Is it a sin not to tell my family that I am becoming a Catholic?

[davidjacobs]

I was born and raised an Orthodox Jew, but had been thinking for a few years now of converting to Catholicism. I started taking RCIA last year and am hoping to be baptized and confirmed this Easter.

My problem is that I have not yet told my family. It is not that I am ashamed of my beliefs, in fact I have never believed in something so strongly. It’s more that I do not want to upset my family. (It will kill them.) The other problem is that my wife is Catholic and I am sure that they will blame her, when she really has had no influence and never once asked me to convert.

I know I shall have to tell them eventually and bear the consequences, but I wondered whether putting it off is a sin.

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

First of all, welcome home! You may wish to look into the work of the Association of Hebrew Catholics, a Catholic apostolate that “work to preserve the identity and heritage of Catholics of Jewish origin within the Church.”

While you cannot deny your Catholic faith to anyone who directly asks you if you are Catholic, where there is just reason to do so it is not a sin to reserve the information that you are Catholic from those who do not know. Because of the special difficulties faced by converts from Judaism to the Catholic Church, it is not altogether uncommon for Jewish converts to reserve the news of their conversion from their extended families.

If Catholic Answers can offer more personalized assistance to you on your journey, please feel free to contact us directly. God bless.