@zacdayvis I imagine the Easter renewal of baptismal promises is quite a trigger?
“Do you reject Satan?”
“I do.”
“And all his works?”
“I do.”
“And all his empty promises?”
“I do.”
@DouthatNYT For detractors suggesting this money should go to the poor, reread “The Anointing at Bethany” in John 12:1-8, which prophetically was the Gospel read on April 15, 2019 — the day of the fire at Notre Dame Cathedral. Build churches. They are also for the poor. Not on bread alone…
@laklak_politi@NativeSect@DivinelyDesined You are correct. God is not a male. God has no physical body. Calling God “he” or “Father” uses another sense of those words. It’s metaphorical, not biological, and expresses God’s personal, loving care for each of us.
@laklak_politi@DivinelyDesined You’ve come, by reason alone, to a theological truth: creatio ex nihilo. Creation out of nothing. It’s also right there in Genesis 1 and repeated in the Gospel of John chapter 1. Take a look.
@ChrisJamesNYC@CatholicDeacon Might want to reread Matthew 16:18-19.
Also, stick to the argument at hand and pull back on the ad hominem attacks, which make a man look petty rather than reasonable.
@ChrisJamesNYC@CatholicDeacon The NT does not contain a list of its own books. Who had the authority to say “these books, not those?” The very Bible you use depends historically on the authority of the Catholic Church. To reject that authority now because you don’t understand CC dogma is a contradiction.
@peta Yes. Eating steak is a substantial way of getting energy from the sun (we can’t metabolize grass). Our diet diverged from other primates and is evolutionarily compatible with eating meat. Disrupting that pattern contributes to today’s nutrient deficiencies and chronic disease.
@ChrisJamesNYC@CatholicDeacon We are body-soul. Whatever our bodies do affects our souls (thanks C.S. Lewis). Thus, meaningful ritual is instructive and brings us closer to Christ. As does dogma, which clarifies the things we can know with confidence.
@ChrisJamesNYC@CatholicDeacon Yes. That has been the recent case. With the abuse scandal, the supposed conflict between science and religion, and the bias against western civilization, many have left. But that’s looking in the rear view mirror. Truth, goodness, and beauty are ever drawing souls to Christ.
A cutting reflection from Cardinal Ratzinger, Good Friday 2005:
"Pilate is not utterly evil. He knows that the condemned man is innocent, and he looks for a way to free him. But his heart is divided. And in the end he lets his own position, his own self-interest, prevail over what is right.
Nor are the men who are shouting and demanding the death of Jesus utterly evil. Many of them, on the day of Pentecost, will feel "cut to the heart," when Peter will say to them: "Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God... you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law."
But at that moment they are caught up in the crowd. They are shouting because everyone else is shouting, and they are shouting the same thing that everyone else is shouting. And in this way, justice is trampled underfoot by weakness, cowardice and fear of the diktat of the ruling mindset. The quiet voice of conscience is drowned out by the cries of the crowd.
Evil draws its power from indecision and concern for what other people think."
Imagine throwing a “No Kings” protest after your party refused to hold a primary, coronated Kamala without a single vote, sued to keep RFK Jr. off the ballot, and attempted to remove Trump from state ballots only after your illegal lawfare scheme failed.
If there was a modern day monarchy in America there would only be one party you could point to.
The Democrats.