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The Archdiocese if Los Angeles just had to release documents describing how the church systematically tried to cover up or huge pedophile priests in order to avoid civil penalties and bad press. Additionally the Church has a god awful mess on its right now with EU governments starting to uncover and expose a massive money laundering scheme involving the Vatican and it's bank that has been linked from everything to paying off or bribing corrupt government officials to murder. Maybe it is why even the US State Deapartment even lists the Vatican as a center of money laundering? How can anyone still belong and continue to support an organization that is corrupt from the top down? Every donation made just helps pay a corrupt organization's legal fees.
But while almost all Catholics find the actions of much of the Catholic leadership to be abhorrent, they still adhere to the theology and liturgy of the church as the best and richest single expression of Christian love there is.
I mean, you might as well as ask, in the face of hundreds and hundreds of scandals among fundamentalist evangelists, how people can file into their bible-based church and still worship faithfully.
Many of us stay because we still have hope for the Church although I have to admit it is difficult at times.
In the end it is not us that are actually leaving but those that think they are in charge, they lack any real power over us.
Many of us stay because we still have hope for the Church although I have to admit it is difficult at times.
In the end it is not us that are actually leaving but those that think they are in charge, they lack any real power over us.
Yet you continue to give them your money and with your money they continue to shield/protect/enable their thousands of disgusting monster pedophiles!
All Catholics are part of this horrific worldwide problem.
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You shall not judge, lest you be judged.
Matthew 7:1
Among organized religions, the Catholic Church has no corner on corruption.
That is a dumb scripture. First, we all judge and expect to be judged. From a religious point of view, xtians are told that they will be judged. Finally, judging is good. It keeps us all in line with social approval or disapproval.
True, the Catholic Church is not the only corrupt church. But you have to admit that they are really good at being corrupt.
I do think "judge not" is largely about not placing yourself above others or judging others more harshly than yourself. You should focus on your own defects first. I don't think it means you can never make any judgments about anything.
And as for "how can you call yourself Catholic", being Catholic doesn't mean worshiping an archbishop or a bank or even a Pope. Catholicism is a system of belief based on Jesus Christ, obviously, as well as centuries of wisdom. We believe it to descend from the early Christians. And that it places more emphasis on reason and the scholastic than Orthodoxy or the other forms of traditional Christianity. We believe it because we believe it is true. Or as true as anything gets.
I'm not a Catholic because of neat buildings, bingo, or even solely because it's a social charity organization. I know some of the most rotten people in history have been priests and bishops. This isn't news to me. Any institution with a billion people and two thousand (or seventeen hundred if you prefer) years of history is going to have lots of bad people or moments. Granted this might be a bit too dismissive and I admit there are things in Catholic history that trouble me too at times. But I do believe in it. And that's what matters most
As for money I'm usually careful to give to charities that have a good reputation and whose money goes to what it says it goes to. Many of these charities are Catholic, but some aren't. But the reality is even if you're of no religion you might be paying for things you dislike. If you pay taxes in the US you might be paying for arms deals to dictatorships and the shelter of public school sex predators. One of my, public, school principals messed with some of the High School girls (non-consensually) and he never got punished for it. Granted High School isn't like children, but obviously molestation is still wrong even if the woman was sexually active. (He targeted girls who had "a reputation" because he felt they'd be less "credible")
But I do believe in it. And that's what matters most.
I don't believe in it, but you've still made a very good point. If everyone were to pick their religion based on the people in it (even some of its leaders), no one would be able to find a Church to go to.
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