Author Topic: This is our reality, how about yours? (Read 2868 times)

MrsZ · « **on:** November 06, 2009, 01:35:49 PM »

I'm a convert to the Catholic faith, my H is a cradle, Novus Ordo Catholic. Other than my H's Novus Ordo Catholic parents, we are the only practicing Catholics on his side or on my side of the family.

It would take too long to detail each case .. suffice it to say we are surrounded on both sides with multiple divorces, fornication, adultery, drug use, pagan worship, devotion to "liberal" causes (ie., ɧoɱosɛҳųαƖity, abortion, etc). In multiple cases these people have left the Catholic faith and either adopted paganism as their world view, while a couple have flirted with varying degrees of Protestant heresy and even Mormonism.

Tomorrow, we are obliged to attend a birthday dinner for my H's grandmother. She was raised Mormon, converted to Catholicism, went back to Mormonism with her last marriage, and is now been converted to Seventh Day Adventist. She's been married 4 times, two divcorces, two deaths

Not one family member is a practicing Christian of any denomination on either side of the family. There will be 3 family members there who have had multiple divorces, remarriages, adultery, fornication. (My side of the family is just as bad). I guess even the currently married ones, being married outside the Church, means they're currently in adultery, does it not?

Do most of you have relatives and friends that are Catholic? Or do you find yourself isolated like we are?

It's so depressing sometimes. I'm just glad we don't live next door or even in the same town with any of them! Thanks be to God, for that!

God Bless,
MrsZ

Belloc · « **Reply #1 on:** November 06, 2009, 01:46:14 PM »

One way to look at this is that you could be a catalyst for furture conversions, by your actions and witness-no, not preaching or thumping a bible, etc......but by your attitude, your love,etc.....does not imply, attending B-day party you agree with them......good chance to plant seeds.....

Alex · « **Reply #2 on:** November 07, 2009, 04:04:34 AM »

Maybe you can make friends with people on this forum who are of like mind as you.

I see you live in California. I live in Southern California. Are you Northern, Central, or Southern?

MrsZ · « **Reply #3 on:** November 07, 2009, 09:23:52 AM »

For some reason, in years past, I've almost been "afraid" to be around these family members due to the thought that they could be a bad influence on our children. But what's interesting is that since we are very serious about our faith, and strive to live it and not just preach it .... the kids' are very clear on what's right and wrong. So, when we're in the company of our apostate relatives and they act, dress and live in ways in conflict with morals and values ... it stands out to us very, very clearly. The kids' aren't mistaking our seeing and talking to these people as approval. So, we suffer through it, try to be as polite as possible and GET OUT OF THERE AS SOON AS WE CAN!

We live in Northern California. We've never known a traditional Catholic person or family!

God Bless,
MrsZ

Belloc · « **Reply #4 on:** November 07, 2009, 11:56:18 AM »

Mrs Z, I feel more comfortable with Catholics than non-Catholics in general, though I have Protestant family/freinds too, one a minister......

that said, soemtimes my biggest fights are with Catholics, Trads can be as divisive as liberals and non-Catholics......one can be right on most or all, but still wrong in applying and acting on it.......your last comment is sad

parentsfortruth · « **Reply #5 on:** November 07, 2009, 12:55:08 PM »

Quote from: MrsZ

I'm a convert to the Catholic faith, my H is a cradle, Novus Ordo Catholic. Other than my H's Novus Ordo Catholic parents, we are the only practicing Catholics on his side or on my side of the family.

It would take too long to detail each case .. suffice it to say we are surrounded on both sides with multiple divorces, fornication, adultery, drug use, pagan worship, devotion to "liberal" causes (ie., ɧoɱosɛҳųαƖity, abortion, etc). In multiple cases these people have left the Catholic faith and either adopted paganism as their world view, while a couple have flirted with varying degrees of Protestant heresy and even Mormonism.

Tomorrow, we are obliged to attend a birthday dinner for my H's grandmother. She was raised Mormon, converted to Catholicism, went back to Mormonism with her last marriage, and is now been converted to Seventh Day Adventist. She's been married 4 times, two divcorces, two deaths

Not one family member is a practicing Christian of any denomination on either side of the family. There will be 3 family members there who have had multiple divorces, remarriages, adultery, fornication. (My side of the family is just as bad). I guess even the currently married ones, being married outside the Church, means they're currently in adultery, does it not?

Do most of you have relatives and friends that are Catholic? Or do you find yourself isolated like we are?

It's so depressing sometimes. I'm just glad we don't live next door or even in the same town with any of them! Thanks be to God, for that!

God Bless,
MrsZ

My entire extended family is novus ordo, and my father is ostracized by the family because he's not.

My grandmother played "the matriarch" before she died, having EWTN on in the house 24/7.

She told everyone in my family not to attend my traditional Catholic wedding, yet, she said it was fine to attend my cousin's seventh day adventist wedding.

...

I know your pain.

parentsfortruth · « **Reply #6 on:** November 07, 2009, 12:56:35 PM »

Also, my husband's family is full of fallen away Catholics. I have one brother in law who still attends the traditional (indult) mass, and two brothers in law that are "preachers."

It's not fun getting together as a family with the bible thumpers in particular.

Belloc · « **Reply #7 on:** November 07, 2009, 01:14:00 PM »

Quote from: parentsfortruth

Quote from: MrsZ
I'm a convert to the Catholic faith, my H is a cradle, Novus Ordo Catholic. Other than my H's Novus Ordo Catholic parents, we are the only practicing Catholics on his side or on my side of the family.

It would take too long to detail each case .. suffice it to say we are surrounded on both sides with multiple divorces, fornication, adultery, drug use, pagan worship, devotion to "liberal" causes (ie., ɧoɱosɛҳųαƖity, abortion, etc). In multiple cases these people have left the Catholic faith and either adopted paganism as their world view, while a couple have flirted with varying degrees of Protestant heresy and even Mormonism.

Tomorrow, we are obliged to attend a birthday dinner for my H's grandmother. She was raised Mormon, converted to Catholicism, went back to Mormonism with her last marriage, and is now been converted to Seventh Day Adventist. She's been married 4 times, two divcorces, two deaths

Not one family member is a practicing Christian of any denomination on either side of the family. There will be 3 family members there who have had multiple divorces, remarriages, adultery, fornication. (My side of the family is just as bad). I guess even the currently married ones, being married outside the Church, means they're currently in adultery, does it not?

Do most of you have relatives and friends that are Catholic? Or do you find yourself isolated like we are?

It's so depressing sometimes. I'm just glad we don't live next door or even in the same town with any of them! Thanks be to God, for that!

God Bless,
MrsZ

My entire extended family is novus ordo, and my father is ostracized by the family because he's not.

My grandmother played "the matriarch" before she died, having EWTN on in the house 24/7.

She told everyone in my family not to attend my traditional Catholic wedding, yet, she said it was fine to attend my cousin's seventh day adventist wedding.

...

I know your pain.

That is what EWTN does to you-makes you indifferent and syncretistic....no TLM, heavens no-that is the "bad old days", but an strongly anti-Catholic sect like 7th day Adventists, that is fine...

Vladimir · « **Reply #8 on:** November 07, 2009, 03:27:22 PM »

As far as I know, I am the only traditional Catholic in my family. I get frustrated when I try to take my grandmother to the Latin Mass but someone always talks her out of it by telling her that it is to long, she doesn't understand it (as if she understands English!), et cetera. She was in tears the first time she went to a Latin Mass with me (first time for her since Vatican II). I get to go to the Latin Mass every now and then, even though it isn't that much farther away than the Novus Ordo. I used to be an altar server as well, but due to my irregular attendance, I requested that I be removed from the roster, since I am unable to serve frequently.

Also, I rarely get to go to Confession, since I have decided not to go to a Novus Ordo confession. Today was the first chance I had in two months, and I ended up not even going to confession. (For some reason, all the confessions were taking very long today, and when finally I was the second in line for the confessional, my father came inside the church and called me out since "we had to go". I feel horrible now)

Hopefully I will have more opportunity to attend the Latin Mass in the future (i.e., after high school).

I feel more comfortable with Catholics as well.

Caraffa · « **Reply #9 on:** November 07, 2009, 05:22:40 PM »

Quote from: Belloc

that said, soemtimes my biggest fights are with Catholics, Trads can be as divisive as liberals and non-Catholics......one can be right on most or all, but still wrong in applying and acting on it.......your last comment is sad

That seems to be the major dividing point. On one hand you have the integralists(counter-revolution minded) and on thee other, the implicitly liberal Americanists.

Caraffa · « **Reply #10 on:** November 07, 2009, 05:24:39 PM »

Quote

I feel more comfortable with Catholics as well.

Same, but I don't like being around liberal Novus Ordo Catholics, because simply, they're not Catholic and are bad company.

Vladimir · « **Reply #11 on:** November 07, 2009, 05:38:51 PM »

Quote from: Caraffa

Quote
I feel more comfortable with Catholics as well.

Same, but I don't like being around liberal Novus Ordo Catholics, because simply, they're not Catholic and are bad company.

I cannot agree more. I feel uncomfortable in the presence of liberal "Catholic" priests, teachers, et cetera.

I remember that when we were in Yale, some of my sister's friends hosted this prayer group thing at some Episcopal church. Out of all of us, my aunt and I looked down on the idea of even walking inside that house of iniquity, but we did so anyways (did not actively participate in anything). I walked far away from everyone else so that I could avoid shaking hands with one of their priestesses. Also, I almost scoffed when one of their priests said that "You might have never heard anything like our prayer" and it turned out to be just a mockery of Gregorian Chant. They even had the nerve to sing the Salve Regina in the solemn tone at the end.

Of course the inside of the church was more beautiful than the local "Catholic" chapel in New Haven, which was just had blank white walls in the interior, not even a crucifix. Nevertheless, even though a tabernacle candle was lit inside the Episcopal church, I knew that there was nothing there, and the place felt devoid of the presence of God.

Caraffa · « **Reply #12 on:** November 07, 2009, 05:48:04 PM »

I can sympathize with you Mrs Z. I actually don't know very many Trads my age, let alone many decent devout Catholics. I suspect thats the norm if you weren't raised in traditional Catholicism. My Grandmother is a Conservative JPIIish Neo-Catholic, but when I often sound semi-distrubitist(don't agree with everything in distributism, but still) in my talking points, she calls me a liberal. :really-mad2: She also seems to lack charity at times and given her old age, that's not a good sign. She unforntunely has been Americanized since coming to the US in the 1950's from Europe despite the fact that back then, she noticed that American Catholicism was lax, watered down, and wasn't taken seriously.

Vladimir · « **Reply #13 on:** November 07, 2009, 05:54:07 PM »

Quote from: MrsZ

For some reason, in years past, I've almost been "afraid" to be around these family members due to the thought that they could be a bad influence on our children. But what's interesting is that since we are very serious about our faith, and strive to live it and not just preach it .... the kids' are very clear on what's right and wrong. So, when we're in the company of our apostate relatives and they act, dress and live in ways in conflict with morals and values ... it stands out to us very, very clearly. The kids' aren't mistaking our seeing and talking to these people as approval. So, we suffer through it, try to be as polite as possible and GET OUT OF THERE AS SOON AS WE CAN!

We live in Northern California. We've never known a traditional Catholic person or family!

God Bless,
MrsZ

How many hours drive is it to Sacramento?

MrsZ · « **Reply #14 on:** November 08, 2009, 10:02:12 AM »

Almost four hours drive to Sacramento.

The family get together was yesterday. Uncomfortable...but eventually we all just made a lot of "happy talk" that means absolutely NOTHING!

Uncle's new live in girlfriend (he's had two divorces, left Catholic Church in the early 1970's, married outside of it both times) - eventually forced my H and I to hug her when we left....My H tried to keep it at a handshake....She giggles (incessantly), and says, "Oh, M. just give me a hug!"

:really-mad2:

What is with all this hugging everyone has to do these days? It doesn't matter if it's a stranger, a man or a woman, we all have to hug! I hate it!!

Plus, it seems to me with all the hugging and self-disclosure (discussing personal matters with everyone) that goes on, it's not suprising the amount of affairs stemming from workplace involvements.

Uncle and girlfriend work together in the same office, and met when both were married to others. Go figure. :furtive:

God Bless,
Mrs Z