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Originally Posted by the_marq
Catholics have the best deal, spirituality-wise.
IE:
*they can sin all they want and still be forgiven (at least that's how I understand it)
*Heaven is a great deal. Basically by being a nice guy and going to church once a week I get an eternity of milk and honey. Sweet.
I know I sound facetious, but I am serious. I wish I could be a good Christian, but I just can't muster up the faith, and I kinda envy those who can.
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Eh, I think you're getting Catholics and Protestants a bit confused. In Catholicism, what you do in your life has a very large effect on who you are inside...meaning, you CAN'T sin all you want and then expect to "get to heaven." Now, what "sinning" is depends on what person you speak to in Catholicism. You can speak to a Catholic fundementalist who doesn't like Vatican II at all and learn all about venial and mortal sins, or you can speak to some of the more contemporary Catholic thinkers that I've had my experiences with, who believe Vatican II goes further than the current church is even taking it, and are very accepting of homosexuals and various other things that "stereotypical Catholicism" does not include.
With many protestants, you either have "Grace" or do not...and if you have it, you're saved, no matter what your sins are. Of course, they get around this logical conundrum ("so, Hitler could be in Heaven just by believing Jesus died for his sins?") by saying anyone who HAS Grace would naturally do many good deeds.
Thus, the stereotype of "Catholic guilt." It
does matter what kind of person you are. Now, what kind of person you ought to be is entirely dependant on which of the varied lines of thought within Catholicism you identify with. There is only one "official" stance...but you'd be surprised at the variations in progressive thought among priests, theologians, and so forth - all within the Catholic Church.
My experience while learning about the facets of Catholic thought, especially in the more contemporary sense, is that the majority of people have a severe misunderstanding of how Catholicism works, including most Catholics themselves. Not that I'm some genius of course, but my active questioning and learning, I believe, has lead me further in understanding than most Catholics care to go in their lifetime.
Oh, as for me, my second choice would be non-theistic Buddhism.