Masturbation a Sin ? :confused:

[Rau]

I find it more accurate imo. I could use El Elohim.

I was unsure that you actually believed Jesus was God.

 

[Cimachol]

"Not taking risks, please, no… prudence…’ ‘Obeying all the commandments, all of them…’ Yes, it’s true, but this paralyzes you too, it makes you forget so many graces received, it takes away memory, it takes away hope, because it doesn’t allow you to go forward. And the present of a Christian, of such a Christian, is like when one goes along the street and an unexpected rain comes, and the garment is not so good and the fabric shrinks… Confined souls… This is cowardliness: this is the sin against memory, courage, patience, and hope.”

Pope Francis
romereports.com/2017/01/2…yze-christians

Quote:
The superior general of the Society of Jesus has said that all Church doctrine must be subject to discernment.

In an interview with a Swiss journalist, Father Arturo Sosa Abascal said that the words of Jesus, too, must be weighed in their “historical context,” taking into account the culture in which Jesus lived and the human limitations of the men who wrote the Gospels.

catholicculture.org/news/…?storyid=30831

Quote:
National Catholic Register Commentary: According to the logic of the Maltese bishops and their defenders, in the area of sexuality subjective conscience can annul universal moral principles.

ncregister.com/daily-news/amo…and-conscience

I think that when one is trying to understand what the Church teaches on a specific issue, it is best to look at what the Church teaches on that specific issue, rather than trying to infer a way around that teaching from rather vague statements by people in the Church.

Regarding Pope Francis’ statement, I would agree with him that focusing on rules at the exclusion of everything else can lead to a cowardly Christianity, because we are called to something deeper than rule-following. But even he says, “Obeying all the commandments, all of them…’ Yes, it’s true …” So he’s not denying the importance of following moral law or saying that it’s outdated. He’s saying that we need to go deeper – basically what Jesus says, in my opinion.

For example, one could never masturbate, never commit adultery, etc., and still not be much of a Christian if one never reaches out to help anyone and minister to them. We just follow the rules and stop there.

 

[Rau]

I think that when one is trying to understand what the Church teaches on a specific issue, it is best to look at what the Church teaches on that specific issue, rather than trying to infer a way around that teaching from rather vague statements by people in the Church.

Regarding Pope Francis’ statement, I would agree with him that focusing on rules at the exclusion of everything else can lead to a cowardly Christianity, because we are called to something deeper than rule-following. But even he says, “Obeying all the commandments, all of them…’ Yes, it’s true …” So he’s not denying the importance of following moral law or saying that it’s outdated. He’s saying that we need to go deeper – basically what Jesus says, in my opinion.

For example, one could never masturbate, never commit adultery, etc., and still not be much of a Christian if one never reaches out to help anyone and minister to them. We just follow the rules and stop there.

When one says “follow the commandments” - that’s normally a reference to the negative precepts (“thou shall not”…), noting these are definitive. But consider the positive precepts - love of God, of neighbor, of parents. These call us beyond rule-following.

 

[Cimachol]

When one says “follow the commandments” - that’s normally a reference to the negative precepts (“thou shall not”…), noting these are definitive. But consider the positive precepts - love of God, of neighbor, of parents. These call us beyond rule-following.

Absolutely, but it doesn’t imply that we can go ahead and start doing those other things. In fact, the “thou shalt nots” are all tied in some way to the greatest commandment, “Love God with all your heart, all your soul and all your mind,” and the second, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” We don’t always see the connection right away, but all the various things we are told not to do somehow keep us from being truly loving.

 

[Rau]

Absolutely, but it doesn’t imply that we can go ahead and start doing those other things.

I think that is clear.

 

[BoomBoomMancini]

I find it more accurate imo. I could use El Elohim.

Yes, you could. You could say “Dios” or “Allah” or anything else, and if you were posting in Spanish or Arabic that would be appropriate. But you know you’re on a message populated mostly by Catholics who speak English as their first language, and it’s 2017. Most people say “God” and “Jesus.”

I can’t tell what the point is in insisting on using other terms. Are you trying to impress people with your Old Testament credibility? Are you trying to get a rise out of people? Are you just trying to be different for the sake of difference?

Since you’re an atheist, I assume there’s not a doctrinal reason why you insist on using different terminology.

 

[leamar3]

Wake up. The churches are emptying out all over the Church’s European homeland. There’s a critical priest shortage. Masses of people are just walking away, never to be seen again. There’s a big price to be paid for rampant irrationality. And it’s all over nothing. Nothing at all.

I have nothing to say about the churches is Europe, but my parish has thousands of people attend mass every Sunday. The parking lot is always packed and many times there’s standing room only. We have 5 services for Sunday, too, so it’s not like we have one service and that’s the only option. We are also one of several local Catholic churches , so it’s not because Catholics have no other church to attend. I went to the Rite of Election the other day, and probably 200+ people are joining local parishes this Easter. As far as what I see, the Catholic Church is growing by leaps and bounds…and I live in the bible belt where you wouldn’t think we’d really have many Catholics.

 

[Cimachol]

I have nothing to say about the churches is Europe, but my parish has thousands of people attend mass every Sunday. The parking lot is always packed and many times there’s standing room only. We have 5 services for Sunday, too, so it’s not like we have one service and that’s the only option. We are also one of several local Catholic churches , so it’s not because Catholics have no other church to attend. I went to the Rite of Election the other day, and probably 200+ people are joining local parishes this Easter. As far as what I see, the Catholic Church is growing by leaps and bounds…and I live in the bible belt where you wouldn’t think we’d really have many Catholics.

Amen. We are not going to make the Church stronger by watering down her truth.