The greatest criticism one may level at the authorities of the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland when it attempts to respond to the crisis is that they always address their dwindling audience with a preamble outlining how much this has hurt them. So prior to any discussion on the question of forgiveness in the context of post-Catholic Ireland let us underline first the hurt of the victims of abuse.
It was only a few hours ago that I related the story of my daughter’s shocking discovery. I have just been further informed that her friends brother, who is a solo father and lives a couple of hundred klms away in another town, has been in some trouble with the law, and is on probation. In talking with his probation officer, he felt the need to share some personal issues believing that what he shared would be dealt with in confidence, and perhaps hoping that by ‘unloading’ so to speak, he might find some release and maybe even some counsel from an older person.
During his talk he mentioned that he had considered suicide because he felt overwhelmed with a number of things that were going on in his life. But he had dismissed that idea because of his love for his children.
Sadly, the probation officer saw things a little differently. He rang the local social welfare office who immediately removed the children from the home. How short-sighted is this! A government agency removing possibly the only motivation for a depressed person to live! Depression is such a common problem in this country one would think a government agency might be better informed and educated as to how to deal with such a situation.
Or have I got it wrong? Is this perhaps the best option? If this is the case, then I would suggest that half the population of children in the country ought to be under care of welfare. And in the previous post I suggested that our welfare system was there to help those who fell through the cracks. Mmmmm.
2 Cor. 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
Unless one is born again, he is not a child of God. We are born into the kingdom of Satan, and to a more or less degree, we are children of wrath because of sin. And as far as children go, we are far from ordinary. We are extraordinarily rebellious, selfish, disobedient, lawless little brats who fully deserve the punishment that sin brings to the unrepentant. Yet God still calls us to Him. Knowing our craziness, the chaos that our lives consist of, and the lies and deceit and the manipulation our habits and addictions bring as baggage, God still loves us with that unconditional quality that defies logic and reason. God’s love for man, even in his present state, is a complete mystery. View full article »
Good news is always welcome in a world that is awash with the depressing , the sad, the shocking, the catastrophic. Many news channels leave special items that can be classified as ‘good news’ for the final segment of the broadcast, just after the weather. Having been bombarded with the gloomy reports earlier, it is always something of a relief to see something lighter, refreshing, or amusing. Such a scenario is a telling indictment on the state of the world. The world we live in today is not a happy place, and the media, whether it be television, radio, or the press, is a constant testimony and reminder that we are surrounded on every side by unrelenting horror stories bringing disease, death, and destruction to both the innocent and not so innocent alike. It is a fact that we have seen so much bad news that we have become so inured by it that it takes major disasters to genuinely move most people to any semblance of emotional empathy with the suffering and dying. ‘Lesser’ forms of bad news are now so common that we have become quite blasé; the story of the Good Samaritan may have made the final segment, but the violent assault on the wayfarer would have barely rated a mention.
Which brings me to a particularly notable story that deserves to have its own segment on every news broadcast every day. View full article »
and are living fully in accord to what light they have as to who He is and His ways and nature, and eschew the violent aspects of Islam. Just as there is an atrocious history within Christianity, in both Catholic and Protestant circles going back many centuries, of great violence against the innocent costing many millions of lives, most Christians would recoil in horror if accused of being a part of that.
Your Moslem neighbour is a candidate for the Kingdom of God. And God loves him no less than you. Rather than fearing them and fostering animosity through negative attitudes, try praying for them and asking God for His love in you and to create an opportunity to share Jesus with them. You may be surprised.For the life of me I cannot understand the fear that American Christians in particular have with regards Islam. I could more appreciate the worries some European nations may have as immigration has brought radical changes to the demographic of several nations, particularly Britain and France.
But the US, despite 9/11, is looking in the wrong direction if they fear any sort of take-over from a foreign power. View full article »
I am nonplussed and grieved at the dishonesty with which certain critics make it their life work to attack the church to which they once belonged. I am always ready and willing to open my Bible and study whatever issues they may have with our church’s doctrines and beliefs…I do not fear the truth, nor do I hide behind rhetoric, lies, or obfuscation to earn points in a debate. You will not find me resorting to straw men who cannot stand up in the slightest breeze…yet for so many who seem intent on justifying their present position outside the church they were raised in, these tactics seem par for the course.
Good open debate can bring glory to God if both parties are willing to pursue and love the truth, but it appears to me that in many cases, particularly from ex pastors who ought to know better, misrepresenting our position on certain doctrines, misleading others to believe lies about our true position, is inexcusable, irresponsible, and is very closely related to those Pharisees and hypocrites who accused Jesus of having a devil. Refusing to acknowledge truth, they have to invent lies to justify their disloyalty. So sad that Christians should resort to such tactics. May God forgive them.
