Catholicism keeps me sane in a crazy world

[Meriweather]

the 2nd commandment about using statues for religious purposes....you walk into a catholic church,people are on their knees in front of the Mary statue praying to her.....that was justified according to them that was different.....

Let's go back in time, to an era where people were often transient, migrating from one area to the next. Even those who settled did not often have room to store works of art. These were a people who believed the image on a bear could bestow upon its owner the power and courage of a bear. In some societies they were known as totems; they became known as idols.

There is a difference from appreciating works of art and worshiping carved images because of a belief they could bestow the power of an animal in its engraved image. Do you worship the people portrayed in photographs? Then it should be safe to conclude you do not worship people portrayed in statuary, either. Now, if you carry around a rabbit's foot because you believe it is lucky, that is another story, more in line with ancient worship of engraved images.

 

[Meriweather]

the Pope is the closest person to God on the planet....

No, he is not. Next question...

 

[Meriweather]

i said if God truly exists he must be an alien from some where besides earth....they were appalled i would say such a thing....those were some of my questions....

Ignorance often appalls and so does something so stereotypical and unoriginal that it is beyond boring.

It is possible you had appalling teachers, because your questions are easily answered. However, it is equally possible you were interrupting an entirely different lesson by being unusually immature and childish for your age. Think back. Were you? What questions would you ask today? Perhaps you were being presented a lesson(s) that you were not quite ready to hear.

 

[Harry Dresden]

i was told Jesus was god here on earth.....i asked so who was god praying to in the garden?....who would god pray too?....the subject was quickly changed....

Were you taught Jesus was both God and man? That Jesus often prayed to the Father. To offer the usual analogy: Does air cease to be air when it is inside a balloon, or does the balloon define the boundaries of the air within? When air is inside a balloon, does air cease to be outside the balloon? The teachings are that God is Creator; Word; and Spirit, that Creation occurred through the Word; that Spirit hovered over all. And yes, that is rather like describing nine dimensions to people who have a three dimensional existence. It is a struggle to understand what is beyond our ken.

With Jesus prayer in the garden, we see him, in human form and as all of humanity, reaching for that which is beyond human boundaries.

To whom do you think Jesus was praying?

i was taught jesus and god were one and the same.....i was givin a bullshit answer and that was it.....i dont think he was god.....i would ask what god would allow himself to let us treat him like that?.....basically it got to were i was very seldom asked what is my question....i lost interest in that so called religion pretty quick....

 

[Tom Paine 1949]

I think it’s a fine thing when one’s spiritual beliefs help keep one sane ... and hopefully moral. Christianity and many other religions provide succor and support to millions when times are hard, or mad. So can many other kinds of belief.

For me as a young man it was “belief” and “conviction“ in the need for political struggle that kept me sane and morally straight during the crazy 1960s. But politics, like religion, can also make one crazy. Luckily, I never completely abandoned the habit of asking questions or challenging stereotypical answers.

My curiousity — maybe just desperation to remain sane — led me down some strange paths, but I managed to crawl out of every hole I dug myself into, and come out a bit the wiser. I consider myself lucky never to have stopped asking hard questions, never settling permanently for easy answers. For me, believing in any organized religion would be ... a cop out.

I won’t refer to the famous Marx quote. Instead I quote a similar one written four years earlier in 1840 by German poet and literary scholar, Heinrich Heine :

“Welcome be a religion that pours into the bitter chalice of the suffering human species some sweet, soporific drops of spiritual opium, some drops of love, hope and faith.”

Charles Kingsley, a canon of the Church of England, wrote this four years after Marx wrote about religious spirituality as “soul of a soulless world” and “the opium of the people”:

“We have used the Bible as if it were a mere special constable's hand book, an opium dose for keeping beasts of burden patient while they were being overloaded, a mere book to keep the poor in order.”

Today, American society is not poor, but perhaps we are very “overloaded,” and as a people truly struggling to keep our sanity.

 

[Harry Dresden]

i said if God truly exists he must be an alien from some where besides earth....they were appalled i would say such a thing....those were some of my questions....

Ignorance often appalls and so does something so stereotypical and unoriginal that it is beyond boring.

It is possible you had appalling teachers, because your questions are easily answered. However, it is equally possible you were interrupting an entirely different lesson by being unusually immature and childish for your age. Think back. Were you? What questions would you ask today? Perhaps you were being presented a lesson(s) that you were not quite ready to hear.

you sound kinda like the priest....dont ask questions i cant answer.....like i said they told me you dont need a bible i will tell you everything you need to know........

 

[Meriweather]

i was taught jesus and god were one and the same.....i was givin a bullshit answer and that was it.....i dont think he was god.....i would ask what god would allow himself to let us treat him like that?.....basically it got to were i was very seldom asked what is my question....i lost interest in that so called religion pretty quick....

Not everyone believes Jesus is God--Thomas Jefferson didn't. What did you think of what Jesus taught?

 

[Meriweather]

you sound kinda like the priest....dont ask questions i cant answer.....like i said they told me you dont need a bible i will tell you everything you need to know........

That isn't even a question! Out of curiosity, do you believe aliens are also responsible for building the pyramids? As for your other "questions", too easy and too inane. You come across as much more believable when you state your own beliefs: You cannot believe someone who is God would become human, or that a human can be God. Now that is honest, sincere, and intelligent.

 

[Meriweather]

I think it’s a fine thing when one’s spiritual beliefs help keep one sane ... and hopefully moral. Christianity and many other religions provide succor and support to millions when times are hard, or mad. So can many other kinds of belief.

For me, it is free stuff (from the government) that serves as an opioid. Non-believers seem to have this tendency to think that religion is about belief and that these beliefs are the opioid. To me, most of us who follow a religion do so because it is a way to live one's personal life--a life government cannot crawl into. My faith teaches me a way of life--how I react and respond to the events, issues, and people in my own small circle. For me, Peace on Earth is peace around me, a peace that cannot be disturbed by wars, hurricanes, and who is in office.

That is not to say I don't follow politics--I do! It is a hobby and of great interest to me. It just isn't the main portion of my life.

 

[Meriweather]

like i said they told me you dont need a bible i will tell you everything you need to know........

Wanted to get back to this. Are you saying a priest taught your religion class? Hard to believe what you said about the Bible as well. Every single Catholic classroom I was in had a long bookshelf of well-used Bibles. (Don't use a Bible! Hee-hee-hee. You can't be serious!) I guess what really caught my attention about this remark is that at least in the parishes I've lived in, the priests don't teach children's catechism classes. Adult Bible Studies, (with a Bible for everyone) yes. But not children's classes.

 

[Harry Dresden]

you sound kinda like the priest....dont ask questions i cant answer.....like i said they told me you dont need a bible i will tell you everything you need to know........

That isn't even a question! Out of curiosity, do you believe aliens are also responsible for building the pyramids? As for your other "questions", too easy and too inane. You come across as much more believable when you state your own beliefs: You cannot believe someone who is God would become human, or that a human can be God. Now that is honest, sincere, and intelligent.

if god exist he is an alien.....if jesus was who he said he was,he was an alien too....

 

[Harry Dresden]

like i said they told me you dont need a bible i will tell you everything you need to know........

Wanted to get back to this. Are you saying a priest taught your religion class? Hard to believe what you said about the Bible as well. Every single Catholic classroom I was in had a long bookshelf of well-used Bibles. (Don't use a Bible! Hee-hee-hee. You can't be serious!) I guess what really caught my attention about this remark is that at least in the parishes I've lived in, the priests don't teach children's catechism classes. Adult Bible Studies, (with a Bible for everyone) yes. But not children's classes.

we had a priest.....and some brothers.....and i was in 9th /10th grade....

 

[Crepitus]

The world is crazy, but I know the answers to the most important questions, and that keeps me from going insane.

You know your Pope isn't a fan of Cheeto Jesus, right?

 

[Tom Paine 1949]

For me, it is free stuff (from the government) that serves as an opioid. Non-believers seem to have this tendency to think that religion is about belief and that these beliefs are the opioid.

First of all I liked your comment. I’m far from being a Catholic Christian myself, but your comments about personal spiritual beliefs, even art and totems, are things I understand and share.

The first sentence of this quoted part of your comment is of course mainly a political belief, which I think is not especially relevant. After all, one can be a Catholic and believe that capitalist pursuit of earthly wealth is itself an opiate. We surely agree survival for an infant requires “free stuff” from a family. A healthy modern society requires “free public schools.” But let us try to forget about politics for the moment.

“Non-believers” is such an inclusive term. For me everything depends on how your beliefs help you, or not, to be and feel yourself a decent human being. Same with “disbelief.” Disbelief and faith are not limited to “God.” One can disbelieve in many things, in gods, in “The Force,” or even in the Almighty Dollar — which is probably most difficult of all! : )

For me, “Natural Religion” or belief in nature and its (sometimes harsh) laws, gives comfort. I believe I’m just a man after all, and will die. Guess I’m sort of a modern Deist. At least now that I’ve reached old age.

 

[Meriweather]

We surely agree survival for an infant requires “free stuff” from a family. A healthy modern society requires “free public schools.” But let us try to forget about politics for the moment.

A brief comment about "free stuff." I am sure every child has heard a parent say, "Money doesn't grow on trees!" Food and education for the child requires money from someone. I adamantly believe that no politician should be allowed to use the word "free". They should be required to say, "Taxpayer funded." A healthy, modern society may required taxpayer funded public schools, but I am beginning to have my doubts about that, considering the amount of overhead that goes into educating a child. But that is another discussion. The point remains. Education is not free, it is costs money that is paid for by the taxpayer.

 

[Meriweather]

“Non-believers” is such an inclusive term. For me everything depends on how your beliefs help you, or not, to be and feel yourself a decent human being. Same with “disbelief.” Disbelief and faith are not limited to “God.” One can disbelieve in many things, in gods, in “The Force,” or even in the Almighty Dollar — that is probably most difficult of all! : )

For me, “Natural Religion” or belief in nature and its (sometimes harsh) laws, gives comfort. I believe I’m just a man after all, and will die. Guess I’m sort of a modern Deist. At least now that I’ve reached old age.

Atheists (non-believers) have always been a part of my family. All are more than decent human beings, they just have no belief. You are right: Nature is harsh and sometimes life is harsh; the opposite is also true. Maybe it is a matter of macro-observation and micro-observation, or those who see God in the big picture, and those who see God in small things. What we are all saying to each other is that we don't see God the way anyone else sees Him, and that may be the underlying thoughts in disbelief.

 

[Gracie]

I don't understand the worship of Mary. She was just a vessel. That's it. Worshipping her is the same as worshipping a golden calf.

Totems. Whole different concept and those who are catholic or very christian, don't understand and will never accept explanations. I still don't know if Jesus was God in human form, or separate entities. NOBODY knows.

The pope is just a man with enough money to buy 1 mil golden calves but they all have his face. He is worshipped too, and for me, that is wrong. He's just a man, with man's fallacies.

I don't do the church thing. Nature is my church. I believe in God. I believe in Jesus. I also think they (plural) understand confusion and reach out to us in ways each individual understands. For me, THEY speak to me via animals and nature...not thru some schmuck (any religion) claiming to speak FOR them.

Blackrook has issues he is dealing with. If his Catholicism helps him, then I am thrilled he has support he needs to keep him here on this planet. We all need someone to count on.

In short....walk your own path. Its yours and nobody else's. We may pass other individuals on that path, but we all still walk alone with that which we count on to lead us and that person is not some guy in a robe or behind a pulpit or dictating a passage in the bible according to his interpretation. Our private paths are ours to tread, knowing and having faith we are being led the way we are supposed to go.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[Dont Taz Me Bro]

i left Catholicism when in catacism class when i asked if i should bring a bible the priest said no....i will tell you everything you need to know.....and then danced around questions....

Yeah, I'm a recovering Catholic myself. Growing up in Boston, Sunday School was pretty much a requirement. I still went to church a lot in my late teens and early 20s when I moved out, but when I started logically questioning everything I had been told throughout my childhood I began to realize how little sense it really made.

 

[zaangalewa]

My job is very stressful and sometimes I begin to freak out.

I pray to God, "Get me through today, God. Just get me through today."

So far, it's worked.

Sorry, Blackrook, but it looks to me as if you could have a serios health problem. Do you have the possiblity to speak with a doctor about your problems?

 

[zaangalewa]

i left Catholicism when in catacism class when i asked if i should bring a bible the priest said no....i will tell you everything you need to know.....and then danced around questions....

Yeah, I'm a recovering Catholic myself.

¿Recovering?

Growing up in Boston, Sunday School was pretty much a requirement. I still went to church a lot in my late teens and early 20s when I moved out, but when I started logically questioning everything I had been told throughout my childhood I began to realize how little sense it really made.

Any concrete example what you was logically questioning and which conclusion brought you in this context to the result that your catholic education was nearly senseless for you?