"The Deacon's Bench"

ootmother2

I posted  this last night but yesterday's posts are all gone, knot glitch, I assume.

Do any of you read this?  I find a number of interesting topics covered and I'm really not one for blogs at all.  My pastor pointed it out to me as a source of information for a discussion we had.

Yesterday was an article about the fact that Protestants have a higher suicide rate than Catholics and the day before presented a number of observations on why people are leaving the Church. Actually the Church's stand on birth control and abortion were barely mentioned as topics of dispute.
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I'll mess up a link on this but just google The Deacon's Bench"

newlyseliski

I really like his blog!  The suicide statistic seems to be an odd one to attempt to show a correllation with religious affiliation...  an interesting analysis of theological differences that could form a person's self image in a religious sense.

As far as reasons why people leave the Church... the biggest thing I see is apathy.  People really don't care anymore.  They don't really need religion... it's just an extracurricular activity that they don't get anything out of.  My husband and I help with confirmation classes and most of the students clearly have no interest in paying attention, learning about their faith or even being there.  Will they still attend Mass once they go to college and their parents aren't making them go?  Do their parents guide them in their faith at home?

Who knows...  It's not always that the Church doesn' t offer them enough, but they don't think to take initiative to carry it out if something is found to be lacking.  Wish there were adult formation opportunities at your parish?  Talk to your pastor and see if you could start something and find other parishioners willing to help out!  Wish there were people greeting you at the door when you come in to Mass?  Volunteer to start up that ministry!  The priest and parish staff can't do it all... lay people have a vital role to play in forming the parish community and outreach.

Resa77

Why do Catholics leave the Church?  Many reasons, I'm sure.  I know a lot of people who left because of the sexual abuse scandal.  I also know a lot of people who leave the Church because they disagree with it's teachings.  Some people leave because they don't want to be religious.  I think it all really boils down to one thing, though: Catholic education.  I'm not talking Catholic schools, per se.  I'm talking about young Catholics knowing and understanding the teachings of the Church.  There are so many people who go to Mass every Sunday, but don't know much about their Church's teachings.  If you REALLY know and understand the teachings, I think that would make you less likely to leave because of a scandal, or because of "strict" teachings on morality.  Does that make sense at all?  I think the biggest problem in our Church, at least in America, is that many Catholics don't know much about their faith.

lalaith50

Amen, Resa.

The FAMILY is supposed to be the primary educater, especially spiritually, of the children. How often do you see that? Most parents send their kids to Catholic school or even just take them to Mass on Sundays and think they've done their job for the week, and don't even talk about God or faith at home.

ootmother2

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/cultural-wedding-boards_catholic-weddings_the-deacons-bench-1?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Cultural Wedding BoardsForum:615Discussion:d08a7942-1a6c-4256-aca0-82025d814617Post:c8d3da05-9215-4408-81af-ed7b885155aa">Re: "The Deacon's Bench"</a>:
[QUOTE]I really like his blog!  The suicide statistic seems to be an odd one to attempt to show a correllation with religious affiliation...  an interesting analysis of theological differences that could form a person's self image in a religious sense. As far as reasons why people leave the Church... the biggest thing I see is apathy.  People really don't care anymore.  They don't really need religion... it's just an extracurricular activity that they don't get anything out of.  My husband and I help with confirmation classes and most of the students clearly have no interest in paying attention, learning about their faith or even being there.  Will they still attend Mass once they go to college and their parents aren't making them go?  Do their parents guide them in their faith at home? Who knows...  It's not always that the Church doesn' t offer them enough, but they don't think to take initiative to carry it out if something is found to be lacking.  Wish there were adult formation opportunities at your parish?  Talk to your pastor and see if you could start something and find other parishioners willing to help out!  Wish there were people greeting you at the door when you come in to Mass?  Volunteer to start up that ministry!  The priest and parish staff can't do it all... lay people have a vital role to play in forming the parish community and outreach.
Posted by newlyseliski[/QUOTE]


My church has a fabulous lay ministry and well as a pastor who make the effort to sponsor interesting actifities almost every day of the week.  We even have a live theatre group!  Adult education programs are varied and each lasts 20 weeks so there's a ton available there.

There are three churches nearby and after attending all three, I chose this one for the above reasons.