Bless me father, for I have sinned,Accept my prayer, I need you to rescind,The problems of my past, playing on my soul,Fill me with hope and fill the hole,The void I feel in my heart,That missing piece, that work of art,That can only come from God above,I need you to teach me the ways of love,As i've lost my way and languished in lust,Forgive me I beg you, I need your trust,as i've loved and lost many times,Please absolve me from my crimes,Only you, oh priest ordained,Can shake the shackles of my heart, that's chained,To a notion of heaven, not here on earth,As I look to you to measure my worth
updated by @darren: 03/07/15 12:17:15AM

Those are nice thoughts Darren. Did you write that based on a Catholic prayer, or is it a traditional Catholic prayer.Please excuse my ignorance, I am not Catholic. The first line is something I have heard before many times on TV, so now I am curious.


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Ken Rich
https://kenrich.me

wow thats a quick reply Ken, thanks. Well forgive me but i'm not a catholic either. I meant to highlight the way a catholic might place more faith in their priests than God himself. I put myself in the position as if I were a catholic. The words came from within me even though I have no doubt been influenced by many teachings and experiences over the years. Hope I don't offend anyone. Thanks again for your reply.

That's an interesting theme. I guess it was lost on me since I don't know enough about the real Catholic prayers and poems, to distinguish them from those meant to express a type of criticism or sarcasm.The first thing I thought of (when you told me of your poems intent) was the sad situation of Father Hickey . He was a Catholic Priest in Newfoundland (where I am from), who was convicted of raping altar boys. His case was quickly followed by the infamous Mount Cashel sex abuse scandal. The movie " The Boys of St. Vincent " was based on it.I have sometimes thought about the people who believe that these pedophiles (and those who protect and cover up for them) are close to God, and have the power to absolve them of their sins.Even after the shocking scandal which uncovered decades of abuse and cover up by Catholic Priests and Prelates, many ordinary Catholics still refuse to believe the Church or it's officials are corrupt. They persist in denial, despite reams of evidence to the contrary.Matthew 7:16 You will know them by their fruit.


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Ken Rich
https://kenrich.me

Thanks for your thoughts Ken. I wrote that poem some time ago and did it in a matter of minutes. It seemed as easy as writing a love poem, and wasn't meant as such to discriminate against catholics, merely an observation from one who at times is disillusioned by the catholic 'faith'. As you know faith and religion are two different things and I have grave misgivings about the catholic religion and where it is trying to lead its followers. Again, I am not attacking catholics I just think they should have more faith and put it in places more worthy than mere human beings that feign to do gods work, after all we all do gods work and are no more and no less human beings than the other, yet the pope is revered by hundreds of thousands, why? He's just a man with no greater gift than the rest of us.

I hear where you are coming from Darren.I also love the Catholic people, in fact, some of my best friends are Catholic. It's the system I find fault with, not the people - the institution, not those deceived by it.However, I am aghast, at how trusting and easily manipulated some people within the system are. They exhibit blind faith in fallible men and a failed institution. No matter what vile crimes are committed by these "wolves in sheep's clothing", they remain untainted, in the eyes of millions of people.Even a cursory examination of history reveals an institution steeped in centuries of vice, scandal, violence, heresy, and mass murder. The inquisitions alone should be enough to turn anyone's stomach, let alone quench their faith in this corrupt power.The traditional Protestant view for 3 centuries (today most Protestants are teaching a counter-reformation Jesuit doctrine) was that the Papacy is the anti-Christ system, we were warned about in scripture. Yet they practice and prosper to this day, despite being exposed in the mass media, as anything but Christian in their conduct and internal regulations - it's almost unbelievable, stranger than fiction, more bizarre than a Hollywood plot.I'm glad you shared that poem, it highlights something that deserves our attention.


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Ken Rich
https://kenrich.me

Thank you for sharing your very insightful thoughts Ken, I could no doubt learn a lot from you.

It is plain to see that like many "christians" there is a theological ignorance that is not the fault of believers, but their shepherds that mislead with half truths, and self exaltation that results in seperating heart felt believers, one from another. You should not comment on something you clearly don't understand and instead admit confusion, and ask questions, "come let us reason together" Amen?

every catholic knows the priest does not forgive sins, but those precepts are founded in scripture, like James 5:13 through16. Have you ever told a friend a secret, and immedietly felt BETTER?

If christianity was defined by being perfect and without sin, you, me, and everyone on the planet would wind up in hell. It is about a perfect Savior, and that to the relief of us ALL! We need to come together as believers, and not do satans work. Scripture is essential to any discussion having to do with God, and His followers. "endeavor to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is only ONE body, and ONE Spirit etc. etc. Ephesians 4:3 thru 7 Lets lay aside ego, and vanity believing that some of us have God all figured out, it goes against THE BIBLE! who has known the mind of God? and who can counsel the Lord?