[blueerica]

While I think that many Catholics today practice so out of a true desire to devote themselves to God, from the Pope on down; however, from what research I have done (a.k.a. not a lifetime's work, but enough to suffice for a few projects), I cannot believe that it was always done without a profit/power motive.

Much of this, of course, has caused my agnosticism. I do not claim I am right, because I cannot know. Besides research, I have other reasons and personal faith explorations that have led me to this point.

On the other hand, faith is something that can hardly be argued. For if one truly believes, existence and meaning of a God or gods is known only in oneself, or so I've figured all these years. I hardly mean to quarrel about religion because how do I argue against it (outside of empirical evidence I feel points to a lack of a "god," but hey, that's me and I still don't know and refuse atheism because... well, because I can't know). It's a conclusion we all come to by circumstance.

Or so my opinion goes...

And Tref, I am truly fascinated with your line of discussion, and am not offended in the slightest. If I were, I'd feel like I was going against myself... somehow.