[metmom]

I'm sorry if this sounds, or is, condescending, but this is another case of your firmly asserting something easily shown to be untrue.

Nevertheless, widely taught and virtually universally believed.

There's a HUGE disparity between what the Catholic church's official position is supposed to be and what happens and is taught, at the local level.

[Mad Dawg]

I do not think you are an authority on what is universally believed, unless by "the universe" you mean "the community in which I grew up", which is not the usual meaning.

There's a HUGE disparity between what the Catholic church's official position is supposed to be and what happens and is taught, at the local level.

Certainly. Consequently those of us who want to have some reliability when we talk about what the Church teaches do not rely on what we learned in CCD. We study. We inquire. We take pains. We gather reliable evidence BEFORE we judge.

It is no child's fault that he is poorly catechized. If an adult is content to rest at an elementary and middle school level of learning, he or she must give up hope of being considered an authority.