--- Spirituality & Culture

With much fear and trembling, I have decided to start a forum on "A Catholic Approach To Scripture: Challenges & Opportunities For Lay Catholics". I have been following the Bishop's Synod in Rome and must admit, that I am very excited about the topic which Pope Benedict XVI and the Bishops have decided to study. Like many Catholics, I grew up in a household replete with pictures of John XXIII, Catechisms, Rosaries, and dessicating Palms. What was absent in my family's home was a Bible. I remember how shocked my Protestant friends were when they asked where our family Bible was and my only response was to point to the Crucifix on the wall and stutter something about, "But we have our missals".

Jesus never seemed to ask to be "adored" simply "emulated."
Why does institutional church leadership (hierarchy) try to focus the laity so much on the adoration while not themselves emulating Jesus?

"I confess that perhaps nobody in the world complicates simple things as badly as I do. So you can rest assured that it is likely I will make complex things even more complicated. I apologize for my complexity-complex, nevertheless, I will soldier on.

"Where to start? Two approaches present themselves: one, is to approach reality from the surface of things, as our senses present them to us, the sights we see; the sounds we hear; the tastes we savor; the textures we feel; the aromas we sense; the memories we cherish.

A Post for NCRcafe: Exit to Entrance
By Marie Schickel Rottschaefer
Vol. 2 No. 6 September 2008

WHAT IS A POST-AXIAL AGE FAITH? WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS?

A New Search

Belief must metamorphose into a credible hope for humanity in the twenty-first century. Because of the circular argument it embodies, the appeal to revelation will likely be supplanted. But as supernaturalism departs, this does not preclude a new search for life’s ultimate meaning, i.e. a new search for Ultimate Reality. I make a distinction between a search for the ultimate meaning of life and the supernaturalism of the axial age religions -- pagan gods and goddesses and the many indigenous religions of today and yesteryear with their beliefs in divine intervention in human affairs. The basis of ultimate meaning is a Supreme Being who is the source of our contingent being where contingent beings in the process of cultural evolution construct and modify their faith and moral beliefs. Arguments about the existence and nature of a Supreme Being have been in the conversation for eons. Advances in the relevant sciences, such as cosmology and astronomy, philosophy of religion (Confer, e. g., Notre Dame Philosophical Reviews, J.L. Schellenberger, “The Wisdom to Doubt: A Justification of Religious Skepticism,” Cornell University Press, 2007), philosophy of science as well as technology will add significantly to this discussion.

Who do you believe consecrates the Eucharist at Liturgy?
The ordained minister celebrant.
The Community Assembled Through the ordained minister celebrant.
The Community Assembled Including the celebrant--ordained or not.
Other.

" Our job is to bring external realities together with the reality of the political mind. Don't ignore the cognitive dimension. It is through cognitive narratives, metaphors and frames that we understand and express our ideals ". Thus concludes an article at Tikkun.org by George Lakoff titled, ' The Palin Choice ' . The author maintains that the Democrats still haven't learned the lessons in the victories of Reagan and W. The True Strategy of the RNC is Symbolic. In the face of many specific issues, the focus is on Character, Values, (Apparent) Authenticity, Communications, Trust and Identity and the avoidance of Policy.

Very often attitudes and practices slip into our life and times unnoticed. I reading many of the theological blogs here I find that about 70% of them relate to doctrines and the justification of differences. The pronouncements from the Vatican seem to be the same way. Is this the way it is supposed to be? Do we di'sect' the words of Christ or do we follow them? This kind of thinking goes on any time we get into discussing 'vatii', the litturgy, abortion,the hierarchy etc. We never seem to get nearly so involved when we discuss the environment or charity. Is the entire church too much into doctrine or is that the way it is supposed to be?

A Post for NCRcafe: Exit to Entrance
By Marie Schickel Rottschaefer
Vol. 2 No. 5 August 2008

The goal of these posts is to give a brief overview of developments that have relevance for us in the early 21st century, particularly in seeking solutions for pressing people and planet problems.

Contemporary Faith Metamorphosis:
A Partial Answer To Why The Change (Continued):
Biblical Scholarship Adopts Scientific Methodology

I thought maybe this would show up on the web sites news feed but it apparently did not. Here is the link from the Catholic News Service:

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0804119.htm

Here is a quote from the story:

"Bishop Arthur J. Serratelli of Paterson, N.J., chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Divine Worship, announced the new Vatican 'directives on the use of "the name of God" in the sacred liturgy' in an Aug. 8 letter to his fellow bishops.