Posted on 02/22/2007 9:46:01 AM PST by Alex Murphy
My catechism teacher, Sister Mary Lou Petrillo, was a smart and scrappy nun who drilled into us the basics of Catholicism without demeaning other Christian churches or religions.
Too bad Sister Mary Lou isn't available to teach a few intensive lessons on tolerance to the campaign people of presidential candidate John Edwards.
Within the last few weeks, two bloggers for the former North Carolina senator resigned after being hit with criticism from conservative Catholic organizations angered by past anti-Catholic remarks the bloggers posted on the Web, according to CNN.
Melissa McEwan and Amanda Marcotte quit after groups like the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights protested the online messages, some of which used profanity and vulgarity to skewer the Catholic Church.
In a mock question-and-answer session, the postings asked, among other things, what would have happened if the Virgin Mary had taken an emergency contraceptive, and responded, "You'd have to justify their misogyny with another ancient mythology." Another message said the pope has to tell women that have stillborn babies that their babies will be "cast into Satan's maw."
Yet another barb called Christian supporters of President Bush his "wingnut Christofascist base." Edwards responded that he was offended by their remarks, but refused to fire them.
As a practicing Catholic, I say good riddance to McEwan and Marcotte, especially if the Democrats are serious about their new openness to religious folks. But what I don't understand is this: Why would anyone be surprised by their comments?
As many Catholics can attest to, anti-Catholicism is still thriving in America. Slurs such as "popery," "Romanism" and "priestcraft" may no longer be common, but some mentalities have not changed from the days of the Know-Nothings of the mid-1800s. The political group, officially called the American Party, targeted Catholics and immigrants, preferably Catholic immigrants.
That's why I've met apparently sincere people who distinguish between Catholics and "bible-believing" Christians, as though anyone loyal to the pope must believe the Scriptures are a lie. It's why a minister asked me once why Catholics practice idolatry with their statues of the Virgin Mary. He seemed to think it was a perfectly normal question.
I've noted one thing may be different these days from the anti-Catholicism of the 1800s. Sometimes, we Catholics get it from both sides. We get slapped by the fringe religious groups that swear the pope is the Antichrist, and we get kicked by the self-proclaimed intellectuals convinced that Catholicism is a backward religion with preposterous doctrines that no one could possibly believe unless the pope threatened eternal damnation.
The fringe groups are easy to dismiss, but the stereotypes about Catholicism are especially hard to take coming from people who should be smarter, like those working for presidential candidates.
As for McEwan and Marcotte, I'm not sure what they plan to do now that they're not working for presidential candidate Edwards. But whatever it is, I hope they don't run into my feisty former catechism teacher.
Or maybe, I hope they do.
That was sort of my point. I only said those things because of the accusations of "bigotry" that have been flying as thickly as at an Al Sharpton speech.
Since Catholicism had a fifteen hundred year head start in "intolerance" and "bigotry," don't you think that attacks on "Protestant bigots" are a wrong-headed response to questions or criticisms of the Catholic Church?
Where do you come up with this nonsense and do you realize how foolish it sounds? One out of every four people in the United States is Catholic, one would have to live a VERY INSULATED life to not know any Catholics.
I think it is foolish to judge Sixteenth century politics by modern standards. I believe that there is more than enough blame to go around for the bloodshed that resulted from the Protestant Reformation.
2) The allegation that various celebrations and doctrines are of pagan origin is overblown at best and outright false at worst. Half-truths and distortions of the truth constitute "bearing false witness" just as much as outright fabrications.
3) Claiming that Catholics "almost universally" believe that the "'old testament' (sic) and its stories and rituals are adaptations from ancient Babylonian and Canaanite mythology" is false. That claim has no basis in reality; your source for that claim is gravely mistaken.
4) Setting up the Know Nothing Party as heroes is not something I would want to do, nor would I advise it to anyone else.
That quote is very apropos. As a matter of fact, I regard the "cavemen" in those ads as glyphs representing the American "redneck," who is alone told he must tolerate bigotry because "how can it be offensive if it's wrong?"
Thanks for noticing!
And now I'll actually answer your question. Yes, I got up on the wrong side of the rock because I went to an Orthodox Jewish site and found it full of attacks on Protestant missionaries and on no one else. Now I'm a Noachide, which means I actually agree with these people theologically, but sometimes the use of the Protestant Missionary as the greatest evil the world has ever known just plain gets to me (especially by people who consider themselves "too good" to proselytize anyone). What is the point of being right if you're going to keep it to yourself???
I will sat this again: I fully expect to see an attempted ecumenical union of all "good religions" (ie, the ones that don't proselytize) in the near future based on nothing but a united condemnation of Fundamentalist Protestant missionaries. I can see Orthodox Jews, the Dolly Llama, Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, new agers, indigenous shamanistic beliefs, and everyone else you can think of having one big happy pow wow about those horrible intolerant rednecks who for some reason seem to be the only people in the world whose religious beliefs don't deserve any respect.
As I explained in a post on another thread last night, I have never been "born again" or even been a member of a Protestant church (the only church I've ever been a member of is the Catholic Church, for six years), but when that day happens I know on whose side I will be.
Now . . . that make it crystal clear?
Sorry, I don't live in an Irish ghetto in a Northern city.
There isn't a Catholic church, or even a Catholic mission (and perhaps no Roman Catholics at all) in the county in which I was born and reside.
Now who is insulated?
Welcome to rural America!
Not so fast, there ... my job has caused me to spend weekends is some remote parts of these United States ... getting to Sunday Mass hasn't always been easy. I've been in more than one little town where there was an Episcopal Church, a Presbyterian Church, a Storefront Church (or some such combination), but the nearest Catholic Church was in the next county.
So why do Catholic FReepers pull out the bigotry and KKK cards every time a Protestant criticizes the Catholic Church? Do they enjoy being in the same club as Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson?
That's a good point. I liken it to when my mother and father divorced. My mother would rail on about my father, what a bad person he was for hours on end. My father would never say a bad word about my mother. Guess who I wanted to live with. Mom said it was just because he was a disneyland dad, but I knew it was because he didn't make me feel bad for still loving the other one.
Likewise now with the owner of the yoga studio I go to. He's known nationwide, the new International Champion is from our studio, very well respected. Yet some people say terrible things about him... including a couple who were trying to convince me to join THEIR studio. I finally decided that I wasn't going to base my opinion about the guy on what other people said unless I see some of the behavior myself, and I've never seen him be anything but sweet, polite, and friendly. Again, you can guess the studio *I* prefer to practice in.
ROFL!!!!!!!
I'm not an Orthodox Jew (being Catholic, I suppose that in some sense I'm a very un-orthodox Jew, but that's for another thread), nor is this an Orthodox Jewish site. Dragging arguments from Site A to Site B doesn't strike me as a very wise thing to do, if for no other reason that the folks on Site B have no idea what one is talking about. YMMV.
In the post on this site which seems to have attracted your ire, I compared bigots (unfavourably) to crows. In fact, I as much as called them stupid. How is that wrong? Is bigotry smart? Where I come from, one can be very highly educated and still be a total moron ... one can be illiterate and still be quite smart.
"Also, Catholics and other non-missionary religions.."
Pardon me? Mother Teresa is probably laughing at that one. Who do you think those Sisters are running about the world converting and ministering?
And before you run amock with the idea that lay Catholics do not do missionary work, do some research.
I know, I know . . . this site "isn't really Catholic" or its authors are "Protestants who don't realize it." What else is new?
"Also, Catholics and other non-missionary religions.."
Pardon me? Mother Teresa is probably laughing at that one. Who do you think those Sisters are running about the world converting and ministering?
And before you run amock with the idea that lay Catholics do not do missionary work, do some research.
Here, do something constructive and go pray for this young man who lost both of his legs on Valentine's day, maybe it will improve your mood.
http://travisdodson.com/archives.html
Excuse me . . . Catholic missionaries are widely known for many things, but actually proselytizing people isn't one of them. Mother Teresa herself was a well-known syncretist who didn't think actually converting people to Catholicism was that important.
Here in the United States, meanwhile, Fundamentalist Protestants serve as a universal punching bag for all other religions who are committed to a non-proselytary (and therefore relativistic) worldview.
Hello! I'll try to PM you soon.
She is a lot more than you realize and casting her as a syncretist is just one more calumny to throw at a saint.
I can tell you I live in a heavily Baptist area with few Catholics other than a few thousand. I don't give them a thought other than to pray for them.
I can't think as to the last time ANY religion other than my own was addressed by anyone in the church.
Are you sure you aren't projecting your own thoughts and beliefs on others? It sure sounds like it.
It could also be said that we serve as punching bags for those who have been alienated by the protestant zeal for the personal witness.
Are you opposed to proselytizing non-Catholics? Or at maybe at least giving them a flyer or tract and telling them they're welcome to investigate?
I am quite literally worried about a ban on all proselytization that will come about as a result of an multi-religious alliance against Fundamentalist Protestant missionaries.
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