Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Nobody's picking a church fight
The Washington Times ^ | 7-13-07 | Wes Pruden

Posted on 07/13/2007 11:13:07 AM PDT by JZelle

Nothing stirs the blood like talking about religion. That's why it's taboo to talk about it in casual social conversations. Better to ask the boss's wife whether she ever considered a face-lift.

But Pope Benedict XVI is a man of firm conviction and blunt talk. Not for this pontiff the Vatican II tradition of warm and fuzzy, as the message of Vatican II, which put a friendly expression on the stern countenance of the church of Rome, has been widely interpreted in the circles of those addicted to warm and fuzzy. This week he authorized a statement of "clarification" of Vatican II, and to the consternation of some Roman Catholics here, the secular press interpreted the message to Protestants as no more Mr. Nice Guy.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtontimes.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Editorial
KEYWORDS: catholic; church; protestant; pruden; vatican; wespruden
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 221 next last
To: wideawake
What a lovely invitation to apostasy.

Several attend regularly, but I don't rat them out to Father.

41 posted on 07/13/2007 11:55:55 AM PDT by colorado tanker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 23 | View Replies]

To: hosepipe

I agree, you make a good point. Hence you see fascist totalitarians being called “conservative” to tar the Republicans in the US. But I don’t run away from labels. A rose by any other name. Were I define myself, I would use “Christian” for my spiritual beliefs and “Christian” for my political beliefs.


42 posted on 07/13/2007 11:56:11 AM PDT by Jibaholic (http://www.gentlerespect.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 35 | View Replies]

To: PAR35

I’m trying to understand this communion question. Is it a matter of whether God doesn’t want someone to receive communion in a specific church, or is it strictly a church rule?


43 posted on 07/13/2007 11:59:45 AM PDT by stuartcr (Everything happens as God wants it to.....otherwise, things would be different.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 37 | View Replies]

To: Jibaholic
[.. Were I define myself, I would use “Christian” for my spiritual beliefs and “Christian” for my political beliefs. ..]

People think in words.. words are important..
Mere codes, true, but important nevertheless..

44 posted on 07/13/2007 11:59:50 AM PDT by hosepipe (CAUTION: This propaganda is laced with hyperbole....)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 42 | View Replies]

To: MondoQueen
“That is not what he said!”

Yeah. Prot here. Evangelical actually.

I was about to say, I would like to see the real comment before commenting. What “the Associated Press said” isnt worth squat. The misquote and mischaracterize his statements ALL the time.

I may disagree with the Pope - but I would rather hear what he actually said than what some pansy reporter said that he said.

45 posted on 07/13/2007 12:01:36 PM PDT by PetroniusMaximus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

To: hosepipe
People think in words.. words are important.. Mere codes, true, but important nevertheless..

Perhaps, but that gets dangerously close to the Democrats who are so enamored of Lakoff and "framing."

46 posted on 07/13/2007 12:03:39 PM PDT by Jibaholic (http://www.gentlerespect.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 44 | View Replies]

To: padre35
I would be more then pleased to see that the core of what the media has reported is incorrect

It's probably not "incorrect" per se. I think it's probably being reported upon without understanding the proper context of the statement, which leads to incorrect interpretations.

That said, let's suppose the Pope really meant what he's reported to have said. So what? Seems to me that he's simply laying out the logical conclusion of belief in Catholic doctrine.

Of course, non-Catholics would never excoriate the Roman Church as "not a true church."

47 posted on 07/13/2007 12:04:23 PM PDT by r9etb
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 33 | View Replies]

To: stuartcr
[.. Is it a matter of whether God doesn’t want someone to receive communion in a specific church, or is it strictly a church rule? ..]

Jesus came to make ALL religion on this planet obsolete, AND DID...
He made religion a mere club.. you can be in a club and still be a "christian"...
"You MUST be born again"- Jesus

48 posted on 07/13/2007 12:04:50 PM PDT by hosepipe (CAUTION: This propaganda is laced with hyperbole....)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 43 | View Replies]

To: gemma0000
“his doctrine of literally eating and drinking of his flesh, and left Him, so go the Protestants.”

To be fair, what we were scandalized by was the perceived selling of forgiveness - not transubstantiation.

49 posted on 07/13/2007 12:05:19 PM PDT by PetroniusMaximus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: stuartcr

I know why Catholics avoid our communion, Pastors been using that awful Matzo bread and then does’nt give us enough juice to wash the taste out of our mouth.


50 posted on 07/13/2007 12:05:28 PM PDT by linn37 (Phlebotomists need love too.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 43 | View Replies]

To: colorado tanker

You are denied Communion because you are not in communion with the Catholic Church. Catholics believe that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, unleavened bread becomes the body and blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Since you don’t believe that why would you want to partake of an outward sign that said you do believe? For us Catholics communion (more correctly called Holy Eucharist) is not a symbolic gesture but a sacrament.


51 posted on 07/13/2007 12:06:17 PM PDT by baldisbeautiful (How can you trust someone who thinks it's o.k. to kill an unborn baby?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: JZelle
So I guess we should add back to the THE WESTMINSTER CONFESSION OF FAITH. A.D. 1647 the following:

VI. There is no other head of the Church but the Lord Jesus Christ nor can the Pope of Rome, in any sense be head thereof; but is that Antichrist, that man of sin and son of perdition, that exalteth himself in the Church against Christ, and all that is called God.

I don't think so, but it isn't any worse than what the Pope said against Protestants.

52 posted on 07/13/2007 12:08:50 PM PDT by A. Patriot (CZ 52's ROCK)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: colorado tanker
True. I'm reminded of the Catholic attitude toward us Prods every time I attend a Catholic service and am denied communion, but he didn't need to rub our noses in it. (BTW, all my Catholic friends are quite welcome to take communion with me at my church.)

As other posters have pointed out, Protestants do not believe that communion is actually the body and blood of Christ - they believe it is just some "symbolism".

Jesus had this to say about it:

"Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is real food, and my blood is real drink. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever" (John 6:53–58).

I find it odd that Fundamentalist Christians who believe the Bible is LITERAL truth and not open to interpretation somehow seem to totally ignore these verses. They say, "What it REALLY means is....blah blah blah".

If the Bible means exactly what it says and Jesus meant exactly what He said - then these verses mean EXACTLY what they say.

53 posted on 07/13/2007 12:09:35 PM PDT by Tokra (I think I'll retire to Bedlam.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: Jibaholic
[.. Perhaps, but that gets dangerously close to the Democrats who are so enamored of Lakoff and "framing." ..]

Democrats promote democracy...
Republicans promote a/the Republic..

You can tell quickly where one rests with a couple of questions.. Democracy is MOB Rule always in every iteration.. Mob Rule by Mobsters.. A banana Republic is a democracy..

54 posted on 07/13/2007 12:10:04 PM PDT by hosepipe (CAUTION: This propaganda is laced with hyperbole....)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 46 | View Replies]

To: JZelle
Protestants and others were upset five years ago, as they are now, but it's hardly news that religious denominations, including the Catholics, regard themselves as "the one true church." Only yesterday pulpit rhetoric was considerably harsher than anything Benedict is saying. Protestant preachers regularly denounced the pope's church as "the great whore of Rome," the pope as the anti-Christ and his works as the works of the devil. The Roman church is only the largest of the denominations claiming to be the church established by Christ.

Not many of the various sects of Christianity believe other sects are equally valid.

55 posted on 07/13/2007 12:13:01 PM PDT by TheDon (The DemocRAT party is the party of TREASON! Overthrow the terrorist's congress!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: DaveyB
That includes not worshiping or praying to Mary!

No true Catholic worships Mary. There is nothing in scripture that says one cannot pray to someone who is in Heaven. Mary is in Heaven.

Praying to someone is not worshipping someone. All worship belongs to God and God alone. The Catholic Church does not teach otherwise.

56 posted on 07/13/2007 12:13:28 PM PDT by Tokra (I think I'll retire to Bedlam.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 36 | View Replies]

To: hosepipe

Sorry, I don’t understand.


57 posted on 07/13/2007 12:15:43 PM PDT by stuartcr (Everything happens as God wants it to.....otherwise, things would be different.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 48 | View Replies]

To: padre35

Precisely, padre. You nailed it.

He told them they weren’t sufficiently Christian (read: RC) to suit him.

The ignorant message goes something like this: If Protestants weren’t so non-Roman Catholic, they’d be a lot more Christian.


58 posted on 07/13/2007 12:16:01 PM PDT by xzins (Retired Army Chaplain And Proud of It! Those who support the troops will pray for them to WIN!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 9 | View Replies]

To: stuartcr

It is a matter of core beliefs.

Catholics believe that during the high point of the mass through the power of the holy spirit the communion wafer and wine through transubstantiation become the true body and blood of Christ. As Christ said during the last supper (take and eat this is my body... blood).

Protestants say the bread and wine represent the body and blood of Christ.

Only churches with true apostolic succession can have the body, blood, and divinity of Christ present during communion.

Therefore when you receive communion in the Holy Catholic Church the Extraordinary Minister of Holy Communion presents you the Body of Christ and the response of amen means you agree. If you are protestant you don’t agree and therefore you should not participate.

If you do agree and are protestant you should enter the nearest quality RCIA program and welcome home.


59 posted on 07/13/2007 12:18:21 PM PDT by CTK YKC
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 43 | View Replies]

To: CTK YKC

bump for later response


60 posted on 07/13/2007 12:22:25 PM PDT by EarthBound (Ex Deo,gratia. Ex astris,scientia (Duncan Hunter in 2008! http://www.gohunter08.com))
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 59 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 221 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson