Posts by StAnn

47

Wrote a letter to the Catholic Chruch.

by Blueblades in

jw
friends

it was 1969 when i answered that first knock.

1970 when i got baptized.

it was suggested that i write a letter to the catholic chruch where i was baptized and disavow my baptism,that i no longer considered myself a catholic.

StAnn

Even though you say no matter, that I am still a Catholic, non-practicing one at that and can go to confession and be restored to the faith, I feel nothing.

Blueblades, as Tom mentioned, when you were baptized, you were marked with an indelible mark. God adopted you. He never un-adopts you. One of the requirements for faith is that you have to want it. Faith is a gift. If you want to find out about God and whether or not he's real or exists or there is anything worth believing in for you, take a moment and ASK God for the faith to find the answers you seek. It may seem silly but what can it hurt?

Catholics believe that each of us has a guardian angel with us at all times. It's the guardian angel's job, in part, to help lead you to God, if you so desire it. If you ask God and your guardian angel for assistance, you will receive it. You won't get hit by a bolt of lightning, but you will find the guidance you seek.

47

Wrote a letter to the Catholic Chruch.

by Blueblades in

jw
friends

it was 1969 when i answered that first knock.

1970 when i got baptized.

it was suggested that i write a letter to the catholic chruch where i was baptized and disavow my baptism,that i no longer considered myself a catholic.

StAnn

The Episcopal Church recognizes baptisms if they are done in the name of The Father, The Son and The Holy Ghost and any one so baptized is welcomed to their communion table.

FHN - Not for me. When I initially became a christian, it was in the Episcopal Church. They did not recognize my JW baptism. I was baptized Episcopalian. The Catholic Church recognized my Episcopal baptism, so I didn't have to be baptized again. SA

21

Catholic ex-JW's? Interpretation Questions for You.

by bavman in

in view of the much publicized conversion of tom cabeen on this website i thought i would ask a couple of questions.. do all catholics interpret the scriptures literally or do they allow for metaphorical interpretation?

such as the miracles of jesus or the trinity understanding itself.

i seem to see a difference between some believers and especially between certain traditions within the church itself.

StAnn

I just saw your comments ST ANN. Thanks for those as well. Could you read some of my last comments and tell me what you think your church would say? Also, for you, why do you want to be Catholic?

I don't have time tonight to answer all of the points you brought up in your response to Tom. However, I would like to respond to your question, why do I want to be Catholic. After leaving the JWs, I was agnostic for years. Then I began feeling a real pull towards christianity. I finally chose Catholicism because, simply, I wanted to be in the Church that Jesus started. No imitations. After being raised in a man-made church, i.e., WTS, I didn't want to risk being misled by some megalomaniac again. The Catholic Church is the first and richest of all the christian traditions. I'm greedy. I want it all, not just what little bit each denomination has chosen to take and run with and make a big deal out of. If you want everything God wants to give you, the only place to get it all is in the Catholic Church.

46

Has anyone noticed the "Message of Doom" in the 7/15/08 WT?

by logic&reason in

in paragraph 16 of the first study artice.

.

they are being very vague, but it is obvious that they are trying to stir up speculation/excitement.. the entire magazine appears to be about the house to house ministry.

StAnn

L&R: Are you really 94 years old?

26

So in 30 years, Adam never thought of eating from the tree of life

by Mr Ben in

ok, does this thing sound right to you?

2 special trees, middle of the garden, 30 years messin' about (at least according the spineless and shivering slave) blah blah blah .... and it never occured to the dumb twat to eat from the tree of life?

what a dumbass!

StAnn

The whole story is a setup

Nameless One, you've hit the nail on the head: it's just a story. Not an actual, historically verifiable event. It's considered "prehistory" and is in the literary genre of "myth." Myth meaning "...a usually traditional story of ostensibly historical events that serves to unfold part of the world view of a people or explain a practice, belief, or natural phenomenon" per Merriam Webster. So, God did cause mankind to come into being and mankind quickly fell into sinful practices, creating a rift between God and mankind. Folks wanted to know why there was distance between them and their creator and the story of Adam and Eve evolved over time to try to explain man's fallen nature. The rest of the details aren't the important part of the story, just nice storytelling.

21

Catholic ex-JW's? Interpretation Questions for You.

by bavman in

in view of the much publicized conversion of tom cabeen on this website i thought i would ask a couple of questions.. do all catholics interpret the scriptures literally or do they allow for metaphorical interpretation?

such as the miracles of jesus or the trinity understanding itself.

i seem to see a difference between some believers and especially between certain traditions within the church itself.

StAnn

I seem to see a difference between some believers and especially between certain traditions within the church itself. Also, between what some priests say and what some of the deep thinkers have written.

The official teachings of the Church come through the magisterium. Priests and theologians and individual members often don't agree with eachother. However, as Catholics, we're not bound by an opinion a theologian may give in a book somewhere. We are bound only by what the Church teaches. People have the room to debate and research and put their opinions out. It's not considered threatening. It's actually encouraged, so that people learn to become deep thinkers and really learn the faith for themselves.

If you really want to know what the RCC teaches, you go to the Catechism. However, not every little word in the bible is dissected and one hard-core answer given. Sometimes the answer is "we think it's (a) but there is strong evidence for (b) also." What matters is that the things that are necessary for our salvation are understood clearly.

We're still debating in my catechism class about Abraham! Was he a monotheist or a pagan before becoming a follower of the One True God? I vote for pagan. Others say monotheist. I don't think the catechism is clear on this issue. I don't think it really matters regarding our salvation. It's just one of those little academic things that we love to argue about.

21

Catholic ex-JW's? Interpretation Questions for You.

by bavman in

in view of the much publicized conversion of tom cabeen on this website i thought i would ask a couple of questions.. do all catholics interpret the scriptures literally or do they allow for metaphorical interpretation?

such as the miracles of jesus or the trinity understanding itself.

i seem to see a difference between some believers and especially between certain traditions within the church itself.

StAnn

I'm allowed to celebrate the Eucharist even though I'm not baptized and live together unmarried.

In America, you could not partake of the Eucharist without being baptized. Only Catholics are permitted to partake of the Eucharist and, without a valid baptism, you're not Catholic. To become Catholic in the USA as an adult, you go through a year of classes called RCIA. At the end of that year, you are baptized (if you have not yet had a valid christian baptism in your life) and confirmed and then partake of the Eucharist for the first time.

My doctor's wife is Catholic and he had been attending Mass with her for 20 years and taking communion. One day he actually read through the missallette and discovered that only Catholics could take communion! He stopped taking communion, went through RCIA, and now is Catholic and taking communion again.

21

Catholic ex-JW's? Interpretation Questions for You.

by bavman in

in view of the much publicized conversion of tom cabeen on this website i thought i would ask a couple of questions.. do all catholics interpret the scriptures literally or do they allow for metaphorical interpretation?

such as the miracles of jesus or the trinity understanding itself.

i seem to see a difference between some believers and especially between certain traditions within the church itself.

StAnn

Do all Catholics interpret the scriptures literally or do they allow for metaphorical interpretation? Such as the miracles of Jesus or the Trinity understanding itself.

There is allowance for metaphorical interpretation. The Church tries to get believers to understand that the bible was written in many different genres and thus the scriptures need to be read in light of how they were written.

A friend of mine is convinced the first 10 chapters of Genesis are literal. I'm convinced they're not. We're still Catholic and still best friends and my priest says it doesn't really matter if they're literal or not, regarding our salvation, so long as we both understand the points being taught. It's the point/message that matters.

Same thing with evolution. So long as you acknowledge that God set up the systems that caused the various species to develop according to his plan, it makes little difference. God is the origin of all life. How he chose to cause that life to come into being isn't that relative in a spiritual sense. We Catholics don't see the bible as a history or science textbook.

HTH.

47

Wrote a letter to the Catholic Chruch.

by Blueblades in

jw
friends

it was 1969 when i answered that first knock.

1970 when i got baptized.

it was suggested that i write a letter to the catholic chruch where i was baptized and disavow my baptism,that i no longer considered myself a catholic.

StAnn

BlueBlades, my understanding is this. In the Catholic Church, when you are baptised, even as an infant, it is God adopting you as His child and also wiping away your inherited "original" sin. Baptism isn't something we do; it's something God does. So, the Church will always see you as a member because God adopted you. I could tell my mother that I don't want any part of her and walk away but she'd still be my mother, even if I never saw her again. As a matter of fact, if you ever wanted to become active in the Catholic Church again, I believe all you'd need to do is go to confession and you'd be welcomed back with open arms.

When you're older and you've been through CCD, you get confirmed, and that's when you choose the Church for yourself. As an infant, obviously you can't make a choice, so your parents are offering you to God. Thus, in a technical sense, you're still Catholic, despite your letter. The Church doesn't believe that God 'un-adopts" you, so the letter may have made the elders feel better but it didn't change your standing in the Church. I guess you'd be considered a really, really lapsed Catholic!

I did not write a letter when I faded from the WTS because I didn't think their rules applied to me anymore. Since I rejected them, I didn't feel the need to go through any disassociation process, which they would have liked just so they could tidy up their books. I walked away and that's the end of it for me. They took most of my life and my son. I owe them nothing. You are making the rules for your life now. Do what you want to do for yourself.

SA

64

Watchtower Comments (5.26.08) PROPAGANDA & FALLACY

by V in

direct link here.

.

StAnn

Has anyone yet had the courage to actually raise their hand and bring up some of the points mentioned in these videos during an actual WT study?

I think we should form a barnstorming group and go "visit" a different KH each Sunday, armed for the WT study with our questions and comments from V's videos.