Just Curious

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BernadetteM

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I have noticed that there are members here that were baptized as Catholics, then converted to a protestant church, then reverted back to the Catholic faith and then again reverted back to a protestant church.

I just was wondering if they are happy and content with their decision why they come to this forum.

I have lurked at non catholic forums just to see what they are like, but would not post on them. I don’t have enougn knowledge to make them see the truth. Also some of them are so anti Catholic that I don’t have the stomach or courage to converse with them.

We are here to defend our faith, but if a person has made up their mind to be protestant and knows what our Church teaches what is the real reason they are here. Is it to try to convince us to join them in their conversion?

I am sure there are legitimate reasons for people to join the forum, (i.e. find out what Catholics believe, feel they have much in common with our faith, searching for the truth etc.) but if someone has made a choice and already knows why they do not want to be Catholic I feel for me it would be a waste of my time to be here.

I am saying this in all charity, but just don’t understand the motives and maybe for some reason they are still not quite sure that they have made the correct choice and are trying to convince themselves that they have.

Yours in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary

Bernadette
 
You’re right, it does seem strange.
I myself am considering converting to Catholicism, and have found the forums a great resource and a place where I have found real support.
 
It has to do with Paradigm. Many of us who were born Catholics come from families who did not take their baptismal promises seriously and lived their lives not after Christ but after the world. In fact, if you would compare our families with the world you couldn’t tell the difference. So then are those of us in this situation really Christian? For instance there are many exteemly liberal Catholics who hate Natural Family Planning and disobeys the church’s teaching on this point. They also disagree with the church with the abortion issue and have bought into the leftist view of public policy. Yet they participate in mass and other sacraments. Are they really Christian? I couldn’t say but by their fruit you should know them and theirs no fruit. So growing up in this environment what do you really know? Memorized prayer, Liturgy participation in the Mass, the Eucharist, and statues. Beyond that is questionable. Definately not the bible because thats for the religious brothers and sisters. Or the Priests and Bishops. Not for men who live mens lives right? We have to deal with reality and really has Jesus reached our hearts? I would guess no. But then we here the Gospel preached by protestants who at least have that. And we’re asked to make a commitment to Christ by believing in him and having a personal relationship with God. And we wonder why haven’t we noticed this in the church. The Chuch doesn’t even give us bibles to read as long as you particpate in the liturgy. So the bible then becomes our greatest authority and how we interpret it. Then years may go by and we notice the authenticiy of Catholicism via history or a study of the Eucharist and we return only to be dismayed by other parishoners who we view as secular and wonder if Jesus were at work in this chrch why “dead” for so many years previously only to be desirous of God later? Should the HS be at work in Baptism, First communion, and or confirmation?. Those not answered returned to the protestant faith.
 
BernadetteM said:
I have noticed that there are members here that were baptized as Catholics, then converted to a protestant church, then reverted back to the Catholic faith and then again reverted back to a protestant church.

I just was wondering if they are happy and content with their decision why they come to this forum.

I have lurked at non catholic forums just to see what they are like, but would not post on them. I don’t have enougn knowledge to make them see the truth. Also some of them are so anti Catholic that I don’t have the stomach or courage to converse with them.

We are here to defend our faith, but if a person has made up their mind to be protestant and knows what our Church teaches what is the real reason they are here. Is it to try to convince us to join them in their conversion?

I am sure there are legitimate reasons for people to join the forum, (i.e. find out what Catholics believe, feel they have much in common with our faith, searching for the truth etc.) but if someone has made a choice and already knows why they do not want to be Catholic I feel for me it would be a waste of my time to be here.

I am saying this in all charity, but just don’t understand the motives and maybe for some reason they are still not quite sure that they have made the correct choice and are trying to convince themselves that they have.

Yours in the Hearts of Jesus and Mary

Bernadette
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A perhaps better question would be why did CAF set up a non-Catholic forum to encourage non-Roman Catholics to frequent the site? Perhaps to convert them? I don’t pretend to know. I would find it rather laughable to try to convert RC’s here. There are the most rabid ultra orthodox I’ve ever seen and I can’t imagine the vast majority being interested in another faith tradition.

I come to explore common bonds with all faiths, where we can agree, work together, and hopefully address world issues of poverty, disease, justice etc. There is precious little of that, since it tends to be nothing more than a very few non-Catholics who bait RC’s on the obvious questions of Mary and infallibility, and the reverse which is a constant rant of "We are first, we are the true church, you aren’t and you are just wasting your time.

There are a lot of us in the middle who actually try to carry on rational conversations between the irrational ranters. Just as an aside, I would be happier if this were a RC site without the claim of “defending itself”. That comes from a point of weakness which I don’t find is in fact the case first of all, and sets up people challenging your faith tradition secondly. In other words the very description of the site invites the assaults it receives from the Protestant right. Worse, everyone apparently reads the same tract defenses and so use the same language and arguments almost verbatim, which also lessens the believability of the arguments. There are some excellent minds here, but most just cut and paste from the CAF “defense” fund of writing.
 
just note to your concern about anit-catholics, if they are being nasty and feel demoralized by one contact a mod.
 
Hi Bernadette, may I ask then why is there a forum here at CAF for non catholics?

Why do you think that it is mostly Catholics who start threads in the non Catholic forum?

Why do so many threads in the title indicate they want to hear from Protestants, and then mostly Catholics answer the questions posed to Protestants?

I noticed that every time i come and go to the main thread page, the non catholic forum is the one with the most posters viewing 🙂

I can read the words of Catholics here and i just see the love of Christ in them and i know they are saved and others seem so cut dry and entirely without life…it’s a good thing God knows which are his.

God bless!
 
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