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dancingrain91

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Well, I posted in the meet and greet thread that I am not Catholic, but interested in the faith because my boyfriend’s family is. The thing is, I obviously know nothing. I’d guessed that since I have always gone to church I would understand more. But it’s like a different language. I have heard other people recommend something called rc something something. Or to ask a priest. But I’m very involved in my own church and not quite ready to convert. Besides it would break my mother’s heart. So I was just hoping that maybe you could help me out by just explaining some basics. Thank you for your time and I’m sorry this is so vague. I just don’t even know where to begin asking.
 
dancingrain91 said:
Well, I posted in the meet and greet thread that I am not Catholic, but interested in the faith because my boyfriend’s family is. The thing is, I obviously know nothing. I’d guessed that since I have always gone to church I would understand more. But it’s like a different language. I have heard other people recommend something called rc something something. Or to ask a priest. But I’m very involved in my own church and not quite ready to convert. Besides it would break my mother’s heart. So I was just hoping that maybe you could help me out by just explaining some basics. Thank you for your time and I’m sorry this is so vague. I just don’t even know where to begin asking.
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👋 Hello there and a big welcome to the forum! Is there anything in particular you want to know? The Catholic Church is basically the Church your tradition broke away from after the Reformation, so we share some basic stuff.
 
Get yourself a copy of the book “Catholicism for Dummies”. It is a great book for anyone who wants to know more about Catholicism.
 
Oneofthewomen said:
Get yourself a copy of the book “Catholicism for Dummies”. It is a great book for anyone who wants to know more about Catholicism.
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👍

Always a good place to start for a basic understanding and the nice thing about the “for dummies” books is that they are so easy to read. That can be important for someone like yourself who is already busy.
Then you can post any questions you might have here.

It is true that Catholicism can be like “speaking a different language” than what you are use to in the protestant sphere, but be patient with yourself, and all will come clear.

Are there any terms that you might like to bring up now?

Peace
James
 
What you heard about was RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) classes. They are weekly classes for those converting to Catholicism. You can attend just for informational value even if you are not ready to convert.

If you belong to a United Methodist church, you should not be afraid of leaving. You would not be alone. That liberal church has lost almost half its’ members in recent decades.
 
Oneofthewomen said:
Get yourself a copy of the book “Catholicism for Dummies”. It is a great book for anyone who wants to know more about Catholicism.
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This is honestly one of the best suggestions. I know how it probably sounds and I know how I took when someone suggested it to me. However, I grew up Catholic and learned more from that book than anything I had read or done previously, including CCD. Even better, my non-Catholic wife who refused to convert read the book and realized that all of her pre-conceived notions were false. As a result, she attended RCIA and has since converted.

I’m not suggesting you will convert because of it, but I am saying it is one of the most organized, concise yet thorough, and completed presentations of the basics of the Catholic faith.

Secondly, I just want to recommend you pray…alot. I understand what you mean when you say it will “break your mother’s heart.” However, you never know how the Holy Spirit is working. He could use you to convert her. I know it may sound crazy, but tell me you haven’t witnessed crazier things? Just be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit and when you know it’s God talking, say yes to Him.
 
dancingrain91 said:
Well, I posted in the meet and greet thread that I am not Catholic, but interested in the faith because my boyfriend’s family is. The thing is, I obviously know nothing. I’d guessed that since I have always gone to church I would understand more. But it’s like a different language. I have heard other people recommend something called rc something something. Or to ask a priest. But I’m very involved in my own church and not quite ready to convert. Besides it would break my mother’s heart. So I was just hoping that maybe you could help me out by just explaining some basics. Thank you for your time and I’m sorry this is so vague. I just don’t even know where to begin asking.
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R.C.I.A is what you were recommended. (Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults) If you attend, there is NO obligation to become Catholic whatever.

~The Sunday ‘service’ in a Catholic Church is called the “Mass”.

~A Sunday Mass (there are weekday Masses, too) consists of TWO readings from the Bible. The First Reading is usually from the Old Testament, and the Second Reading is always from the New Testament (though never from the Gospel). Then, there is another reading that is always from the Gospel. This half of the Mass is called “The Liturgy of the Word.” The second half of the Mass is “the Liturgy of the Eucharist.” This is where we celebrate the glorious Death and Resurection of our Lord and Savior. As in the Last Supper, the priest consecrates water and wine so it becomes Jesus’s Body and Blood. This is known as Transubstansiation. And yes, there IS Biblical evidence of this.

~Attendance at Sunday Mass is MANDATORY. As is attendance at Holy Days of Obligation. (Christmas, Good Friday, Ash Wednesday, etc…)

~The Church has a hierarchy. The priests of a parish are subordinate to the pastor, who is subordinate to the bishop, who is subordinate to the pope. There are other ranks and titles, but these are the basics.

~The pope is the “Vicar of Christ”. Vicar means deputy or subordinate. Jesus left Peter to “feed My sheep” (John 21:15-17) and built His Church on the rock of Peter (Peter means “rock”), and gave Peter the “Keys to the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matt 16:18-19). After Peter was martyred, a successor was chosen to be Christ’s Vicar. This succession has continued until today. The Roman Catholic Church is the oldest continuously operating entity with an identifiable structure. All other Christian churches trace their roots back to Catholicism. There are no credible disputes to this historical fact.

~There are seven “Sacraments”
  1. Baptism
  2. First Holy Comunion
  3. First Confession
  4. Confirmation
  5. Anointing of the Sick/Last Rites
  6. Marriage
  7. Holy Orders (becoming a priest, nun, brother, or deacon)
These are the absolute bare-bones basics. You will find many answers here. Good hunting, and God bless!
 
I also recommend “Catholicism for Dummies”. My girlfriend is currently attending RCIA, and has found the book helpful. The priest teaching the class went through the seminary with the authors, and has vouched for the book’s accuracy.

There is alot to learn about, as Catholicism is not “simple”. However, there’s an old saying: “Q: How do you eat an elephant? A: One bite at a time.”
 
dancingrain91 said:
Well, I posted in the meet and greet thread that I am not Catholic, but interested in the faith because my boyfriend’s family is. The thing is, I obviously know nothing. I’d guessed that since I have always gone to church I would understand more. But it’s like a different language. I have heard other people recommend something called rc something something. Or to ask a priest. But I’m very involved in my own church and not quite ready to convert. Besides it would break my mother’s heart. So I was just hoping that maybe you could help me out by just explaining some basics. Thank you for your time and I’m sorry this is so vague. I just don’t even know where to begin asking.
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I would imagine a lot of your questions are similar to the ones I had.

There is a LOT of info because the Catholic Church has been active for 2000 years. That’s a lot of history.

The best thing I found were two things: Google “catholic answers [insert question]”

The other thing that single handed explained the hardest things to believe as a former protestant: the cd series Catholic Answers to Common Objections.

If you are really interested send me your address in a PM and I will mail you my copy for FREE. I have listened to the entire series 4 times. It explains so much so perfectly, including the Church’s beliefs on Mary which are always a sticking point.
 
Dancing Rain:

Welcome to CAF! There’s a great book by Scott and Kimberly (?) Hahn. It’s called Rome Sweet Home and is full of conversion stories.
 
Boy_Wonder said:
Dancing Rain:

Welcome to CAF! There’s a great book by Scott and Kimberly (?) Hahn. It’s called Rome Sweet Home and is full of conversion stories.
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Wonderful book! I read it in under 24 hours. Addictive.
 
I would suggest undertaking your own studies. Catholicism for Dummies is a good read, as some have already said. Another would be Peter Kreeft’s Catholic Christianity, which is a very, very readable supplement to the Catechism. If you’re familiar with C. S. Lewis, he has a very similar style – very lyrical and very readable.

I’d caution against relying exclusively on RCIA for information, as very often the information provided there is incomplete and in some cases even unreliable. Things may not be that way at the parish in your area but you’d have no way of knowing for sure. So I would suggest studying up on Catholicism on your own first.
 
Skip the “For Dummies” books and go to the simple Baltimore Catechism. Simple question and answer format.

Read them all here: catholicity.com/baltimore-catechism/

It is from 1941, but it is all still valid (Some simple things such fasting age, etc. have changed) simple and above all EASY to get a quick grasp on what the Catholic Church is and what she teaches.

If you are a pictures person get the St. Joseph Baltimore Catechism #2. It is written for 4th - 8th graders, but that just makes it easy to understand. It also has bible references to backup what is being taught.

Enjoy!

Matt
 
If you want to learn the language quickly you can’t beat “Catholicism for Dummies”: Fr. John Trigilio & Fr. Ken Brighentin wrote the book as a great quick primer on the faith. It is by no means in-depth, but if you want to learn the lay of the land quickly this is the book you want.

From there you can zone in on subjects that interest you and find a whole host of books on just about any subject you may want to look into further.
 
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