...I'm considering leaving my religion, Roman Catholicism, permanently, after 21 years of being a part of it. The Pope has made one too many blitheringly narrow-minded and offensive homophobic statements finally, and I'm looking into other, more open-minded Christian sects. Roman Catholicism simply has so many lies and "misinformations" piled on top of each other that I am questioning whether I can even stay in it with good conscience.
I've lost all confidence that my native faith can change any longer. I was brought up in it to believe it was a fairly liberal and tolerant sect, and it has proven this in regards to social justice for the unfortunate and in reaching out to leaders of other religions, both Protestant and non-Christian.
However, the Vatican has simply proven over the last few years that it values faulty tradition over people. And now that the Pope has openly encouraged discrimination at the secular level against anyone who supposedly "threatens the traditional family," I am just angered beyond belief, particularly since the Pope also alluded to atrociously flawed "natural law" arguments, which find their root at the "Adam and Eve" garbage--which they discourage belief in anyway! I hope the old @#$% is very pleased with himself that I, once one of the most ardent supporters of the Catholic Church in public and on this forum, simply cannot stand to even think about the faith anymore without seething with internal revulsion and betrayal.
Maybe my emotions will change tomorrow, and I will take back what I have written, but, in the meantime, I am interested in knowing the other facets of Christianity. Just so you know, don't even suggest faiths that are either fundamentalist or homophobic, because I will not be interested.
It's only ironic yesterday that I mentioned that I would likely start my own denomination, had it not been for my Catholic background, which, generally, means that we are more reluctant to break off if we are unhappy. Perhaps this is the sign I was waiting for. Had it not been for Martin Luther, for instance, the Church would likely never have changed during Vatican II. What do you think?
And no smart ass comments, okay? I'm being both sincere and dead serious here. If this seems arrogant, so be it, and drop it.
Melon
------------------
"He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time
I've lost all confidence that my native faith can change any longer. I was brought up in it to believe it was a fairly liberal and tolerant sect, and it has proven this in regards to social justice for the unfortunate and in reaching out to leaders of other religions, both Protestant and non-Christian.
However, the Vatican has simply proven over the last few years that it values faulty tradition over people. And now that the Pope has openly encouraged discrimination at the secular level against anyone who supposedly "threatens the traditional family," I am just angered beyond belief, particularly since the Pope also alluded to atrociously flawed "natural law" arguments, which find their root at the "Adam and Eve" garbage--which they discourage belief in anyway! I hope the old @#$% is very pleased with himself that I, once one of the most ardent supporters of the Catholic Church in public and on this forum, simply cannot stand to even think about the faith anymore without seething with internal revulsion and betrayal.
Maybe my emotions will change tomorrow, and I will take back what I have written, but, in the meantime, I am interested in knowing the other facets of Christianity. Just so you know, don't even suggest faiths that are either fundamentalist or homophobic, because I will not be interested.
It's only ironic yesterday that I mentioned that I would likely start my own denomination, had it not been for my Catholic background, which, generally, means that we are more reluctant to break off if we are unhappy. Perhaps this is the sign I was waiting for. Had it not been for Martin Luther, for instance, the Church would likely never have changed during Vatican II. What do you think?
And no smart ass comments, okay? I'm being both sincere and dead serious here. If this seems arrogant, so be it, and drop it.
Melon
------------------
"He had lived through an age when men and women with energy and ruthlessness but without much ability or persistence excelled. And even though most of them had gone under, their ignorance had confused Roy, making him wonder whether the things he had striven to learn, and thought of as 'culture,' were irrelevant. Everything was supposed to be the same: commercials, Beethoven's late quartets, pop records, shopfronts, Freud, multi-coloured hair. Greatness, comparison, value, depth: gone, gone, gone. Anything could give some pleasure; he saw that. But not everything provided the sustenance of a deeper understanding." - Hanif Kureishi, Love in a Blue Time