Im sorry, but i have a different view of catholic answers. They ban people from their blog who try to present alternatives to catholic worship.Now some people who get into blogs are there for pranks ; yes, ban them. It seems just want people in there who will pat everyone on the back.

Mr. Warner, I enjoy your reflections on Catholics in the New Media. But, as an ancient, retired newspaperman I have always been puzzled by what seems to me to be a failure of Catholics in today’s Old Media to make much of an impact upon their employers and colleagues, and ultimately upon their customers. Allow me to offer two examples. Out here in the Golden West the Los Angeles Times has been consistent in its efforts to blame Benedict XVI for the clergy sex abuse scandal. Second, the Times through its op-ed articles, editorials and book reviews has, over the years, defamed the reputation of the late Pope Pius XII. The result has been that its readers actually believe the libel to this day.

Catholic Answers is a wonderful apostolate - but like most of the Catholic apostolates founded by Catholic lay men - they are horribly one-sided in their promotion of ... new young male apologists. It is sad to see that all these great guys in the new media are forming yet another men’s club. Some may disagree - but I do not see the equality of the feminine face which JPII indicated was necessary. And… let’s face it, young women are not being mentored into positions of leadership as the newly graduated young men are. Still feels like a glass ceiling and that presentation affects evangelization.

I do believe what you have said Warner. I found a lot of help in this site too. Well I am a catholic but when I read a lot using this site, I find out that I am a try-catholic, I need a lot of understanding about my Church whom Jesus established. Sometimes friends of mine have asked me a question but I do not know how to answer them. When I find this site, I am moved and ready to assist them. You are right Warner, with all your words about catholic.com I would like to say that I am walking on the right road of my faith. Thank you Catholic.com, plus other catholic sites which are also contributing to defend the Church of Jesus.

Arau ni Babetito

Catholic Answers, like any other man-made organization, is bound to have some imperfections, but I will agree it is one of the best Catholic websites I’ve ever found. I especially enjoy the forums and “fellowshiping” with other Christians in these forums.  It is helping to get me more grounded in the Catholic faith which I have only been a part of for the last 8 years.

After having been banned from *Catholic Answers Forums* twice—the second time *for life*—I’m not as positive as Matthew Warner is in his evaluation of this online resource, whose management seems not to have absorbed the message of section 2495 of the *Catechism of the Catholic Church*.  That section speaks of the value of the “free circulation of ideas.”
My temporary exile was occasioned by my having respectfully argued in favor of the Church’s pro-peace stance.  My final, and eternal, banishment resulted from my having defended, with equal respect, the position that Pope John Paul II should not, and cannot, be beatified.  It is almost as if those in charge of *Catholic Answers Forums* have elevated the putative sainthood of John Paul II to the level of a Catholic dogma.
Something is seriously wrong at *Catholic Answers Forums*.
Keep and spread the Faith.

The people at Catholic Answers are not fair, they do not follow Christ’s teachings/ They ban you for such simple things; I got banned for something simple that I didn’t even know was against the rules. I explained my problems with OCD, I even wrote a letter to them, sending it from the UK to America which they completely dismissed, without even discussing it. They took no notice. They ban a lot more people than they say they do. The moderators should be investigated by the Police. They say on their website, they use charity, they are hypocrites, they don’t!

Having spent some time on the Catholic Answers Forums in the past, the only problems I saw there were those caused by folks not following the rules. Catholics and non-Catholics alike were booted off, not for their ideas but for their boorish behavior. Even a casual examination of the discussions there show plenty of non-Catholic ideas being discussed openly. And while I have a great deal of empathy for those struggling with psychological-behavioral issues, such conditions do not one sanction to disobey their rules.

Catholic Answers is wonderful. I love the radio show, including all of Patrick Coffin’s jokes!

Robert - You think that is what Christ would of said. They are just booting people off that they don’t like. They banned someone because they didn’t agree that John Paul should get a beatification, why did person deserve to get banned!?

Those Moderators are taking things too far. There must be some company that owns that forum. I would like to speak with them, not with the forum moderators.

Karla, yes, I believe that Jesus would have said that. It is a very clear and obvious NT theme. Obey those in authority. If you don’t like the minimal rules for the CA Forums, you do not have to post there. I’m sure there are plenty of other sites that will let you go wild.

As for your example(s), you simply cannot know what you assert. You assume too much. Was the person warned first? You don’t know. Was the person banned before? You don’t know. Did the person say something inappropriate to a moderator? You don’t know. Faced with such a lack of knowledge about the facts, it is best to charitably assume the moderators are acting in good faith.

Here is an example of the kind of John Paul II-related posts that preceded my eventual banishment *for life* from *Catholic Answers Forums*:
http://forums.catholic.com/showthread.php?t=130163&highlight=Steve+O’Brien
Here is an example of the kind of anti-war posts that preceded my first (temporary) exile from *Catholic Answers Forums*:
http://forums.catholic.com/showpost.php?p=874375&postcount=5
Please judge for yourselves.  I believe, however, that all my posts on the above topics were well within the confines of both orthodoxy and civility.
Again, I do not understand how anyone can say that the management of *Catholic Answers Forums* is taking seriously the following statement in section 2495 of the *Catechism of the Catholic Church*:
“Solidarity is a consequence of genuine and right communication and the free circulation of ideas that further knowledge and respect for others.”
Keep and spread the Faith.

hello everyone

catholic answers can only ban people. They would have liked to burn me at the stake

Robert - I made a simple mistake, something that I didn’t know was against the rules and they banned me for life. I was in contact with them for 2 weeks after that, trying to persuade them to change their mind and explain what I had none, they took NO MERCY whatsoever, they dismissed a letter that I had sent them by post, which was very expensive to post, they hardly acknowledged. There most definitely is something wrong with those people. They would rather protect atheists and non-Catholics on that forum than Catholics. Look at the example for why Robert was banned. Look at this one page - 4 people on this page are saying the same thing, the moderators take no leniency. If that doesn’t tell you something, I don’t know what does. There should be some king of warning system, like 3 strikes and you are out. At the moment they just BAN you without warning, without any kind of warning whatsoever.

I’ve been on their forums many times and don’t have a problem with their management style.

Catholic Answers show is outstanding.  Thank God we have Catholic radio here in Columbus!

I was also banned from Catholic Answers.

The mindset there is so right-wing, that complaints about racist post against Barrack Obama during the presidential campaign, got me in hot water with the moderator, who eventually banned me for life.

They still send mail to my home asking for a donation though.

Also, don’t mention Centering Prayer there. They have the erroneous idea that its from Eastern Religion, regardless of how much data you present from the founders, Fr Keating and Fr Pennington that its rooted in the early Church.

For years I’ve been telling every serious Catholic I meet that my most treasured new-found freedom is the ability to share my Catholic faith with anyone. With God’s grace I can boldly and charitably reach out to ignorant Catholics, ex-Catholics, anti-Catholics and even Protestant ministers. With the support of all the priests on the island of Kauai, I’ve given away thousands of Catholic Answers tracts and booklets in a booth at our annual county fair. It’s very popular here! Needless to say, many of my favorite saints work at Catholic Answers. I give Karl Keating and company most of the credit. They deserve our prayers AND financial support. God bless them all, in Jesus’ name, Amen!

I too was banned by CAF for merely expressing my opinion.  The hypocritical part is that the moderator who wrote to say I was banned for life called my post a “rant.”  Now if I had told one of their members they were ranting I would have either received an infraction or an out right ban.  It appears that even CA moderators can not express themselves without violating their own rules.

If you look objectively at what is done at CA you will see that the moderators and administrators are not fair in their application of their own very broad and subjective rules.  I do not think their conduct is something Jesus would approve. 

In an e-mial from administrator Tim Staples he wrote the following:  “I know that you think our Forums should be modeled after Christ offering forgiveness to sinners, but that is not how we operate.”

What more proof is needed?

I have been on Catholic Answers Forum since 2006 and I have been temporary banned twice.  The reasons for the bans were “uncharitable” remarks I have made against “Non-Catholic Christians, and Non-Christians, and non-believers.”  The ban I feel was justified.  CAF needs to read the policy and rules clearly.

I have been not ban since.  I have seen new forum members.  As far as Non-Catholic Christians. I have encountered members who are “Anti-Catholic” in their views, and some are more open minded.

CAF does welcome Non-Catholic and Catholic members have explained their own views on certain Catholic doctrine.  I would hope they would at least understand our beliefs but many of them just refuse.  Faithful Catholics in the forum will not accept any other religion or Non-Catholic Christian Churches because those religions do not have the Real Presence of Jesus Christ (except for Eastern Orthodoxy).  A Faithful Catholic would not leave Jesus for any other religion.  Protestants lack that.

I was banned from CAF for “pushing an agenda” and “trolling.”  I had encouraged greater observation of the daily Rosary (I was told that not everyone is called to recite it), and I had questioned the value in violent sports like football and boxing as anything better than being bloodsports—some time later the injuries sustained by career football athletes in the NFL from repeated blows to the head despite helmets made national news and debate.

I was banned from that site too. They tolerated me at first because my questions were good. I didnt tell them i wasnt catholic. That made my stay a little longer. They dont want different ideas. If i remember correct, if you posted something from an online source, it had to be from a catholic site. Same for Defenders of the Catholic Faith. How could i document my case if i only could bias twisted catholic sources? catholic site down play the horrors of the inquisition. Some sites say the catholic church never killed anyone, that it was the local govt that did the killing. Id want to bury my past if it was like that. What i regret is that i had nade good friends of some in there. Catholic answers, yeah, thats what you get, is twisted lieing catholic answers. All they can do is ban people. An inglorious end to the glory days of the past when they could impale me befor boiling me in oil.

I have read a lot on CA forums.  There are many people with different points of view, many non catholics who are upfront about their beliefs. It sounds like wayne was trying to be sneaky, not a great way to have an honest conversation.

Youre darn right its sneaky.So what? Those idolaters would have cut me off sooner and i wouldnt have a good chance to withness to them.Who knows, maybe one of them might have gotten saved and left that wicked church

It doesn’t matter. At CAF, if you’re labeled a “liberal,” neo-Catholics will constantly report you for anything you post.

The moderators get fed up and ban you for excessive moderation.

What does it matter. Its just a site that pushes a phoney religion.

I am laughing so hard at these comments ... those of you complaining about being banned, trust me: everyone reading your comments here sympathizes with those poor CAF moderators!!

No I do not automatically “trust you.”  Do you know the basis for all the above complaints about unjustifiable bans from CA?  Do you think CAF moderators and administrators are infallible?  In my case I criticized the Pope for stating he wants to give the United Nations more “teeth”, ie power over the United States.  As a person with libertarian views I do not agree and I said so. 

If you toe the Catholic line at CA you will not be banned, but TRUST ME based upon personal experience they will find a way to eliminate dissenters.

Please don’t feel sorry for the moderators at CAF.  They are total authoritarians and love nit-picking liberal comments.  I think it’s what they live for.  Even moderate voices do not last long at that forum.  Catholic Answers has ties to the neocons in the worst way.  Erik Prince is a big contributor.  They only want to rehash homosexuality and every discussion leads to abortion.  Of course they don’t want insurance for pregnant women if they have to pay for it on their insurance premium   After posting and being slapped down in the most uncharitable way, I wonder why I still am a Catholic.  If that what a Catholic is supposed to be like….well.

I was an Anglican who was interested in becoming Catholic.  I was learning a lot from CAF, and I always tried to be respectful and charitable!  Yesterday, I was banned from CAF with no reason given.  There was no warning, no private communication, nothing; and when I appealed it (asking what I had done wrong so that I could avoid it in the future), they said to “stop bothering” them and “give it up, ok?”.  That’s two weeks of my life that I’ll never get back!

I too was banned from CAF after coming into a disagreement with one of the forum supporters. I received a threatening personal message from them first basically that they were going to “get me.” I thought we had things worked out and the past was the past. However, I also found that the Catholic priest who shares a server with me was also in a disagreement with the same person and we each received a message from the administrator that we needed to explain how we had the same IP address. Simply put we explained the type of sever we had, the type of IP address it generated and how each computer was organized under each. I thought this had pleased the administrator as a temporary ban was lifted. 48 hours later and WITHOUT WARNING we both were banned. So much for the idea of having a differing opinion or having the ability to disagree in Christian charity. As an Anglican bishop who was considering conversion to Rome this has greatly soured me on EVER converting. Sadly there is no appealing this, and at this point, seeing how others have been treated who have a differing opinion, why would I want to?

I am a Catholic priest and I was banned from the CAF. The reason was that I also came into a disagreement with one of the supporters of the forum. Like Jay before me I was threatened by other members of the sight, including one of the forum supporters. I have tried to appeal to them but they will not listen. All I have to say is that the Lord warned about causing another to stumble in their faith, what consequence would follow; “It would be better that a millstone be hung about their neck and they be cast into the sea.” Oh I have forgiven the person that did this, but they are treading on dangerous waters with God if they do not turn from their ways.

Well, after being banned from CAF for the past 2.5 years, a friend asked me to see if I could get back into CAF. So, I sent an email asking to have my ban lifted and to review why I was originally banned.

I got an email from the moderator telling me that my membership was reinstated under strict rules. One violation and I would be gone, without warning.

Being its the News Forums that I was banned from, I decided not to post there. 

So far so good, but who knows.

Catholic Answers, thats what they are. If you want biblical answers, you have to open your bible.These unfortunate catholics are saddled with unbiblical doctrines and now they find themselves trying to explain away false ideas. Something that the vatican dreamed up way befor you all were born and now you have to justify them. One is Mary floating up to heaven an being queen and sitting on a throne. The other is…only catholics go to heaven, a scare tactic used on the very young,. Third, you have to bend over backward to justify all the idols in your churches; oh, thats rite, you call them statues, worship aids. Instead of defending these anti christ activities, why dont you get out of that church? Wouldnt that make life simpler?

Wayne - please educate yourself.

Where do people get this stuff?  Sheeesh.

Jay - you are not an Anglican Bishop.

Matthew,
What makes you think that I am NOT an Anglican Bishop? I have never met you before and yet you make such an inflammatory statement. Can you explain this?

Matthew,
I live near Jay and I do know him to be an Anglican Bishop. How can you make such statements if you, as he says, do not know him?

Sorry Jay - I just find it extremely implausible that any “bishop” would make such comments as to suggest that the defining factor of whether they come into communion with the Catholic Church could possibly be that some moderator on some internet forum treated them unfairly.

If we try to determine the true Church based on whether or not there are any imperfect or unfair people in that Church, or by whether or not we have access to a particular internet forum, then we would never get anywhere. I would think that a bishop would understand that rather well.

He should also understand that those moderating the Catholic Answers forum have one of the toughest jobs on the internet. They are attacked/spammed/hacked constantly by serious anti-catholics (many of whom also try to sneak in as regular users and make counterproductive or fake arguments and pretend to be people they’re not) and as a result CA has had to adopt some very strict policies. I’m in no place to lay judgment on either side.  But I would ask that you consider it from their side as well.

All of that said, if I made a mistake, then I would like to apologize. Just send me an email (my email info is available in the side bar) with your full title/name and your diocese and a website where I can find you and your diocese. I will contact you through your diocese office, verify these comments by you on this blog post and then issue a formal apology back here (without revealing your full identity to everyone here of course). And if you’d like, I will also put you into contact with some people that can talk with you personally about the Catholic Faith at a much more productive level for an Anglican bishop who is seriously considering communion with the Roman Catholic Church. I’m sure that would prove much more fruitful for you and for all of us. I’ll look for your email.

And if I don’t get your email and there is no followup here with a formal apology from me that you are indeed a bishop, well…then we all know the truth. And we would also know why you were banned from the CAF.

I sent a portion that you requested to your private email but I also wanted to publicly clear something here that you have obviously have misinterpreted in some way. You say that it is implausible that a “bishop” would make such comments. I do know that there are imperfect people in ALL denominations, lets face it if a church was perfect none of us could belong to it. With that said, let me also say that the written word do not always convey the true intent on a person either, only by speaking face to face can you do such. With this said, the Anglican group I am part of has a great deal of infighting and I quite frankly am tired of it. Now add to this mix I start exploring the Roman Catholic church via the CAF and other clergy and the like and I meet much of the same infighting amongst Catholics who then turn this venom towards those who are not like them. Would you also not say “this would sour me from wanting to join this church” no matter how right or wrong the church was?
I truly understand that the moderators have a great deal to contend with often, and none of them are infallible either. So let me say, If you have taken that my comment was one of a nature that was not that of a person of Episcopal office let me offer my apologies. My journey towards the Roman Catholic church has been one of great obstacles and I know that if it was all mountaintop experience (for lack of better words)that the journey would not have such a great reward. Thank you to those who keep me humble along the way.

Hello Matthew, and thanks for being tolerant of non catholics like me. You said i should educate myself, but you didnt mention what subject i should study. I am reasonably educated, but no one knows everything. Let me introduce myself. I am a watchman. I sit on the city wall and look to see if the enemy is aproaching. When i see danger, i tell everyone, or even one person. If your house is on fire, i beat on the door to wake you up.

Wayne
I think what Matthew was referring to was your comment: “These unfortunate catholics are saddled with unbiblical doctrines and now they find themselves trying to explain away false ideas. Something that the vatican dreamed up way befor you all were born and now you have to justify them. One is Mary floating up to heaven an being queen and sitting on a throne. The other is…only catholics go to heaven, a scare tactic used on the very young,. Third, you have to bend over backward to justify all the idols in your churches; oh, thats rite, you call them statues, worship aids. Instead of defending these anti christ activities, why dont you get out of that church?”
The problem is this shows that you are totally uninformed about what a Catholic actually believes. A browse through the Catholic Catechism would tell you that Catholics do not believe that ONLY Catholics are going to heaven. (Or anything else of what you are espousing here.) YES I AM a Protestant that defends Catholics when a misinformed person or the enemy comes along to attack the Church. You might even say I am standing in the gap to use the phraseology that “Watchman” use.

Hi brother Jay, to each an answer. Im surprised that a catholic in here hasnt corrected you on this. I really dont blame them. Yes, its a fact, catholics believe Mary was taken up to heaven bodily(assumption) and has a throne in heaven as queen. Yes, catholics believe that ” there is no salvation outside of the catholic church” Well, they are supposed to believe it, but its an embarassment now, so they dummy up when it comes to that. Allow me to quote some chruch fathers…....We declare, say, define, and pronounce that it is absolutely necessary for the salvation of every human creature to be subject to the Roman Pontiff.”
Pope Boniface;Bull unam santum 1302

Bro Jay, i could quote hundereds more. Now the CC is using clever words to turn that one around,flip flop i believe its called. Its dogma, written in stone, that the catholic church doesnt change.Am i rite or am i wrong? The CC is flip flopping on dogma that is embarassing.Infallable, thats another cruel joke. Lastly, the idols used by the CC. Jay, i want you to tell me that there are no statues in the catholic churches.No icons, no beads, no scapulars. These are OBJECTS used in worship. Let me see, someone remind me, what does god call them? Oh yes, IDOLS. Jay, tell me catholics dont use objects.Say Jay, the catechism is words on paper. Forget that. Look at what they do, not what they say.

“Those, who through no fault of their own do not know the Gospel of Christ or His Church, but who nevertheless seek God with a sincere heart, and moved by grace, try in their actions to do His will as they know it through the dictates of their conscience — those too may attain eternal salvation” (Catechism, no. 847). This is why I say you need to brush up on your catechism. It is in there that Non Catholics can attain salvation.
  “The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son’s Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians” (966).
The Catechism then quotes from the Troparion of the Feast of the Dormition from the Byzantine Liturgy:
  “In giving birth you kept your virginity; in your Dormition you did not leave the world, O Mother of God, but were joined to the source of Life. You conceived the living God and, by your prayers, will deliver our souls from death.” (966)
Thus, the Assumption of Mary is not only a participation in her Son’s resurrection, but a preview of our future resurrections. As such, the dogma of Mary’s Assumption is firmly rooted in the actions and person of Christ, and in the virtue of Christian hope. Protestants say, “To be absent from the body is to be present with the lord” so I guess then what you are saying is that this piece of scripture does not apply to Mary????? In quoting the Orthodox “Dormition” we are going further back into early church history as to what was accepted norm for centuries. The way YOU put it was that Mary “floated up to heaven.” Those words are not in Catholic Marian doctrines.

Idols? So I suppose in your home you have NO photographs of family. If you do, you would be in violation of the same wooden literal translation of making for yourself a graven image or idol that you are accusing the Catholic Church of doing. I would bet also that your church has a cross in it, by YOUR definition, that would be an idol as well or a “tool.” I bet they have an altar rail to kneel against, why have that “tool”?????? Do you kneel for communion? OH MY by the same token that you accuse the Catholics you can be accused of the same brother. I suppose you do not have ANY musical instrument in your church either, because you would not want those “tools” getting in the way of your worship?

Brother Jay, you sure youre not a catholic? By the way, you geussed wrong about my church.Techically the church is the total body of the born again. We call houses churches for some odd reason. The house where we gather has no bench to grovel on. It a square room with folding chairs. No cross anywhere. Im not so scared of a cross, by the way. By the way, i see that you said you are a bishop or something. Where did you go to bishop school? Respectfully, your arguement has been said to me befor. And its shabby theology. Using family photos to justify statues of men. Comparing musical instruments to icons? Im not the one you have to convince. You will have your chance to explain that to Jesus at the judgement. And god hates idols with a passion. Good luck with that. As to the catholic flip flop in the catechism, i got tons of quote of popes and other CCfathers saying there is no salvation elsewhere. I gave you one quote. My point is, that the CC isnt gods true church, like they claim in that ruse called the catechism. My point is, if you want salvation, you have to ask Jesus for it. Not hope some pedophile says the rite words during some ritual. Jay, do you believe the bible? The demons do, and tremble. The bible said Jesus had brothers and sisters.Do you tow the catholic line by saying brother doesnt mean brother? This is all useless.The unsaved believe any and everything. When you are born again, you will see all things. I was unsaved once upon a time

Wayne,
With all due respect you did not answer one of Jay’s arguments but rather put up another straw man that you could knock down. This shows a rather immature form of Christianity OR any form of salvation whatsoever according to the Bible. 1 Corinthians 3 speaks to your kind of faith, it calls it “carnal.” But if you want to believe that the rest of the world is going to Hell and only your church will be there then I suppose that you should allow us each to do as Paul commands us to do in Philippians 2:12-13 “”...work out your salvation with fear and trembling; for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure” 
Just remember there are pedophile pastors in ALL churches and the percentage of Pedophiles that are Catholic to Protestant is not any higher or lower. If you wish to continue to do Satan’s work in accusing the brethren please do so. I notice you are quite adept at disguising it as a form of righteousness or light. There is more than one of us who can be a watchman here too.

Bro John, i didnt want to give the impression that my church is gods church.I attend a calvary chapel. It has to have a name by law. Its nondenominational.And its not us against the world. There is no us. Each person has to come to Christ for himself. The body(church of christ) is all the saved people.Im pointing out the flaws in the CC, or any organised religion in hopes the listener would see a need for a personal saviour. Not rely on someone else to dish it out..What argument of Jays did i forget to deal with? Jay put up a quote from that catechism. Obtaining salvation for non catholics. Lots of words. Heres how Jesus puts it; behold i stand at the door and knock. If any man shall open, i will come in and sup with him and he with me. I opened the door, and he supped with me. I met him. I know his voice, and another i will not follow. So friend, you can have the catechism. If you want Christ, open the door. Simple as that. Religion slams the door shut with empty rituals and dos and donts. Gold cups and assorted trinkets. Jesus stands at the door and knocks, its just that simple.

Wayne
We Catholics also believe in pretty much what you have posted in regard to salvation (hence the comment made that you needed education). The Catechism is only a guideline outside of Scripture so that every church would be on the same page so to speak. I looked on the main web site for Calvary chapel under the what we believe section and I wanted to bring your attention to something. “We are not a denominational church, nor are we opposed to denominations as such, only their over-emphasis of the doctrinal differences that have led to the division of the Body of Christ.” While this is a good statement it seems that every comment that you have made on this thread has been one to over-emphasize a doctrinal difference, thus one COULD conclude that you are keeping the Body of Christ separated by your comments. Your church also sells a book called “Calvary Chapel Distinctives” by Chuck Smith that explains how doctrinally different you are. It would seem to an outsider that you also put an “over-emphasis of the doctrinal differences that have led to the division of the Body of Christ.”  As I have heard many say before, the sins you point out in others tend to be most evident in self.

Wayne
you make the comment, “Religion slams the door shut with empty rituals and dos and donts. Gold cups and assorted trinkets.” Can you tell me this, when you have communion in your church, do you (you here meaning your pastor)use the same prayers to bless the elements? Also, do you use some kind of precious metal object to hold the elements like a chalice or a tray to hold little glasses and a nice plate; OR do you use Dixie paper cups and plates to hold your communion elements? Having visited a Calvary chapel once I highly doubt that you use the paper plates and cups because the communion is a bit more sacred to you than that. I think that you get what I mean here. ALL non-denominational churches have some form of rituals that they do around certain things like communion and baptism, just as mainline churches do. Even if you have a form your service follows like praise & worship, prayer, offering, reading the word, preaching; this is a form of liturgy. Liturgy literally means work of the people as all God’s people participate in worship.
BTW, It is not “bishop school” it is seminary, or Bible college depending on your denominational preference.

As many time as ive been to calvary, ive only run into communion twice. Thats 20 yrs. Not to say they dont have it often. I dont go every sunday.just when i can make it. You place some kind of importance on what the tray is made of. I got money says that the calvary tray , at my church, was bought at the 99 cent store.Jesus said to do this in rememberance of me. Its the only thing he asked us to do to remember him. But it doesnt have anything to do with our salvation. Its a show for the unsaved to see that we still honor Jesus. I can do communion or not. It has zero to do with my salvation. The unsaved religious people attach all kinds of weird thing to communion.Like what kind of trays and what have you. Hey brother, i was unsaved once and was in danger of hell fire.

Bro Jay, in answer to your calvary chapel post, im not sure what doctrinal differences Chuck was talking about. Or what you gleened from that. Chuck believes the bible. But he uses words that are commercially acceptable because of the place he holds in the world of TV and radio. In short, he tries to be nice. I dont have to be nice. Search areond the calvary site for old sermons and if you can, find something about the CC. Chuch never does whole sermons on the CC or any other false religion. They are not worth our time. But you can find snipets here and there. They will be the same things i say. Religions are for the unsaved. Once you become saved you are part of the church and you begin to understand. The unsaved are blind as bats, Jesus promised that.

“A Kind word turns away wrath” “Death and life are in the power of the tongue” and you feel you do not have to be nice????? These are God’s words NOT mine. I have been saved many years and in my journey with God I have found that there are many churches out there, each claiming to be the correct church. But let me just say this, if you have to point out flaws in other churches of other person’s faith practices the Bible says there will be a harsh judgment to fall on you. Our job is to be salt and light (those are Jesus words) not vinegar and venom and seem to be portraying here. The only people you will catch with vinegar and venom are angry people. Salt and light catches people that can be made into disciples. Thank you for attempting to explain yourself. I do hope you find the peace you are looking for.

Bro Jay, you are correct. I will never talk nice about a perverse religion. The judge not verse, folks, especially religious folks, stop there. First, because being blinded they wont understand the spirit anyway. The passage continues to say; ” but make righteous judgements”.Bishop Jay, let me elaborate on that. Jesus didnt judge by sight. He judged the intent, the spirit. A righteous judgement is looking at somes heart, or, in the case of a religion, its practices and ideas. According you your logic, i should join the church of satan, because i shouldnt judge it as wrong. Another righteous judgement is; im not going to hang around that person because he gets drunk and cheats on his wife, when hes not robbing banks. According to you, i shouldnt say nothing, just drive the get away car. The jehovas, i guess you think they are just fine.You dont judge.They dont believe Jesus is jehova. Oh, thats fine, i dont judge them. Bishop, you make judgements everyday. When you put your foot on the brakes to stop at a red light, thats a judgement call. I hope this helps you to understand my position as the watchman. If the watcman took your stance, he wouldnt judge the approaching army as bad. He wouldnt sound the alarm. Your job as shepherd is to warn your flock of danger. Not to stand there and look good in your glittery robe and big hat. Warn them of idols, of false doctrines like praying to dead people, of useless rituals, the dangers of being unsaved.Being their shepherd, you are accountable befor god.

You have taken the righteous Judgment line out of context. After stating that “every tree is known by his own fruit” (Luke 6:44), Jesus states what that fruit is: “for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (v. 45). We CAN judge the heart by what proceeds from the mouth. The words spoken are the fruit of the state of the heart.
But is this talking about just any words? Does this mean, for example, that if someone utters a vulgarity we are to judge the person unregenerate? Here is where judging righteous judgment comes in. The standard that the true believer uses to judge saved and lost is THE GOSPEL.
There are two types of speech by which we judge a person to be lost. The first is speech that confesses a false gospel. “If any [man] preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:9). “Whosoever transgresses, and abides not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God” (2 John 9). Confession of a false gospel is a confession that any part of salvation is conditioned on the sinner. It opposes the true gospel of salvation conditioned on the atoning blood and imputed righteousness of Christ alone. It is speech that denies Christ (1 John 2:22-23; 4:3). It is speech that denies one’s own sinfulness (1 John 1:8,10). It is confessed by those who, “being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God” (Romans 10:3).
The second is speech that tolerates and endorses a false gospel by “saying, Peace, peace; when [there is] no peace” (Jeremiah 6:14; 8:11). He who calls one who confesses a false gospel his “brother in Christ” speaks the lie of Satan, “Ye shall not surely die” (Genesis 3:4). He “speaks great swelling [words] of vanity” (2 Peter 2:18). God makes it very clear in 2 John 11 that he who speaks peace to one who confesses a false gospel “is partaker of his evil deeds” (see the article on 2 John 11 in this issue for a more extensive treatment of this verse). These are those who judge saved and lost not by right gospel doctrine but by outward appearance, morality, sincerity, and reputation.
Are Christians then to judge that these people are reprobate (i.e., destined for hell)? By no means. We cannot judge their eternal destiny by these words; this is only known by God. We are only to judge that they are now unregenerate. God might save some of these lost people who believe, confess, and tolerate a false gospel; some of them might be among God’s elect. One thing is sure: if God saves them, they will no longer believe, confess, and tolerate a false gospel! Upon regeneration and conversion, God causes His people to believe and confess the one and only true gospel.
With this in mind YOU are to only go after lost sould in the harvest field not attack another church.

Are you not being presumptuous in assuming that I wear a “glittery robe” and “big hat”? You have never met me and yet you have condemned me. I do warn my flock of that type of person all the time; especially the type that just made your kind of assumption. Not all Bishops dress alike, some in humility look like the rest of the clergy. With that said… Any person who judges by the group is a pea wit-which is what you have done with me and the Catholic church. Each person is an individual and has a mind of their own as to how they worship God. Do we not each have to work out our own salvation? If this is the case that we do then why are you attacking those with a relationship with God that they are trying to work out rather than seeking souls in the harvest field that have NO attachment to any church.

Jay, you are correct, Those destined to Hell are known only to God. To place ourselves in that seat of judgment in saying persons are going there is the sin of presumption and placing self in place of God which is the same thing Satan did to get him thrown out of heaven.

I just typed up a good answer and i pushed the wrong button and lost it. It said that the saved know the saved because they both know Jesus personally, like you would know your own mother or brother. When someone talks, the saved can tell real quick if that person knows Jesus or not. They dont even have to be talking church. Its the saved folks job to lead people to christ.Religion wont lead you there. Gold cups wont lead you there.Statues and icons wont lead you there.The lord has to draw you there.

Wayne, Nobody is denying that it is a relationship with God and Jesus Christ that saves you. Why do you keep pushing the hatred? You are focusing on the secondary things and making them what is paramount to a Catholic’s faith. Do I need the trappings to bring me closer to God? No. BUT, By the same token (using your line of thinking) you don’t have to go to any church to be considered a Christian when the Bible clearly states that we are not to forsake the assembly of the brethren. Now you have the NERVE being and irregular attender of a church (by your own admission that you attend when you can) to come here to attack others faith. Lets step into the logic that you have been using to attack the Catholic church a moment and look at your own church. Do you need the praise and worship team of your church to lead you in worship. One could say that those songs are not “spirit led” because they follow the rhythms of the “world’s music.” Also using your logic you say that communion has zero to do with your salvation (Although this is not what the local Calvary Church pastor told me was his understanding we will use yours); you say when you do it “Its a show for the unsaved to see that we still honor Jesus” and then say “I got money says that the calvary tray , at my church, was bought at the 99 cent store.” Would not be a very good witness of how you honor Jesus if the cup you would serve communion out of was dirty or cheap would it? I don’t expect you to answer this directly or even obliquely as when Jay and I have put you into a corner either using your logic or scripture you go back to the same tired straw man arguments. If you want to have an intelligent conversation please feel free to respond directly, however, if you come back with the same tired arguments and hatred I see no sense in furthering any intelligent conversation with you regarding faith.

Wayne,
Neither John or I disagree that in order to be saved you must have a relationship with Jesus Christ, and confess Him as Lord and Savior. It seems every time we do this you put up some other argument that the path WE take to Christ is wrong but yours is the only way; or your church is the only way. I too will have to agree with John, If you want to continue in the line of spewing forth hated and accusations which have no foundations or warrant I see no reason to waste my time with you further either. You made assumptions regarding me without knowing me (in case you forgot the glittering robe and hat line)when I have been trying to educate you that this is not the way that Catholics OR I believe. You seem to have NO interest in listening to even scripture on the matter but revert back to the same old attacks and venom. John and each have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and I pray that you grow stronger in yours. PLEASE, I used to think alot like you when I was fist saved over 30 years ago, then I started asking why Catholics did the things they did FROM CATHOLICS not from anti-Catholic propaganda. Do I agree with them 100%? NO But can I respect their faith NOW that I understand it better? YES. So long as you stay in the closed mind pattern you are in you will only gather in people around you with the same hatred and disguise it as being Christianity. (2 Timothy 3:5 and Titus 1:16)

Hey bro Jay, sorry it took so long to get back. My old computer wouldnt boot up all the way so my customer gave me one hes not using, then imy internet connector went out.Well, anyway, you say im hatefull and have venom. If i hated you i wouldnt be doing this. The body of Christ is invisible. It is made up of the saved, where ever they may be. Hospitals, prisons, wheelchairs, at work, in school. They do not have an organization. They do not have a headquarters with a big cross on top. They have no outward sings.Most have no idea how many are in the area. And theres not many of them. The road to destruction is broad, and theres lots on it.The road to salvation is narrow, and few be on it. You refer to my hatred. Do you mean the fact that i point out false practices in denominations? Like bowing and scraping befor statues? If that practice is fine with you, well,go ahead, but i dont bless that or recommend that.

Just wanted to do as I said I would do and post back here if Jay contacted me. He did. And it looks like I do owe him an apology.  While I can’t verify very easily that he is a bishop as he is not listed anywhere online as being a Bishop for the Anglican church on any official site. It turns out they don’t really have a good website for such things. I made the mistake of thinking the experience of being a bishop in the Anglican church is very similar as being one in the Catholic Church…I’m learning that isn’t all that true. My mistake. It does appear likely that Jay is a technically a bishop from one of the many divisions within the Anglican church and that he now works for a totally different denomination. While I can’t verify it 100%, for the sake of not having to I’m willing to accept that I was probably in the wrong.

So, Jay, I’m sorry for the false assumption and I’ll be praying for you on your journey! Everyone else - please pray for him also, and the many others who are going through similar trials.

Also, thank you, Jay, for your comments here and for being a part of the discussion!

Matthew
Thank you for your response. I think that we tend to place a viewpoint on certain members of the clergy that they NEVER say or do certain things. I remember one time going into a convenience store to purchase gas and the girl behind the counter was shaking, thinking she had been robbed I asked was she OK. Her reply was “I thought you guys didn’t do those things; I just sold a pack of cigarettes to one of the brothers from the Monastery.” You see where I was, I was close to a Franciscan monastery. She asked me “Do you drink too?” To which I replied that some of us do on occasion. I said all that to say this; I think we have a preconceived notion of how a certain person should act or say certain things. The problem is we are all human and do still live in our flesh. Why else would the Pope have to go to confession too.
The problem I have when I just recently contacted CAF is that they felt because I made a spelling error that was the same as another, DESPITE the fact that I can and did prove that we were different persons they are refusing to hear OR investigate the evidence that I can provide, they have banned me and two others. To add insult to injury, they have much as accused me and others of outright deception. A simple google search for banned from CAF will show that I am not that much different than others who have dared to disagree with one of the forum supporters or even an administrator. I was also surprised in my investigation of the CAF to find they have been under investigation by the IRS. I know that apostolates like the CAF do not fall under the jurisdiction of clergy per se; however they are under the authority of a local diocesan bishop or arch-bishop. If enough letters went to local diocese regarding the practices of those who administer the CAF it would put a stop to this. Let me also say, I do feel they are a great place to start to learn about the Catholic faith, but I also feel that those who administrate the forum are pushing an agenda of their own and will not tolerate anyone who would disagree with them. If you don’t want people to disagree, then why have the forum open to all?
Thank you once again to Matthew for your words above. I do pray that we all can become one body again, it will never happen when we do not listen to the other side, nor will it happen when we do not look for the common ground as far as beliefs go that we all share and then start the reconciliation from there.

I too was part of this “banning” that Jay went through. I had at one point sent them copies of my ordination certificate because one person claimed that because I said something that “sounded Protestant” that I must be one. This appeased them and I went for months without a problem until both Jay and I ran afoul of the same forum supporter and disagreed with him. Even when proven wrong by both of us by the catechism he still would not back down. After a few threatening private messages (which the administrators also ignored) we finally got banned despite contacting them with requested information to prove whatever false accusations were placed against us. If they do this to Catholic priests and others who disagree with them it is truly sad. I do agree with Jay that you can learn a great deal from them, but in this case those who operate the Apostolate do not follow the charitable guidelines even set forth by the Church. It is a point well taken that if you do not want differing opinion, then why open the forum up to everyone to participate? I know there will be some who are out there to proselytize a Catholic away from his/her faith but you will get that anywhere. I do find it interesting that the forum rules are written that you cannot make uncharitable remarks to Catholics, it says nothing about how a Catholic treats another on the forum. So what this is saying (and I know this was probably not their intention) is that a non-Catholic cannot make an uncharitable remark but a Catholic can. I ask any of you reading this, IS THIS RIGHT to do this?
Sadly there is no appeal process here with the Catholic Answers Forum, But Jay did put forth an excellent suggestion in writing the local diocese regarding them as that would be the only jurisdictional power they would answer to.

All this talk of banning…I too have been banned; first, a suspension for a ‘threatening post” (which was not in the least threatening—and is still on the board, unedited and unremoved). I used the forum appeals process, only to be told that the very act of appealing was a banning offense..that I should simply ‘accept moderator direction gracefully” and go away. This, of course, raises the question of why an appeals process is given, if using it just makes things worse! I then found out that I was banned for ‘circumvention.”

I didn’t attempt to circumvent anything. I have attempted to contact the moderator and forum administrator, and have been ignored. ....and all this after two years and over 6000 posts. Petty injustice is really—petty.

Diana
May I suggest as has been posted to contact your local Archdiocese regarding them. If you do a search on being banned from the CAF you will find we are becoming quite a number. If you look at some of these blogs you will also find that the CAF has been under investigation by the IRS; that is what truly saddens me to hear.
Sorry to hear of your banning, you must be a pretty good Christian to be banned from the CAF from all that I have seen here and on other sights.
I also forwarded a link of this sight to my Aunt and Uncle who operate an EWTN affiliate radio station and they are not going to run adds for the CAF or support them any longer, not because of what I have said here but from what the others have said as well.

Diana, welcome to the world of the catholic. Now i realize that all the people in the pews dont think like this, but the vatican thinks like this; We cant burn them , at least not now, so we ban them. The vatican calls catholicism a religion. Well i guess it is. It fits the description of a religion…intolerant, exclusive, man made, murderous, thieving, corrupt beyond belief, and wears sheeps clothing to hide the wolf underneath

Their super moderator is abusive and hateful, as well as ignorant.  I had been a long term member with over 500 posts without an infraction.
I recently pointed out a thread in which two posts were flagrantly bigotted toward Jews.
Within 5 seconds, I was banned.
I asked for explanations on 5 occasions and never received a reply.  I then report “moderator abuse” and was told 3 times that I was not banned, even though I was.  Instead they told me to clear all my temporary internet files.
After proving that I was banned by using three different computers, one of which had no cookies or temp files, they said they would send my note to the original moderator but to be patient as the holidays were coming up.  (This was 6 days before Thanksgiving and after having been jerked around for a week.)
Four days later, I asked if any progress had been made, and was summarily permanently banned for life for not showing patience as I had been instructed.

It is shameful the way I was treated by this supposedly Catholic forum.

Catholic Answers forums needs to fire all its admins and start over. Their heavy handed tactics are an embarassment to the Church and to open, passionate debate. I am seeing more and more posts all over the net from people who have been abused and banned by their forum admins, and I hope the leadership over there begins to take notice. I am sure they will given how many threads like this I am finding. I was banned after 2 days for questioning why another poster (a buddy of the admins) was disregarding his local ordinary. Avoid their forums at all costs.

Bill,
Your best bet is to contact your local diocesan bishop and let them know what is going on. If enough complaints come in then the forum will have to either change or close for not following Catholic ways.

Oh I’m glad I’m not the only one needlessly banned by them.
I started a thread on file sharing, used scripture and law to come to a conclusion that it’s not a sin or at most venial. But of course the next post is a typical response from them on anything they don’t agree with, “it is a sin, it is mortal you are going to hell” now after talking to three individual priests and explaining this to them, they said it’s not a sin, but at CAF if it’s not right wing it’s not biblical, I was soon banned for posting “Anti-Catholic lies” I am a freaking catholic, but I refuse to become a right wing extremist on issues that aren’t even biblical ones andindr refuse to interpret law any other way than the way it is stated, and I refuse to bow to the riaa and dmc a who like to call sharing piracy,

I have been banned from posting. They never really give a reason why. In fact, all my postings have been deleted. I think they are very sensitive when proven wrong in any of their theology. They do defend Catholic teaching very vigorously and usually very accurately, but when all else fails, they ban. The fact remains, there are differences of interpretation of scripture, and of tradition, and of early church fathers. Catholic Answer apologists can not cope with these differences without taking it personally. I personally think they need prayer.

Has anyone noticed the number of persons banned and YET, the poster/writer of the article does not seem to be the least bit interested in the number of persons being banned and the alarming number thereof? It would seem that from the miltitude of other sites which mirror the posts of this it would seem that there is more to this story that what is just being put forth here. I know that there will always be a hacker or two and this I fully understand. However, it seems when you post truth of the Catholic faith or something that runs contrary to what a moderator believes, even despite what the catechism may say, you get banned. Funny the Orthodox are banned for putting forth Orthodox doctrine in their arguments, Protestants are banned for theirs. In my mind the moderators are acting like thought police rather that doing what should be doing and that is MODERATE. These actions are giving our faith a bad reputation.
Come on Mr. Warner, when are you going to investigate these bannings? Are you an objective journalist or not?

John - actually, not.  I’m not an objective journalist. And I never claimed to be. I AM, however, a person who’s had enough experience moderating websites to know the difficult challenges that come with it. I also know that there is always a small (yet, often vocal) minority who won’t like the decisions you make.  And actually, I’ve come across quite a few who cry “victim!” and pretend they did nothing wrong in such situations, and almost always with a little digging I find out there is much more to the story. And usually, it ends up that they were being very disruptive to the place, or engaging in a passive-aggressive kind of harassment, or being just plain unreasonable while claiming to just “honestly” disagree or not understand. In order to maintain an environment of productive dialogue, those kinds of people must be removed. Unfortunately, it makes them angry and they often take to the internet to express that anger. I’m not saying all of you complaining here are such people. But, in my experience, many of you probably are. That’s not casting unfair judgment on any of you, those are just the numbers and the facts.

I’m sure the moderators at Catholic Answers aren’t perfect, though. And I’m sure they’ve made mistakes - who wouldn’t trying to moderate one of the largest religion forums on the net? But I also see the enormous good they do. And that the VAST majority of participants in the forum are quite happy. I frequent the forums quite a bit and have NEVER, ever seen any issues and almost always found it helpful. That doesn’t mean there haven’t been “issues” that weren’t resolved perfectly. But I have better things to do with my time than investigate such a thing before recommending them or supporting them, especially when the good that they do is so enormously obvious and all of the “evidence” I’ve encountered to the contrary is precisely what I would expect from any major, well-moderated forum.

Bottom line - it’s their website. Not yours. You have no “right” to be there. And they have every right to decide what kind of place it will be. Obviously, it’s in their best interest to be fair and charitable. And I believe they try to do that to the best of their ability, although I’m sure imperfectly sometimes. I’m sorry if any of you truly were treated unfairly there. But I would ask that you please understand the difficulty of moderating such a forum of so many virtual, faceless profiles from over the internet ON TOP of the fact that it is probably one of the most maliciously attacked sites on the internet with many “sheep in wolves clothing” trying to get in, cause disruption and spread misinformation.

God bless ya.

I’m not someone who has been banned from the forums, but I can definitely sympathize with the people here complaining.  CA Forums tries to act within an offical capacity, but is definitely biased toward a certain kind of thinking which is at times even contrary to the USCCB.  I give CA the benefit of the doubt in that I am guessing it’s just a mismanaged forum, but that’s bad enough.  Certain ideas are tolerated and even protected, such as capital punishment, even when they go against the official stance of the Church.  Other times people are banned and even whole threads are deleted under the guise of “not having anti-Catholic materials” on other issues of disagreement.

It’s really only in certain areas though—for example theological discussions about the supremacy of the Pope in a Catholic vs Orthodox discussion doesn’t seem to bother anyone.  So what I think happens is some of the users get upset, complain to CA, and maybe they’re supporting members or maybe they’re just friends with the moderators because they go on those cruises and so there is bias.  The bias isn’t slight—it’s pretty strong.

I think the best thing to do is just stay off the site.  They got the name catholic.com so I guess people feel they’re some kind of official Catholic forum or something, but they’re not.  It’s a company that needs revenue, and has a certain type of customer.

FWIW, the moderating on CAF is horrible. That’s the opinion of someone that has been both a forum administrator and current forum moderator. They banned me after being on the site for months with no warning. Then if you contact them, they act in an uncharitable and unCatholic fashion. It’s one thing to take a strict position, but it is not a consistent one.

CAF banned me for life after pointing out an antisematic post.  I was not patient enough as I asked after four days if they had researched my ban…so by not following the administrators advice to be patient I can never post there again.
I’ve been a catholic for 60 years.  I was in the process if discussing how to deal with a drug addled son.  In the middle of that forum discussion…banned.
They are an embarrassment to our ideals.  A bunch of HOA or hall monitor wannabees.  They can all go to hell.

CAF banned me for life after pointing out an antisematic post.  I was not patient enough as I asked after four days if they had researched my ban…so by not following the administrators advice to be patient I can never post there again.
I’ve been a catholic for 60 years.  I was in the process if discussing how to deal with a drug addled son.  In the middle of that forum discussion…banned.
They are an embarrassment to our ideals.  A bunch of HOA or hall monitor wannabees.  They can all go to

CAF banned me for life after pointing out an antisematic post.  I was not patient enough as I asked after four days if they had researched my ban…so by not following the administrators advice to be patient I can never post there again.
I’ve been a catholic for 60 years.  I was in the process if discussing how to deal with a drug addled son.  In the middle of that forum discussion…banned.  They are an embarrassment to our ideals.  A bunch of HOA or hall monitor wannabees.  They can all go to

They are an apostolate of the diocese of san Diego.  They get our dfs contributions.  They do unfortunately represent the church.  Then there is the usccb.  Hard to be a catholic these days