Catholicism - I was disturbed by a leaftlet at Mass (Deists, tradition)

[Alpha8207]

Originally Posted by robertpolyglot

First, this is NOT the place for those who want to bash Catholics. I only want discourse based on something I experienced while at Mass/Church.

I went to Mass at a parish I rarely go to. While waiting in the entry area, they had some leaflets I was looking at. One was entitled "Hell Exists and You Might Just Go There." I picked it up and read through it, quickly. Essentially, it talked about hell being a reality and it also added that praying the Rosary, including certain indispensible intermediate specific words of prayer, was essential to salvation. It was put out by one particular religious order. It made me fairly mad because it harkened back to the Catholic grammar school message of "you are basically bad kids" that is no longer "in vogue."

A couple of things:
(1) Do you still see the Catholic church, of which I am a member, as selling the "you are bad" scenario....I thought they were moving away from this....I mean, right now, churches are losing so many people that they can't be pushing this message
(2) How do you deal with the splintering of the Church by various orders? (As if the splintering between Christian sects wasn't already bad enough). Some orders push the Rosary and others do not. I once had a penance/atonement changed on me by a priest from another order because he disagreed with the previous priest's penance (which I brought up because I still hadn't done it because there were some logistics issues...not a big deal, really). There is this canyon between the liberal and the conservative, even within our own Church.

Catholics, or those familiar with Catholicism that aren't here to bash it, please chime in.

Cleaned up the thread and just wanted to repost the OP.....please see the bolded portions above.

Thanks all!

[Oakback]

Originally Posted by Alpha8207

Cleaned up the thread and just wanted to repost the OP.....please see the bolded portions above.

Thanks all!

As a Catholic, I can empathize with you.

However, the Churches desire to one day get all of these diverse groups to one day speak with one voice is what I find so appealing.

As long as we can all admit that we're still imperfect, and keep our eye on Christ, we'll continue to be ok.

[robertpolyglot]

Originally Posted by Oakback

As long as we can all admit that we're still imperfect, and keep our eye on Christ, we'll continue to be ok.

Precisely how I live my life. Sixteen years of Catholic school, including college, and I no longer remember what was where in the Bible. But I did when I had to take a test and get an "A." I think the important thing is that the fundamental lessons about how to live a good Christian life remained.

[corking28]

Originally Posted by robertpolyglot

First, this is NOT the place for those who want to bash Catholics. I only want discourse based on something I experienced while at Mass/Church.

I went to Mass at a parish I rarely go to. While waiting in the entry area, they had some leaflets I was looking at. One was entitled "Hell Exists and You Might Just Go There." I picked it up and read through it, quickly. Essentially, it talked about hell being a reality and it also added that praying the Rosary, including certain indispensible intermediate specific words of prayer, was essential to salvation. It was put out by one particular religious order. It made me fairly mad because it harkened back to the Catholic grammar school message of "you are basically bad kids" that is no longer "in vogue."

A couple of things:
(1) Do you still see the Catholic church, of which I am a member, as selling the "you are bad" scenario....I thought they were moving away from this....I mean, right now, churches are losing so many people that they can't be pushing this message
(2) How do you deal with the splintering of the Church by various orders? (As if the splintering between Christian sects wasn't already bad enough). Some orders push the Rosary and others do not. I once had a penance/atonement changed on me by a priest from another order because he disagreed with the previous priest's penance (which I brought up because I still hadn't done it because there were some logistics issues...not a big deal, really). There is this canyon between the liberal and the conservative, even within our own Church.

Catholics, or those familiar with Catholicism that aren't here to bash it, please chime in.

If you are saved and born again you would react to this leaflet with praise to God because you don't want to see anyone in ehll. I am not sure if you ever handed your life over to Christ and asked him to save you and then turned away from all your sins and then begin to read and follow the New Testament.

[weatherologist]

Originally Posted by corking28

If you are saved and born again you would react to this leaflet with praise to God because you don't want to see anyone in ehll. I am not sure if you ever handed your life over to Christ and asked him to save you and then turned away from all your sins and then begin to read and follow the New Testament.

corking,
As a practicing Christian, what church do you subscribe to? By your posts, you seem to be sure that you know 'the way' and I would appreciate knowing what faith/denomination that you consider yourself.
Thank you in advance.
<>< weather...

[IbeDavid]

Hell is a non issue for those who are saved from thier sins and who are Born Again in christ. Jesus said 'Dont die in your sins' and kept repeating it to many. He said there would be condemnation for those who did die in thier sins...so.... maybe its better to have ALL our sins forgiven in this life instead of leaving some for Purgatory (??)

[Chinolala]

If you're Catholic and delusioned, look into the Orthodox Christian churches. They are Catholic, but not Roman. Sacraments are the same. Congregations are smaller, priests will visit homes (for free), ceremonies are done for free (donations requested) and priests can marry as long as they do so before becoming fully ordained. No big emphasis on hell or making one feel guilty. People attend church to attend, not because the fear of what may happen if they don't. The Orthodox chuch is by far the most similar to the Roman Catholic church and an easy and more natural transition for Catholics than any Protestant church.

[histmaj]

"Congregations are smaller, priests will visit homes (for free), ceremonies are done for free (donations requested)" Actually there are plenty of Catholic Churches with small congregations. Also, it is against Catholic doctrine to make people pay for ceremonies(but donations are accepted), that has been cleared up since the Fourth Lateran Council around 1200.

[tx_spirit]

The Catholic Church still teaches this. I say if you don't agree with God's Church and their teachings, then move on. You can't change God nor His Church, but He can change you if He permits to do so.

Originally Posted by appalachiangirl

Actually,some families (catholic) still have these beliefs about missing church and not confessing it =mortal sin.

[ted08721]

Originally Posted by happ

The old Church of pre-Vatican 2 is slowly fading away.
.

Actually just the opposite is taking place.
The Church has been marching backwards in time since John Paul II became pope.

There is a new breed of Catholics that are hellbent in going back there, led by their John Paul II priests.

Now your Parish/Archdiocese in LA. may not be feeling this trend yet, but it's coming.