Am I Catholic? Or am I not?

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Can one be considered Catholic without being able to receive communion? Can you call yourself a Catholic without going to Mass every week?
 
Jrp72 said:
Can you call yourself a Catholic without going to Mass every week?
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Lapsed Catholic would be more appropriate here.
Jrp72 said:
Can one be considered Catholic without being able to receive communion?
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If you were a practicing Catholic ie attending Mass each week and held the same beliefs in line with the Catholic Church, and fulfilled all the other duties of a Catholic, with the only difference being you were unable to receive Communion, then in that circumstance I don’t think it’d be wrong to identify as Catholic. (Assuming of course you are a baptized Catholic.)
 
Yes, but then you would be a non practicing Catholic. THAT said, I think I would consider someone who goes to Mass, but does not receive communion (maybe they have a hard time confessing a mortal sin, I was that way for a long time), a practicing Catholic, just limited practice.
 
I knew someone who for roughly 4 months could not receive Communion, and they attended daily Mass, all on their doctors advice due to them having celiac disease. And they were a practicing Catholic in all other ways.
 
Jrp72 said:
Can one be considered Catholic without being able to receive communion? Can you call yourself a Catholic without going to Mass every week?
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If you are baptized into the Catholic Church or received into the Church by a profession of faith, then you are a Catholic.

Practicing, non-practicing, good, bad… these describe behaviors not your state of being.
 
Would to go to mass every week, but it is not an option at this time.
 
I was baptized and confirmed in the Church. My marital status prohibits me from receiving communion.
 
Jrp72 said:
Would to go to mass every week, but it is not an option at this time.
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I would bring this to the attention of your priest. If you have good enough reasons, he should be able to give you a dispensation.
 
CRV said:
I knew someone who for roughly 4 months could not receive Communion, and they attended daily Mass, all on their doctors advice due to them having celiac disease. And they were a practicing Catholic in all other ways.
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Someone who cannot receive Communion through no fault of their own, for medical reasons, could not possibly be considered to have quit practicing the Catholic religion. But couldn’t they have received only the Precious Blood instead, during that time?
 
HomeschoolDad said:
Someone who cannot receive Communion through no fault of their own, for medical reasons, could not possibly be considered to have quit practicing the Catholic religion.
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Agreed. That was the point I was making in response to the comment above mine, which I interpreted as being considered a limited practicing Catholic. Perhaps I misunderstood the intended meaning behind the comment though.
HomeschoolDad said:
But couldn’t they have received only the Precious Blood instead, during that time?
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Wasn’t offered. Due to the possibility of sacrilege of the PB, only the Blessed Sacrament was offered - the priests decision.
 
Jrp72 said:
I was baptized and confirmed in the Church. My marital status prohibits me from receiving communion.
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I’m so sorry. I understand the teaching. But I don’t understand the teaching if you know what I mean.

I do appreciate the suffering you’re going through. I do believe your obedience benefits the body of Christ & if that doesn’t make you Catholic, I don’t know what does.
 
I’ll add to my reply.

To me, being Catholic means living a sacramental life. The pinnacle of which is the Eucharist. I understand you must refrain from communion, but He’s still there. In the Mass. You can still participate in the Mass which is the highest form of prayer in this mortal life.

Then there is Eucharistic adoration. There is grace there you can not get from any other means.

Then there is reconciliation. There is grace there. I understand there are issues with your marital situation. Hopefully this makes sense to you… confess the sins you are sorry for. Get absolved for those.

Then if you feel like it, bring up the things you don’t agree with & maybe your confessor/spiritual director can help you with them. Maybe he can’t. Maybe you tried before, keep trying.

& pray. Pray, pray, pray… not just the asking for your intentions kind of prayer, but something like the Rosary, Chaplet of Divine Mercy, prayerfully read the daily readings. Spend time with your Heavenly Father, your Reedemer, your Mother.

Peace
 
Catholics are only urged to receive the Eucharist once a year at least, preferably in the Easter season. Also confession once a year during Lent. Noone has to go get the Eucharist every time they go to mass but taking part in the sacraments as often as possible is urged for the graces bestowed from them.
 
CRV said:
But couldn’t they have received only the Precious Blood instead, during that time?
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That’s actually pretty unusual these days, to withhold the Precious Blood from the faithful. On most issues, I am thoroughly traditional, but I have no problem in principle with the idea of the faithful receiving the Precious Blood. It’s the perfect solution for those who cannot receive ordinary hosts, or in more rare cases, even hosts with a trace amount of gluten in them. One who has received the Precious Blood alone has fully “received communion”.
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Jrp72 said:
I was baptized and confirmed in the Church. My marital status prohibits me from receiving communion.
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Not sure if this is the reason you can’t attend or if there is something else, but this should not prohibit you from attending mass. You should just not go up for communion. I would communicate with a priest on this.
 
Jrp72 said:
I was baptized and confirmed in the Church. My marital status prohibits me from receiving communion.
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Have you contacted your Archdiocese’s marriage tribunal? It may not be a final or as complicated as you think.
 
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