Help please! Why the Church matters?

[Sancti]

I am in a relationship right now and he is a protestant. He wants to know why I have to celebrate mass in the Catholic Church. He says that when we get married we all need to go the same church and when I take part in communion I can just believe in the Eucharist. I know this is completley in sane but I need some refrences for explaining why!

Thankyou
and may the Holy Trinity bless you all

 

[Sherlock]

Sancti,

There are quite a number of issues raised by this, issues that are not restricted to the Eucharist. For example, he obviously doesn’t believe in a consecrated priesthood, because a validly ordained priest is necessary for the changing of the bread and wine to the Body and Blood of our Lord. Catholics are not to participate in the communion services of other churches when there is no valid Eucharist there, so right away he is asking you to do something (going to his church and pretending that it’s really the Eucharist) that you simply cannot do as a Catholic.

It sounds as if you might need to do some research into your own faith. I would suggest going to Catholic.com, and at the left of the page, under “Library”, you will find the category “sacraments”. Click on that and you will find some good (but brief) articles that may help you. These articles will have the Scriptural references you’re probably looking for, as well as quotes from the early Church Fathers which show how the first Christians understood these sacraments (Protestants like to think that these are all “extras” that the Catholic Church tacked on, but reading the writings of the first Christians shows how wrong that opinion is).
I would also recommend reading “The Lamb’s Supper”, by Scott Hahn.

God bless!

 

[dhgray]

Sancti:

I am in a relationship right now and he is a protestant. He wants to know why I have to celebrate mass in the Catholic Church.

I’d reconsider the relationship. If he is making these demands now, what demands is he going to make after you get married?

Will he allow you to get married in the Catholic Church? Will he allow you to baptize and raise the children in the Catholic Church?

He had made it know that he wants you to leave the Catholic church after you get married.

If he can’t respect your faith, what else doesn’t he respect?

Sancti:

He says that when we get married we all need to go the same church and when I take part in communion I can just believe in the Eucharist.

On this point, agree with him…tell him he can wait in the pew while you and the children receive the Eucharist.

Sancti:

I know this is completely in sane but I need some references for explaining why!

**2181 **The Sunday Eucharist is the foundation and confirmation of all Christian practice. For this reason the faithful are obliged to participate in the Eucharist on days of obligation, unless excused for a serious reason (for example, illness, the care of infants) or dispensed by their own pastor. Those who deliberately fail in this obligation commit a grave sin.

scborromeo.org/ccc/para/2181.htm

americancatholic.org/Newsletters/CU/ac0802.asp

pacifier.com/~belisle/holymass/etiquette.htm