Lost and needing Guidance

[micas]

Hello everyone, I was hoping some of you could help me out with a problem I have. This may be a long post as I try to explain so please forgive me.
I grew up in a family that wasn’t very religious. I attended Sunday school from time to time as a child and that’s about it. I never felt comfortable in that free will Baptist church to be honest.
I strongly want to attend church and to get closer to the lord. But where to begin? I have never been to a catholic church before and I have no relatives who are catholic. I am lost on what I need to do and how to go about doing it.
Also I am married and have 2 children. How will the affect things? My wife doesn’t want to convert her religion, at least at this time. So what affects will this have?
I am truly lost about what to do. And I am really feeling confused, a little depressed, and even have some fear because for 34 years I have not lived with the lord. I know he has been with me but I have never appreciated it and I really want things to change.
Thanks for any advice and guidance you can send my way I truly appreciate it.

Hello friend i have a question for you. Jesus was met at night by a religious leader named Nicodimus. He shared some truth about Jesus and Jesus responds " Most assuredly, I say to you unless one is born again He cannot see the kingdom of God". John 3:3

Here’s my question have you been born again? can you see the kingdom of God?

 

[brierpatch1974]

OK now I understand sorry for making it confusing the pastor in his email adress confused me lol.

I was reading an article about chosing a Saint when joining the chirch. Could someone explain this to me a little better? Thank you

 

[Teflon93]

Hello friend i have a question for you. Jesus was met at night by a religious leader named Nicodimus. He shared some truth about Jesus and Jesus responds " Most assuredly, I say to you unless one is born again He cannot see the kingdom of God". John 3:3

Here’s my question have you been born again? can you see the kingdom of God?

Jesus also said in John 6:

53: Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
54: Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
55: For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
56: He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
57: As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
58: This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

Do you partake of the Eucharist, Micas?

 

[brierpatch1974]

Hello friend i have a question for you. Jesus was met at night by a religious leader named Nicodimus. He shared some truth about Jesus and Jesus responds " Most assuredly, I say to you unless one is born again He cannot see the kingdom of God". John 3:3

Here’s my question have you been born again? can you see the kingdom of God?

Yes, I believe I have. Never before have I even thought much about God or religion. And here for the past few months I can not think about anything else. There is an emptyness in me and I now know whats been missing and am ready to start my life. Born again may not be the way I feel, more like being a newborn and just starting life.

 

[micas]

Jesus also said in John 6:

Do you partake of the Eucharist, Micas?

Yes see John 6:35

 

[Teflon93]

OK now I understand sorry for making it confusing the pastor in his email adress confused me lol.

I was reading an article about chosing a Saint when joining the chirch. Could someone explain this to me a little better? Thank you

Absolutely.

We all strive to sainthood. At our baptism or confirmation (if you were baptized in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and elect to join the Church, you will not be required to be baptized; if not, you would most likely be baptized and confirmed at the Easter Vigil Mass), we adopt the name of a saint. It is common to choose one whose life resonates with you in some way—in my case, I chose St Augustine of Hippo because his way with words, his learnedness, and his keen reasoning skills appeal to me.

Thus, when I was confirmed, I was ceremonially referred to as “Augustine.”

It is a way of reminding us that the saints are alive and with us, and that their example lights our path.

Resources like “Butler’s Lives of the Saints” are excellent for choosing a particular saint. As you research the Church, you may find yourself gravitating toward a particular saint. My son, born on St Patrick’s Day during Holy Week, will most likely choose him when the time comes.

 

[Teflon93]

Yes see John 6:35

You eat the flesh and blood of the lord?

The Eucharist is what Christ is requiring us to believe.

Do you partake of the Eucharist?

 

[micas]

Yes, I believe I have. Never before have I even thought much about God or religion. And here for the past few months I can not think about anything else. There is an emptyness in me and I now know whats been missing and am ready to start my life. Born again may not be the way I feel, more like being a newborn and just starting life.

The apostle Paul would discribe the new birth the same way. And would advice as a newborn baby desires milk a new born christian would desire the pure milk of the word!
See 1 Peter 2:1-5

 

[Teflon93]

St Paul certainly partook of the Eucharist, as Christ commanded:

1 Corinthians 11:

26: For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord’s death till he come.
27: Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28: But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
29: For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body.
30: For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.

One must be Catholic or Orthodox to approach the Eucharist worthily, as St Paul instructed.

Upon doing so, one will be born again, having Christ within.

 

[micas]

You eat the flesh and blood of the lord?

The Eucharist is what Christ is requiring us to believe.

Do you partake of the Eucharist?

Friend did you read John 6:35? If you did maybe you will understand my responce of yes! We are required to believe in Jesus. See John 8:24

 

[Teflon93]

Friend did you read John 6:35? If you did maybe you will understand my responce of yes! We are required to believe in Jesus. See John 8:24

I read whole Scripture, friend, not single verses out of context.

Christ in John 6:35 tells us we must believe what he says, then follows with what we must believe—that the bread is his flesh indeed, and the wine his blood indeed.

This is what St Paul warns us to approach in a worthy manner, and to partake of, less we sicken and die, having no life within us.

This is what Christ means by having life within us, and what the Catholic properly understands born again to mean—the ongoing receipt of Christ, the ongoing grace that is imbued in us through the Christ-commanded sacrament of the Eucharist.

This is what we hunger and thirst for, and why we are not sated until we receive in the eternal Lord’s Supper.

 

[Sheeniac]

I’ve never attended a TLM but that is my understanding also.

For Pixie too… I attend an occasional TLM. It depends on the priest for the readings. Some do both Latin and English, some do just Latin. Please note these are daily Low Masses - it might be different on Sundays even for the priests who are Latin readings only.

The homily has been in English however…

 

[Sheeniac]

Hello friend i have a question for you. Jesus was met at night by a religious leader named Nicodimus. He shared some truth about Jesus and Jesus responds " Most assuredly, I say to you unless one is born again He cannot see the kingdom of God". John 3:3

Here’s my question have you been born again? can you see the kingdom of God?

Micas, nothing wrong with non-Catholics posting on the boards, of course. But don’t you think it to be in better form if you identify yourself as a non-Catholic (since the OP came here to ask questions of Catholics…) and perhaps point to another discussion elsewhere (even if just another thread)?

 

[Sheeniac]

Thanks for any advice and guidance you can send my way I truly appreciate it.

Brier…

I was an atheist for 25 years, away from the Church of my birth. One of the books that helped ease me back in to the Church was ‘Rome Sweet Home’ by Scott and Kimberly Hahn. It’s available used on Amazon. It’s truly loved by reverts and converts in the Catholic Church.

You mention a wife… what’s good about this book is that Kimberly tells her side of the story. Shockingly, several of their friends counsel divorce because Scott was converting!

Not to dash any idealism, but we too have rebels who wish to bend Scripture to their own desires. Remember, we are a Church made up of fallen and fallible sinners. But rest assured, we have the Holy Spirit, the Pope, and the Bishops, as well as the words of Jesus that the Church will prevail against the gates of hell.

 

[micas]

Micas, nothing wrong with non-Catholics posting on the boards, of course. But don’t you think it to be in better form if you identify yourself as a non-Catholic (since the OP came here to ask questions of Catholics…) and perhaps point to another discussion elsewhere (even if just another thread)?

I will remember that in the future! but the title of his post is lost and needing guidance. I will refer to Gods word See 1 Peter 3:15

 

[micas]

I read whole Scripture, friend, not single verses out of context.

Christ in John 6:35 tells us we must believe what he says, then follows with what we must believe—that the bread is his flesh indeed, and the wine his blood indeed.

This is what St Paul warns us to approach in a worthy manner, and to partake of, less we sicken and die, having no life within us.

This is what Christ means by having life within us, and what the Catholic properly understands born again to mean—the ongoing receipt of Christ, the ongoing grace that is imbued in us through the Christ-commanded sacrament of the Eucharist.

This is what we hunger and thirst for, and why we are not sated until we receive in the eternal Lord’s Supper.

Well thats funny you seem to be stuck here john 6:53-54.taking scripture out of context. the bread discord is jesus taking physical bread manna and which leads to death with spiritual bread which leads to ever lasting life.

And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who see’s the Son and BELIEVES In him may have everlasting life: and i will raise him up on the last day. John 6:40. Here is a thought if your wrong ( and you are See John 16:25 ) you are guilty of worshipping a false Christ and thats idolatry!

 

[neophyte]

I strongly want to attend church and to get closer to the lord. But where to begin? I have never been to a catholic church before and I have no relatives who are catholic. I am lost on what I need to do and how to go about doing it.
Also I am married and have 2 children. How will the affect things? My wife doesn’t want to convert her religion, at least at this time. So what affects will this have?
I am truly lost about what to do. And I am really feeling confused, a little depressed, and even have some fear because for 34 years I have not lived with the lord. I know he has been with me but I have never appreciated it and I really want things to change.
Thanks for any advice and guidance you can send my way I truly appreciate it.

Welcome here, brierpatch. I’m a fairly recent convert from Protestantism (4 years or so), and I’m married to a nice Jewish girl (15 years next month).

My entering the Church was pretty stressful for her because of everything she was afraid of, but as time went by she began to realize that yes, the Church really does recognise our marriage, no, the Church won’t make me leave her, etc., etc. It’s still not easy, she still sometimes seems to resent me going to Mass every Sunday (even when we’re on vacation??!) and I have to remind her that it’s just not an option. I desperately pray that she’ll enter the Church - that’s in God’s hands.

Entering the Church is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. The doctrines of the Church suffer absolutely none of the logical contradictions that haunted me in Protestantism, which claimed to assure me of salvation but never delivered. The Sacraments are a wonderful source of grace, and my relationship with God is vastly more intimate than anything I ever dreamed of as a non-Catholic.

Do not be afraid.

 

[Teflon93]

Well thats funny you seem to be stuck here john 6:53-54.taking scripture out of context. the bread discord is jesus taking physical bread manna and which leads to death with spiritual bread which leads to ever lasting life.

And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who see’s the Son and BELIEVES In him may have everlasting life: and i will raise him up on the last day. John 6:40. Here is a thought if your wrong ( and you are See John 16:25 ) you are guilty of worshipping a false Christ and thats idolatry!

You apparently don’t read Scripture.

John 6 begins with the miracle of the loaves and fishes, where the Lord demonstrates how he can feed the multitudes miraculously with minimal starting materials.

Jesus then reminds us of how God had fed the Jews wandering in the desert manna from high, and proclaims that he is the true bread of life.

When his listeners object, the Lord tells them that even those who ate of the manna eventually died, but those who eat of the bread of life will live forever.

Far from the Bible Bingo cherrypicking you’ve engaged in, Christ emphasizes that his body is the true bread of life and his blood the true drink of life. He repeats this claim seven times, and emphasizes it with “indeed” when his listeners object.

This is why the ECFs understood the Eucharist as they did, and why Catholics and Orthodox and some high Protestants recognize it today.

It is you who dare idolatry by elevating the tradition handed you by a long-dead “Reformer” over the Word of God.

Put down your study Bible and READ.

 

[Teflon93]

My apologies, brierpatch, for the seeming digression on John 6.

It’s relevant, though tangential, to this discussion for a couple of reasons:

1. The Eucharist is a fundamental difference between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches on the one hand and the majority of the Protestant communities on the other. Anglican/Episcopalians and Lutherans have different views of the Eucharist but allow for similar belief to the Catholic/Orthodox within their communities, the rest do not.
2. The Catholic Church views our relationship with God in the New Covenant in a highly sacramental sense. Moreover, we view the sacraments as unchanging and unchangeable, instituted as they were by God through Christ’s ministry. Thus, when someone asks, “Why can’t women be priests?” or “Why can’t homosexual couples be married in a Catholic Church?” or similar questions the Catholic answer must always be the same: “Because Christ instituted the sacrament and we can’t change it.” We presume that Christ could have made any of his female followers an apostle. We presume that Christ could have used the wedding at Cana to modify the sacrament of matrimony as he saw fit. But he did not, and therefore Christians cannot. The sacraments are a gift from God for our benefit; we are not free to do with them as we would please.
3. The Catholic and Orthodox Churches recognize the mystery at the heart of Christianity. We do not know the whys and wherefores of how Christ has saved us. We do not claim to simplify this mystery, as others do, indeed, as Micas has attempted to do in this very thread. We simply do as Christ bid us do until either he returns in glory or we go to him, and avail ourselves of the sacraments as necessary to keep us on our path toward him. This is a fundamental difference from other Christian communities which purport to have certain knowledge of their own salvation, or definitive understanding of the path to salvation.
4. Catholics read Scripture differently. You will note if you kick around this board the tendency of non-Catholics to begin with their tradition and justify it with stray verses from Scripture, often out of context and widely-separated in time and subject. You will likewise note that Catholics are more likely to provide larger passages and attempt to place within context of the book in which they appear and in reference to the writings of the Early Church Fathers where appropriate to see how it was understood by those closer to the Apostolic Age than we. This is because we fundamentally approach Scripture differently. Catholic teaching accommodates the whole, not parsing it into fundamentally different segments (as, say, the dispensationalists do) but viewing it as one narrative of salvation history. Mass, therefore, consists of extensive readings often linked by similar theme: at every Mass, we hear a reading from the OT, a Psalm, an Epistle, and a Gospel reading. The homily is then usually a very short (10 min) reflection on the Gospel reading in particular. Sermons in Protestant communities vary widely, but the common practice is to address a theme and fold in verses in support of it. We see these different approaches reflected in apologetics arguments on this board all the time.

As you investigate the Church, these and other distinctions will present themselves. Hopefully, you’ll find this discussion helpful in highlighting some of these differences.

 

[Kay_Cee]

Micas and Teflon93 should open a different thread and take their discussion there. This thread is to answer brierpatch1974’s questions and inquiries, not to start a debate.

So, one of you please start a new thread and post a link to it before this thread goes completely off topic. I think the least both of you can do for our new poster is to allow his questions to get responses without going into other issues.

Brierpatch1974, welcome to the forum!

Keep asking those questions. Jesus tells us in Matthew 7:7 “Ask, and it shall be given you: seek and you shall find: knock and it shall be opened to you.” So, if you keep looking for Christ, you will find Him–He promised you that!

There are many knowledgable posters here who will be more than happy to answer any and all questions you have about the Catholic faith. We believe Catholicism is the truth, and truth can stand up to any inquiry. I would caution you, however, that not all posters on this forum are Catholic, so those might not give you the right scoop on what the Church teaches.

I also want to add that you might find Mass in other languages besides English and Latin. My parish, for example, has a Sunday Mass in Spanish to accomodate our Spanish speakers. A nearby parish has a Sunday Mass in Korean to accomodate those of that tongue. However, most Masses in the United States are celebrated in English, so you shouldn’t have much difficulty finding one in your area.

Once again, welcome!