Catholic Church is losing sway in Europe (Opinion from Ireland)

Times Leader ^ | May 12, 2005 | Tod Robberson

[Kolokotronis]

"Do they serve cheese with that whine?"

LOL!

[AlbionGirl]

Bump.

i_d_, it's been reported that our new Pope realizes that perhaps a smaller but purer (orthodox pure, that is) Church might have to come to pass.

I don't think that means he's going to be kicking anyone out, just that he's expects the Faithful to evince a mature Faith. In other words, you can't be cheerleading for Planned Parenthood and convincingly hold on to the title Catholic.

How 'enforcement' of all this comes about is not something I fully understand or can envision though.

[SolomoninSouthDakota]

" Of course, our place is packed every weekend . . ."

Of course, I would say, from my viewpoint your place is very rare. Please glorify God for your blessings, most Catholics in America remain in a desert as pertains to their quality of sermons I fear.

[Knitting A Conundrum]

Also, remember St. Nonna, the mother of St. Gregory of Nazianzus:

http://www.stthomasirondequoit.com/SaintsAlive/id805.htm

Let me introduce St. Nonna, a model Christian wife and mother.

Nonna was born around 290 AD in Cappadocia (now a part of Turkey). Her prominent Christian parents raised her in a firm Christian faith. It might seem odd, then, that she should have married a non- Christian. Her husband, Gregory, a magistrate in the city of Nazianzus, belonged to a small sect, half-pagan, half-Jewish, called the Hypsistarians. But even though the Church discourages such marriages as risky for the Catholic party, this particular mixed marriage turned out brilliantly.

Influenced by the good example of his wife, Gregory not only became a Christian, but a priest and bishop of Nazianzus. (In those days Church law still permitted married bishops.) Indeed, Gregory was so outstanding that today we venerate him as St. Gregory of Nazianzus the Elder.

Nonna and Gregory had three children: Gregory Junior, Gorgonia and Caesarius. Before young Gregory was born, his mother offered him to God as a special gift. God accepted. Gregory Junior became a monk, a priest, a bishop and as St. Gregory of Nazianzus (c. 330-390), one of the four great Eastern doctors of the Church. He won special fame as a defender of the divinity of Christ against Arius of Alexandria, who claimed that Jesus was no more God than you or I.

Gorgonia, much like her mother in her virtues, married and raised a family with equal care. She devoted her spare time to the needs of the local church and the poor of the district. Caesarius became a physician, held in the highest respect as a medic and a man. Emperor Julian the Apostate so admired him that he offered him all sorts of favors to win him over to paganism. Caesarius not only refused but resigned the public offices he already held.

The Christian Emperor Valens, who succeeded Julian, named him his private financial secretary. In 368, however, after narrowly escaping death in an earthquake, Caesarius renounced worldly life and gave all his property to the poor.

St. Gregory the Younger preached at the funerals of both Gorgonia and Caesarius. Since then, they too, have been venerated as saints.

What a family Nonna gave to God - herself and four other saints! True to the scriptural ideal of the “valiant woman,” she won from her husband and children deserved thanks and praise (Proverbs, 31).

To be a worthy wife and mother - a truly divine calling!

[Knitting A Conundrum]

It will require bishops as brave as St. Athanasius....as effective as St. Charles Borromeo....as aware of their missonary role as St. Martin of Tours and St. Patrick.

We need to pray much for our bishops.

[k omalley]

Thanks for the info on St. Gregory of Nazianzus and St. Nonna.

It will take the cherubim, the seraphim, and all the saints and heavenly hosts intervening to make me a worthy wife and mother and to turn my husband and daughters into saints. LOL!

[Knitting A Conundrum]

With the help of God, my husband returned to the church...and my youngest is going through confirmation Monday night...he was not raised catholic and had to go through special sacraments class to get to this point.

All we can do is pray and plant what seeds we can. And when the time is right, they might bear fruit.

[infidel dog]

Well, my ever-perceptive friend, I'm with you on the problems of enforcement. But isn't it wonderful to finally have recognition of the condition of the Church from her highest office? Hopefully the new German Shepherd in Rome will not shrink from the sad, but now unavoidable task of sorting out the sheep and goats in his flock. Benedict XVI has a tough job ahead of him...a regular dog's task, if you paws to think about it. But I think it will really test the warp and woof of the man, and...Oh dear, someone's put a large crook around my neck and I'm being yanked off the sta-

[BlackElk]

I take it that you intentionally spelled the last word "morays" rather than "mores" and upon that assumption, I cannot imagine anyone providing a wiser or more incisive post here.

I would add only that the fifteen-year old needs a good spanking by one of her parents.

[SAMS]

The Irish have always been their own worst enemy...and now it seems to have slowly crept into the Church. They are now worshipping at the altar of the Almighty Euro.

[AlbionGirl]

...if you paws to think about it.

That was pretty good! I got a good visual from it.

[infidel dog]

I'm glad you enjoyed it, A.G. Personally, I haven't had any good visuals since I wrote my optometrist a bad check. Oy! Even I can't believe I wrote that one...

[sageb1]

"You make a good point, Mom, that these are stupid responses from teenagers, shooting off their mouths. However, in reading this article through, it becomes apparent that secularism is their new god. This is most prevalent in the more culturally advanced civilizations, that feed on immediate gratification. A plague or drought would certainly wake these folks up."

Sadly, what it points to is that they, themselves, are now their own gods.

[Knitting A Conundrum]

Which means, when they find out what lousy gods they are, and life is discovered to be flavored with ashes and bile, they will be looking for real answers...and as Christians, this is when we need to be there to offer them the truth.

Missionary work.

[infidel dog]

Hey, who says the West has no faith? Worship of the great god ME has never been more fervent!

[It's me]

My husband is visiting hi mohter in Ireland as we speak.
Interesting that for the first time in many, many years, he says that there were young people at Mass. He said that there were the usual elderly and many 18 - 25 year olds. NONE from abut 30 - 60years of age.

[GipperGal]

My daughter turns 19 in 2 weeks. She occasionally shows 'signs' of maturity. Like St. Monica, I pray for her every day.

Yes! Do that. Pray for her. Always prayer for her and tell her that you are. And love her too. That's what my mother and father did for me. And I came around and saw the light. Unfortunately, it took both my parents' deaths before I really understood how precious faith is. In the end the only tragedy is to not die a saint.

[GipperGal]

Personally, it's been a very long time since I have heard an interesting and engaging HOMILY. I hear mostly platitudes and a rare good joke. The music is mediocre. And I attend mass at the most traditional parish in our diocese largest city.

I know what you mean. This is precisely why so many young Catholics leave the faith, and then years later when they discover the importance of faith, they end up joining some evangelical church that has a welcoming community with lots of bible studies and social interaction and, well, a personal touch. We can learn something from them (no don't gasp, I'm not talking about learning anything doctrinal from them), we need to build our parishes from the ground up. Consider the story of the young priest Karl Wojtyla who was told to start a youth ministry of some sort to help the young people in Poland who were in danger of losing their faith under the onslaught of Soviet atheism. How did he do it? One kid at a time. He asked some young college students to help him form a choir for his parish. To be asked for a favor from a priest is a great way to get young people involved. I'm serious. It's almost impossible to say no. So he got these college kids together. And they sang the Mass, and afterward they would have discussions, bible studies, intense talks about life. Deep friendships formed and lasted throughout the lives of those young men and women and the life of that young priest who eventually became John Paul II.

[ninenot]

On some other threads, the opinion that the West's wealth is a major factor in the decline of the Faith has been advanced...

IIRC, Ireland's economy started picking up substantially during the late 1980's (maybe before.)

There is also the vague smell of 'selective reporting' here. Are there NO Europeans other than the Cardinals who voted for B-16 who think highly of him?

[ninenot]

There are a couple of life-events which should cause one to understand the "boring repetition"--leaving aside the utter vacuity of that phrase.

1) Birth of one's first child; and
2) Death of one's parent(s).

If these realities occur and one STILL does not understand, or at least inquire intellectually, about the linkage of generations within the Church--heritage and inheritance--then one's soul is akin to rock.