But seriously, what WOULD Jesus say?

As much as many of my fellow Catholics would hate to admit it, Sally Quinn made a good point in her defense.

What would Jesus say? He would probably respond with compassion for her lack of understanding of this sacrament.

If we, as Catholics, aspire to exist in a higher spiritual connection to Christ, then it might behoove us to offer our love and compassion to people who misunderstand our faith. Ms. Quinn's mistake should be an opportunity to show how Christ-like we aspire to be.

To react with indignation, or a sense of offense at a perceived lack of respect, does not represent what we are supposed to be about.

The American Ayatollah-wannabe William Donohue does not represent my views as a Catholic. Those members of my church who use the Eucharist as a political tool do not represent me either.

When I describe to non-Catholics the miracle of transmutation that takes place whenever a priest consecrates bread and wine, I am invariably asked how God could empower those priests who molested children to perform such a miracle. All I can respond with is that I don't know, but I pray that someday I will know the answers to such difficult questions.

I have no doubt that Sally Quinn had love in her heart when she took Communion in Tim Russert's honor, and I don't think that she was bragging when she described that experience - she was simply sharing her joy. I think Jesus would be happy with that.

If more Catholics attempted to ask "What would Christ say?" before they reacted negatively to people's mistakes, then maybe our numbers would grow, and we would accomplish much more good in this world.

The xtian demi-deity will say whatever s'h'its script writers want it to say.

Yet the numbers aren’t growing. Why not? Oh, believe me; I know what it is to be a minority. In talking with the ex-Catholics in our group I find that many, if not most, were not dissatisfied with their faith until something happened; something calamitous that put them at the very edge, (I don’t know if you’ve looked into the abyss and its none of my business, but if you have, you’ll understand.) And each looked up, and Phil was there. I can find you hundreds of people, including the FBI and DHS, that will tell you that Philip is at best a case of mass hysteria and that no such person exists. Hundreds of others see Him; a dozen of us see Him on a daily basis. You can call us crazy, but here is the question…doesn’t this sound hauntingly like another faith that was once called a hallucination? We only ask for the same respect you would give any faith; or is respect in America a thing of attendance numbers?

Thanks for responding to my post, Heleva!

Even if you don't believe in the divinity of Jesus, maybe you could believe that he existed as a man who wanted people to interact with greater compassion and love for each other.

If the mention of him brings anger from you, then I understand that you must have experiences or examples of people who have committed great harm in his name.

I suspect that you and I share a common desire - that those who believe in Jesus not use him as a way to control or punish those around them, and that those who don't believe would be treated with kindness rather than with hatred or pity.

What many Catholics fail to understand is the shock experienced by non-Catholic Christians when first they discover that they are not welcomed by the Catholic faith community as full-fledged fellow Children of God.

It is not only about the Eucharist or other sacraments in which they aren't welcome to participate. These issues may become a trigger for debate. At the heart of the dispute is the idea, recently re-stated publicly by the current Pope, that "other Christian communities are either defective or not true churches and Catholicism provides the only true path to salvation." That is a bitter pill to swallow.

Now, I happen to know of many Protestant denominations that are populated by many people with that same attitude toward their own Church. They didn't choose it because they thought it was the wrong Church after all... did they? But then -- they don't have their Church leaders announcing it to the world.

I am not Catholic. I have Catholic friends and family members. I have attended Catholic mass, some catechism lessons, some weddings and funerals. I have never participated in the Eucharist and I never would. I would never do what Sally Quinn did. I personally have respect for the rules of the Church. I appreciate the beauty of the rituals and sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church.

That said, I can understand the frustration of Protestants trying to absorb that sort of rejection. It does seem out of character with the life and the teachings of Christ. Jesus was often attacked by his own Church leaders for practicing inadequate exclusivity.

There is no evidence of existence either. Then there is the didn't meet any criteria issue...

Believe as you choose but knock off some of the dishonesty crap and I would respect xtians more.

I base my reaction, not so much on what Jesus would do, but what He DID do. When He instituted communion, He did not invite all of His followers to be there, just the 12 - His 'church' as it were. That is why, I don't take communion at another church - even another Southern Baptist one. But, when my Bible study held communion, I participated because it was MY group. Now having said that, had someone come to the door seeking food, Jesus would not have turned them away, no matter how tacky it was for the stranger to have stayed...

And if I recall correctly, one of those 12 was even then planning to betray him, and yet Jesus included him......

You should qualify that as 'according to the mythology". That which didn't exist didn't do much of anything.

Communion is cannibalistic in the very least, very pagan at the most. Almost like passing out a placebo soma to the masses.

Sometimes even a placebo is welcome -- if it works!

;-)

Unfortunately it leads to crusades, inquisitions, rape of new peoples and lands and attempts to establish theocracies at the expense of all other beliefs or non-beliefs.

I respect this common desire of yours and I agree with it but then why do you call yourself a Catholic? The RCC does NOT have this common desire. The RCC is a sick organization that has little to do with the teachings of JC.

The RCC is also NOT a lay church so one cannot say 'I'm a Catholic I just don't fall in line with the RCC'. That is total BS. Follow JC if you must but I fail to see any need to have any associated with a phoney organization like the RCC.

Heleva, it also lead to the creation of many universities, to many hospitals, to many charities, and to many good works.

Think about Mother Theresa in Calcutta. Contrast that with the powerful non-Christians in that city who were mad at her for taking care of their dying and destitute neighbors because either "It's their karma to be poor and sick" or "It makes the whole world think Calcutta is a bad place".

In Romans 9:30-32 Paul wrote,

What shall we say then? That Gentiles, who did not pursue righteousness, have attained to righteousness, even the righteousness of faith; but Israel, pursuing the law of righteousness, has not attained to the law of righteousness. Why? Because they did not seek it by faith, but as it were, by the works of the law. For they stumbled at that stumbling stone.

What, or Who, is that stumbling stone? It is Christ (Acts 4:10-11; 1 Peter 2:5-8). Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." It is only through faith (trust) in the Lord Jesus Christ that anyone will ever, and has ever, been saved (e.g. Romans 4:3). It is not by keeping the law (good works), because, "by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin" (Romans 3:20). In other words, the law reveals the sinfulness of men, and any efforts in keeping the law for salvation is in vain.

In other words; the charitable works are nice, but do they justify the existence and fulfill the supposed mission of the Church?

Yes. We want the same thing as you state what you want. The zealotry and passion from our side is often driven from fear, which suborns our faith it we allow it to. We have many that feel as though God can’t defend Himself as if He isn’t in control. We, for our part, keep those individuals under counsel. We have no computers or cell phones or any electricity at the shack. We go into Point Pleasant or Parkersburg to use public computers, which drove DHS bananas for awhile, not that Phil is hiding anything. I can accept Jesus Christ as divine, if he is the son of the One True and everlasting God who is beyond name or religion or book, and all the woeful meanders of the lesser deities. If I can’t allow you to have Jesus as your sovereign, then what have I to expect from you? Peace.