Does this mean I am Roman Catholic?

[Wonderfalls]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

 

[passus]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Yes.

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

No.

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

You are a Catholic because your Baptism made an indelible mark on your soul. There is no way to erase that, so the answer to your question is no.

 

[hosemonkey]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.

Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Man, to me that would be like winning the Powerball lottery and then turning it down. You better quit while you’re ahead!

 

[LilyM]

You are a Catholic because your Baptism made an indelible mark on your soul. There is no way to erase that, so the answer to your question is no.

Firstly - please, there is nothing horrific about being baptised Catholic. I certainly wouldn’t be phased at all if I discovered that an Anglican or any other Christian minister had baptised me. In fact I wouldn’t even need to be baptised again if I discovered this.

Secondly - while it is true that baptism leaves an indelible mark on the soul, and in that sense ‘once a Catholic always a Catholic’, there IS such a thing as formal defection from the church.

My friend passus here doesn’t seem to know his, but it IS possible to write a letter to your local Catholic bishop, explaining your circumstances and stating that you have never considered yourself to be bound by the Canon Law of the Church and certainly do not wish to be considered so bound in future.

That act of formal defection at least means that you will no longer be considered bound by the obligations Catholics have, such as Mass attendance, reception of the sacraments, marriage within the Catholic church etc.

 

[JPUSC]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

Lucky you!

Welcome!

 

[po18guy]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

Quite a nuclear bomb for your very first post! [edited] I would suggest…you…ask the priest first thing in the morning.

Two questions:

1. Where did your Episcopal bible come from?
2. Where did your Episcopal confirmation come from?

May Christ’s peace be with you.

 

[Eucharisted]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

You are still Catholic. Confirmation cannot erase the baptismal mark on the soul. You can formally leave the Church, but you can also use this chance to get to know the Catholic Church better

If, however, you do want to leave the Catholic Church, you must write to your local bishop and give a good reason for wanting to leave. But the bishop is not under obligation to accept your letter, so you might not get the formal removal you want. If he dose not reply to your letter, send another.

 

[Wintersdemise]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

If you don’t want to be a Catholic, then just don’t practice or acknowledge yourself one. Sure, you can write to the Bishop, but if you don’t believe that Bishop has any authority, why would you bother?

But…

Why would you want to throw that away? Do you know your history? If so you would know that the Episcopal Church was founded because a selfish king wanted to get a divorce!

The sacraments, scriptures, and theology the Episcopalians use originated in Catholicism! Maybe this is God’s way of telling you to return to the source of Christianity.

You ought to look at your circumstances as a blessing.

 

[Just_Lurking]

When did your parents take you out of the Catholic Church and into the Episcopal Church?

 

[dg5887]

The next step is to call the Catholic parish closest to you and sign up for RCIA classes. This is a great blessing! God works in very mysterious ways and everything indeed happens for a reason. God Bless!

 

[YoGoRCC]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

“Horror?” Are you speaking of the dying Episcopalian group? You should feel blessed to be a Catholic.

 

[kage_ar]

Imagine you have lived in a nice neighborhood for years, there are some folks up the road - you are not best friends, but, you say hello and exchange plesantries.

One day, you discover that those people are actually your parents.

Would a good christian walk up, bang on the front door and say “I just discovered to my horror that you are my parents”?

That is how your first post comes across.

You were baptized Catholic. That means that your parents decided to bring you into the Catholic faith, just like they decided of which country you would be a citizen.

You can choose to reject that citizenship and you can choose to reject your Catholicism. There is a formal process for both, a good Christian would respect the laws and customs of his country of origin and of his Faith of origin, and do the research and follow those steps.

Or, maybe, he would also do some study and see that it really is a great thing to be a citizen of that country, and work to embrace it.

 

[buffalo]

Anyone who was baptized using the Trinitarian formula has been baptized into the one, holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.

 

[Newbie2]

“To your horror”.

Why?

 

[YoGoRCC]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.
Does this mean that I am still a Roman Catholic?

Does the Episcopal confirmation cancel it?

If not, is there some sort of way to get formally removed from the Roman Catholic Church?

BTW, you were baptised a Catholic in the Catholic Church. The moniker “Roman Catholic” as you use it was brewed-up by Anglican Protestants back when they thought they could still pass as Catholic and they attempted to keep a seat at the table so to speak. Given the absurdity of that claim you should begin to use the correct verbiage.

 

[George_C]

I am an Episcopalian, confirmed and active in the church, but I recently found out to my horror that I was baptized as a Roman Catholic.

Horror? I tell you this, Wonderfalls: I cannot wait until I am baptized as a Catholic this Easter vigil.

The Episcopal Church is like the rest of the countless other Protestant denominations. That should be a warning right there that something’s not right. I have been convinced that the One True Christian Church Jesus built on Simon Peter is the Catholic Church, not the Baptist church, not the Seventh-Day Adventist church, not the Presbyterian church, not the Anglican church, and certainly not the Episcopalian church.

Before the so-called “reformation,” the word “Catholic,” which is derived from the Greek word “Catholicos” (“universal”,) was used interchangeably with the word “Christian.”

Before the reformation, all Christians were Catholics. It’s overwhelming and undeniable historical fact.

Wonderfalls, you need to get on the right track.

I pray for you.

 

[George_C]

BTW, you were baptised a Catholic in the Catholic Church. The moniker “Roman Catholic” as you use it was brewed-up by Anglican Protestants back when they thought they could still pass as Catholic and they attempted to keep a seat at the table so to speak. Given the absurdity of that claim you should begin to use the correct verbiage.

I’ve heard a lot of Catholics use the phrase “Roman Catholic Church.” Priests and laity alike, and no one has objected to it.

 

[chris_molter]

You should have known your Baptism was Catholic before you were Confirmed in TEC. Unless things have changed, you’re supposed to submit proof of Baptism before you could be Confirmed by the Bishop. Did they not ask for your Baptismal Certificate?

 

[passus]

Secondly - while it is true that baptism leaves an indelible mark on the soul, and in that sense ‘once a Catholic always a Catholic’, there IS such a thing as formal defection from the church.

My friend passus here doesn’t seem to know his, but it IS possible to write a letter to your local Catholic bishop, explaining your circumstances and stating that you have never considered yourself to be bound by the Canon Law of the Church and certainly do not wish to be considered so bound in future.

Haha.

I assure you, my friend LilyM, that I am well aware of defection “from the Church by a formal act,” as the *Code of Canon Law *words it.

The thing of it is, though, that defection is stupid. Just think: why would anyone with little enough respect for the Church’s authority as to want to leave the Church forever go through the long legal process of seeking out a formal defection? Would that not, in itself, be a recognition of Church authority on some level?

Additionally, I chose not to bring up defection because when it gets down to it, I’m just not entirely comfortable making myself accomplice to that kind of thing. Why would I want to provide someone with the means to have him- or herself declared defected from the Church I know holds and teaches the entirety of the Truth–the one and only True Church? That’s like providing a pregnant girl with the address and telephone number of an abortion clinic and then saying, “Do with that what you will.”

I’ll have no part in anyone’s defection.

 

[Just_Lurking]

That act of formal defection at least means that you will no longer be considered bound by the obligations Catholics have, such as Mass attendance, reception of the sacraments, marriage within the Catholic church etc.

Catholics who formally defect are still bound by almost all of the obligations of canon law, including Mass attendance (canon 1247). They are only relieved of three specific obligations relating to marriage, those of canons 1086, 1117, and 1124, because those canons explicitly exclude Catholics who have defected by a formal act.