my bf and i always argue about religion..i am catholic and he is a born again christian..he is a very strict one..(i dont know why but i think its because his mom and dad used to argue alot about religion too..his mom is jehovah's witness and his dad is born again christian aswell..his mom and dad dont argue anymore these days, i am not sure but thats what he told me)..and they all used to be catholics!
anyway, i am confuse, my entire family is catholic, not very strict though.bapstized catholic..always been in a catholic school since the frst day of school until the last day of highschool..first communion..confirmation..
i still respect our saints and Mother Mary, however i dont pray to them..i mean I only pray to God..
i have forgotten how to pray the rosary..ie the mysteries of the rosary and the prayers after the 5th mystery
sometimes, i have doubts in the bible, the bible contradicts itself?? (pls do correct me if im wrong)
i dont go to church on Sundays regularly.
2007-12-20 04:44:46 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
what is the reason we have statues of Jesus, Mary, saints etc in catholic churches?? i am sooo confuse..
i try my best to defend my beliefs but it is hard when it comes to catholics having saints and sculptures.
2007-12-20 04:46:43 · update #1
and the priests...so many bad publicity about catholic priests these days regarding sexual abuse...i told him those priests should not be priests...i am sure they did not become priests because they received a call from God..not every priest is the same
2007-12-20 04:49:28 · update #2
and the bible that born again christians use and catholics use are the same...i mean the vatican chose what to be in the bible...and obviusly they are catholics
2007-12-20 04:53:00 · update #3
*sighs* i have told him most of the things you guys answered..especially regarding the statues and pictures..he said if you truly believe you do not need any "representation".
to be honest, we have been having this debate for soo long..even when we were just friends..so that would be a 3 year debate already..we promised each other we will just respect each other beliefs but ofcourse the arguement starts again after a couple of months.
we have talked about our marriage, he agreed to even baptize our kids as catholics but they can chnge their religion when they grow up..have to attend both churches?? i have no idea how we can do that..
as for me, i feel more close to God when I am in a catholic church..just feels different from his church..or maybe its just because i grew up Catholic??
2007-12-20 05:09:51 · update #4
sorry for the questions, it is hard to find someone to ask this things..my friends are just as lost..i cant talk with my relatives as they ofcourse will say that Catholic beliefs are right..anyway, my next question is why do my bf seem to keep forcing me to convert..he is not directly saying it though..and i also feel that they always have something bad to say about Catholics :(
i have been with my bf to his church a lot of times..and he has been to my church regularly aswell..sometimes he just shakes his head when its time to pray the Apostles Creed, which is find really disrespectful as i do not act like that in his church..i respect the fact that he loves God
2007-12-20 05:24:56 · update #5
I understand your concern. Religion can be very confusing. However, look inside yourself as to which forms of worship to follow, and simply use your religion as a guide. I am a Catholic and that is what I do.
I ask Mary for help concerning problems with my wife.
If I lose something, St. Anthony always helps me find it (providing I give money to the poor, of course!
St. Michael has helped me out of many situations where sinning is almost inevitable.
However, praying to the saints is not required for a Catholic, but it is recommended. Try it! If it works, then you can continue doing it. If not, don't.
I pray the rosary whenever I have time. The only part I remember is 10 Hail Mary's and 1 Our Father. I don't remember any mysteries or the other prayers.
And with the Bible, you have to remember that the Bible has been translated many times before you have read it. The original text is the true Word of God, but since you don't speak ancient Hebrew, you need a translation, all of which are different. I recommend reading 2-3 versions of the Bible (at least one Catholic one so you get the Apocrypha), so you get the best idea of the true translation.
You are worrying too much about the details of your religion. Try following these rules that Jesus told us lead to a good life:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%205-7&version=31
(The Sermon on the Mount). If you follow this, it is almost a guaranteed one-way ticket to heaven.
----TO answer your questions:
We have statues of the Saints in our churches to remind us what good Christians are supposed to be. It's the same as having a picture of your grandmother by your bedside table.
The Priests who have committed those terrible acts are very bad, it is true. Make sure you pray for them extra hard so they can see the light.
Protestants and Catholics do not use the same Bible. Protestants omit the Apocrypha, a group of about 10 books they keep out of their Bibles. You want to read a Catholic Bible, so you get the whole thing. Try the Douay-Rheims version (which is written like the King James Version, except with all the books), the New American Bible, or the New Jerusalem Bible.
2007-12-20 04:49:19 · answer #1 · answered by Free Thinker A.R.T. ††† 6 · 3⤊ 4⤋
Hey rox...listen girl, here it is, I am a recovering catholic. I do not disrespect any religion and I have gone through the very same thing you are going through now. It can be very confusing. I live in the South and used to live in the Ohio. The thing all growing up that confused me the most were all the things as kids we did ,Catechism.....and confession..... confession was my child favorite....Please....what a deal.....live like a heathen all week go to confession, three Hail Mary's and three Our Fathers and the slate is cleared till the next week......Sweet, Catholics being the richest and seem to do the least to help communities. The priest's and all the child molestation junk.....it can go on and on....And , I must say there are just as many inadequacies in just about any other religion some even more so .I am kinda picking on the Catholics because I was raised it and really could get the fewest amount of "WHY do we do this as Catholics" questions answered. My suggestion to you is, search out a different Church or Faith, try them all. and try to decide. I go to a Baptist church now........I go to church to get recharged for the week ahead.........Look a church isn't supposed to be this massive building that costs 4 million dollars......church can be in your back yard......Its getting together with your family, neighbors, it's about FELLOWSHIP and worshiping the words of God in any way you like....the most important thing is ,that you accept the fact that Jesus Christ died for our sins and that none of us are really good enough to go to heaven. But if we accept Jesus as our personal Savior.....we have a shot.....and as simple as that sounds that is all there is to religion. I know I did not probably help you, but I know how you feel....and I think the important thing is..... your heart is in the right place....... searching for Christ!
2007-12-20 05:28:23 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
You are still Catholic. Not all Catholics pray the rosary or even know how, not all pray to the Saints or Mary, that does not mean they are no longer Catholic.
I think you are confused about the statues being in the church. You do understand that as a Catholic we do not view the statues as actually being GOD, Jesus, Mary, etc. but are merely a representation of them to remind us to pray, think about them, etc. We do not believe that the statue has any divine power and we do not believe that the statues are God. It is a misconception many who put down the Catholic faith use to claim that we are idol worshippers because we have statues of Jesus and Mary.
It is no different than having a cross hanging as a reminder of Christ in a church. You are not praying to the cross as if it were Christ. You are praying to Christ, the cross merely reminds you that "hey maybe you should pray right now".
2007-12-20 04:58:15 · answer #3 · answered by Unity 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
The status are reminders. The same reason we have pictures of loved ones in our home. Prayer are worship are two different things. God allows the saints to 'hear' our prayers because He knows that we can connect with them for some reasons. That is why He works through them. The bible doesn't contradict its self if you read it in the right context, which is hard to do.
Priests are human too, everyone makes mistakes.
2007-12-20 04:54:51 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
You sound like you are a Catholic in name only. If you want to be Catholic.Take a class at the Catholic church(bible study).I'm sure they have them for people who have left the church wishing to return. If you and your boyfriend don't see eye to eye its probably time to end it. The Bible says two things about your situation. One, a house divided cannot stand. The parents being divided and fighting alot testify to that. And two, a believer is not to be unequally yoked w/ an unbeliever. This for the same reason. Someone has to compromise. Its usually the Christian. You have to think how you would raise a child in a divided household, so to speak. It can be very hard. I know this is tough.But remember, God doesn't give us burdens we can't bear. Get to know God!!!! Stand your ground! God Bless!!!!!!!! Good Luck!
2007-12-20 04:58:39 · answer #5 · answered by paula r 7 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Surly there is a reason for you internal conflict. Your boyfriend is serious about a faith that focuses on Christ and this is new to you. You have been brought up in a faith that contains other elements... other doctrines, rules, and rights. Your boy friend does not understand these things because they are not supported by scripture, which is his guide. I would not worry about your title as being Catholic or not, but I would suggest you concern yourself with being a Christian... Search the Bible for that means with your boyfriend. Maybe you could do a Bible study together to seek the truth.
2007-12-20 04:55:21 · answer #6 · answered by L.C. 6 · 2⤊ 4⤋
If you don't call a man father.
If you don't bow down to a man.
If you say in the name of Jesus Christ after every pray and deed and thanks you do.
If you let the spirit of the Lord to guide you and not a man.
Let Jesus Christ baptize you with the Holy Spirit and not
a man.
God is the father and Jesus Christ is the Rock.
Live by the holy bible and not a man.
Then you are no longer Catholic.
2007-12-20 05:02:47 · answer #7 · answered by jonathin l 2 · 0⤊ 3⤋
dont worry sweets !
everyone has doubts, it doesnt mean that you're no longer catholic !
you dont have to go to church to be considered catholic
since you stated that you have respect for saints, Mother Mary and God that shows initiative that you care :)
and you still pray so thats good !
sometimes i feel the exact same way as you !
and i have doubts all the time
thats what makes us human
dont worry the bible can be a little tricky to understand sometimes, but thats the whole point of it.
In the end a true catholic keeps the faith alive, nomatter what, and they never stop believing.
That's the whole point of faith !
hope my answer helps ! :)
2007-12-20 04:51:24 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 5⤋
You really are mixed up. What you need is a good long talk with a theology teacher, and not some half hard advice from some of the morons on this site.
2007-12-20 04:57:05 · answer #9 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 2⤋
yes you are still a catholic, a catholic whom I recomend go to confession for the absences, as do I so despretly need to do,
as far as Ive seen the bible has no contradictions in it, if you would like to lear more about your faith Id recomend reading some works by saint thomas aquinas, and ST. Augustine
2007-12-20 04:51:19 · answer #10 · answered by Adam of the wired 7 · 2⤊ 4⤋