So why is the Catholic church so political these days

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It’s political because people are people. Because politics is part of society and we are social creatures. Politics isn’t bad. Politics is necessary in and of itself. What’s bad is all the blaming, the lying, and the “us vs them” mentality. Sadly however, people being what they are, are wont to turn the political arena into a bloodbath. That has always been the case. Always will be. Every country. Every society. Even every church.
 
That’s a pretty broad generalization. (I also take it you aren’t a Democrat)… like I said in my other post… the “us vs them” mentality. It may shock you to know that some Democrats are pro-life and some Republicans aren’t. Get to know the individual person before you stereotype them.
 
My parish in my town and my overall experience was usually pretty standard and whenever I would go overseas, in general, going to mass was a time when I felt I was in a place at least somewhat familiar, but funny enough it was when I went to a mass a church in Berkeley I probably got the biggest culture shock of all. Definitely politically influenced and not “conservative” territory, let’s just put it that way. 😂

Pretty heavy on the social justice front but the kicker was the prayers of the faithful where the congregants and the priest openly prayed out loud for womens’ ordination.

My friend who is far more liberal than I am thought “how interesting” and looked over at me:
 
So I am talking about a Church group where we talked about the Bible and tried to apply it to our own lives. We didn’t talk about whether Bill Clinton should be president. I feel sorry for the people who say it has always been political. I had a different experience. And no I do not live in a remote area. It wasnt about politics for us. It was about our walk with Jesus
 
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Hehe, welcome to Beserkley. Like I said before in the thread, in the 70’s you would run into some of that at parish churches. The older generation were usually shocked or not pleased, the teens and 20 somethings then generally liked it.
Now the people who were young then are 50 and 60 something and in my experience the teens and 20somethings who go to church skew more traditional.
 
Those kinds of groups still exist. I belong to one. And while politics may enter the conversation, it’s not the main focus. But if you’re talking about how to live as a Christian or how the gospel affects your life, there are going to be times when you can’t help but say, “I wonder if the Republicans ever read that” or “What would the Democrats say about that?”
 
I was not in the church in the 70’s. Came back in the mid 80’s. Never felt judged for my political beliefs until Obama. I’m gone again. And now it’s ridiculous. People turn handsprings making excuses for everything Trump says (and does). I cannot accept him. Pro life perhaps. But the damage that he has done to families is unacceptable .
 
I guarantee you the congregation at the Hispanic churches I attend sometimes is not turning handsprings cheering for Trump.
Nor are a lot of other Catholics I know.
 
0Scarlett_nidiyilii said:
There were anti-legalized-abortion Democrats in those days who walked their talk fearlessly.
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I remember that from when I was a kid (around 10, give or take)
Tis_Bearself said:
It’s a mix in US too. The conservatives tend to dominate Internet forums, but there are tons of liberals and moderates if you just talk to a cross section of folks.
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Definitely!
MichelleGeorge said:
people being what they are, are wont to turn the political arena into a bloodbath.
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Just ask Julius Ceaser 🙂
MichelleGeorge said:
It may shock you to know that some Democrats are pro-life and some Republicans aren’t. Get to know the individual person before you stereotype them.
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Not very many pro-life politicians who self-identify as Democrat and are pro-life. While individual people may identify as Democrats, the Democratic platform on euthanasia, abortion, embryonic stem cell research, LGBTQ rights, etc are pretty much strongly pro. This makes it difficult for us who are pro-life to vote for a Democratic candidate even when we identify with environmental concerns, social justice concerns, immigration issues, public education issues, etc. The right to life is a very fundamental issue to many traditional Catholics and the current Democratic platform tend to force us to choose.
Tis_Bearself said:
Nor are a lot of other Catholics I know.
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Even the most conservative Catholics I know are leery of Trump and feel a bit forced into voting for the evil that agrees with you or the evil that doesn’t in this last election. It was, and remains, a very divided country in terms of politics.

I think the Church will always be a place where politics has the potential to intrude. Our congregation comes from a political system that has enormous and lasting impact on people’s daily lives. There is no “walk with Jesus” that isn’t going to include political decisions as long as we all have a vote. Whether the parishoners at your church discuss it or not will most likely be individual to each parish.

There was a time, in particular the Middle Ages, when the RCC had ENORMOUS political power. Far, far more than it does now. ONe of the ways for Joe Average to get ahead was to be bright and get tapped for a career in the Church, which came with an enormous amount of political power. At least we CAN discuss political things in Church without the fear of torture or particularly grisly public execution…
 
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Definitely. But there was some good news after my visit – the archdiocese and Archbishop Cordileone changed the leadership with this particular parish in the last few years, and from what I’ve read online, it’s changed for the better. Once the leadership changed, people started to revolt and leave, especially when, heaven forbid, they spoke out against abortion in the pulpit. It must have been a shock to some of those people to see the parish become, well, Catholic.

Their website now advertises:
Beautiful liturgy!
Confession!
The rosary!
Holy hour!

Viva Cordileone.

The more heterodox parishioners in the area likely either left for a parish more towards their liking or left Catholicism entirely.
 
I especially can’t stomach the “Trump = pro-life” propoganda. That’s stupidity… There are other things, the anti-LGBTQ stuff you mentioned is another … More of why I’m gladly heading back to Canterbury.
 
You should always vote, as a Catholic.
If you don’t, certain things suddenly become allowed.
You end up - standing there - in shock - that something’s been allowed.
You ask your fellow church goers about the issue -
They shrug - and give you a blank stare - then complain.

I vote.
 
Dividing families and not keepitng track of where the children are. Some of them have been deported without their kids. Maybe to not be reunited ever. So if you are okay with this then this is one of the reasons I’m having problems with the Church
 
I do too. But I look at how the political parties take care of the poor. Supposedly we have the best economy ever. But he canceled a raise for federal employees because we couldn’t afford it corporate profits are higher than ever. But we are not benefiting.
 
Did you have the same problem with obama and bush and Clinton when they did the exact same thing or do you just hold this against trump because the media chose to spotlight it for political gain?
 
He did in fact do this

It’s been the law since the 90s. Obama didn’t do it at the same rate, but every administration when prosecuting illegal entry has detained parents in prisons and put children in temporary custody until the courts have done their thing.
 
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