Ok For Catholics to go to Other Religious Services?

[mek42]

My experience with the phrase was from practicing Catholics. No disrespect was intended. Please accept apologies if I have managed to give offense by using what I had thought to be an accepted vernacular shorthand. Would it be better for me to use, liturgical positions, or some such in the future?

When I do visit a Mass, I bow, nod head, to the font upon entry and to the altar in lieu of genuflection in order to offer respect to the sacred in a way that has meaning to me. Currently I do move as others do in order to not be a distraction to others. However, the Catholic poster I quoted earlier stated that they do not move as others do when visiting a Protestant service. So I wonder if I should refrain from moving as others do at Mass to avoid the possibility of misunderstanding regarding what has meaning to me.

 

[mek42]

My experience with the phrase was from practicing Catholics. No disrespect was intended. Please accept apologies if I have managed to give offense by using what I had thought to be an accepted vernacular shorthand. Would it be better for me to use, liturgical positions, or some such in the future?

When I do visit a Mass, I bow, nod head, to the font upon entry and to the altar in lieu of genuflection in order to offer respect to the sacred in a way that has meaning to me. Currently I do move as others do in order to not be a distraction to others. However, the Catholic poster I quoted earlier stated that they do not move as others do when visiting a Protestant service. So I wonder if I should refrain from moving as others do at Mass to avoid the possibility of misunderstanding regarding what has meaning to me.

 

[Tarpeian]

Catholics in a non-Catholic “church”

Several Popes have personally attended (and participated) in non-Catholic (and even non-Christian) services.
Among other reasons, this has to do with being ecumenical.
So, if

1. our Pope attends non-Catholic services, and
2. does not tell us to refrain from do so, then
3. God bless everyone who attends other religious services.

Some people are so elitist as to believe that every denomination of Christianity (even Eastern Orthodox, and other Orthodoxes) are (somehow) twisted.
Well, our former Pope ordered us to not use that stupid “Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing” attack.
All Christians were created equal.
Some are a little MORE equal than others.

When I see Posters acting so negatively about attending a non-Catholic service, I wonder how weak their Faith is.
Hanging out for an hour anywhere (not including strip bars, etc.) is probably not corrosive to one’s Faith in Jesus.
For those people, I guess they should be deathly afraid of hearing anything that isn’t approved by the Pope.

Most Catholics have relatives who are non-Catholic.
These people probably have invited different family members and friends to attend Mass.
I think it is rude to flatly refuse to attend a Protestant service, when I am out-of-Town visiting relatives.

Most Catholics have relatives who are non-Catholic.
These people probably have invited different family members and friends to attend Mass.
I think it is rude to flatly refuse to attend a Protestant service, when I am out-of-Town visiting relatives.

You “wonder how weak their Faith is.”

I wonder how well they know The Faith? In fact, once one takes The Faith seriously, you soon realize, you can spend every waking moment devoted to mining the mysteries of The Faith, and never have time to exhaust or understand all of Her treasures.

My in-laws are protestant, and I always take my family to Mass when visiting our family out of town to fulfill our Sunday obligation. My wife is a convert to The Faith. Her grandfather is a life long Lutheran. After observing his grand-daughter, and listening to his great grandsons for the past 22 years, he told her, she was in The True Church, and he was proud of her for making the correct choice. He is a self made man, a man of extraordinary intellect. He recognizes the gift is grand-daughter and grandsons have been given. Because of distance and old age her grandparents made few trips to see us over the past 22 years. When my wife was received into The One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church he was at the Easter vigil! When his grandsons received all of their Sacraments he was there! The first time he stepped into our Church, he was in awe physically, intellectually, and emotionally. His sense perception was overwhelmed, by the beauty of a small town gothic church, that can hold its own with some of the great cathedrals of the world. The beauty, simplicity, and reverence of the Mass offered correctly fostered many question’s with the eagerness, that is sometimes only seen in a child. I can only presume the answers given by his grandsons on matters of rubrics and tradition, doctrine and dogma and everything in between made him proud and piqued his curiosity even more. So much more that he made sure they made it to Mass when spending summer vacations with them.

We can be ecumenical without attending protestant services. If that comes across as elitist or abrasive, then maybe the one “offended” is not secure in their faith. Indifferentism never fosters true Charity.

Pax,
Tarpeian