Gothic.net Community - View Single Post - Catholics 'more likely to back state economic intervention'

CptSternn · 11-02-2011, 01:49 AM

Wow, it's pretty impressive to be mentioned a dozen times in a thread and blasted for views when I haven't even posted any yet.

I didn't conduct the study, nor did I publish the article. I just posted it here sure.

I think it is pretty simple actually. The Catholic Church teaches the idea of helping others and those who cannot help themselves on a level that you do not see in Protestant religions.

All Protestant religions in America for the most part stem from the small groups of Puritans who colonized the country. The same can be said for other countries. These groups introduced the Protestant Work Ethic, also known as the Puritan Work Ethic. At the time when they were living rough in harsh foreign territory they needed everyone pulling their weight just to survive. This mentality never dissipated in in fact morphed into much of what we see today.

The whole anti-socialism mentality can be traced back to the original colonists. They weren't being mean, they were trying to help the people there survive. It has however led to a mentality which has had detrimental effects since it's original introduction.

The proof of this still stands today where you have Protestant churches that preach socialism is bad. It all comes from a common background. Sure as it was pointed out this isn't ALL churches as the thing with Protestants is they are always breaking off and forming new sects based on what a few of them think. Some have adopted other ideas, but the reality is many still hold values which can be traced back to a common causality.

Anyone raised in either environment will inevitably have their belief system molded in some way around these ideas, no matter if they later continue to practice the religious side of these beliefs or not.

This can be seen also in more common daily life as well.

When I lived in Richmond there was a huge homeless population. One homeless guy was a mate of mine who I met that I occasionally went for a few drinks with. He also attended mass at the same church I did. He informed me of a few things I didn't know about being homeless in Richmond.

First, Protestant Churches out number Catholic ones like ten to one. There are only a handful in the area and only one in the downtown area. As far as homeless shelters the city ran a couple, but the best one was run by the local Catholic Church. He always had stories about how great it was in comparison and if I ever found myself caught out and having to live on the street, that I should go there. They had hot food and always were polite where as the city operated places had bologna sandwiches every day and the staff were always in a bad mood and never had time to listen to you, and that was if you were lucky enough to get in before they filled up. Then you had the Protestant churches in the area - they had no homeless shelters and on special occasions like Christmas or Thanksgiving you might be lucky if they walk around downtown and hand out a few turkey sandwiches, but that is about it. That was the best all of those groups with all of their members and the tithes they took in could afford the homeless in the city.

He never said it like that, but the message is still clear. Even though they were 1/10th the size in the community, the Catholic Church still went of out it's way to help the less fortunate while the larger Protestant community only made a small effort on special occasions. I should also point out the local Catholic Church was built in the 1800's and could only hold a few hundred people max, while the Protestant Churches in the area had basketball courts, youth centres, gyms, and a few even had studios inside so they could broadcast on the free cable channels.

I personally think it is quite telling when you see where a church of any sort puts the money it gets from it's members.

When asked the question feed the homeless, or build a new racquetball ball court for our church members, which one actually followed the path that Jesus would have chosen?

The religious aspect of this report seems to be an issue for some people, but the reality is you can ignore it and just look at the overwhelming results in society to see that some seem to practice what they preach a bit more than others, who seem to ignore the message they claim to themselves follow.

Looking back at their roots you can see why.

11-02-2011, 01:49 AM	#31
CptSternn Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 4,587	Wow, it's pretty impressive to be mentioned a dozen times in a thread and blasted for views when I haven't even posted any yet. I didn't conduct the study, nor did I publish the article. I just posted it here sure. I think it is pretty simple actually. The Catholic Church teaches the idea of helping others and those who cannot help themselves on a level that you do not see in Protestant religions. All Protestant religions in America for the most part stem from the small groups of Puritans who colonized the country. The same can be said for other countries. These groups introduced the Protestant Work Ethic, also known as the Puritan Work Ethic. At the time when they were living rough in harsh foreign territory they needed everyone pulling their weight just to survive. This mentality never dissipated in in fact morphed into much of what we see today. The whole anti-socialism mentality can be traced back to the original colonists. They weren't being mean, they were trying to help the people there survive. It has however led to a mentality which has had detrimental effects since it's original introduction. The proof of this still stands today where you have Protestant churches that preach socialism is bad. It all comes from a common background. Sure as it was pointed out this isn't ALL churches as the thing with Protestants is they are always breaking off and forming new sects based on what a few of them think. Some have adopted other ideas, but the reality is many still hold values which can be traced back to a common causality. Anyone raised in either environment will inevitably have their belief system molded in some way around these ideas, no matter if they later continue to practice the religious side of these beliefs or not. This can be seen also in more common daily life as well. When I lived in Richmond there was a huge homeless population. One homeless guy was a mate of mine who I met that I occasionally went for a few drinks with. He also attended mass at the same church I did. He informed me of a few things I didn't know about being homeless in Richmond. First, Protestant Churches out number Catholic ones like ten to one. There are only a handful in the area and only one in the downtown area. As far as homeless shelters the city ran a couple, but the best one was run by the local Catholic Church. He always had stories about how great it was in comparison and if I ever found myself caught out and having to live on the street, that I should go there. They had hot food and always were polite where as the city operated places had bologna sandwiches every day and the staff were always in a bad mood and never had time to listen to you, and that was if you were lucky enough to get in before they filled up. Then you had the Protestant churches in the area - they had no homeless shelters and on special occasions like Christmas or Thanksgiving you might be lucky if they walk around downtown and hand out a few turkey sandwiches, but that is about it. That was the best all of those groups with all of their members and the tithes they took in could afford the homeless in the city. He never said it like that, but the message is still clear. Even though they were 1/10th the size in the community, the Catholic Church still went of out it's way to help the less fortunate while the larger Protestant community only made a small effort on special occasions. I should also point out the local Catholic Church was built in the 1800's and could only hold a few hundred people max, while the Protestant Churches in the area had basketball courts, youth centres, gyms, and a few even had studios inside so they could broadcast on the free cable channels. I personally think it is quite telling when you see where a church of any sort puts the money it gets from it's members. When asked the question feed the homeless, or build a new racquetball ball court for our church members, which one actually followed the path that Jesus would have chosen? The religious aspect of this report seems to be an issue for some people, but the reality is you can ignore it and just look at the overwhelming results in society to see that some seem to practice what they preach a bit more than others, who seem to ignore the message they claim to themselves follow. Looking back at their roots you can see why.