From the Awake! January 8, 2005 "Watching the World" pg 29:
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston, U.S.A., has announced that it will close 65 of its 357 parishes - almost one fifth of the total. Some 60 churches and 120 related buildings will be sold. According to The New York Times, this restructuring is "caused partly by declining attendance and increased financial problems that were worsened by the sexual abuse crisis among clergy members." The newspaper quotes R. Scott Appleby, director of the Cushwa Center for the Study of American Catholicism at Notre Dame University, as saying that "the scandal has put a drain on the financial resources of the archdiocese" to such as extent that it cannot "keep parishes afloat."
Considering that the WTS loves to bash Catholic sex abuse in "Watching the World" one cannot help but think the WTS "doth protest too much." I wonder, who is the #2 religion for sex abuse in the US?...
My wife is Catholic; and I might add was raised in a very liberal catholic houselhold.
The difference in her upbringing and mine was the liberal thinking and education she was raised with and it positive results continue to this day. My dogmatic JW upbringing left much to be desired. There was no brainwashing in my wifes upbringing. If you were Catholic; you lived a good life and no matter what the Church said or did; you lived your life outside of their influence. It is a very different religion than Jehovahs Witnesses teach. This has a lot to do with the Jesuit monks secular education and teaching; materialism is good.
My wife attended private Catholic schools her entire life; and attended Fairfeild Univerity in Connecticut ( Jesuit influence).
She and her family still consider themselves Catholic; their faith still in tact. They may not agree with all the church teaching -and obviously the sex scandels offend them--but they still consider it their religion. They do not neccessarily accept that they are exclusive with God; merely one of many who worship him. Interesting thoughts.....certainly more tolerant than JWs....
Your wife's family sounds very much like my ex-husbands family. Although I am no longer Catholic, his family was one of the most "spiritual" (not just religious) families I've known. His mother had much to do with me overcoming my fear of the Catholic church, which in time, I came to love in many aspects. Looking back, it was one of the turning points in my life regarding "opening" of my eyes to the JW's belief of "Babylon the Great".
yes, these are educated; open minded people who really can THINK for themselves....they just happen to be Catholic. They take their religion in stride; and it certainly IS NOT the centerpiece of their life. My personal experience with the Catholic Church through my wife and her family has actually been a positive one. They have accepted me as a non Catholic; and NO ONE is breathing down my neck to convert. If you are a good person; you are accepted. It seems to be the motto of all of their friends also.
The Catholic Church as I see it and in the experience of my wifes contact with it , is one of a caring community--not exclusive to its own kind. They sponser massive charity drives; locally they are attempting housing for the homeless; they have food kitchens for donation to the poor ; holiday dinners for the homeless ( of which which volunteer time and food).
When my wife and I were married in a Catholic Church ( St. Patricks on 5th Ave in NYC) I was overwhelmed with all the Pomp and Ceremony. Her family priest married us and even HE did not take any of it seriously; he knew I was not Catholic and encouraged me to "have a good life and be good to his little Patricia".
