I'm in my RCIA course but I'm having serious doubts about the whole thing. Are there any Catholics who don't agree with everything that Catholicism or the church stands for? What can I do to get rid of these doubts? I'm having doubts about everything from the trinity to the Marian doctrines.
2007-12-20 06:20:49 · 41 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
A word of encouragement. Up until 11 years ago I believed the trinity was something invented by the Roman Catholic church and that it had no biblical foundation. In fact, I was convinced it came from pagan origins. I denounced it with passion. And then I became a Christian. What changed my thinking? The Holy Spirit showed me the beauty, the person of Christ as God incarnate, to be worshiped as we worship God Almighty. All three are in perfect harmony. They have always been. They always will be. In the beginning was the Word and... you know the rest. Pray for the Holy Spirit to lead, guide and direct you.
Faith is a gift. But, in order to receive a gift you have to empty your hands. We all doubt, we all wonder if we're on the right path. Just don't doubt God, Jesus or the Holy Spirit. Open up. Ask and you shall receive. Knock and the door will be opened. Just keep asking and just keep knocking! Don't quit!
There was a time when I abandoned God, but he never abandoned me. Neither will he abandon you if you are His.
2007-12-20 08:54:34 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 3⤊ 0⤋
Catholic Crusader wrote a very good answer, and I don't want to detract from it, but perhaps add a few personal thoughts...
Catholicism has suffered in the past few decades by what has been termed "cafeteria Catholicism" - I'll take a little of this doctrine, none of that, some of this... The problem with picking and choosing is that everyone else has the same right. If you don't like Marian doctrine, then remove it. In kind, I could remove doctrine I don't like. What we end up with is a fragmented faith - a group of people that don't believe in a consistant faith. That's not what Jesus established in the Gospel and not what we were promised would stand against Hell. Jesus said He would build His Church, not His many churches or His church with various personal beliefs.
I know that sounds harsh, but its true. If you've gotten through the harsh part (thank you!), I can add some sweetness to the bitter pill - the answers to your doubts are out there.
Very well-meaning priests, nuns, RCIA teachers, and other people are just that - people. Peter made some pretty huge mistakes and still was chosen by Christ, so I think we have to accept that very devout, faithful people can still be wrong or be ignorant of certain things.
If you aren't getting "fed", that doesn't mean you're in the wrong place. Those very human people just may not know what you need or know the right answers to tell you. There are some great resources you can review to help you answer questions. Here are a few of my favorites:
1) Catholic Answers library - a lengthy collection of question-and-answer documents about the faith. I particularly recommend the booklet "Pillar of Fire, Pillar of Truth" as a launching point. http://catholic.com/library.asp
(PoF, PoT: http://www.catholic.com/library/Pillar.asp )
2) Salvation History - Catholics study the Bible every week at Mass, whatever other's tell you. If you aren't getting something meaningful at your parish, there are alternatives, like Scott Hahn's excellent studies.) http://www.salvationhistory.com/
3) Peter Kreeft - a collection of articles and lectures by a Catholic philosopher, apologist, and author. He's a C. S. Lewis and Tolkein expert and a very sincere believer. http://peterkreeft.com/home.htm
Pray, study Scripture, pray some more, and think logically about what's presented. God will lead you to the Truth if you let Him, and if you're willing to accept HIs truth, whether you personally like it or not.
God bless you!
2007-12-20 06:43:51 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 0⤋
No it's not wrong, as a matter of fact our priest spoke to our rcia class last year about it not being an all or nothing issue. And for a matter of fact I'm currently going through counceling in prep for a marriage, but since the dioceese where the paperwork has been transfered is so understaffed our priest has suggested we do a civil service and have a Catholic wedding after(we are talking 2 years here). Keep in mind there are lots of human circumstances in this case and in many others. However if you're having "serious" doubts then you really need to check in with your priest. Being iffy on a couple of points is one thing, but doubting the trinity etc and the big teachings of our faith may mean this isn't for you. Don't commit yourself to soemthing you don't have in your heart completely.
2007-12-20 09:53:40 · answer #3 · answered by L H 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I'm a Catholic, and I don't understand all of the Church's teachings. On the other hand, the Church has been right about everything else, which is why I am willing to give her the benefit of the doubt on a few matters.
When we say that the Church is inerrant, that means that the proclaimed doctrine of the Church is not wrong or in error. It does not mean we know everything there is to know. Part of the work of the Church is to continue to rethink Jesus' teachings and discover their implications.
An early case of such rethinking is the recognition of the Trinity. All the data was there, but Christians in the first century had not yet arrived at a full understanding that the one God, creator of the universe, has three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. All the evidence is in the Bible, but the Church had to put it all together.
In the same way, the Church is still collecting, sifting, and clarifying ideas, especially in response to new technologies like cloning or in vitro fertilization. The notion of limbo is being discarded.
Nothing forbids the Catholic laity from participating in this work of reflecting on Jesus' teachings and reformulating them in the 21st century. We have many fine Catholic thinkers on this site who can help you understand areas in which you have doubts.
Cheers,
Bruce
2007-12-20 07:04:43 · answer #4 · answered by Bruce 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Catholicism is sometimes difficult to understand. There are many documents, not only Catholic, that support and explain the Marian Doctrines. When you ask questions such as these in an open Q & A you will get answers that may add to your confusion. I would suggest you speak to a priest. They are very knowledgable and willing to share that information. Some things are a matter of faith. If you Google these things you will find a wealth of information as well. May God Bless and Keep You on Your Quest! Merry Christmas!
2007-12-20 06:46:10 · answer #5 · answered by tampagramma 3 · 5⤊ 0⤋
There is room for disagreement on some of the finer points -- such as whether you ever seek the intercessory prayers of a saint -- and you can outright disagree on some issues as long as your actions are in obedience to the Church (for example, you can disagree about artificial birth control as long as you don't use it and don't try to convince other people to use it).
But major doctrines like the trinity are pretty well set in stone. At every Mass, we acknowledge the trinity when we say the Nicene Creed. You would either have to lie and say you believed in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit or you would have to not say the Creed and thus remove yourself from communion with the Church.
You don't say exactly what the nature of your doubts are, so I don't know exactly what advice to give you, but you should continue to study, pray and read as much as you can. Maybe in time, you will grow in your understanding on these important issues.
2007-12-20 07:48:32 · answer #6 · answered by sparki777 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Boy, are you gonna get suggestions here!!!
Here's the real deal. How possible is it for 100% of the people in any religion to believe 100% of what that religion says 100% of the time?
It's not. If you talked to every Catholic you know, your get a differant take on the religion. That goes for Baptists, jehovahs Witnesses, all of them.
If you're looking for perfection, you ain't going to find it in any religion. Also, I think you're on the wrong planet.
Look at this:
"In the November 13, 1995 issue of Christianity Today, page 31, in an article about Bill Graham it says: "Questions about the authority of Scripture had been troubling the young preacher (Billy Graham) for weeks. Knowing that the matter must be settled in his mind if he ever hoped to preach with authority and power, he wrestled with his doubts until he was able to pray; 'Oh God, I cannot prove certain things. I cannot answer some of the questions my friends are asking. [Yet, here and now I am ready to accept the Bible] by faith as the Word of God.
Graham was wrestling with fact that he couldn’t “prove certain things” and he could not “answer some of the questions” his friends were asking. And “[Yet, here and now I am ready to accept the Bible] by faith as the Word of God”
Religion, including the Catholic Church is BS. The reason you are having doubts is that you realize that you can't prove anything your saying. There is no proof that God wrote the Bible, on which your church is based.
Religion invented faith because it has no facts!
2007-12-20 07:31:24 · answer #7 · answered by isnrblogdotcalm 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Hey there!
It is not wrong to doubt at all, often it is a means which leads us to a greater discovery of truth. However, you should discern if your doubting is due to bias. Unfortunately I think there are a few things that keep most people from becoming catholic:
1. Bias.
2. Ignorance of what the church teaches and ignorance of church history.
3. Misunderstanding of catholic teaching or someone who has done a bad job of properly orchestrating what exactly the church teaches.
4. Catholics whom don't live their faith very well, do not understand church teaching, or do not abide by the faith.
Having said that there are quite a few resources you could look to to address some of your doubts. There are many good books you could try reading such as: Rome Sweet Home by Scott Hahn or Suprised by Truth (unsure who authored this, but I have read it and it is exemplary). Also here are some websites you could visit that have some great articles and a variety of issues:
www.catholiceducation.org (my personal favorite)
www.catholic.com
www.ewtn.com
And this one especially is geared toward protestants whom have many questions about catholicism:
http://www.chnetwork.org/ewtn.htm
I will pray that God will guide you with his peace and loving presence into the welcome arms of his beloved Church.
2007-12-20 06:56:17 · answer #8 · answered by Spiffs C.O. 4 · 1⤊ 1⤋
No. There are Cardinals (the people right below the Pope in authority) who believe that priests should be able to marry. These priests didn't hide these beliefs to become Cardnials, they are known to have these views yet still became Cardinals. How? Because even though they personaly believe this, and likely get into arguements with others in authority that the rules should be changed, they have never disobeyed and ordanied a married man priest, or presided over a priest getting married. They obeyed and followed the teachinng of the Church. A stated, the meaning of catholic is universal. It is the belief that Christ instituted the Catholic Church and we should walk the path together to discover the truth about what Christ wants us to do. Our understanding is not, and will never be perfect, in this world. But we can continually improve. The notion that the Catholic Church has never changed is false. It has changed, and likely will change again, as we more fully discern what God wants us to do. But when we change, it will be as one body. And as one body, we will take another step closer. Having said that, however, there are a few things that are "musts" to be a Catholic, or any Christain denomination for that matter. You obviously must believe that Christ is the Son of God. That just about brings you into believing the Mystery of the Trinity, though there are denominations like the Mormons who are in an "in between" position on that. A good place to start to see if you believe enough to agree with core Catholic teachings is to review and understand the Nicene Creed (link below). If you don't believe this, than perhaps you should look at another faith. God Bless you in your search.
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11049a.htm
2007-12-20 06:53:36 · answer #9 · answered by republocrat 3 · 1⤊ 3⤋
I went through RCIA twice in the last two years.
It is O.K. to have doubts, that is why Catholics have such a long time for you to decide if being Catholic is really what you want.
Talk to your Sponsor, and to your Priest or RCIA leader, there is nothing wrong with simply telling them what your concerns are.
I was a Protestant before becoming Catholic, so I really had no Trinity doubts, still don't. It took me longer and more study to understand the relationship of our Blessed Mother Mary, I thought that Catholics actually worshiped her! (We don't).
Doubts are fine, ask the tough questions and demand answers or direction to Scripture and see how it ties in with the Catechism.
It all fit for me, but I studied Catholics for 20 years before joining!
Good Luck and God Bless your search.
You can also ask at:
www.catholic.com
Peace!
P.S. To the "Rev" above, how many intolerant Catholic answers do you see here?
To the poster, again good luck and may God Bless your search!
2007-12-20 06:28:44 · answer #10 · answered by C 7 · 5⤊ 1⤋