Can organized religion be bad sometimes?

Question

When I think of everything I have learned from my Catholic education I don't once remember sharing my own opinions. Does not believing certain aspects of the Catholic faith make me a bad Catholic? America has seen the dangers of blind faith with the tradgedies of 9/11. The terrorists honestly thought they were doing the right thing. I wonder if sometimes I could be falling into the same trap. There is a great song out there called "Belief" by John Mayer. Check it out its almost life changing.

Answer 1

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KNOW THE TRUTH AND THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE.
YOU BELIEVE WHAT THE BIBLE TELLS YOU.
NOT WHAT MAN TELL YOU.
READ THE BIBLE YOURSELF.
GOD BLESS YOU WITH PEACE IN YOUR SEARCH FOR TRUTH.

Answer 2

CAN ORGANIZED RELIGION BE BAD?

Doesn't it depend on what they teach? Is there a "sin" to being "organized"? Can't O.R. also promote a living relationship with God? A few questions:

How much Catholic education did you receive? Did you have a good experience? Do you know personally any priests, nuns, or brothers? Do you practice your faith? Are you cynical?

The Catholic faith (as revealed & passed on by the Church) is DIFFERENT from your opinion. Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington, D.C. has said that the Church teaches the message of Jesus Christ for today & all generations. It is authoritative; it is not relative. Your opinion, my opinion is just that.......one's opinion. The Church is the presence of Christ in the here and now.

AS I SAY THE ABOVE, I am aware of the scandals that have affected the Church. No excusses there!!

Back to your quesstion: If you don't go to Mass regularly, you are a bad Catholic. If you believe that abortion is OK, you are not holding one of the truths of the faith.

The terrorists of 9/11 destroyed life; where TODAY do you find that in the Catholic faith that it is OK to kill people?

ENOUGH from me................. good question!

I will check out the "almost life changing" song writer.

Let's pray for each other!

I NEED IT! :-)

Answer 3

I have had a epiphany recently regarding organized religion and unorganized religion. I believe when we consider our own religion, the only true religion that others have to believe, we are letting evil, like a slow moving fog seep into our motivations. We have to be on guard against it. I don't think Catholicism is the same as Christianity, but I think certain Catholics like Mother Theresa, understand Jesus beyond what she was told as a Catholic, so I wouldn't really worry about being a good or bad Catholic, and if you're not sure remember a couple things. 1.)Read the bible to see what Jesus said and did. 2.) Things invented by humanity fade, truth is eternal, for example: 1950,Mass is in latin, 2006 in English. 1960, women have to cover head in church 2006: not so much. 1930: Catholics not marrying in a Catholic Church by a priest, hell there you go, 2006:
maybe a little purgatory, probably not hell.

Answer 4

Well, anything involving humans has the potential to be bad sometimes. This is because humans are imperfect.

As for "organized religion"--some level of organization is required for the faithful to gather, contribute their talents and abilities in order to accomplish things, encourage each other, rebuke each other when appropriate, and so forth...as well as share in worship. Since Catholics are people, you can expect people who are Catholics to be people. That is, you can expect some people to be blinded, confused, misguided, self-righteous.... You can also expect some to be generous, helpful, kind....

The key is to be who you wish everyone else was. That is, instead of pointing fingers and saying, "He's wrong," "She's wrong," "What that person is doing is bad," point the finger toward yourself, identify that within you that is unhelpful, unkind, misguided, judgmental, and so forth, and seek God's help in transforming your life and eradicating those problems. If you turn your attention to yourself, you will have plenty to work on, and others' failings will interest you less and less.

As for whether or not disbelieving in things that the Roman Catholic church thinks or does, and whether or not it makes you a bad Catholic, I don't know. It makes you a person who has questions. Ask other people who are faithful what they think. I don't know you well enough to comment one way or the other.

I would encourage you to continue seeking God's will for your life.

I mean, yes, blind faith can in some cases be dangerous. Just make sure that you are not one of the blind ones. I am in no way suggesting that you are, but I am suggesting that this is something that Christians must be vigilant about. And this is also where having others in your life who are Christians is important, so that they might point out to you if you begin to err.

Answer 5

As a former Catholic I can tell you that it is good to question some aspects of the Catholic faith and if you take it to the Lord and search his word I believe you will find the peace you are looking for. It's okay to be a "bad Catholic" by having questions as long as you are a good Christian by seeking answers.

Answer 6

yes, organized religion can be bad...i think that there is a real crisis in the Catholic church is that our generation was not properly chatechized. It isn't just about learning prayers and rules (although sometimes necessary)...you need to have a personal relationship with God and sometimes it is okay to question things. just be open and know that sometimes man within the church is corrupt but not the church as a whole.

Answer 7

Can organized religion be bad sometimes? hmmm... let me think... well... if you go back to medieval Britain and look at how many "Witches" and "Heretics" were burned at the stake in the name of the church, or if you look at the Nazi Holocaust where the entire belief system of Judaism was persecuted to the tune of around 6 million murders, or in even more recent history, the sectarian violence that has occurred around the world in the name of organized religion (examples include catholic versus protestant - Northern Ireland, Bosnia Herzegovina, Croatia, etc and Muslim versus Christian in Eastern Europe and the Middle East) then yes, I guess that organized religion can be very, very bad sometimes.

Answer 8

Organized religion requires.... organization, which requires committees and administrators and budgets, which can get very political. When in doubt go straight to the source, I'm talking about God, not John Mayer.

Answer 9

It is important that you realize that organized religion is man made. It is not made of or by supreme power. It is a collective opinion of some who then organized in order to have strength. They do not have strength by themselves. They are not capable of each coming to the same conclusion therefore there is always a group within the organization that will determine what the collective thought should be. Your having your own opinion about anything should be a condition for rejoice not one for condemnation. However, if you ask the collective voice they will in deed tell you that you are not behaving properly and that you should repent.

Answer 10

catholicism is not a democracy. modern americans may not like hearing this, but our personal opinions dont count when faced with the word of God. if you question the teachings, thats completely understandable - that means youre ready for the next step: education. read the bible, the catechism, christian scholars like aquainas and augustine, cs lewis, kant, chesterton; even non-christian scholars and philosophers will help: aristotle for instance.

2000 years have created a lot of debate, philosophical movements and historical critiques.

catholicism is a religion for adults and faith can be complicated, but it will set you free.

Answer 11

I say yes. I think anything with humanity has a potential to be bad or good. After all we are just humans leading other humans around. Thats why its better to learn as much as you can about things before forming your own opinion than just from what others say or preach.