Catholic Rituals? What do they mean?
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The Rosary is a very ancient prayer addressed to the Virgin Mary.  The reason Catholics pray to her is that She is in Heaven with Christ, her Son (who is also Our Lord and Our God).  By praying to her, we ask her to intercede for us before her Son.  All prayer is ultimately addressed to God.  But we can address Him directly or address Him through the intercession of a saint (like the Virgin Mary).  A saint is a friend of God and a friend and disciple of Christ.  God likes us to go to Him through His friends.  He allows men and women to participate in the salvation of the world by praying for one another.  That is the reality that the Catholic Church calls "The Communion of Saints".  All saints are in communion (fellowship) with one another because they are one in Christ Our Lord.  Christ Himself prayed to His Father that we may all be united (one) as He and His Father are one.\n\nWe can indeed pray for the dead, because by doing so, we ask Our Lord (directly or through the intercession of a saint) to help that person in his or her final stage of purification.  Some people go directly to Heaven, but many have to first undergo a final stage of purification known as Purgatory.  The Christian Church has always believed and taught that.  It is not a "new teaching".  What is "new" is the rejection of this doctrine in modern times (in particular since the "Reformation").  Purgatory exists because, in order to see God, one must be pure.  But complete purity is not something that many of us obtain in this life here on earth.  God does not want to condemn such people forever in Hell, so, as a marvellous demonstration of His Infinite Mercy, He allows them to undergo a final stage of purification in Purgatory.  Purgatory is a mystery of Grace, not of Punishment or the Wrath of God.  It is out of love, ultimately, that Catholics pray for the dead.  Our prayers can help them a great deal, and obtain from Heaven numerous graces for them, so that they may finally be delivered from Purgatory and enjoy the Eternal Vision of God in His Kingdom, where He lives and reigns as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, One God for ever and ever.
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I used to be a Catholic.  Was Raised up in that Religion.  Made Head-Alter Boy.  Led Processions and could say the Mass in Latin.\nI have found out that satan Divides (tries to) everybody Who BELIEVES in Jesus Christ, Come in the Flesh and Risen from the Dead by the Father Above.\nBy Names.\nReligious names.\nCatholic.\nBaptist\nPentacostal\nMethodist\nLutheran\nSo on and so on.\nWhen you are a Child of GOD, you are a Child of GOD.\nNo Matter What building with what name, is on it.\nHope this helps.\nDitto............................
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I am Pagan, we perform symbolic Great Rite as a celebration of the sacred marriage in the spring utilizing a cauldron to symbolize the womb and a sword, heated in flame, to symbolize, well, you know. It is the climax, if you will, of the ritual of celebration of the spirit of love, the poers of regeneration and the reunification of the God and Goddess (we are an all-path group, we all view it a little differently, but it all comes together in the cauldron). Contrary to popular belief, few Pagans actually have sex in a ritual setting anymore but it is done symbolically with the cauldron and sword or wand and chalice. \n\nMany of us, I am quite sure, go home afterward to re-create the rite in private in a less symbolic manner with our significant others. To conceive a child on such a night is very lucky.
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For Catholics part of this is called being in the state of sanctifying grace.  What this means is for a baptized person not having any serious "mortal sin" (1 Jn 5:16-17) on their soul (unconfessed).  While sounding technical it is very simple and honest.  While in this state being an example of Christ for others is what I call "walking with God".
331675
I am sad to see so many Catholics who do not know their Catechism. Catholics DO WORSHIP Mary. The word worship does not mean that we think someone is God that we worship. It means a form of honor or respect. God is given the worship of Latria-- meaning the way we serve an honor God is to Him alone, the form of worshipping the Saints is Dulia, and the form by which we worship Mary is called Hyper-Dulia. None of these theological terms are the same. Any worship given to Mary or the saints is given to God on high, to honor God's holy ones and Our Lady is to honor God for His greatness and mercy.
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You need to understand that we do not pray to Mary and/or the Saints as a final act.  We pray to them to ask them to pray to God for us.\n\nLook at it this way. . . Have you ever been sick or ill and asked a friend to pray for you (or a loved one)?\n\nThat is basically what we, as Catholics, are doing when we pray to Mary or a Saint.  We are asking them, who are in Heaven and can see God directly, to join us in prayer for our intentions.\n\nIt has always been known that we are free to go directly to God with our prayers, but would prayers not be better served to have more people join in?\n\nI hope that I have answered your question.  If not, please post more and I will answer your questions to the best of my abilities.
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Better question, what pagan rituals did Christians steal?
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Check this out:\n"Exorcism is the practice of evicting demons or other evil spiritual entities which are supposed to have possessed (taken control of) a person or object. The practice is quite ancient and still part of the belief system of many religions.\nThe person performing the exorcism, known as an exorcist, is often a priest, or an individual thought to be graced with special powers or skills. The exorcist may use religious material, such as prayers and set formulas, gestures, symbols, icons, amulets, etc.. The exorcist often invokes some benign supernatural power to actually perform the task.\nIn general, possessed persons are not regarded as evil in themselves, nor wholly responsible for their actions. Therefore, exorcism is generally thought more as a cure than as a punishment." (Wikipedia's explanation)\n\n"In Christian countries authentic cases of possession sometimes occur and every priest, especially if he be a parish priest, or pastor, is liable to be called upon to perform his duty as exorcist. In doing so, he is to be mindful of the prescriptions of the Roman Ritual and of the laws of provincial or diocesan synods, which for most part require that the bishop should be consulted and his authorization obtained before exorcism is attempted. The chief points of importance in the instructions of the Roman Ritual, prefixed to the rite itself, are as follows: \n\nPossession is not lightly to be taken for granted. Each case is to be carefully examined and great caution to be used in distinguishing genuine possession from certain forms of disease. \nThe priest who undertakes the office should be himself a holy man, of a blameless life, intelligent, courageous, humble, and he should prepare for the work by special acts of devotion and mortification, particularly by prayer and a fasting (Matthew 17:20). \nHe should avoid in the a course of the rite everything that savours of superstition, and should leave the medical aspects of the case to qualified physicians. \nHe should admonish the possessed, in so far as the latter is capable, to dispose himself for the exorcism by prayer, fasting, confession, and communion, and while the rite is in progress to excite within himself a lively faith in God's goodness, and a patient resignation to His holy will. \nThe exorcism should take place in the Church or some other sacred place, if convenient; but if on account of sickness or for other legitimate reasons, it takes place in a private house, witnesses (preferably members of the family) should be present: this is specially enjoined, as a measure of precaution, in case the subject is a woman. \nAll idle and curious questioning of the demon should be avoided, and the prayers and aspirations should be read with great faith, humility, and fervour, and with a consciousness of power and authority. \nThe Blessed Sacrament is not to be brought near the body of the obsessed during exorcism for fear of possible irreverence; but the crucifix, holy water, and, where available, relics of the saints are to be employed. \nIf expulsion of the evil spirit is not obtained at once, the rite should be repeated, if need be, several times. \nThe exorcist should be vested in surplice, and violet stole."  (from the Catholic Encyclopedia)\n\nI hope all this helps!
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I've done something like what you described... setting down my journey in writing. There are some differences in the experience for me, of course, since I am Catholic. We call our little spot in the house a 'prayer corner' instead of an altar, since altars have specific meaning for us. \n\nBut in real sense we are all priests, as St. Peter describes us as a "royal priesthood", and it is good to reflect in writing on how well you are doing at the job. :-)
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I don't know where you get your information from.  You have been misinformed.  There are some so called "Catholics" that are misguided, as well as many others.  I was raised and taught in Catholic schools.  Not once, did anyone ever suggest praising statues or worshiping anyone or anything other than (Jesus, Holy Spirit & the Father) Holy trinity = one God.  We believe in offering prayers for loved ones, and we believe that the Staints offer they're prayers for the living.  But if someone was to assume that Catholics are taught to worship anyone or anything other than God, they are sadly mistaken.  Statues, pictures, etc... are reminders of who are good examples of how to live as Christ did.  Just like having pictures of your children.  The pictures are NOT your children, but an image of your children.  you would feed, clothe or talk to the picture.  Being Cathoilic does not mean that you are out of touch with reality.
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Candle magic is just that.  It's the use of candles (herbal scent or no scent, certain colors for certain attractions i.e. love or money, and crystal or energy charged or blessed...the latter usually by a person with knowlegdge of magic or a high priestess or witch or some such person) while uttering a special intention via some magickal words (like a spell).  Does it work?  Some will say yes.  Some will say no.  It's like asking does a magic spell work?  You decide for yourself whether it does or doesn't.  That should tell you something right there.  Sometimes I see the similarities between candle magic and the candles they light in Catholic churches, no offense to any Catholics intended.  A lot of ritual, some words said, and a candle lit. With candle magic, candles can be lit for a certain amount of time per day for a certain period (1 hour a day for a week, for example), during full moons when magic is said to have its greatest power (sounds a bit like the werewolf thing to me), during holidays, or until they burn completely.  Some use crystals or other tools/objects with candles.  Candles also come in different shapes for different wishes, including a twist, knots, and the human figure -- it depends upon what a person wants.  It is a lot of ceremony and I don't think any major religion condones it.  Hope I've helped.\nNote to Post Below:  Ever hear of contact lenses?
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I quit being catholic because of these things.. Like I have always wondered why they taught us to pray to the saints and Mary when it is made clear in the bible that our prayers are to be to God only..If you ask a priest you will most likely get a 30 minute answer that answers NOTHING...I am still looking for those answers so good luck...Just read your Bible and go by that . It won't lie to you.
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Actually, there is a mixture in your mind. Easter, the Resurrection story as celebrated by the Christians is a Christian celebration. However, when the Holy Roman Empire was making it's way across Europe there were several pagan holiday traditions that couldn't be stamped out, no matter how they tried. Therefore, the Catholics took a page out of the Romans' book and just adopted them into their own celebrations and glossed them over as Catholic rituals. \n\nI could go on forever with examples of these, but I'll limit myself to the Easter rituals. Easter was named after a Norse goddess named Ostara, a goddess of fertility. She had certain symbols sacred to her, the hare and the egg. During the Spring Equinox, the adult women would decorate and hide eggs for the men to find. Whomever found the woman's egg, was that woman's partner for the feasting and activities after (think fertility ritual). For this day, marriages were set aside so that the ritual could be enjoyed by all. \n\nSince the Catholics couldn't get rid of this festival entirely, they kept the Easter Bunny and the Egg Coloring and got rid of the fun stuff like the feasting, drinking and fertility ritual. \n\nAnd that's the story of the origin of the Easter Bunny and the colored eggs folks.
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Catholics use a Bible that has added books that aren't put into a protestant version. Catholics pray to Mother Mary and use rosary which protestants don;t usually. Catholic priests usually can't marry legally and father children. Priests hear the congregations confession. There are many other ones, but this is a start
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Eucharist is a sacrament of unity and thanksgiving. It shouts, "We are one, praise God!" \n\nSadly this is not true between Christian denominations. \n\nCatholics believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Most Protestant denominations do not.\n\nCatholics ask Protestants to respect our belief by not receiving Eucharist in a Catholic Church. \n\nThe Catholic Church also asks Catholics visiting Protestant Churches, out of respect for their faith, not to receive Holy Communion there.\n\nHopefully one day, all our differences will be resolved and we will be able to come together at one table.\n\nIt sounds like you are in the middle with a foot in both faiths. Do you feel one with the Catholic Church?\n\nIf yes, receive Eucharist in peace.\n\nIf no, please wait until you are one with the Church, possibly through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.\n\nWith love and prayers in Christ.
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The Pope does communicate with God. This communication is called prayer and all of us can communicate with God.\n\nGod does work miracles through the Pope and all priests:\n+ The bread and wine is changed into the Body and Blood of Christ during Mass\n+ Sins are forgiven in Confession\n+ The Holy Spirit given to people through Baptism and Confirmation\n+ Others are ordained in Christ by laying on of hands in Holy Orders\n+ Couples are permanently united in Christ through Marriage.\n+ The sick are spiritually strengthened in the Anointing of the Sick\n\nWith love in Christ.
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Worship, pray, and enjoy.\n\nThank you for showing respect in asking for advice.\n\nDo whatever feels right in your heart.\n\nStand and sit when others do. Catholics typically sit to listen to God's Word and stand to pray.\n\nCatholics kneel during the consecration of the Eucharist (Holy Communion). You may kneel or sit at this time, whichever you choose. \n\nAs a Methodist, your beliefs about the Eucharist is not the same as ours. We believe in the true presence of Christ. Out of respect for both of our faiths, please do not receive Holy Communion.\n\nAt this time, you may be invited to go up for a blessing from the priest. If you choose, go up with your arms crossed over your heart to receive the blessing.\n\nIf you are comfortable, pray along with the prayers and sing along with the songs.\n\nWith love in Christ.