Posted on 05/13/2011 1:03:15 AM PDT by Cronos
According to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, attendance is up after several years on the decline.
"For the first time in several years church attendance is up at Roman Catholic churches, we found one Providence church that is seeing the proof," said Fr. James Ruggieri.
Father Ruggieri walked down the aisle at St. Patrick Church Thursday afternoon - surrounded by a healthy crowd of parishioners.
"They find hospitality a place that's welcoming."
That may be true. According to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence Church, attendance is growing in Rhode Island. This after a year of evangelization.
"Our bishop called on all Catholics, not just priests, to invite people back to the church."
The call for renewed faith came after a sharp decline in attendance, from 2006 to 2009. In just four years, the diocese says there was a loss of nearly 20,000 practicing parishioners.
"The age we live in calls on us to work with the community and strengthen community."
Father Ruggieri says that's one key to his parishes success, that and a mix of both English and Spanish masses.
He also says the church provides structure in a world that seems more chaotic by the day. For the believer that's precious you can't put a price on that.
One way the church is adapting to a changing lifestyle is by making changes to their schedules. St. Patrick has a 5:30 Sunday mass that has over 200 weekly parishioners.
Remember all, Catholics come home needs our help, prayers and support
I have previously posted in this forum but was blasted and humiliated recently when I admitted not being Catholic. My innocuous response was deleted by the so-called moderator. I don’t come here to cause problems or to intrude. Please change your policy or take me off of your ping list. I do not get (that I can discern or remember) any other posts that I am prohibited from responding to. Please correct me if you know better. (Oh, I am not Catholic but my daughter is. I am an elder in my own church and respectful of other Christian traditions.)
It used to be that a person who was not a member of the named “caucus” could participate, but not in a controversial or argumentative way.
I don’t stay on top of this stuff, but at some point the Caucus designation (which is not Cronos’s — his is the choice to apply it, but the Religion Moderator sets the rules) seemed to change, which I think is a pity.
However, if I’ve learned one thing on Free Republic it’s that a lot of us have no clue how to question politely. So maybe the RM just threw up his/her/their hands and decided that the only way to keep the peace was to close the doors.
Too bad, but it’s more a reflection on our sin than the fault of the RM, IMHO.
Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.
Thanks Dawg. That was the first thoughtful response I have received to my concerns.
Yours in Christ, Jim
My comment on the OP is that the more we stick to proclaiming the Gospel NOT as something we own and can tinker with but more as a life ring thrown to us by Him who owns us so much the more will those who are aware of the unease, sorrow,and guilt in their hearts come for salving and healing.
I was born in the late 40's. For most of my late adolescent // early adult life, when I was perfectly capable of ignoring those parts of Xtian teaching that got in my way, I STILL didn't want the Church to stop being the Church. When I went to church, which was pretty often for a long-hair, I wanted beauty, I wanted holy awe, I wanted something solid -- even if I was outside the beauty, did not feel the awe, and was going to push back against the solidity.
I remember being asked to play the guitar in a "Folk Mass" in 1968. I went to one rehearsal and discovered that what they were going to perpetrate was neither folk music nor Christian music, but some bowdlerized and Disney-fied corruption, neither fish nor fowl.
That pablum was what the Episcopal Church called ministry to the young. We hung on, despite being famished. Some of us went to seminary and sought, somehow, the beauty of holiness. But (though my seminary was what you might call moderate Calvinist a la Anglaise in emphasis and though I got SOME good teaching and training, there was a kind of "Aw, shucks, can't we just all be good guys and get along -- and not use too many big words, 'cause that's just showing off anyway," flavor.
For me,a clue was the clerics who thought they had to "put something into the liturgy," and the laity who "put something into" their reading of Scripture.
D00d, we don't HAVE to put things into what God gives. Therefore if the Bible and the liturgy need stuff put into them, we can safely conclude that they are not of God. They yahoos need to spend time DISCOVERING what is ALREADY THERE, doggone it, discovering WHO is already there!
So, now across western Christendom, while the"feel good, make money" temples of Ba'al are growing, quietly and slowly God is gathering those who truly hunger and thirst to the true well.
And I don't mean just us Catholics. I mean all who seek, ask, and knock.
/Rant off.
Thank you both. Jim, the reason I put this in a caucus thread was too much sad experience about any number of folks jumping on something like this to curse me and my faith. We have a number of dear non-Catholic friends here who while strongly believing in what they believe are able to be critical if need be, or sympathise in a Christian way. They were welcome on caucus threads as they are filled with the love of Christ. however, as MD pointed out, it is hard for the RM to monitor this and he/she does this on volunteer time
Thanks Cronos. I was deleted for posting a response saying essentially that Catholics should regulate Catholics. For that I am bitter.
In any case, the statement is true. Not all Catholics are equipped or qualified, but however we can we should encourage and, from time to time, rebuke our messmates. We do fail in that, I'd guess — though, wow, in my congregation people seem to be kicking my butt pretty often ...
I wish I could sweeten what is bitter. Life is too short and too sad for these conflicts to make it sour.
Now, please comment on my brilliant, insightful, perceptive, yay - inspired, but above all modest and self-effacing rant.
Hey Dawg. I was simply saying that the Catholics were within their rights to beatify JP2. I thought there were non-Catholics chiming in and just wanted to say it was okay. At least I wasn’t banned from the site.
And yes Dawg, I admitted to being a non-Catholic in the post. That in my mind was the sole reason for deletion. Moderator?
As I assume you may have noticed, there are a number of Catholics, I don’t know how many but not insignificant, who do not think JP2 was great or by any means showed the heroic virtue which is generally an important part of the process of being acknowledged to be a “saint”.
As for the rest, if you want to ping the “Religion Moderator” you can put that title in the address of a post and you can send FReepmail to him/her/them/it/alien from the planet Squarf/whatever.
I HOPE it’s water under the bridge.
Yes Dawg, I understand there are different opinions in the Catholic community as to who should be beatified, who should be declared a saint. Have at it.
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