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Post by homeschooldad on Apr 16, 2024 23:18:19 GMT
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Post by iagosan on Apr 17, 2024 5:16:19 GMT
I do not know much about Maher, other than I believe that he was formerly a Catholic,declares himself to be an atheist now and has some reach in the US. It appears that he has the courage of his convictions to state openly what he truly believes, so kudos to him for possessing that quality at least. Perhaps some members of the hierarchy and laity may now attempt to emulate him, so that we will all know where we stand on this matter, as souls really are at stake.
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Post by homeschooldad on Apr 17, 2024 13:25:32 GMT
I do not know much about Maher, other than I believe that he was formerly a Catholic,declares himself to be an atheist now and has some reach in the US. It appears that he has the courage of his convictions to state openly what he truly believes, so kudos to him for possessing that quality at least. Perhaps some members of the hierarchy and laity may now attempt to emulate him, so that we will all know where we stand on this matter, as souls really are at stake. He was indeed raised Catholic. About one in four Americans have been. Right around the time of my birth (1960), the Catholic Church looked to be in great shape in the US, vocations were booming, seminaries and convents were full, the number of parishes was growing steadily, Catholics were getting out of the ethnic "ghettos", moving into the suburbs, going to college, having fairly large families, we even had a Catholic President... ...and then BOOM!I always use the analogy of someone slamming an oven door just as the cake was rising. If I had to guess, as someone coming in from a non-Catholic background (up to age 14), it was caused by, among other things: - That same prosperity making Catholics want to be "more like everyone else".
- And some might say no, but I see birth control as being a huge part of it. Newer and more effective means were developed (the Pill et al), Catholics were becoming better acquainted with those outside the Faith, they wanted smaller families, the "rhythm method" was still notoriously ineffective, there was some legitimate doubt that the Pill was, indeed, a "natural" method until Paul VI promulgated Humanae vitae, but when he did that, Catholics by and large said "oh, hell, no!", and we ended up where we are today.
- Catholics wanting to be more like Protestants in general --- "hey, these aren't bad people, they're just 'separated brethren', Vatican II said so".
- And, yes, the replacement of the Traditional Latin Mass with the simpler, vernacularized Novus Ordo Missae, and the perceived (and sometimes more than just "perceived") de-sacralization that went with it.
The end (and ongoing) result of all this was the perception that "everything's changing, and the old stuff is gone for good". Many people were deliriously happy about this.
Long story short, Catholics saw alternatives to the traditional Faith, and responded accordingly. Bill Maher's family was just one of many.
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Post by blackforest on May 3, 2024 13:50:31 GMT
I blame it on poor catechesis. Not enough Catholics fully understand the "why" of being Catholic.
I remember watching Bill Maher's *Religulous" years ago, and the film made it clear that he was poorly catechized in his youth. It was 90+ minutes of pure anti-intellectualism, concluding with an ironically forceful, dogmatic, and *certain* statement about how we all need to embrace Doubt.
As to his show, I can never tease out when he's speaking authentically and when he's merely aiming for shock value, outrage, and more viewers. But this statement on abortion sounds chillingly honest; I just wonder why he's willing to stop at killing in the womb.
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