Doubting church

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I returned to the church after many years away. Since returning I have spent much time reading on the catholic faith and the saints. I feel as if I have grown spiritually through these readings and believe Jesus is my savior. I don’t question or doubt Jesus but I do find myself doubting the catholic church. I have looked at other religions but believe the catholic church beliefs are what Jesus intended us to follow but I question what the church has become. I often hear stories about the abuse scandal, the Vatican leaks, the corruption of the catholic church and then I see so many people (priests included) simply going through the motion at mass but not practicing the faith. I often wonder if the church or the people who lead the church has somehow lost it’s way, if this is even possible. Can anyone recommend a book that might help me to better understand the structure of the church. I have tried to find some books on my own but seem to only be finding books that bash the church which isn’t what I want. Others I have found are to old to deal with the issues of the past 20 years. Also is doubting the church a sin?
 
One thing you’ll have to realize, is that even in Protestant churches, there has been, is, and will be corruption. Also, with a world full of sinners (even among clergy) you are going to have those people who will corrupt or who have been corrupted. However, Jesus promised that the Church itself would be corrupted or fall to the devil, at least in terms of what it teaches. The Church was made for sinners. The righteous would not need the Church. I would also like to state that the corruption, or rather flaws, that people point out so fervently in the Catholic Church are a minority. Even during the “huge” sexual abuse scandal, that in reality was only a small fraction of the Church, but because it involves the Church (a worldwide massive and well known organization) the media and those against the Church grab a hold of whatever they can that can negatively affect the Church and try to use it as a weapon to bring about its demise, but they will never succeed! It is true that there are numbers of Catholics who go through the motions, and most of them were probably born into Catholic families and raised as such, and therefore probably do not have a good appreciation for what they’ve got. I didn’t, until I made the journey back home, and have a much larger appreciation for what Jesus Christ has given us.

Fear not! Be an example for those at your local church and worship the Lord God with a fire that the others can see and make them wonder what they’re missing out on and realize that it is the wonder right in front of them!
 
And I say to thee: That thou art Peter;
and upon this rock I will build my church, and
the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
~ Matthew 16:19 (Douay Rheims)

If the gates of hell won’t prevail against it, any human event won’t either.
:o Trust in the Church. Humans are weak but the Church is strong.
 
Do we doubt the apostles because of Judas? Neither should we doubt all of the priests and bishops because of a few bad apples.

I would suggest that you look more into Scott hahn. He is easy to read and quite informative.
 
The church has sinners in it, in fact we are all sinners and sadly sometimes our own leadership does fall in sin. You have to focus not on that every Catholic tries to practice their faith and follow church’s teaching perfectly but what the Church teaches and whether or not it is the church founded by Christ. Remember of the 12 Jesus picked, Judas betrayed Him.
We will always have the wheat with the tares. Don’t focus on the tares and focus on following Christ and being wheat.
 
janet1025 said:
… Others I have found are to old to deal with the issues of the past 20 years. Also is doubting the church a sin?
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Best book I found when I was questioning the church, wondering if I was Catholic due to habit and family background or actually believed, was …“Faith of the Early Fathers” Vol I edited and translated by Jurgens.

If Christ granted authority to a Church on earth, what did the original apostles and christians understand it to be? What did it teach? How does that compare to what the Catholic Church teaches now? Remember, the community of the Church on earth consist of fallible humans, none of us can be perfect. The Church goes through cycles where the clergy, or prominent catholics fail to live as the Church teaches. Implicit in Christ’s promise to protect the Church even from the gates of hell, is that the Church requires that protection because forces of evil will always attack the church. It can only attack the church by exploiting weaknessess in it’s people.

I found studying the earliest recorded writings of christians, of the Church, prior to the declaration of the canon of scripture (i.e. the Bible) removed my doubts. From it’s inception the Church taught the same doctrine it teaches today. The Eucharist, the mysteries, the necessity to live the faith, to perform acts of charity vice simply state belief, the evil of abortion, etc. etc. etc.
 
Thanks everyone - this is all very helpful and informative. I will start looking at the suggested reading and keep praying for God to lead me.
 
The best answer I have for this is something I read on another post yesterday, by a CAF member named MarcoPolo. It said -
…we believe because our faith is not grounded in the failures of the Church’s members. We don’t abandon Christ because of Judas.
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I think that says it all. 🤷
 
janet1025 said:
Thanks everyone - this is all very helpful and informative. I will start looking at the suggested reading and keep praying for God to lead me.
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As a Jewish Convert to the Catholic Faith i will keep you in my prayers, that between prayers of the faithfull, your own prayers, and reading the books what our fellow Catholic members recommended that you will grow in holiness and be on fire for the love of the Lord through his Church, the Catholic Church founded by Our Lord himself.👍
 
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