How to choose between RCC or an Eastern rites church?

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eureka525

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Born and raised Presbyterian and quite satisfied with my religious upbringing, I never had much reason to consider converting to any other religion. Now, however, my husband of 2 years is Maronite and we had our new son christened in his church. We regularly attend mass together at his church and I am now considering that perhaps I should convert, if after research and prayer I am led in that direction. My husband has also told me that he would go to a Roman Catholic church if I’d be more comfortable with that.

I was wondering if anyone could perhaps lend me some insight into what sort of differences I could expect between a Maronite church and a Latin rites church? Is it more of a cultural thing or is there different theology, etc. involved?

Any other converts out there who could maybe talk about their decision process?

Thanks!
 
Honestly, I am not completely sure what the difference is. Correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the Maronite Church is Lebanese. What I do know is that disciplines, practices, and liturgy are different between the Roman Catholic Church and the Eastern Catholic Churches. The theology is all the same. The only difference is in the practices. They are subject to the Pope. They accept Papal Infallibility. They accept and agree with all the teachings that the CATHOLIC Church teaches. The Maronite Catholic Church is Catholic. SO basically, you are allowed to go where you feel at home and since the rest of your family is at the Maronite Church, I see nothing wrong with becoming a member of it. You will be Catholic! 👍
 
here is a website about the Maronite Catholic Church :

maronite-heritage.com/Maronites.php

the Maronite Church has a very unique culture, history, her own saints, hymns, and prayers. but theologically she is Catholic, no difference from Latin Catholics theologically.
 
Actually, the theology does differ. The dogma doesn’t, but dogma is not the same as theology.

Dogma is that which must be believed. It is universal.

Doctrine is that which must be taught. The individual churches in the Catholic communion differ only slightly on doctrinal matters, mostly matters of ecclesiology.

Theology is the body of teachings that explain and illuminate both Dogma and Doctrine, and the theology varies widely between each church sui iuris; most of the larger churches sui iuris have multiple schools of theological thought, and even these are not always intercompatible.
 
eureka525 said:
Born and raised Presbyterian and quite satisfied with my religious upbringing, I never had much reason to consider converting to any other religion. Now, however, my husband of 2 years is Maronite and we had our new son christened in his church. We regularly attend mass together at his church and I am now considering that perhaps I should convert, if after research and prayer I am led in that direction. My husband has also told me that he would go to a Roman Catholic church if I’d be more comfortable with that.
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I am going to stick my neck out here, and say that if you are willing to consider a conversion due to your husbands faithfulness or devotion, by all means concentrate on the Maronite church and it’s teachings.

Talk to the priest and ask for instruction. You do not have to convert (and should not) if you finally come to the conclusion you cannot believe what is taught there.

Don’t even bring the Latin church (it’s teachings, liturgy, etc.) into this process. It would only confuse the situation unnecessarily. You have a Maronite parish available to you, a priest and a devout husband who can help you. Learn your Faith there.

Converts to Latin Catholic (RCC) Christianity almost never give a second thought to what the eastern churches are teaching or how they worship. One will find notable exceptions here on the internet forum, but compared to the hundreds of thousands of converts around the world, it is a very insignificant percentage.

In my opinion you should start to consider yourself a potential convert to Maronite Catholicism. Ask for recommendations of proper reading and prayer materials from the members here, and your priest.
 
Seek out opportunities to serve others in both, and choose the one where you have the greater reality of service.
 
“Don’t even bring the Latin church (it’s teachings, liturgy, etc.) into this process. It would only confuse the situation unnecessarily. You have a Maronite parish available to you, a priest and a devout husband who can help you. Learn your Faith there.”

I will ditto this statement. It will be much easier if you learn from the church of your husband and the one in which your child is in. The eastern church has so much to offer which is often neglected by our fellow Latin Rite Catholics. The theology is different, but the dogmatic decrees are the same. As I say," I have the faith of the east expressed in Latin terms." That is, I beleive everything the Church teaches up through the Blessed Council of Vatican II, but I understand it through the eyes of an eastern christian.
Ask the parish priest, and you will probably not be disappointed that you did.
Good Luck and God Bless.
 
Aramis said:
Actually, the theology does differ. The dogma doesn’t, but dogma is not the same as theology.

Dogma is that which must be believed. It is universal.

Doctrine is that which must be taught. The individual churches in the Catholic communion differ only slightly on doctrinal matters, mostly matters of ecclesiology.

Theology is the body of teachings that explain and illuminate both Dogma and Doctrine, and the theology varies widely between each church sui iuris; most of the larger churches sui iuris have multiple schools of theological thought, and even these are not always intercompatible.
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ah, that i did not know! thank you, that helps.
 
I heard that if two Catholics are married, the family is encouraged to raise the family in the traditions of the husband. Not required, but encouraged. In the end though, as a Catholic you can go to either particular churches and celebrate fully.

And for most of us, the judicial differences do not matter for most of our daily lives. So maybe its which you would be more comfortable with. Is your husband comfortable with the Latin rite Mass and participating as a Latin rite? Is he offering this because you are part of western Christianity and so you are more comfortable with a western understanding of theology? It would definitely be helpful to read up on the two as you are doing. But I think the most important part is to find where you are both most comfortable and can celebrate your relationship with God best. The core is the same, it is the understand in personal terms that would be most relevant for you. Since this is important to your marriage, make sure it’s a joint decision. Attending both parishes and asking each other which brings the two of your together more and can help you both be saints is the key.
 
Thank you everyone for the (name removed by moderator)ut! I appreciate it! I think it’s a good point not to confuse the situation too much and to just continue to explore the Maronite church with my family. There will be a lot to absorb either way I think but I’m looking forward to learning more! Thank you again everyone.
 
StillWondering said:
I heard that if two Catholics are married, the family is encouraged to raise the family in the traditions of the husband. Not required, but encouraged. In the end though, as a Catholic you can go to either particular churches and celebrate fully.
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The Vatican II post-conciliar documents specify a preference for the ECC when it’s between a Roman and any of the others…
 
To Eureka 525:

As far as your having the fullness of the Christian Faith, I believe God would be equally pleased if you were to join the Roman Catholic Church or the Maronite Catholic Church. However, as long as you do not have any insurmountable objections, since your husband was baptized as a Maronite, I think it would be a wonderful gift of love if you were to join him as a member of the Maronite Catholic Church. Let’s remember: being a loving spouse is also very pleasing to God. So I second the opinion that you should explore the beautiful Maronite Church in depth before considering the great Latin Church.

Also, this site may provide some answers.

May Jesus Christ bless you and your family.
 
Hi, the theology or dogma isnt different it is the same, the only thing that differs is the liturgy.

Maronites are the oldest eastern Catholic rite, going back to the 4th century, and the Liturgy is prayed in aramaic, although a lebonese friend of mine has said the language has changed slightly nowadays and is not so much aramaic.

I think all rites are equally as good as each other, and one can find God in them all.

but it would be a good idea for you to go into the Maronite in order not to cause confusion among the family.

Pax Christi
Stephen <3
 
I have to go with the common sentiment here.

If your husband is already Maronite, you are not missing anything by forgoing the Latin-rite. Families should attend Mass together and be of the same rite.

I would personally add that Eastern-rite Catholic Churches have kept a considerable part of their traditional heritage while the Latin-rite has been in a process of “finding itself” over the past few decades after unnecessarily throwing quite a bit of its heritage out the window.

I admittedly love the Latin-rite but if I had to do it all over again I would have gone with the Eastern-rite had it been available to me when I first converted. There is something of implicit value in feeling that you are connected to the ancient traditions of the Church and that is sadly not always possible in most Latin-rite churches.

Hope this helps. 🙂
 
I’m a Catholic Roman Rite. You should try to be in the same rite as your husband. Go to both rites though & visit each. Both rites are beautiful & will lead you to God. My fellow Eastern Rite Christian’s have been somewhat harsh on the Latin Rite. I’m glad them appreciate their rite, but we like our churches too.
 
eureka525 said:
Born and raised Presbyterian and quite satisfied with my religious upbringing, I never had much reason to consider converting to any other religion. Now, however, my husband of 2 years is Maronite and we had our new son christened in his church. We regularly attend mass together at his church and I am now considering that perhaps I should convert, if after research and prayer I am led in that direction. My husband has also told me that he would go to a Roman Catholic church if I’d be more comfortable with that.

I was wondering if anyone could perhaps lend me some insight into what sort of differences I could expect between a Maronite church and a Latin rites church? Is it more of a cultural thing or is there different theology, etc. involved?

Any other converts out there who could maybe talk about their decision process?

Thanks!
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I am assuming that you have attended your husband’s Maronite Church and you are familiar with it. If that is so, Why don’t you both just go to a Latin Rite Church a few times and see what you think?
 
Ignatius said:
I am assuming that you have attended your husband’s Maronite Church and you are familiar with it. If that is so, Why don’t you both just go to a Latin Rite Church a few times and see what you think?
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Um, I could be very mistaken about this matter so please forgive me in advance. It seems that one would need to get approval to switch rites, and I think if I am not mistaken it’s not as simple a matter as “shopping around” after a pattern of worship in the family has begun on it’s course.
Since we are not getting all the details and only bits and pieces of information, it’s a tough call to make according to the rules and regs of your church from what I can see. He is still the head of the household, isn’t he? Or did he loose that “right”/rite as well?
 
Aramis said:
Actually, the theology does differ. The dogma doesn’t, but dogma is not the same as theology.

Dogma is that which must be believed. It is universal.

Doctrine is that which must be taught. The individual churches in the Catholic communion differ only slightly on doctrinal matters, mostly matters of ecclesiology.

Theology is the body of teachings that explain and illuminate both Dogma and Doctrine, and the theology varies widely between each church sui iuris; most of the larger churches sui iuris have multiple schools of theological thought, and even these are not always intercompatible.
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Tht’s a nice presentation in a nutshell. Thanks.
 
StrawberryJam said:
It seems that one would need to get approval to switch rites, and I think if I am not mistaken it’s not as simple a matter as “shopping around” after a pattern of worship in the family has begun on it’s course.
Since we are not getting all the details and only bits and pieces of information, it’s a tough call to make according to the rules and regs of your church from what I can see. He is still the head of the household, isn’t he? Or did he loose that “right”/rite as well?
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I think there’s enough flexibility to accommodate the spirituality of the OP and her husband, particularly with someone just coming into The Church.
 
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