Catholic Church has too many rules

[Philomena]

This is what a young girl told someone in response to why she wasn’t interested in becoming Catholic. Too many rules. What would you guys say to this 12 yo girl?

**Thanks! **

 

[jbuck919]

It is true that the Catholic Church seems to suffer from terminal “try-to-cover-everything-itis.” It is a “problem” going back to ancient times, arguably to St. Paul… The current Catholic catechism runs to something like 500 ages, and you don’t even want to contemplate canon law.

However, honey (if I may be so bold; male teachers are not allowed to use terms of endearment with their students, though female ones get away with it routinely), if you look behind the scenes of any other denomination or even non-Christian religions, it is much the same. They may not write it out on paper, but they will all tell you the same thing, and for someone your age it is all an elaboration of the following three princples: no sex, no sex, no sex. Got it?

 

[Br.Rich_SFO]

This is what a young girl told someone in response to why she wasn’t interested in becoming Catholic. Too many rules. What would you guys say to this 12 yo girl?

**Thanks! **

Life has too many rules but that is never a reason to stop living. Driving a car has too many rules but I’ll bet she would never think of giving that up once she gets her drivers license!

 

[MrS]

Life has too many rules but that is never a reason to stop living. Driving a car has too many rules but I’ll bet she would never think of giving that up once she gets her drivers license!

Thank God for rules… I might actually not know what to do if I had to make all the rules myself

Bad rules need to be addressed… and perhaps changed.

Good rules need to be supported individually, and enforced collectively.

 

[puzzleannie]

if she thinks the Church has too many rules tell her to wait until she joins the military, goes to college for teacher accreditation, or gets a job with any major US corporation, or for that matter, tries to file her first US tax return.

 

[wisdom_3_5]

Try to help her change her perspective. She sees rules as “bad”, inhibiting her, making life “no fun”. Help her to see rules as being protective and a guarantee of her own personal rights.

I love the driving example. Ask her what would happen if people decided to not stop at red lights? Accidents, injuries, death. Its a good rule to stop at a red light.

Then ask her to name a “rule” of the Church that she has difficulty with and explain it. I wonder what rules a 12 year-old is having difficulty with? Does she have the problems or is she just repeating what others have said? either way, its good that you are concerned enough to clear this up .

 

[TylerAlex]

This is what a young girl told someone in response to why she wasn’t interested in becoming Catholic. Too many rules. What would you guys say to this 12 yo girl?

**Thanks! **

I would ask her to tell me what life would be like without rules to live by. What kind of chaos would there be. Then, I would help her understand that the reason why there are rules (in the case of the Catholic Church) are to protect, help preserve and better enrich one’s fellowship in the Church body- not take anything away or interfere with it.

The “rules” (albeit a better word) are like an instruction manual or roadmap to bring us closer in unity with God.

Would she prefer to take this journey in darkness, directionless and without a sense of where to go and what to do… or, have a well lit path, with a proper roadmap and a guide to follow you along the way from beginning to end?

 

[Maranatha]

if she thinks the Church has too many rules tell her to wait until she joins the military, goes to college for teacher accreditation, or gets a job with any major US corporation, or for that matter, tries to file her first US tax return.

Yea, and while those things are important none of them are guides to ways to save your eternal soul.

 

[Randy_Carson]

It is true that the Catholic Church seems to suffer from terminal “try-to-cover-everything-itis.” It is a “problem” going back to ancient times,

I think this is an unfair characterization that implies that the length of the Catechism or Canon Law is due to a heavy-handed, legalism.

I think that it is more correct to say that the Church has been asked to respond to many, many issues over the past 2,000, and consequently, she’s built up a sizeable FAQ database.

 

[Scottgun]

I think that it is more correct to say that the Church has been asked to respond to many, many issues over the past 2,000, and consequently, she’s built up a sizeable FAQ database.

Or as someone said (Chesterton?), "The rules of chess create chess problems.

I get this all the time. “What does the teach Church about _______?” I answer, “The Church teaches __________” and I get, “YOUR CHURCH IS SO LEGALISTIC!” or something like that. Why’d they bother asking? I also get from certain quarters the stupid saw that these teachings obliterate mystery. Nonsense. In my case the wonderment at the mystery is increased.

Scott

 

[VociMike]

I would ask her how many rules is too few, and how many rules is just right. And I would ask her how many rules the Church actually does have.

This would quickly get her to have to state her real objection.

 

[Nita]

I’d also try to explain that these “laws” are not oppressive; not a burden that we are continually aware of and examining.

Compare to being a citizen of the U.S. The law books for our nation are far greater in number. Yet, we don’t live our daily lives as U.S. citizens oppressed by the burden of these laws (that is, not continually finding it necessary to review all of them; worrying whether every little action is legal). We learn the main laws as children, and then establish a way of life in conformity with them. It is the same with our Church and it’s laws.

Nita

 

[vern_humphrey]

The Catholic Church is 2,000 years old. In that time span, virtually everything that can come up as a problem has come up, and been dealt with. We would be stupid if we failed to record the rules developed in dealing with problems so we could apply them later if the same problem re-emerged.

 

[water]

This is what a young girl told someone in response to why she wasn’t interested in becoming Catholic. Too many rules. What would you guys say to this 12 yo girl?

**Thanks! **

also, tell her that she’s not the only one. There are many adults who want to enter Heaven in a quick and easy way would say the same thing as she does, but God says it ain’t easy

 

[Evan]

The rules of the Church simply expand on the one rule:

Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord, and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your might” (Deut 6:4-5).

There is a second rule, but that follows from the first: "You shall love your neighbour as yourself” (Lev 19:18)

All the law is found in these two rules. The rest is commentary.

 

[Gilbert_Keith]

Anything that is worth studying has lots of rules.

Music.

Mathematics.

Physics.

Athletics.

Politics.

The young do not like to be constrained by rules … especially if those rules get in the way of their having a good time.

But the notion that you cannot be a Catholic and have a good time still baffles me after all these years of finding out that the only part of my life that was truly worthwhile and fun-filled was when I was a Catholic.

Today moral lethargy is endemic in the human race. Catholicism is truly one way to develop a more spirtitually muscular life.

 

[quasimodo]

1. she is just repeating something she heard an adult say
2. the theology this kind of statement represents can be summed up by: God is love. Let’s sing Kumbya. And make a collage, the collage is important.

 

[Mom_of_5]

Whether one is Catholic or not, the same important “rules” apply to all…The Ten Commandments". From there, all churches have their own “dos and do nots”. No dancing, no alcohol, etc.etc. Life is just full of rules. We can’t drive our car on the sidewalk or have a picnic on the freeway. Common sense? Yes, and that is exactly what most of the Church rules are all about. They are there to help us on the road to heaven.

My step daughter hates rules. She believes that she can do anything she wants to do as long as it doesn’t hurt anyone. Problem is, she doesn’t understand the word “hurt”. She is 28, still believes that she has rights and no one should “judge” her actions. However her “no rules” life has not been very good to her. I am always amazed when I hear her tell her little boy “no”, that is not good for you", but she does not seem to know what is not good for her. This no rules gal has a double standard going. Hopefully she will catch on.

Love and peace,
Mom of 5

 

[kinderbueno]

Hi folks, I’m not a frequent poster, please forgive any ignorance. I don’t know if this is the proper place to take this discussion in a related, but different direction, please let me know if better suited for a new thread.

After all those disclaimers , here I go: Along these same lines, a friend of mine who recently became born-again posed the question, “Why would I have to go through so many checkpoints so I can talk to my own father? Surely God wants us to come to Him directly.”

I know much of that question and statement was based on poor catechesis regarding the mass (i.e., she views it as empty ritual) and Catholicism in general, but I’m looking for more analogies like “driving a car.”

I’ve tried many arguments from our practices being what the early Christians did to the pomp and circumstance is not unlike what we afford royalty, so what more our Lord?!

Any suggestions on a different ‘angle’ would be appreciated, I hope this is still on-topic!!!

Peace, Mike

 

[aspawloski4th]

This is what a young girl told someone in response to why she wasn’t interested in becoming Catholic. Too many rules. What would you guys say to this 12 yo girl?

**Thanks! **

you want too many rules try growing up in my parents house they were strict by even the standards of the time they grew up in, mainly the 50s. better too many rules than 2 few.