority because I believe it comes from God, not for authority’s sake.
As a case in point, I point out the practice of not eating meat on Friday’s in Lent. Fish? Ok. Cow? Noope. Cow’s milk? Yup, fine. Frog? Yeah, why not. Chicken? … you’re going to hell. … Sure, we ain’t got a problem with that.
It’s a rule made by a Church that saw the need for at least a very small acknowledgement of the commemoration of Christ’s death on Friday by its members. It is not sinful in and of itself to eat meat on Friday. The sin is in disregarding the authority given to the Church by Christ who entrusted it with the role of shepherding souls from this life to the next. If a person cannot obey Christ’s Church in even a small matter of abstinence from meat on Friday, they are far from the discipleship required of a member of Christ’s body. As far as I am concerned, when a person disobeys the Church, they disobey Christ Himself, who said that whatever they would bind on earth would be bound in heaven.
My church honors this rule with an artery clogging breaded deep-fat fish fry and tops it off with unlimited quanties of beer for those so inclined. Explain that one to me! Real money maker tho.
A moderate amount of breaded deep-fat fried fish is not life threatening. A steady diet is another thing. We should try to live healthy lives, but that can become an idol like everything else. When we die and stand before the judgment seat, I doubt we will be asked why we didn’t take our vitamin pills. If you already have too much fat in your diet, I suggest you don’t partake of the Church fish fry. Otherwise, we all need fat in our diets and the human body is wonderfully designed to tolerate Friday fish frys. When I fry I use olive oil. My HDL/LDL balance is helped by this. I try not to overdo it, however. BTW, the money maker remark was uncalled for.
And, hey, apparently the rules about going to heaven and hell change at international boundaries. Well, at least there are different rules for different countries. I wonder if that was God’s idea or man’s?
That was man’s idea. If you didn’t know it, Christ gave his Apostles and their successors the right and duty to shepherd the faithful. He gave them the power to bind and loose on earth in His name. He said He would honor whatever they decided. This is the basis for Church authority over its members. I myself would not be a Catholic if I did not believe this.
By the way, anyone ever read of an apostle having to pass up meat on Friday. Apparently, it wasn’t a sin then. It only became one later on. Probably about the time they thought up using indulges to generate revenue. Had to fund the crusades you know. Our brothers and sisters of the eastern church needed some sacking in Constantinople. And, some muslims needed killing (ok… yeah… I went overboard on the sarcasm… sorry about that)
The selling of indulgences did not come from the central authority of the Church. It was a wrongful local practice espoused by certain prelates that many in the Church were fighting against and which Martin Luther rightly stood up against. Learn a little more about it and you will change your attitude about the Church.
Seriously though! The church wonders why it loses people? Boringly repetitive monotous droning on Sunday mornings. Mindless rules. Corruption (ask the vatican about their bank) and criminality (no need to elaborate here).
Try putting your heart into those “**oringly repetitive monotonous droning
” and they will take on new meaning. They are full of meaning, and it is a fact that spiritual things do not sink into the depths of the human heart and soul unless they are repeated over and over again.
I’m sure you must feel the same about the Rosary, but I can assure you that the more you say it the more the Spirit is able to open up to you the profound mysteries of God’s incarnation, life and death. We are so rooted in the earth that spiritual things do not come easy, even for those who are dedicated to prayer. Being close to God is far more difficult than people realize. Even Christ Himself spent countless hours in prayer. Read Luke; he emphasizes how much Christ was given to prayer. For example, the day before Christ chose His Apostles he spent the entire night praying. Now, if Christ had to pray so much, and He did, just think how much we need to.**
and actually when you say you aren’t looking at time the same way I am, you’re right. And so to the specific nature of my question, your humble opinion is kinda no.