s/o: if you're catholic, how do you deal with sticking by the church?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:as i'm watching this conversation, i can't help but notice the similarity to government. overall approval ratings of congress are at an all time low (like 20% basically), but if you ask people if they think their own representative deserves to be re-elected, they overwhelmingly say yes!

this is really the same. us catholics say we are disappointed with the vatican, but we stay catholic because we love our own personal church. very interesting . . . .

Or, there are those of us who actually support the Vatican, and love our faith including the more controversial teachings. I for one believe in the official Church, not my "personal" church.

good for you. here's your cookie. but you are not representative of American catholics by any stretch.

Actually, the poll data says the poster is representative of American Catholics.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:as i'm watching this conversation, i can't help but notice the similarity to government. overall approval ratings of congress are at an all time low (like 20% basically), but if you ask people if they think their own representative deserves to be re-elected, they overwhelmingly say yes!

this is really the same. us catholics say we are disappointed with the vatican, but we stay catholic because we love our own personal church. very interesting . . . .

Or, there are those of us who actually support the Vatican, and love our faith including the more controversial teachings. I for one believe in the official Church, not my "personal" church.

good for you. here's your cookie. but you are not representative of American catholics by any stretch.

Actually, the poll data says the poster is representative of American Catholics.

Oops, I got the quote level wrong. The data says that American Catholics are disappointed with the Pope. Of course we all know who the nutjobs in church are, and we don't dare talk about our disagreements in front of them because they are insufferable.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There was a great NY Times piece by Nicholas Kristoff about this. In short, he said you can find the very best of the Catholocism and the Church in the priests, nuns and Catholic lay people who sacrifice everything to teach, feed, and sustain the poor and disabled -- particularly those who do this in Africa and Latin America and literally risk their lives each day in dangerous, war-torn areas to do God's work. I am pro-choice, support gay marriage, lived in sin with my DH, etc. and yet I still consider myself Catholic having been raised by East Coast liberals and taught to gently question what I learned in Catholic school (K-12). I support the Jesuit/social justice/public service arm of Catholocism and have dedicated my career to advocating for people experiencing homelessness. I abhor what the Church did to cover up abuse, but I won't let "the Church" ruin Catholocism for me. My faith is too important to me.

You could get all of the benefits and much less of the negatives by becoming Protestant.

Um, not really. As I've mentioned, I was raised Catholic and I embrace the Jesuit philosophy of public service and social justice. How many Protestant nuns run orphanages in Calcutta?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:There was a great NY Times piece by Nicholas Kristoff about this. In short, he said you can find the very best of the Catholocism and the Church in the priests, nuns and Catholic lay people who sacrifice everything to teach, feed, and sustain the poor and disabled -- particularly those who do this in Africa and Latin America and literally risk their lives each day in dangerous, war-torn areas to do God's work. I am pro-choice, support gay marriage, lived in sin with my DH, etc. and yet I still consider myself Catholic having been raised by East Coast liberals and taught to gently question what I learned in Catholic school (K-12). I support the Jesuit/social justice/public service arm of Catholocism and have dedicated my career to advocating for people experiencing homelessness. I abhor what the Church did to cover up abuse, but I won't let "the Church" ruin Catholocism for me. My faith is too important to me.

You could get all of the benefits and much less of the negatives by becoming Protestant.

Um, not really. As I've mentioned, I was raised Catholic and I embrace the Jesuit philosophy of public service and social justice. How many Protestant nuns run orphanages in Calcutta?

OK, I am a Jesuit-educated Catholic who shares a similar view on public service and social justice. That said, EVERYBODY works in Kolkata. They don't all have nuns, but pretty much every denomination is there in some way.