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Date:         Tue, 6 Oct 1992 16:46:10 EDT
From:         "(dave talaga x2752)" <talaga@E5SB.OSDHW.SYR.GE.COM>
Subject:      "Christianity that is free from error."

>    The word "Catholicism" then takes on the meaning not only
> "Christianity," but "Christianity that is free from error."
>
> -	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	-
> Steve Creps, Indiana University
> creps@silver.ucs.indiana.edu
>


Judging from the material that has been promulgated concerning Catholic
 doctrine, one would get the impression that the RC faithful are some very
 informed individuals.  What Steve Creps and company would have you believe is
 that the rank and file Catholic holds these previuosly discussed points with
 the same clarity and conviction that they themselves do.  It appears, from
 their writings, that as a rule Catholics are well informed, faithful and hold ,
 with a clear consicence, the teachings of Sacred Tradition in matters of the
 sacraments.  And through this dedication they are secure in their knowledge of
 the Holy, in their salvation, and the practical application of the same to
 their everyday lives.  In reality, this is not the case at all.

A typical RC knows little about RC doctrine simply because there is no real need
 to know about it.  Consider:  a RC is born into a RC family, a family that,
 typically, has been RC for generations, a family whose traditions have been
 shaped by the ubiqutious presence of an organization that can be, frightingly
 mysterious, even bordering on superstious -- indeed, in some cases, it is
 outright superstitious.  For the church ( I mean the oligarchical organization
 of nuns, priests, bishops, etc.) teaches not about the grace and mercy of God
 as much as the RC Churches' position as the one you must submit to in order to
 receive His grace and mercy.

    "Do not anger the Church, my child, lest you bring the just wrath of God
     upon you and your loved ones.  Instead, submit to God by doing what we,
     the one Holy and Catholic Church, by the authority of God, handed down to
     Jesus, give to the apostles, resting in the hands of the Holy See, deem is
     necessary for your well being.  Specifically: partake of the sacraments
     with a pure heart, and you will have a pure heart."

A RC has no need to know the doctrine behind the actions of the Church simply
 because they believe that by doing whatever is required by the church, they
 will get what is promised to them (by church officials).  Ask them what
 transubstantiation means and they will tell you the elements become the body
 and blood of Christ -- maybe; but they will shrug off any deeper conversation
 because the why is not important -- as long as they receive the
 transubstantiated host.  The power is in the host, the sacrament, not in the
 heart of the individual.  As a result, the instruments of the church, which
 takes on a power of their own, along with the people who handle them (in
 particular the priests), are fearsome.  Faith, in the real sense, is in the
 "church" instead of Jesus Christ; or the church comes before Christ instead of
 Christ before the church.

Understand that a typical U.S. Catholic is not to be likened to a character out
 of some medival setting.  Hardly.  But, know that most RCs are trained from
 birth to observe certain things as off limits, or to fear such things.  These
 things vary from place to place but usually include: not touching
 transubstantiated hosts, not genuflecting when walking by the alter,
 mishandling, or abusing blessed material (Once a duly appointed church official
 blesses something it is somehow sacred.), improper penance, etc.  To transgress
 was to invite some form of punishment.  To be fair the church does not have
 programs to scare people; rather, this training results from living with people
 who stopped questioning such things and then fall into the habit of "accepting"
 things.

I remember serving a mass for the Bishop of our diocese.  There were eight of us
 alter boys from both the 7th and 8th grades, I was in 7th at the time.  During
 the time before the mass we were all preoccupied with the significance of the
 Bishop's staff and decided that it was best not to mess with it.  We nervously
 joked that if you touched it, something bad would happen -- like your fingers
 would fall off. At the end of the mass, the Bishop came up to us, holding the
 staff, and thanked us for our help;  he then looked at one of us, Paul was his
 name, set the staff in front of him, and let it go.  The idea being that Paul
 would grab it.  Paul freaked.  His eyes grew huge and he watched in horror as
 the staff fell towards him.  To his credit he never touched it; instead he let
 it fall against his cassock (part of the alter boy garb) while he moved his
 torso back and forth to keep it from sliding off his chest.  We were aghast.
 Not only did Paul do a poor imitation of disco, !
he was in grave danger of losing h

is appendages.  The room was silent until the Bishop let out a roar of laughter;
 assuring us that nothing would befall us if we touched the staff.

The Bishop knew we were afraid, and joked with us about it.  Yet, he could have
 allowed us to go on believing what we ourselves fabricated.  And so it goes: in
 many such ways the RC is at the mercy of people like this bishop on such
 matters.  Frankly, tradition to most RCs is not the Sacred Tradition we have
 been hearing about, but the beliefs, not unlike the above example, that are
 allowed to take root and are passed from generation to generation.
 Interestingly enough, a RC is pretty much left to their own understanding on
 doctrine as long as they keep their place.  Tell an average RC that they will
 be cursed if they believe the Eucharist is a spiritual reality and they'll
 think your nuts (if Steve, Eric, et. al., were to try some of their doctrine on
 one of the faithful, the eyes of the faithful would glaze over.).

Sadly, few RCs understand that the gift of salvation is independant of the
 sacraments.  Instead, you receive God's grace by your participation in the
 church's sacraments.  It is by no means free.  Ask a catholic how to get to
 heaven and you will hear variations of: "Go to church; be a good person; take
 communion; and, go to confession."  Their salvation, though giving assent to
 God's grace, is necessarily contingent on the sacraments.  Salvation, generally
 speaking, is the point where good catholics part company with non-good
 catholics.

Question: "How do you get a seat in a room full of RCs?"
  Answer: "Tell them they must be born again."

 Warning: Though you will get a seat, you will not be very popular.

Actually, most catholics would be at a loss to explain salvation to a
 non-catholic. Such cross-religious communication, though not an official dogma,
 is/was discouraged.  Fifteen to twenty years ago it was still frowned upon to
 date non-catholics as a high school student.  In fact, until the baby boom
 generation, a RCs spiritual life consisted of the their family and their
 church.    In religous matters, there was little, if any, tolerance for
 spirituality outside the church.  The factions that sprung from the Great
 Schism were considered enemies; to be avoided if possible (It works both ways:
 I remember being Polish Catholic and living in a German Lutheran community --
 not fun.).

Yet, the fundamental question still must be addressed: "What must I do to enter
 into kindom of God?"  Whatever Roman Catholicism claims for itself, it cannot
 seperate it's preoccupation with itself from God's grace.  If you want God's
 grace as a RC, you must take with it the rules, regulations, interpretations,
 curses and traditions that go with the RC system.  If you want God's grace
 alone, then you will have to extend your search to include the "P" word --
 Protestant.  To get the most for your money, I recommend the rabid ones.


Dave Talaga
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