Catholics, prayer question.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-24-2008, 09:54 AM

Before Mass tonight (or tomorrow. . .it's Midnight Mass), if I decide to pray the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin would it be okay if I meditated on the Joyous Mysteries (instead of the Glorious (wed--technically, it'll still be Wednesday while I'm praying it if it's BEFORE Midnight Mass) or Luminous (because technically Midnight Mass falls on Thursday which is the day to pray the Luminous) in light of the holiday?

Also, I'm trying to figure out if I should go to Traditional High Latin Mass or just go the Ordinary Form.

jackfast1 · 12-24-2008, 09:58 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OboePlayaz1988

Before Mass tonight (or tomorrow. . .it's Midnight Mass), if I decide to pray the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin would it be okay if I meditated on the Joyous Mysteries (instead of the Glorious (wed--technically, it'll still be Wednesday while I'm praying it if it's BEFORE Midnight Mass) or Luminous (because technically Midnight Mass falls on Thursday which is the day to pray the Luminous) in light of the holiday?

Also, I'm trying to figure out if I should go to Traditional High Latin Mass or just go the Ordinary Form.

it is admirable that you are attempting to be the best catholic that you can be...
your attempted adherence to the rules is quite obsessive;
have you thought of a career in the priesthood or the military?

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-24-2008, 05:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackfast1

it is admirable that you are attempting to be the best catholic that you can be...
your attempted adherence to the rules is quite obsessive;
have you thought of a career in the priesthood or the military?

Lol, that takes me back to the days of my youth (around 4th-6th grade) when I wanted to be a priest so badly. I'd "play" Mass constantly and give all these little homilies to my parish of beanie babies, power rangers, stuffed teddy bears, sisters' barbie dolls, sister, parents, grandparents, whoever was there lol.

I could never be a priest, though, and I hope God doesn't call me to be one. I do hope that He calls me to be a martyr, but the priest life does not appeal to me much.

Personally, I'd much rather be a religious (monk, brother, hermit) than an actual priest.

If I were a priest, I'd rather be with an order than with a diocese though.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-24-2008, 05:19 PM

Someone in another forum did answer this question, and the answer is that it is okay.

The days attached to certain mysteries (Glorious: Sun, Wed, Joyful: Mon, Sat, Sorrowful: Tue, Fri, Luminous: Thu) are guides so that equal devotion is given to each meditation.

It is perfectly acceptable to pray the mysteries based on feast days:

Glorious Mysteries on the Thursday of the Feast of the Ascension of Our Lord (even tho technically, the Luminous (or Joyful) Mysteries are meditated upon).

Joyful Mysteries on the Feast of the Annunciation (March 25, even if it fell on days other than Monday or Saturday)

etc. etc. . .

Just wanted to post to make sure the answer was available to others if they were ever wondering the same question!

Have a great holiday season!

jackfast1 · 12-24-2008, 05:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OboePlayaz1988

I do hope that He calls me to be a martyr...

can you please explain this statement?

Turco · 12-24-2008, 05:35 PM

I'm not a fan of the Latin Mass. It's neat to see once or twice but I'd rather go to a regular service and understand what's being said. Your parish probably has a midnight mass tonight. Why not go to that one and celebrate mass with the same community you've been with with all year along?

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-24-2008, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jackfast1

can you please explain this statement?

Scripture says somewhere that it is the highest crown to wear in Heaven. Also, being a martyr assures that you go to Heaven and you become a saint immediately (bypassing Purgatory). These reasons alone, however, would cancel out the "martyr" aspect of it because then it'd just be prideful and for recognition.

Above all, Christ gave His life for me, I'd be glad to give my life for Him

and I hope that would hold true even under the most agonizing deaths. Some of my favorite saints are martyrs:

St. Maria Goretti
St. Peter the Apostle
St. Cecilia (who is also the patron saint of classical musicians as well as an incorruptible).

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-24-2008, 08:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Turco

I'm not a fan of the Latin Mass. It's neat to see once or twice but I'd rather go to a regular service and understand what's being said. Your parish probably has a midnight mass tonight. Why not go to that one and celebrate mass with the same community you've been with with all year along?

I must prefer to worship according to the Extraordinary Form. It's beautiful. It encourages and demonstrates extreme reverence to God. I feel His presence much more in the older Catholic Churches. The prayers are so pure and Scriptural. I read my Roman Missal (1962) every so often throughout the day, especially reading the Order of the Mass because the English translations of the Latin (both are included) are so deep, profound, and reverence God as the almighty.

I would love the Ordinary Form if I could find a parish that celebrated it properly without the added "perks" and other innovations not authorized. People act like the Second Vatican Council made the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass to be a matter of personal preference, turning the attention to the parishioners (let's play music they like and let's make our churches look more like the Protestant ones and let's make church "fun") instead of on God.

Also, the Extraordinary Form distinguishes Catholicism from other denominations. You walk into an old cathedral-style church ornately decorated and you immediately know you're in a Roman Catholic Church. Nowadays, with the Ordinary Form, you can really see the Protestant influence.

Keep in mind, both the Ordinary and the Extraordinary Forms are two expressions of the same worship and sacrifice to God.

I say we keep the Mass actually a Mass.

AreaCode201 · 12-24-2008, 08:29 PM

Say the Joyous Mysteries, its appropriate, and get yourself to the Extraordinary Form, that's where I'll be at midnight.

God Bless.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-24-2008, 08:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tonio5555

Say the Joyous Mysteries, its appropriate, and get yourself to the Extraordinary Form, that's where I'll be at midnight.

God Bless.

I wish I could, but alas I will be celebrating the Nativity of the Lord with the Mass at Midnight at my parish, Our Lady of Victory. The EF church I go to is about an hour and a half away, Pennsylvania back roads, with ice lol. I did want to go, but my parents were freaking out.

It'll be in the Ordinary Form, but hopefully they'll stick to traditional hymns and organ and stuff.

I will be meditating on the Joyful Mysteries and there are tons of prayer requests to present to God this night.

May God bless and sanctify your (and everyone else's) holiday season+

Christopher

saloman · 12-24-2008, 10:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OboePlayaz1988

Before Mass tonight (or tomorrow. . .it's Midnight Mass), if I decide to pray the Holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin would it be okay if I meditated on the Joyous Mysteries

You could pray the Joyous mysteries everyday if you wanted. It's a private devotion. The suggested rotation of the mysteries is helpful to ensure you get to meditate on all of the mysteries regularly, but you don't need to be scrupulous about following it.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-24-2008, 11:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by saloman

You could pray the Joyous mysteries everyday if you wanted. It's a private devotion. The suggested rotation of the mysteries is helpful to ensure you get to meditate on all of the mysteries regularly, but you don't need to be scrupulous about following it.

Thanks for responding! Merry Christmas

gata35 · 12-24-2008, 11:46 PM

i have a question for you being that you are catholic. Why do you believe in purgatory? and where in the holy scripture does it talk about purgatory? im curious because the concept of purgatory doesnt make sense and i have not come across a scripture in the bible where it speaks of a form of purgatory.

stateless · 12-25-2008, 12:10 AM

Merry Christmas

AreaCode201 · 12-25-2008, 12:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OboePlayaz1988

I wish I could, but alas I will be celebrating the Nativity of the Lord with the Mass at Midnight at my parish, Our Lady of Victory. The EF church I go to is about an hour and a half away, Pennsylvania back roads, with ice lol. I did want to go, but my parents were freaking out.

It'll be in the Ordinary Form, but hopefully they'll stick to traditional hymns and organ and stuff.

I will be meditating on the Joyful Mysteries and there are tons of prayer requests to present to God this night.

May God bless and sanctify your (and everyone else's) holiday season+

Christopher

Don't worry pal, the OF is way better than no Mass at all. Christus Natus Hodie Est!

Griever · 12-25-2008, 12:25 AM

ObePlayaz you've got some interesting delusions, and strong ones at that.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-25-2008, 12:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gata35

i have a question for you being that you are catholic. Why do you believe in purgatory? and where in the holy scripture does it talk about purgatory? im curious because the concept of purgatory doesnt make sense and i have not come across a scripture in the bible where it speaks of a form of purgatory.

Good morning Gata35 and Merry Christmas! I hope you enjoy it

.

NOTE: I'd read this whole post (although it may be long) to make sure you understand everything because each thing by itself may not make as much sense as if read in context of this whole post.

You are right that I practice the Roman Catholic Faith, therefore I do not accept the doctrine of Scripture Alone (Sola Scriptura). I believe that the Holy Bible, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and Sacred Tradition are valid sources of doctrine.

That said, my beliefs in Purgatory from the Holy Bible are found in the books of 1 Maccabees and the Gospel of Matthew (and I think the Gospel of Luke). My beliefs from the Catechism come from Part One Section Two (regarding "I believe in life everlasting").

I'm assuming that since you aren't Catholic, you may not understand what Purgatory is.

First of all, only baptized Christians in the state of grace (not conscious of any mortal sins) can go to Purgatory.

As Catholics, we believe that only the "pure of heart" will see God; those who are not conscious of any sins. There is no sin in Heaven, according to Roman Catholic belief.

Purgatory is the state of final purification before one can attain the beatific vision, or simply seeing God face to face, as He is in all His glory.

Purgatory is like Hell in the sense that it's a place of agonizing pain and it's basically God kicking out butts for not keeping His commandment which He promises us. From some depictions I've seen, it's a fiery furnace like Hell. The difference being that God is present (because Catholic teaching is that God is not present in Hell (that's why it's called Hell)) and eventually you will go to Heaven. There is no way to determine how long someone stays in Purgatory, but what is important to know that it's a state of temporal punishment. Hey, at least if you're there, you know you're going to Heaven eventually.

The Catholic Church professes to believe in the Communion of Saints as the Body of Christ; all of Christ's followers. The Communion of Saints consists of those the Church Militant (Christians who are alive in the world), the Church Penitent (the poor souls in Purgatory), and the Church Victorious (or something like that) (those in Heaven). The Church Militant and Victorious prays God's mercy (so they'll get out sooner) on the poor souls in Purgatory while the Church Victorious prays for the salvation of the souls of those on Earth as well.

If you die in a state of mortal sin, baptized Christian or not, you automatically go to Hell which is awful and horrible and should be avoided at all costs. You cannot pray people out of Hell according to Church teaching, which is why there are people (which is supposed to be all of us) praying constantly for the conversion of sinners. There is an order of Catholic religious that are in perpetual prayer for that specific purpose; invoking God's mercy and praying that everyone turns to Christ that we may all partake of His great rewards.

Now, you may be wondering, what's the point of confession then? Doesn't confession take away the sin?

Through the Sacrament of Penance Jesus does forgive our sins, however, even though the sin is forgiven, there is still temporal punishment attached to the sin.

Take this example: Someone loans me and XBox game. While the game is in my possession, it breaks (the sin is committed). I give the game back to the person, explain what happened, and ask her forgiveness (confession), she forgives me, yet still demands I pay for the game since it broke while in my care and most likely because of my own negligence (the temporal punishment).

That's as close a human example as I can get, although there are better ones out there.

The Catholic Church still does believe in indulgences, but they cannot be purchased with money, nor do they take off any specific number of time in purgatory (1000 years or whatever), just the partial or plenary punishment (patial indulgence or plenary indulgence) due to any specific sin. These indulgences are usually certain prayers prayed devoutly.

According to Church teaching, the only way to go straight to Heaven is to be martyred (I think).

You should always aim for Heaven, aiming for Purgatory is pretty much aiming for Hell. We should always give thanks to the Lord for our redemption, and avoid sinning at all costs because the rewards will be amazing.

Remember, eye has not seen, nor has ear heard what God has ready for those who love Him

Merry Christmas

Thinman · 12-25-2008, 08:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Griever

ObePlayaz you've got some interesting delusions, and strong ones at that.

I disagree. This man is on a serious spiritual journey. He is the real deal.

Griever · 12-25-2008, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thinman

I disagree. This man is on a serious spiritual journey. He is the real deal.

He's really schizophrenic.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-25-2008, 05:17 PM

Just wanted to throw in that I'm now understanding why the Book of Numbers is called the Book of Numbers.

Reading through the first 4 chapters, all I've been doing it reading numbers lol. More are ahead I hear lol.

Griever · 12-25-2008, 05:25 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OboePlayaz1988

Just wanted to throw in that I'm now understanding why the Book of Numbers is called the Book of Numbers.

Reading through the first 4 chapters, all I've been doing it reading numbers lol. More are ahead I hear lol.

lol good one lol. funny story lol.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-25-2008, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Griever

lol good one lol. funny story lol.

Lol, it's true, like I don't even know what to think of it besides, "Wow, these people are preparing for a war and they have to number every single person that is going to be doing what, how, and when."

Hopefully it'll pick up some speed soon. I wanna see how the Israelites react to there supposedly being giants in the Promised Land lol which I know they get in big trouble for lol.

I just need to get past these numbers lol. . .

Griever · 12-25-2008, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OboePlayaz1988

Lol, it's true, like I don't even know what to think of it besides, "Wow, these people are preparing for a war and they have to number every single person that is going to be doing what, how, and when."

Hopefully it'll pick up some speed soon. I wanna see how the Israelites react to there supposedly being giants in the Promised Land lol which I know they get in big trouble for lol.

I just need to get past these numbers lol. . .

If you enjoy that stuff you'd REALLY like Lord of the Rings!

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-25-2008, 05:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Griever

If you enjoy that stuff you'd REALLY like Lord of the Rings!

Well, I actually don't like the LOTR that much. Violence and wars just don't go well with me. Yes, even the "wars" in the Holy Bible.

Griever · 12-25-2008, 05:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by OboePlayaz1988

Well, I actually don't like the LOTR that much. Violence and wars just don't go well with me. Yes, even the "wars" in the Holy Bible.

Compared to the Bible, the LOTR is a downright children's fantasy!

I believe the death toll in the Bible numbers in the millions (most of which are killed by god).

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-25-2008, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Griever

Compared to the Bible, the LOTR is a downright children's fantasy!

I believe the death toll in the Bible numbers in the millions (most of which are killed by god).

This is quite true. I also know that didn't kill people for no reason. . . Still, I'm hoping that I, nor anyone that I love, will not be one of those killed for deliberately disobeying God.

gata35 · 12-27-2008, 03:46 AM

thank you oboeplayaz1988 for your description, i see that you are passionate about your religion. merry christmas to you also. so from what i hear you follow more than just the bible? but also other doctrines? who wrote these doctrines is what i am curious of. and if these doctrines are truly holy then why did God not make a divine way for these doctrines to end up in the holy word of God and did the christians who broke of from catholicism not take these doctrines with them foe there pursuit for a pure relationship with Jesus? Idk if what im saying makes sense but im just curious and not attempting to put you down or your passionate beliefs.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-27-2008, 08:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gata35

thank you oboeplayaz1988 for your description, i see that you are passionate about your religion. merry christmas to you also. so from what i hear you follow more than just the bible? but also other doctrines? who wrote these doctrines is what i am curious of. and if these doctrines are truly holy then why did God not make a divine way for these doctrines to end up in the holy word of God and did the christians who broke of from catholicism not take these doctrines with them foe there pursuit for a pure relationship with Jesus? Idk if what im saying makes sense but im just curious and not attempting to put you down or your passionate beliefs.

I don't know who wrote the other sources of doctrine (meaning at the time when they were considered doctrine), but for that you should check the Vatican website at www.vatican.va

People broke off from Catholicism because they made the choice to do so. They broke off because there were doctrines that they did not agree with; the exact same reason people leave different religions today.

Accepting God is not always easy and there are things that He does to challenge us to strengthen our faiths; some choose not to answer to the challenge.

OboePlayaz1988 · 12-27-2008, 08:51 AM

They are running from God similar to how Adam and Eve tried to hide from God because they were naked and they knew they had disobeyed Him and were afraid.

These things have happened since time began.

gata35 · 12-27-2008, 12:50 PM

i see what you are talking about, but do you really believe christians broke off from catholicism to run away from God even though they were only creating another church to praise God in all his glory? From what history tells us Martin Luther broke off from the church because of how corrupt the leaders of the church were becoming.