Lutheran who wants to convert but experiencing intense anxiety over a certain issue

[Lover_of_truth]

Im a 19 year old guy. and I’ve been Lutheran my entire life. During this time, I always felt spiritually unfulfilled; I felt there were pieces missing to the puzzle of life. Every time I went to church, I didn’t feel as though my soul was satisfied. In addition, throughout all my apologetics classes in all of my Lutheran schools I attended, I always found myself disagreeing with Luther and Lutheranism.

On YouTube I obtained answers to my questions about my faith in videos that proved Catholicism. They proved things like Mary’s special place in Catholicism, Purgatory, the papacy all from the bible. There was also a video about the miraculous attributes of the

image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
But than, I saw some of their other videos. They became quite deep: the videos claimed that sedevacantism is the right position, There was a fake Sister Lucia, JPII was the antichrist. I think you know what channel Im talking about… Most Holy Family Monestary
The thing Im worried about is this: What if they are right? Didn’t Our Lady of La Salette say Rome would become the seat of the antichrist? To be honest, Pope Francis says questionable things, which is why I pray for him. Idk… I really, really dont want to be damned forever Im so scared and confused. I mean if the Russia consecration was done why is Russia not Catholic? Im honestly worried that they may be correct.

 

[CrossofChrist]

The sedevacantists are proven wrong by Pius XII (among others). See for instance Mystici Corporis Christ 69:

1. Now since its Founder willed this social body of Christ to be visible, the cooperation of all its members must also be externally manifest through their profession of the same faith and their sharing the same sacred rites, through participation in the same Sacrifice, and the practical observance of the same laws. Above all, it is absolutely necessary that the Supreme Head, that is, the Vicar of Jesus Christ on earth, be visible to the eyes of all, since it is He who gives effective direction to the work which all do in common in a mutually helpful way towards the attainment of the proposed end. As the Divine Redeemer sent the Paraclete, the Spirit of Truth, who in His name [138] should govern the Church in an invisible way, so, in the same manner, He commissioned Peter and his successors to be His personal representatives on earth and to assume the visible government of the Christian community.

 

[pianistclare]

I’m glad you are considering converting.
PLEASE stay away from Sedevacanist sites and videos and the like.
They are DESIGNED to lead you astray.
I’m not surprised. Once you make the decision to convert, the prince of lies throws up all kinds of obstacles to dissuade you.
DO NOT BE DECEIVED.
Read solid material, meet with a good priest, and steep yourself in the correct teachings of the Church.
Read “Rome Sweet Home” by Scott Hahn.

I’ll pray for you.
peace.

Im a 19 year old guy. and I’ve been Lutheran my entire life. During this time, I always felt spiritually unfulfilled; I felt there were pieces missing to the puzzle of life. Every time I went to church, I didn’t feel as though my soul was satisfied. In addition, throughout all my apologetics classes in all of my Lutheran schools I attended, I always found myself disagreeing with Luther and Lutheranism.

On YouTube I obtained answers to my questions about my faith in videos that proved Catholicism. They proved things like Mary’s special place in Catholicism, Purgatory, the papacy all from the bible. There was also a video about the miraculous attributes of the

image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
But than, I saw some of their other videos. They became quite deep: the videos claimed that sedevacantism is the right position, There was a fake Sister Lucia, JPII was the antichrist. I think you know what channel Im talking about… Most Holy Family Monestary
The thing Im worried about is this: What if they are right? Didn’t Our Lady of La Salette say Rome would become the seat of the antichrist? To be honest, Pope Francis says questionable things, which is why I pray for him. Idk… I really, really dont want to be damned forever Im so scared and confused. I mean if the Russia consecration was done why is Russia not Catholic? Im honestly worried that they may be correct.

 

[Joe_5859]

Im a 19 year old guy. and I’ve been Lutheran my entire life. During this time, I always felt spiritually unfulfilled; I felt there were pieces missing to the puzzle of life. Every time I went to church, I didn’t feel as though my soul was satisfied. In addition, throughout all my apologetics classes in all of my Lutheran schools I attended, I always found myself disagreeing with Luther and Lutheranism.

On YouTube I obtained answers to my questions about my faith in videos that proved Catholicism. They proved things like Mary’s special place in Catholicism, Purgatory, the papacy all from the bible. There was also a video about the miraculous attributes of the

image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
But than, I saw some of their other videos. They became quite deep: the videos claimed that sedevacantism is the right position, There was a fake Sister Lucia, JPII was the antichrist. I think you know what channel Im talking about… Most Holy Family Monestary
The thing Im worried about is this: What if they are right? Didn’t Our Lady of La Salette say Rome would become the seat of the antichrist? To be honest, Pope Francis says questionable things, which is why I pray for him. Idk… I really, really dont want to be damned forever Im so scared and confused. I mean if the Russia consecration was done why is Russia not Catholic? Im honestly worried that they may be correct.

Welcome to CAF!

I always come back to Jesus’ promise that the gates of hell would not prevail against the Church. If the succession of Peter were broken and some imposter were pope, I can’t see how Jesus’ promise would be anything but broken.

What is more likely? That the chair of Peter suddenly became empty and 99.99% of all the priests, bishops, and laity became heretics overnight with only this small handful of people able to see the truth? Or that the Catholic Church is still the Catholic Church and the pope is still the pope?

The former sounds a lot closer to Gnosticism than to Christianity. Some small group with a website has the “real truth” whereas a billion other Catholics are walking around with blinders on? Doesn’t seem likely to me. But that heresy has been around since the early days of Christianity.

You should pray for the pope. We all should. But do you really think Jesus would place the path to salvation under the bushel basket of a sedevacantist website where very few people will ever find it? That doesn’t sound like something he would do.

Keep praying and drawing close to the Lord. Use this Lent as an opportunity to pray, fast, and give alms for the sake of spiritual clarity and peace. Those are our spiritual weapons for enabling us to more clearly hear the voice of the Lord.

God bless!

 

[petra22]

Praying for you. Yes, the world can confuse you. Pray about it and God will show you the answer, for real! You will come to know the truth, because Jesus is the truth. Follow Jesus…

10th Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now
and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now
and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.

Oh my Jesus, forgive us our sins.
Save us from the fires of hell.
Lead all souls to heaven
especially those in most need of Thy mercy.

 

[Luigi_Daniele]

Prayers offered for you.

The answers above my post are spot on:thumbsup:

 

[lax16]

Im a 19 year old guy. and I’ve been Lutheran my entire life. During this time, I always felt spiritually unfulfilled; I felt there were pieces missing to the puzzle of life. Every time I went to church, I didn’t feel as though my soul was satisfied. In addition, throughout all my apologetics classes in all of my Lutheran schools I attended, I always found myself disagreeing with Luther and Lutheranism.

On YouTube I obtained answers to my questions about my faith in videos that proved Catholicism. They proved things like Mary’s special place in Catholicism, Purgatory, the papacy all from the bible. There was also a video about the miraculous attributes of the

image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
But than, I saw some of their other videos. They became quite deep: the videos claimed that sedevacantism is the right position, There was a fake Sister Lucia, JPII was the antichrist. I think you know what channel Im talking about… Most Holy Family Monestary
The thing Im worried about is this: What if they are right? Didn’t Our Lady of La Salette say Rome would become the seat of the antichrist? To be honest, Pope Francis says questionable things, which is why I pray for him. Idk… I really, really dont want to be damned forever Im so scared and confused. I mean if the Russia consecration was done why is Russia not Catholic? Im honestly worried that they may be correct.

Welcome to CAF!

I would recommend reading about early Church history.

One of my favorite books is:

amazon.com/Four-Witnesses-Early-Church-Words/dp/0898708478/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1454704908&sr=1-1&keywords=The+four+witnesses+bennett

 

[tawny]

You may want to speak with a Priest regarding an RCIA program. There you will be able to ask questions & receive correct information.

 

[Petaro]

Im a 19 year old guy. and I’ve been Lutheran my entire life. During this time, I always felt spiritually unfulfilled; I felt there were pieces missing to the puzzle of life. Every time I went to church, I didn’t feel as though my soul was satisfied. In addition, throughout all my apologetics classes in all of my Lutheran schools I attended, I always found myself disagreeing with Luther and Lutheranism.

On YouTube I obtained answers to my questions about my faith in videos that proved Catholicism. They proved things like Mary’s special place in Catholicism, Purgatory, the papacy all from the bible. There was also a video about the miraculous attributes of the

image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
But than, I saw some of their other videos. They became quite deep: the videos claimed that sedevacantism is the right position, There was a fake Sister Lucia, JPII was the antichrist. I think you know what channel Im talking about… Most Holy Family Monestary
The thing Im worried about is this: What if they are right? Didn’t Our Lady of La Salette say Rome would become the seat of the antichrist? To be honest, Pope Francis says questionable things, which is why I pray for him. Idk… I really, really dont want to be damned forever Im so scared and confused. I mean if the Russia consecration was done why is Russia not Catholic? Im honestly worried that they may be correct.

Don’t use the web as a reliable teacher of Catholic doctrine. Read the Catechism of the Church. Pray to Mary and the Holy Spirit. Our Lady has been given a real role in bringing the world back to her Son. The miracles of Lourdes, Fatima and Guadalupe are too real to be discarded but are not necessary for our Faith. But they are crutches for the hard times, and a blessing from Jesus who knew the weakness of Peter would be reflected quite naturally in all searching for His truth. The conspiracy theories of sedevacantism are like Aliens in the Vatican on the History channel, a good life but not to be taken seriously. Don’t go there whilst you are still learning. A brave 19 year old indeed. My poor sad prayers are with you.

 

[SAVINGRACE]

I was in a similar position prior to conversion.

A couple of things decided it for me. Primary was the issue of “authority”.

I felt upon further study that ALL churches cannot be teaching the “Truth”. There can’t be more than one version of the Truth because the Holy Spirit can never be the author of confusion.

I was certain that there was one Church on earth teaching the “Truth” which Christ founded in the Upper Room and on which he conferred “authority”. Now that Church has to still be in existence today to feed his sheep and have a documented history dating back to the Upper Room.

To me now that I accept the authority of the Catholic Church everything else is a distraction. I keep my faith, mind and gaze firmly pointed in Rome’s direction.

All christians believe their “church” is teaching that single Truth in infallibility and is the church established by Christ and will guide them. Otherwise why bother belonging to that church? Why entrust your mortal soul to a church you do not entirely trust or believe will teach you infallible doctrine and guide you and your loved ones on your salvation journey?

Good luck with your journey.

 

[808Catholic]

Im a 19 year old guy. and I’ve been Lutheran my entire life. During this time, I always felt spiritually unfulfilled; I felt there were pieces missing to the puzzle of life. Every time I went to church, I didn’t feel as though my soul was satisfied. In addition, throughout all my apologetics classes in all of my Lutheran schools I attended, I always found myself disagreeing with Luther and Lutheranism.

On YouTube I obtained answers to my questions about my faith in videos that proved Catholicism. They proved things like Mary’s special place in Catholicism, Purgatory, the papacy all from the bible. There was also a video about the miraculous attributes of the

image of Our Lady of Guadalupe.
But than, I saw some of their other videos. They became quite deep: the videos claimed that sedevacantism is the right position, There was a fake Sister Lucia, JPII was the antichrist. I think you know what channel Im talking about… Most Holy Family Monestary
The thing Im worried about is this: What if they are right? Didn’t Our Lady of La Salette say Rome would become the seat of the antichrist? To be honest, Pope Francis says questionable things, which is why I pray for him. Idk… I really, really dont want to be damned forever Im so scared and confused. I mean if the Russia consecration was done why is Russia not Catholic? Im honestly worried that they may be correct.

Welcome to the Catholic Church! Got questions? You’re in good company! With over 2,000 years of history, the Church’s detractors have a lot of time to think and postulate why the church established by Christ is the “wrong” church but the real question is “Do you trust in God?” Do you trust in Him enough to let His Holy Spirit guide you through this life long journey? I’m well into my 5th decade on earth and my journey has taken me everywhere. What’s most comforting to me is that God is always with me wherever I’m led. Have faith in Him. Trust in God.

 

[jimcav]

Stay away from the web altogether. Even CAF needs to be used sparingly, simply because there is an overload of information and opinion here, and it’s not all good IMHO.

I say that because as a newcomer, you can be easily confused by everything that is out there. Heck, I still get confused! One site or video might be solid, but it can lead you into something that is iffy or worse. You need to keep it simple and solid.

My advice - **read books](about the saints, the Mass, the Eucharist etc.), pray!, **and go to **Church!. **That is all you need for now.

Of course, this is only my opinion!

 

[Usagi]

But even if the “Sedvacantists” were correct and even if the papacy was “vacant” right now…how and why would that make Catholicism untrue?

It wouldn’t . Even the sedevacantists are quite fiercely Catholic (in their own special way). But if someone is pondering conversion and one of the selling points of Catholicism is the visible earthly headship, being told that the guy currently understood by most everyone to be that visible earthly head is not only wrong but possibly in league with Satan could be rather unnerving.

Usagi

 

[Casilda]

Stay away from the web altogether. Even CAF needs to be used sparingly, simply because there is an overload of information and opinion here, and it’s not all good IMHO.

I say that because as a newcomer, you can be easily confused by everything that is out there. Heck, I still get confused! One site or video might be solid, but it can lead you into something that is iffy or worse. You need to keep it simple and solid.

My advice - read books](about the saints, the Mass, the Eucharist etc.), pray!, and go to Church!. That is all you need for now.

Of course, this is only my opinion!

Great advice, only adding that you should seek a godly priest to ask questions.

 

[littlestsouls2]

But than, I saw some of their other videos. They became quite deep: the videos claimed that sedevacantism is the right position,

The seat of St. Peter is not vacant. Ignore these sites. I have found so many errors, false prophecies, quotes taken out of context etc., on these sites, that I have lost count. Without a decent understanding of Church teaching (esp. dogmatic theology), one could easily be led astray. A decent knowledge of private revelations helps, too.

According to this view (I will not mention the s-word), the Church ceased to exist for a certain period of time, because the Church was neither One, nor Holy, nor Catholic, nor Apostolic.

Here are some helpful sites (but honestly, I would focus more on Christ than these obscurantist heresies):

matt1618.freeyellow.com/TRADIT.html

papastronsay.com/resources/sedevacantism/

patheos.com/blogs/davearmstrong/2011/05/catholic-refutations-of-the-grave-error-of-sedevacantism-links.html

There was a fake Sister Lucia, JPII was the antichrist. I think you know what channel Im talking about… Most Holy Family Monestary…

A fake? No way. Some have met close relations of Sr. Lucia, and they consider this offensive.

According to Ven. Marthe Robin, an extraordinary stigmatic, Our Lady chose St. John Paul II. Fr. Amorth, the chief exorcist in Rome, says that his intercession terrifies the demons. St. Padre Pio met him and seemed to hold him in high regard (before he became Pope, mind you). (Btw, St. Padre Pio was obedient to Bl. Pope Paul VI. He kept a photo of him in his room, and wrote to him to say that his encyclical ‘Humanae Vitae’ was admirable).

MHFM does more harm than good. They say a few good things; but much of what they share is misleading, uncharitable, Jansenistic, or plain heretical.

The thing Im worried about is this: What if they are right? Didn’t Our Lady of La Salette say Rome would become the seat of the antichrist?

They are not right. Desmond Birch has studied Catholic prophecy for years and he explains some of the unfortunate conclusions that people come to.

To be honest, Pope Francis says questionable things, which is why I pray for him. Idk… I really, really dont want to be damned forever Im so scared and confused.

God loves you. He won’t let you go. Trust Him.

There was once a holy priest who was worried that his Jewish mother was damned. St. John Vianney assured him, through the instrumentality of a mystic living at the time, that his mother was saved in her final moments. Peace to men of good-will!

I mean if the Russia consecration was done why is Russia not Catholic? Im honestly worried that they may be correct.

ewtn.com/expert/answers/Fatima1984.htm

Some say that Russia needs to be mentioned explicitly. I don’t read much about these things, so I cannot say too much.

Pope St. John XXIII, pray for us!
Pope St. John Paul II, pray for us!
St. Padre Pio, pray for us!

 

[CompSciGuy]

Number 1, be very careful with private revelations. Even if they are approved by the Church, they are not official church teaching.

Number 2, even if Rome did become the seat of the antichrist, as this saint has said, the Church would still be the Church, the gates of hell could not prevail against her. And your rightful place (and everyone else’s for that matter) is in the Catholic Church. You need not worry that becoming Catholic will send you to hell. The sedevacantists have no ground to stand on. Don’t even bother giving them a second glance. It is a shame that they have that youtube channel. Anyone could run across it thinking that it was all authentic Catholic teaching and then be deceived by it.

Finally, yes, Pope Francis says some questionable things. At least, he says them in a questionable way. There are a lot of good things about our Pope; he has done a lot of things to correct longstanding problems within the Vatican. He is also a people person… almost to the point of being a people pleaser. He sort of throws things out there in a very casual way without really providing any clarification, which leads people to believe that he is promoting heresy when very often he is not.

You are right to pray for him. We all should.

 

[Peter_J]

Hi everyone. I don’t really know y’all much (with a couple exceptions of course), I just saw this thread on the left side of the screen and decided to click. But I’ll throw in my :twocents:: Most Holy Family Monastery never “called” to me very much. For me it has basically always been between Rome and Orthodoxy.