Becoming a Catholic?

Question

I'm hoping some of you can answer some of my questions reardomg becoming a Catholic.

Background: I'm 37, was raised agnostic (never baptised!), attended Mass many times with friends or alone.

Over the last 10 years, have attended services in Episcopal and Lutheran churches. I've concluded that there is not church in which I feel more connected to God, more vulnerable, more open to Jesus' teachings, than in a Catholic Church.

1. Why did you become a Catholic? (Why do you remain a Catholic?)

2. What teachings/practices in the Church do you struggle with? How do you deal with these struggles?

3. I find that my views regarding abortion, the death penalty, and war are consistent with Church teachings, but my views regarding gay rights are not. Is this o.k.?

4. I am married and have two young daughters. How might the Church embrace them/meet their needs, etc.?

5. What are the initial steps to becoming a Catholic?

Thank you very much

I guess I'll have to sift through the high school answers in hopes of getting one good one.

I do not believe it is realistic to expect gays and lesbians to be celibate, like the Church teaches.

Answer 1

EDIT: OK, here are my answers.

1. I was born and raised Catholic. I've remained Catholic because I am convinced that it is the one true Church established by Jesus Christ. Also, I love the rich tradition of the Church - not only the liturgy, but also art, music, literature, philosophy, and theology. The Church has had a profound impact for the good on world history, especially in the west.

2. I'm a pretty docile guy, so I don't really struggle so much with the teachings of the Church. Confession makes me nervous sometimes, but generally, I go at least once a week, nervous or not.

I do get frustrated with priests, bishops, and theologians who misrepresent or distort the Church's teachings, but I know that the Church still belongs to Jesus, and He is more than capable of taking care of everything.

3. I do not agree that the Church "encourages" dissent. The Church does encourage Her members to follow their consciences, but, at the same time, reminds us that we have an obligation to form our consciences properly. Catholics have a responsibility to uphold and respect the teachings of the Church - even those that are difficult and unpopular.

As you begin and continue on your journey into the Church, I would advise you to have an on-going discussion with a priest about any area of Church teaching that you find hard to accept.

4. Is your wife interested in becoming Catholic? If not, I suggest that you keep her informed on your faith journey. I recommend this only because it will be good for your relationship if she understands what you are doing. Also, if she is not interested in becoming Catholic, what about the children? The two of you will have to reach some kind of agreement about whether or not they will come into the Church.

I would think that you could expect the parish to welcome your family, even if they don't come into the Church with you. I know more than a few examples of a Catholic spouse and a non-Catholic spouse, and frequently, the non-Catholic will attend Mass weekly with the Catholic spouse and consider himself to be part of the parish, even though he's not Catholic.

5. The first step is to go to a Catholic Church and to speak to a priest. He'll tell you what to do from there.

I'll say a prayer for you on your journey!

Answer 2

1. Why did you become a Catholic? (Why do you remain a Catholic?)

I have been a Catholic all of my life. I remain a Catholic because the Catholic faith is a source of great comfort, joy, and peace. I also like the emphasis of the catholic faith on the community and social justice.

2. What teachings/practices in the Church do you struggle with? How do you deal with these struggles?

I deal with my struggles by studying and trying to understand the reason for the teachings.

3. I find that my views regarding abortion, the death penalty, and war are consistent with Church teachings, but my views regarding gay rights are not. Is this o.k.?

I think that it is ok to question the views of the Catholic Church while still obeying the Church authorities.

4. I am married and have two young daughters. How might the Church embrace them/meet their needs, etc.?

Many churches have social programs for children including organized sports and social groups for junior high and high school students. Many churches sponsor a Girl Scout troop. Ask at the front desk of the church office.

5. What are the initial steps to becoming a Catholic?

Go to the front office of the church and tell them that you are interested in becoming a Catholic. They will either direct you to the pastor or to the head of the religious education department. There are a series of classes called RCIA (Rite of Christian Intiation for Adults) that will prepare you for becoming a Catholic.

Feel free to contact me with any questions.

Answer 3

1) I've been a Catholic my whole life. In studying Catholic Doctrine, I believe the Church does possess the Fullness of the Truth and is, thus, the One True Holy Universal and Apostolic Church.

2) None.

3) To profess oneself as Catholic, one is embracing all of the Catholic Church's beliefs and practices, not just the ones one chooses to accept.

Catholic Doctrine is not subject to line-item veto.

It's not uncommon for a given person to struggle with certain elements of Cathlic Doctrine. If you believe the Church to be correct in it's teachings regarding abortion, death penalty, war, then why/how can the Church go so wrong about homosexuality?

My adive here would be to continue seeking conversion into the Catholic Church, despite your struggle with the Church's views on homosexuality. In the meantime, learn all you can about why the Church believes what it believes when it comes to this subject. In time, if you really want to embrace Catholicism, you will see the Justice behind the Doctrine you currently struggle with.

The worst thing you could do right now is allow this struggle to derail your conversion to Catholicism. Don't make that mistake.

4) The Church will embrace your family with the same love and charity it is ready to embrace you with.

5) You must go to a local Catholic parish and tell the priest you wish to convert. He will help you enroll it the parish's RCIA program. RCIA is the Rite of Christian initiation for Adults. The program will include instruction of Catholic beliefs and practices and reception of any of the Sacraments you need to join the Church. They include Baptism (if you have not already been Baptized in a non-Catholic Christian denomination), first Holy Communion, and finally Confirmation.

Good luck with everything.

Answer 4

1. I am just like you, I attended Catholic Church with my husband (who is Catholic) and friends, raised agnostic also, but I always felt like something was missing from my life, until I went to Catholic Church. I had my void filled by the teachings and readings and the music.
2. I really haven't struggled with any of the teachings and practices mostly because my husband was raised Catholic and was able to answer my questions. I also had a sponser that is a PSR teacher.
3. Like you said, they are guidelines...you are not forced to believe anything.
4. I am married and have a 5 year old son that I had Baptized when he was 1. I was Baptized 2 years later. My son goes to Catholic school and loves it. It is such a warm, embracing environment that can really teach the children right from wrong and how to live life faithfully and kind. I cannot see anything wrong with raising your children to appreciate the Church's teachings.
5. I started taking adult RCIA classes which took about 9 months and was Baptized and Confirmed and took my first Communion on Easter Saturday. Talk to the church of your choice and see about starting classes.

Good luck and Enjoy life!

Answer 5

1. I became Catholic after a long and exhaustive search for God’s truth. I finally found His truth and His Church when I attended RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults). It was when I learned of the Holy Eucharist that I converted.

I remain Catholic because I know the Catholic Church is the original, true Church founded by Christ 2,000 years ago. She was given authority to teach, govern, and protect the Faith. She was given the keys to the kingdom of heaven, the sacraments, and the Holy Mass. I can go nowhere else to experience the true, real, literal presence of Jesus Christ than at the Mass. It is the most profound, loving, mysterious, holy event on earth. When I go to Mass, I know I am experiencing heaven on earth.

2. My conversion was 2 years ago at the age of 30 and I’m still studying and learning. I can’t think of any particular teaching that I struggle with; I accept all of the teachings of the Church, and those that I don’t understand I take on faith, then I STUDY and PRAY for understanding. My real struggles are with my sins. I have bad habits that I continually fight with and that I am trying to overcome. I know that with God’s grace eventually I will.

3. I don’t know what you’re views are on gay rights, but I do know that the Church teaches we are to love and accept everyone, even homosexuals. All are welcome in God’s house because all are sinners. Homosexuals have their trials just like we have ours.

4. The Church is the absolute best thing imaginable that you can do for yourself and your daughters. I cannot begin to tell you the healing that has taken place in my life because of the Church. I’m finally learning what marriage is, what it means in the Church. I’m learning the correct ways to judge things, personal responsibility, moral judgment, love and respect for others. There are so many blessings… If you want to give your family the best start in life that you can, there is no better place than the Church. Money and jobs come and go, but the Church is always there.

5. As an adult, you will need to attend RCIA. This is where you will learn the Faith. From there you will sacramentally enter the Church through baptism and confirmation. Speak with a priest for help in this matter; he’ll be glad to assist.

By the way, God bless you, and welcome home.

Answer 6

1. I was raised Catholic. When I was old enough to choose for myself, I looked around and found that the Catholic Church answered all my questions.

2. The hardest teaching is to love your enemies. Do you love the terrorists who flew planes into the twin towers? This is advanced Christianity.

3. We all struggle with God's will. Even Jesus struggled with God's will in the Garden. The Bible is filled with people wrestling with God. This is okay. God does not want robots. He (or She) created us as thinking and feeling beings.

Also make sure you know the Church's real position on gay rights. It might surprise you.

4. If you choose, the Church will also embrace your daughters through the same love, baptism. and education she offers to you.

5. If you are interested in joining or just learning more about the Catholic Church, contact your local parish and ask about information about their RCIA Inquiry group.

You can go and ask any questions you want.

This is the first step in RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) but you can stop at any time.

There is no obligation to become a Catholic.

With love and prayers in Christ.

Answer 7

I'm not Catholic but I believe that I can answer some of your questions.

1. If I had to live/work somewhere where there was no Confessional Lutheran Church, the RCC would be my next choice. Their doctrine is very similar to ours on most things.

2. I better not answer this one.

3. There are also some things that I disagree with in my Church, but as an active member, I must concede to the rules of my Church. But I don't have to agree.

4. Churches often have Sunday School, Parochial Schools, and Youth Programs. If your parish doesn't, then it should.

5. Talk to the Priest, you will likely have to take some instruction. This is so that you understand doctrine, and can join, knowing what you are joining. You will have to be baptized. Additional instruction may be required before you can be admitted to the Eucharist.

Hope this helps

Mark

Answer 8

1. I was a catholic since birth and remained one because of the awesome network and social justice stance of the church.
2. I sometimes struggle with doubt about the exsistence of God. But I look around my community and church and I know that there is no way this is a sham or conincidence
3. The catholic church does accept gays but not gay actions, it is okay to not accept everything. I belive that life issues and issues regarding personal morality are more important to have a catholic stance on then gays (this is my opinion not Church's)
4. The chruch accepts everyone who walks through the doors! Your children will be welcome to join in youth activites and your wife can participate in church activites too. If they are not apart of the church the only thing they can't do is recive communion.
5. R.C.I.A. -Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults is the way the church welcome converts. Your local church should have this ministry, if not talk to the pastor about another local parish that does. It is ussualy a 2-year program. It might include meetings, retreats and discussions. You will need a sponsor to guide you through the process, someone who is fully initiated catholic (Don't worry if you can't find someone! The head of the program ussualy has a list of people who can't wait to help you on your journey!) After a year or two of preperation, on easter sunday vigal you will recive the sacraments of Baptism, Communion, and Confirmation.

Good Luck!!

Answer 9

I can't answer many of these questions very well. I was raised in a Protestant church that accepted other believers as true believers. I have many Catholic friends, and we love each other. However, I have a real problem with any denomination, Catholic or Protestant, that overtly states that only members of its church are truly Christians. There is no biblical basis for this statement.

Having said that, let me be clear that since I'm not Catholic, I don't think I have any business criticizing that church. This does not make the individuals in the Catholic church wrong, or bad, or anything. I simply don't agree with all of the doctrines their church leadership teaches...and as such, I'd hesitate to expose my children to that teaching during an impressionable stage in their lives. It also troubles me that if your daughters became Catholic and wanted to marry a Protestant, they would be told that either their husband must convert, or their marriage would not be valid.

What I struggle with both within the more rigid branches of Protestant demoninations and the more hard-line side of the Catholic church is a lack of recognition of God's overwhelming and completely undeserved grace for all those who decide to follow His Son.

I have found within every denomination I've studied that there are groups of people who understand and embrace the concept that we are all imperfect and all equally covered by God's grace. I have also found within every denomination there are those who are so bound by laws and rules that they've forgotten that all of us fall short of God's grace. That is, they've forgotten that we've been given mercy, and are expected to show mercy to others. Unforgiving Christians do much to harm the faith explorations of other people.

I also have a real problem with any denomination that governs its followers with anything that can't be fully and contextually backed up by scripture (rather than tradition, an extra book, what a leader says regardless of its biblical accuracy, etc.) This again is not a statement about Catholicism...many denominations struggle with this. Every church has its own traditions - but if following those traditions is the ruler by which your salvation is measured, watch out.

So...here's my approach...the stated doctrine of a denomination is important, and should be taken into account, but the local leadership of the church will have a greater impact on the faith walk upon which you and your family embark. Talk in depth to those who lead the local church, and express these questions to them. How doctrine is applied, and how faith is taught, by the local church leaders is far more important than the broader doctrines put forth by the denomination. I spent 35 years in what most consider a very rigid and legalistic denomination, and found almost without exception that the local pastors and leaders were far more moderate - and closer to Christ's teachings - than the actual doctrinal statements.

I left that church when the ability of local leaders to interpret Scripture and follow God's direction (rather than orders from up the ladder) began to be severely curtailed. "Local autonomy" is something else to ask about. How rigidly are your church's leaders expected to pass on denominational teachings?

You might find it helpful to do a comparative analysis of different denominations, looking at the key points of their beliefs, how they regard people of other churches and how they regard people who are not in a church. I put some links below that might help you with this. Use your own judgement on some of these...

Ultimately, how you approach your faith walk will have more impact on your family than anything else. Read, and read some more. Compare everything you're told with what the Bible says, and pray as you seek answers. You are already a discerning person. The more you study and pray, the more discerning you will become.

Godspeed, my friend.

Answer 10

-I became Catholic cuz my family decided so, I am Italian. My granmother who was from former Yugoslavia also converted to Catholic because her family was Serbian Orthodox but doe to geographical issues they moved to Croatia. Croatia during the IIWW was epurated by the SErbs and not-Catholics and who had no conversion certificate was killed by the Ustashi guards (this is documented see Bishop STEPINAC and ANTE PAVLIC). So it just happend to be to become Roman Catholic.
-All the practices are part of my heritage and im very string with pholosophy and theology, unfortunally I find today only few priests that are really expertize and competent to keep up with the dogma of faith and many follow the practices according to how they feel and not to the original messages (which is also different from school to school)
-I disagree with many views that are more political that real views related to the original Christianism and Catholicism , more related to conviniency and diplomacy then faith/ I totally disagree with the influence of the Church bureocracy and hyerarchy in social life:about divorce/ homosexuality/abortions and sexual abuse: violence on women-minors (males and females).
-question #4 u should direct it to the Vatican?Till now the church didnt meet none of my needs...God Jesus and the Holy Ghost eventually did.
-Get Baptized, get the Holy Communion, go to Mess every Sunday and bless ur holidays, respect the 10 Commendaments, Confirm your faith thru the Confirmation, get married in the Church and baptize your kids as Catholic.
*PS: follow the Pope and all what he decide, if you disagree with the Church decision you get excommunicated.
If you are divorced or you had an abortion you are not intitled to get the Holy Communion. Please before decide what you want to be read the VATICAn Encyclical letters.

I didnt CONFIRM my faith with the Catholic Confirmation of Faith because I disagree with the Vatican Politics and decisions. I pray as a Catholic but I am no more praticant.