[Dominick]

One thing I notice, few Catholics make the Sign when they pass a Catholic Church. I still Sign, but not many Catholics I know will make the Sign when passing a Church.

[thor76]

That is a combination of a diminished sense of reverence in general, and a loss of faith in the very real and total presense of Christ in the tabernacle.

[Salvation]

I try to remember. Thanks for the reminder.

[tiki]

About 30 years ago they started a new evangelical church in our town and many Catholics joined in. There was one young Catholic whose father joined and for his father's sake ran the music program. It was all very charismatic and emotional and he considered joining but something held him back and he couldn't make the commitment. Then one day he was walking in front of a Catholic Church and a 4 yr old rode his tricycle in front of it at the same time. The little boy stopped and made the sign of the Cross and then peddled on. It really made an impact on him and made him think seriously about what he was thinking of giving up., After that he never considered leaving the Church.

That evangelical church couldn't survive the egos and conflicts present in every human situation because it was just the one congregation. No, "sign of the cross" no tradition to sustain them, no hierachy and no history to connect them. Some returned to their old churches, some lost their faith, some started new churches, which have petered out and some still "church hop". There were no roots to sustain them.