Wait, I thought you said this was a Catholic parish?
No, but seriously I appreciate what you say there. And, if I may, I believe that the Protestant churches near me are just that fair and kind to Nonprotestants, despite what may be posted on this or that Protestant blog or forum.That was/is my thing too. I never understood it.
All the best with that!
And also congratulations! but I just wanted to say that, here in England, Iāve never really experienced too much judgementalism from either side (although I might just have been lucky). As a Catholic-leaning Anglican, I knew some people from the more conservative evangelical parts of the church who found some of the things I believed in a bit odd, but I wouldnāt say they were ever unfriendly or judgemental. The people who would steer clear of anything remotely Catholic-y at ecumenical events were very few. Similarly, since becoming a Catholic Iāve met people who donāt like Protestants or think Iām a second class Catholic as a convert, but theyāre also few and far between.Try a different parish. There are lots of very human reasons for a parish to be in turmoil. More than likely, it has nothing to do with you and everything to do with some type of issue in that particular parish.
I donāt agree with this. I donāt believe St Paul would suggest going somewhere different. Rather, suffer injustice, and try to better the community. Anyway, we do have canonical parishes, where we are suppose to attend/participate.
What does it mean to be a Catholic-leaning Anglican?I know Iām a bit late to the thread
Interestingly, the most judgemental people seem to be those who arenāt involved in a church at all. Iāve heard the most vehement anti-Catholic rhetoric from people whoāve never set foot in a church in their lives. I think there is still a lingering anti-Catholic vibe in parts of England for historical reasons (CofE is patriotic and good, RC is Foreign and Bad) but generally Iāve found that practicing Christians here are quite accepting of one another.
Interesting perspective from England.I know Iām a bit late to the thread
Interestingly, the most judgemental people seem to be those who arenāt involved in a church at all. Iāve heard the most vehement anti-Catholic rhetoric from people whoāve never set foot in a church in their lives. I think there is still a lingering anti-Catholic vibe in parts of England for historical reasons (CofE is patriotic and good, RC is Foreign and Bad) but generally Iāve found that practicing Christians here are quite accepting of one another.
i disagree. he didnāt address this at all since parishes were not so numerous and close together in his time. he would have agreed with you if the decision was stay or leave the church all together. There is nothing wrong with changing parishes especially if the current parish is not acting like a christian community.
i donāt understand it at all. In all my time as a catholic, i have seen some rudeness from catholics, but i have never once met a catholic who has been as nasty and disgusting as the huge number of protestants iāve come across, both as a kid and as an adult.
Ok. I can see some reasoning behind a certain situation. I did not say I think TC should āfixā a Parish. But my sentiment is more in line with seeking Jesus and not manās opinions. Devote to Him. In a case where there is poor behavior and attitudes, and a newcomer is able to attend another close Parish that strengthens him/her, I am not strictly against. But it should be raised to the attention of the better Parish, so that something is done on their part. To just go to another Parish, when things get challenging only hurts the body. Others may attend and decide that itās all hypocrisy and never continue believing!
Good question, Iāll try to keep the answer short
Thatās interesting. Iād heard bits and pieces about how Catholicism is viewed in America during the election coverage, but thatās far from an unbiased picture! The CC is a relative newcomer here, as the hierarchy was only re-established in 1850 (the monarch still isnāt allowed to be a Catholic, and itās frowned on in public office - look at Tony Blair waiting to step down as PM before he converted). Is there a sense of the CC being an outsider where you are, or is there a particular denomination that itās āpatrioticā to belong to, as with the Church of England?
I think the āifā part of your statement hits the nail right on the head.
We have a history in the US of anti-Catholicism. Things like requiring candidates for political office to take a vow that they did not believe in transubstantiation existed up through the 1920s. We have only had one Catholic president (and he downplayed it) out of 45. It was the religion of immigrants and resulted in the rise of the Nativist party. The statistics really show how much the US changed in a very short time. In 1840, Catholics made up 2% of Americans. By the 1920s, it was 22% (think Irish, German, and Italian immigrants). This caused a huge uproar and groups like the KKK, who were already going after black people, added people with so called āimmigrant religionsā, such as Catholics and Jews, to their target list.
Not really an option for me. This is the only Parish in our town, so Iām kind of stuck. It all kind of comes from the top down. The father that used to be there reallyā¦really didnāt like non-Catholic Christians and loved to make that known. Seems like the new father isnāt a big fan either.
Thanksā¦greatly appreciated.All the best with that!
great explanation! thanks!Good question, Iāll try to keep the answer short
When the Church of England split from Rome, Henry VIII kept most of the Catholic liturgy and practice (i.e. The Mass). Later rulers wanted to bring the CofE more in line with the other reformed European churches. The 1662 Book of Common Prayer, still the CofEās foundation document, is very anti-Catholic, denying the real presence, the intercession of saints, banning tabernacles and the mixing of water and wine and the elevation of the host in the Eucharist etc.
In the 19th century, a movement called the Oxford Movement or Tractarian movement under John Henry Newman (now bl. John Henry Newman) started to reassert the Catholic heritage of the CofE, which included a return to Catholic practices, vestments etc which had been previously banned.
So the CofE now has two wings, broadly speaking - the reformed who are much more in line with other Protestant churches and Anglo-Catholics, who follow Catholic practice, often use the Roman Missal, venerate the saints and Our Lady at places such as Walsingham but, for whatever reason, canāt bring themselves to cross the Tiber. Itās a cause of a lot of internal tension. One parish might believe in the real presence, the priesthood - the next door one believes in memorial meals and elected leaders.
Hope that helps