Lots o' mass questions!

  • Thread starter Thread starter Ruthyankees
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
R

Ruthyankees

Guest
hello! i just had some questions reguarding mass. me and my roommate (neither of us catholic) got into watching the catholic channel, which we now do daily and we were both really interested. we recently started attending mass here in our town and don’t quite understand all the rituals/rules/go abouts. my roommate i s baptized (protestant) and i am not.

my main question is are we allowed to take communion? we haven’t because we didn’t want to be disrespectful. if we can’t, how do we go about it so we can? Also can non catholics go to confession? should we go to confession?

thanks!!! also any catholic advice would be helpful!! G-d bless!!
 
You can go to confession and receive communion after you become Catholic. For now confess your sins to God, trust in His mercy, and follow Him if he is leading you into the Catholic church.

However, you can continue to go to mass and you can ask a priest to act as your spiritual director. He will help you to understand God’s will in your life. You can tell him personal things like your sins and he can pray with you.

If you want to learn more about the Catholic faith or think you might want to become Catholic you should contact some local parishes and ask about their RCIA (The rite of Christian initiation of adults) which is a program of weekly meetings that teach you about the Catholic faith and prepare you to become Catholic if you decide to do so. In many churches this program begins about the time school starts in September.

If you are college students you can see if there is a Newman club or center at your school. This is a Catholic outreach to students in secular colleges and universities and the priest there could also answer your questions.

If there is a Catholic bookstore near where you live you can find pamphlets on the mass or this month’s copy of Magnificat magazine which would help you follow the mass and have the scripture readings and morning and evening prayers of the church for each day of the month.
 
Thank you so much!! i was raised in several churches but just recently got interested in the catholic church. we are college students, and we do have a newman center (i actually just thought that was the name of the church LOL) we have been attending the other church in town. which we like so far. if we do become catholic are you required to go to confession? confession really confuses me. i guess i feel kind of intimidated by the whole thing right now.
 
my main question is are we allowed to take communion?
No.
we haven’t because we didn’t want to be disrespectful. if we can’t, how do we go about it so we can?
Become Catholic. Go through RCIA. Talk to the priest to get the details.
Also can non catholics go to confession?
No.
should we go to confession?
Definitely! But you have to become Catholic first.
thanks!!! also any catholic advice would be helpful!! G-d bless!!
 
You are most welcome at Mass but you are not yet allowed to receive Holy Communion. You may make a Spiritual Communion:
My Jesus,
I believe that You
are present in the Most Holy Sacrament.
I love You above all things,
and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment
receive You sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You.
You must be fully initiated into the Church before you may receive the Eucharist. The best course of action would be to make an appointment to speak with the priest about entering the Church, or even have a quick chat with him after Mass and he can advise you.

Most parishes have a program called RCIA - or Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults. These usually run for several months as you learn about what the Church Teaches. Starting the program does not commit you to anything.

This Order of the Mass might be of help to you
kcasi.org/library/Mass.pdf

Mind you, this is changing. The new English translation of the Roman Missal will start taking effect at the beginning of Advent (the period before Christmas, like Lent is before Easter). Don’t worry about it, though - the lot of us are going to be mumbling right along side of you until we learn the new responses by heart.
New text
Downloads
Order of Mass


If you do become Catholic, you are required to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation at least once a year. Other than that, you are left to determine for yourself how often you require to be Reconciled with God. We usually use an aid, a guide to an examination of conscience to help us prepare for the Sacrament.
 
Thank you so much!! i was raised in several churches but just recently got interested in the catholic church. we are college students, and we do have a newman center (i actually just thought that was the name of the church LOL) we have been attending the other church in town. which we like so far. if we do become catholic are you required to go to confession? confession really confuses me. i guess i feel kind of intimidated by the whole thing right now.
Well, think about sitting down with a really good friend who will not judge you and being able to tell him the things you have done wrong and are sorry for. And then he says (because Jesus has given him the power and the obligation to do this) may God forgive you your sins and in His name I forgive you, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. This is a great gift God has given us in this sacrament: to be forgiven and to know that we are forgiven.

It’s a little hard to do if you are an introvert, and of course we are embarrassed by our sins but the relief is wonderful.

Catholics are only required to confess serious sins and must do so once a year. But once a month or so is a much better practice if we want to stay close to God.

If you go through RCIA or talk to Catholics they will tell you what to do and what to expect. Most priests are very helpful.
 
We are going to go check out the newman center and see how that goes. So many terms i don’t know yet! haha. i guess one of my main things i don’t get about catholicism is why i must go through a priest to be forgiven. it’s not that i feel uncomfortable (i am quite an extrovert!) but, i just see it as, skip the middle man and talk to G-d himself. but if i can’t become a catholic without confession i guess i don’t want to do it half heartedly.
 
I am the roommate that ruthyankees writes about. We both just have some many questions! We have become very into this forum and we have learned a lot about the Catholic faith by reading many of the postings however there is so much we don’t know/understand. I was educated in a private Catholic high school but I was agnostic at the time and did not realize the extent of Catholicism and its beliefs/teachings. When I attended mass this last Sunday I participated in all the rituals except for Holy Communion. Is crossing myself wrong if I am not Catholic?
 
Crossing yourself, using holy water, wearing a medal, etc. are all fine even if you’re not Catholic.

Jesus said to the apostles, “Whose sins you forgive they are forgiven them; whose sins you retain they are retained.” We take it seriously that the apostles and those they ordained are to do this. But even before we confess our sins to a priest we repent of them before God. We trust that He forgives us if we are sorry. And for serious (mortal) sins, those that break our communion with God and with the church, we are required to confess them and be reconciled before we can again receive the Eucharist.

Also, it’s natural to wonder ‘am I really sorry’, ‘does God really forgive me’, this way we know for sure. And we get guidance and special grace to avoid sin in the future. And anyway, we confess our sins this way because it’s how God wants us to do it.
 
Regarding a non-baptised person, the clear answer is no, you cannot receive any of the sacraments, such as confession and Holy Communion.

Regarding the room mate, who is baptised in a Protestant church, the answer is more complicated. From the 1993 DIRECTORY FOR THE APPLICATION OF
PRINCIPLES AND NORMS ON ECUMENISM (at vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/chrstuni/general-docs/rc_pc_chrstuni_doc_19930325_directory_en.html ):

"b) Sharing Sacramental Life with Christians of Other Churches and Ecclesial Communities
  1. A sacrament is an act of Christ and of the Church through the Spirit.130 Its celebration in a concrete community is the sign of the reality of its unity in faith, worship and community life. As well as being signs, sacraments—most specially the Eucharist—are sources of the unity of the Christian community and of spiritual life, and are means for building them up. Thus Eucharistic communion is inseparably linked to full ecclesial communion and its visible expression.
At the same time, the Catholic Church teaches that by baptism members of other Churches and ecclesial Communities are brought into a real, even if imperfect communion, with the Catholic Church 131 and that “baptism, which constitutes the sacramental bond of unity existing among all who through it are reborn… is wholly directed toward the acquiring of fullness of life in Christ”.132 The Eucharist is, for the baptized, a spiritual food which enables them to overcome sin and to live the very life of Christ, to be incorporated more profoundly in Him and share more intensely in the whole economy of the Mystery of Christ.

It is in the light of these two basic principles, which must always be taken into account together, that in general the Catholic Church permits access to its Eucharistic communion and to the sacraments of penance and anointing of the sick, only to those who share its oneness in faith, worship and ecclesial life.133 For the same reasons, it also recognizes that in certain circumstances, by way of exception, and under certain conditions, access to these sacraments may be permitted, or even commended, for Christians of other Churches and ecclesial Communities.134
  1. In case of danger of death, Catholic ministers may administer these sacraments when the conditions given below (n. 131) are present. In other cases, it is strongly recommended that the diocesan Bishop, taking into account any norms which may have been established for this matter by the Episcopal Conference or by the Synods of Eastern Catholic Churches, establish general norms for judging situations of grave and pressing need and for verifying the conditions mentioned below (n. 131).135 In accord with Canon Law,136 these general norms are to be established only after consultation with at least the local competent authority of the other interested Church or ecclesial Community. Catholic ministers will judge individual cases and administer these sacraments only in accord with these established norms, where they exist. Otherwise they will judge according to the norms of this Directory.
  2. The conditions under which a Catholic minister may administer the sacraments of the Eucharist, of penance and of the anointing of the sick to a baptized person who may be found in the circumstances given above (n. 130) are that the person be unable to have recourse for the sacrament desired to a minister of his or her own Church or ecclesial Community, ask for the sacrament of his or her own initiative, manifest Catholic faith in this sacrament and be properly disposed.137"
 
I might also suggest go to Catholic.com and get truthful answers on teachings of the church. They also have archives radio show on every subject you can think of you could listen to.
 
catholic are you required to go to confession? confession really confuses me. i guess i feel kind of intimidated by the whole thing right now.

My kids love going to confession, and I have a tween girl and teen boy. My boy, who was confirmed this year, spoke about how good he feels after he goes. He said that he just remembers that the circle goes on…that priests are not perfect, that they sin too, and in turn, go to another priest for their confessions. Believe me, they are not going to be suprised at anything you would tell them, nor will they judge you, that is not their place to. You will be pleasently suprised when/if you go…good luck! It is a very interesting faith!
 
Excited for you and your roommate in discovering the catholic church. I wish you all the best in your journey. I hope that you are able to get a bunch of answers at the newman center, and that you both will feel welcome and at home in the church.👋
 
Excited for you and your roommate in discovering the catholic church. I wish you all the best in your journey. I hope that you are able to get a bunch of answers at the newman center, and that you both will feel welcome and at home in the church.👋
thanks very much! we are looking into the classes and research it a bit more. 🙂
 
Ruth, You may consider buying a “Catholic Source Book” I do no know the Author (Sorry) but it is actually used during the RCIA process at my Parish. I bought one to look up a couple of questions and just read the entire book. Great source for so many things Catholic. And it is allot easier read than the Catechism. And GOOGLE helps. I have searched numerous “Church Questions”. Great resource. God be with you on your journey.
God will never take you where his spirit cannot carry you. God bless.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top