[BelieverInGod]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

We do not worship Mary, sir. We honor her because she was Jesus's mother and that is it. Worshipping is for God and God alone! The meaning of honor: having respect and admiration.

Right, that's why you pray to her and 'honor' her and kiss statues of her...

But you don't worship her.

Mary is nothing more than Juno in a christian robe.

[Basilissa]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

We do not worship Mary, sir. We honor her because she was Jesus's mother and that is it. Worshipping is for God and God alone! The meaning of honor: having respect and admiration.

Really? Try to tell that to most Catholics (especially rural folks). I've even met Catholics who thought that Holy Trinity was Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. I'm not kidding - this is what rural people believe! Sorry to disappoint you, but Catholicism is, in fact, a politheistic religion. You pray to one saint to get lucky in love, to another when you try to find a misplaced item, and there even is a saint for toothache - seriously!

St. Apollonia - patroness of tooth problems: http://starrymantle.blogspot.com/200...-of-teeth.html (visitors beware, this site is a Catholic den)

[Seth Campbell]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

Really? Try to tell that to most Catholics (especially rural folks). I've even met Catholics who thought that Holy Trinity was Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. I'm not kidding - this is what rural people believe! Sorry to disappoint you, but Catholicism is, in fact, a politheistic religion. You pray to one saint to get lucky in love, to another when you try to find a misplaced item, and there even is a saint for toothache - seriously!

St. Apollonia - patroness of tooth problems: http://starrymantle.blogspot.com/200...-of-teeth.html (visitors beware, this site is a Catholic den)

They even have a patron saint of drug dealers

Now how exactly do you say you're a "Christian" church and "follow Jesus" when you have saints for sins?

[Johny Joe Hold]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

Mexican is not a language. I'm assuming you meant Spanish, sir. Maybe you should learn English.

Friend, I've been to Mexico. I recognize Mexican when I hear it.

[Pastor Ezekiel]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

We do not worship Mary, sir. We honor her because she was Jesus's mother and that is it. Worshipping is for God and God alone! The meaning of honor: having respect and admiration.

Oh really? Catholics don't pray to Mary??

[Father Maurice Lester]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

Now how exactly do you say you're a "Christian" church and "follow Jesus" when you have saints for sins?

Firstly, we Catholics venerate The Blessed Virgin Mary we do not worship her. I know that's a big word so I typed it slowly for the locals sake.

This veneration is a show of great honour to the mother of Jesus and even Baptwits know the commandment telling us to honour our mother and father.

When it comes to explaining patron Saints the answer is easier than a Landover housewife in Pastor Zeke's office.

The Saints are in Heaven helping Jesus the same way they were helping while on earth... the sort of good work that got them Sainthood to start with!

It is a little presumptuous for mere humans to think Jesus has nothing better to do than listen to countless prayers about finding trinkets or dealing with dental issues... trust me he does. Having proven staff on hand like the Saints allows God to off-load a number of menial tasks beneath His dignity while at the same time technically answering the prayers as is his promise. In that God created the Saints in the first place in full knowledge of their eventual Sainthood, it is abundantly clear He knew that the population of earth would eventually get too large to manage fairly without a Godly solution. By having the various Saints take care of mundane tasks Jesus has more time to devout to His children who have found Heaven and thus rewarded by the glory of His presence.




Bless you, my barmecidal burger flipper,
Father Mo








.

[Basilissa]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

Firstly, we Catholics venerate The Blessed Virgin Mary we do not worship her. I know that's a big word so I typed it slowly for the locals sake.

This veneration is a show of great honour to the mother of Jesus and even Baptwits know the commandment telling us to honour our mother and father.

While there probably is a subtle theological difference between the two, for the Catholic masses it is just semantics, Father

People pray to St. Mary (this website has a selected list of prayers to Our Lady of Guadalupe: http://www.sancta.org/prayers.html)

and here are people in her temple:


Try to explain them, that what they do is NOT worship

When it comes to explaining patron Saints the answer is easier than a Landover housewife in Pastor Zeke's office.

The Saints are in Heaven helping Jesus the same way they were helping while on earth... the sort of good work that got them Sainthood to start with!

Again, there probably is a theological difference, but many Catholics perceive saints as a sort of smaller gods. And sometimes they are right: for example, St. Bridget is a concealed pagan goddess Brighde, and you can ask any Catholic Indian in the Andes and they will tell you that St. Mary is Mother Earth and St. Jacob (? Spanish Santiago) is the Inca god of thunder, Illapa. (By the way, this sort of religious syncretism was allowed by Catholic priests, who gave up trying to explain the natives, that it was wrong to have many gods, but it was OK to have one that was three at the same time, plus a myriad of saints).

[Didymus Much]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

...we Catholics venerate The Blessed Virgin Mary we do not worship her...

ven·er·ate [ven-uh-reyt] Show IPA

verb (used with object), ven·er·at·ed, ven·er·at·ing.
to regard or treat with reverence; revere.

from: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/venerate

wor·ship [wur-ship] Show IPA noun, verb, wor·shiped, wor·ship·ing or ( especially British ) wor·shipped, wor·ship·ping.

verb (used with object)
6. to render religious reverence and homage to.
7. to feel an adoring reverence or regard for (any person or thing).

from: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/worship

As soon as you add the "religious" angle, it's worship, end of. No "it's a matter of semantics" argument necessary, or even possible.

[Basilissa]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

As soon as you add the "religious" angle, it's worship, end of. No "it's a matter of semantics" argument necessary, or even possible.

Even better

[Pastor Ezekiel]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

Firstly, we Catholics venerate The Blessed Virgin Mary we do not worship her.

[Johny Joe Hold]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

Anyone can see from that video, Catholics have done a terrible thing. They have raised up Mary, a woman, to a high position in worship.

This is not Baptist and not scriptural. Shame on Catholics.

[Pim Pendergast]

Re: Pray the New Pope is a White Male.

Firstly, we Catholics venerate The Blessed Virgin Mary we do not worship her. This veneration is a show of great honour to the mother of Jesus and even Baptwits know the commandment telling us to honour our mother and father.

So you honored your own mother and father by kneeling before them and praying to them? God explicitly forbids His people to make idols and bow down to them, yet that is exactly what catholics do. They make statues of Mary and kneel down before them. 1.2 billion catholics around the world are condemning the grandchildren and great-grandchildren to bear the consequences for their iniquity.

Ex 20:4-5 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;

You catholics conveniently made up three different categories of worship to justify your idolatry: latria (the worship due to God alone), dulia (veneration due to the saints) and hyperdulia (the veneration due to Mary). Here's what John Calvin said on the subject.

The distinction of what is called dulia and latria was invented for the very purpose of permitting divine honours to be paid to angels and dead men with apparent impunity. For it is plain that the worship which Papists pay to saints differs in no respect from the worship of God: for this worship is paid without distinction; only when they are pressed they have recourse to the evasion, that what belongs to God is kept unimpaired, because they leave him latria. But since the question relates not to the word, but the thing, how can they be allowed to sport at will with a matter of the highest moment?

One of the reasons Mary is "venerated" is because she gave birth to Jesus. But Jesus Himself said, "Verily I say unto you, Among them that are born of women there hath not risen a greater than John the Baptist" (Mat 11:11a). So why not "venerate" Elizabeth more than Mary? And why not "venerate" Joseph more than Mary? Because the Bible says, "But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God" (1 Cor 11:3). Wasn't Mary submissive to her husband Joseph (Eph 5:22)? If she was as godly a woman as you claim, she surely would have been.

The Saints are in Heaven helping Jesus the same way they were helping while on earth... the sort of good work that got them Sainthood to start with!

Most of your "saints", being catholics, are awaiting the resurrection of damnation (Jn 5:29). They cannot hear prayers where they are.

Eccl 9:5b But the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.

Salvation is not of works. That is not the way to sainthood in the first place.

Eph 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.

It is a little presumptuous for mere humans to think Jesus has nothing better to do than listen to countless prayers about finding trinkets or dealing with dental issues... trust me he does. Having proven staff on hand like the Saints allows God to off-load a number of menial tasks beneath His dignity while at the same time technically answering the prayers as is his promise. In that God created the Saints in the first place in full knowledge of their eventual Sainthood, it is abundantly clear He knew that the population of earth would eventually get too large to manage fairly without a Godly solution. By having the various Saints take care of mundane tasks Jesus has more time to devote to His children who have found Heaven and thus rewarded by the glory of His presence.

When catholics pray the rosary or say Hail Marys, they are using vain repetitions, something expressly forbidden by Jesus. By the Bible's definition you are no better than heathens.

Mat 6:7 But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.

Although apparently repetition is all right if you don't get what you want the first time you ask for it. You should just keep on asking till you get it (Lk 11:5-13; Lk 18:1-7). And God doesn't mind repetition if He is being worshipped (Rev 4:8).

There aren't too many people on the planet. Jesus knows everything (Lk 12:6-7) and can sympathize with every kind of trial we humans face.

Heb 4:13, 15-16
13 Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do.
15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

True Christians(tm) can pray directly to God the Father. We can ask anything, and we will receive it as long as we ask in Jesus' name.

Jn 16:23-24, 26
23 And in that day ye shall ask me nothing. Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, he will give it you.
24 Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.
26 At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I will pray the Father for you:

Communicating with the dead is expressly forbidden. It is an abomination, like homosexuality. Yet when you pray to dead saints, this is exactly what you are doing.

Deut 18:10-12
10 There shall not be found among you any one that maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch.
11 Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer.
12 For all that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord: and because of these abominations the Lord thy God doth drive them out from before thee.

It just goes to show how delusional catholics are that they believe dead saints listen to and answer their prayers and perform miracles. I'm sure every miracle is either a fraud or has a perfectly natural explanation and every answered prayer is something that had a chance of occurring anyway. I'm sure it's all just a trick of the mind, like how they see Mary appearing in the weirdest places. Any Baptist can see it's not really Mary.