Where are the catholics in the supermarkets?

[gabrielofsorrows]

Hello phatmass. An interesting discussion.: where are the catholics at the supermarkets. My dad once said something interesting on a Monday morning to be honest made me think and chuckle ( a little bit) he said well we went to mass on sunday and i seen so and so and the supermarket today.. And mr smith had a big smile on at church but when i seen him at the grocery store i seen him cut people on line and curse?  My das has a point. He said so why are good on sunday at mass or service, then one monday comes its like " we act like we don't have Christ in our heart" at all) i would like peoples opinions if you feel you like to add what are your thoughts? Do you witness the same thing?now, we have our bad days... But my dad was taken back about a regular church goer gleaming at church but the very next day he had a face and demeanor of a mad man? My dads a head strong guy.. But have to admit he was turned off a bit. 

[dUSt]

I think Catholicism is something that requires a lot of self motivation, compared to Protestant forms of Christianity.

Unfortunately, most Catholics were taught that as long as you attend mass on Sundays and Holy Days, you've fulfilled your requirement.

We should do a better job of letting people know that Catholicism should be integrated into every part of one's life for sure.

[gabrielofsorrows]

Yes, i agree. It goes to show you just how human we all are. We all need to depend on christ. On our own we all fail. We cant live the christian life without depending on the holy spirit thats for sure. Just how many of us can honestly say we as catholic Christians put on masks when we are sad, upset, hurt or angry, its okay not to always be happy in fact its impossible to be happy all the time. But joy and peace thats another thing that the holy spirit gives us In every circumstance we endure. Its hard to attain peace and joy in every circumstance the lord gives us, but its not impossible. 

[Peace]

1 hour ago, gabrielofsorrows said:

Hello phatmass. An interesting discussion.: where are the catholics at the supermarkets. My dad once said something interesting on a Monday morning to be honest made me think and chuckle ( a little bit) he said well we went to mass on sunday and i seen so and so and the supermarket today.. And mr smith had a big smile on at church but when i seen him at the grocery store i seen him cut people on line and curse?  My das has a point. He said so why are good on sunday at mass or service, then one monday comes its like " we act like we don't have Christ in our heart" at all) i would like peoples opinions if you feel you like to add what are your thoughts? Do you witness the same thing?now, we have our bad days... But my dad was taken back about a regular church goer gleaming at church but the very next day he had a face and demeanor of a mad man? My dads a head strong guy.. But have to admit he was turned off a bit. 

I have been that guy and I bet some other posters here have been too. Sometimes you have a bad day and you act inconsistently with the way that you know you are supposed to . . .

[gabrielofsorrows]

We have all been there is really my point... But my dad had a great observation about this. We all have good and bad days. Only christ is perfect. We are all flawed and in need of gods grace every day!  In the bible it says our hearts and wicked and deceitful without God in our heart. I couldn't agree more. Scripture doesnt lie.

[Luigi]

I know the point your father was making, and he's right, BUT - We all have a tendency to notice bad behavior rather than good behavior.

When I go to the grocery store, it takes me five times longer than it should because I run into This One, who asks how my folks are doing, then I run into That One, and I ask how her grandchildren are doing, then I run into Another One and we have to discuss the upcoming priests' play ( a fundraiser for the archdiocesan youth ministry), during all of which one or another of us is telling some lost soul where the rye Melba toast is in this store, and..., and..., and...

I know there are some poorly behaved church-goers in public, and that's true of any and all denominations. But tell your Dear Old Dad that, after church next week, when he goes shopping, he should make a conscious effort to notice who's being nice to whom as well as who is behaving like he never went to church at all. 

[gabrielofsorrows]

Yes i agree with you luigi my dad is an old fashioned italian... But thats a good point you made instead of noticing the negative\ notice the positive. Well said.:)

[Norseman82]

Sometimes you don't have to wait until Monday...

 

[Ash Wednesday]

At first glance, my initial answer is that most of the Catholics in the supermarkets are flocking to the aisle that has those religious candles.

On 6/28/2018 at 10:06 PM, gabrielofsorrows said:

Hello phatmass. An interesting discussion.: where are the catholics at the supermarkets. My dad once said something interesting on a Monday morning to be honest made me think and chuckle ( a little bit) he said well we went to mass on sunday and i seen so and so and the supermarket today.. And mr smith had a big smile on at church but when i seen him at the grocery store i seen him cut people on line and curse?  My das has a point. He said so why are good on sunday at mass or service, then one monday comes its like " we act like we don't have Christ in our heart" at all) i would like peoples opinions if you feel you like to add what are your thoughts? Do you witness the same thing?now, we have our bad days... But my dad was taken back about a regular church goer gleaming at church but the very next day he had a face and demeanor of a mad man? My dads a head strong guy.. But have to admit he was turned off a bit. 

Your dad is not alone. And he's right. Lack of sincerity or authenticity is probably one of the biggest things that turns people off from Christianity (or some say all religion, but generally in the West they normally are speaking of Christianity). 

I suspect one reason for this is that some people attend church mostly for social reasons and out of a sense of "duty" but not out of strong conviction. I've seen this quite a bit, particularly with older people. I had an older man in the village I live in invite me to some Anglican animal blessing ceremony at the local village church last month, even though he didn't believe in God.

I suppose with the younger population, the indifference is basically out in the open now with declining interest in religion or church, but with them they don't have habit or society influencing them to go as much as it used to. 

Obviously the bible and the saints have had very harsh words about false or lukewarm Christians that we should heed. 

[gabrielofsorrows]

I agree with you ash wednesday. I think we all can put on a " show" sometimes as we are all human and in need of christ, in our hearts, and on our minds every moment of the day. It is sad that some people go to church just to be social. But who am i to judge... One thing is my dad has a good and honest point.  It is unfortunate that the world has become a me, me, me, world. We all some degree of selfishness in us for sure. But its unfortunate that you can't mention jesus at a secular college campus but you can mention things like being pro- choice without hesitation. There was a bracelet that was very popluar wwjd.( what would jesus do) in all sincerity we all have failed at one point or another in our lives to obey and follow what Christ asks of us, our motives, the way we live etc..  I ask jesus to humble me almost every day,i know i need it. Ill always remember what one of my college colleagues said as well. " if you claim your a christian and dont live it out, its a waste of time, in other words jesus doesnt want our lip service but a heart thats for him. And that is exactly my prayer today when i went to the cemetery with mt family to pay respects to a loved one. I prayed to God and said forgive my failings as your all that really matters in this life. ( just a thought though thats worth thinking about is, satan loves to hear us bash ourselves so to speak, it gets us to think we are unworthy of christs love, mercy, forgiveness... Etc.  Satans mission is to capture your heart away from christ! The luke warm, he isnt after... He is after the ones who want to give their lives for christ. My prayer too is, lord, let my heart be sincere and in love with you all the days until my last, let me be obedient to your will and pick up my cross daily. and i pray for protection against satan, who we must " put on the armor of God" against the evil one as the bible says.