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I remember in Malta, standing in the street when the Corpus Christie procession passed by, as thousands of people fell on their faces while my friends and I stood there bewildered at what can only be called idolatry. I have also witnessed the queues to place requests on the nearly worn out toe of the statue of St Anthony in Padua, and many other absurdities.
As everywhere in the world, the poor and uneducated are not led by the Church to make any real distinction in their minds between symbol and reality, it is not in the Vatican's interest to discourage superstition, since it reinforces its power over the ignorant.
I, too, have seen similar behaviour in Malta.
But an abiding memory is of the Faithful flocking into the centre of Lima to attend some important occasion in the Church calendar. The more smartly-dressed bought 10 Soles candles at the bottom of the long flight of steps to the cathedral doors and walked up with some dignity. The peasantry who hardly could afford the 1 Soles candles were required to make the ascent on hands and knees.
I do not expect anything to have changed in the half-century that this disgusting spectacle has haunted me.
...The Government doesn't 'own marriage' either. The Church has a far greater interest in the meaning of the institution than most...
We've been here before (post 58, for instance).
Of course the government doesn't own marriage, except that the only definition of a legal marriage in the UK is that given by various acts of Parliament. It certainly isn't one given by the Church (and, given our history, not by the Catholic Church). Since 1836, legal marriage has been wholly secular. Different faiths have their own traditions, but none of them results in a legal marriage without compliance with the 1836 Act.
Celebrity lawyer Nick Freeman - known as Mr Loophole - has made an official complaint to police in Scotland in relation to the scandal surrounding disgraced Cardinal Keith O'Brien (pictured).
Celebrity lawyer Nick Freeman - known as Mr Loophole - has made an official complaint to police in Scotland in relation to the scandal surrounding disgraced Cardinal Keith O'Brien (pictured).
Spot on Flossie - I always like to know what they're thinking - and on the computer I don't have to contribute to Associated Newspapers' income stream, thank goodness
Last edited by Guest; 09-03-13, 09:57.
Reason: Assoc Newspapers bit
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