Is it wrong to have non-catholic items as decorations in a home?

[Basilios]

There is nothing, absolutely nothing in the teachings of the Catholic Church that says that to have such things in your house is not permitted.

Of course not. The Church doesn’t list every single thing in the world that we may or may not do, or that is or is not prudent or good or wise. She can’t handle every kind of contigency. That’s where it’s up to having a “Catholic nose”. Having idols in your home and representations of false demonic god’s is up to you. I don’t need a number from the Catechism!

Saying that it is wrong to have such things in one’s house is a case of over-scrupulosity.

For the record I didn’t say it was sinful. Scrupulosity has nothing to do with this topic. It’s about prudence and keeping a Catholic home. If I know that Heaven is my goal and I have a heavenly room waiting for my in the Lord’s mansion, I should act like it. I don’t think my room there will have representations of Bhudda or Krishna or other such demons. You or I cannot judge who or who is not scrupulous since we’re not priests. On CAF I notice a lot of people calling things scrupulous when they disagree with good principles of Catholicism.

And as for me committing a sin should another Catholic take offence at these in my home. With all due respect, that is just not true. There is nothing in the teachings of our Church that says that having such items is a sin. I am not worshiping or venerating them and if, I have done nothing wrong. If someone else falsely thinks I have then that is their problem, not mine.

I didn’t say that keeping them was a sin. You said that if someone was scandalized then that would be their problem not yours. You’ve just repeated that here too. I pointed out to you that this isn’t true. If you scandalize someone it is your sin/fault. Brushing it off as “their problem” is not an adult way to deal with it or a good response. This isn’t something I am making up. It’s just simple Catechism. It reminds me of my little brother who would create a mess in the kitchen all the time, and if you ever told him to clean it up he’d say “Well I don’t mind the mess, it’s your problem. If you don’t like it you clean it up.”

I am not saying that you are scandalizing people though, I am merely working with the principle here. If you think it’s okay to keep statues/images/representations of demonic gods, well that’s between you, your confessor and God. But there is a scandal factor involved if someone walks into your home and isn’t sure why you have them. They could think you’re indifferent to religions of the world. They could think Krishna is something good and holy and equal to Our Lord (after all, he may be sharing the same space on a windowsill). Again, not saying this is the case, just working on the principle.

Again, I am just a person on the other end of a computer. To the OP though, I don’t recommend having these things. Some people may have them, but it’s not Catholic to keep images of demons in your home. No saint would ever have placed a Bhudda in their home.

God Bless.

 

[Brendan_64]

For the record I didn’t say it was sinful. Scrupulosity has nothing to do with this topic. It’s about prudence and keeping a Catholic home. If I know that Heaven is my goal and I have a heavenly room waiting for my in the Lord’s mansion, I should act like it. I don’t think my room there will have representations of Bhudda or Krishna or other such demons. You or I cannot judge who or who is not scrupulous since we’re not priests. On CAF I notice a lot of people calling things scrupulous when they disagree with good principles of Catholicism…

And what constitutes ‘good principles of Catholicism’? The personal views of some posters on CAF? Even when these views are not backed up by the teachings of our Church? Taking something a ‘step further’ even though this is not supported by the Catechism or any of our Church teachings, is no different from taking things a ‘step back’ in respect of it being ‘good principles of Catholicism.’ Neither represents the teachings of our Church, and good principles of Catholicism are based on the teachings of our Church, not on what individuals think these good principles might be (based on their own personal opinion).

Good principles of Catholicism are NOT based on individual opinion (not even the opinion of CAF posters), they are based totally on what our Church teaches. If the Church doesn’t teach it, then it is not ‘good principles of Catholicism’ or indeed any principles of Catholicism.

I am not saying that you are scandalizing people though, I am merely working with the principle here. If you think it’s okay to keep statues/images/representations of demonic gods, well that’s between you, your confessor and God. But there is a scandal factor involved if someone walks into your home and isn’t sure why you have them. They could think you’re indifferent to religions of the world. They could think Krishna is something good and holy and equal to Our Lord (after all, he may be sharing the same space on a windowsill). Again, not saying this is the case, just working on the principle.

Anybody walking into my house would be in no doubt about what religion we follow. There are Bible commentaries, prayer books, books of Catholic theology, several Bibles, Catechism, other books, etc. knocking about in droves, and plenty of Christian stuff in places of honour. I doubt that the Buddha sitting on the floor as a door stopper, or even the Anubis statue on the windowsill would have them thinking otherwise.

God bless.

 

[PJM]

=WildCatholic;10618782]For example. I have a Kachina doll that I bought on a trip to Arizona. For those who don’t know, Kachina’s are figures who dance in Pueblo indian ceremonies (particularly the Hopi) and a lot of sculptures and artists make statues and dolls of Kachinas.

Anyway, is it wrong of me to have one since it is a representation of a pagan god? Its not like I worship it. I just like the way it looks. What about things like Buddha statues or Native American or African Tribal items that are religious in nature. Is it idol worship even if we don’t worship it?

iT’S NOT THE “ITEM” BUT ITS INTENDED USE THAT MAKES IT GOOD OR EVIL.
IF IT DOES NOT TAKE YOU AWAY FROM GOD ITS FINE

 

[Skye_Ariel]

I have a number of the standard Catholic decorations and items: crucifix, lil’ holy water font for my bedroom door, pictures of Jesus, Mary and the like.

I also have a fondness for skulls, and many of those decorate my room. It started as a teenage thing, when I was insecure about myself, and I took comfort in surrounding myself with “tough-guy” symbols. Later, I came to see them as a good memento mori, a reminder of life’s brevity (without diminishing its joy) and what to consider truly important and not.

A former priest who did some spiritual advising for me saw nothing wrong with that, and even mentioned that many pictures of St. Francis are depicted with a skull somewhere, for the same reasons.

So, to answer the OP, I think it depends on context and intent.

I have a zombie looking bobble head that looks like something from The Walking Dead on my desk at work and I found an interesting looking alien statue that I thought was interesting. Nothing wrong with things like that at all. I also have angel statues on my desk too.

 

[Lochias]

I have a zombie looking bobble head that looks like something from The Walking Dead on my desk at work and I found an interesting looking alien statue that I thought was interesting. Nothing wrong with things like that at all. I also have angel statues on my desk too.

At my work desk / area, I have: Two zombie figures from the Walking Dead, a Darth Vader figure, a big stuffed vulture named Boris that one of my co-workers knitted a little Easter bonnet for, a pirate rubber duck, a statue of St. Francis, a San Damiano crucifix, a magic 8-ball, and a “pet tornado” in a plastic jar.

 

[Skye_Ariel]

At my work desk / area, I have: Two zombie figures from the Walking Dead, a Darth Vader figure, a big stuffed vulture named Boris that one of my co-workers knitted a little Easter bonnet for, a pirate rubber duck, a statue of St. Francis, a San Damiano crucifix, a magic 8-ball, and a “pet tornado” in a plastic jar.

That sounds like an interesting desk!