# Ask a traditional Catholic **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 31, 2008, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267 "2008-05-31T14:48:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/61 "2008-06-01T02:46:21Z")
[QUOTE=Traditional\_Catholic] [QUOTE=cwthree] How did you reach this conclusion, i.e., how did you determine that the universe was created by an eternal “someone,” rather than having been preceded by another natural process which is currently outside the realm of scientific knowledge? [/QUOTE] What caused that natural process? What made it create the universe when it did, instead of creating it earlier? [/QUOTE] You haven’t answered my question. I asked you to tell us how _you_ determined that the universe was created by “someone.” If it’s simply your gut feeling that something as immense as the universe requires a sentient creator, I’ll accept that as an honest answer. However, “I know it in my gut” is not the same as “I have determined it to be so.” [QUOTE=Traditional\_Catholic] I know that Islam is not the true religion because no one believed in Islam until the Prophet Mohammed came along. I know that non-Catholic forms of Christianity are wrong because they claim to believe in the truth of Sacred Scripture, but reject the authority of the pope (see Matt. 16:16-18). I know that rabbinical Judaism is not correct because it did not exist until the destruction of the temple in 70 A.D. [/QUOTE] Christianity, by definition, did not exist before Christ; Jewish messianism in pre-rabbinic times was not Christianity as we know it. How do you know that _any_ form of Christianity (Catholic or non-Catholic) is the true religion? ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/62 "2008-06-01T02:47:03Z")
In Catholic tradition, there are two components to confession and penance. The first component is God, through the priest, who confers forgiveness. The second is the penitent, who must be sincerely sorry for his/her sins and dedicated to not repeating them or else the penance is not effected. So the people mentioned before, who had a vasectomy and then went to confession and thought it was all taken care of, are not covered. They are obviously not really penitent. If there is no actual sorrow/penitence/shame involved, there is no actual forgiveness conferred. ---
**Author:** ![Traditional\_Catholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Traditional\_Catholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Traditional_Catholic)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/63 "2008-06-01T02:55:39Z")
[QUOTE=phil417] My question is this: why do you confess to a priest? I realize that St. Paul said if you confess your sins to one another and to God you are forgiven. Does this keep you from sinning the same sin again? My reason for asking is this: I had an aunt (blood) and uncle (marriage) who belonged to some sect, First Born Church of the Brethren (or some sort). Uncle (by marriage) would molest his daughters, then raise his hand at church and “confess”: “I have sinned”. He was forgiven, & praised for his humility. This went on several times a year for about 20 years, while my aunt kept having & adopting (female) kids. Anyway, “There is no condemnation for those of us who are in Christ Jesus.” Does that mean you don’t repeat the sin? Love, Phil [/QUOTE] One is only forgiven in the Sacrament of Confession if one does not intend to commit the sin again. In the case of your uncle, since he did not have a firm purpose of amendment, had he gone to Confession he would not have been forgiven. On the other hand, if you lied twice, confessed that you lied twice with a firm intention to not lie again, but afterwards you told another lie, the first two lies would still be forgiven, but you would have to confess the last lie with a firm purpose of amendment. ---
**Author:** ![Traditional\_Catholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Traditional\_Catholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Traditional_Catholic)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/64 "2008-06-01T02:59:44Z")
[QUOTE=cwthree] \*\*You haven’t answered my question. I asked you to tell us how _you_ determined that the universe was created by “someone.” If it’s simply your gut feeling that something as immense as the universe requires a sentient creator, I’ll accept that as an honest answer. However, “I know it in my gut” is not the same as “I have determined it to be so.” \*\* Christianity, by definition, did not exist before Christ; Jewish messianism in pre-rabbinic times was not Christianity as we know it. How do you know that _any_ form of Christianity (Catholic or non-Catholic) is the true religion? [/QUOTE] A natural process is not by its nature eternal, but God is. ---
**Author:** ![Traditional\_Catholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Traditional\_Catholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Traditional_Catholic)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/65 "2008-06-01T03:00:58Z")
[QUOTE=cwthree] You haven’t answered my question. I asked you to tell us how _you_ determined that the universe was created by “someone.” If it’s simply your gut feeling that something as immense as the universe requires a sentient creator, I’ll accept that as an honest answer. However, “I know it in my gut” is not the same as “I have determined it to be so.” Christianity, by definition, did not exist before Christ; **Jewish messianism in pre-rabbinic times was not Christianity as we know it.** How do you know that _any_ form of Christianity (Catholic or non-Catholic) is the true religion? [/QUOTE] Prove it. ---
**Author:** ![phil417](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/6bbea6/32.png) [@phil417](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phil417)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/66 "2008-06-01T03:06:40Z")
One last question: where does the concept of “Purgatory” come from? Is there a Biblical basis for it? Thanks for answering my earlier question. I have the feeling that my uncle-by-marriage didn’t end up where he thought he would after he died. Love, Phil ---
**Author:** ![MissMossie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f6c823/32.png) [@MissMossie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MissMossie)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 3:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/67 "2008-06-01T03:07:51Z")
[QUOTE=Traditional\_Catholic] I think that nuns should wear habits so that people can tell that they are nuns, so that people can go to them if they need help. Wearing a habit is also a good idea because it allows them to wear the same outfit everyday without having to worry about being fashionable or stylish. I think that priests should wear cassocks for the same reasons. [/QUOTE] What do you think about people’s tendency to put religious on a pedestal? Also, why wouldn’t you want orders to stick with their founders’ ideas on dress? ---
**Author:** ![cwthree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9de0a6/32.png) [@cwthree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cwthree)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/68 "2008-06-01T03:09:57Z")
[QUOTE=Traditional\_Catholic] Prove it. [/QUOTE] Once again, you haven’t answered my question. In any case, “prove it” has been already been addressed by **jayjay**. Perhaps I should rephrase my own question: Can you demonstrate that the religion(s) we know as Christianity existed before the existence of Christ? If you cannot demonstrate this, how do you know that any form of Christianity is the true religion? You started the “Ask a traditional Catholic” thread. The onus is on _you_ to provide answers. ---
**Author:** ![phil417](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/6bbea6/32.png) [@phil417](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/phil417)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 3:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/69 "2008-06-01T03:14:44Z")
One last thing, **Traditional Catholic** …I’m a believer, protestant. I applaud you for saying what you think. I enjoy reading SDMB messages from athiests/agnostics & trying to untangle their logics. It makes for interesting thinking sometimes. If you feel like it, consider this fan mail. Love, Phil ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/70 "2008-06-01T04:27:36Z")
[QUOTE=Traditional\_Catholic] As my screen-name suggests, I am a traditional Catholic. I hold to every doctrine and dogma taught by the the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church… [/QUOTE] My question is: What’s the rationale for accepting and believing in ALL the doctrines and dogma taught by the Church? I mean, isn’t it a little hard to swallow that you _need_ a priest around? I’m speaking as a guy raised more or less Methodist, with Baptists in the family, and who went to a Jesuit high school, and took 4 years of theology there. That was my main beef with the Church; the Church’s party line was that there isn’t any room for me to interpret the Bible and the teachings of various theologians/Church Fathers myself. The Jesuits weren’t quite so dogmatic though; apparently there was a raging debate among the priests that ran the school and the lay faculty about distributing condoms- the Jesuits were on the side of distributing, and the lay faculty was against it! ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/71 "2008-06-01T10:44:30Z")
Do you believe as an American in freedom of religion as protected by the constitution? in direct opposition to “ **The Syllabus of Errors** ” which forbids such a concept. > [@](#): > > It is an error that every man is free to embrace and profess that religion which, guided by the light of reason, he shall consider true, and that it has been wisely decided by law, in some Catholic countries, that persons coming to reside therein shall enjoy the public exercise of their own peculiar worship. Pius IX [http://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/P9SYLL.HTM](http://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/P9SYLL.HTM) ---
**Author:** ![Lissla\_Lissar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8491ac/32.png) [@Lissla\_Lissar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissla_Lissar)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/72 "2008-06-01T11:43:00Z")
Just wanted to say hi, and I’ll be following this thread. My husband and I joined the Church at Easter 2007. We were Anglican. Congratulations! ---
**Author:** ![monavis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e0b2c6/32.png) [@monavis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monavis)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 12:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/73 "2008-06-01T12:24:51Z")
[QUOTE=Traditional\_Catholic] A natural process is not by its nature eternal, but God is. [/QUOTE] There is no proof of this so you in a great sense are believing what another human told what God is( or has has said). Who created the place for God to be? Or is God also place? It is only a matter of what or who one believes. Why would a supreme being create othere beings that he knew he was going to destroy? Doesn’t make sense to me. I am only a human with limits and if I knew one of my children would turn evil, I would not conceive them at all. Monavis ---
**Author:** ![Ellen\_Cherry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellen_cherry/32/3600_2.png) [@Ellen\_Cherry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellen_Cherry)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/74 "2008-06-01T13:26:10Z")
Why do you prefer the Latin Mass? ---
**Author:** ![swampbear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampbear/32/467_2.png) [@swampbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampbear)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/75 "2008-06-01T13:31:36Z")
[QUOTE=Argent Towers] I remember reading about the great sculptor Frederick Hart who was driven to convert to Catholicism after doing work on the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C. It could be said that he found God through his art, and wanted to be part of the religion which had inspired such spectacular works of sculpture and architecture. [/QUOTE] I remember reading that Frederick Hart converted to Catholicism late in life. His creation sculptures at the National Cathedral were created by him fairly early on in his career. I guess I kind of wonder how much working on these sculptures, which are to say the least breath taking and worth a trip to the Cathedral alone to see, led him to convert. Also, as a little sidenote, the National Cathedral is an Episcopal Cathedral and is officially known as the Cathedral Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul. The “National Cathedral” name is due in large part to Congress having designated it as the “National House of Prayer.” Ok, this has nothing whatsoever to do with this thread and I’m sorry for the hijack **Traditional\_Catholic**. I guess I just had to show off that I have learned some things Episcopal. My folks would be proud to know all their work was not in vain. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Inter\_Alia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@Inter\_Alia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inter_Alia)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 2:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/76 "2008-06-01T14:22:49Z")
**Traditional\_Catholic** , I just wanted to tell you that you’ve inspired me to go to Mass for the first time in several years. I’m leaving in an hour. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![Traditional\_Catholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Traditional\_Catholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Traditional_Catholic)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/77 "2008-06-01T14:45:34Z")
[QUOTE=phil417] My question is this: why do you confess to a priest? I realize that St. Paul said if you confess your sins to one another and to God you are forgiven. Does this keep you from sinning the same sin again? My reason for asking is this: I had an aunt (blood) and uncle (marriage) who belonged to some sect, First Born Church of the Brethren (or some sort). Uncle (by marriage) would molest his daughters, then raise his hand at church and “confess”: “I have sinned”. He was forgiven, & praised for his humility. This went on several times a year for about 20 years, while my aunt kept having & adopting (female) kids. Anyway, “There is no condemnation for those of us who are in Christ Jesus.” Does that mean you don’t repeat the sin? Love, Phil [/QUOTE] I confess my sins to a priest because of this: Truly I say to you: Everything you have bound on earth, shall be bound in heaven, and everything you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. (Matthew 16:19) ---
**Author:** ![Traditional\_Catholic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Traditional\_Catholic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Traditional_Catholic)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/78 "2008-06-01T18:04:06Z")
[QUOTE=Ellen Cherry] Why do you prefer the Latin Mass? [/QUOTE] I am assuming that by “Latin Mass” that you mean the 2008 missal (the 1962 missal with the revised Good Friday prayer for the conversion of the Jews), as opposed to the 2002 missal (the Novus Ordo Missae), though technically the ordinary language of the 2002 missal is Latin. I prefer the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite (the 2008 missal) over the Ordinary form of the Roman Rite (the 2002 missal) for two reasons. The first is that the EF is more clear doctrinally in its prayers than the OF. While no outright heresy is proclaimed in the OF (the Holy Ghost would not allow it), many prayers in the OF are easily interpreted in a heretical way. The chief example of this is the 2002 Good Friday prayer for the Jews. While the prayer used in the EF clearly calls for non-Catholic Jews to convert to Catholicism, the 2002 prayer merely calls for them to be faithful to their covenant with God, i.e. the old covenant, ignoring the fact that no one comes to the Father except through Christ. The second is that the EF is more beautiful and poetic than the OF. This lifts people to God instead of bringing Him to our level. ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/ea5d25/32.png) [@Happy\_Scrappy\_Hero\_Pup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Scrappy_Hero_Pup)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/79 "2008-06-01T18:29:48Z")
[QUOTE= icerigger] Do you believe as an American in freedom of religion as protected by the constitution? in direct opposition to “The Syllabus of Errors” which forbids such a concept. [/QUOTE] Umm, that’d be great if _Dignitatis Humanae_ had never been promulgated: > [@](#): > > All persons have a right to religious liberty, a right with its foundation in the essential dignity of each human being. All persons must be free to seek the truth without coercion. The highest norm of human life is the divine law and truth, but it can only be sought after in the proper and free manner, with the aid of teaching or instruction, communication and dialogue, and it must be adhered to by personal assent. This freedom from coercion in religious affairs must also be recognized as a right when persons act in community. As such a community, and in fact a society in its own original right, has the right to live its own domestic religious life in freedom, in particular the freedom to choose religious education. It’d be great if _Pacem in Terris_ were never promulgated either. > [@](#): > > The Right to Worship God According to One’s Conscience > > 1. Also among man’s rights is that of being able to worship God in accordance with the right dictates of his own conscience, and to profess his religion both in private and in public. According to the clear teaching of Lactantius, "this is the very condition of our birth, that we render to the God who made us that just homage which is His due; that we acknowledge Him alone as God, and follow Him. It is from this ligature of piety, which binds us and joins us to God, that religion derives its name.‘’ (l0) > > Hence, too, Pope Leo XIII declared that "true freedom, freedom worthy of the sons of God, is that freedom which most truly safeguards the dignity of the human person. It is stronger than any violence or injustice. Such is the freedom which has always been desired by the Church, and which she holds most dear. It is the sort of freedom which the Apostles resolutely claimed for themselves. The apologists defended it in their writings; thousands of martyrs consecrated it with their blood.‘’ (11) …but they were. While I agree with our esteemed guest on very few things so far, I do think it unfair to present him with issues that have been quite famously clarified. Not to say that you are baiting him, of course, but if you are familiar with Pius IX, you should have enough background to have heard of some of the more famous work of his successors. ---
**Author:** ![Icerigger](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/icerigger/32/432_2.png) [@Icerigger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Icerigger)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2008, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267/80 "2008-06-01T18:47:50Z")
How do you reconcile that with the Syllabus, which are correct, they are contradictory. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ask-a-traditional-catholic/451267.md?page=5)