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Notes -
I’m confused. Do you believe in the literal bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ or not?
Shouldn’t it all follow from there? It appears it doesn’t in your case, and this reads like you’re upset your new social club became lame.
Were you lying about your beliefs to these other Catholics? You’re open to rejoining the church when the correct people once again associate themselves with your parish?
Does being near more Jesuit-friendly believers suddenly make it once again true that Jesus died on the cross and rose again?
This is an epistemic mess, and you make me wonder how many of you are on the pew next to me, agitating for my church to update its interpretation of holy scripture.
Yes I do. But it doesn't all follow from there unfortunately because the church is built on much more than just Jesus' passion, resurrection, and death. It's largely built on Pauline interpretations of the Gospels, and the entirety of the Old Testament which is largely contradictory to the New Testament. It's not as simple as just "repent and believe the gospel" because so many things have been grafted on top of that are required to be part of the church.
I think you're reading me extremely uncharitably here (as the other catholics that I complain about do too), and actually makes me want to leave more than I already do (which is perhaps what you would want anyway, which I have some sympathy with). Things empirically do not just follow from reading the scriptures (or else why would there be so many denominations of Christianity). I believe in Papal Authority and church hierarchy which is one of the reasons why I am catholic. The Jesuits' have a much more open interpretation to theological problems where I struggle with the Dominican positions.
I agree I was too harsh. In my defense it wasn’t clear whether you were quibbling with your local expression of Catholicism or if you had simply thrown out the whole faith because your friends moved away. You say yourself you converted for the books and incense and are leaving because of your own ideas of animal welfare or other unarticulated abstract philosophical objections.
I’m not even Catholic myself. But my eyebrows do jump up when I read “I believe in Papal authority and hierarchy but don’t think I’ll do what they say or follow to them to their conclusions.” Also isn’t weekly Mass, like, super required?
Yeah, if they believe in papal authority, it would follow that they have to believe and do all the rest.
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