More Mormon looking to Catholicism questions...

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TheIrishman said:
I saw this thread late and should have looked here for answers instead of posting my own thread. Now I know atleast haha

But whats a good starting point for a person that’s not too familiar with Catholicism? I’m actually quite interested in learning about the Catholic faith
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The best starting point is Mass. Just go. 🙂 Every parish I know of in the States has a website that lists Mass times.
 
Hello my dear! I am so happy you are investigating our beautiful Church. I came home to Catholicism about a year and a half ago after a 13 year absence and the blessings have been so amazing, and the trials, so much easier to bear. I actually had a brief stint in the LDS church from 1998-1999.

Many others have answered your questions well, and I don’t have much more to add, except to say that I will be praying for you. If you ever have questions or need to chat more about the faith, I am an open book. andrea@moderncatholicmom.com

xoxo
 
akb2011–I’d ask a moderator to edit your post by changing the @ symbol to “AT” in your e-mail address. You might get spam the way you have it written now. 😦
 
xpirategrrlx said:
I apologize again for what I’m sure are very basic knowledges to Catholics and thank you for the kindness and patience this community has shown me.

As the time for my first Mass approaches (well, the first mass I will attend as an investigator), I have been studying literature sent my way and praying for guidance and am only overcome by a strong feeling that this is the direction I need to go, that there is something here that I have been looking for.

It’s a feeling I never had in all my years of praying about being Mormon.

I had a good talk with my mom about the Catholic Church and why, after all these years and missionary discussions with Dad’s church, she never changed.

Her answer was that she belongs to the Church and has never felt the desire to search because she feels right and at home there.

As I read, I notice the two religions are very different (I grew up thinking the similar) and a few points confuse me. When it comes to the Trinity, I find the concept confusing. So, God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are three, but one? Or one but three? Am I just reading too much into it?

Also, when it comes to prayer, are all prayers memorized or do you freely speak with God? Is there a certain way I should open and end a prayer? What is the correct way to do the Cross? I used to do the cross after our dinner prayer as a child, but after my conversion, I stopped and it has been many years. Do you pray directly to God or through saints?

I would ask my mother some of these things, but she is out and about and I’d rather not disturb her during her ME time!
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I grew up mormon. Went through alot of the same issiues and questions. Have you looked into RCIA classes? Check with your local perish they can talk to you and explain more in detail what RCIA is all about. I have been Catholic sine 1999 and love being at home. Good luck in your search.
 
TheIrishman said:
I saw this thread late and should have looked here for answers instead of posting my own thread. Now I know atleast haha

But whats a good starting point for a person that’s not too familiar with Catholicism? I’m actually quite interested in learning about the Catholic faith
Click to expand...
Sorry I did not see your post start with what I was saying in my last post RCIA if you want you cam message me and I can talk to you that way. Peace
 
xpirategrrlx said:
I apologize again for what I’m sure are very basic knowledges to Catholics and thank you for the kindness and patience this community has shown me.

As the time for my first Mass approaches (well, the first mass I will attend as an investigator), I have been studying literature sent my way and praying for guidance and am only overcome by a strong feeling that this is the direction I need to go, that there is something here that I have been looking for.

It’s a feeling I never had in all my years of praying about being Mormon.

I had a good talk with my mom about the Catholic Church and why, after all these years and missionary discussions with Dad’s church, she never changed.

Her answer was that she belongs to the Church and has never felt the desire to search because she feels right and at home there.

As I read, I notice the two religions are very different (I grew up thinking the similar) and a few points confuse me. When it comes to the Trinity, I find the concept confusing. So, God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are three, but one? Or one but three? Am I just reading too much into it?

Also, when it comes to prayer, are all prayers memorized or do you freely speak with God? Is there a certain way I should open and end a prayer? What is the correct way to do the Cross? I used to do the cross after our dinner prayer as a child, but after my conversion, I stopped and it has been many years. Do you pray directly to God or through saints?

I would ask my mother some of these things, but she is out and about and I’d rather not disturb her during her ME time!
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Hi, welcome to CAF! 🙂

I’m a convert to Catholicism. I still don’t understand the Holy Trinity 🙂 and I’m sure I’ll continue learning about the Holy Trinity because this is a mystery and so above our understanding! The way I was taught is - there is one God. (okay so we’re not polytheists). But He’s three Persons, not one: Father, Son, Holy Spirit. All three are God. One interesting thought is that - this is how God is love… because each person of the Holy Trinity loves the others 🙂 so even before creation, each Person of the Holy Trinity loved the others. The Son is eternally begotten by the Father. The Holy Spirit is not begotten but proceeds. Jesus said, Father and Him are one: so there is union of the three Persons, they are somehow in union.There have been volumes and volumes written about this, and exactly how the Holy Spirit proceeds, and LOTS of things that I don’t really understand well, but - the Holy Trinity has been believed and taught since the early Church 🙂

Here’s an article: ewtn.com/faith/teachings/GODA22.htm

Here are some points from the Baltimore Catechism: ewtn.com/faith/teachings/GODA22A.HTM

Some things to note:
  • the Persons of the Holy Trinity are one in nature. So we say, one God, three Persons.
  • all are eternal
  • when we say the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, we mean to imply the union of the Father and the Son, so people don’t think that the Son is not Divine (this is why the Church started saying “and the Son”, in the West, in response to a heresy that denied Christ’s divinity). Church Fathers have also used the term ‘from the Father through the Son’, because everything the Son has, comes from the Father. Maybe both phrases clarify different points.
Hope this helps 🙂
 
Sorry I forgot to answer your other questions!

In the West, Catholics make the sign of the Cross from left to right. Eastern Catholics, make the sign of the Cross from right to left. If you became Catholic you’d probably be Latin rite, so like in the West.

We can pray through memorized prayers or our own words… there are prayers that are encouraged like the Rosary, which is very powerful. We can also pray in our words as well. Most Catholics do both I think. Catholics can also go to Adoration (and non Catholics are welcome to attend too!), where the Eucharist (which we believe in Christ, truly present, and bread and wine are no longer present in substance only in appearance) - is shown in a “monstrance” (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Monstrans.jpg) and people can come and pray before Christ. The Eucharist (the Host) would be in the center of the monstrance (which comes from the Latin word meaning “to show”). This is very powerful as well and personally I’ve received much help from this practice!

The Mass for us is the highest prayer. It’s more than a prayer, it’s an offering of sacrifice (the Sacrifice of the Cross, is presented before us. It’s not a re-crucifixion, but an offering of the one eternal Sacrifice to the Father. Spiritually, it’s like we’re at Calvary). There have been Saints who have seen the spiritual reality of the Mass, with the Angels, Mary, being there. 🙂

We don’t always ask the Saints to pray for us. We can pray to God directly too. The reason we ask the Saints to pray is because they are close to God, and it’s like how we ask each other to pray, only the Saints’ prayers are more powerful cause they’re in Heaven 🙂 we believe we’re all part of one Church, and it’s God who makes intercession possible. Mother Mary’s prayers are very powerful because she’s His Mother. (We say “Mother of God” not because we believe that Mary was there before God, but because Jesus is God and His Divine and Human natures can’t be separated. The early Church said this, to protect against heresies against Christ).

God bless!
 
Hello everyone, I’ve been away from the computer for a couple days, so I’m reading through the things I’ve missed. Thank you all for the information and encouragement! 🙂
 
xpirategrrlx said:
Hello everyone, I’ve been away from the computer for a couple days, so I’m reading through the things I’ve missed. Thank you all for the information and encouragement! 🙂
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I pray for you on your journey. Becoming Catholic was the very best thing I have ever done and I thank God every day for making me Catholic. 👍
 
Today is the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. Apparently the old Celtic church was fascinated by it, and found many reminders in daily life:
Three folds of the cloth, yet only one napkin is there,
Three joints of the finger, yet only one finger fair,
Three leaves of the shamrock, yet only one shamrock to wear,
Frost, snowflake and ice, all in water their origin share,
Three persons in God, yet to one God alone do we make prayer.

Glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever more shall be, world without end.
God may not be easy to understand, but that is part of his mystery, but He is Great and rightly to be praised.
Unlike the mormon god who is merely a glorified one time sinner who has worked his way up to godhood, the true God cannot be put in a neat box like this He is too great.
 
lynnettejane said:
Today is the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. Apparently the old Celtic church was fascinated by it, and found many reminders in daily life:
Three folds of the cloth, yet only one napkin is there,
Three joints of the finger, yet only one finger fair,
Three leaves of the shamrock, yet only one shamrock to wear,
Frost, snowflake and ice, all in water their origin share,
Three persons in God, yet to one God alone do we make prayer.

Glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever more shall be, world without end.
God may not be easy to understand, but that is part of his mystery, but He is Great and rightly to be praised.
Unlike the mormon god who is merely a glorified one time sinner who has worked his way up to godhood, the true God cannot be put in a neat box like this He is too great.
Click to expand...
👍👍👍👍👍👍👍
 
lynnettejane said:
Today is the Feast of the Most Holy Trinity. Apparently the old Celtic church was fascinated by it, and found many reminders in daily life:
Three folds of the cloth, yet only one napkin is there,
Three joints of the finger, yet only one finger fair,
Three leaves of the shamrock, yet only one shamrock to wear,
Frost, snowflake and ice, all in water their origin share,
Three persons in God, yet to one God alone do we make prayer.

Glory be to the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now and ever more shall be, world without end.
God may not be easy to understand, but that is part of his mystery, but He is Great and rightly to be praised.
Unlike the mormon god who is merely a glorified one time sinner who has worked his way up to godhood, the true God cannot be put in a neat box like this He is too great.
Click to expand...
:love: this is beautiful!
 
Hello, im 17 and long story short I used too be brainwashed by the Watchtower society but not anymore. I am planning on taking RCIA in the fall but I’m becoming unpatient so to fill the void I keep looking into other faiths to make sure Im not making the wrong choice of becoming Catholic. I have been looking at the LDS church and there “Restored Church” doctrine and I have read some of the BoM and I’m just a mess atm lol.

But Matthew 16:18 still makes me believe that the RCC is the true Church
 
yogosans14 said:
Hello, im 17 and long story short I used too be brainwashed by the Watchtower society but not anymore. I am planning on taking RCIA in the fall but I’m becoming unpatient so to fill the void I keep looking into other faiths to make sure Im not making the wrong choice of becoming Catholic. I have been looking at the LDS church and there “Restored Church” doctrine and I have read some of the BoM and I’m just a mess atm lol.

But Matthew 16:18 still makes me believe that the RCC is the true Church
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pray for patience. 🙂 RCIA is a process, one where you grow in Christ. He is who fills the void. God bless you on your journey.
 
Praying for you & for all on your journey to draw closer to Our Good Lord Jesus Christ & the ONLY Church He has founded 2,000 yrs. ago, The Catholic Church.

May Our Good Lord Jesus continue to bless, keep, guide & protect all always.
 
yogosans14 said:
Hello, im 17 and long story short I used too be brainwashed by the Watchtower society but not anymore. I am planning on taking RCIA in the fall but I’m becoming unpatient so to fill the void I keep looking into other faiths to make sure Im not making the wrong choice of becoming Catholic. I have been looking at the LDS church and there “Restored Church” doctrine and I have read some of the BoM and I’m just a mess atm lol.

But Matthew 16:18 still makes me believe that the RCC is the true Church
Click to expand...
I can see why LDS can look appealing compared to Protestants because at least they have authority (albeit false). Be patient for RCIA and if I were you I would read the church fathers of the first and second century. I figure saying they got it wrong is like saying George Washington knew nothing about the American Revolution.
 
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