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Catholics: Help Us Understand Your Theology

I can only speak for myself as an atheist. When I first joined this message board, I made a post in which I stated I am not here to attempt to convince anyone to embrace my worldview, nor to convince anyone to renounce their personal beliefs, and if anyone derives solace from their religion as long as they aren't in any manner violating another, I consider that to be a good thing. Five minutes later, two of the regulars here in the religious forums chimed in and condemned me to eternal hellfire for not believing as they do.

I know who at least one of those folks is. Say no more.
 
An aside to the OP questions : There are a number of evangelicals who think Catholics are just as doomed as JW's and Mormons.

That is very much the case. One of my best friend's father was a traveling preacher back in the 40s and he legitimately believed that the reason the Pope wore a funny hat was to hide his horns. Luckily, he wound up growing up and rejecting religion in his later years.
 
Well, I have a difficult time understanding why atheists have such "venom" for all of us. After all, they claim not to believe any of it anyway.

Because whether or not your imaginary friend exists, believers in your imaginary friend do and they can cause no end of problems for everyone else.
 
That is very much the case. One of my best friend's father was a traveling preacher back in the 40s and he legitimately believed that the reason the Pope wore a funny hat was to hide his horns. Luckily, he wound up growing up and rejecting religion in his later years.

I was a little kid in the 60's, and I heard that whispered at a large family gathering that included some distant relatives. I found out later that they were heavily into the John Birch Society. Everyone was a commie plot.
 
Because whether or not your imaginary friend exists, believers in your imaginary friend do and they can cause no end of problems for everyone else.

I'm all broken up about the fact that you have to share the world with people who aren't like you, and as far as I'm concerned people on your side of the ball cause every bit as much trouble and cost just as much money as any religious group.
 
That IS an unAmerican sentiment. You can vote for whoever you like. I might point out some hypocrisy on the part of some groups, but I'd never say they don't have a right to vote for who they want.

Where I draw the line is when anyone tries to change laws and government to comport to their personal religion. Sharia isn't just a Muslim thing, and it's to be fought by whatever means is available.

Stuff like this has been a problem since the Founding:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_amendment

No matter how you slice it, it's still baloney. If you are going to put it that way there will ALWAYS be somebody who is going to say you want to change the government to comport with your religion, and it may not be anything more than the latest fad of the day, like wanting to make
a Catholic hospital perform abortions or force a city to tear down a monument from the last century. Fascism isnt just a Nazi thing, either, and it needs to be fought y any means possible.
 
I'm all broken up about the fact that you have to share the world with people who aren't like you, and as far as I'm concerned people on your side of the ball cause every bit as much trouble and cost just as much money as any religious group.

Not really if you look at statistics. Prison populations, for example, are far more heavily weighted toward the religious side than the non-religious side. Atheists are underrepresented in prison populations. We also haven't seen anyone strapping on bomb vests and killing innocents in the name of atheism. Religion... well....
 
I can only speak for myself as an atheist. When I first joined this message board, I made a post in which I stated I am not here to attempt to convince anyone to embrace my worldview, nor to convince anyone to renounce their personal beliefs, and if anyone derives solace from their religion as long as they aren't in any manner violating another, I consider that to be a good thing. Five minutes later, two of the regulars here in the religious forums chimed in and condemned me to eternal hellfire for not believing as they do.

I don't believe you, you have a tendency to misrepresent other peoples words, produce the posts.
 
Not really if you look at statistics. Prison populations, for example, are far more heavily weighted toward the religious side than the non-religious side. Atheists are underrepresented in prison populations. We also haven't seen anyone strapping on bomb vests and killing innocents in the name of atheism. Religion... well....

The world would be and would have been a far better place without religion.
 
The world would be and would have been a far better place without religion.

We don't know that for certain, but it's a pretty safe bet. Where might we be today if religion, Catholicism in particular, hadn't been fighting against science and advancement. We could be an interstellar species by now, if not for religion.
 
We don't know that for certain, but it's a pretty safe bet. Where might we be today if religion, Catholicism in particular, hadn't been fighting against science and advancement. We could be an interstellar species by now, if not for religion.

The Catholics practically invented science, they invented universities, hospitals, and were at the forefront of theology, law, and medicine. Ever hear of the Big Bang theory? Formulated by a Catholic priest.
 
I don't believe you, you have a tendency to misrepresent other peoples words, produce the posts.

Sure thing. I'll get right on that just after YOU produce the posts in which I misrepresent other's words. :2razz:
 
Sure thing. I'll get right on that just after YOU produce the posts in which I misrepresent other's words. :2razz:

So you can't prove it. I thought so.
 
The Catholics practically invented science, they invented universities, hospitals, and were at the forefront of theology, law, and medicine. Ever hear of the Big Bang theory? Formulated by a Catholic priest.

No, Catholics created spaces where science could take place, once they stopped meddling. You think Catholics invented science? Ask Galileo, who was placed under lifetime house arrest by the Catholics. Ask Giordano Bruno, who was outright murdered by the Catholics. You honestly need to do more than gloss over the facts.
 
No, Catholics created spaces where science could take place, once they stopped meddling. You think Catholics invented science? Ask Galileo, who was placed under lifetime house arrest by the Catholics. Ask Giordano Bruno, who was outright murdered by the Catholics. You honestly need to do more than gloss over the facts.

In the Middle Ages, while Europeans were busy warring, plundering, and burning heretics at the stake, Muslim scholars were inventing the most advanced devices of the day. They refined the scientific method, developed effective cardiac drugs, and built celestial observatories—yet over time their contributions were largely forgotten.

https://www.wired.com/2009/05/st-islamtech/
 
In the Middle Ages, while Europeans were busy warring, plundering, and burning heretics at the stake, Muslim scholars were inventing the most advanced devices of the day. They refined the scientific method, developed effective cardiac drugs, and built celestial observatories—yet over time their contributions were largely forgotten.

https://www.wired.com/2009/05/st-islamtech/

And now look at them.
 
No matter how you slice it, it's still baloney. If you are going to put it that way there will ALWAYS be somebody who is going to say you want to change the government to comport with your religion, and it may not be anything more than the latest fad of the day, like wanting to make
a Catholic hospital perform abortions or force a city to tear down a monument from the last century. Fascism isnt just a Nazi thing, either, and it needs to be fought y any means possible.

I don't disagree. No religious hospital should have to perform abortions, vasectomies or any other procedure they don't approve of (there are exceptions for life saving things, I imagine...). And no one should have to bake a gay cake or marry a gay couple.

On the other hand, Kim Davis has no right to refuse to do her job because some aspect of it began to offend her. Her 4 divorces and extramarital sex offend me, but I don't martyr myself over it. Christians in America are not a "victim" class.

The fact is, Jesus and Christ are not in the Declaration or the Constitution. No religion is in those documents, unless you want to argue for Deism. The 1st amendment protects the state from the church and the church from the state - at least that was the intent. If those guys wanted a Christian Nation they could have founded one. They chose not to.

There's actually a happy medium possible with these things, but extremists on both sides are going try to push things into their sides ditch.
 
Do Catholics consider Mormons and J.Ws. to be saved Christians, or does the RCC doctrine teach that these religious sects are cultists who will not be saved post mortem and face the same fate as agnostics, atheists, and other non-Christian ( not anti-Christian ) religious skeptics ?

Depends on which Catholic you ask, and what kind of mood they happen to be in. The current pope stirred up a lot of controversy by even claiming once that virtuous atheists could end up in heaven. It didn't go over very well with the conservative wing of the religion.

"The Lord has redeemed all of us, all of us, with the Blood of Christ: all of us, not just Catholics. Everyone. "'Father, the atheists?' Even the atheists. Everyone!"
We must meet one another doing good. 'But I don't believe, Father, I am an atheist!' But do good: we will meet one another there."
-Pope Francis

Religion, being a man-made phenomenon, always reflects the mood and culture of the people claiming to speak on behalf of their God. Change their hearts and minds, and what they will have their gods saying and wanting will change too.
 
I can only speak for myself as an atheist. When I first joined this message board, I made a post in which I stated I am not here to attempt to convince anyone to embrace my worldview, nor to convince anyone to renounce their personal beliefs, and if anyone derives solace from their religion as long as they aren't in any manner violating another, I consider that to be a good thing. Five minutes later, two of the regulars here in the religious forums chimed in and condemned me to eternal hellfire for not believing as they do.

And then if you disagree with them, you are 'anti-Christian'.
 
Do Catholics consider Mormons and J.Ws. to be saved Christians, or does the RCC doctrine teach that these religious sects are cultists who will not be saved post mortem and face the same fate as agnostics, atheists, and other non-Christian ( not anti-Christian ) religious skeptics ?

I am not practicing at the moment as a RC, but am still a believer.

I do this every few years so no biggie.

To answer your question, to each their own way to Christ.
 
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