I will be leaving the Catholic Church

[deb1]

1. Jesus sat down with tax collectors, drunks, and (gasp) whore. to try to help them and teach them, but yet when I see someone who walks in a church that looks even remotely different from the other parishioners I see you all eyeballing them and talking about them behind there back like they were pond scum or a leeper

Prejudice is a trait that many people are guilty of regardless of their faith. You are going to find this type of behavior where ever you go. Sorry. The best thing that you can do is to attempt to set a higher example for others in your own actions. If you see someone being snubbed, walk up to them after church and shake their hand yourself. You’ll be surprised how many people will reasses their behavior and copy you.

All while listening to the “Love Your Neighbor” sermon. I mean Lord forgive us if a gay/or lesbian person ever attended a service! Lord forgive us if someone with green hair walks into a catholic church to maybe find some answers about the Holy Trinty cause sure as hellfire damm near all of you will be freaked out by it! Love your Neighbor… but only if your neighbor looks and acts like yourself right.

My goodness, what church do you attend? We have all types of people dressed all sorts of ways in my Catholic Church. Maybe you just need to change the particular church that you go to, not the Catholic Church itself.

I will not lie here I sincerely believe Benedicts former life as a Nazi really does not help at all. Think about it people do you realize the current Pope may at one time have been order to shot and kill the Pope that precedded him!

Pope Benedict had a cousin who was killed by the Nazi’s for being mentally handicapped. His father was no fan of the Nazi’s but all German boys had to join the youth groups at the time. Benedict deserted from the army-I think that he was only 18- once he got a chance to. You seem to be making some wild assertions without actually looking at the facts.

 

[twosweetgirls]

Sorry but your average Catholic just goes thru the motions of sytand up, sit down. kneel, and never ever looks deeper in what it all means.

I’ll even go so far to say that alot of Catholics have no clue what the Eucharist even is or means!

Until you show me the nail marks in your hands & feet then you really have no right to judge what you believe to be in the heart of an “average Catholic”.

Wishing you the best on your faith journey, and I hope you find some peace.

 

[East_and_West]

You should consider converting to Judaism. We don’t have a lot of detail or archaic rules.

Wow. I have read exodus, leviticus, deuteronomy, and numbers. Lots of “archaic” rules and detail from what I read.

 

[elvisman]

Yeah there’s just too much detail in roman catholicism that most people just dont have the luxury to examine them deeply enough. Turns me off too. I think part of Jesus’ appeal was his simplicity.

There is nothing “simple” about salvation. If there were, St. Paul wouldn’t have said to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling". (Phillipians 2:12)

It always amuses me when people claim that Jesus’s message was “simple”. They don’t have a clue . . .

 

[jmcrae]

You should consider converting to Judaism. We don’t have a lot of detail or archaic rules.

Yeah, right.

Not that it matters - if you believe that you are following God’s rules, then it’s important that you do that, for the sake of your conscience. But I know one poor Jewish guy who just about starves to death if he forgets to bring his lunch to work, because there is absolutely nothing in the cafeteria that he is allowed to eat. I think that sort of thing makes Friday penances and Holy Days of Obligation look like sissy stuff.

 

[Valke2]

Here’s my serious answer. Don’t turn your back on God. If all you are seeing is hypocrisy in people, you need to change your perspective more than your faith. Try to find something in the teaching of the Church that speaks to you and lets you see the world as something more than a place of bickering and indifference. I’m sure you could spend your whole life getting closer to God through your church.

Talmud teaches that there is good in everyone, both conspicioius and hidden. I’m sure you can find it in those within the Church as easily as within those outside the Church. For a lot of people, the structure that religion provides us to communicate with God and to love our neighbor, however flawed, is better than not having any structure at all.

 

[elvisman]

You should consider converting to Judaism. We don’t have a lot of detail or archaic rules.

???
You’ve GOT to be kidding!!

 

[mercygate]

Ahh and the pounding on that large green book begins.

I find many Catholic go thur the motions at church but not many UNDERSTAND what those motions mean. I on the other hand have taken the time ti study it and after having done so is why I wil in fact be levaing it

I am well versed in the Catholic faith and all seven scaraments. (notice you didn’t list a number there) I can list all 7 from memory can you?

Do you mean Liturgy of the Word or Liturgical year because they are different.

I can also list both the order of Mass and the Litrugical year FROM MEMORY

Heck for that matter can you average Catholic define what a litrugy is?

Would you like to know what cycle year of reading we are on? Does your average catholic even know about years ABC for your given liturgical year?

Heck ask one average catholic parshioner to list 1 holy day of obligation and I bet most of them can not!

The list goes on here.

Sorry but your average Catholic just goes thru the motions of sytand up, sit down. kneel, and never ever looks deeper in what it all means.

I’ll even go so far to say that alot of Catholics have no clue what the Eucharist even is or means!

You place a lot of stock in what you think of the shortcomings of others. They might profit more from your prayers than from your rants.

As for “pounding the Catechism” – there is nothing in the Catechism that in any way contradicts Scripture.

 

[Valke2]

???
You’ve GOT to be kidding!!

Yep

 

[Marina14]

I can so see why The Catholic Church has people leaving it in mass! I recently returned to the Catholic faith about 3 years after having been a non practicing one for about 7 years. I recently enrolled in RCIA classes cause I have never been confirmed. For that matter I know of tons of Catholics who are also not confirmed. But…

I just want to say thank you to all the Catholics on this forum who have 100% convinced me that most Catholics are about the most ignorant, close minded, biased, hypocitircal and hateful group of people I have ever meet.

I can’t even begin to describe how many of you don’t even come close to what Jesus asked us to be.

I really like how so many of you claim that:

1. You all seem to know God’s will with 100% certainty. I mean wow if your in direct contact with God please tell us his phone number cause I myself have tons of question to as him.
2. Many say the Catholic church is infalliable…yeah…right…The catholic church is ran by HUMAN BEING who make mistakes. By saying the church is infalliable you just justified The Crusades, The Spain Inquisition, and more recently the Child molestion probelms. Why oh why do you follow your leaders so blindly without question. So many of you view the Pope as some kind of GOD or something.
3. Catholics pound on that large green book The Catechism of the Catholic faith as if it were the bible itself! I think most of you take more faithand stock in that book than you do the bible
4. Jesus sat down with tax collectors, drunks, and (gasp) whore. to try to help them and teach them, but yet when I see someone who walks in a church that looks even remotely different from the other parishioners I see you all eyeballing them and talking about them behind there back like they were pond scum or a leeper. All while listening to the “Love Your Neighbor” sermon. I mean Lord forgive us if a gay/or lesbian person ever attended a service! Lord forgive us if someone with green hair walks into a catholic church to maybe find some answers about the Holy Trinty cause sure as hellfire damm near all of you will be freaked out by it! Love your Neighbor… but only if your neighbor looks and acts like yourself right.
5. My parish well now my former parish I guess has alter girls. I can remember people freaking out over that concept alone! I mean how closed minded do you want to be here people! Oh NO that little girl is up near the Eucharist (gasp) Oh the shock and horror of it all! Someone get her way form it NOW!!!
6. John Paul II wait let me say John Paul II THE GREAT was awesome! He was and still is in my book THE BEST POPE EVER I really miss him! But this Pope Benedict XVI appears to be trying to take us back to the day before the Second Vatican Council. Yeah… let us return to the dark ages and get rid of them evil alter girls and the like. Lets get some Crusades going again and kill all the non-belivers. I will not lie here I sincerely believe Benedicts former life as a Nazi really does not help at all. Think about it people do you realize the current Pope may at one time have been order to shot and kill the Pope that precedded him!
7. This is the main reason why I well be leaving the church. I have seen a Catholic Priest leave the church recently. And I see about 98% of you CONDEMING THE MAN TO HELL FOR IT!!! You forget the years of service the man has given to others. You forget how many others this priest has helped. You forget how many time this man has listened to others confess their sins and mistakes… but when the priest himself makes one OH BOY ITS TIME TO SCREAM UP AND DOWN ABOUT HIM GOING TO HELL AND ABOUT HOW HE LET US ALL DOWN.

You same people who condem the man turn right back around and go back to your little closed in world and preach “Love your neighbor!!” What you SHOULD be reading is this one First take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye" Or better yet re-read the story about the women caught in the act of adulty. Let he who is without sin throw the first stone.

Hypocrites!!! Not all of you, but damm near most of you!

I will be quiting my RCIA classes and seeking out other faiths.

I hope this post doesn’t get deleted, but if it does its just more proof that anything non-catholic and of an opposing viewpoint will never ever be tolerated and must be destoryed at all cost. Lord forgive me for having my own opinon and thinking for myself and not following people blindly huh?

“I like your Jesus very much…too bad almost none of you act like him.” - Mahatma Gandhi

Where will you go?

 

[jpsheehn]

Could you give some examples?. If people are stateing their opinion as coming directly from God you have a point. However if people are explaining infallible catholic Doctine that you dont agree with its another matter.

You really need to bring this up with your RCIA instructor. You have a basic misunderstanding of the docrtine of infallibilty,It apears you are confusing “infallible” with “impecable” Neither the Crusades ,The Spanish Inquisition or the homosexual Priest scandal have any bearing whatsoever on the whether the Church is infallible in matters of faiths and Moral.s

The cathecism is a compilation of the teachings of the Church… What is in it that you disagree with?

But evidently per your post he would not sit down with members of th catholic Church.

Altar girls are apporved by the church. The fact some people have problems with it is in no way a reflection of the Church.

Again you show a misunderstandin gof the doctrine of No Salvation outside the Church. Benedict and John Paul the Great shared the same view. It is a doctrine that has remained unchanged for 2,000 year

Priests are neither excommunicated nor condemend to hell for leaving the priesthood. in most cases they are laicized and can marry and be in full communion with the Church.

Again you anger is directed towards a doctrine that not exist.

Given the fact you have not gained an even basic understanding of the Church or its doctrines it would appear RCIA is a waste of time for you.

ALL of your objections have nothing whatsover to do with the Church as it exisists-they are all based on you erroneous interpretation of what you have heard and read.

Again I see I have to post this statement a 4th time since NO ONE bothers to read the other posting;

Ahh and the pounding on that large green book begins.

I find many Catholic go thur the motions at church but not many UNDERSTAND what those motions mean. I on the other hand have taken the time ti study it and after having done so is why I wil in fact be levaing it

I am well versed in the Catholic faith and all seven scaraments. (notice you didn’t list a number there) I can list all 7 from memory can you?

Do you mean Liturgy of the Word or Liturgical year because they are different.

I can also list both the order of Mass and the Litrugical year FROM MEMORY

Heck for that matter can you average Catholic define what a litrugy is?

Would you like to know what cycle year of reading we are on? Does your average catholic even know about years ABC for your given liturgical year?

Heck ask one average catholic parshioner to list 1 holy day of obligation and I bet most of them can not!

The list goes on here.

Sorry but your average Catholic just goes thru the motions of sytand up, sit down. kneel, and never ever looks deeper in what it all means.

I’ll even go so far to say that alot of Catholics have no clue what the Eucharist even is or means!

I will be SUPER DUPER happy to go head to head with anyone on The Cathesiem Of The Catholic faith! I am well versed in the the big green book poeple and sad to say I sincelrely believe I DO know more than your average Catholic in the pew.

Which is why I wil be leaving the faith. Because what I read does not ring true.

Thank You

If your really want me to pick about the above post I will glad do so… but I will do it after lunch thanks

 

[jmcrae]

I see a lot of people putting forth the argument that the Church is full of imperfect people and that it doesn’t make sense to leave the faith because its members are sinners or imperfect.

That’s a good argument. I’ll have to remember it the next time someone talks about how the Jews were unable to keep their promise to God, being sinners, and therefore Jesus came with a new covenant.

Had nothing to do with them being sinners. Jesus was bringing the New Covenant, anyway, and it was supposed to be for the Jews. But they rejected it - didn’t want it, no way, no how, so they appealed to the government and got Him crucified (how loud did you want that NO, WE DON’T WANT NO STINKIN’ NEW COVENANT to be, again?) - so He gave it to the Gentiles, instead, and they (we) accepted it gladly.

 

[Linnyo]

There are times when I perfectly understand the OP’s point of view completely. There is so much judgement on this forum and the thread about crusades convinced me, for the first time, that this forum is full of religious zealots who would love to spill the blood of anybody who doesn;t agree with them. I can honestly say I was totally shocked by the bloodthirst of many of the members of the forum. But then I reminded myself that, in any forum, there will be people with extreme opinions. These are the ones that post most because they may feel strongly about certain things thus giving the impression that only the stronger opinions count or are right. This is not the case though. There are far more mild mannered and less judgemental, opinionated characters that will occasionally post their view but tend not to argue. These are the ones we see less of. We also need to bear in mind that the opinions of individuals are not necessarily the right opinions. You may not like the current pope but the Church will always be. The pope will change at some point so don’t let him put you off.
But, like any church, it is made up of individuals with their faults and their strengths. Their judgements and condemnation do not matter a jot because they are only going to get themselves judged by their own standards. Are they really worth throwing your faith away for? Hang on in there. Catholics are not all baddies, just some of us! And most of us try not to be uncharitable or judgemental. Most of us are peaceloving. Unfortunately, the meanies can be more vocal!

A note for the rest of us…we need to be more aware of how we portray ourselves because we might be doing the Church a great injustice and that would be the most awful thing!

 

[Sina]

To the OP,
I think you are rude, and behaving in a self rightous way. I thought your original post was sincere and I felt for you. But your responses after that are totally irrational in my opinion, and I no longer see any point in arguing with you.

Good luck to you.

 

[deb1]

Sorry but your average Catholic just goes thru the motions of sytand up, sit down. kneel, and never ever looks deeper in what it all means.

I’ll even go so far to say that alot of Catholics have no clue what the Eucharist even is or means!

I love to watch the older people go up to get communion. Some of them appear to have such difficulty with motion. One older lady that I see, holds onto each pew she passes for support. Yet she still makes it to the front to get the Eucharist.

It would seem to me that this dear older woman has a lot of faith. She could just remain home in her snug bed afterall.

When I was 14-before I was Catholic-I went to stay with my step grandparents who were Catholic. My step grandparents never went to church or did anything even vaguely religious. Down the street from them was a very old man.

One day, I went into his house-I think that I returned his cat?-anyway he told me that he had to go to church. Being brought up Baptist, I had never heard of anyone going to church on any days but Sunday and Wednesday evening. So, I asked him why he was going to church.

He told me that since the death of his wife, receiving the Eucharist daily provided him with great comfort. Of course, I asked what the Eucharist was, and he cut out a circle from a newspaper. He then went on to explain, with absolute joy in his face, what communion was and what it meant.

I ran to my grandmother and told her that she was supposed to go to church to get communion because she was Catholic. She got very angry and told me to stay away from religious nut cases.

Which person should I judge the Catholic Church by?

That old man’s joy has remained with me all these long years-almost thirty now-and was one of the many people who began my journey toward the Catholic faith.

 

[AgnosTheist]

There is nothing “simple” about salvation. If there were, St. Paul wouldn’t have said to "work out your salvation with fear and trembling". (Phillipians 2:12)

It always amuses me when people claim that Jesus’s message was “simple”. They don’t have a clue . . .

Love God with all your heart & love your neighbors as yourself. Aint that simple? As an agnostic I still believe in those words. Thats what Jesus lived for. Theres no need to complicate things.

How do people really work out their salvation? By saying the rosary? No, most believe in being nice. Thats it.

 

[brightlight]

There are many bad RCIA programs out there. A really good resource for learning about the true faith is:

theonetruefaith.tv

Call 866-738-1207 and tell Susan Vance that you are considering leaving the faith and you want to talk with Michael Voris, the show’s host, and he will speak with you personally.

I pray that you will NOT throw away this gift you have been given. Jesus established the Catholic faith. Find it in your heart to look past the sins and help other sinners (we are all sinners) to follow Jesus. The alternative (the Satan) leads to hell.

Those of us who have had mystical experiences can tell you that the Lord is with us. You have only to tell HIM about your grievances. We all have crosses to carry, you are no different. Don’t turn your back on Jesus and His Church.

I will pray for you.

 

[twosweetgirls]

I just had a thought (scary, I know ): you say that you know practically everything about the Catholic Church–the Catechism, the Sacraments, etc. And you say that no Catholic knows anything about their faith.

So I have just one word for you: SEMINARY.

 

[mercygate]

You should consider converting to Judaism. We don’t have a lot of detail or archaic rules.

Thanks for the chuckle, Valke2!

 

[jpsheehn]

Where will you go?

Now thats a good question…honestly I dunno.

I guess I might as well start of and explore something that is very Catholic like and try Lutherism. Truthfully I am starting to think if Luther would have stayed in the Catholic church and had his protest heard out in full that you would see a very different Catholic church today/

Did you know that the word Protestant using the root word protest as the basis of the word?

Do you know many Lutherans call them selves reformers as in reformers of the catholic church?

At the same time the Evangelical have a saying I see used a lot. "Don’t let your religon get in the way of your realtionship with God.

So I dunno. I guess I will have to see what others have to offer. I my even end up labeling myself as non-denominanal (sp)