Is this true?

What does sassafras root taste like? I know that sassafras is used in cajun cooking but I've never tasted or even seen it. What do they use of the birch?

I don;t know the answer to either of those, I'm sorry. I can send some RootBeer your way if you like.

Well, if it's a soft drink then you needn't bother, but thanks for the offer anyway Mike.
American cuisine is interesting, I have six or seven American cookery books (three of them cajun).

paying to receive sacraments/church services is reminiscent of medieval abuses

it also sounds like simony

i think this is a very serious issue

did we learn nothing from the reformation?

princess_ballet said:

Maybe you should tell that to the churches in France and other places in Europe (I know Notre Dame for sure) that charge people for confession.

My friend was just over there and said she wanted to pull a "Jesus in the temple" and start over turning stuff.

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If they are really charging for confession, than that would be a classic case of simony and someone really should pull a "Jesus in the temple" (Though don't blame me if you wind up in a jail that only serves french fries and french bread ).

However, you want to be careful you're not getting confused by a technicality or a language barrier. If they simply have a donation box with a suggested donation amount listed on the side, and you aren't actually forced to pay in order to get a confession, and the priest doesn't know who gives what if anything, that's not simony, that's just soliciting donations. Sounds like a technicality, but it'd be important in evaluating whether or not it was a sin according to Catholic theology.

Another thing is I think that the French government actually owns the Catholic Church buildings there as the result of various revolutions and such. That could play a factor in charging for tours and such (Which aren't, after all, masses or sacraments).

It still doesn't seem right. To be honest, I'm uncomfortable with offertory collections, let alone all this type of stuff. Money is something that should be kept at arm's length from religious services. I know places have to raise money to stay open, but anonymous donation boxes or envelopes you can pick up and mail in, maybe a way to donate online via credit card, etc. seem a little bit better than the "in your face" approach a lot of places employ. I know it never goes over well when priests or pastors try to encourage people to donate more from the pulpit.

Elysium said:

paying to receive sacraments/church services is reminiscent of medieval abuses

it also sounds like simony

i think this is a very serious issue

did we learn nothing from the reformation?

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What's going on in Germany doesn't sound like simony to me, because you're not being asked to pay anything, you're being asked to be honest on a form, and the government will re-direct any existing taxes you pay without levying any additional ones. It's different from a straight forward fee. However, it still may be wrong, even if it's not simony. I feel a little lost commenting too much on the state of the European Church, though, especially where it intertwines with church-state relations and national tax laws. There's a lot of history over there and things work very different in some countries when it comes to this stuff.

I think Fish and Bread has it right.

Notre Dame is indeed belonging to the French nation, not the church and to help pay for its upkeep those wandering into the Church to look at it [ and it's well worth visiting ] are asked to pay up . It is not intended that those attending Services should have to pay - but how do you tell rubber-neckers from those actually entering the church to pray ? Often there are queues waiting to get in

This makes me glad that church and state are separate over here. The government has no business being the bag man for the Church. It leads to bad things.

From my understanding, this is not just a Catholic thing there, but the same tax is levied against Protestants and Jews as well for the care of their religious buildings, etc.

As has been mentioned, it's not the refusal to pay the tax that is the problem, it's doing so by publically disavowing the Catholic faith. Schism or apostacy is not justified in order to save some money.

That being said, I think there should be a way for the donation to be made voluntary and not conditioned on apostacy.

From my understanding with the cathedrals in France, you are required to make a donation prior to receiving confession. It has nothing to do with entering the church building.

Tallguy88 said:

This makes me glad that church and state are separate over here. The government has no business being the bag man for the Church. It leads to bad things.

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The Establishment Clause is a wonderful, wonderful thing!

Notre Dame de Paris is not a Parish Church so Baptisms , Marriages etc are not celebrated there as they would be in a parish. However Masses and Vespers are served there regularly and Confessions are available there every day.

If Confessions are charged for I would really really be surprised, and perhaps it would be worth checking with the Authorities .

In Lourdes - with 2 Basilicas and a whole building dedicated to the hearing of confessions , confessions are freely available .

When I visited France, Notre Dame Cathedral, as well as other shrines we visited such as Lourdes and in Lisieux, there was a box for a free will offering.

Notre Dame is a historical site and must be maintained according to law, and so there may be some government funding to do this.

The buildings require a power wash every 10 years or something, because they begin to turn black.

Jim

JimR-OCDS said:

The buildings require a power wash every 10 years or something, because they begin to turn black.

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