catholics!

i am a catholic

definition:
Catholic of the Roman Catholic faith.
of or including all Christians.
of or relating to the historic doctrine and practice of the Western Church.
noun (Catholic)
a member of the Roman Catholic Church.
i'm still a member of the catholic church... since the day i was baptized... and i still maintain that faith (well most of it at least)...
but i disagree with some of the things the catholic church says or believes... like for example... evolution... and child molestation
... and i've disagreed with some of the dysfunctional practices like believing that holy water has some super natural power 'cos the holy sprit is in the water... or that miraculous medals and pictures would protect me... which goes against christianity... and that st. anthony's statue is miraculous or whatever... i dont agree with any of that because it is not a compatible or a suitable practice according to the teachings of christianity...
recently... i've been accused of being a non-practicing-catholic by a practicing catholic... and this person managed to convince a catholic priest to marry her! why the accusation? 'cos in my blog i had mentioned that i'm something between a christian, buddhist, atheist and a scientist! and 'cos i've not been to church for a while... and 'cos i am critical of things like topics in this blog post for example... catholics dont like being criticized!
so although i'm a strong-catholic or even a sunday-catholic... i'm trying to stick to christianity...

catholics and science

science is not anti-catholic or anti-christian... its just science... it has no alliances or any grudges against any religion... science and religion can coexist... "All religions, arts and sciences are branches of the same tree." - Albert Einstein
and i think its the other way about... religion doesnt want to coexist with science... most strong-catholics are threatened by science that they try to create an image that science is anti-catholic or anti-christian... they dont seem to understand science... and esp its purpose...

Famed physicist Stephen Hawking said Thursday that Pope John Paul II tried to discourage him and other scientists attending a cosmology conference at the Vatican from trying to figure out how the universe began.
In 1992, John Paul issued a declaration saying the church's denunciation of Galileo was an error resulting from "tragic mutual incomprehension."
Hawking said the pope told the scientists, "It's OK to study the universe and where it began. But we should not inquire into the beginning itself because that was the moment of creation and the work of God."
But Hawking questioned whether an almighty power was needed to create the universe. "Does it require a creator to decree how the universe began? Or is the initial state of the universe determined by a law of science?" he asked.
Source: SPACE.com

Vatican admits Galileo was right
07 November 1992 | Magazine issue 1846
In 1633, the Inquisition of the Roman Catholic Church forced Galileo Galilei, one of the founders of modern science, to recant his theory that the Earth moves around the Sun. Under threat of torture, Galileo - seen above facing his inquisitors - recanted. But as he left the courtroom, he is said to have muttered, 'all the same, it moves'.
Last week, 359 years later, the Church finally agreed. At a ceremony in Rome, before the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Pope John Paul II officially declared that Galileo was right. The formal rehabilitation was based on the findings of a committee of the Academy the Pope set up in 1979, soon after taking office. The committee decided the Inquisition had acted in good faith, but was wrong.
The Inquisition ruled that Galileo could not prove 'beyond doubt' that the Earth orbits the Sun, so they could not reinterpret scriptures implying otherwise.
But the Galileo affair still embarrassed the Church, which now maintains an astronomical observatory at the Pope's summer palace at Castelgandolfo. Father George Coine, who heads the observatory, says the affair was 'tragic, beyond the control of any one party'. It was the height of the Church's battle with Protestantism, says Coine, 'and here was a scientist saying he interpreted scripture better than they did.'
The trials were not a confrontation between science and faith, says Coine, because 'Galileo never presented his science to the Inquisition. Science wasn't even at the trial.
Source: New Scientist

and Christians have been guilty of attitudes of rejection and exclusion...

okay so say i'm a strong-catholic... as in... i go to church... pray several times a day... may be lighting a candle (which contributes to global warming btw)... put miraculous medals and pictures in my car, wallet, etc.
but... i dont want to bond with a non-strong-catholic...

"Lord God... at times the equality of your sons and daughters has not been acknowledged," he said in reference to women, "and Christians have been guilty of attitudes of rejection and exclusion..."
Source: "Jubilee Year" homily Pope John Paul II delivered on Sunday (12 Mar 2000)

ppl fail to see the purpose of religion... they are too absorbed by its culture and practices and assume that being a religious person is about conforming to culture, tradition and other practices... i'm not saying that ppl should not do all that... but the important thing is to be absorbed and at least make an effort to practice what the religion teaches...
whats the point of going to church on sunday... and confessing your sins etc and then you have this policy towards ppl who are culturally and religiously different to you... is that the christian thing to do? jesus would shout blasphemy if he was here! would jesus have said... "oh hey... you're not a christian... so you can't hang out with us... you're not a compatible or a suitable person in our group..."

sins of the church

the catholic church took a while to accept that the earth is not the center of the universe and that the sun and other planets revolve around earth...
and its not like they dont have blood on their hands... well at least the previous pope apologized...

"The church, full of the holiness received from our Lord, kneels before God and implores his pardon for the past and present sins of its children," said Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, president of the Vatican's 2000 Jubilee Committee. The Vatican document also acknowledges acts of violence and oppression during the Inquisition, when a philosopher was burned at the stake in a Roman piazza. And the church is seeking forgiveness for those missionaries who may not have respected the world's diverse cultures and religions. The document acknowledges sins only by those acting in the name of the church. It does not acknowledge any sins by the church itself or those who have served as its popes; both are considered infallible. Some within the church were uncomfortable with the idea of a public prayer for pardon, believing it would detract from the positive achievements of Catholicism throughout the centuries. But in his years as pontiff, Pope John Paul II has always been a strong believer in public acts of humility and spirituality. The pope also wants this jubilee year of Christ's birth to be one of renewal for his church. A confession of past sins may give the sense of a fresh start.
Source: CNN

critisism

the church was never open to critisism... it associated criticism with blasphemy... they blindly believe that regardless of what they do... the church is and will be holy... which is not true... because even if there is the holy spirit is there to guide the church... the church is run by ppl...

priests

i've met some good priests... and some bad ones... i studied in a catholic church... there was this sadistic priest... who used to make children walk on their knees and he used to follow them and beat them up with a cane... as punishment...
you dont need a child psychiatrist saying that that sort of punishment would have severe impact on the child's mind... anyone with some sense of compassion would know that it is wrong... we all saw it... and shrugged it off...
we all had our share of corporal punishment which was okay but it wasnt like that... this was cruel...

atonement

christianity is about atonement... which is fine... we need to make corrections to the mistakes we do...
but the catholic church has a protocol called confession where you go to a priest and say the last time i had my confession was like 5 years back and then he'll give this "you're a sinner" look or say "i've got only 5 min"... and he'll whisper something... and ask me to say a few hail mary's... i'm you're forgiven... how nice... i've never been advised or asked to think about the sins i've done and their consequences...
my mind refuses to accept bullshit like that... sorta an immune response...
the problem is that the church/priests/strong-catholics are too much absorbed by protocol that they forget to give attention to the actual teachings of christ...