BIG mistake

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A while ago, I made a huge mistake. For 3 years I was struggling to become Catholic while my Protestant family disagreed with me. On Pentecost I entered the Catholic Church, but after 3 months, it was too unbearable in my family for me to continue to stay Catholic, so I went back to the Wesleyan Church they belong to, thus making all my family happy, everyone but me. While everybody thinks I made the right choice and I am back where I belong, I am still Catholic in my thinking and belief system. During my defection, I hurt my Catholic friends and my priest, and I feel horrible about. I dont know how to fix this…how can I become Catholic again if the opportunity arises? I made such a mess of this, my heart hurts. My family is happy but I am not, but they will throw a fit if I become Catholic again. Please help!!
Get them to read some Protestant converts to Catholicism conversion stories, books. Maybe they’ll understand and convert as well 🙂
 
Many Parishes have a “coming home” type of ministry, or you may want to even “audit” an RCIA program. A solid grounding in the faith is beneficial in any case.

One book you may wish to read is Rome Sweet Home by Sott and Kimberly Hahn. Their conversion experience is rife with family difficulties, but the Lord will help you with that. The choice is yours. Do you choose the Lord?
 
Many Parishes have a “coming home” type of ministry, or you may want to even “audit” an RCIA program. A solid grounding in the faith is beneficial in any case.

One book you may wish to read is Rome Sweet Home by Sott and Kimberly Hahn. Their conversion experience is rife with family difficulties, but the Lord will help you with that. The choice is yours. Do you choose the Lord?
I am already sitting in my RCIA class. I dont think I made it clear but when I talked about my family being upset, I mean my wife and three children. THAT is the hard part!!!
 
I am already sitting in my RCIA class. I dont think I made it clear but when I talked about my family being upset, I mean my wife and three children. THAT is the hard part!!!
You have a very difficult road ahead of you. I will keep you in my prayers.:gopray2:
 
A while ago, I made a huge mistake. For 3 years I was struggling to become Catholic while my Protestant family disagreed with me. On Pentecost I entered the Catholic Church, but after 3 months, it was too unbearable in my family for me to continue to stay Catholic, so I went back to the Wesleyan Church they belong to, thus making all my family happy, everyone but me. While everybody thinks I made the right choice and I am back where I belong, I am still Catholic in my thinking and belief system. During my defection, I hurt my Catholic friends and my priest, and I feel horrible about. I dont know how to fix this…how can I become Catholic again if the opportunity arises? I made such a mess of this, my heart hurts. My family is happy but I am not, but they will throw a fit if I become Catholic again. Please help!!
I know it can be really hard being the only Catholic in a non Catholic family :hug1:
clearly your heart is still in the Church… I know it’s difficult but I think its best to come back to the Church, since you believe in its teachings and because of the Sacraments. I don’t think that you wouldn’t be ‘allowed’ to return. Anyone who has left the Church for whatever reason can always come back, without any consequences. (and you’re still Catholic!!! though not practicing at the moment) All you’d have to do is go to Confession and then start going to Mass again 🙂 I hope you get the chance to do that… and that God gives you peace. God bless you.
 
I am already sitting in my RCIA class. I dont think I made it clear but when I talked about my family being upset, I mean my wife and three children. THAT is the hard part!!!
You are definitely in my prayers.

There is hope: Scott Hahn converted before his wife, Kimberly. It took her a while to consider the Catholic Church. I agree with the above poster who recommended their books. I also love “Crossing the Tiber” by Stephen Ray, once a devout Baptist who converted with his wife and children.

Your example may be the witness your family needs.

One of the best examples of this is St. Monica. Married to a pagan, she was a devout Catholic woman who prayed without ceasing for her family and lived her faith through kindness and good works. Her husband, Patricius, eventually converted after years of watching her steadfast faith. Her son had many troubles, falling into heresy and “grave sin.” But St. Monica never stopped praying and exhorting him to live a godly life. And he converted toward the end of her life. You probably know him - his name was Augustine. He became St. Augustine, Doctor of the Church, Bishop of Hippo, and great theologian.

Many prayers for you. :crossrc:
 
Would you want your wife or one of your children to live a lie–especially a lie about faith–in order to keep peace in the family?

If the answer is no, is it fair for them to ask you to live a lie in order to keep peace?

There’s a book you might consider: *When Only One Converts *by Lynn Nordhagen. I haven’t read it myself, but perhaps someone else here has. From the reviews, it looks like the kind of thing you may be looking for. You can find it here: amazon.com/When-Only-Converts-Lynn-Nordhagen/dp/0879733152/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1257343083&sr=8-1

Hope this helps!
 
ok, let me clarify something…when I said I went back to the Wesleyan Church, I mean I was taken into full membership with them…that is why I do not know if I am considered a Catholic or do I have to go through Confirmation all over again?
As far as the Catholic Church is concerned, all you have to do is go to confession.

As for the Weslyan Church, I don’t think you have to do anything…but you might write a letter of resignation.

Finally, in this post:

“I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, 33who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better resurrection. 36Some faced jeers and flogging, while still others were chained and put in prison. 37They were stonedf]; they were sawed in two; they were put to death by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
39These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised. 40God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.”
 
A while ago, I made a huge mistake. For 3 years I was struggling to become Catholic while my Protestant family disagreed with me. On Pentecost I entered the Catholic Church, but after 3 months, it was too unbearable in my family for me to continue to stay Catholic, so I went back to the Wesleyan Church they belong to, thus making all my family happy, everyone but me. While everybody thinks I made the right choice and I am back where I belong, I am still Catholic in my thinking and belief system. During my defection, I hurt my Catholic friends and my priest, and I feel horrible about. I dont know how to fix this…how can I become Catholic again if the opportunity arises? I made such a mess of this, my heart hurts. My family is happy but I am not, but they will throw a fit if I become Catholic again. Please help!!
I dont’ know how old you are, I am 36. I have seen this, I have been through this.

This problem is alot deeper Theologically then what is publically discussed.

I have seen this other converts, myself included, there is deep theological issue with respect to conversion that isn’t discussed in public By the Roman Catholic Church.

Because it brings into question the actual validity of any and all church’s not Roman Catholic. So it will never be publically discussed by the Roman Catholic Church, suffice it to say that it is aware of that effect , and they cannot tell you what it means without causing strife, so… I myself remained Catholic inspite of those persons that i know that HATE IT SO BAD THAT I AM CATHOLIC!!!

Benjamin
 
t86ware,

You have made a mess of nothing. You haven’t. Everything is fine, nothing has changed, you are Catholic and you haven’t hurt anything. Don’t think that you are hurting the Roman Catholic Church, because your not, it won’t move or be hurt at all, it is as Unmoveable as it always was. I am completely sympathetic I have dealt with this,

Your Holy Mother Loves you and always will.

Hmmm, I think you are doing fine,

You may end up causing a problem in any case,

See your Spirit is Catholic, and sense protestants leave their people unbabtised for so long you could well end up causing converts in your church, if they were smart protestants they would kick you out of their Church right now, Because you are what is known as a Trojan Horse…
 
also, and somewhat Jokingly but also honestly, when the Pope excommunicated Martin Luther he excommunicated Martin Luther real Good, because it left not one connection between Martin Luther and the Catholic Faith…

When your little and you read about the creation of the Lutherin Church in your History Book in third grade you are told, Martin Luther Left the Church. and you think aaaah, but in point of fact that son gun was excommunicated by the Popes boot. And now we see the reason , because now there are literally millions of persons outside the Church.

There is horrible, a Heresy is what it is, and that is bad, Theologically there are Catholics and there are Heretics, because protestantism is a Heresy, in point of fact, but where that would cause sword to be drawn in the middle ages, we have chosen the general path of decay of society over open warfare, and we see that being born out in truth.

I find , and this is merely my own observations that I have made having know weight because they are not official Roman Catholic dogma, but I find that with Sola Scriptura and Scriptura Fidei you get a total collapse of rigor at the position of preacher and lay person alike, in that nothing is fixed, nothing is decided upon in terms of meaning, and you find that most protestants are not using a protestant dictionary much less a rigorously defined Catholic one, and you find that because of that they can slip into a completley secular definational base in the protestant church, without even realizing it, and I have seen this happen, I am Justified (secular Definition) doing this because person ‘a’ did this. I am justified (protestant defination) I am justified by his passion automatically, I am justified (Catholic definition) by office of confession and absolution rendered and penance given. See there are three definitions for one word, and in protestantism it is so non-rigorous , so ill defined that you can slip into the secular definitional model without even knowing that you are doing so… Further I find that protestants spend zero time actually worrying about sin as jutification is automatic, they spend zero time under weight of sin, so in alot of cases that I have actually seen and born witness to they will go around in sin and they don’t care, which is totally unlike the Catholic Church where persons in sin walk around under burden of that sin until they get to the office of confession, hence Catholics spend a far far greater amount of time each week aware of SIN in their midst or by themselves then do protestants. So what do people truly gain from Protestantism I don’t know. I don’t know. I know 6 people engaged in adultery by second marriage, and they don’t care, totally do not care, 4 are fallen away Catholic, and they do not care… They will spend the rest of their lives in a state of adultery , and they all claim a protestantism and they are under no burden of sin, which puts them in a state that is contrary to scripture itself, and that by definition is anti-christ and they do not care… So I don’t know the value of protestantism I cannot find it.

That is what I have found, so this is not cannonical , I don’t know what the Roman Catholic Church has found and written it is clearly not published, and so I question the validity of all protestantism, and I totally agree with the Catholic Dogma, There is no salvation outside the Roman Catholic Church.

So… For what its worth that is my take on the matter. As I have talked to you privately t86ware you know that I am not attacking protestantism , I am merely speaking to what I have deduced by myself as I have analyzed the difference between my Church and protestant church’s…

this and 4 bits will get you a cup of coffee in Rome, as it is not published Catholic Doctrine on the matter, which I cannot find and is probably locked up in a Cob webbed underground Room beneath St. Peters Basilica. Because this stuff has caused WAR before and it can again. and so…

Blessings,
Benjamin
 
The Roman Catholic Church to its credit handles the situation without bringing the more
strenuous matters into play before persons are actually in the Church itself where they are free to research these matters on their own. And that is a good way to handle the issue,
the Roman Catholic Church is all about itsself, and truly by Doctrine no other Church exists for it, in truth. The Roman Catholic Church unlike protestant Church’s is a complete self contained whole and can represent ‘WHAT IS CHRISTENDOM’, now this shows that Christendom is in a far worse state then what is often accepted if you exclude all but Catholics, so Christendom has 1.2 billion persons out of the 6+billion on the earth, we have far further to go… What is protestantism? a Heresy,

If a Church is sound from Base to Heaven, then The People making up the Body of Christ are Christendom, the body is Christ the Church is Christ and Christ is Christ. Its all one…

The ex Cathedra position of the church is that all humanity is subject to the See of Peter this gives you the foundation to work with Non-Catholics, Praying for them, helping them etc, without having to deal with them on their terms, but on Catholic Church Terms. Because Martin Luther is a tricky devil is why. So the Roman Catholic Church gives you the means to exist around them without dealing with them on their terms…

The is the body Militant… hahaha, but it takes all of that to create what is called a breatwork of defense for yourself as a Catholic, Walls battlement and Arrow Slit all,

You don’t speak it, but it is helpful to get an awareness of it through study.
 
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