Im not sure i agree with this
A message from Bishop Fulton J. Sheen..."If I were not a Catholic, and were looking for the true Church in the world today, I would look for the one Church which did not get along well with the world; in other words, I would look for the Church which the world hates. My reason for doing this would be, that if Christ is in any one of the churches in the world today, He must still be hated as He was when He was on earth in the flesh. If you would find Christ today, then find the Church that does not get along with the world. Look for the Church which is hated by the world, as Christ was hated by the world. Look for the Church which is accused of being behind the times, as Our Lord was accused of being ignorant and of never having learned. Look for the Church which men sneer at as socially inferior, as they sneered at Our Lord because He came from Nazareth. Look for the Church which is accused of having a devil, as Our Lord was accused of being possessed by Beelzebub, the Prince of Devils. Look for the Church which, in seasons of bigotry, men say must be destroyed in the name of GOD as men crucified Christ and thought they had done a service to GOD. Look for the Church which the world rejects because it claims it is infallible, as Pilate rejected Christ because He called Himself The Truth. Look for the Church which is rejected by the world as Our Lord was rejected by men. Look for the Church which amid the confusion of conflicting opinions, its members love as they love Christ, and respect its Voice as the very voice of its Founder, and the suspicion will grow, that if the Church is unpopular with the spirit of the world, then it is unworldly, and if it is unworldly, it is other-worldly. Since it is other-worldly it is infinitely loved and infinitely hated as was Christ Himself. But only that which is Divine can be infinitely hated and infinitely loved. Therefore the Church is Divine."
- I can think of many churches right now which are hated more than Christianity. Maybe Islam, Westboro Baptist?
Im not saying the bishop is entirely wrong in what he's saying, and im possilbly taking this out of context, but i don't think if i was searching for a church i would look for one that was hated.
posted by That Canadian Guy @ 4:25 p.m.
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2 Comments:
I think the statement " I would look for the Church which the world hates." is rather narrow minded. Because in fact, the world in general hates church in general, and not just one particular denomination. Anytime people need to look inside and change their attitudes and values, there is contention. It's just easier not to.
Great find Don, sure gets the wheels turning!
"they will know you are Christians by your love...."
"love one another..."
I want to be known for my love, not for "repelling people".
I do have to agree with a few of his comments though.
<>< G
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