We are here to answer questions about Catholic dogma, doctrine, teaching, and practices.  We are not here to debate them.  We answer questions; we do not argue about the answers. Certainly if someone has stated something incorrectly a correction should be posted, but it should be taken to private messages first and the original poster should post the correction. If it does have to go public, do it with charity. If necessary, write to a moderator and let us handle it. If your problem is with me, then write to one of the other moderators.

In the Protestant world, when someone disagrees, they find another church. That is not an option for a Catholic. One of the attractive things about the Catholic Church to many Protestants is the unity we offer. When someone shows up here and asks a question and we start arguing about the answer, they feel like they're right back where they started, except with no option to "church hop."

Before you post a message, especially if you have already joined the Catholic Church, think how it will be taken by someone who has little or no knowledge of the Catholic faith except what he's read in Chick tracts or similar anti-Catholic propaganda. Is your message leading them toward the Church, or away from it?

Whether the topic is blessings at mass or the use of condoms or whether we should pray the rosary or kneel before idols, we will do our best to answer all messages accurately, compassionately, and charitably. Personal testimonies are always welcomed.

We are not qualified to judge the sinfulness of any act as we cannot tell the state of a person's mind. We are not God. Also, we are not ordained to sit in place of Christ in the confessional. We may judge an act as inherently evil, but we cannot say in a particular case whether the conditions required for the commission of a mortal sin have been met.

We are here as ministers of God's Word as expressed most fully in the Catholic Church through Sacred Scripture, Sacred Tradition, and Magisterium.  We are not here to denigrate other faiths, but by necessity we must sometimes question their teachings.  We will also honor the good work that they do and the sincere faith of most of their adherents.

If in doubt, ask yourself, "What would Jesus do?"  If you follow his example, your post will be welcomed here.

Once again, the moderators have no objection to disagreements but the matter should first be addressed privately.  We are building a resource here that will be around for years to come, and debate over Catholic teachings does not serve the purpose of bringing people to the Church.