Believe me, I didn't wake up one day and say I wanted to be Catholic and pursue the goal. On the contrary, it was a goal I couldn't fathom, a religion that I knew little about except the false and malicious labels that have been put on the Church. I bet my friends and the priests cringed when they saw me coming, I had so many questions, many accusatory, "prove it to me" type questions but they unfailingly answered me and if they didn't know the answer they told me that too.
I have been a Christian as long as I remember. My belief in God has never faltered in good times and in bad. I have, at times, lost faith in mankind but never God. He has been my Rock and my foundation and I have always tried to follow my conscience in all that I do. I've failed at times and I'm not perfect but I try as hard as I can to please God. And believe me, my journey was to be no where but the Catholic Church. It became as plain as the nose on my face and believe me, I have a honker.
So rhetorical or real, the answer is, I would listen and heed the calling of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. I pray every day that I will follow the will of God and He knows how dense I am sometimes and has led me quite adequately throughout my life.
My screen name, tiki is a derivative of a Proper name and has absolutely nothing to do with any pagan god. And if it does, I would say that the problem is yours in that you are looking for evil where it doesn't exist. I suppose if someone was named Dianna or some other name which had a connection with pagan mythology, that too would be evil? An external appellation has no bearing on the heart and the heart is where God is looking.
Ahh, you surpass even Peter.
A man conscience is not the standard of truth. We live in a world where babies are aborted as a matter of conscience. There is only one standard for truth and that is Jesus Christ and that standard is found in His word..all else is subject to error
tiki if Gods is your all in all why do you pray to Mary instead of Him? Did you ever ask Him if it was OK to do that?
Well, I would hopefully listen to the prodding of the Holy Spirit.
This is a very good thing to do. It raises the question: how do we know whether we are following the prodding of the Holy Spirit, or perhaps some other prodding?
As an example, those fine folks, the Mormons, decide that their religion is true, because they "feel" a "burning in the bosom," which they believe is an assurance, or sign, that the Holy Spirit has endorsed their leaders and their scripture.
My firm belief is that we must necessarily have a solid, objective reality, with which to compare our experiences (and what we are taught) so that we can, as well as mortal sinners can, decide whether it be from God, or someone else.
As an example:
(you wrote): My screen name, tiki is a derivative of a Proper name and has absolutely nothing to do with any pagan god.
Tiki is, explicitly and exactly, the name of a false pagan god, and the idols by which certain people worship it, to this very day. I am sure that you had no intention to name a false god when you chose your screen name.
And if it does, I would say that the problem is yours in that you are looking for evil where it doesn't exist.
This sentence illustrates exactly the point I made above. What I wrote:
(BTW, are you aware that your screen name is both a polynesian idol, and false god?)
For some unknown reason (maybe you were tired, or ill, etc.) when you read that simple, non-accusatory sentence, you BELIEVED that I was accusing you of evil (or worse, "LOOKING for evil.")
Thus, you developed a Belief System (that I was "looking for evil").
If, anywhere in the process you went through to develop that Belief System, you had merely READ THE SENTENCE, and compared what it actually said to the Belief System, you would have realized that the Belief System was not true to the clear meaning of the sentence.
I believe that that process is what we must do, when we are deciding whether we are being led by the Holy Spirit, or something else.
I suppose if someone was named Dianna or some other name which had a connection with pagan mythology, that too would be evil?
No, not today. But consider this scenario:
If, in the first century, in Ephesus, an adult Christian woman decided to take upon herself, publicly, the name of Diana (Goddess of the Ephesians). Do you suppose that Paul would have just said "Hey, catchy screen name, lady!" Or do you think he might have asked whether she was aware of the local goddess, to whom sacrifices were being offered, every day?
DG