By Paul Dion, STLHey, Bro, what sign are you?
Aquarius, dude. You?
Pisces. Slick and smoothe in your wave.
What's your lady's sign?
She's a Scorpio. Good fit, I'll say.
My, my, what is going on here? This is a conversation that I overheard just outside the door of the Adult Confirmation catechism session. Two nice Catholic young men sizing one another up to see if they were going to be able to have a stable and friendly relationship if their Zodiac signs were right. I just shook my head and made a note that the next time I am in the room with this group that I would have a little fun with them about star alignments and what they mean to us...and what they don't mean.
Why would Catholics be intrigued by such fantasies? Would western Catholics have the same "matches" and "mismatches" as eastern ones? Would I be in in trouble if my western "pisces" were to be in conflict with my eastern "ox"?
When I was in parochial school some years ago, we were warned by the nuns that believing in the dictates of the Zodiac was against the first comandment. That didn't stop some of us from checking the horoscope in the newspaper every day to see what was going to happen to us the next day. (We had an evening newspaper.) Our big excuse was that it was only fun. Our big reason was that the stuff we read never happened anyway. I have to admit that a couple of us were more serious about checking out the stars than others.
Our question this week therefore is: "Is it against the first commandment to look to the horoscope for serious "guidance" in our lives?
Don't just say "yes" or "no", give us a reason why you have the opinion that you throw out on the table.
Click here to read the answer to the burning question.
Click here to read the answer to the burning question.
When I was growing up I did not attend any religious education classes, but I did go to Catholic school for 2nd and 3rd grades. I don't remember what I learned about my faith there. However, my aunt taught me early on that all forms of fortune telling was a sin. Indeed it was shown to me in Leviticus somewhere.
ReplyDeleteLev 19:26(ESV) "You shall not eat any flesh with the blood in it. You shall not interpret omens or tell fortunes.
Reason #2 - The Catechism says so, in the section on the first commandment, no less
2116 All forms of divination are to be rejected: recourse to Satan or demons, conjuring up the dead or other practices falsely supposed to "unveil" the future. Consulting horoscopes, astrology, palm reading, interpretation of omens and lots, the phenomena of clairvoyance, and recourse to mediums all conceal a desire for power over time, history, and, in the last analysis, other human beings, as well as a wish to conciliate hidden powers. They contradict the honor, respect, and loving fear that we owe to God alone.
Reason #3 - Exorcists warn against it, and when an exorcist came to speak to the Diocese last year, invited by MFI (go figure-- they have orthodox speakers one day and dissidents the next), he warned against it. Indeed, it is the gateway to infestation and possession...
God Bless,
Laurence Gonzaga
Apologist
Thank you for the well constructed, intelligent answer. It is exactly correct. Check out the ParishWorld.net answer link for the same truth in ever so slightly different language to explain the same truth.
ReplyDeletePaul Dion, STL
ParishWorld.net
I just look to it for amusement so I guess I'm not sinning. But sometimes my actions for the day are guided by what I see in the horoscope. Like buying a lotto ticket if my horoscope says today might be my lucky day. Or putting off an appt if the stars say it's not the best time for a business deal. These things have nothing to do with my belief in God or in my salvation. I kinda believe the horoscope's readings might be part of God's plan for me. So, are these infraction bad enough for me to have to go to confession?
ReplyDeleteJesse:
ReplyDeleteI am a Pisces. I occasionally check out the horoscope to try to figure out why my Pisces son does things. Every now and then, I check it out to see if I should buy a lottery ticket that has odds of 52,000,000 to 1. I don't go to confession about that but I do confess it to God in the examination of conscience before praying Compline.
When I really need help, though, I turn to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob through Jesus.
I am not dependent on business interactions for my bread and butter. I do have to deal with people of all stripes in the name of God every single day. You too, I surmise, have to do the same thing, business deal or not. Stars? Biorhythm? Yoga? Why not prepare your soul and your mind with a favorite Psalm? Why not remember how God took care of Moses?
May I suggest that business deals are God deals? May I suggest that they fall into the category of, "All of the hairs on your head have been counted" and "not a bird falls from the sky without my knowing it." That is true for you and for the person sitting across he table.
If this question has caused you and many others to reflect on these spiritual realities, your renewed intensity of trust in God will cleanse your soul. Your sharing of your discovery of these truths with your fellow Catholics will please God.
By your honesty and public confession, you have already helped more of Christ's disciples than you'll ever know.
Paul Dion, STL
ParishWorld.com
I read the PW "answer"...
ReplyDeleteVery good...
-Laurence