Come and see......come and see
Come and see, come and see
Come and see the King of love
See the purple robe and crown of thorns he wears
Soldiers mock, rulers sneer
As he lifts the cruel cross
Lone and friendless now he climbs towards the hill
Once in a while my Catholic pratices come back to memory and it suddenly dawn on me to think beyond the actions/rituals and find meaning in them. At least my interpretation of them.....
1. Cross with Christ on it. Catholic crosses have always had a Christ figure on it. To me it was no big deal but some friends has explained to me that Christ has risen and therefor the crosses should not bear Christ on them. Well does it sound like we should not perform last supper for remembrance? Should we not revisit Good Friday? Should we not remember Christ's death? You get the drift?
2. Kneeling in church. The whole practice of kneeling, brings a sense of submission and reverance to the worshippers. I know we should not hold much to rituals etc but I guess most friends will agree with me some point in time or some time most churches have one or another activity that is supposed to bring about similar effect - rally, revival, confession, prayers, altar calls etc.
3. The colourful robes and ornaments. I suspect human has short memory. That is why messages have to be repeated, discipline has to be meeted out repeatedly and reprimand has to be used once in a while. And I suspect the colourful robes may not be anything more than a reminder - be different from the world. And coming to that, how effective do you think the Catholics are in being different from the world.....I think they are pretty good.....most will notice the bright robes and ornaments.
These are just some of my limited knowledge and interpretation of things. Maybe someone can enlighthen me on these things. Cheers.
posted by AC at 7:55 AM
1 Comments:
I don't dare to say what I share here is `enlightenment';p But hey, I kinda agree with you! While we know there are some doctrinal issues with the the Catholic belief, some of their symbols and `rituals' are not unbiblical or wrong, nor outdated. I have been `told off' wearing a crucifix in the past by evangelical Christians.. but I still do not believe its wrong to wear a Crucifix due to the reason you cited. I don't wear it now in case I may `stumble' other younger church members but I also do not wear my plain gold cross anymore..as I prefer silver accessories these days.. hehe. And also the true Cross is in my heart. :) As to kneeling down in service, I personal feel Protestant churches should adopt this practice as it is simply an act of reverance.. but again, it should not become ritualistic (in some Catholic church, it is like an automatic proces and the meaning is lost) but out of obedient and love to God. Lastly, never thought about the colour robes before. But to me, it is more a symbol to remember Christ as the High Priest. A little tough to incorporate this practice into Protestant churches which have contemporary dressing (ie tie and suits) as the norm. But I also don't think it is something the Catholic church needs to change or do without. Certain `symbols' do have its rightful place and meaning...
6:45 PM
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