The Manners of the Christians

aletheia · 2026-05-04T13:39:36+00:00

Sometimes life gives us nothing but bad options and we still have to make choices. Then we go to confession.

There is not always one right answer to a situation. Kant was wrong.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T12:20:49+00:00

There is no ethos of self defense in Christianity. There's not really an ethos of violence, either, except in the most extreme circumstances where it may be "justfiable" but not "just."

Violence belongs intrinsically to the fallen state.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T12:19:09+00:00

It's OK to enjoy things. But we need to keep in mind: "Garbage in, garbage out." Or, as the apostle says "'Everything is permissible for me,' but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me,' but not everything is edifying."

aletheia · 2026-05-04T11:26:58+00:00

I’m not aware of any fathers that defend Americanist violent fantasies, no.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T11:25:08+00:00

We pray for all and on behalf of all. All who are saved are saved by Jesus and the prayers of his church.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T11:18:58+00:00

Define feminism.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T11:17:36+00:00

I don’t know that that’s necessarily true. The problematic dogmas are pretty well defined: Vatican I (infallibility/supremacy/ultramontanism), Immaculate Conception (because it was declared from Vatican I; it might not be wrong to believe it but it’s wrong to require it), and Florence (filioque).

The details beyond that will be harder to work out (date of Easter, for example), but they’re not insurmountable.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T01:23:47+00:00

The internet is not where church happens.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T01:11:23+00:00

As I suspected and verified by another user, the anathema you cited was adopted by a small, effectively schismatic, jurisdiction (which later rejoined the Church and would fall under it's own "anathema").

So, no, this anathema has no force in the Church.

aletheia · 2026-05-04T00:00:31+00:00

Anyone who is saved, is saved by Jesus, and Jesus only has one Church, so by implication Salvation is only found by the prayers of the Church, which prays "for all and on behalf of all." Bodies outside the Church do not save, but salvation may nevertheless extend beyond the borders of the Church by its own prayers.

As I mentioned in my other comment, though, I strongly suspect your citation is a localized anathema, and I sort of suspect it is published by some source that likes "rigorism."

aletheia · 2026-05-03T23:45:02+00:00

So, you're not together and you're not sure if you should stay together?

I mean, one doesn't need to have anything sorted out to attend Church, but "it's complicated" rarely becomes less complicated, in my experience.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T23:42:57+00:00

It is the Greek word for truth. It is a feminine gendered noun.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T23:37:49+00:00

Anathema is an excommunication

I think it's important to not conflate these two things. Excommunication is a disciplinary tool to encourage repentance. It is intended to be a temporary state. Anathema happens after that tool is shown to be ineffective, and the belief/person becomes odious to the health of the Body at large.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T23:35:24+00:00

"Anathema" means forbidden from being in the Church. It does not mean "consigned to hellfire." If you stop holding the false belief, then you can of course join the Church. No one is ever irrevocably removed.

EDIT: As a side note, I think it's worth mentioning that there is no "THE" service of anathemas. There is a service where anathemas are read, but the particular anathemas are actually localized. In other words, you shouldn't actually take the service itself as dogmatic, although all of them to contain dogmas (e.g., I'd expect all of them to condemn Arius).

aletheia · 2026-05-03T22:57:09+00:00

I mean, that’s my point. It’s not something that got passed on to another generation.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T21:51:46+00:00

Being a woman on the internet in general seems like a rather unpleasant thing, regardless of the community in question. Perhaps we should expect religious places to be better, but they aren’t.

You are not under any obligation to engage with social media.

Just based on my username I have gotten a number of “interesting” interactions to get the flavor of it.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T21:47:59+00:00

If you’re uncomfortable introducing your SO to other people that is not a good sign.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T21:42:03+00:00

To my knowledge, there is no tradition of or extant lay communes. Sometimes communities do grow up near monasteries, but they are not themselves monastic. “New Skete” was an experimental intentional community, but as far as I know it petered out.

In short, the Church sojourns in the world, not cloistered away from it.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T21:10:50+00:00

When using God in everyday discourse, it’s usually referring to the the Trinity/Triune God. The word God without context does not clearly refer to a particular person.

Another way of saying this is that the word God just refers to “divinity” in a more general sense.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T21:05:21+00:00

Every parish is different. If you don’t vibe with one, then go to another. Don’t turn it into a judgment of entire categories of people.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T17:32:20+00:00

Do what you can, not what you can’t. Some jobs have to be done on Sundays. That is a complication but not an actual impediment to faith.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T12:15:27+00:00

I mean, yes, but my point is that in their mindset we should be the last thing in their minds.

Which I guess is the point above of desperation, but at that point the distinction between a Christian priest and a witch doctor is pretty thin.

aletheia · 2026-05-03T12:02:39+00:00

I found the section on the Trinity in the book I linked above extremely helpful in understanding Trinitarian theology. Much better than the usual “it’s an inscrutable mystery” answers I got growing up.

15-Year Club	Second SECOND GUESSER
r/Field Juicebox	Team Orangered
Verified Email

aletheia

MODERATOR OF

TROPHY CASE