Cafeteria Christianity
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#Supporters see Cafeteria Catholic as intelligent people who refuse to follow unreasonable dogma blindly. | #Supporters see Cafeteria Catholic as intelligent people who refuse to follow unreasonable dogma blindly. | ||
#Opponents believe Cafeteria Catholic are usually ignorant about supposed truths revealed by god and want to rationalise a [[sin]]ful lifestyle. <ref>[http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cafeteria%20catholic Cafeteria Catholic]</ref> | #Opponents believe Cafeteria Catholic are usually ignorant about supposed truths revealed by god and want to rationalise a [[sin]]ful lifestyle. <ref>[http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cafeteria%20catholic Cafeteria Catholic]</ref> | ||
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An alternate, Catholic-specific term to "C and E Christians" is "Lily and Holly Catholics," where the lily refers to [[Easter]] and the holly to [[Christmas]]. | An alternate, Catholic-specific term to "C and E Christians" is "Lily and Holly Catholics," where the lily refers to [[Easter]] and the holly to [[Christmas]]. | ||
Revision as of 08:01, 25 March 2012
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“”Have you ever sat down and read this thing? Technically we're not allowed to go to the bathroom.
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| —Reverend Lovejoy, The Simpsons |
“”These bloggers (Online Cafeteria Christians) are generally self-proclaimed experts with little or no theological training and little or no formal religious upbringing. The basis of their knowledge is what they’ve picked up here and there and made a part of their core beliefs system.
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| — [1] |
The phrase "cafeteria Christian" is a snarl word that can be applied to most followers of Christianity in ordinary society. It implies that the person in question selects which of the principles of Christianity they intend to adhere to and assembles their beliefs from what is available, rather than following the teachings of one particular denomination as a whole. The purpose of the term is to imply a casual support of the faith, without any genuine identification with its principles. It can be argued that cafeteria Christianity is not only commonplace, but actually required in order for the believer to remain a functional member of society, as opposed to fundamentalists like Jack Chick, who are obviously so paranoid and delirious that they cannot function in the real world. Even most "fundamentalists", though, might get into an uproar about some Bible-approved ways of having fun[2]....
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Holidays
Another term used for "lightweight" adherents is "C and E Christian", implying that they only pay attention to Christmas and Easter; notably holidays that pay off in presents and chocolate bunnies. Since "C of E" also refers to the Church of England (i.e. the Episcopalians), this fact provides much opportunity for humorous puns for the supposed worldliness and lack of devoutness in Episcopalians.
Catholicism
The original title of this article was "Cafeteria Catholic", which makes the choice of following or abandoning doctrine clearer, since the Roman Catholic Church has clear-cut rules for its followers. "Cafeteria Catholics" are "Catholics in name only", and ignore any aspects of Church doctrine that inconvenience them (such as proscriptions against birth control).
- Supporters see Cafeteria Catholic as intelligent people who refuse to follow unreasonable dogma blindly.
- Opponents believe Cafeteria Catholic are usually ignorant about supposed truths revealed by god and want to rationalise a sinful lifestyle. [3]
An alternate, Catholic-specific term to "C and E Christians" is "Lily and Holly Catholics," where the lily refers to Easter and the holly to Christmas.
Committed cafeteria Christian
Other cafeteria Christians may be quite committed but they are committed to their own idiosyncratic type of Christianity. Reincarnation may be mixed with more standard Christian concepts for example. Passages from the Bible are quoted that support the distinctive viewpoint of the cafeteria Christian while other passages which contradict that viewpoint are ignored. Bible quotes may be unintentionally misleading because cafeteria Christians do not know enough Theology to understand the real meaning and context of scriptures they use. [4] By contrast selective quoting and selective interpretation of scripture by those who have studied the theology of a denomination in depth is done in a more organised way and follows the Memeplex of that particular denomination.