What About the Rest of the World?

What about the rest of the world?

The Catholic Church is always being accused of thinking they are the one and only church. Many comedians throughout the years often refer to it as “The Church.” However, it is mere ignorance that derives the thought that Catholics believe they are better than everyone else. Often enough the debate turns into one about who will be saved and who will not. Each church has its own views, and each church wants to believe that they are following the true way of Jesus, so why does it always seem that the Catholic Church is the only one?

The Catholic Church believes that other Christian churches are its brothers and sisters. The Church also believes that every Christian is in communion with each other. The Church does not preach that they are the only church. In fact growing up in the Catholic faith, we learn the about the different variations of Christianity. Weigel points out in this chapter that “Catholics have hundreds of millions of brothers and sisters in Christ who live their Christian outside of the formal structures of the Catholic Church” (Weigel 135).

Often it just seems to be easier for others to say that the Catholic Church is better than everyone. However, no one seems to realize how this actually comes about. The media often portrays the Catholic Church in a way that leads people to believe that The Church thinks that it’s the one and only Church of Jesus. In fact, the Catholic Faith is probably more tolerant to other religions. The media is well aware that causing controversy makes for better news, yet many people don’t realize that it’s the twisting of the Catholic words that people are angry with rather than the Church itself.

There isn’t a wrong or right way of having faith. As long as you believe in God you will be saved. No where in the Bible does it say that God will only save people who followed a certain church. For the most part we all believe in the same God no matter what we call him. However, like the many other controversies of the Catholic Church, this is just another that won’t be going away anytime soon. Ignorance plagues us all, and it will continue to for time to come.

Is Catholicism Safe for Democracy?

Is Catholicism Safe for Democracy?

The question that Weigel addresses in the ninth chapter is one that our country seems to always question. It was stated by historian, Arthur M. Schlesinger that “the deepest bias in the history of the American people is the suspicion that the Catholic Church is not quite safe for democracy” (Weigel 150). It is a well known, that many American people do not trust the Catholic Church. It also known that many people feel that if a Catholic becomes president that there will no longer be a separation of church and state. Our society has a definite problem with Catholicism, or is it that we are not educated with the truth?

Many people in American society have been born to believe that the Catholic Church wants to be the almighty. One of the biggest suspicions of the Catholic Church is that if a Catholic becomes president that the Pope will be the true controller. It is also thought that the Catholic Church is an “undemocratic system of alien control in which lay people were chained by the absolute of the clergy” (Weigel 150). Maybe this is the reason only one president has ever been Catholic, and ironically he was assassinated. Perhaps the reason had something to do with the suspicions, but yet it is one thing we will probably never know.

The abortion issue is probably the most debated in regards to the Catholic Church’s democratic politics. The Church is often accused of trying to push on its moral judgments on the democratic state. However, correct me if I’m wrong but don’t many other Christian Churches also believe that abortion should be outlawed? Actually, isn’t it many other Christians who also believe in the same moral issues, and in some cases advocate them more than the Catholic Church? Honestly, it doesn’t seem to matter whether or not Catholics are alone or not in their moral defenses because America will still fear the Church just because it’s such a large form of Christianity.

I feel that America is being ignorant to Catholicism. Catholics may have strong beliefs, but so do many other Christians. Actually I believe that there are far more other religions that should be viewed as a threat if they are going to target Catholics. As far as I can remember we don’t look for the Pope to rule us, we look to him to guide us in the deepening of our faith. However, most Catholics have grown accustomed to the debate and although it seems to portray Catholics in an untrue form I don’t see it changing anytime soon.

How Should We Love?

How should we love?

In the sixth chapter of The Truth of Catholicism, George Weigel discusses the widely talked about topic: how should we love? The chapter discusses the church’s feelings toward matrimony and sex. According to the text, The Church taught a theory about the purposes of marriage “that too often turned into a denigration of sexual love.” “According to this theory, the ‘primary end’ of marriage, and of sex, was the procreation and education of children” (Weigel 93). Even though The Church continues to say that they are unfairly criticized for their theories, I often wonder if they have done anything to help defend them.

Weigel states right away in the chapter that, “the judgment that the Catholic Church is both prudish and sex-obsessed is deeply entrenched in the Western world today” (Weigel 92). He continues to say that even Catholics believe the judgment. In my opinion, if the Catholic followers also believe it then The Church isn’t doing much to show that it is untrue. Of course the media has much to do with the criticism that the Church receives, but I also feel that it could be unavoidable.

If The Church teaches that the ‘primary end’ of marriage is to have children, then it makes me wonder if it believes that men and women need to be in-love to have a marriage. It often seems that the Catholic Church views that sex should only be present for procreation. However, in my mind and in the minds of many others sex is also an intimate act between two people who love one another. Therefore, it seems to me and many others that for the Catholic Church, sexuality is far more “a matter of legal prohibitions than of love” (Weigel 93). Does this have anything to do with the many loveless marriages that exist in our society?

In conclusion, the idea of how we should love doesn’t really seem to be answered by The Church. It often seems that they do not want to touch on the subject of sexuality, and that it is much easier saying that the only use for sex is having children. It often seems that the Catholic Church doesn’t care if two people are in love or not. It only seems to matter that they bring children into the world and educate them with the Catholic traditions. Maybe its time to rethink the teachings on sex and marriage because Jesus asked us to love one another not to feel obligated to marry and have children because it’s the ‘right thing to do.’ I believe we have lost sight of that so it is time to bring it back into our lives.