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To: ansel12
So the Vatican is not in any way a source for the number of Catholics?

The number of true Catholics? No.

The term "Catholic" is often used loosely in the media. The Vatican can tell you how many people attended Church on Sunday. It can tell you how many people have been baptized. It can tell you how many people checked the "Catholic" box in the national population census. That's what is usually meant by "Catholic" when statistics are discussed. It's based on self-identification or numbers of people who have had some form of contact with the Church.

What the Vatican can't tell you is how many people actually believe what the Church teaches.

And if one does not believe what the Catholic Church teaches, then one is not a Catholic.

There's nothing unique about that. If you believe in God, then you're not an atheist. If you don't believe in Marx's dogmas, you're not a communist. If you don't believe in Calvin's teachings, you're not a Calvinist. Irrespective of where you plant your posterior on a Sunday or any other day.

41 posted on 01/23/2012 1:27:17 PM PST by marshmallow (.)
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To: marshmallow

I can see how pride and chauvinism blocks we conservatives from being able to enlist even Catholic conservatives in our fight against liberalism.

I think you just said that yes, they are Catholics, and the Pope and the Vatican labels them as such, counts them as such. That is why we have a voter category called Catholic, not super Catholic, or only Catholics approved by John the internet guy, or whatever it takes to eliminate the possibility of measuring the Catholic vote in elections.

Identity pride can trump conservative politics even at conservative political sites evidently.


44 posted on 01/23/2012 1:47:42 PM PST by ansel12 (Romney is unquestionably the weakest party front-runner in contemporary political history.)
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