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About Me
- candyisascrazyasitgets has moved to http://www.candyisaliar.blogspot.com/
- Hello Everyone, I was very lucky to have stumbled upon www.keepingthehome.com. It has sense been an incredible source of entertainment. I have not only enjoyed Candy's posts, pictures, and recipes (which by the way would turn away an Ethiopian from eating), but I have been amazed by the choreographed circus of freak show supporters. There are great tips about "What to do when CPS shows up", how to make your own detergent, why I am a dresses only, why I am a KJV bible only, I hate Catholics, and many many more delightful, yet useless, tips. In my opinion she is a very close minded, judgemental individual. She spits venom in the name of the Lord to people that do not believe completely what she does. We have found such incredible claims such as Candy use to be a model, ITU certified, her husband was inducted into the inventors hall of fame, she was asked by MENSA to join, and they do not pay their taxes. Please help me continue this struggle against evil and provide further instances of her untruths. Your comments will never be moderated, deleted, or you will never be banned. Thank you,
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306 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 201 – 306 of 306We had a sermon about that very subject last month - happiness vs. joy (and sadness vs. sorrow).
I can't remember exact quotes from the sermon, so I'll let a wiser man than I am explain:
For joy is caused by love, either through the presence of the thing loved, or because the proper good of the thing loved exists and endures in it...
Now charity is love of God, ...
... He is in those who love Him by His most excellent effect, according to 1 John 4:16: "He that abideth in charity, abideth in God, and God in him." Therefore spiritual joy, which is about God, is caused by charity.
St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, 2:2:28
Joy is not attained through virtuous habit, but instead Hence joy is not a virtue distinct from charity, but an act, or effect, of charity: for which reason it is numbered among the Fruits (Galatians 5:22).
- ibid.
OMG! I LOVE the choir, Sweeping!
You rock.
She always says for every soul you lead to salvation there's a reward in heaven.
Oooh, I missed that.
Sounds like a WORK, Candy. Tsk, tsk.
To sum up the Summa:
You can not work your way into Joy. Joy proceeds from Charity, and is an effect of the love of God.
Practice may make perfect, but smiling all the time does not make you joyful.
Godliness with contentment is great gain
Candy says this twice in her post, but what does that even MEAN?
This whole thing about works...
Then I wonder why the Samaritan is commended in Scripture for his good works?
I mean, he was outside of the accepted belief system of the day, and yet did good, and more good than those who were "in."
Just something to consider....
Why does she quote verses without giving the background of the chapter?
eek WHY am I here again, I had a feeling CAE would be here. I find that name very offensive. Not that it matter. But it offended me and I am not easily offended. I am also not catholic. No way would I find that to be a joke.
Carry on....
*sigh*
Being a member of a heathenist baptist church, I will try to explain what I think about the whole "works" thing.
I believe that you cannot earn your way into heaven. That has been stated here and I agree. When I serve others (meaning my family, my church, my community, etc) and do it for the love of God...then that produces joy. That is also like someone said about charity...service is along the same lines. God has commanded us to serve one another. Not everything that God has commanded us will produce joy for us IN THIS LIFE. When people see us (as in believers of Jesus who was raised from the dead and conquered death) they are to see HIM in us. Jesus wasn't and isn't always happy and joyful. In the Bible, He was downright angry, sad and miserable at times. The only difference is, if those feelings cause you to sin. You can have those feelings and not sin (it is difficult though), but we aren't Jesus. But we are to strive to be more like Him.
Oh and the whole thing about witnessing to people to get YOUR reward probably is a sin in itself. We are to witness to bring people to HIM, not to get something for ourselves to show how good of a Christian we are.
Anyone can do good works. But are you doing it for the love of the Lord or the love of man (yourself)?
So, is the coast clear? Oh my gosh, I could not believe what was going on here earlier.
Ginger- you and I had a conversation awhile back, and while we do disagree on a lot of stuff, I do so admire that you can be objective, and I really think you are a honest to goodness nice person. Thanks for popping in and acknowledging that that CAE person was being very offensive. She obviously doesn't understand what joking is.
- drunkenness (including not being sober-minded)
Guilty. I was quite drunk Saturday night. I like my beer, the alcoholic kind. And, will you be surprised if I tell you that Saturday wasn't the first time I'd been drunk?
LOL Not exactly drunk but I've had a few beers tonight...and they are enhancing my enjoyment of these comments. They are also giving me an irresistible urge to emulate ANOA and overuse LOL.
- emulations (trying to be equal or better than others, often leading to jealous rivalry - "keeping up with the Joneses")
Oh crap.
- revellings (raising tumults, merriment at another's expense, inappropriate merriments)
Oh, is someone feeling sorry for herself? Is someone making up biblical principles as a way of saying she knows people are having fun at her expense? Apparently, she can dish it out but she can't take it. She gets quite a bit of enjoyment out of tearing apart the Catholic faith for her own benefit. She gets quite a bit of enjoyment out of twisting things beyond recognition and using circular logic and statements. And, can anyone tell me what inappropriate merriment is (according to the bible) versus appropriate merriment (again, according to the bible).
This woman is a hoot! No one really even needs to get involved her to have merriment at her expense. She makes it perfectly available to anyone who reads her site.
Amen to that!!! I spent months (actually over a year) reading her site and wondering if anyone else had found it to be as hilarious and entertaining as I did. The only other person who enjoyed watching the insanity with me was my husband. I was so wickedly delighted when I finally discovered Matthew's blog.
And I killed a snake in my garden bed last week.
*<]{:o(
April, I think you and I are in agreement.
Anyone can do good works. But are you doing it for the love of the Lord or the love of man (yourself)?
And that makes sense as well. I will say that I think it is possible for an atheist to do good works, not for the Lord OR himself, but for mankind. I think it is possible to do good works not for the Lord, but still unselfishly.
My issue with Candy is when she argues that good works aren't really "good" unless you're "saved". (And of course by "saved", she means HER definition of "saved".)
SO, you all are still at it.
What I find hilarious is the fact that Ginger is now coming to your rescue.
Ginger, someone was in Candy's room the other night talking about you.
I think it was one of the people from this blog.
Either way, they said that you are two faced. That you appear nice and then do mean things. They accused you of sharing personal emails with other people.
I would not want to accuse anyone, but if you did in fact do that, then you have no right calling ME offensive when YOU offend as well. And intentionally!
As for the rest of you, you have but me betwixt a rock and a hard place.
I am not Candy.
Want more?
I am not Candy Brauer, resident of Oklahoma, author of the "keeping The Home" blog, wife of Erik, mother of five, homeshcooler.
Does that explanation meet your criteria?
Caw, I am the person you are talking about.
I was talking about a situation that took place between me and Ginger.
I did say I felt she was two faced, and that she pretended to be nice to me but acted otherwise, because she did.
Ginger did share personal emails of mine with other people.
I haven't really gone into detail about it because I'm over it. I don't want to hear the reasons why she did it. I don't want to talk about it. I dont' want anything to do with Ginger.
She can live her life, I can live mine, and hopefully we will never bump into one another.
That said, CAW, your name is still offensive.
I am not Candy Brauer, resident of Oklahoma, author of the "keeping The Home" blog, wife of Erik, mother of five, homeshcooler.
Does that explanation meet your criteria?
I believe you. Your spelling is not horrendous enough to be Candy's.
Now, you obviously have hung around Candy long enough to have learned how to speak Candyese. But you really need to work on misspelling more words if you truly want to emulate her.
Who says "betwixt"? ;op
So Rudy, does Candy know about Ginger's frequency on this blog? I have read a few posts on here that I find...interesting.
Ginger, you said that Candy is "a wolf in sheep's clothing." Why, then, do you continue to go to praise parties that are led by a wolf?
Why do you hang out with her there and then come talk about her here?
I believe you are two faced.
Since Candy reads here quite often, I am sure that she does know Ginger comments here.
Ginger, weren't you with us for our Candy Chat?
"Ginger, you said that Candy is "a wolf in sheep's clothing." Why, then, do you continue to go to praise parties that are led by a wolf?
Why do you hang out with her there and then come talk about her here?"
I wonder the same thing, actually, but that's me.
There, I have changed my name.
What, possibly, will you argue with me about now?
"Delicious"
That made me chuckle. No offense anyone, but it just did.
I'm imagining some kind of cookie.
"Ginger, you said that Candy is "a wolf in sheep's clothing." Why, then, do you continue to go to praise parties that are led by a wolf?
Why do you hang out with her there and then come talk about her here?"
"I wonder the same thing, actually, but that's me."
No, it's not just you. I think it's probably everybody. I think it's very strange myself.
"Who says "betwixt"? ;op"
Methinks betimes I might partake of a little emulation, betwixt loading my tumble dryer and folding clothes. Hence, I am shortly to be mounting the stairs and taking myself off to bedfordshire.
It's official Mine AND Clare are not right in the head.
(guffaws some more)
;op
I've been swamped at work and at home lately, so I haven't gotten the chance to comment on anything, but the following simply screamed for me to respond:
Well, I have partaken of this site enough for today. Maybe I will check in later, maybe not. I'll leave you guessing.
Oh, and one other thing.
Whoever runs this site should probably put up a liability dislaimer. I've seen a lot of lawsuits stem from online slander.
Just a suggestion
CAE or Candy, whoever s/he may be obviously has no idea what they are talking about. Seriously. People who are not attorneys have absolutely no business throwing around legal jargon and threats of litigation related to matters they don't understand. First of all, slander is spoken, not written. Second of all, to prevail on a claim for slander, one must prove a defamatory statement (of fact, not opinion, Candy) of and concerning the plaintiff which turns out to be false, which caused damage to the plaintiff and which (in the case of slander) caused special damages. Special damages are actual pecuniary (that's monetary damages, for dumb folks like Candy) damages.
Additionally, under the Communications Decency Act, ISPs are essentially completed insulated from liability for the statements made by third parties using their websites. The individuals making the statements are not protected; however, good luck discovering their identities and discovering them.
Good luck with that one, Candy/CAE.
I meant Mile... but I'm not right in the head, either... or as I've been told.
Candy is afraid that if she doesn't have joy (which to her means a smile plastered on her face 24/7), she might not truly be saved.
Here's an oldie but a goody, by the Joyful One herself:
I've had many an unbeliever come up to me, and accuse me of not "being real," because I seem to have so much joy in my life. I can understand why an unbeliever could think that. I can remember how bleak things seemed, before I got saved. I remember thinking "gee, I work, eat, sleep; is that all there is to life? Is this it?" They can't fathom the freedom that we Christians have in Christ.
I don't have to carry burdens, I can give them all to the Lord. When I got saved, I learned the answer to my question - there is so much more to life, for the believer. God has given us His Instruction Manual to life. When we read it, and do as it says, our lives are enriched with blessings in abundance.
Hence, I can understand why unbelievers could have trouble comprehending my joy in the Lord.
Here's what used to seriously baffle me - when people who say they are Christians accuse me of being "fake," because I have so much joy. I'm saved, and I have the joy, so why don't they?
I thought maybe it was because they may not be in The Word enough, maybe they aren't going to a Bible believing church, maybe they were reading a non-KJV Bible, maybe they are around a lot of unChristian influence, etc. I've recently learned that those are side issues to what's really going on.
Since I've been reading the book Total Truth, there have been some new words added to my vocabulary, that explain the phenomena that has had me riddling over this seemingly mystery...
COMPARTMENTALIZED FAITH. I cannot explain this in a few words, you really need to read Total Truth. However, as a general gist, here is why I think some Christians are baffled at my joy: Many Christians have their faith up and in the front for Church, around their Christian friends, etc. However, there are other parts of their life where Christ is either pushed to the back, or is outright ignored, or forgotten about. For example, if a person has a job, they may leave their Christianity at the door.
When I got saved, I KNEW that Christ was and is my all in all. I didn't leave Christ at the door when I went to work at Packard Bell, then IBM (yes, I had a career before I had children). I took the biggest boldest Bible I had, and it sat right smack in the middle of my desk for anyone and everyone who entered my cubicle to see. I had Bible verses and Christian comics on my walls. On my breaks and at lunch, I'd have discussions and debates with unbelievers. EVERYONE knew I was a Christian; it was NO secret. I also got to joy in seeing others get saved, including one of my bosses! :-D
Some people leave Jesus behind when they sit down to watch TV. I heard a saying once, which yields a great lesson - if Jesus were sitting right next to you, would you still be watching what you were watching on TV? The same goes for the music we listen to, the company we keep, the way we dress, etc. Well guess what? God sees everything we do, and Jesus is God. Therefore, Jesus is sitting right there next to you!
A Christian who is lacking the joy of the Lord may be one who has compartmentalized his or her faith. Do you really believe in Christ, or not?
This even goes for our thoughts - would you think certain things, if Jesus were reading your mind? Guess what - the Bible tells us repeatedly, in Old Testament and New, that God is always looking at our hearts and thoughts. He knows what you are thinking this very moment.
What about the appearances of evil? Often we may do something, because we know it isn't evil, but a non-believer may mis-understand. For example, I used to drink non-alcoholic beer at a pizza place we used to frequent (pre-kids). I knew I wasn't drinking alcohol, but it looked to others like I was. That could have been hurting my presence-testimony to someone that I may have stopped and given a tract to.
Why do so many skeptics call Christians hypocrites? I think it's because they see something that many of us Christians are blind to. They don't see Christians as being any different than unbelievers. They see the Christians in their shredded, faded jeans and T-shirt, tossing back a beer while listening to rap music. What makes a Christian so different from the rest of us? The skeptic wonders. They see the Christian complaining about their life, those around them, how they suffer, etc. What makes a Christian any different than myself? They seem just like me, but with a 'holier than though' attitude. They are nothing but hypocrites! The skeptic observes.
Do skeptics observe you as a hypocrite? Are you lacking true joy and fullfillment in your Christian walk? Have you compartmentalized your faith? Jesus said to not hide our light under a bushel. He didn't say that it's okay to hide it at work, at a bar, in the TV room, or when you think someone is looking.
Jesus said: Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels. -Mark 8:38
Paul said: For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. -Romans 1:16
God's Word promises blessings to those who walk in God's will. How's your light shining?
People tend to think that other people's lives are limited by the same limitations they have in their own life. It is only natural that 'self' would be a point of refference. So when a person says that I must be faking because nobody could be so joyful, it is a sad commentary on their own life. This site is dedicated to helping others find joy by believing God's Word, the Bible. Thank God that He sent Jesus Christ so we could have a better point of refference. May those, who think the joy I have is incredible, find the Joy in the Lord that Jesus Christ and the Bible makes available to everybody, Amen.
Okay, linz...
gets a fist bump.
Delicious??? Like with fava beans and a nice Chianti??? ala Hannibal Lector? Sheesh! Someone put a face mask on CAD!
I find it amusing that you created a chatroom for all your people to gather in, yet every time I look over there, there are only three people or less.
Meanwhile, Candy's room is full of 8.
I think that says something about a person's character. She obviously has more friends.
Um...CAD baby I don't think those are Candy Bandy's friends in her room... i'm just sayin
Where is OUR meezle room anyway? Do we play any Eagles?
And that makes sense as well. I will say that I think it is possible for an atheist to do good works, not for the Lord OR himself, but for mankind. I think it is possible to do good works not for the Lord, but still unselfishly.
I don't go so far as claiming I am an atheist, but I can still say that this is spot on for those of us who do not function with God in mind.
I don't help people or do for others in order for them to help me in return. I don't give of myself in order to get something back, or to keep track and say "see what I did".
I am not a good person because the bible or God tell me I should be; it is not a law that motivates me. It is not fear of losing my salvation, or desire to obtain salvation, that motivates me.
I do it because as a human being, I believe it is my responsibility to do for other human beings. I do for man, but not ME. I do for mankind. For other human beings.
I am not looking for rewards here or after I die. I am not looking for recognition or praise. I am not looking to make myself feel better or to even out my evils.
It is often next to impossible for many fundamental, deep rooted, Christians to look outside themselves and their own belief system and see that their motivation is not everyone else's motivation; their reasons for certain actions are not the reasons of everybody.
It is only people who can see beyond their own thought process who can even grasp the fact that not every person is motivated by the same factors, and not every action is done with the same reaction in mind.
Hey KentuckyBlueGirl...they may be referring to my heathen room, which you can access by going to my meez profile.
Yes, CAD, Candy is so much more popular and has more friends. We're all broken up about it. Boohoo.
Catholic... where did that come from? I mean, really... that was like out of the blue.
Kentucky, go to sweeping's page and then click on her icon. That's how I get there.
sweepingthehome.blogspot.com
Caw!Caw!, you're back! Ask anyone if they're surprised. You are obviously still at it too.
How refreshing.
Oh, and we play whatever music you want! Eagles rock! The other day we were listening to Ozzy, Judas Priest, and Ray Charles. What a combination, huh?
Sweeping....what is your Meez name? Mandy or Sweeping?
Rudy and I are over there, Kentucky... come on over.
She's already got some stuff playing...
Everyone else, come, too, if you want... we a bunch of heathens, though. :op
I hereby ban Kirk Cameron and Paul Washer from my meez room, though. Sorry if anyone's disappointed.
She goes by MandyBrowner
mandybrowner
:D
Oh, yeah. I did come here again for a reason! Not just to guffaw with everybody and give CawCaw something to ramble about.
I did the first part of chapter 4 of the Fascinating Womanhood.
chapter 4
I really wish I had the book by Helen Andelin. I have no doubt that it has been twisted beyond all recognition in this little ebook version. It is not available within our library system and I wouldn't pay money for something that promotes something I don't believe in. But, it would still be an interesting comparison.
Then again, given how much I go off the deep end while reading this ebook version, it is probably a good thing I don't have the original, even for comparison.
"I hereby ban Kirk Cameron and Paul Washer from my meez room, though."
And, this is one of the reasons that we are friends. :o)
Woo hoo, dance party in the heathen room!
A rude bunch over in the Titus 2 room. Wouldn't answer my simple question. And who is that Nite Stalker guy? He looks ready to go all Rambo on that room!
Where did everyone go? I created a meez to go join the fun and no one is there. I deleted the last one I created because I was giving up on the whole concept, then you all created your own little people and I felt left out. I have about 20 minutes 'til dinner and I was gonna' play in Meez land.
Oh well. Can't win 'em all.
Tia what is your meez name?
holyhellbatman
Love it!
Tia, you can probably get the book on Inter-Library Loan through your library. My mom's a librarian; I've got all sorts of insider info *<}];o) (And ILL is free, as well. At my library, you can fill out the form on line, they find another library in the US that has your book, the other library send it to your library, they call you when it's in. Easy-peasy.)
Welcome back, Candy, erm, I mean, Caw!Caw!
Nope, tried that Amanda. We have nine libraries in our consortium and not one of them has the book.
I didn't want to ask the librarian as she is a friend of mine and would crack up if I asked her to find that book for me. I just look through the online catalog that covers all nine libraries.
Where is everyone?
If I *have* to be online tonight I at least want a diversion!
I've gotten books from the Phoenix library, and I live in Houston. ILL is for the whole country - I bet they could get it from the Salt Lake Library!
I was going to suggest that, too, milehi, but would you have the guts to ask for that book?
LOL
LOL
LOL
LOL
LOL
Hey, if I can request Stephen King, Stephen Hawking, AND Karl Marx on the same ticket, I can do anything.
If anybody else is bored tonight and wants to hang out in sweeping's room, I will be there, because once again, I am at work at an obscene hour.
milehi, I'm around, sort of, for now. I'm uploading pictures to my flickr site and checking back in here once in a while.
I know you're not watching the Olympics, but I will be online until Michael Phelps goes for Gold #10 some time tonight when I will run downstairs to see it.
Twice I've ILL'd a book because it was too distasteful to buy, and then the darned library has purchased it, maybe because they took my ILL as a recommendation.
I'm in a dilemma here because it does bother me a lot to be posting on a site with the name this one has. I really wish Matthew would, or could, change the name and the URL to something more mild, like VTC or Coffee With Candy - something that wouldn't make it so hard for Candy to come here and join in the discussion. I have some feeling that Candy and CAD are right that I shouldn't be posting here at all (let alone posting on STH - oh dear!). This site has so many smart and funny people. And some of the comments about the anti-Catholic or religious posts I think are reasonable, but some of the other comments make me uncomfortable. I just don't like mockery ( so why do I find Mandy's site funny, well I didn't at first, but I can see the creativity.)
I think I should just go out and drown my Meez.
But Tia's response to Candy's recent post about the works of the unsaved really spoke for me, so how can I leave. The posts that directly speak to Candy's posts work better for me than the ones that about whether she reads here, or whather she's a liar (which I've never liked) etc.
Maybe I'll just go read-only.
I used to drink non-alcoholic beer at a pizza place we used to frequent (pre-kids). I knew I wasn't drinking alcohol, but it looked to others like I was. That could have been hurting my presence-testimony to someone that I may have stopped and given a tract to.
*********
Then why did she get all ruffled when someone questioned her non-alcoholic beer in her fridge awhile back????
Oh, she just slays me. Today it's green, tomorrow red, and after that it's purple. Whatever color fits her mood (agenda!).
desert, for what it's worth, I've had similar issues with the nature of this site, and with the nature of my comments, specifically. I feel like my participating in this site and my recent desire to become a more devout Catholic are directly opposed. As you might guess, I'm still working through that one. I've met too many truly nice, interesting people here to give it up cold-turkey.
The posts that directly speak to Candy's posts work better for me than the ones that about whether she reads here, or whather she's a liar (which I've never liked) etc.
Maybe I'll just go read-only.
Just wanted to highlight those bits. I think talking about Candy's posts directly involves talking about her lies. They're inextricably connected.
And strictly to play devil's advocate, just reading isn't any "better" than reading and posting. Not to belabor the murder analogy, but kinda like standing back and watching your friend kill a guy doesn't make you less guilty.
But for my own selfish reasons, I do hope you'll continue to comment.
Speaking tracts, I have to know: has any one ever REALLY been saved as a result of a tract? I just have a hard time believing that a little cartoon-book about "Mary's Tears" or Jesus in general has brought anyone to God.
hatred (including back biting, returning evil for evil, gossiping, etc.)
****
my thought here is ...if she is accusing us of 'returning evil for evil" ...wouldn't that mean that SHE sent out the 'evil' first????
CAD.....
I am going to assume you didn't read my apology either to Candy, right here on this blog. I have said all along, I am not against or for Candy. I even said as much in her little chat in sweepings room. I said I was for God every time I was asked if I was for or against Candy.
Yes I forwarded my emails from Rudy to Kaira, she and I were trying to figure out if Rudy was first a he, and if he or she was a stalker. She knew some personal things about me and I wanted further opinion on that information. I had a great conversation with her via messenger after I had emailed Kaira. I think I am confident on who Rudy is as much as a person can be confident and her story rings true for me. SO Rudy, I offended you and I apologize to you. That was not the intention.
I apologized to candy on here because I did not go to her first about my friend with the offense and neither did my friend. That has been taken care of and is cleared up. I have very much enjoyed talking to both Cajun and milehimama on the meez.
My last post had to do with CAE who is now CAD.... I read that she thought it was a joke and I saw that others were saying it offended them so I chimed in as well, that it offended me. How that is being 2 faced, I have no idea.
Rudy can talk about me all she wants, and to who she wants, its her right and evidently I deserve it, she thought that me forwarding emails was done in bad taste so to speak, so I can see why she would say what she did. I might have as well if I was in her place. She had me a bit freaked by the information she had. It ended up not being as much information as I thought and I took some measures to clear that part up. I just read today that she was upset with me. Had I known about before hand, I would have apologized sooner.
has any one ever REALLY been saved as a result of a tract?
I converted to Catholicism because of a Jack Chick tract, and a Henry Blackaby study. I grew up around Catholics, even though it didn't "take" as a kid, but after reading through a couple I *knew* that the stuff was so far off base... I started reading, got to the Gospel of John, and never looked back.
But that's not the kind of converstion you were talking about, is it!?
That's one reason I post here... if others are as scandalized by her posts as I was by the Chick tract, and make it here, perhaps they'll glean something. That's why I hijack the comments with Scripture verses.
I'm not the bestest or most Christian or least sinful evangelizer, but I try in my own way.
Highdesert. I relate to your sentiments and thank you for articulating them so well. I also have some internal conflict about my participation here, because I know that, for all Candys maddening, boneheaded, intellectually impoverished, dishonest,pseudo spiritual control freakery she IS a person IRL. She is very likely IMO a person with some problems who gets some measure of 'feelgood' from her online alteregos rose tinted life and a warm glow of smugness that her motivation is 'of the lord'. But a person nonetheless.
I fear that, without the one to one IRL contact, it's easier to loose that perspective and be more excoriating in my criticisms than I would be normally.
I really dislike Candys behaviour. I HATE that she keeps dragging God into it and implicating 'Jesus as the reason'. She is such a shockingly bad advert. This is a biggy for me. One of the reasons I don't have a Christian fish on my car is because I have a bad habit of tooting my horn and getting impatient, or of blowing kisses to a driver who is rude to me. I don't want to drag Jesus into my bad behaviour.
When I talk about Jesus I want to keep it real, and I want every other Christian to keep it real too. Life with God is deep and vast, I hate to see it mangled.
I am very very open about my faith and what it means to me. I don't think that there is one person who even casually knows me that does not know about it. It comes up all the time. But I hope I'm never glib when I talk about what the amazing grace of God really signifies.
I went through an incredibly hard time over the past year. I was pregnant with twins and it was a very difficult pregnancy. God seemed to recede. My faith was at an all time low and I stopped blogging.
I expected that I would hop back on, post a photo of me proudly cradling my 2 sweet daughters and saying 'ta da!' THIS is the reason for my unexplained absence.
I got to a couple of days short of 36 weeks. Pretty much full term. The day after I had a blood test for cholestatsis ( I was itching like mad) Olivia died. No warning. A week later the blood results came back positive. My friend Andi was my midwife, we trained together at Queen Charlottes. She's an 'agnostic' and one of the dearest frinds in the world. She wept with me and all but turned herself inside out for me. I love her, she's full of goodness.
During all of this I have experienced the tenderness of God. I feel humbled and broken,but it has been a time when I have started to understand in a new way the mystery at the heart of life with God. It is a mystery in which loss is gain, death is new life and despair can be the springboard to new and profound hope. In the middle of my tears and hopelessness there was something else, a sense that I was living at the blind true core of life.
God IS close to the broken hearted and for days all I did was sit with Him.
I wrote on my blog about how I was raised a catholic and whilst I had great affection for the faith of my fathers I could no longer describe myself by a denominational tag.
I attended an evangelical church. I had been going to a bible study for about 9 or 10 years before this happened and was pretty well dug in there.
However, the funeral was in a catholic church. Why? dunno. I wasn't really thinking, my husband did all of the organising. besides the RC church was still very much part of our community, we knew and liked the priest all my family are catholic. It just seemed well more natural to go there.
Word of mouth saw to it that the church was packed. I had no idea till the end, because we were at the front. That made me cry again.
Nobody was 'invited' they just came. The only person I told was my small group leader W from my evangelical church. I knew they weren't on the same efficient grapevine so they wouldn't know unless I told them ( also they are more 'English' and the English are funny about funerals. The irish turn out in force however. Thats probably another reason why we had a catholic funeral, culturally they are just much better and more comfortable with grief)
Turns out W told the women about it, and initiated a discussion about why they shouldn't go to a catholic church. One of them disagreed and came, she sang with my eldest son who led the music.
The rest stayed away.
I went to W. i was sure I had it wrong. I didn't believe for a moment that anyone would shun a stillborn babies funeral for doctrinal reasons.
I'll probably write about this another time in more detail when I restart my blog, but basically she put me right there. When I said to her ( in response to her statement that she couldn't stand in a church that prays to dead people etc etc) 'but jesus ate with prostitutes and tax collectors', she promptly quipped "not while they were actively defrauding people". She said that the 'truth' is very important.
She also said that she believed i had cursed my self by complaining when I was pregnant.
And here's the conundrum that I have to wrap my head around;
W IS a good person, she DOES love Jesus. I believe that she has got her own personal temperament wrapped up in what Jesus thinks and does.
I have forgiven her, but I'm still dealing with it. It was such a massive slap in the face.
that's pretty much why I'm here, this is part of the journey that has led me back to the catholic church. I went online to find out why people like my friend W hated and feared the RC church so much. A bit of me was wondering if she was right and I'd missed something. If it was spiritually so off base that any association with it would be harmful.
I found Candys blog, and then VTC with its excellent refutations of her posts. Honestly, I wanted the truth, not my tidy truth but The Truth.
I can say I didn't want to be a catholic. I phoned up a priest and told him about my conundrum. I liked my evangelical church, I didn't want to be a catholic, I just wanted to be a free range Christian, not a badge wearing denominational one. I was SURE about that. But I had come to believe that the teaching of the catholic church was SO coherent, SO biblical, SO satisfying, both to my intellect and my soul It's only VERY recently that I can say I am a Catholic. And no one is more astounded than myself.
Sorry to dump this here all at once, i didn't mean to use this combox as a confessional, it just all spilled out.
Candy blog has, in a weird way, been part of my journey, so has VTC and, for more cathartic reasons, this one too.
So for now I'll keep reading, and posting from time to time. I'll just try too muzzle my tendancy to be too sharp or excoriating. I don't want to crush Candy. But I would like to give her a little shake.
Hmmm. That was a bit of a 'stream of consciousness'. Sorry about the rubbish punctuation in parts. It makes it harder to read. I wish I could go back and edit, but that's the first time I wrote about some of this stuff so it all came tumbling out!
Just FYI. It's 11.15 am here right now ( incase you all think i'm online in the wee hours!)
Me again, while all you lot are slumbering.
I just posted this to Candy comments.
Saving it here, just in case.
"This is also in Gods word Candy:
" Sorrow is better than laughter,
because a sad face is good for the heart."
I lost my baby last year and have come to understand the deep truth in those words.
Let those who seek to understand understand. Life with God is a beautiful mystery and he is close to the broken hearted.
Ecclesiastes 7
Wisdom
1 A good name is better than fine perfume,
and the day of death better than the day of birth.
2 It is better to go to a house of mourning
than to go to a house of feasting,
for death is the destiny of every man;
the living should take this to heart.
3 Sorrow is better than laughter,
because a sad face is good for the heart.
4 The heart of the wise is in the house of mourning,
but the heart of fools is in the house of pleasure.
5 It is better to heed a wise man's rebuke
than to listen to the song of fools.
6 Like the crackling of thorns under the pot,
so is the laughter of fools.
This too is meaningless. "
Wow Clare, thanks for sharing that here. I am so sorry about your loss. I had no idea you had been through all that, and your story was very touching. I am just shaking my head in disbelief at the behavior of W., but really it's not surprising. I've run across that attitude just reading Candy's blog and the comments from her little minions. She would behave the same way, no doubt. It's just so sad that someone could be so arrogant and cold-hearted all in the name of God. And a good friend, at that.
Clare,
I'm sorry for your loss. I'm sorry W felt the need to act that way.
Welcome Home.
ooh I missed a lot last night. I will have to catch up at some point today - when the every steady flow of work slows down, that is.
I did skim Clare's post...so here are warm gentle hugs for you, love.
Clare, I'm so very sorry for your loss. I wish I knew what to say, but that's the best I've got.
I wonder if Candy has any idea how many lapsed-Catholics (and people in general) she's leading BACK to Catholicism.
Clare, my heart goes out to you, Sweetheart, and so do my prayers.
"has any one ever REALLY been saved as a result of a tract?"
Candy, her "ministry", and it's effect on a dear friend of mine are the reason why I finally got off the fence and became Catholic. I was raised the Lutheran Church, but I married a wonderful Catholic man. I KNEW all of the garbage that I read on Candy's blog was not true. It prompted me to start studying what the Catholic Church really taught. I joined the Church during Easter Vigil this year. So yes, depending on how you look at it, I was saved by the teaching of Jack Chick. Just not the way that he intended.
Clare - I am so very sorry for your loss and the added grief that W caused you during such a painful time in your life. I wish that I had something wonderful to say but I am really bad at these things. Please just know that you are in my thoughts and prayers.
In regards to this site, again, it has been a place to vent about a mentality that is WAY personal to me. I was blessed to meet the ladies on here, as not only are they clever but truly kind. I've seen a lot of ugly in my day in the name of Christ, and seeing lovely in the same name, is just truly a blessing.
Again, I am a sarcastic person, as is my wit. I have a dry sense of humor and I don't take too many things seriously. I live by the code that life is just to short to, and that God doesn't want me worrying about things so much, so I simply don't.
My beef is Candy's mentality. I don't have a beef really with anyone else. I think ANOA is a little off her rocker, but she has a right to live how she wants.
When I use mockery, I don't usually mean it as mockery, per se, in a bad sense (unless I'm using cynicism to criticize Candy's mentality) but as comedy. As anything I say, take it with a grain of salt if you don't agree.
I like to read everyone's perspectives, also. I don't really care to get into a fight with Candy, hence why I don't go to her Meez room. And, that's just simply out of not caring that much.
It's my opinion that this is a room of like-minded people regarding a subject, a person, a mentality, a prejudice, whatever you want to call it.
We're all here for our own personal reasons, whatever they may be, and find comfort in others who vent about the same things.
Correction: "too short"...
It's early.
Oh, Clare, thank you for sharing. There are simply no words.
I can relate, though. When I had a miscarriage (and I hadn't converted yet) someone told my husband it was God's way of telling us to use birth control. And we only had two children.
Natalie,
Again, I am a sarcastic person, as is my wit. I have a dry sense of humor and I don't take too many things seriously.
We are too peas in a pod!
I need join the peas, please!
I can relate, though. When I had a miscarriage (and I hadn't converted yet) someone told my husband it was God's way of telling us to use birth control. And we only had two children.
OMG. How callous. How can people be so cruel?
I found the part in my heathen Catholic book about JOY. The book is Know Him in the Breaking of the Bread, From pp 175-176. (The bolded emphasis is mine.)
"The General Instrcution is perhaps a trifle naive in saying that the antiphon 'gives evidence of joy of heart'. All too often in our fallen world, Mass must be celebrated in times of tragedy, personal or general, and appalling suffering. A superficial lightheartedness is just callous. Christian joy does not mean jolly music and inane smiles; it may mean weeping with those who weep, as Jesus wept over Jerusalem. It may mean sharing the intense inner wrenching pain of the bereaved, being close to those who are abandoned and lost, providing human comfort for those who feel deserted by God. We must not forget that the first Mass was celebrated in the blood and agony of Calvary. There is a joy, yes, but is is not superficial and cannot be provided at will; it comes often only through tears of pain."
The book is great, by the way, for anyone who's new to Catholicism, or just plain wants to know more about the Mass (whether they're Catholic or not). It's not written in any lofty KJV-esque language. Very down-to-earth and easy to understand. I give it two thumbs up *<}]:o){
(Yeah, the { is supposed to be a thumb. Use your imagination. A lot.)
*<]80D bd
Clown giving two thumbs up?
Clare, I am very sorry for your loss.
I find it more than a little interesting that when asked if anyone has ever actually converted because of a tract, the only answers here were "yes, I converted to Catholicism".
Not exactly what those who hand out tracts want to hear, is it?
I have to admit, I've been very fortunate in my life and I don't ever remember some stranger trying to preach to me or hand me tracts. We had a receptionist once who used to leave them in the bathroom at work though; a lot of trees got killed there because every time I went into the bathroom, there were bunches of them in the garbage can and new ones on the counter. I'd toss the new ones on to of the old ones in the garbage - or someone else would - and the circle would continue.
I get really pissed - yes, pissed, there is no way to sugar coat it - when people put that crap in trick-or-treat bags. It happened several times to relatives and friends. A friend of mine, who lives in a newer subdivision, got 3 of them (well, her kids did) last year. What is up with that? I told her I'd make her up some tracts to promote whatever she wants, so she can leave them on the doorsteps of the arrogant fools who put that crap in her child's candy bag.
I said I'd make one that talks of evolution, or the earth being billions of years old, or that promotes Wicca...anything.
What the hell kind of mindset thinks it is ok to promote their own personal agenda to children who are not theirs?
Obviously, I am so not a fan of tracts, even though I've been fortunate and never had one shoved in my face personally.
Wow Clare!! Now THATS a testinomy! thand you so much for sharing that!
Fist bump to Kentucky and Milehimama, my sister peas.
tia, I've seen several of the "Mary's Tears" tracts in the bathroom of the gas station I worked at. I read it, laughed, and tossed it.
I've read on blogs about families who sit down with their kids and make a family-project out of assembling tracts to hand out on halloween. I agree, it's completely inappropriate. If you want to try to shove it down my throat, that's one thing, but to try to foist it upon my children? Tasteless.
I like the idea of Wiccan tracts.
Fist bump, back!
One my customers just said he would say a prayer for my friend who is sick, but is a nasty, heathen Cath-o-lick! Will his prayer count or should I have said 'don't bother, buddy! You'd be wastin' your breath!'
Enquirin' minds want to know??? Could y'all send me a tract on that?
Well, I am one of those horrible tract people.
I put holy cards in my buddy bags.
But isn't there a material difference between a "soulwinning tract" and a holy card?
A holy card teaches a prayer. The tracts are designed to proselytize (at best) and denigrate the beliefs of others (at worst).
I'm just sayin'
Buddy bags?
Holy cards don't seem as bad as tracts to me, though. I guess the only tract I've ever seen (and over and over; it's someone's favorite, I guess) is the "Mary's Tears" one, and what bothers me so much about that one is that it's actively telling me that I am wrong and hell-bound. Just telling me about your religion doesn't bother me as much as telling me why mine is wrong.
clare, thank you for that beautiful post.
Oh, somehow I always get to see "The Death Cookie".
A buddy bag is a bag lunch with bottled water, juice, granola bar, fruit, etc. that we keep in the car for when we see people with signs on the side of the road.
I'm not always comfortable giving them money, but I try to provide some food and a drink of water.
My friend is a recovering alcoholic, and she doesn't do buddy bags but always gives them money. A long time die hard alcoholic can die from going suddenly cold-turkey, especially if they are in the elements.
I call them buddy bags, because we call the people we give them to our buddies (don't know their name, and "homeless guy" seems undignified.) We pray for our buddies, too, and trust God knows who we are talking about!
"Enquirin' minds want to know??? Could y'all send me a tract on that?"
I'm sure Jack Chick has one in the library. ;op
What the heck is 'Death Cookie'? That sounds like something that was passed out at Jonestown.
I gave a banana/bottle of H2O to a homeless person and he threw it right back at the van. I am thinking he wanted the $$.
Sara
You can view them online.
The Death Cookie
Why is Mary Crying?
Well, Sara, you can't win 'em all!
If anyone else does this, here's my tip o' the week. Avoid apples. People without steady jobs or homes generally lack dental insurance, and their teeth can't handle the tough stuff.
Shall we move over to the new post?
deleted my last comment to correct a typo..
the 'death cookie" is how they refer to the host Catholics take during communion....
Well, heck, just go to Candy's sidebar. She links to them all!
I'll move to the new post.
Was anybody in Candy's Meez room when this person ...somethingin???christ came in and starting stating expletives (like really bad) and accusing of forwarding her e-mails? I think Rudy was in the room?
I know this is now an old post, but I just wanted to say to clare: thank you for writing all of your story. I send you all the best wishes in the world and some loving hugs.
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