The Catholics look like saints when you compare it to the putried dogmas of secular humanism. While many Catholic teachings are unbiblical the amount of harm caused by secular humanism in a very short time is astounding.

Hi Phanto, if you are referring to me as the one bitter towards the Catholic Church, I would have to agree. Do I in someway blame my parents (my mother) for what transpired between me and the Church, no I do not, she could not have foreseen such trouble. The problems with myself and the Catholic Church were very much of my own making. Without realizing it at the time, I was a nonconformist within an organization which demanded total conformity. I am talking about the Catholic education and religious institutions of the 1960's and 70's which I was a part of. My peculiarity was that I was also a very good student, in fact top of the class from first to fourth year of high school, the final year before I transferred to the state education system, something not lost on the Catholic educators of mine. I was not awarded dux of the class in fourth year, although I had the highest aggregate mark, I was told it was because I had a "poor attitude", and I did, in fact I received no academic prizes that year at all despite topping three subjects. What I did wrong was to openly question the social and moral position of the Church on virtually everything. How did this rebellious attitude manifest itself. For example I refused to volunteer for the school cadet unit, in second year, stating I was a pacifists, which branded me as a homosexual. Later I took part in anti Vietnam War demonstrations, never hiding the fact, which branded me as a communists. I questioned Church, moral and religious teaching, which branded me as an atheists. Many attempts were made to reform me, from simple cajoling to hard line punishment, none seem to work. It was not easy being an atheistic, homosexual, communists attending a Catholic school in the 1960's. Things I was not.

Do I take what Barnaby Joyce said "The Catholic Church had been good for Australia." as a red rag to a bull, I suppose I do, when my own experience tells me otherwise.

Dear Foxy,

I don’t remember too clearly what Durkheim’s thoughts on religion were. I do remember there were plenty of criticisms of it, though.

In my view, religion fulfils certain needs, all of which can be found elsewhere (e.g. community, rituals, and the feeling that there is something bigger and more significant out there than oneself). Where religion’s strength lies, is in its offering of all these things in one mass-marketed, handy, pre-packaged system.

Re-located? No problem! Just go to your local church and… Boom! Instant community. No need to even add water.

But all these needs can be found elsewhere, and in places which don’t carry the risk of losing family and friends just because you may one day decide that you want to leave. The internet has only helped in this regard by enabling people to organise weekly meetups, with like-minded people, on the basis of just about any interest.

I’m cautious about predicting the end of religion, though. When the internet started to become a standard household thing in the mid-90s, I remember there were predictions that we would all become so well-informed that pseudoscientific nonsense would eventually disappear. And while that has been the case to some extent, what we’ve also seen is the ability for people to better shelter themselves from information, that doesn’t suit their worldviews, by making use of the blogosphere, and highly-personalised YouTube subscriptions and social media feeds.

However, unless there is some cataclysmic event somewhere down track, thrusting us all into a post-apocalyptic world, I do still think that religion will fade away to a point of near insignificance.

Paul1405:

That is a lot of angst to have to endure growing up. Had you gone to a state school you would have been spared all of that. The decision to send you to a Catholic school was made by your mother presumably so she was the cause of your trials.

There is no avoiding that and the pent up anger that such a decision would naturally create. It was an experience you did not have to have. Feeling no anger would be quite inhuman. You want to blame your teachers but they were only doing what they were given permission to do by your mother.

The fact that you want to tell us your story is a sign that you are trying to find someone to blame other than your mother. Everyone has a story but not everyone faces the reality of who is to blame for their story. It is much more comfortable to blame an institution than the person who claims to have cared for you. It is more comfortable but ultimately it brings no real peace.

Dr. phanto,

That's got to be the most specific amateur diagnosis I have ever seen you give. On what psychological theories/perspectives are you basing your diagnosis, and could you please cite the research supporting them?

Regards,
A former unwilling patient

So what do you know.

Paul was a pain in the ass at school. A smart ass who thought he knew everything.

Looks like nothing has changes. I wonder if he will ever grow up?