Three words, in German if I may. Der Synodale Weg.
To claim that there is no attack on the Church's teaching on sexual morality is being obtuse.
That the Church has a fallible human element is denied by no one. But to claim the Catholic Church is a mere human institution is to deny the very...
I know that. My post states as much.
I disagree. It would be a blatant repudiation of previous teaching.
I've always maintained that ecumenism is a waste of time.
As far as I am aware, suicide is still a mortal sin. That does not mean every person who commits suicide is culpable of the full guilt of mortal sin as consent of the will has always been a prerequisite of mortal sin. My actual faith in Catholicism has become quite shaky since Pope Francis has...
Psalm 2 is instructive here, specifically:
The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against his anointed, saying, let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.
The debate is preoccupied with sex because sexual...
This is not about papal infallibility specifically. It is about the teaching authority of the Church in general which claims to be infallible on matters of faith and morals. Divine revelation is meaningless without some mechanism to guarantee its integrity from human error. The Catholic Church...
Afraid to return to Mass
The above thread by Pearl has me thinking about Catholicism and the divide between progressives/liberals and the conservatives/traditionalists and their respective visions for the Church. I have always been open in regards to my sympathy for the traditionalist wing of...
I mean, being functional in our era's most important language is never a bad thing. My point is that sacred languages develop because tradition is basic to religion. The JWs are a very recent American sect so I would not expect it to have a sacred language.
In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti.
Isn't the weight of venerable tradition enough?
Respect for tradition is basic to the religious impulse. For example, you don't need to learn Classical Arabic to be a Muslim. But Islam wouldn't be itself without said Arabic. Likewise, you don't...
No. But there's an idea to which I am sympathetic, which states that the immediate after death experience (which is glimpsed at during an NDE) is a deception tailored to manipulate souls into accepting amnesia and reincarnation.
For the most part, common sense should tell you where the line is. Grey areas would need to be debated and taken on a case by case basis. The common good served by preventing the domestic abuse of women outweighs a Muslim man's claim to having the right to beat his wife. On the other hand, I...
In light of your later posts this reply may be superfluous but I want to be clear about a few things. I find male circumcision to be distasteful. There is no practical or medical (with exceptions) justification for the practice. The cultural insistence on circumcision you find in the U.S. is...
I do not think the loss of the foreskin is so damaging to male well being that it justifies a total ban on circumcision.
It does not matter. FGM is not a religious requirement. It is a cultural expectation in certain parts of Africa and the Middle East. But (call me un-PC) I do not think the...
No tolerance for FGM, IMO.
FGM and male circumcision are not comparable. Neither Islam or Christianity require it in any case.
I understand your position and I am sympathetic. But I think the right of Judaism to exist is more important than the desires of those who find male circumcision...
I think the right for Jews (and Muslims) to practice their religion is an important consideration. I think circumcision is distasteful, but I recognize its requirement in Judaism as coming from a genuine religious commitment.
I think the religious requirement must be an established one...
My point is that your point is irrelevant. You can sneer at and mock the Biblical account all you want, but like it or not circumcision remains non-negotiable for Judaism. So any laws restricting circumcision must have a religious exemption. (Primarily for Jews).
As long as there is a...
The Biblical narrative is that circumcision is a sign of the Mosaic Covenant, not that foreskins offend God. As far as the biblical narrative is concerned no other group is required to take on the practice. IMO, circumcision being ubiquitous in the Afroasoatic world suggests that the Biblical...
No. While one still lives one can respond to grace. It is at death when the definitive choice is made. Or rather, confirmed. If one dies saying 'no' to God, then and only then will God (who is love itself)
withdraw that person's access to grace. Only then will a person be denied the means to see...
The idea that God would allow a person to be irrevocably severed from His grace is an awful prospect. To be forever denied the sight of God and the direct experience of His love is the worst thing that could happen to a human being. Nevertheless, I don't doubt that at least some will choose to...