Posted on 04/08/2004 11:24:10 AM PDT by presidio9
Photo ops are the saving grace of many political campaigns, but Bay State Sen. John F. Kerry [related, bio] gaffed one recent opportunity - flouting Catholic doctrine by taking communion at a non-Catholic church.
The Democratic presidential candidate invited the press to services at the AME Charles Street Church in Roxbury Sunday. But the photos showed Kerry taking communion.
That, Catholics say, is a catechism no-no.
``Catholics should not receive communion in a Protestant church,'' said Sister Mary Ann Walsh of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. ``It's standard church teaching.''
Deal Hudson, publisher of the conservative Crisis Magazine, said, ``Kerry's attempts to woo the Catholic voter with such photo ops will ultimately turn off Catholics who value sincerity and honesty above superficial and vacuous symbolism.''
Kerry spokesman Michael Meehan said Kerry was merely participating in an ``ecumenical'' Christian service. ``He came at the invitation of the pastor, who invited all Christians to celebrate,'' Meehan said. ``Sen. Kerry is a Christian. He celebrated.''
Stephen Pope, a Boston College theology professor, said, ``As a matter of church law, Kerry broke the law of the church,'' but added that Kerry was in a ``no-win situation'' since taking or refusing communion would have offended someone.
There are mortal sins that completely sever our relationship with God and put us into a state deserving of eternal damnation.
And there are venial sins which damage, but do not sever our relationship with God. It's the difference between staying at the bar a little too long and upsetting your wife and just shooting her dead.
SD
To know someone is in a state of grave sin and do nothign to try to correct them is an evil we see far too often.
SD
The passage you cite from Corinthians says nothing of the sort.
The reason that the Roman Catholics hold only the Eastern Orthodox sacrament of communion valid out of all the other Christian churches, is their belief that the administration of the sacrament is the role of the church. Eastern Orthodoxy retained what they and the Catholics believe is apostolic succession from the time of the Apostles to the present. Lutherans did not retain the historic episcopacy or priesthood; Anglicans lost the historic continuity during the 16th and 17th Centuries, when the Church of England was influenced by Calvinist doctrine. While Calvinist influences declined after the fall of the Cromwell regime, the continuity could not be restored. Barring a valid priest ordained by a valid bishop, the Anglican Lord's Supper is invalid, per Catholic doctrine.
The validity of the priesthood and episcopacy, rather than doctrinal specifics, appears to be the motivating factor as to whether the Roman Catholic Church accepts the Lord's Supper of another denomination.
Are you aware that Jesus is God? And that God is the Master of Creation?
"How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" they murmered and walked away.
SD
Exodus 12:11
This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste; it is the LORD's Passover.Exodus 12:21
Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, "Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb.Exodus 12:26-27
26. And when your children ask you, `What does this ceremony mean to you?'
27. then tell them, `It is the Passover sacrifice to the LORD, who passed over the houses of the Israelites in Egypt and spared our homes when he struck down the Egyptians.'" Then the people bowed down and worshiped.(Many other Scriptures in the OT mention the PASSOVER)
Matthew 26:1-21. When Jesus had finished saying all these things, he said to his disciples,
2. "As you know, the Passover is two days away--and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified."Matthew 26:17-1917. On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?"
18. He replied, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, `The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.'"
19. So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover.John 1:29
The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!John 1:36
When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, "Look, the Lamb of God!"John 19:14-15
14. It was the day of Preparation of Passover Week, about the sixth hour. "Here is your king," Pilate said to the Jews.
15. But they shouted, "Take him away! Take him away! Crucify him!" "Shall I crucify your king?" Pilate asked. "We have no king but Caesar," the chief priests answered.1 Corinthians 5:7
Get rid of the old yeast that you may be a new batch without yeast--as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed.Acts 8:32-35
32. The eunuch was reading this passage of Scripture: "He was led like a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before the shearer is silent, so he did not open his mouth.
33. In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth."
34. The eunuch asked Philip, "Tell me, please, who is the prophet talking about, himself or someone else?"
35. Then Philip began with that very passage of Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.
1 Corinthians 11:27-2927. Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.
28. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup.
29. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.
Corinthians 121. Now about spiritual gifts, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant.
2. You know that when you were pagans, somehow or other you were influenced and led astray to mute idols.
3. Therefore I tell you that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit.
4. There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit.
5. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord.
6. There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men.
7. Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good.
8. To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit,
9. to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit,
10. to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.
11. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.
12. The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts; and though all its parts are many, they form one body. So it is with Christ.
13. For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body--whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free--and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.
14. Now the body is not made up of one part but of many.
15. If the foot should say, "Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
16. And if the ear should say, "Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body," it would not for that reason cease to be part of the body.
17. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be?
18. But in fact God has arranged the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be.
19. If they were all one part, where would the body be?
20. As it is, there are many parts, but one body.
21. The eye cannot say to the hand, "I don't need you!" And the head cannot say to the feet, "I don't need you!"
22. On the contrary, those parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable,
23. and the parts that we think are less honorable we treat with special honor. And the parts that are unpresentable are treated with special modesty,
24. while our presentable parts need no special treatment. But God has combined the members of the body and has given greater honor to the parts that lacked it,
25. so that there should be no division in the body, but that its parts should have equal concern for each other.
26. If one part suffers, every part suffers with it; if one part is honored, every part rejoices with it.
27. Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it.
28. And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, also those having gifts of healing, those able to help others, those with gifts of administration, and those speaking in different kinds of tongues.
29. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles?
30. Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues ? Do all interpret?
31. But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way.
SD
You see, that is what being Catholic means though. When you are between the rock and the hard place, you go by your church teachings. This is the biggest difference between what we get from Bush, and what we could expect from a Kerry administration. As an American, he would lead us all to hell with the same waffle shuffle. Would we like some syrup???
Do you have some data to back up this assertion?
Didn't Jesus say something about "Come to me, all ye who are weary and heavy laden, and I will give you rest."
Doesn't the bible say something about "Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I say, rejoice!"
And I seem to recall something about "Praise ye the Lord, all ye lands. Serve the Lord with gladness. Come into His presence with singing."
The selling of trinkets is not dogma. The granting of salvation for the purchase of one is.
The TV slur is nice. I'm sure Jesus would like it.
This is the crux of the matter. It would seem to me that God would look on this as a far worse sin than that of a Catholic who, with all good intentions, chooses to participate in communion at a Protestant church.
Of course, using churches (particularly those whose membership are predominantly black) is the hallmark of Democrats.
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