How to choose between RCC or an Eastern rites church?

[eureka525]

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.

I didn’t realize this, is there a source for this? Forgive my ignorance please as I am new to this, but from what I’ve read from the other posters, the sentiment seems to be that Catholic is Catholic, regardless of the rite.

As for the ‘head of household’ part, we typically make important family decisions together, which has worked well for us thus far. But thank you for the heads up, we will certainly look into that!

And thank you again everyone for your (name removed by moderator)ut! As an update: As per the advice given here, I have spent some time with the priest of the Maronite parish to talk about the church and its traditions, etc. and although we have not yet attended a Latin rite mass, I do think based on what we’ve experienced so far that we’ll be quite spiritually satisfied in the Maronite church and will be able to have a great “reality of service” together there, as one poster put it! And it makes sense to me that, although it was generous of him to offer to explore other churches, as a loving spouse, it is important to explore and open my heart/mind to the church he is already familiar with.

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.

Yes, thank you

 

[Hesychios]

I didn’t realize this, is there a source for this? Forgive my ignorance please as I am new to this, but from what I’ve read from the other posters, the sentiment seems to be that Catholic is Catholic, regardless of the rite.

The canons spell it out, there are two codes of canons, one for the Latin church and one for everyone else.

Unfortunately I no longer possess a copy and don’t have the time to scope around the internet, so perhaps an Eastern Catholic can help. I can do a little ‘stream of consciousness’ rambling on your situation from memory but I am neither a Canon Lawyer nor a Catholic, so this is not the last word on your situation by any means. I will accept corrections from others as gracefully as possible

• A Catholic is automatically ascribed to the Sui Iuris Particular Ritual Church (say that ten times fast) of the father, not the mother. Your husband apparently has a Maronite father and so he is a Maronite. His children are Maronites and his sons will have Maronite children (the daughters’ children following the church of the daughters husbands).
• Your husband may apply for a switch in canonical enrollment. But that is not necessary to worship in a Latin Catholic or other Catholic ritual church.
• You are not a Catholic, and you are from a family of the Protestant set of traditions. Converts from these are normally ascribed to the Latin Catholic church automatically, so you could be automatically considered a Latin Catholic regardless of which Particular church Chrismates you. Except that …
• … apparently a rule was made that brides may be easily enrolled into the church of their husband at the time of marriage (if that is their own wish). They also have the right (but not the obligation) to return to their original Ritual church if in the unfortunate unpredictable event of their husband leaving them a widow. (I suppose that may also be the case if the marriage is annulled later.) I don’t know if this applies to you since you have been married for a while now.

However, (in a nutshell) a switch in canonical enrollment for either of you requires the approval of both the bishop one is leaving and the bishop one will be under after acceptance. It used to require that the Papal Nuncio would need to sign off or forward to Rome (as the Pope reserves the right to rule on the matter) but no longer. The Vatican has stated that if both bishops approve, approval of the Holy See can be assumed.

Does this sound unnecessarily complicated? Yes, it does. The rules were not made with your specific situation in mind. It is a very bureaucratic way of handling a pastoral matter. These rules originated I think (in part) due to the unfortunate history of missionaries poaching members of other Catholic churches. It seems rather arbitrary and has had some interesting demographic results.

For you, I say just talk to your priest and ask him to “make it happen” and he probably will.

 

[Pakesh]

The canons spell it out, there are two codes of canons, one for the Latin church and one for everyone else.

Unfortunately I no longer possess a copy and don’t have the time to scope around the internet, so perhaps an Eastern Catholic can help. I can do a little ‘stream of consciousness’ rambling on your situation from memory but I am neither a Canon Lawyer nor a Catholic, so this is not the last word on your situation by any means. I will accept corrections from others as gracefully as possible

• A Catholic is automatically ascribed to the Sui Iuris Particular Ritual Church (say that ten times fast) of the father, not the mother. Your husband apparently has a Maronite father and so he is a Maronite. His children are Maronites and his sons will have Maronite children (the daughters’ children following the church of the daughters husbands).
• Your husband may apply for a switch in canonical enrollment. But that is not necessary to worship in a Latin Catholic or other Catholic ritual church.
• You are not a Catholic, and you are from a family of the Protestant set of traditions. Converts from these are normally ascribed to the Latin Catholic church automatically, so you could be automatically considered a Latin Catholic regardless of which Particular church Chrismates you. Except that …
• … apparently a rule was made that brides may be easily enrolled into the church of their husband at the time of marriage (if that is their own wish). They also have the right (but not the obligation) to return to their original Ritual church if in the unfortunate unpredictable event of their husband leaving them a widow. (I suppose that may also be the case if the marriage is annulled later.) I don’t know if this applies to you since you have been married for a while now.

However, (in a nutshell) a switch in canonical enrollment for either of you requires the approval of both the bishop one is leaving and the bishop one will be under after acceptance. It used to require that the Papal Nuncio would need to sign off or forward to Rome (as the Pope reserves the right to rule on the matter) but no longer. The Vatican has stated that if both bishops approve, approval of the Holy See can be assumed.

Does this sound unnecessarily complicated? Yes, it does. The rules were not made with your specific situation in mind. It is a very bureaucratic way of handling a pastoral matter. These rules originated I think (in part) due to the unfortunate history of missionaries poaching members of other Catholic churches. It seems rather arbitrary and has had some interesting demographic results.

For you, I say just talk to your priest and ask him to “make it happen” and he probably will.

:clapping:
Nicely summarized!
God Bless, Pakesh

 

[Jordan9]

Hmm, I hope it is ok if I post this in here. But I didn’t think it warranted a new thread.

As a male, Western, unmarried protestant I am “defaulted” to the Latin Rite? Is that basically how it goes?

 

[Aramis]

Michael’s summation overlooks a couple subtleties… a man may opt at marriage to switch to the wife’s enrollment, and V II post conciliar constitution on the Eastern Churches specifies that in a mixed Roman-Eastern marriage, the child should be raised and enrolled in the ECC no matter which parent is EC, and abrogated explicitly the tradition of a marriage to a latin making the couple automatically enrolled in the Roman Church (established by one of the Latin general councils)

Council documents and council-established sub-councils’ post-conciliar documents hold force of law. As for locations of the CIC and CCEO…
English
CIC vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/_INDEX.HTM
CCEO intratext.com/IXT/ENG1199/_INDEX.HTM

 

[eureka525]

Wow! I had no idea this could be so complicated! Thank you very much for the information!

 

[Diak]

It’s not complicated. Go and see. Pray. You will be led by the Holy Spirit to choose which particular tradition is best for you.

 

[SonCatcher]

It only seems complicated because people make it so. We are merely asked to submit to the authority Jesus placed over us. Within that authority, we are actually quite free.

 

[Formosus]

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

Just a slight correction, theology and dogma are not the same thing. A dogma is Original sin. Theology is the reasoning behind said Dogma. For instance, the west has traditionally focused on original sin as the result of divine justice (like a penalty), while the Eastern traditions look at it as more of a disease. Or like the Trinity. In the Byzantine tradition its three hypostases in one Essence while in the west its one substance (essence) in three persons.

Further the spirituality, liturgy, and various traditions differ between different ecclesial Traditions. At times, there are large differences between two churches of the same spiritual tradition (such as differences in custom and spirituality between the Melkites and the Ukrainians).

 

[Apagano]

As far as I know the liturgy is the only major difference. Also, their priests may be married. Our son’s godfather is a Maronite Catholic, and as someone else posted I’d never even thought about eastern Catholics before. Mostly because I’m never sure who is or is not in communion with Rome. But let me say, my family drove an hour to go to the only Maronite church around us. We wanted to be exposed to the different faces of the Universal Church and to know more first hand about the Rite of our son’s godfather. It was beautiful!! The Mass was in Aramaic, Siriac, and english. It was a blessing to be exposed to this wonderful Liturgy.

 

[Diak]

As far as I know the liturgy is the only major difference.

It’s much more than just liturgy. As Pope John Paul II of blessed memory noted in Orientale Lumen: “… “In the study of revealed truth East and West **have used different methods and approaches in understanding and confessing divine things. **” and " From the beginning, the Christian East has proved to contain a wealth of forms capable of assuming the characteristic features of each individual culture, with supreme respect for each particular community.” Vatican II also speaks of our “heritage of spirituality and liturgy, of discipline and theology, in its various traditions” that is unique to the Eastern Catholic Churches.