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Paris, I am glad some “REAL” Catholics answered you.

If you look for Answers about the Catholic Church from NONCATHOLICS, do you think you’ll get the truth. :nope:

THINK! Why are NonCatholics , nonCatholics? It is because they

have a wrong understanding of the Catholic Church! I don’t trust them.:rolleyes:
 
Nicole,

I SO get where you are right now! About this time last year I finally got completely on board with entering the Church, and I was just itching to get in! But I kind of liked the fact that it was different than any other church I’d joined, where all you had to do was show up and give your name to the secretary, and figured that the Church knows best.

Think of it as a period of betrothal, time spent discerning the will of God before joining with your Beloved. Trust me, it’ll make the Easter Vigil all the more sweet.

One thing you said, about making a mistake you don’t know about and ending up in hell? One thing that grabbed me was how the Church teaches that if you don’t know it’s a sin, God doesn’t hold you culpable. Isn’t that cool? As a Protestant I thought that anyone who never heard of Jesus burns, even though it’s not his fault – but the Church teaches that it ain’t necessarily so.

Take it seriously? You bet, sister – I get to actually be in the direct presence of God!! , to become a part of His mystical Body, to be in so intimate a relationship with Him that the thing that most fully reflects it is the union of husband and wife, to have restored to me what Adam lost and even to someday be brought to a state far greater than he was in before the fall,… this is GREAT and JOYOUS stuff. It’s not just symbolic, it’s REAL!! Coming in was like sitting down to an emporer’s banquet after always settling for water and stale Wonder bread. For three or four weeks afterwards I’d get some big light go off in my head almost every day – of COURSE the Catholics had it right, no WONDER this or that never really made sense…I felt like an ocean was washing over me.

I actually have FOR REAL the privilege of uniting my suffering with Christ’s, and in some small way participating in His redemptive work? WOW! Baruch ata Adonai Eloheinu, melech ha-olam. Shanatan lanu hizdamnut l’tkein et ha-olam! (Blessed are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the Universe, for granting us the opportunity to help heal the world!) I probably have the spelling wrong but oh well…

Have you started praying the Rosary and spending time in Eucharistic adoration? Boy oh boy, if you wanna see the floodgates really open up…
 
Paris Blues:
VERY seriously! So seriously that if I converted and made a mistake that I didn’t know, then I would be sent to Hell! :eek: When I learned that you guys must have confession and can’t take Communion until you confessed and all that, I suddenly got the realization that this MUST be HOLY!
blessings,
Nicole
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As an example my son’s girlfriend just last Friday lost her £200 cell phone, she is Protestant and seemed to have given up all hope of finding the phone.
I said to her I’ll ask Saint Anthony to find it for you, 2 days later the phone was found.
Some would say coinsidence, but that would be an insult to Saint Anthony, and more so to God.
Someone explained why Catholics pray to certain Saints for different things, they said because God wants to glorify his servants for their faithfulness, and doesn’t keept all that glory for Himself.
About sinning Nicole, I also heard that although we sin, God is pleased with our efforts even though we fall.(thank God for Confession)
Jesus said to Saint Faustina that" even if your sins are as numerous as the sands of the earth, they will all dissapear in His Mercy".
Saint Teresa the little flower said that “to never fall, what an illusion”,and when in doubth she said"it’s time to lay the axe to the root of the tree".
It’s strange but some converts make better Catholics than do cradle Catholics, anyway hope you find the truth, as it’s better to want to come to the church.
An old woman said one time that "forced food is bad for the body, & forced Prayer is bad for the soul.
So the best of Irish luck to you and I hope you find the truth soon,:blessyou:
 
So if I’m getting it right, if you’re aware of a small sin even and let’s say you forgot to go to confession and you just realized that after Mass started (well, I know you couldn’t forget but sometimes you just forget in general!), you still cannot participate in the Eucharist because you have not confessed even that tiny sin? You must be OVER 100% HOLY!!! Right???

But even if you confess it and all, you tend to still remember it even if you’re forgiven. What then? Do you just walk up to Communion without thinking about it even though you knew you took Confession and were forgiven but it still is in the back of your head? :confused:

blessings,
Nicole
 
Paris Blues:
So if I’m getting it right, if you’re aware of a small sin even and let’s say you forgot to go to confession and you just realized that after Mass started (well, I know you couldn’t forget but sometimes you just forget in general!), you still cannot participate in the Eucharist because you have not confessed even that tiny sin? You must be OVER 100% HOLY!!! Right???

But even if you confess it and all, you tend to still remember it even if you’re forgiven. What then? Do you just walk up to Communion without thinking about it even though you knew you took Confession and were forgiven but it still is in the back of your head? :confused:

blessings,
Nicole
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“Anyone who desires to receive Christ in Eucharistic communion must be in the state of grace. Anyone aware of having sinned mortally must not receive communion without having received absolution in the sacrament of penance.
Communion with the Body and Blood of Christ increases the communicant’s union with the Lord, forgives his venial sins, and preserves him from grave sins.” (CCC, 1415-1416)
 
Paris Blues:
So if I’m getting it right, if you’re aware of a small sin even and let’s say you forgot to go to confession and you just realized that after Mass started (well, I know you couldn’t forget but sometimes you just forget in general!), you still cannot participate in the Eucharist because you have not confessed even that tiny sin? You must be OVER 100% HOLY!!! Right???

But even if you confess it and all, you tend to still remember it even if you’re forgiven. What then? Do you just walk up to Communion without thinking about it even though you knew you took Confession and were forgiven but it still is in the back of your head? :confused:

blessings,
Nicole
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I am going to assume that by small sin, you mean venial sin, correct. Being in a state of venial sin does not prohibit the reception of communion. Being in a state of mortal sin does. Noone can be 100% Holy all the time, except Jesus and Mary, of course. Even the Pope himself goes to confession often. Once you have confessed all of you known mortal sins and received absolution, you are in a state of grace and open to receive communion. If there is lingering doubt regarding your state of absolution, you may be suffering from scrupulocity. Talk to your priest or confessor about this.
 
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Scott_Lafrance:
I am going to assume that by small sin, you mean venial sin, correct. Being in a state of venial sin does not prohibit the reception of communion. Being in a state of mortal sin does. Noone can be 100% Holy all the time, except Jesus and Mary, of course. Even the Pope himself goes to confession often. Once you have confessed all of you known mortal sins and received absolution, you are in a state of grace and open to receive communion. If there is lingering doubt regarding your state of absolution, you may be suffering from scrupulocity. Talk to your priest or confessor about this.
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Since I’m not Catholic yet (I’m a clueless Protestant who desires to convert but cannot be sure 😦 ), what’s the differnce between mortal sins and venial sins? Is mortal sins so badly serious where if you don’t confess them, you go to Hell? Are venial sins tiny sins like you lose your temper or is that a mortal sin?

This is a stupid question but how can you tell if it’s venial or mortal? To me, ANY sin is a deadly one! :eek:

blessings,
Nicole
 
Nicole,

I think I recall you saying you have a Catechism, if so look up “sin” in the index, it should direct you to paragraphs that describe mortal and venial sin. I’ve found that the Catechism is not only the place to find the authoritative teaching of the Chruch, it’s very well written.

Here’s a link:
http://www.usccb.org/catechism/text/pt3sect1chpt1art8.htm
Mortal sin* destroys charity in the heart of man by a grave violation of God’s law; it turns man away from God, who is his ultimate end and his beatitude, by preferring an inferior good to him. *

Venial sin allows charity to subsist, even though it offends and wounds it.
Your parish catholic bookstore may have available a small pamphlet on the examination of conscience; in it you can find a list of various mortal and venial sins. It won’t be all-inclusive but it will help you understand the difference between them. I’m sure that you can quickly find links to similar lists.

Mortal sin requires the Sacrament of Reconciliation before receiving the Eucharist, in fact, if we don’t go to confession and receive absolution first we commit another mortal sin by receiving.

Venial sins are adequately confessed during the general confession at the start of Mass. We don’t have to confess venial sins in the confessional, but in the struggle for sanctification it can be very valuable to do so. I’ve been struggling with this myself, I tend to scrupulosity and I got a lot of good insight from Benedict Bauer’s book Frequent Confession.

If we make a good confession and receive absolution for a mortal sin, it’s forgiven - period. It still remains a fact that happened, something that we remember with regret and intend to never repeat (by God’s grace), but that’s not the same as needing to confess it again.

My understanding is that honestly forgetting something in the confessional doesn’t invalidate your absolution. If you remember it later, then confess it the next time you go. At my first confession, I had to confess to having comitted a number of mortal sins dozens (or many hundreds) of times, so many that I couldn’t possibly remember every incident. My confession was not invalid, and the absolution extended to all of the sins of that kind because it was my intent to confess them all.

Remember, it is not a sin to have disordered thoughts come into our heads. Push them away, say a prayer, renew the act of your will in which you reject sin and turn toward God - and you’ve accepted God’s grace and united your suffering to Christ’s. This pleases Him.
 
Paris,
Don’t worry. If you are trying to take up your cross and follow Jesus, if you aren’t deliberately ignoring something you -know- to be true, trust that God will lead you in His time.

Christ only has one bride, there is some disagreement as to which of the bickering fragments of Christ’s visible bride are The One True Church, or if several are, and if so which, and this is a skandalon, as your comments show.

Follow Him, that should bring you closer to His.

As one of the most godly men in the public eye today says “be not afraid”
 
Paris Blues:
Since I’m not Catholic yet (I’m a clueless Protestant who desires to convert but cannot be sure 😦 ), what’s the differnce between mortal sins and venial sins? Is mortal sins so badly serious where if you don’t confess them, you go to Hell? Are venial sins tiny sins like you lose your temper or is that a mortal sin?

This is a stupid question but how can you tell if it’s venial or mortal? To me, ANY sin is a deadly one! :eek:

blessings,
Nicole
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God bless you Nicole,
I converted 6 years ago and am still trying ti figure out the different types of sins, so I try not to commit any of them (just to be safe), then I talk to my priest.

I also met and fell in love with a Catholic Family Ministry called Couples for Christ (CFC). Today, my wife and I act as the CFC-Singles Coordinators.

Point being, don’t sweat the small stuff. Right now you are deciding or have decided to follow the church Jesus started. None of or Protestand friends can say that. The furthest they can go back is to Martin Luther.

SO RELAX. Study hard and ask lots of questions. If you don’t get a good answer from your RCIA ask it here.

We are playing for you.
 
Chuck, you know ex-Catholics who actually knew what the Catholic Church actually taught? That is an experience I have not had.

Scott, we too believe that we really receive the body and blood of Christ under the form (or appearance, or “accidents”) of bread and wine.

Chuck, I’m glad to have confirmation that that is the correct practice at Eucharist. And yes, blessings are blessings! And I have been so blessed, for which I am profoundly grateful.

Exporter, if you mean, not trust us to be accurate, that is correct, I’m still learning. I think we all are. I think that the Catholic apologists here are more likely to be accurate about Catholic teachings, just as I can elucidate Protestant teachings so that they might not tilt at straw horses but engage with the real issues. I -think- that is in keeping with ECT and Ut Unam Sint.
 
Well, we certainly -think- we can go all the way back. In our situation, -through- the western patriachate before the schism of the 16th century. Other traditions will see connections that may not be entirely there with the Waldensians (who in reality attended Mass, and were more of a proto-Franciscan order that didn’t have episcopal approval than proto-Baptists).
 
Paris Blues:
This is a stupid question but how can you tell if it’s venial or mortal? To me, ANY sin is a deadly one! :eek:

blessings,
Nicole
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So what kind of Sins are Mortal?
Code: 
In order for a sin to be mortal, it must meet three conditions:
  • Mortal sin is a sin of grave matter
  • Mortal sin is committed with full knowledge of the sinner
  • Mortal sin is committed with deliberate consent of the sinner
It is not required to be free from all venial sin. The reception itself may forgive venial sins for which one is sorry. But the fruits of receiving are reduced. It is especially needed that one be free from all deliberate venial sin - in contrast to sins of weakness, sins when one is taken off guard.

Nicole, you can make an act of Contrition before Mass starts if it troubles you.**O my God,
I am heartily sorry for
having offended Thee,
and I detest all my sins,
because I dread the loss of heaven,
and the pains of hell;
but most of all because
they offend Thee, my God,
Who are all good and
deserving of all my love.
I firmly resolve,
with the help of Thy grace,
to confess my sins,
to do penance,
and to amend my life.

Amen.
**
**-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
**Anyway we say this at the start of Mass, that we are all sinners.

Confiteor

I confess to almighty God, and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and what I have failed to do; and I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin,all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God.

This prayer at the start of Mass should put your mind at ease with regards to venial sins.
 
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