Do you have to be perfect to be Catholic?

[prodigaljen]

How do I respond to the below argument?

I read that, when the Pope was “elected,” he said in a speech that people aren’t Catholic unless they adhere to all of the Church’s beliefs. Meaning if you used any type of birth control, for example, you weren’t Catholic. If you attended Mass only every now and then, you weren’t Catholic. That didn’t sit right with me. I was brought up believing that you can worship God anywhere, any time, and if you didn’t attend church every week, that was okay.

I don’t see how this can be true, because we’re all sinners, and if this were true, none of us would be Catholic, right? But I can’t find any official sources that specifically refute this point or any references to what, exactly, the Pope may have said about it. It seems like the point is that we should believe and try our best to always follow the beliefs of the Church – not that we are expected to always be perfect in living up to them under threat of being kicked out. Is this correct? If so, how do I get this across in a loving way?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

Ask your friend to provide you with a copy of the speech in which the Pope is said to have said this. As your friend is the one making the assertion, it is his responsibility to substantiate it.

The Church requires that Catholics give assent of the will to all that the Church proposes for belief, but it realizes that Catholics can have honest difficulties believing and may not lead perfect lives. That is what the sacrament of confession is for.

As for the question of whether you have to be “perfect” to be Catholic, I particularly like this quote by a deathbed convert to the Church:

The Catholic Church is for saints and sinners alone. For respectable people, the Anglican church will do. --Oscar Wilde