Just a general thread for anyone who wants to talk about religion since it was mentioned we could use one in another thread. So yeah, good, bad, or just curious go ahead and say what you want, just keep civil about other people's beliefs
Wrt communion: I am Christian (but I don't agree with all the traditional doctrine). My grandmother is Anglican Catholic but I make a point to not take communion at her church because I'm not confirmed there and I have no interest in doing so. But at protestant churches that give communion, I usually take it because it's not as big of a deal? I mean they only usually do like once a month if that. And they've never said not to take it. I got baptized at 12 iirc? (And also as a baby, but I don't count that one for me because I didn't choose it) But at some of the churches I went to they even gave communion for the little kids. It was just a time to reflect and quietly pray. For acedata purposes all most all of our churches were non-denominational (which is kind of a denomination).
yeah, the methodist church I grew up in was pretty chill about anyone taking communion, whether baptised or confirmed or not.
I find this a weird dichotomy on both sides. Because on the one hand you have the particularly American attitude that 'Catholics' and 'Christians' are separate groups, which is just. No. Wrong. But on the other hand, you do have the important history between Catholics and Protestants, and the important differences. (Extra weird in England because Anglicans were the Main Split from Catholics and yet resemble Catholics more than they resemble most other Protestant denominations.)
Yeah, my grandmother has to get permission to take communion at places other than her denomination (which actually isn't Anglican anymore, but I can't remember what it is now?? Whoops). THIS MAKES ME SO ANGRY AND IT ALWAYS HAS.
huh, that's interesting, I was under the impression most methodist churches would be chill like mine was. apparently not.
I've always referred to christian and catholic as the same thing and my mom gets so mad when I do and I'm just shrugs
I ACTUALLY HAD A FIGHT WITH A CHRISTIAN FRIEND BECAUSE SHE DIDN'T THINK CATHOLICS WERE CHRISTIAN BECAUSE THEY PRAY TO MARY. AND I WAS LIKE????????? NO?????????????????? I had to keep throwing sources at her until she believed me. I just. What. I also had a friend who's dad is an Anglican minister and she was so upset and offended that Catholics pray to Mary. Anglicans and Protestants seem to have a big problem with the Mary thing. Anyway about me: I was raised kind-of-Anglican in that my parents sent me to Anglican scripture classes in primary school and then I went to an Anglican high school, but my family never went to church or anything. We celebrate Christian holidays secularly. I now practice a religion called Konkokyo and we have a handy dandy website because we are small enough to have a website. (Mostly because I am too jetlagged to attempt to explain religion rn.)
yeah I was raised methodist and now I am an agnostic polytheistic witch so don't know how that happened but uh yeah
I went: Anglican -> a tiny pre-teen pagan -> The Most Annoying Teenage Atheist -> a confused flavour of pagan -> a Japanese religion that no one has heard of.
I went like this: methodist -> smol pre-teen atheist -> teenage agnostic monotheistic -> atheist witch -> agnostic polytheistic witch
Okay I have a problem with the praying to Mary (and saints) thing too. But like. That doesn't make them any less Christian?? I had those same arguments with Catholics going "I'm not Christian, I'm Catholic." And I was like "Friend, I have a thing to tell you." ------------------------------ I went... possibly annoying Christian --> Being militant not-annoying-as-I-could Christian --> realizing I am queer and still a Christian and yep this works somehow I'm gonna go do something else and stop thinking about it. =D
From my very limited understanding of Catholicism, you don't pray to Mary and other saints the same as you pray to God, it's just like... God is hella busy, so you pray to saints when you feel like things are too minor to bother God directly, so the saints deliver your prayers for you? Or if a saint is the patron of a relevant thing, you pray to them and then the prayer goes on to God. Or something. It kinda makes me think of mitama spirits in Konkokyo. We believe that when people die, their souls return to the universe/Kami and can be prayed to either for help with something, or to give thanks for things they did in life, or just to be like, "Hey Grandma, I found those cupcakes you liked, let's share them together." So I guess I don't find the praying to saints thing that odd, but I think that's just because I think of it like praying to mitama >.>;
I sometimes joke that when I'm stressed, I try to change my religion. It's not really a joke; I have seriously considered or attempted conversion to... probably too many religions to count. Which is weird for a lifelong atheist.
that's what I took it to be too. I am a, basically, but I call myself a polytheistic agnostic because I think that if there is gonna be a higher being there's gonna be more than one.
As far as I know, Catholicism teaches that only God is to be worshipped (latria); saints are not worshipped, but receive reverence (dulia), and Mary is revered even more intensely (hyperdulia) but not worshipped. Praying to saints is a request for their intercession - asking them to advocate on your behalf to God. (This is my understanding of it, but I am far from an expert, so correct me if I'm wrong.)
Yeah, that's my understanding too. By "have a problem" I meant, "I don't think it works that way." But I am also pretty chill and like, you do you. And my ideas are changing, so I might have used to 'have a problem' with it. But if I think about it I might not care anymore. *shrug* ----------------------------- Same.
