Catholic Converts

[sanctamaria17]

I came for the Bread and the Wine, I was starving to death outside the Church.

John 6:44 No man can come to me, except the Father, who hath sent me, draw him. And I will raise him up in the last day.

There is something “special” about it…

John 6:56 For my flesh is meat indeed: and my blood is drink indeed.

Though I was not originally a Protestant (I wasn’t really anything, though I had a vague belief in God and Jesus), I came into the Church for the same reason.

 

[snowman10]

Let’s see how much heat I catch for this…

I am moving ever quicker towards the Catholic Church, even having one semester of RCIA under my belt. I have slowed up a bit due to living at home and being in contact with people who are not in favor of me leaving my Methodist background to become Catholic. My mom says she will support me, but I am wary of what she says and what she does. I love her but her motives are not always clear as she is essentially a child or teenager out to cause havoc.

I digress…my reason for becoming Catholic is not rooted in feelings or my heart. Those are subjective, whereas I am almost all objective. I use my thoughts and research, which is probably why I am a Biology/Chemistry major on his way to Medical School, haha.

I had to think about the existence of God, and that was an easy and overwhelming yes. Then I thought about all the different paths, from Deism to Islam to Judaism, you get the picture. Well the only faith that explained everything in a rational and logical way was Catholicism. I have been studying for almost four years now and have had my ups and downs. I am finally getting back to Mass after a breakup with the girl who in a roundabout way led to begin researching the Church (if you would like the full story, PM me or search through some of my other threads).

I strongly dislike what I will have to do as a Catholic. Why…because they interfere with what I WANT. However, they are what I NEED. Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and do what is best for you and your soul. As CS Lewis said, I am the most unhappy Christian in all of Christendom.

dxu

 

[Bennie_P]

I strongly dislike what I will have to do as a Catholic. Why…because they interfere with what I WANT. However, they are what I NEED. Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and do what is best for you and your soul. As CS Lewis said, I am the most unhappy Christian in all of Christendom.

dxu

Discernment time.

When I decided to get serious about my faith, before deciding to come into the Catholic Church all I wanted to do was get closer to God and do His will. The last thing I wanted to do or thought I would do was become Catholic. So I started praying for Grace and guidence. It turned out the more I prayed and the more I attempted to follow His will I was left with no other choice but to become Catholic.

My queston to you is, what is it that you want? if it is to follow God’s will so you may use the gifts he gave you for His Glory then what is the problem?

Prayers for you…

 

[LSK]

Let’s see how much heat I catch for this…

I am moving ever quicker towards the Catholic Church, even having one semester of RCIA under my belt. I have slowed up a bit due to living at home and being in contact with people who are not in favor of me leaving my Methodist background to become Catholic. My mom says she will support me, but I am wary of what she says and what she does. I love her but her motives are not always clear as she is essentially a child or teenager out to cause havoc.

I digress…my reason for becoming Catholic is not rooted in feelings or my heart. Those are subjective, whereas I am almost all objective. I use my thoughts and research, which is probably why I am a Biology/Chemistry major on his way to Medical School, haha.

I had to think about the existence of God, and that was an easy and overwhelming yes. Then I thought about all the different paths, from Deism to Islam to Judaism, you get the picture. Well the only faith that explained everything in a rational and logical way was Catholicism. I have been studying for almost four years now and have had my ups and downs. I am finally getting back to Mass after a breakup with the girl who in a roundabout way led to begin researching the Church (if you would like the full story, PM me or search through some of my other threads).

I strongly dislike what I will have to do as a Catholic. Why…because they interfere with what I WANT. However, they are what I NEED. Sometimes you have to bite the bullet and do what is best for you and your soul. As CS Lewis said, I am the most unhappy Christian in all of Christendom.

dxu

Thank you for this - one of the most honest and complete examples of what it takes to grow up into an adult full of grace and dignity! Most of us hate the idea of admitting that we have to go through this type of growing up period…some of us much longer than others…but you put it very well…I may dislike, at times, what The Holy Mother Church teaches because it ‘interfers’ with license…but I have learned to love, all the time, the complete freedom I have found in being one of her many obedient daughters…

 

[snowman10]

Discernment time.

When I decided to get serious about my faith, before deciding to come into the Catholic Church all I wanted to do was get closer to God and do His will. The last thing I wanted to do or thought I would do was become Catholic. So I started praying for Grace and guidence. It turned out the more I prayed and the more I attempted to follow His will I was left with no other choice but to become Catholic.

My queston to you is, what is it that you want? if it is to follow God’s will so you may use the gifts he gave you for His Glory then what is the problem?

Prayers for you…

a tricky question…

What I WANT is to lead a good Christian life in the Church that Jesus instituted. But, I do not **WANT **everything that comes with it. I also plan on becoming a physician but I do not WANT to deal with diseased female parts and disimpacting an elderly man’s anal orifice. But those are things that I will have to do.

I see it like this: There are three components for you to consider with rules

1. Understanding–do you understand why the rule is there and the logic used to reach it?
2. Agreement–do you think the rule is logical and fair, with warrant?
3. Acceptance–do you accept the rule as true and follow it?

Regarding rules of the RCC, If I do not understand something, then I cannot agree with it. I do accept it however b/c of the Church being on Earth to help guide us to God. So while I may not WANT to fast, I agree with the rule, understand it, and accept it.

dxu

 

[jmcrae]

Ah - I see the problem.

You have the steps in the wrong order. You will never get anywhere, like that.

What you have to do is:

1. Accept the rule.
2. Follow it, and then (if you are very lucky)
3. Understand the rule.

But you will never understand the rule if you don’t first accept it and follow it, and you will never follow it, if you don’t first accept it.

It is through the personal experience of following the rule that you will come to understand it.

 

[snowman10]

Ah - I see the problem.

You have the steps in the wrong order. You will never get anywhere, like that.

What you have to do is:

1. Accept the rule.
2. Follow it, and then (if you are very lucky)
3. Understand the rule.

But you will never understand the rule if you don’t first accept it and follow it, and you will never follow it, if you don’t first accept it.

It is through the personal experience of following the rule that you will come to understand it.

My list has no real sequence to it. As I see it, regarding Church teaching, I don’t have to understand it or agree with it but I do have to follow it. I do that because the faith I have that Jesus would not abandon His people (hence the Church).

dxu

 

[jmcrae]

My list has no real sequence to it. As I see it, regarding Church teaching, I don’t have to understand it or agree with it but I do have to follow it. I do that because the faith I have that Jesus would not abandon His people (hence the Church).

dxu

 

[Contarini]

The Lutherans and Episcopalians believe that Jesus is present in the Communion, but that it is still bread and wine.

I would not say anything dogmatically about what the substance is after communion. I know that Christ is present and I know that, in the words of Justin Martyr, it is not “common bread and wine” any longer. Since I don’t think in terms of substance and accidents, I really don’t have a strong opinion about transubstantiation.

I cannot for the life of me see that the question of whether bread and wine remain after the consecration should be church-dividing. To me this seems like a classic example of splitting the Church over a theological abstraction. And yes, I’ve heard the argument that you can’t worship Christ in the sacrament if bread and wine are still present, and I think it’s silly. Worshipping human flesh is just as much idolatry as worshipping bread. The point is that Jesus is present and we can worship Jesus wherever He is present–we are not worshipping the bread and the wine, whether we think they are substances or merely “accidents” (and even though I have studied medieval philosophy as a minor in grad school I don’t really understand that distinction in any way that makes a difference for Eucharistic piety).

Edwin

 

[jmcrae]

I would not say anything dogmatically about what the substance is after communion. I know that Christ is present and I know that, in the words of Justin Martyr, it is not “common bread and wine” any longer. Since I don’t think in terms of substance and accidents, I really don’t have a strong opinion about transubstantiation.

I cannot for the life of me see that the question of whether bread and wine remain after the consecration should be church-dividing. To me this seems like a classic example of splitting the Church over a theological abstraction.

Well, it’s a theological abstraction with real-world implications.

For example, if it really is Jesus Christ, then it would be a sin to stuff one’s turkey with the leftover Communion bread (as we used to do when I was in the United Church of Canada) or to dispose of it in any of the other myriad ways that one might dispose of leftover bread (feed it to birds, throw it away, etc.).

On the other hand, if it isn’t, then it would be a sin to repose it in the Tabernacle and worship it as God, as we Catholics do.

 

[Bennie_P]

a tricky question…

Regarding rules of the RCC, If I do not understand something, then I cannot agree with it. I do accept it however b/c of the Church being on Earth to help guide us to God. So while I may not WANT to fast, I agree with the rule, understand it, and accept it.

dxu

You don’t have a problem, Grace won’t take care of…
Questioning is not a problem, outright rejection I would say, could be.

In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall guard your hearts and your thoughts in Christ Jesus.

 

[jc-servant]

The bottom line for me in becoming Catholic was that I found out that Jesus actually founded an organizational Church, and that its authorized successors are the Bishops of the Catholic Church.

The moment this information penetrated my inner understanding (which took a really long time, for various reasons) I was on the phone to my nearest priest to ask about RCIA.

Every objection I’d had to the Catholic Church up to that moment simply vanished like smoke in a strong wind - and believe me when I say that I had a lot of objections - all of the usual suspects (Mary, the Papacy, Confession to a priest, etc.), plus a few that I managed to invent all by myself.

Are you my long lost twin? I finally realized that there had to be a beginning to Christianity somewhere and I set out to find it on a journey of study and prayer that took many years. I’ve been Catholic since Easter 2001. Once I found the true church founded by Christ to await His return, I realized that it was not up to me to try to make the church suit me but rather I needed to get with the program and be obedient to all teachings. I also found that once I really read good explanations of the teachings such as life issues, contraception, confession, etc that I truly agreed with every single one.

 

[jc-servant]

If converts are entering with the expectation of any particular extreme, then I think they will become severely disappointed. Other than the preservation and propagation of our Catholic Faith, the only issue that I have known the Church to have historically battled for has been social justice, and even in defending that issue some have made severe compromises.

I personally had no particular expecations of the church before entering it except that it would lead me closer to Christ because it was His true church. The outpouring of grace that I have received is more than anyone could have imagined.

I studied hard for years before entering RCIA and then I studied even more. I had to dig into apologetics materials while still in RCIA because I found that I was challenged every week by a well-meaning evangelical on various points. I also ran the gauntlet with relatives about my choice because I’m the only practicing Catholic on both sides of my family.

I’m happy that the Holy Spirit guided me to a parish that welcomed me as an adult convert with open arms and a very orthodox RCIA program that had excellent catechists and in depth resources for us. I cannot imagine how much harder the journey would have been if I had encountered cradle Catholics who were suspicious of me instead of welcoming and supportive.

OP, I truly hope that your “suspicion” is merely an academic exercise that you are voicing here because it would be a real shame if you pushed a potential convert away from the church even inadvertently. Many of us converts are very afraid when even thinking about making such a major change in our lives, so one Catholic questioning our motives might frighten some away temporarily or even permanently. The ordained Protestants who lead a church and then convert lose their careers and many times their extended family and most of their friends too, so becoming Catholic can be a huge scary deal that must be kept secret until a person is quite certain of their decision.

 

[jmcrae]

Peri;

Your story is so much like mine (I, too, am the only Catholic on all sides of my family, and probably the first since our whole family apostasized during August of 1560 out of fear of John Knox, etc.) - yes, I would say that we are definitely spiritual twins.

 

[Cari]

Throughout the book, Dwight encourages people to “stand on their head” in order to get a more correct perception of a circumstance or situation. This apparently is an adaptation of Chesterton, I think. Anyway, I decided to take the advice and “stand on my head” regarding the contradicting objections issue. I figure if folks brandish contradicting issues that prevent their consideration of the Church, then the flip side is folks comming into the Church with contradicting expectations. Some come to be near the rich, and others to serve the poor. Some because they want to be in a conservative congregation others like the liberal atmosphere. Some perfer to express themselves in a spiritually charasmatic fashion and others embrace the traditional liturgical structure of the Mass…etc.

If converts are entering with the expectation of any particular extreme, then I think they will become severely disappointed. Other than the preservation and propagation of our Catholic Faith, the only issue that I have known the Church to have historically battled for has been social justice, and even in defending that issue some have made severe compromises.

Maybe your inversion of Dwight’s thesis is flawed. Perhaps it can’t be inverted the way you’ve posed. An “A=B, but B doesn’t equal A” type deal.

But even if it can (I’m no logician), I’ll cheerfully disagree with your theory. Speaking as a convert, the general Protestant modus operandi is to find another Protestant denomination that suits one’s needs, rather than enter the Catholic Church with the intent (conscious or otherwise) of conforming Holy Mother Church to one’s desires.

I’m not saying that no group has ever infiltrated an organization with the intent of “changing from within”, but I find it hard to see it happening from a Protestant contingency- who would be the organizing head? Who would have decided the ultimate goals? If the infiltration were simply to create dischord in the Church, there are plenty of non-convert Catholics who’ve done that (as the Wolves in Sheeps’ Clothing project points out).

Anyway, that’s my thoughts.

 

[ack]

The original poster of this thread hasn’t logged into the forums in over two years, so I doubt that he’ll be reading your responses…