A Personal Relationship with Jesus...Why Controversial?

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Q: Why would some catholics question this concept?

"Is it possible, legitimate or even wise for Catholics to speak about the importance of having a “personal relationship with Jesus?” In the past few months, a discussion about this question has arisen among some Catholic theologians, authors, bloggers and lay folks. Some say the phrase is essentially Protestant and inconsistent with Catholic teaching.

One author concluded that the terminology is “purely subjective,” and often leads those who emphasize it to become “cafeteria Catholics,” people who pick and choose Catholic doctrine and practice based on their own subjective judgments. She argues that thinking and speaking about faith in God in these terms can lead Catholics to base their faith on emotions and a “personal sense” of what Jesus wants them to believe and do. Others say the phrase leads to a de-emphasis of doctrine, sacraments and devotions that are distinctively Catholic. In other words, it relativizes the faith and people toward Protestantism.

I couldn’t disagree more with those who draw that conclusion. There is nothing inherently Protestant about a “personal relationship with Jesus.” It is not simply “an idea” that has “entered the minds of Catholics who have been exposed to Protestants.”

Numerous Magisterial and Papal documents use the exact phrase “personal relationship” with God. It is perfectly clear that the terminology is not inherently Protestant or alien to proper Catholic sensibilities…"
 
If , @observer333 , some Catholics question having a personal relationship with Jesus they are living in grave error .

“Let the risen Jesus enter your life, welcome him as a friend, with trust: he is life! If up till now you have kept him at a distance, step forward. He will receive you with open arms. If you have been indifferent, take a risk: you won’t be disappointed. If following him seems difficult, don’t be afraid, trust him, be confident that he is close to you, he is with you and he will give you the peace you are looking for and the strength to live as he would have you do.” -Pope Francis

“It is necessary to awaken again in believers a full relationship with Christ, mankind’s only Saviour.” Pope Saint John Paul II

Christian faith is not only a matter of believing that certain things are true, but above all a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.” -Pope Benedict XVI

“Only in this personal relationship with Christ, only in this encounter with the Risen One do we truly become Christians.” -Pope Benedict XVI
 
Some Catholics will split hairs over any word used. Often it’s a matter of filling blog column inches in order to get hits.

Some Catholics also overemphasize the communal aspect of the Church to a pretty extreme degree. They think “personal” or “individual” anything is bad.

Some Catholics think “personal relationship with Jesus” is a Protestant sola scriptura concept, because the phrase is often used as a buzzword by Protestant Evangelicals, who might accuse Catholics of not having such a relationship with Jesus and claim that Catholics don’t really know Jesus because we don’t read the Scripture, or we have to do everything through a priest intermediary and thus don’t get to know Jesus directly. Obviously this is poppycock. But I think some Catholics associate the concept of “personal relationship with Jesus” or “Jesus as our personal savior” with these Protestant churches.

Some Catholics get alarmed because they see “personal relationship with Jesus” as leading to people rejecting Church teaching on the basis of them not needing the Church when they can just deal directly with Jesus, and Jesus would understand why they are breaking this or that commandment or Church rule, etc. Some Catholics call this a “me and Jesus” philosophy and claim it leads to people being “spiritual but not religious”.

Bottom line is all Catholics need to have a personal relationship with Jesus. They also need to be part of the Church community and follow Church rules. You need both things. One doesn’t take the place of the other.
 
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Tis_Bearself said:
Some Catholics get alarmed because they see “personal relationship with Jesus” as leading to people rejecting Church teaching on the basis of them not needing the Church when they can just deal directly with Jesus, and Jesus would understand why they are breaking this or that commandment or Church rule, etc. Some Catholics call this a “me and Jesus” philosophy and claim it leads to people being “spiritual but not religious”.
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This!

The problem isn’t “personal relationship with Jesus”, but the rest of the sentence, as it’s normally encountered with some non-Catholic Christians: “all you need is a personal relationship with Jesus.” That would be the part that Catholics would tend to object to, when it’s mentioned to them.
 
To protect people from prelets (false visions including even Jesus that are deceiving even if they seem like revelations). This has happened to many monks and mystics and Padre Pio also observed a temptation coming even with the image of our Lord. Protestants base their faith entirely on the omnipotence of God and His endless love for us. What the saints observed is “so you say” to them. They mistake a prudent and wise teaching with idolatry.
The Church never claimed to know it all but as shepherds they bring only the teaching that is safe, that has been observed in 2000 years to be safe.
 
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I have a personal relationship with Jesus, so personal, I receive his body and blood at least weekly. Some people receive him daily. It has not been, never was, and will never be a solely Protestant concept to have a personal relationship with Jesus.
 
No problem as long as you are not referring to the false protestant notion that separates Jesus from His Church, the Catholic Church. The only True personal relationship with Jesus is through the Catholic Church, the Sacraments He instituted for us (I will be with you always) and His teachings (Doctrine…if you love me you will obey my commandments)

Unfortunately I have come across some converts who, perhaps holding on to some protestant ideas, derisively call faithful Catholics ‘pray, pay and obey’ to indicate a lack of a ‘personal relationship’.

But on the contrary we should all be pray, pay and obey Catholics as we are commanded to do all three in Scripture.
 
Having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is part of the Catholic faith. The issue is that it’s a statement often used to de-emphasize religion, liturgy, and communal worship, and so many Catholics probably have a gut reaction at hearing it, based on past experience with the people who usually say it.
 
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Glad to hear that the concept of a personal relationship with Christ is not really debatable!
 
Man was made for communion with God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Without it we’re lost, dead, still in our sins. The entire purpose of the Church is to introduce us to Him and establish the vital relationship that was lost at the Fall of man. Jesus came to reveal God, so that we may know Him, personally, intimately, and be reconciled with Him. Then the Trinity will abide in us and we in them. Then man’s justice is restored. If anything, the Protestant version is a bit shallow, stunted.
 
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