by serenitynow! 45 Replies latest watchtower beliefs
The Immaculate Conception, Transubstantiation, and the controversy of Filioque have made Catholics have to jump through Vatican hoops. These are some New Lights the Catholic church made their members accept, leave or burn over the years.
Birth control was a bigger issue to some. I'm going to check that out. I know it riled my mom and dad after they sweated out eight kids and Mom's hard time with the last one... they had no quarter given as I recall.
Like I said, I'll check it out.
Maeve
Purgatory went bye bye
I thought people still believed in purgatory. Isn't that why they get babies baptized? Or am I confusing that w/something else?
The Church of Rome recently set it aside, which can they do with certain doctrines, Dogmas are considered more sancrosanct.
I don't really see where JW's change fundamental doctrines, unless you consider how to define the generation as a doctrine. My biggest issues are trying to define things that shouldn't be defined. All too willing to tell people how to apply what is vague. Dangling the carrot of the generation and the last days, don't do it in the first place! How harshly those who disagree are treated. and so on and so on ...
Sure, they just don't demand absolute obedience under pain of shunning. I guess that means JWs have the truth.
I would rather that the churches would change their doctrines. After much personal study my views changed, but my church didn't want to hear it. I didn't set out to change my views, and they didn't change because someone else converted me. So then what was I to do? I couldn't believe what I was taught. I couldn't find a church that believed what I believed. The churches wanted me in their church as long as I didn't feel a need to share my views. So I haven't been able to assemble with others without feeling raped (figuratively speaking).
I would like to find a church that rather than having a set of doctrines has as its purpose to seek out truth, whatever it is; whether or not it is what has been believed, realizing that there is clearly error in the churches since they don't agree with each other. Is there such a church?
Sounds a bit like Unitarianism to me...
Designs, purgatory is alive and well. As a matter of fact, we pray for the poor souls in purgatory, which is where I'm sure many JWs go when they die.
I think you may be thinking of limbo, which I'm not really clear on because it was before my time.
StAnn
Not a captive, I'd be interested in hearing what you find out about contraception. At Church this past Sunday, our priest mentioned again that, although artificial contraception is a serious sin, 80% of American Catholics use it anyway. The rules haven't changed but the conduct of the people in the pews has conformed more closely to the values of the society in which they live.
I don't know about the Rhythm Method but today people use NFP, Natural Family Planning. It is an abstinence during fertility based approach. However, it is to be prayerfully reconsidered month to month and is only to be used in serious situations. Almost anyone who uses it continuously for birth control is considered to be abusing it and living in mortal sin.
For instance, I had one friend who used NFP for about six months because she was having some serious health problems and taking medicine that could have killed a fetus. I now another woman who uses it pretty much constantly because she's a severed diabetic. In her last pregnancy, she went into a coma for four months, the baby was born with severe defects and died at 10 months old. Any future pregnancies would kill her, as they've been progressively more dangerous.
Regardless, that's not what this post is about. Don't mean to hijack. I'll shut up.
StAnn
