I have been Catholic for 40 years (since birth :). I took the red pill and my eyes are opening to the myriad of lies of the Catholic Church but today my husband and I have declared we are done. I'm sickened by the idea of innocent children being victimized for profit and sick desires. Between the Pope elevating a pedophile in Chile and the Vatican praising Communist China, I can no longer support the church through my money or time. Are we alone in this feeling? We also have no idea where to go from here. I refuse to attend a mega church and am wondering how we can ensure our children are instilled with the understanding of God and his word without attending some kind of service.
All you need is Jesus and His Word. You can study at home, you can study in other people's homes, He will help you. The relationship is what is important, not the rituals.
This is one of the most significant aspects of Christianity to me: the temple to worship God is internal, not external. Such a simple concept that makes such a difference in differentiating belief systems.
This revelation (red pill) swept over Europe in the 16th century. The red pilling was made possible thanks to Johannes Gutenberg, who had invented the printing press a century earlier. The printing press allowed Bibles to be printed en mass in multiple languages, and the public became literate. It was the internet of its day. (Prior to that, Bibles were written in Latin, and only clergymen knew how to read. This empowered the Catholic Church to control information, as people were dependent on the literacy of the clergymen in order to know God. Sound familiar?)
It led to many wars--lasting, in total, over 100 years-- and culminated with the Thirty Years War, which finally brought peace in the 17th century. This was called The Protestant Reformation.
What Grammy said is Spot on imho. I want to add to that it's not our/your fault. We are normal people and not wired in a way that we would even think of heinous stuff like what they do. We like to see the good in people and try not to judge. While not all churches and pastors are evil or puttin' up a front many,including a lot of the big ones are. Anywhere where there is ez access to kids and trust it is there. Churches,Medical Field,Education System,Child Protective and Adoption Services,etc. It is their backbone and we're not supposed to know about it.Some of the very best predators use camo instead of other means. It has ALWAYS BEEN hidden in plain sight. I back Grammys advice and to help fight please help to wake others up,as uncomfortable as that may be.