Good solid conservative Catholic Churches in Seattle? (versus, medical)

[Seacove]

Originally Posted by Adrian71

I guess I'd like to think Seattleites are above that kind of petty behavior. And for the most part, I think we are. I get more of a live-and-let-live vibe here than I've gotten in other supposedly liberal and tolerant parts of the country. So I would certainly hope a conservative would feel just as welcome here as anyone else.

I don't care who is religious as long as it continues to not affect me. I consider the West Coast the place where liberals can go to live and breathe. There are plenty of red states for the right wingers to monitor church attendance, melanin content and uterine inventory. As for tolerance, I've seen endless posts where a right winger will say something hateful then say "where is the tolerance of our views from the left?" when what they are asking for is tolerance of intolerance.

[Sandhillian]

You can add St. Monica's on Mercer Island to the list of conservative Catholic churches in the Seattle area.

[mikebchipper]

This would be the same if a gay person asked where the gay owned cafe was in Brewton, Alabama. Why move to Seattle or the PNW?!? I hear "conservative" and I cringe, sorry.

[hardtostarboard]

Originally Posted by mikebchipper

I hear "conservative" and I cringe, sorry.

That's sad. I made up my mind a long time ago to actually live my faith and try to love everyone equally. I can't imagine going through life cringing at an entire group of people.

It seems like everyone cries "Tolerance," but no one truly wants to grant that to others. Our political, religious and cultural differences should never, ever overshadow the fact that we're all in this together.

I saw your other thread; I hope you find a place that you and your family are truly happy, Mike.

[415_s2k]

Originally Posted by hardtostarboard

That's sad. I made up my mind a long time ago to actually live my faith and try to love everyone equally. I can't imagine going through life cringing at an entire group of people.

It seems like everyone cries "Tolerance," but no one truly wants to grant that to others. Our political, religious and cultural differences should never, ever overshadow the fact that we're all in this together.

I saw your other thread; I hope you find a place that you and your family are truly happy, Mike.

Although I am an extremely left-wing/liberal person, it makes me cringe when I read people say things like that; the whole insinuation that someone is unwelcome in a certain area because of personal beliefs. Whether it's a gay person asking if there's a gay cafe in Alabama, or a conservative asking about churches in Seattle, no one's personal choice of lifestyle should be a cause for exclusion, especially when they (in this case, hardtostarboard) doesn't say anything that's passing judgement or speaking ill upon liberals, gays, etc.

I generally prefer to give people the benefit of the doubt and assume that they came to their conclusions via a variety of their own life experiences, and have found a place that works for them. I've found that people who proclaim their judgements the loudest - regardless of what side of the political or social fence they're on - are usually those who are the least secure in their convictions. I've also found that being welcoming and inclusive is the best way to shape peoples' attitudes and convictions.

[W & C]

Originally Posted by mikebchipper

This would be the same if a gay person asked where the gay owned cafe was in Brewton, Alabama. Why move to Seattle or the PNW?!? I hear "conservative" and I cringe, sorry.

There'd be nothing wrong with that either.

There are conservatives that live in blue states just as there are liberals that live in red states. I've lived in both Bible Belt and here in the ultra-liberal part of West Coast and the divide just isn't that stark.

[robertpolyglot]

Originally Posted by 415_s2k

My mom is Catholic and I was raised in that tradition, though I haven't had anything to do with it in some time... however, my uncle is a very, very conservative Catholic and was a sports coach at the attached O'Dea boy's high school, and has always spoken very highly of the mass at St. James. My parents used to take us to mass there on high holidays and special occasions; it's a beautiful cathedral.

Of note, St. James is on First Hill, aka Pill Hill, and is about two blocks from the main Virginia Mason campus, four from Harborview Medical Center, and less than a mile from the Cherry Hill campus of Swedish Medical Center, with many satellite offices located on Madison Ave. I worked at VM for a year; great place to work or have residency, with some good lunch spots around. There are lots of apartments available on First Hill that would make life pretty easy if you're going to be doing a residency in the area.

Also, in terms of Seattle's general religious/spiritual climate: although a large swath of Seattle is nonreligious, people are generally fairly tolerant of others' religions, especially considering that chances are they don't really want much to do with you in the first place... I worked with a good number of Catholics, Protestants, even Evangelicals, nearly all of whom kept their spirituality known but personal and unintrusive. As far as the nonreligious people in Seattle go, relative to a city like Boston or San Francisco (both of which I've also lived in), there's not an exceptionally outspoken anti-religious sentiment that would make you feel uncomfortable.

St. James. Yes. The fact that it's the cathedral makes it somewhat conservative and the fact that it's on First Hill makes it somewhat liberal, being a stone's throw from Capito(a)l Hill. However, I think the parish for Capito(a)l Hill would be St. Joseph's, which is Jesuit and appears to be very liberal.

The few times I went to Mass in Seattle was at St. James. But it was a schlep from the northern part of the East Side, so I stopped going. Going to church in Kirkland, with its Stepford demographics, would have been too staid, so I stopped going altogether.

I think that a truly right-wing conservative Catholic parish in the city of Seattle, as opposed to its suburbs, is akin to locating a dinosaur.

[ajp2004]

A few posters have asked why someone seeking a conservative Mass would even bother in Seattle.

The recommendation of "if you don't like water, don't live by an ocean" is reasonable. However my frustration has been more about Catholic churches that aren't following the worldwide rubrics. Whether a Catholic church is in Seattle, Moscow, or Tokyo, the core Mass is meant to be the same. For me it's less about how liberal or conservative a homily is, as it is about how orthodox (meaning careful adherance to the rubrics of the Mass, not conservative) a parish is.

[hardtostarboard]

Originally Posted by ajp2004

A few posters have asked why someone seeking a conservative Mass would even bother in Seattle.

The recommendation of "if you don't like water, don't live by an ocean" is reasonable. However my frustration has been more about Catholic churches that aren't following the worldwide rubrics. Whether a Catholic church is in Seattle, Moscow, or Tokyo, the core Mass is meant to be the same. For me it's less about how liberal or conservative a homily is, as it is about how orthodox (meaning careful adherance to the rubrics of the Mass, not conservative) a parish is.

Well said and an excellent point.

[ClarkTiMo]

The word of God is not cast in stone, it is alive, written on the hearts of men and women. Exclusion, prejudice, and hypocrisy is the practice of modern-day Pharisees, Sadducees and scribes. Stop thumping and start reading!

Seattle is a wonderful city, and every Catholic Church in the area is worthy of trans-substantiation and Eucharist. Whether you stand before the Lord or kneel, Christ asks only two things of every Christian: 1. Love. With all your heart, soul and mind. And 2. Don't judge.