Posted on 11/21/2007 10:02:45 AM PST by NYer
I would agree. When it comes to divorce I think the statistics are all over the board. I don't think it's possible to get a clear statistical picture on this.
That being said, our Lord Jesus stated the reason people get divorce is because of the hardness of their hearts (except for adultery). It's interesting in my mind to see divorce becoming acceptable to Christians because it indicates our hearts are being hardened against God's word and will.
Now, this is fun! If it can be said that the Catholic Church has had thousands of spin-off denominations, then it could be claimed that the Orthodox had ALL of them --- if you see it as Orthodox --> Catholic --> All the other (let's agree on a figure: bajillion) Christian denominations.
But if you ask all the other denominations whether they are spun-off Catholics (or Orthodox), I'll wager most of them would say, "No."
And if you ask Catholics if they are spun-off from the Orthodox, they'll say "No," beinst they both were the same original church for 1000 years, and the Catholics still recognize every one of the Orthodox sacraments, seeing the Orthodox not as heretics but simply true and valid Churches in schism.
If you ask the Orthodox if they are spun-off from the Catholics, they'll say "No," and (many, but not all) would say moreover that the Catholics are heretical.
And the Catholics recognize ALL Christian Trinitarian baptisms (excluding only Mormon because they are not, properly speaking, Trinitarian), saying that Baptism makes one a member of the Church, and therefore all baptized Christians are certainly, though imperfectly, Catholic.
Meanwhile, the Orthodox don't necessarily recognize all Baptisms, not even of other Orthodox.
To illustrate: my dear husband Don-o was baptized a Baptist when he was an adolescent, and this Baptism was recognized by the Catholic Church, which gave him the right (as a validly baptized person)to marry Sacramentally in the Catholic Church. But when he became an Antiochian Orthodox, they Baptized him again, and then when he switched to ROCOR (Russian Orthodox Church Outside of Russia) he was baptized yet again! (The Dunkard!)
So the Catholics seem most "catholic," Baptism-wise, in respect of which there are no denominational divisions.
So welcome, Alex and GoLightly, fellow Catholics!
(I mean that in manner half-jesting and entirely--- entirely --- sincere.)
Alex, we're back up again. It's up to a to a bajillion.
Happy Thanksgiving y'all!
A very astute yet poignant observation. One can't help but be reminded of St. Paul's warning in Chapter 11 of his Letter to the Romans.
"Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness; otherwise you too will be cut off."
I would think our Roman Catholic FRiends would be glad about al the Proddie reconciliation happening out there.
I think one thing that is needed is that pastors spend more time in pre marriage counseling than they do. One thing about the RCC and many Lutheran synods is you go through “marriage boot camp” prior to the pastor letting you get married. You have to be committed to marriage to go through all the testing!
Gamecock, what an intriguing statement! Since this is a thread about the ever-more-widespread Protestant acceptance of divorce/remarriage, do you mean that Catholics would be expected to rejoice that Protestant are achieving unity via abandoning more and more Biblical moral doctrines?
Beg pardon, I think perhaps I misunderstood you.
Please correct me.
I'm not sure about the Protestant acceptance of divorce/remarriage you are alluding to and how it compares/contrasts to the annulments handed out by Rome.
I was speaking of the article at the top of this thread, "Evangelicals Shift Toward Acceptance on Divorce." As for the rat of amendments, 'tis indeed a vexation and a puzzlement. There's this statistic:
"For the year 2002: of the 56,236 ordinary hearings for a declaration of nullity, 46,092 received an affirmative sentence. [Meaning there were 46,092 total annulments of Catholic marriages in 2002 worldwide.] Of these, 343 were handed out in Africa, 676 in Oceania, 1,562 in Asia, 8,855 in Europe and 36,656 in America, of which 30,968 in North America [Meaning that 66% of the world's Catholic annulments were in the US and Canada, which comprise only 6% of the world's Catholic population] and 5,688 in Central and South America.
Which makes me think the problem is, precisely, the American Catholic Church (huh! and there were those who said there is no such heresy as Americanism!)
And there'ss this statistic: "In the US: For every eight Catholic marriages, there is one annulment."
Which makes the rate of US Catholic annulments approximately 1/4 the rate of all American divorces overall.
Not that this is OK. This is not good. Not good at all.
I can’t speak to the Proddie Stats, since the cases given in the above article are hardly Protestant.
That's a sentence I wrote! Lord, I DO need that coffee. Supposed to read "As for the rate of annulments..."
Which is still a vexation and a puzzlement!
No, I don't have the Proddie Stats, as you put it. Don't know where to find them. Do you?
Sure don’t, but whatever they are, I’m sure they validate the need for a Savior.
Honey, EVERYTHING validates the need for a Savior.
Amen
Chesterton got it exactly right when he said that ,”Divorce is not what they are asking for. It is remarriage and respectability.” They ask for the right to make a vow, break it and then stand in the same church and make it all over again.
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