Is religion tearing families apart

OK, perhaps this is a bit of a touchy subject, but let me know your thoughts........

My friends sister is due to get married in a couple of months, but her mum refuses to go to the wedding.

Why, I hear you ask me, well..... Her mother is a very strict catholic and because she is getting married in a non catholic church and is not having a catholic priest, she refuses to go.

She also gave birth to her second child a couple of months ago and her mother refuses to see her grandchild because of this wedding. What a waste.

I understand that if you are religous and have certain believes then fine, but itsn't it going a bit far when you don't even go to your daughters wedding or see your grandchild??

Hope I haven't offended anyone by posting this...

Yes, your friend's mother is being selfish and childish. As a whole I believe religion helps to keep families together, though.

I would have to agree with Freddie...your friends mother has got a serious problem. Talk about a staunch Catholic.....sheeesh.

I'm usually pretty reserved in these type discussions but your friend's mother is using her religion/religious belief's and G-d as a crutch to back up here stance and belief that what she is doing is right.

regards
seekerof

[Edited on 8-7-2003 by Seekerof]

hmmmm, I thought that too, but because I don't know much about the subject, I daren't say anything.

Religion keeps the family togheter. But her mother is being selfish. I would'nt give a damn if my kid married a non-Roman Catholic I'd go to the wedding.

Originally posted by JediMaster
Religion keeps the family togheter. But her mother is being selfish. I would'nt give a damn if my kid married a non-Roman Catholic I'd go to the wedding.

Ditto, I care not about this but some old school Catholics (my Grandmother for instance) aren't very progressive. She was a tad miffed that I did not talk my wife into converting to Catholicism and almost boycotted the wedding.
Ahhh, dogma, how you can blind people.

I am Roman Catholic, My Mum is Italian, my father is Irish.

Good old agruments in my house as a kid let me tell you.

Any way.

I have a son nearly 5, when he find the right women no matter what relagion, you just try and stop me going to my child wedding.

Thats my opinion.


Some people need to wake up and be happy for other people.

too right! Nothing would stop me from going to my childs wedding. Even if he/she married someone completely unsuitable, it's their choice and so be it.

I personally think that religion is not the best thing in the world. Hopefully I won't be offending anyone by saying this, but all religions in the world say in some way or another that they are the way to go and that the other religion is evil and all who follow it should be killed. Now they might not be saying that this bluntly, but they say it eventually one way or another.

Now I might be going a little of topic, but what I am trying to say is that there are extremists in each religion. These people are the ones that cause the conflicts and ruin it for everyone, (and ruin it for some peoples' weddings unfortunately )

About the topic. I feel i need to say somthing.



"" All religions teach that their religion is true, and that
thy should be killed of other religions ""




Not the exact qoute. I have to say im cathlic and mine does no each this
at all. Our church puts in force the command of killing.


Its infact a grevious mortal sin to God.


Aboutthe lady, she was goin by her teaching on the first part
about not attending the wedding becase she feels that the minister is not
ordained how God set it up.


But not seeing your grandchild on the other hand is not a right
thing at all to do. But don't paint hr out to be hitler or such, we dont know her.


Peace.

truth man good to see that you posted,

well my 2 cents is that religion keeps families together

It isn't the religion that keeps families together.It is their faith in God.Religion is something that people tend to get tied up in so much that they forget and lose sight of what is important.There is only one God and how many religions?I hope no one takes this wrong,because I go to church and try to live right.I just feel that people worry more about the rules and regulations of their particular religion and forget the most important part of it and that is to seek God.

Hope I explained myself o.k. here,and I sure am not trying to offend anyone.

[Edited on 10-7-2003 by Daz3d-n-Confus3d]

I grew up catholic but have not practiced for over 40 years. However recenlty my brother and sis-in-law decided they could not spend Christmas and Thanksgiving with the "heathen" parts of the family.

Ok throw away the fact that you cannot run away from your family really, is that right or fair to them or us? Can we not agree to avoid certain topics for ONE hour?? It makes me very sad.

my experience in this world is that people get mad for all types of reasons. this one happens to be for a religious reason

Dare I post on a religious thread? Hmm...well in this instance I'll offer my thoughts, as impartially as possible as I do not personally follow generic religious patterns.

Catholicism like any other religion transpires through a sustained level of doctrine however significant or not. Perpetual loyalities will always fold on the bourne mind in question, regardless of how strongly that mind is conditioned.

When you take, for example, an individal who relies heavily on a religion for a psychological bearing, then all sorts of other infringing factors come into play. The very cornerstone or belief system of someone can easily be 'breached' when an act, event or even method is not percieved to correlate to that person's said 'beliefs'. Most well informed religious archetypes actually embrace the subtle differences in a given society, but like all things, extremeties are indeed extremeties.

My point being...

I think it is NOT the religion of the said person that the OP describes to be of a fault (or any other religion to that effect), the blame of this issue relies wholly on the character of the person, if nothing else. Yes, arguably, the fundaments of their 'apparent' decision making to avoid attending the wedding is without doubt 'religiously' inspired, but you have to ask the question of the moral grounding CHARACTER of that person.

She has a choice to attend or not, her religion will not dictate whether should should go or not. It perhaps, really is, as simple as that.

On this case alone, and ONLY this case I would argue that NO, religion hasn't torn a family apart. It is the judgement and characteristics of one person who is tearing up this family.

Religion is religion. How you use it is up to you. It is up to you to navigate the complexity of life!
In this case, the reverse could be applicable to an individual from the same religious philosophy or belief, that they would be bound to go to the wedding by turning the other cheek. By forgiving.
Judge not, lest you be judge.
Devine love does not merely forgive wrong, it absorbs and actually destroys it! Book of Urantia.
The weak cannot forgive, forgiveness is an attribute of the strong. Ghandi.
If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, "I repent," forgive him. Jesus Christ.
Write the bad things that are done to you in sand, but write the good things that happen to you on a piece of marble. -Arabic proverb
“Forgiveness is the fragrance the violet sheds on the heel that has crushed it” Mark Twain.

I do think that religion tears many families apart. I've seen it happen time and time again. My own parents had a problem with me because I said I didn't believe in baptism and wouldn't get baptized with my mother. I had no problem seeing my mother be baptized and I went to take pictures, but I didn't want to be baptized myself and this caused fights.

Both my mother and my grandmother laughed at my beliefs and said I would go to hell.

One of my best friends told his parents that he was gay...he's the family punching bag now.

My cousin was kicked out of his home for his religious beliefs.

This girl I knew became a Mormon and her mother hasn't spoken to her since.

Those aren't all I have to go on, but I think they're enough. I see this story you have with this girls mother and, sadly, it doesn't surprise me.

reply to post by Pocket

OK, perhaps this is a bit of a touchy subject, but let me know your thoughts........

It really isn't a touchy subject at all. Jesus said this was going to happen:

Luke 12:51-53 Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:
52 For from henceforth there shall be five in one house divided, three against two, and two against three.
53 The father shall be divided against the son, and the son against the father; the mother against the daughter, and the daughter against the mother; the mother in law against her daughter in law, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.

Jesus said that He was going to bring division in families. He made other statements like this, but for the sake of brevity, I won't quote them.

I'm not saying I agree with the 'mom' in your story, only that the Bible said this was going to happen.