Feeling Like Converting

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TNMan

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So I’ve recently been in other threads here mentioning how I’ve felt the pull of the Holy Spirit to convert to the RCC. I’ve church hopped pretty much my entire adult life and have been a member of a LCMS church for about 1.5 years. It’s a good church, has great people but that “it” is just missing.

I’ve researched the ECF’s, church history, etc. and it just makes sense that the church our Savior established is the RCC. I’ve been praying for a year for clarity, discernment, taking away my pride, taking away he “bells and whistles” of the RCC (I love Mass, and know its the pinnacle of the faith, but I’m attracted to High church services).

I even began praying to the Blessed Virgin to draw me closer to her Son. It seems as if the barriers I put up to consider joining the RCC just came crashing down literally in a day. Sola Scriptura doesn’t hold weight with me anymore.

My issue, and I’m sure someone here has had this same issue, my wife is against joining. I haven’t laid all this out to her yet (I know I should go to her before asking strangers on the Internet) but I don’t know how to seriously begin to broach the subject. I’ve prayed for God’s guidance but it still hasn’t been made clear to me. She’s not necessarily anti-catholic, but we have a 6-month old daughter which throws another issue in there.

Any ideas on how to approach her with this? Also, please move his thread if it’s not in the right category. Thank you.
 
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Wow. You are the third poster on CAF today with similar concerns. There must be a powerful movement of the Holy Spirit going on. Lifting you up in prayer. 🙏 Asking all the Saints and Holy Angel’s to intercede for you and your wife and child.

What is your greatest need?

Edit: I re-read your post. Just a feeling, your wife may be more open to a move towards the CC than you realize. She may be waiting on you to open up.
 
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Thank you. Hadn’t seen the other threads.

How to have this conversation with my wife in a way where it’s a conversation of love. We both are open books with each other, but this is one where it could change our lives. How do we go to church on sundays? Which church does our daughter “grow up” in, etc.

God is first in my life and I don’t feel like I can put this off as I feel the Spirit pulling me and to not respond would be sinful imo.
 
As always, guidance from a priest will serve best. You and your wife must decide the hard question in which religion to raise your child. Some couples go to both churches to support each other. Sometimes the other spouse converts (as case with Scott Hahn) sometimes not, and continue to respect each other’s choice.

A couple in my former parish did that, both respected and welcome in each other’s church, raised two daughters in CC.

And an older couple in my present church, he is Catholic, she is Lutheran. Makes me smile she sits there listening attentively to the homily, nodding her head in agreement. But she would never be Catholic! And he just couldn’t stay away from his Catholic Church any more so came back a year ago.
 
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I recommend reading “Rome Sweet Home” by Scott Hahn. You need to talk to a priest. Pray for your wife, I will also. I am planning on converting too. My parents are strongly against it, but it is what God wants for me and it is Christ’s church. You have to talk to your wife about which religious to bring your daughter up. Like you said, God is first. I will pray for the Holy Spirit to guide and enlighten you both.
 
Thank you. I’ve read Rome Sweet Rome. Hoping my story can turn out the same way. I know I can’t “intellect” her into converting. Just have to let the Spirit work.
 
Do it, man!! I’m former Lutheran myself.

As for your wife, Scott Hahn was just patient, loving with his wife and didn’t hit her over the head with doctrine.

I’m so happy to hear you’re converting.

Listen to the other posters, talk with a priest and if you ever want any advice from me; hit me up. I’ll be glad to talk with you.
 
My other half isn’t Catholic either. One cool thing about converting is that your faith
Becomes a lot more visible - items around the home, holy water, different prayers. Confession where your spouse can see the difference in you afterwards (apparently I am calmer ). So spouse ends up coming along for the ride in terms of observing you. Hubby will now attend mass sometimes with me, knows the Hail Mary, glory be and prayer to st Michael and will pray them with me. Uses holy water along with me. Once they see how positive it is for you, that is your best tool for witnessing to them
 
I’m one of the other posters.

I’ve come to accept that there is no easy way out. We’re a pastoral couple (both pastors but not in the same parish) and this will be a problem. My husband is supportive for now, but I’m not sure he fully realizes what converting implies, particularly not being able together to receive communion from him.

I had made plans on how to tell him I was thinking of converting - making time for us both, maybe taking a walk in the forest - and I ended up just blurting it out one evening as we went to bed because I couldn’t keep that from him any longer. I regretted not having told him sooner, he was nothing but understanding and supportive.

I have a trusted priest friend who is accompanying me on the way. One of the things he told me is to try not to see all the potential issues as a big wall I’m facing, but as a path I can tread with the confidence that Christ will carry me through, one step at a time. I’m also aware and accepting of the fact that, due to my circumstances, the process might be long (contract issues with my church and whatnot). I’m ok with that.
 
I believe I am one of the others. (?)

I am also a Lutheran. Formerly LCMS, currently ELCA. … Actually, technically for me it would be a reversion.
Michael16 said:
As for your wife, Scott Hahn was just patient, loving with his wife and didn’t hit her over the head with doctrine.
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This. Not doing this was my mistake years ago. It caused my then-girlfriend-now-wife to dig in her heels. Ended up compromising, allowing doubt to pull me away. Now I’m here, trying to clean up the mess I’ve made of my faith, retracing old steps, relearning old lessons I should have already learned. Biggest regret of my life so far! I am yet too afraid to talk openly with my wife about it yet, myself. A few days ago, I said I was done with Lutheranism the moment the ELCA institutionalizes communion for the unbaptized or changes the baptismal formula. Even just a few days ago, I felt like I could go on fighting to re-catholicize Lutheranism so long as that doesn’t happen, and said as much to her.

I’ve realized something, however. The last time a church service brought me to tears and the last time a church service left me in utter awe at the divine was when I was still Catholic. If that was real, and not simply some emotional “enthusiasm”, I both dread and crave what might happen were I to revert!

It’s funny. I have a very intellectual approach to things. I’ve admitted it’s gotten me into trouble before. But I have the feeling that I am following Lutherans and Anglicans and, yes, even Luther himself back across the Tiber.
TNMan said:
How to have this conversation with my wife in a way where it’s a conversation of love. We both are open books with each other, but this is one where it could change our lives. How do we go to church on sundays?
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I have the same concerns in my own case. I do recall, however, that Catholic parishes seem to usually have daily Masses, and that Saturday evening “counts” for Sunday (Hebrew time: the next day starts the evening before). For us, it might end up for a while me going to Mass on Saturday evening, and then go to the Divine Service with my wife Sunday. If I begin to revert, I would not receive at the Lutheran Service, however.

Sorry for the disjointedness. Haven’t had coffee yet.
 
(St. Peter) “Honey, I met this really cool dude today, I’m gonna quite my job to follow him.”

(St. Peter’s wife) “Do what!?”

(St. Peter) "Yes, he wants me and the guys to go to our synagogues and be fishers of men, you know, disrupt and tweak their doctrine just a bit "

(St. Peter’s wife) “Honey, did you bump your head today? You don’t even have an education! And now you have quite your job with a family to feed to follow this guy you just met and are going into our church where everyone knows us to tell them they need to go see this other crazy man eating locust in the desert and dunking folks under water??? Do you have rocks in your head?”

(St. Peter) “Ugh, speaking of rocks, there is something else I need to tell you…”

(St. Peter’s wife) “Grrrrrrrrrr!”

Just being funny, but yes, take that leap of faith!!! Our very first Pope knew a thing or two about having to tell his other half things that might rock the boat, but he had great faith in Jesus, he followed him even though he knew where it would lead.

(St. Peter) “I almost walked on water too!”

(St. Peter’s wife) “Ok that’s enough for one day! Go to bed!”)

(St. Peter) “Ok, good night, I love you.”

(St. Peter’s wife) “I love you too silly, but your going to tell the kids tomorrow, not me!”
 
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That’s where I am, sort of. I have been saying “well maybe I’ll wait a little bit to tell her so I don’t blindside her,” but I feel like I’m just going to blurt it out because I don’t want to wait on this process.
 
It’s a process that goes from September through to Easter. It’s a Hour and a half once a week class if I remember right.
 
Thanks. I’ve seen that if you are a baptized Christian, sometimes you aren’t accepted into the church at the same time as other catechumens. Correct?
 
One way to look at it is this:

Convert or don’t convert: you’re still going to have religious and ideological differences between you and your wife one way or another. So you can’t necessarily avoid it even if you wanted to. You can try to bury the issue but it will likely have a way of continuously nagging you during the quieter moments of the day.

I think it will be a wonderful journey even if it might not end up being easy.

Peace brother.
 
🤔 The Church accepts as valid any Baptism that done in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. I was accepted into the Church with the other catechumens at the same time.

But: I’d check with a priest and/or the RCIA director at your parish. Call the parish office and they’ll line you up with him/her.
 
Well, I’d say be honest with your wife. Definitely speak to priest to get advice on this. If I were you I’d go to the priest first so you know what to say to your wife and dont have a lot of 'I don’t knows ’ and ‘well I am not sures’ but you know your wife best so if going to the priest first will hurt her then consider her feelings. I am sure you know she doesn’t have to become catholic just cos you do. But that you’d need to get the marriage sanctified and your child be raised as a catholic so you do really need her on board. So her not being anti catholic is great. But those are things that can all come along in due course as a priest will explain. First the love. The mass, go to some of them. You may find your wife has an idea something is going on too, is she aware of your interest. God bless you.
 
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As some have said, candidates (already baptized) are not supposed to go through RCIA with the catechumens. BUT…from what I’ve heard, most churches do just add them all together in a class and confirm everybody at once. I was a candidate and new to all of this. I didn’t complain, since I had showed up in the middle, in Jan., and asked to join the church, and they put me in the RCIA class, so I ended up only doing half the class. Which, frankly, is enough, IMO. I was just so happy that I was joining and, according to them, being fast-tracked in my journey.
 
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