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FMX500
Guest
Since the Catholic Church does not teach that taking part of communion (consuming the host) has any effect or say about your salvation, what actually encourages you to join us?
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2010_Convert
Guest
What do you mean “to join us”? I use to be protestant and am a recent convert to Catholicism. I might be able to answer your question, but I need more info.
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FMX500
Guest
The Catholic Church does not claim that it can get you into heaven any quicker than the next christian church, so why do you choose the Catholic Church over any other?
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2010_Convert
Guest
I converted to the Catholic Church because I believe it to be the one true church, founded by Jesus. Apostolic succession is also important to me because our church has been around for 2,000 years and I trust what the Church says… I am a traditional catholic and I fell in love with the beauty and majesty of the Mass. The reverence that we show for Christ’s presence in the church is also precious to me. Where else can you go and sit before Jesus to pray? Adoration is such a meaningful experience and there is nothing to compare to it in the protestant church. Once I decided to become catholic, my yearning for the Eucharist was overwhelming and when I was finally confirmed and able to have my first communion, it was everything I thought it would be and way more. What you need to understand is that protestants in general have many misconceptions about our church. I was taught that Catholics were going to hell because they aren’t saved; that the catholic church is the “whore of Babylon”; and the Pope is the antichrist. Not to mention all of the standard objections we had as Protestants such as worship of Mary, confessing to a man instead of directly to God, bread and wine actually becoming the body and blood of Christ (transubstantiation). When my priest addressed my concerns and I learned the TRUTH, I couldn’t wait to convert. My 15 year old son actually approached us about taking him to Mass and, when we did, we knew that we had come home. My husband was a protestant pastor and he had to turn in his ordination that he had worked so hard for. The only regret we have is that we wasted so many years not being Catholic. I hope this helps you to understand why some Protestants are drawn to the Catholic Church.
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FMX500
Guest
You had to go and kill my thread didn’t you?
You are all the response I needed. Thank you.
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2010_Convert
Guest
You’re welcome, but I don’t think my comment will close your thread. Let’s challenge other protestant converts to share their reasons for converting with you too. Everybody has their own journey. You are so lucky to live in London. I’ve always wanted to visit there, but I bet it’s crazy right now, or will be soon, as everybody prepares for Will and Kate’s wedding.
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atmmgraves
Guest
Very well said. And very familiar. I’m a convert of 4 years now, and wholeheartedly agree with everything you said.
I have protestant friends who attend Mass every so often during holy days of obligation, as we can go during our lunch hour. Each of them adore the reverence shown to Christ, they love the solemnity, the prayer, the readings. Privately they will say they understand the concept of our veneration of Mary and have no problem with it. They acknowledge that the bible tells us to confess our sins to one another, and can see the logic in Apostolic succession. They admit that the Catholic Church is the oldest “denomination” (their description). In sum, they believe Church teachings, have no problem attending a Catholic Church, so why aren’t they Catholic? Because their families would probably disown them for all the anti-Catholic reasons you cite.
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Greg27
Guest
My understanding of the rules of the CC are that non-Catholics (with certain exceptions) are not allowed to take part in the RC eucharist. The main reason is the Eucharist is a sacrament of unity for the CC and it signifies an acceptance of church beliefs and teachings. If I go to an RC mass I don’t take part in the Eucharist, since I am not a Catholic and also I don’t feel it would be respectful of the church to conciously flout its rules and practices while being a ‘guest’ at its services.
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manualman
Guest
This is likely a distortion of catholic teaching rather than the actual thing.
In ages past, the distortion popularly received was “If you ain’t catholic, you’re going to hell.” (An error that now goes by the term Feeneyite) Today it’s “It don’t matter which denomination you are, we’re all brothers in Christ.” (And error called indifferentism)
Both positions are incorrect, but understandable misunderstandings of the way Church teaching was expressed in different ages. The Catholic Church teaches that Jesus established One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. It started with 12 apostles and ever since has been a single entity both spiritually and physically in that when the apostles established the Church in a new city they delegated part of their authority to a bishop to lead there. When an apostle.bishop died, other bishops ordained a replacement (a practice that goes right back to Acts) and that has continued unbroken in the catholic church.
When people have a disagreement with the catholic church and decide to break off and create their own “reformed” christian church, they defy Jesus’s explicit prayer/command that the Church remain ONE. The way your post reads implies that those christians who have rejected the Sacraments of Confession, of the Eucharist, of Confirmation, of Annointing of the Sick, of Holy Orders, etc haven’t lost anything. Untrue, drastically untrue! They’ve lost an enormous part of what Christ gave to sustain the Church through so many lifetimes of trial and hardship!
But most non-catholic christians have no idea of what has been lost. They genuinely believe that they are living out the christian life as Jesus wills, often through no fault of their own (the catholics of history bear much of the fault for protestant anti-catholic sentiment). We don’t believe that such people bear personal guilt for what they are not aware of. We believe that God can and does provide extraordinary ways for them to be saved.
But please don’t characterize this as “no difference.” When a ship sinks at sea, there is a chance of survivors clinging to wreckage until rescuers arrive. They might even be able to lash together a raft of sorts and work together to survive until rescue. But surely nobody concludes that that fact means that grabbing a life vest and jumping over the rail of a perfectly good vessel is a smart idea!
Many protestant believers in history have lived lives of exemplary faith manifested in virtue suggesting that theirs is a grace filled experience. But catholics need to recognize that this is a MERCY of God, not evidence of the fullness of the catholic faith being irrelevant or superfluous.
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FMX500
Guest
And some journeys I’m guessing have many hills (regreting I asked them all now).
Lucky you say, but I guess it does have its quirks.
Really, and work there?
I think they have had almost the same number of gate crashing threats as the Pope when he visited.
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