What is the purpose of the Non-Catholic Religion section of the forum?

[why_me]

I have been wondering about the purpose of this section of the forum. Originally when I discovered it, I thought that it would be a place where various religions or non-catholic faiths are discussed in a christian manner with kindness, politeness and understanding. But I realized that this wasn’t so.

Quite often, various faiths are dragged through the mud and the tone is usually one of superiority and rudeness toward other faiths and its members who may post here.

I am sure that when Catholic Answers put this title in the forum they had other intentions in mind. Now of course, there has been at times respect shown to other faiths but I have found this to be seldom or not often.

And so, since this section is one of contention, anger, and bigotry, I wonder if it does a disservice to the Catholic religion and to Catholic Answers. And as such, it needs to be abolished or shut down for a while and allow the christian spirit to return to the forum so that god’s love can flourish.

 

[Scottgun]

We already have a thread on this.

 

[why_me]

We already have a thread on this.

It just goes to show that this section has a problem and the catholics who bash do a disservice to the faith.

 

[Indyann]

An easy one.

Non-Catholic Religions - explore the history and beliefs of non-Catholic and non-Christian faiths, dialogue with their adherents

 

[LaMar]

And so, since this section is one of contention, anger, and bigotry, I wonder if it does a disservice to the Catholic religion and to Catholic Answers. And as such, it needs to be abolished or shut down for a while and allow the christian spirit to return to the forum so that god’s love can flourish.

The angry bigots you mention here are not an important part of this forum. You can set them to be ignored and then you can concentrate on the posts that will teach you new and interesting ways to approach spirituality.

Nearly everyone I have ignored is either a Mormon or a former Mormon who converted to something else. With that in mind, it’s also not really fair to blame the Catholics.

I think we should appreciate this forum for what it is, rather than trying to mold it into something else. Even if it were just you here, and every other person was hostile and wanting to fight, I’d stay and talk to you. There are a lot of interesting people here. The grouchy ones are of no consequence. Enjoy it!

 

[why_me]

An easy one.

Non-Catholic Religions - explore the history and beliefs of non-Catholic and non-Christian faiths, dialogue with their adherents

If only this were true. I have found it not to be so in many cases. It is not about dialogue at all. Rather, there is a lot of bashing and disrespect. But lets hope it can be about dialogue with other faiths with respectful voices.

People or societies seem to be too angry or full of aggression to just dialogue without mocking or downing other religions.

 

[Corki]

Official purpose:

Non-Catholic Religions - explore the history and beliefs of non-Catholic and non-Christian faiths, dialogue with their adherents

In practice, as with most forums where real humans participate, the focus shifts over time.

At one time this sub-forum was primarily focused on helping Catholics defend attack from specific non-Catholic evengelists. Those discussions are mostly in the Apologetics forum now.

For a while, the NC Religion section had a “no Catholics allowed” flavor and was treated like a club house for Non Catholics who expected to be left alone (on a Catholic site ) from any hint of “papist propoganda” while they bashed Catholic teaching and Catholics in general. Thankfully, those times were dealt with swiftly.

If you feel that a poster is being rude or breaking forum rules, just report him/her to the moderators. They are great at dealing with this kind of thing. OR you can put people who seem to be offending you on “ignore” so you can’t see them. I have only done this a few times but the people I ignore seem to be asked to leave so I guess I was not the only one offended.

One hint - don’t spend a lot of time on old threads in this subforum or on ones over 3 pages of posts. They tend to be ones that are way off track or that devolved into some kind of personal debate.

I hope you find a more peaceful posting experience in the future.

 

[why_me]

The angry bigots you mention here are not an important part of this forum. You can set them to be ignored and then you can concentrate on the posts that will teach you new and interesting ways to approach spirituality.

I think we should appreciate this forum for what it is, rather than trying to mold it into something else. Even if it were just you here, and every other person was hostile and wanting to fight, I’d stay and talk to you. There are a lot of interesting people here. The grouchy ones are of no consequence. Enjoy it!

I have never put people on ignore but even if I did so, they would still be showing the catholic faith unfavorably. It is not just the mormon threads that lead to bashing. I have seen it on other threads where other faiths are discussed. And so, it is not just the catholics who hate the lds church but a range of other catholics who feel that it is okay to bash.

The forum is great but this section has its problem when displaying the christian spirit and I do believe that the moderating needs to be more virulent when posters show disrespect toward other faiths.

 

[why_me]

Official purpose:

In practice, as with most forums where real humans participate, the focus shifts over time.

At one time this sub-forum was primarily focused on helping Catholics defend attack from specific non-Catholic evengelists. Those discussions are mostly in the Apologetics forum now.

For a while, the NC Religion section had a “no Catholics allowed” flavor and was treated like a club house for Non Catholics who expected to be left alone (on a Catholic site ) from any hint of “papist propoganda” while they bashed Catholic teaching and Catholics in general. Thankfully, those times were dealt with swiftly.

If you feel that a poster is being rude or breaking forum rules, just report him/her to the moderators. They are great at dealing with this kind of thing. OR you can put people who seem to be offending you on “ignore” so you can’t see them. I have only done this a few times but the people I ignore seem to be asked to leave so I guess I was not the only one offended.

One hint - don’t spend a lot of time on old threads in this subforum or on ones over 3 pages of posts. They tend to be ones that are way off track or that devolved into some kind of personal debate.

I hope you find a more peaceful posting experience in the future.

Thanks for the history of the subsection. It was interesting. And also for the advice. I am a sapsucker for long threads because the bashers can bash for ever. I find myself needing to respond.

I would have thought that the moderators do read the threads often and spot mockers and bashers. I see no change of behavior with the catholic offenders.

It is an interesting subsection.

 

[LaMar]

I have never put people on ignore but even if I did so, they would still be showing the catholic faith unfavorably. It is not just the mormon threads that lead to bashing. I have seen it on other threads where other faiths are discussed. And so, it is not just the catholics who hate the lds church but a range of other catholics who feel that it is okay to bash.

The forum is great but this section has its problem when displaying the christian spirit and I do believe that the moderating needs to be more virulent when posters show disrespect toward other faiths.

Come on. You and I both know that nobody judges Catholicism by the nastiness that some Catholics exude. It’d be like going over to that MAD board (very appropriate name) and assuming the average Mormon acted that way.

People who are grouchy and angry can be seen as motivated by psychological processes. They might be talking about Catholicism, but they’re really just using Catholicism to explain what’s going on inside themselves. People who are overtly disrespectful or malicious don’t arouse any angst in me…more often it’s sympathy.

I do appreciate and respect your opinion. I went to the MAD forum and I had some of the same reactions that you do, here, as a Catholic. Ultimately though, I trust that most who might witness how they trash Catholics and Protestants over there will realize that there are deeper issues being addressed than simply doctrine or mythology. You shouldn’t take it personally or assume anyone else will.

 

[cruisin]

I had assumed it was for open dialog and learning, not for prosolitizing.

But it seems some here (not all) tend to work very hard to walk a very thin line when it comes to the rules. humans

 

[zaffiroborant]

I do believe that the moderating needs to be more virulent when posters show disrespect toward other faiths.

Should that virulence include your precious Z?

 

[why_me]

Come on. You and I both know that nobody judges Catholicism by the nastiness that some Catholics exude.

You would be surprised. I have been around here for a long time. Many people have found this section to be offensive and have judged catholicism accordingly. I don’t. I have been around catholics all my life. But…the attitude of a few can impact the view of the many.

 

[why_me]

Should that virulence include your precious Z?

Z is an interesting case. He defends his mormonism in his own way. Unfortunately, the nice mormons do not stay for very long mainly because of the nastiness and rudeness of a few. And that is the way they (the antimormon catholics) like it. I have seen good mormon posters disappear after disrespect toward their faith and yet, they came for dialogue which is the reason for this forum.

 

[zaffiroborant]

Z is an interesting case. He defends his mormonism in his own way. Unfortunately, the nice mormons do not stay for very long mainly because of the nastiness and rudeness of a few. And that is the way they (the antimormon catholics) like it. I have seen good mormon posters disappear after disrespect toward their faith and yet, they came for dialogue which is the reason for this forum.

From this response I’d guess no it shouldn’t apply to Z.

 

[why_me]

People who are grouchy and angry can be seen as motivated by psychological processes. They might be talking about Catholicism, but they’re really just using Catholicism to explain what’s going on inside themselves. People who are overtly disrespectful or malicious don’t arouse any angst in me…more often it’s sympathy.

Do you remember your first posts? They were not the most respectful toward a certain personality. But you changed and that says a lot about you. Now…for the other more judgemental catholics, well, they need to go to confession and confess their behavior on this forum. They all should know better.

 

[LaMar]

Do you remember your first posts? They were not the most respectful toward a certain personality. But you changed and that says a lot about you. Now…for the other more judgemental catholics, well, they need to go to confession and confess their behavior on this forum. They all should know better.

Well, we argued a little bit, but it was a mutual thing. Wasn’t it you who called me an apostate and told me I should be excommunicated?

No big deal. Like I mentioned before, I understand where you’re coming from. The behavior of some Mormons is as embarrassing to me as some of the Catholics’ behavior is to you. I just like to prioritize in favor of learning new and interesting things from people who are relatively stable. This forum is like a diamond mine. You can sit in the slag-heap and deconstruct the rubble, or you can start polishing the precious stones. Something for everybody, in other words.

 

[why_me]

From this response I’d guess no it shouldn’t apply to Z.

Z is a product of the forum. Bash the lds church and he bashes back. I don’t agree with him. But catholics are the host and the host does need to be polite and welcoming. Where much is given much is expected.

 

[twopekinguys]

Z is a product of the forum. Bash the lds church and he bashes back. I don’t agree with him. But catholics are the host and the host does need to be polite and welcoming. Where much is given much is expected.

Why is it I always detect the tone of being persecuted in your posts? Especially when your points aren’t well received. Like when on another thread you explained that you receive communion at Catholic Masses, and the sacrament at Mormon sacrament meetings. (after you danced around it for quite awhile)

I have seen many of your posts, and just many of them as nonsubstantive, and meant to inflame others in the forum.

Just because someone doesn’t agree with what you are saying, doesn’t mean they are bashing.

Trust me, this board is much more civil on alot of issues compared to some other “christian” boards, and also over at MAD

 

[why_me]

Why is it I always detect the tone of being persecuted in your posts? Especially when your points aren’t well received. Like when on another thread you explained that you receive communion at Catholic Masses, and the sacrament at Mormon sacrament meetings. (after you danced around it for quite awhile)

I have seen many of your posts, and just many of them as nonsubstantive, and meant to inflame others in the forum.

Just because someone doesn’t agree with what you are saying, doesn’t mean they are bashing.

Trust me, this board is much more civil on alot of issues compared to some other “christian” boards, and also over at MAD

Nope you got that one wrong. I don’t feel persecuted at all. And my posts are far from inflammatory. Maybe you don’t agree with them and that makes them inflammatory but, in general I am rather a peaceful poster. In terms of taking communion, I feel comfortable with my decision. And so no problem.

But notice how in your post you become personal. This is my point and one of the reasons why people leave the forum.

Where have all the gentle mormons gone? To greener pastures every one.