I was brought up a Roman Catholic and went to a Catholic school for eight years (no, there were no perverted priests) and learned about the Roman Catholic church after Vatican II took effect. Through my youth, the Church became much less rigid.
That all stopped in 1978 when John Paul II became Pope. John Paul I chose that name because he wanted to be a combination of the revolutionary (too strong a term? nah) John XXIII and the mostly progressive Paul VI. So why did John Paul II choose that name? I don't know.
If I want to be a non-sinning Catholic I can't: put a condom on my cock, not even to prevent disease; allow a woman to use the pill; leave women with the choice of terminating a pregnancy; get married and become a priest; allow women to have a real voice in the church (there are still cloistered nuns out there, for pete's sake), and on and on. Think how it would have been if I was gay. And then there's that horrible sin of masturbation. It'd be straight to hell for me.
During John Paul II's papacy, I stopped attending mass other than at wedding's. But I will not accept Holy Comminion at such an event because during John Paul II's papacy, I became an Athiest. That's a whole other journal entry, but it certainly had it's roots in my disappointment in the Roman Catholic church. It was actually an Epiphany I had in the early 80s. But it wasn't on the Road to Damascus, nor did scales eventually fall from my eyes.
Also, by the way, I'm finding it interesting that those neutral reporters on CNN are declaring that John Paul II brought an end to the Cold Way. Why, just last year when Ronald Reagan died, they were saying that HE brought an end to the Cold War. Or maybe I'm missing something.
That all stopped in 1978 when John Paul II became Pope. John Paul I chose that name because he wanted to be a combination of the revolutionary (too strong a term? nah) John XXIII and the mostly progressive Paul VI. So why did John Paul II choose that name? I don't know.
If I want to be a non-sinning Catholic I can't: put a condom on my cock, not even to prevent disease; allow a woman to use the pill; leave women with the choice of terminating a pregnancy; get married and become a priest; allow women to have a real voice in the church (there are still cloistered nuns out there, for pete's sake), and on and on. Think how it would have been if I was gay. And then there's that horrible sin of masturbation. It'd be straight to hell for me.
During John Paul II's papacy, I stopped attending mass other than at wedding's. But I will not accept Holy Comminion at such an event because during John Paul II's papacy, I became an Athiest. That's a whole other journal entry, but it certainly had it's roots in my disappointment in the Roman Catholic church. It was actually an Epiphany I had in the early 80s. But it wasn't on the Road to Damascus, nor did scales eventually fall from my eyes.
Also, by the way, I'm finding it interesting that those neutral reporters on CNN are declaring that John Paul II brought an end to the Cold Way. Why, just last year when Ronald Reagan died, they were saying that HE brought an end to the Cold War. Or maybe I'm missing something.
Around the age of 14 I 'converted' from catholocism to paganism, and haven't looked back since. I was Roman Catholic as well, even attended Catholic school from grades K-13 with the naughty uniform and nazi nuns and teachers blocking the school exits and locking classrooms and bathrooms on Mass days, preventing unwilling students from attending. Huge paintings and prints of the Pope filled the hallways, and the teachers would remind us that 'he' was always watching us all. I can remember, even until about the age of 18, feeling guilty and thinking lightening would strike if I say Goddamnit or Jesus Christ as a cuss. I look back now and cringe at how we were all raised to think and believe in 'our' religion. Go to confession and even if it's murder, say twenty hail mary's and you're forgiven. Our campus minister in highschool would even ask people coming in to give talks about safe sex to leave. Yet, if you were raped or abused as a child, you were not in any way a virgin and were condemned a sinner and were therefore dirty and unworthy. Yeah, that one lived with me until about the age of 21....
We were the only highschool and ELEMENTARY schools in town with a daycare- for the students children. God forbid there be condoms in the bathrooms or at the nurses office to teach responsibility and safety from disease. Because, you know, as 'Pope John Paul would say..." How many times did I hear that? Perhaps the most terrifying was the incident when I was 5 our church's priest 'disowned' a woman in the congregation and disallowed her back in the church because she had decided to terminate a life threatening pregnancy. Didn't matter that she had a husband and four other children at home..... the Vatican didn't allow for that at the time. I haven't followed for so many years I don't even know if they do now. My grade 1 teacher was removed from our school when I was 7 because she got a divorce...from a husband who used to beat the hell out of her and send her to work with bruises. Gods....I could go on forever.
The thought of the Pope dying has set a strange fear in me for a long time though. I don't think he was progressive at all, but at least to a large degree he was predictable. What about now? What will they put in his place now? Will there be room for change or is the Roman Catholic church so set on its ass that there is no hope. I think it would be good for the church to change a lot of things, and they'd get a hell of a lot more priests if they were allowed to marry. I don't now. I felt sorr for the man in a way, but there's not really a thing I agreed with him on aside from the general notion of love for mankind. The wars that have happened and the deaths involved because of the church would tend to disagree with that however.... anyway, I've babbled incessantly. In short, I agree!