Am I the only one who wonders why the parishioners of St. Rose in Perrysburg don't tell the bishop to butt out of their church's life. I read somewhere the true church is the body of believers. What I read about St. Rose makes me feel the church in Perrysburg is stuck in the fourteenth century and dictated by the robes in Rome. Perhaps the bishop is just reminding the members of St. Rose that their church does not belong to them.
St. Rose a church frozen in time
...like all Catholic churches, belongs to the Catholic Church, just like any other big business.
A cold way to look at it, but reality none the less.
Hooda Thunkit
Actually I think they've been telling him to butt out for some time now, but like the previous poster states, St. Rose church belongs to the catholic church, it doesn't now nor has it ever belonged to the people who worship there.
If they want to worship without the bishop or pope sticking their noses into it, they'll have to build their own church.
If you read church history you will see people like Martin Luther who studied the bible and found what the church is meant to be. The church is suppose to a group of individuals who believe in sola scriptura ("by scripture alone"). By the perspective bishops would take on a very different roll from divine prophet and theological head to that of teacher (rabbi) and servant of the people (See Mark 10:35-45, the word used for 'minister' is also translated as 'servant'.)
To restate what Hooda Thunkit posted, the Catholic church at the time would have lost a significant amount of political power and revenue. Plus this new way of thinking would have violated centuries of beliefs. Since then until now the Catholic church has engaged in a public relations campaign to maintain their belief structure.
How does this relate to your comments Bill? The Catholic church has told those members how they should worship. Those people have grown up with the Catholic theology their entire life. Being American's they have heard other theologies but have chosen to be the way they are. This is especially true of older members.
Why buck the system if you're just a good member of the church and going to heaven? After all, the bishops are the gateways to heaven, why should they question their holy ones?
Footnote: I am not neither Lutheran nor a Calvinist. But I do agree with both of them on sola scriptura. I'm preparing my message for this Sunday and will cover the scriptures mentioned above.
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The worshipers did build that church through their contributions.
No, the catholic church built it with their contributions. Thats why it belongs to the church not to the people who worship there.
If they want to truely have their own church and the control over it they will have to break with the diocese (sp) then build and maintain it on their own.