Posted on 03/26/2012 1:38:33 PM PDT by NYer
Edit: A definition from Wikipedia is useful here: Blasphemy is irreverence towards religious or holy persons or things.[1] Some countries have laws to punish blasphemy,[2] while others have laws to give recourse to those who are offended by blasphemy.
[Fell's Point, Baltimore, MD] There was a show called "Cheers" on television years ago. It was bawdy and vulgar yet there were some borders it was not safe to pass in the early 80s when the show first aired. It depicted a homey place, reminiscent of an unpretentious neighborhood bar with a hint of old world ambiance and Boston charm. The heavy wooden furniture and the bar spoke of permanence, elegance, and that favorite piety of secular artists, human dignity. It was not always clear who the show's buffoons were, but you knew them when you saw them, and sometimes, it was a comedic mailman who could be the most noble in the simplicity of his fears. Some other writer said something about irony being lost on a society which had no shame. That's why we'd like to wield a metaphorical hammer. Perhaps there are others who can put a better finish on the details of what we will tell.
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| Satirical painting: priest displeased with Nun? |
All we can say is that sometimes evil is really mundane and some of us don't realize that we're not only bufoons needlessly offending people's religious sensibilities, but far worse than that, we're offending God. Even the name of the bar, a pun on the Blessed Mother's name seems calculated to be offensive.
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| Would you like some candy? |
We're not talking about this place, but it's not far from Boston, but it boasts a similar unmistakable charm you'd expect in New England with friendly folks.
One of the features of the bar, and there are many, is its unmistakable Catholic ambiance. It's called, Ale Mary's and is located in Fell's point Maryland. One can just smell the faint aroma of the ocean as you think about it. The food is inexpensive, but if you're Catholic you might find it too expensive for the peace of your conscience to see the sacramental elements of your religion appear for the sake of decoration in peculiarly deliberate ways.
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| Chalices Used for Holy Sacrifice Being Abused by Patrons |
It's not surprising, but it's not acceptable either that chalices which are used in Catholic Mass for the consecration of wine which becomes the blood of Christ, are used by patrons to drink (and get drunk from). They're made of precious metals, sometimes jewels, but their use in such a secular setting is strange and unsettling. No less than the inexplicable painting of a priest with a stole, looking aghast or in surprise at a nun who has her back to him.
The most disturbing thing in the restaurant is the monstrance which is behind the bar used as decoration. The monstrance is large ornate disk, often resembling the sun, which is surmounted in a long stand with a heavy base. It contains a crystal compartment at the center of the disk where a consecrated communion Host can be placed inside and it allows the priest to elevate the entire object by the stand for the veneration of the Sacrament it contains. Seeing this monstrance here in this bar, covered with mardigras beads and a mustached smiley face where the Host would normally be is a little bit like finding family heirlooms in the hands of people who not only use them for purposes for which they were never intended, but use them in disrespectful ways.
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| Mustached Smiley Face Seems Particularly Malevolent |
We found out about this recently and the individual who sent this to us wrote an e-mail complaining about the display of these religious items and even offered to purchase them. Far from being treated with the respect she deserved, her concerns were met with derision.
Despite the bar owner claiming that no one cared about this clearly blasphemous display of religious artifacts, he asked her to remove an entry she made under the bar at a public site allowing comment on establishments.
As he berated our friend, the proprietor insisted as an argument to justify his sacrilege and disrespect for Catholic sacramentals, that there were even Bishops and priests who thought that his blasphemous inclusion of religious articles was comical and that there was nothing wrong with this display.
Apparently, there's some truth to what he says, because Catholic clergy, including senior, does frequent this place.
We'll be praying a Rosary in reparation for having seen this blasphemy. Hopefully, the proprietor can be persuaded to part with these items before word of this affects his business either spiritually or financially.
Give them a call:
Corner of Fleet & Washington Sts.
Fell's Point
Baltimore, MD.
21231
410-276-2044
This is what Christians have believed. If someone holds to some different views, it is a new-fangled creation, on par to Unitarianism or Jehovah's Witnesses.
The 2nd Amendment forbids all imagery, except that it does not. It is part of the prohibition of idolatry ....
RobbyS -I know most people are deadly serious about the right to bear arms, but I don’t think it is in the Word.
A nice summing up though, and equally applicable to Catholic (though it is not a commandment we have, we are instructed as to that verbally) as to Protestant.
Sorry, the typo just gave me a quiet chuckle.
As far as the actual story goes, yes, it got me both uncomfortable and indignant. If I went into this bar, or indeed any bar that displayed a monstrance as bar decor, I would simply leave without ordering. It is a bit like hanging a “No Bar Tabs” sign on a cross, or using a Menorah as mood lighting. Both of those I have seen in bars, expressed my opinion and left.
The chalices on the other hand - to most people they are just cups. I have seen exactly the same design of chalice used in mead halls, purchased from the same maker as makes chalices for communion. Have one myself and sometimes used to use it.
The bar owner is guilty of mockery of the Sacrament IMO, as he chose these items deliberately for his bar. He’ll face some hard questions when he stands to Judgement.
Most of the customers just want a beer and don’t care if it comes in a chalice, a paper cup or a swill bucket.
This is what Christians have believed. If someone holds to some different views, it is a new-fangled creation, on par to Unitarianism or Jehovah's Witnesses.
Really??? In the Didache, it is forbidden to baptize babies...So when did your religion insert that one???
Perhaps you have a different Didache? The one I am familiar with says nothing about infant baptism one way or another.
Chapter 7. Concerning Baptism. And concerning baptism, baptize this way: Having first said all these things, baptize into the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, in living water. But if you have no living water, baptize into other water; and if you cannot do so in cold water, do so in warm. But if you have neither, pour out water three times upon the head into the name of Father and Son and Holy Spirit. But before the baptism let the baptizer fast, and the baptized, and whoever else can; but you shall order the baptized to fast one or two days before.
Now before you get all indignant and preachy define "fasting" and how it does and does not apply to infants. Most interpretations refer to abstinence from solid foods and none specifically address or prohibit mothers milk. (Besides, there is that whole household thing in Acts).
I see your game now; I’ll waste no more time replying to the inflatable bouncing clown.
>> “ and Justin the Martyr’s letter to the Emperor that we Christians believe in the literal body of Christ in the Eucharist” <<
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The problem is that Christ doesn’t believe in it. See John 6:63, where he makes it clear that it is a spiritual metaphor.
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So, you’re saying that we should simply shoot catholics for removing the 2nd Commandment from the other nine?
A little much I’d say; the Lord will be giving them enough headaches at the Great White Throne.
Every verse needs to be read in the context it is presented in order to gain an understanding of its meaning. When we read John 6 we discover that Jesus was speaking literally to the extent that he provoked a negative response from His disciples. When given an opportunity to soften His statement or clarify that He was using a metaphor He did not.
"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread which comes down out of heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down out of heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread also which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.”
"Then the Jews began to argue with one another, saying, “How can this man give us His flesh to eat?” So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in yourselves. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats Me, he also will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down out of heaven; not as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live forever.” - John 6:47-58
As for this being a "clear" metaphor we need only look to the Early Church Fathers and to St. Paul to see how they interpreted it. They too believed it to be a literal command:
" For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes. - 1 Corinthians 11:23-26
The Ark was the only sacred object that the Jews worshipped, and part of that were the carved figures that adorned the Ark. Of course, the temple itself, which was just a stone replica of the Tent, was, in a way, a sacred object. And of course, the Scriptures, also made by human hands, are also sacred objects, and frequent adored with pictures of holy people. The Muslims, of course, don’t do this. Are you sure you are not a Muslim?
The Amen,amen that begins his statement means: I AM NOT KIDDING! You guys are not getting my meaning!
I love watching you slither!
The commandments are given in an order, and it is the second in that order that condemns the iconic idolatry of the catholic abomination.
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Huh?
So your response to any reasonable discussion is to cover your ears?
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The commandments are given in an order, and it is the second in that order that condemns the iconic idolatry of the catholic abomination.
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The Ark was not worshiped; in fact, in practice only the high priest even entered to it, and then only after filling the place with enough smoke that he couldn’t even see it.
They worshiped only YHWH.
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I have no time for childish games.
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No priest or person ever entered the Ark. It was a box 1.31×0.79×0.79 m in size.
They are given in order but not numbered .In any case, you are not willing to entertain any reading of the Scripture that contradicts what your master has told you By master I mean just another guy like yourself, and he is but repeating what others has told him, You have your own bishops; they just don’t wear the title.
Very amusing.
Your opinion is proven to be in error by your own posting!
I suggest you go back to exodus and read the instruction. The Ark sat in the Holy of Holies and was “worshipped.” To touch it was deadly. Hence the poles to carry it.
Who told you all this stuff you are posting?
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