I see that he’s a diocesan priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago and that he taught at my Alma Mater in Rome. He must be smart. Afterall, it’s my Alma Mater.
Yes - I think it can. We are always admonished to avoid the occasion to sin. For those not so inclined to put up a defense just think of what “the pill” did. It’s like leaving a kid alone in a candy store. I know of several Catholic families that have larger families and they get stared at in the grocery stores as if they are almost sexually promiscuous. There is a societal pressure NOT to have children. On this point being Catholic is very counter cultural and it takes a personality that’s not afraid to be different; and for some people this is a very difficult thing to do.
This I’m more comfortable with. I do believe that for many people, birth control is a conflict that they can’t overcome. I don’t think the issue is sex. People have been promiscuous since the day that Adam was created, but birth control has been a major hurdle for many Catholics, especially since Humanae Vitae.
Deo Gratias. :byzsoc:
If I can zero in on this statement. I would say the Church is not ‘counter culture’ as much as it is a separate culture from the world around it. It runs paralel to all cultures (whether dominate or ineffective, depending on the location). Catholic culture will satisfy neither conservative nor liberal, because it cannot be easily pigeonholed.
Yepper!! Ditto to JustaServant. I like different priests for different reasons. For rallying the troups and giving the marching orders to the laity – Father Corapi is the man!!Thanks for posting that.
I think you’ve hit the nail on the head. I’m a bit cynical about the hardliners who criticise Vatican II and then ignore the incorrupt remains of John XXIII who ushered the Council into being. They ignore the fact that in the early 1960’s Europe and the UK were still getting over World War II which finished only 18 years before and the increase in expected life span from around 68 to about 80.
The thing about America is that it has always seemed the duty of parents to give their kids more opportunity than what they themselves had. As the cost of things increase (namely education and health care) the number of high paying blue collar jobs has plummeted. So what do we have now? A society where education is very expensive but also very vital for success. Gone are the days when anyone (Catholic or not) can work at a factory and make enough money to put four, five, or six kids through college. Now, in many cases it takes two parents working full time to put one or two kids thorugh college — or even afford a Catholic high school education. The world has changed and families have changed with it. This is especially true in states like Ohio, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, parts of New York and the rest of rust belt.
It really falls on the shoulders of the laity with a lot of grace from God to maintain balance with the Church in the world. In so many ways the world has crept into the Church because the laity, bishops, and priests have allowed that to happen.
I agree. However, I think we need to strengthen Catholic families and marriage. If that happens we wil get all the vocations we need plus other blessings.
