What makes Catholics Catholic?

Question

My boyfriend is catholic and I don't really know anything about his religion. What kinds of things do catholics believe in? Are there rules or traditions i should know about?

Answer 1

Pastor Billy says: the quickest and easiest example of what Catholic's believe and what makes them Catholic is understanding the early Christian Creeds.

The Apostles Creed used primarily in the Western Latin Church was first used as the Baptismal Rite of the Roman Church


I believe in God, the Father Almighty, Creator of Heaven and earth;
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son Our Lord,
Who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into Hell; the third day He rose again from the dead;
He ascended into Heaven, and sitteth at the right hand of God, the Father almighty; from thence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body and life everlasting.
Amen.


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"The Apostles' Creed is so called because it is rightly considered to be a faithful summary of the apostles' faith. It is the ancient baptismal symbol of the Church of Rome. Its great authority arises from this fact: it is 'the Creed of the Roman Church, the See of Peter, the first of the apostles, to which he brought the common faith."

- from the Catechism of the Catholic Church; 194

There is an entire Chapter in the Catholic Church Catechism explaining the Creed in more detail.

I suggest you goto the bookstore and look for a catechism it will provide you with all the answers you need in it you will find all the biblical references to support Catholic belief.


Edit: one last thing please ignore Hox he has an axe to grind, it was the Eastern Orthodox who fell into schism with the One Catholic Church. Contrary to his presentation which attempts to portrary a picture of persecution , Hox neglects to mention the emperor abandoned Rome and moved the center of his dominion to Constantinople. In doing so the Eastern clergy were greatly influenced and manipulated by successive monarches to the point of which they appointed bishops and not the Eastern Church. There was in affect a casario-papism in the East something for which Protestant accusations would be more suited for in the Eastern Church.
Today the Orthodox are divided by nationalism.


Finally a point in history often downplayed or ignored is Eastern empiral armies sacked Rome not once but several times. I really think to be fair to history one must present the broader picture than simply mentioning the sack of Constantinople without the broader details doesn't paint an accurate picture of events it is sad people choose this deception.

Answer 2

There are a lot of people who will scare you into thinking that there is something weird or wrong about being Catholic. Truth is Catholics embrace a wide spectrum of the Christian religion. Catholics make up 2/3 of the world's Christians.

Being Catholic is simply believing in Jesus Christ as your divine savior and redeemer. Believing that Jesus started a church while he was on earth, and that church today is the Catholic Church. (By the way, there were no Protestants until the 16th century.)

Don't let anyone scare you into believing that as a Catholic you'll have to practice all manner of superstitious rituals.

Answer 3

Here are the teachings of the Catholic Church

http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/ccc_toc.htm

be warned though is is well over 1000 pages. Yes there are traditions, rules, and rites, many many. Far to many to possibly explain all here. Read the Catechism (churches teachings.)

Or go to the US Conference of Catholic Bishops website
http://www.nccbuscc.org/

and look around there. Alot of people will give you sites like ewtn (rolls eyes), Fisheaters (rolls eyes and gags) catholic answers, etc. Some of these are barely within the Church and not part of the Church structure.I would go to these offical sites first so there is no misunderstanding when you look at different perspectives on it. If you want the answers go straight to the source not a subsidary (biased) outlet.

Answer 4

A summary of Catholic beliefs is contained in the Nicene Creed (from the year 325):

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen.

We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in being with the Father. Through Him all things were made. For us and our salvation He came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit, He was born of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake He was crucified under Pontius Pilate; He suffered, died, and was buried. On the third day He rose again in fulfillment of the scriptures: He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead, and his kingdom will have no end.

We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son. With the Father and the Son, He is worshiped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

For a complete description of what Catholics believe, see the Catechism of the Catholic Church: http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/index.htm

With love in Christ.

Answer 5

Catholic, means universal. The Roman Christian Church was the largest Christian church for centuries and called themselves the Roman Universal Christian Church. Until recently The RC held to Latin in their books and services because they did not want the change and confusion that has spread amongst those Christian churches that began using books and services in native languages in their protest against the rule of the RC. They were right in saying this practice has caused change and confusion, but they themselves have now added to the confusion by assuming native languages.

This is one reason you will find so many contradictory versions of The Bible.

Answer 6

Depending on what your background is (non-Catholic Christian, non-Christian, non-religious, etc.) there are many ways to answer this.

Since you probably won't read the entire answer, I'll just give you some advice for attending Mass with your boyfriend (assuming you'll probably be going with him).

Mass is highly structured because there are 2,000 years of history behind it. Services are generally very solemn and serious. If you're used to a more loosely-structured form of worship (a "spirit-filled" charismatic assembly or evangelical free, for instance), Mass will feel tight and rigid and excessively ritualistic. For Catholics (well, those of us who get something out of it rather than go through the motions), the Mass is one prayer of worship with many components. That we know the words by heart, and the points when we need to sit, stand or kneel reflects our understanding of the Mass as a form that has deep meaning underlying it. If you just say the words and do the motions, you're missing the meaning.

Consequently, I invite you, when you attend Mass for the first time with him, to just sit and observe, listen to the words spoken, chanted and sung. If you're a Christian (anyone who follows Christ), you'll probably feel comfortable singing the praise songs and you may recognize many of them.

I should note that, if your tradition celebrates the Lord's Supper, you will see a similarlity in the Catholic Eucharist. The form is similar, but the meaning is probably quite different. Where many non-Catholic denominations see Communion as a merely symbolic act, Catholics look to John's Gospel and consider the Eucharist to embody the Real Presence of Christ, and consider partaking in it to be essential. While no one will deny you Communion (at least, they should not, it is not theirs to deny), I admonish you to not take part until you understand what it is you are partaking of.

A more comfortable introduction for you may be to go to a morning service or afternoon Mass (these are often held twice a week at college Newman centers or Catholic Student Centers). These are generally very informal and conversational, and often have lunch afterwards where you can talk with other students.

The easiest way to get information is to contact an RCIA coordinator at his Church. Since RCIA is the means for non-Catholics to enter (convert to) the Catholic Church, make it clear to him or her you're just looking for information at this point, so that it becomes an informational talk rather than a conversion conversation. If you find that the person there is a jerk, please contact me through my avatar and I'll be happy to answer any questions I can for you.

In general, Catholics (like most other Christians) adhere tthe Nicene Creed and believe in:
*One God, omnipotent and triune in nature (Father, Son and Holy Spirit)
* The Father is the Creator
* The Son is Jesus Christ, the Savior, who was and is both fully human and fully divine, and who purchased our sins with His death, and brings us to Eternal Life with Him through His Resurrection
* The Holy Spirit, who speaks through the prophets and moves among the Church
* Jesus will come again, in glory, to judge the living and the dead and establish an unending Kingdom
* Grace is necessary for salvation, because it enables faith
* Baptism, repentance, faith (belief and works) are compliance with that saving Grace
* Scripture is inspired and true, and complete with 46 books of the Old Testament

In ecclesial matters (churchy stuff, rather than personal belief), Catholics have:
* an all-male, celibate priesthood
* multiple levels of ministers, male and female, married and celibate, from deacons to specific ministers to missionaries to ordered clergy and ordered lay people
* a very large network of social service organizations, mission organizations, schools and universities, etc.
* a long and often misunderstood history.

I would implore you to look and read for yourself, and not take too seriously any critical comments you see on here from NON- or EX-Catholics. There is no one who hates what the Catholic Church is, but many who hate what they misunderstand the Church to be.

Answer 7

Read the Apostles Creed and you'll know what Catholics believe in (essentially, the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, forgiveness of sins and the hope of eternal life).

God bless.

Answer 8

You best bet is to go to catholic.com. It is an Catholic apologist that specializes is answering any questions having to do with Catholicism.

Answer 9

Don't listen to some of the answers above ...
I was raised Protestant before I met my husband and converted when our daughter had her 1st Holy Communion.

Go to this website for your answers:

http://www.fisheaters.com/index.html

Answer 10

http://www.fisheaters.com/

http://www.catholic.com/library.asp

These are great sites for learning about what we believe. But the main thing is that we believe the same things that other Christian denominations do.