Indeed, which came first? That reminds me of a slightly worldly chicken and egg joke.

A chicken and an egg are lying in bed. The chicken is smoking a cigarette with a satisfied smile on its face and the egg is frowning and looking a bit upset. The egg mutters, to no-one in particular, "Well, I guess we answered THAT question!"

Sadly enough this is the norm and the question is what came first. Did the clergy water it down or did the people pressure the clergy to water it down.

Good sermon and examples.

I would say that there is little or no zeal in the faith of its members because there is little or no zeal in today's Church. St. John the Baptist, St. Paul, St. Peter and all the rest of the early heroes of the faith would, in my opinion, not recognize what has happened to the Church created by the Son of God and for which they gave their very lives. They would be disgusted with the 'go along to get along' attitude of its clerics, the refusal to boldly (with zeal) … [More]