I think you should know that given an opportunity for honest and courteous discussion, I usually take it. And presented with a poster bent on slam and slander, well...
The opportunities for the first are rare, the other option for the second is to ignore. Defending is not a ‘reflex’ for me, it is the only option other than ignore and let garbage go unanswered. I don’t think this is a principled stand nor what the Church expects of me.
In any case, I’ve come to believe your ideal is not going to comprise much of this or any other anonymous, mostly unmoderated internet forum.
Now, to return your favor, I’ll take a turn at you: Why is it, in my experience including this latest, that you only correct me and other Catholics? Or have i missed your attempts in the other direction?
Several answers. Sometimes I do and have "corrected", as you put it, non-Catholics on doctrine. I have had numerous discussions concerning the deity of Jesus, the end-times, OSAS and other topics. I also am neither the moderator nor anyones mother. We are all supposedly grown-ups and we can only be responsible for what we say. It's not my role to tell other people what they can or cannot express, though there HAVE been times I have Freepmailed some to counter what they may have said or how it was said. So unless you read EVERY one of my posts, you cannot know that I "only correct you and other Catholics. When a thread topic covers areas where I may disagree, I sincerely try my best to stay respectful while trying to dispute someone else's views or beliefs.
What my intent was in presenting my idea of productive dialog was simply to state an ideal, something we should all try to strive for. It has to do more with our own self-correction as Christians and not letting the ungodly world system have an upper moral hand. Since they are the real hypocrites - condemning an act that they celebrate in themselves - we should not be reacting to every failure they judge in us as if we had not realized when we failed.
My main objection to what I see as knee-jerk complaints, is that the idea that the Catholic Church suffers enough criticism from the world so other Christians should not pile on, gives the impression that Catholics think they should be above any criticism - no matter what they teach or do. I don't accept that because I do not accept that the Roman Catholic Church is the ONE TRUE CHURCH incapable of error. Perhaps that is the real reason why any criticism is rejected - Catholics do not believe their church can make mistakes.