Your post #9219 seems to reveal a great deal of paranoia.
The apparent testimony (I use the term testimony here very loosely) of the Roman Catholic Church seems to rests entirely on the pack of the priests and nuns. There is little visible testimony of anything from the common Catholic adherent.
So to us, Roman Catholicism consists in activities within four walls of a building, and when common Catholics exit that building we have no way to know from any visible “testimony” that Catholicism actually produces anything in people’s every day lives. It doesn’t appear to have any positive affect in the lives of my Catholic family members; or in my Catholic neighbors.
I have no way of knowing common Catholics from the rest of society by daily observation. The testimony of the church does not seem to rest on any common Catholics or the way they live.
So it is only natural that when he immorality of certain priests becomes known, it seems to paint such a devastating portrait of the church and the priesthood. It is because it is the life and practices of priests and nuns that seem to constitute the entire apparent, observable testimony of the Roman Catholic Church.
Indeed.
Very well and accurately put to my experiences and observatons as well.
Or my family or friends..
The famous Joseph Heller quote from Catch-22 says; "Just because you are paranoid doesn't mean they aren't out to get you". I am not frightened by anti-Catholicism but I am not ignorant enough to believe that it never existed and doesn't exist today. One need only read the postings on this thread by the morbidly anti-Catholics to see it is alive and well.