I am about to leave CAF, but before I go . .

[benedict_XVIII]

. . .I want to make one last attempt at seeing if there is someone here who cares about the basic truth of our faith.

That life on this earth is simply a spiritual combat, of good against evil.

That Jesus began (in the desert) and ended (on the Cross) his mission fighting against the Devil.

That we live in the most Satanic generation in history and even nuns (see other thread) are happy to be living in it.

That evil is not only violence, terrorist, killings and wars, but evil is the absence of good.

That the Devil seduces you by making you believe that there is nothing wrong with devoting one’s life to getting a good job in order to have enougfh money to live comfortably and have enough sex and success.

That the Christian way is, instead, the Way of the Cross.

That today the Devil has succeeded in getting people to think that this world is good because we have cars, cell phones and computers and good hospitals (the cult of the body ).

That not even the Church is proclaiming these fundamental truths anymore.

Is there anyone out there who is not blind ?

 

[sorely_tempted]

Are you a Luddite? You appear to be rejecting all forms of advancement and what constitutes civilization today. Thats ok, you can do what you want, but it seems like you are only focusing on the bad things. Look at (ethical) advances in medicine: what would kill you 20 or even 10 years ago is now treatable or even curable. God still speaks to us today despite all of that.

 

[thistle]

. . .I want to make one last attempt at seeing if there is someone here who cares about the basic truth of our faith.

That life on this earth is simply a spiritual combat, of good against evil.

That Jesus began (in the desert) and ended (on the Cross) his mission fighting against the Devil.

That we live in the most Satanic generation in history and even nuns (see other thread) are happy to be living in it.

That evil is not only violence, terrorist, killings and wars, but evil is the absence of good.

That the Devil seduces you by making you believe that there is nothing wrong with devoting one’s life to getting a good job in order to have enougfh money to live comfortably and have enough sex and success.

That the Christian way is, instead, the Way of the Cross.

That today the Devil has succeeded in getting people to think that this world is good because we have cars, cell phones and computers and good hospitals (the cult of the body ).

That not even the Church is proclaiming these fundamental truths anymore.

Is there anyone out there who is not blind ?

You mean if we don’t agree with you that makes us blind?
Sounds like self-righteousness to me!

The basic Truth of our Faith is in The Creed.
The Church continues to proclaim the Truth.

 

[Trishie]

**God bless you, whatever you decide to do. **

** None can judge the authenticity of other’s faith and understanding, and no one can judge upon the private understanding of people here. I believe you sell ordinary CAF Catholics short, which is injustice both to you and to us.**

 

[Sailor_Kenshin]

To be fair to the OP, I’ve seen a few heretical anything-goes posts here.

And this is coming from someone who loves this life and regards it as a gift from God.

 

[Trishie]

Judge you, my brother?

Our God, eternity waits for those who live the gospel to truly share in Your delight in each person. With You, we will rejoice in everyone who accepts Christ’s invitation to follow Him with prayer, penance and generosity!

How profound is the giving required by that person, and this! What happiness, what anguish is known there! What temptation is encountered! What sensitivities enfeeble or enrich and sanctify that life! How great is Your glory in the strange or ordinary facts and struggles of their existence! Yet, how can we know?

We err in applying rules of private interpretation to another’s intention or act, except as feeble measure for our compassion and charity. Only by one’s private consciousness—unless enlightened by Your Spirit of love—can each see what lies in another’s soul.
Each person is a unique expression of Your love, an individual world, some great, and some miniature, separate in existence and consciousness, yet united in You. Yet how quickly do we judge each other! We offer You our hurt and theirs in prayer for healing and forgiveness.

Let us not belittle or betray, in thought, or by gossip—the seemingly sinful, the apparently misled or foolish, the ugly, the crippled in mind or spirit. Let us celebrate their preciousness in You. Let us no longer sin against Your sacred love and creation in anyone by our judgements however seemingly justified. Let Your Holy Spirit know and love each other person through us, with sensitivity to their emerging needs. Give us compassion for each other, however perplexed or inaccurate our perception, so that we revere each other—and ourselves—as individuals sacred to You.

Through Your Spirit, we can offer appreciation, justice and love to each other as we wait humbly on the full vision of Your meaning, purpose, and love of each person, in the final translation that follows death. Let us serve and intercede for each other person as loved child of God, in glad, trusting welcome.

Prayer for understanding of others

Jesus, please open us to receive each other with love, so that we no longer betray God’s Love that re-creates us in each moment of life. Reveal to us our sins against charity, and heal us of fears and prejudices that lead to judgement of others.

How easily even the generous Christian reduces others to categories, judging them with unconscious pride and lack of empathy! How carelessly, with convincing appraisal and bias, we dismiss others in their seeming sin, error or foolishness. How often we misjudge them in their difficulties and achievements, and underestimate their intrinsic worth as persons!

Jesus, please forgive us that we presume to deal uncharitably with anyone! Each person is Your own creation lovingly spoken out of Yourself in the private language of love chosen for each alone! No matter how different from one’s own character or journey, the path and meaning of each person is treasured mystery hidden within You!

Let us share in Your love for others, rejoicing in Your image within them whether evident or not. Let us reverence our dissimilarity and their individuality. Let us be respectful and discreet in our helpfulness. Have mercy on our prayer and goodwill for them, so that we may love them with Your Love. Jesus, I am so sorry for the times I fail to love others wisely and respectfully.

 

[Trishie]

Judgement of others

Jesus, please alert us when we are tempted to judge other people. Our judgements may be based on another’s opinion, on flimsy evidence or on past observations, without full knowledge of someone’s situation and nature. Even if others appear to blatantly sin, we cannot judge them according to Your vision. Please give us grace to extend impartiality and compassion to all others, friend, foe or stranger.

We cannot know others’ motivations or all the influences affecting them, so we have doubtless misjudged others more frequently than we realise. Give us grace to avoid unkind or scandalous gossip. Enlighten those who see a few incidents or an isolated occurrence or appearance, even from years past, and then presume to make a permanent judgement like “he always does this.” “She always is like that.” “He is that sort of person.” How unjust to judge others in this way! Even if former perceptions happen to be accurate, who can judge that any person has not advanced in wisdom or grace!

If we defend victims of misjudgement, some accusers reconsider their opinion, while others cling to prejudice. Some people believe that their subjective view of people, reality, and events is the only valid one; therefore, we cannot expect them to be open to contrary evidence or testimony. They honestly believe that their judgements are correct. They seem not to be fully responsible for the injustice of their viewpoints.

We cannot judge even these people for perhaps they suffer from personal insecurity or desire for ascendancy over others, due to immaturity or low self-esteem. Their lack of respect and compassion may be hurtful to someone we love or respect, but let us respond with Christian maturity, without besmirching their reputations. Please expand their mental and emotional maturity so that with just and empathetic understanding of others, they—and we—may make reparation for the reputation and welfare of anyone who has been maligned or misjudged.

We trust in Your love to pardon us and to greatly bless anyone we have sinned against by judgement or unkindness. Jesus, help us truly to love our sisters and brothers, whether or not we understand them. October 1999

 

[Stjudeprayforus]

I think nuns on line are great… how else would we have access to them? I have emailed nuns and asked for prayer… they respond…
I love that. Maybe Jesus does too.

I just ordered water from Lourdes in France…!! WOW… thank you Jesus!.. I have access to that… sitting in the midwest?!
I doubt that makes satan too happy…

I dont think the world is good because we have cars and cell phones… I dont think it is evil because we have them either.

Good Hospitals? what on earth are you complaining about? Terrible hospitals would make the world a better place?

 

[withwind]

That we live in the most Satanic generation in history and even nuns (see other thread) are happy to be living in it.

Is there anyone out there who is not blind ?

Sure, there are blinded people out there and that is why the Nuns and others want to walk them. The Nuns are happy and joyful because they do what exactly Jesus asked them to do.

 

[Eucharisted]

That not even the Church is proclaiming these fundamental truths anymore.

I got a chuckle out of that.

So long, and thanks for all the fish!

 

[Quarles47]

. . .I want to make one last attempt at seeing if there is someone here who cares about the basic truth of our faith.

Now after reading your post over once, the question comes to my mind is, “The basic truth of our faith, or the basic truths of our faith as you see it.”
Seems to me that you seem to be pretty hazy on several subjects.

That life on this earth is simply a spiritual combat, of good against evil.

I can agree with that on a simple face value but will remind all that good only comes from God. And if it’s not good (ie: from God) then it is evil.

That Jesus began (in the desert) and ended (on the Cross) his mission fighting against the Devil.

I would like to amend your above statement with Our Lord Jesus Christ began his Earthly mission in the desert but the fighting hasn’t ended yet. The Cross was Our Lord’s triumph over satan but it seems that satan wants to inflict as much damages as possible before the end of time.

That we live in the most Satanic generation in history and even nuns (see other thread) are happy to be living in it.

I don’t see were you’re getting your basis for “most satanic generation”. For someone to be accurate in such a statement they would have to have been a part of all generations. Just because you can’t imagine it any worst doesn’t mean that it can not get nor it has not been worst.

That evil is not only violence, terrorist, killings and wars, but evil is the absence of good.

That one I’ll give you credit for, evil is the absence of Good.

That the Devil seduces you by making you believe that there is nothing wrong with devoting one’s life to getting a good job in order to have enougfh money to live comfortably and have enough sex and success.

On that statement, I have to be frank. That’s the type of statement that one would make that may view themselves as a failure because they don’t have a good job in order to have enough money to live " comfortably" (and the last of that statement is just … out there) and try and justify why they’re not in that bracket…

That the Christian way is, instead, the Way of the Cross

.

What are you trying to say here? The Way of the Cross is the Christian way. There is no instead.

That today the Devil has succeeded in getting people to think that this world is good because we have cars, cell phones and computers and good hospitals (the cult of the body ).

Are you trying to say that cars are evil? Or cell phones? Computers?
And calling a hospital “the cult of the body” shows that you have NO IDEA what hospitals and healthcare is about.
I like to see you stand in an ER when they bring in someone that has had a cardiac arrest or an industrial accident when a person has had body parts ripped off or even when a small child had been dragged for several blocks after being run over by a car and call the proceedings going on “the cult of the body”
That statement alone shows that your way of thinking is not right.

That not even the Church is proclaiming these fundamental truths anymore.

By saying that the Church isn’t proclaiming “these fundamental truths” is actually saying that the Church is in a lie, and that the Holy Spirit isn’t guiding the Church any more and that the promise that Our Lord Jesus Christ made in Matt 28:20 was a lie.

Is there anyone out there who is not blind ?

To me it is quite clear that you are an angry individual who is highly disappointed that things are not as you think they should be, but not humble enough to accept that maybe this is how God wills it to be. Matt 7:3-5, Lk 6:41-42

 

[SSTeacher]

. . .I want to make one last attempt at seeing if there is someone here who cares about the basic truth of our faith.

I found this website only a few months ago. Nevertheless my impression is that the Catholics here all care about the truth.

That life on this earth is simply a spiritual combat, of good against evil.

I don’t disagree.

That Jesus began (in the desert) and ended (on the Cross) his mission fighting against the Devil.

I don’t disagree.

That we live in the most Satanic generation in history and even nuns (see other thread) are happy to be living in it.

This is rather a sweeping generalization and it’s no good being general, as Napoleon said in 1815

That evil is not only violence, terrorist, killings and wars, but evil is the absence of good.

Evil might also be defined as the wrong relationship between good things.

That the Devil seduces you by making you believe that there is nothing wrong with devoting one’s life to getting a good job in order to have enougfh money to live comfortably and have enough sex and success.

What else might one reasonably expect?

That the Christian way is, instead, the Way of the Cross.

I agree.

That today the Devil has succeeded in getting people to think that this world is good because we have cars, cell phones and computers and good hospitals (the cult of the body ).

Who is we? And where are these “good” hospitals?

That not even the Church is proclaiming these fundamental truths anymore.

A number of Catholics here have referred me to the Catechism of the Catholic Church. I’ve purchased a copy. Isn’t that Catechism a proclamation of Catholic truth?

Is there anyone out there who is not blind ?

Me. I wear glasses, though.

This is a very good website with lots of helpful information for inquirers (like myself) and I’m glad I found it. I recommend it to any seekers who may see this post.

Helpfully,
Mick

 

[MarieVeronica]

Dear “benedictXVIII”. I’m puzzled by a number of your statements. Your first statement:

“I want to make one last attempt at seeing if there is someone here who cares about the basic truth of our faith.”

… implies that you have encountered NO ONE at CAF, who cares about the basic truths of the Catholic faith? This statement is not only judgmental, but extremely hurtful. I’m personally hurt by this statement. How is it… that you’ve made this judgment? And what are you basing it on? Please correct me, if I’ve misunderstood… but it appears that you’re stating that you, alone… as a member of CAF have understood “the basic truth of our faith”. Do you realize that, that is pride?

I agree with the statement, that life on earth IS a spiritual combat between good and evil. And ALL of us… are in it, up to our necks. Whether we fully realize it or not. We all know that “Good”… aka Jesus, Our Lord… will win the final battle.

I don’t quite understand this, though… “Jesus began in the desert”.

Do you mean His public ministry? If so, ok… fair enough. But I would still argue… that if we MUST assign a place to it, His ministry “began” at the Incarnation. Our Lord’s mission didn’t “end” on the Cross. Certainly, Jesus led us THROUGH the Cross… and tells us, that in order to follow Him… we too, must take up our crosses (daily life)… and follow after Him. But that doesn’t imply that the “Cross” is the end. We strive for “Easter” (Life with God)… all of us.

I’m also perplexed, by this statement; especially the last part: “That we live in the most Satanic generation in history and even nuns (see other thread) are happy to be living in it”.

Certainly this generation has succumbed to much evil. I agree with you, on that. But are you suggesting… that because of the evil in the world… we should not be happy to be alive? Are you saying, that we should hate life? And that “nuns” should hate life? Life… (whether you’re a nun… or a lay person)… is a GIFT from God! Of course we should NEVER “rejoice” over evil in the world. We should strive to avoid evil. But we SHOULD rejoice :yup: in God’s Gift to us… LIFE.

Your next statement, makes perfect sense. “That evil is not only violence, terrorist, killings and wars, but evil is the absence of good”. I have no problem there!

And, there is some truth to this (although the way you phrased it, was extremely “sweeping”):

“That the Devil seduces you by making you believe that there is nothing wrong with devoting one’s life to getting a good job in order to have enough money to live comfortably and have enough sex and success”.

But ONLY… if a person neglects Almighty God… and misuses these things; and makes “idols” of their job, or money, or possessions, or sex, or success. Certainly, there ARE many people in the world today… who put these things above God :sad_yes: . But, He expects us to take care of ourselves and our families. We are also called to care for the poor and needy. These things only become evil/sinful, if misused… or placed ABOVE God.

Your last two statements… I found most troubling. You said: “That not even the Church is proclaiming these fundamental truths anymore”. I suggest you pick up a copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church… and read what the Church teaches… before you dare to judge Her. The Catholic Church is the Bride of Jesus Christ. And I would certainly think twice…before making such a statement, myself.

And the last thing… “Is there anyone out there who is not blind?” My friend, if you have “hopes” of evangelizing people… and leading them to the truth… or hopes of saving souls, this is not the way to do it. :nope: Again, this sounds extremely prideful. You won’t get to “square one” with most people, by asking such a question, in such a way. Sounds like something a “Pharisee” would ask.

I wish you peace, “benedict XVIII”.

 

[Strategery]

So long, and thanks for all the fish!

Funny, I say that all the time. One of the great lines in literature!

 

[jrabs]

May you find what you are looking for in the world.