Priests Discouraging Converting/Reconciliation?

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jmcrae said:
To be the direct cause of a divorce is certainly a mortal sin. There are legitimate grounds on which a couple may divorce, with the understanding that neither can remarry, but you don’t want to stand before God and have to say, So and so got a divorce and her children became homeless because her husband didn’t understand why she had to become a Catholic after I convinced her that she needed to do it right away.

It is much better to give him a chance to “get on board” with the idea, and at least not be opposed, before going ahead with conversion.
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To convert to Catholicism is not a cause of divorce. To divorce someone because they became Catholic would be the cause of the divorce. It is a mortal sin to divorce. Perhaps the Priest is preventing his wife from mortally sinning by divorcing the man reconciling with the church?
 
WaitingForJesus said:
Mick, I can appreciate your view and must admit I had some doubts, particularly about things relating to the Holy Mother that are not dogma. I asked the Lord to help with that and those were eventually resolved after I came into the church. But there needs to be at least an intellectual acceptance to basic teachings such as the Eucharist before one is received into the church. At our parish someone would be advised to wait if they were unable to accept something so essential after completing RCIA. God bless you.
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I disagree, I would tell everyone in every circumstance to covert to Catholicism. It is Jesus’ desire that all be converted to Catholicism. We can know this by His novena that is part of the Devotion to the Divine Mercy.

In the Diary of St. Faustina, Jesus reveals an incredible Grace from His Mercy. It is the Novena to the Divine Mercy. A novena is a prayer that is prayed for nine consecutive days. The Divine Mercy is Jesus Himself. He told St. Faustina to remind us that He is our Merciful Savior and that Mercy is His greatest attribute.

Each day a different group is either thanked or called to Catholicism (the aggregate of all the groups includes all of humanity):

First Day: Today bring to Me all mankind, especially all sinners
Second Day: Today bring to Me the Souls of Priests and Religious
Third Day: Today bring to Me all Devout and Faithful Souls
Fourth Day: Today bring to Me those who do not believe in God and those who do not know Me
Fifth Day: Today bring to Me the Souls of those who have separated themselves from My Church
Sixth Day: Today bring to Me the Meek and Humble Souls and the Souls of Little Children
Seventh Day: Today bring to Me the Souls who especially venerate and glorify My Mercy
Eighth Day: Today bring to Me the Souls who are in the prison of Purgatory
Ninth Day: Today bring to Me the Souls who have become Lukewarm

During the third scrutiny the Catechumen is given the chance to change his or her mind and not get baptized therefore it is a no loose situation.

Read more about the Devotion:
ewtn.com/Devotionals/mercy/novena.htm#1#ixzz2O0UJOOOT

Read more about the scrutinies:
newadvent.org/cathen/13641a.htm

Peace be with you.
 
mick_tinetti said:
I disagree, I would tell everyone in every circumstance to covert to Catholicism. It is Jesus’ desire that all be converted to Catholicism. We can know this by His novena that is part of the Devotion to the Divine Mercy.

In the Diary of St. Faustina, Jesus reveals an incredible Grace from His Mercy. It is the Novena to the Divine Mercy. A novena is a prayer that is prayed for nine consecutive days. The Divine Mercy is Jesus Himself. He told St. Faustina to remind us that He is our Merciful Savior and that Mercy is His greatest attribute.

Each day a different group is either thanked or called to Catholicism (the aggregate of all the groups includes all of humanity):

First Day: Today bring to Me all mankind, especially all sinners
Second Day: Today bring to Me the Souls of Priests and Religious
Third Day: Today bring to Me all Devout and Faithful Souls
Fourth Day: Today bring to Me those who do not believe in God and those who do not know Me
Fifth Day: Today bring to Me the Souls of those who have separated themselves from My Church
Sixth Day: Today bring to Me the Meek and Humble Souls and the Souls of Little Children
Seventh Day: Today bring to Me the Souls who especially venerate and glorify My Mercy
Eighth Day: Today bring to Me the Souls who are in the prison of Purgatory
Ninth Day: Today bring to Me the Souls who have become Lukewarm

During the third scrutiny the Catechumen is given the chance to change his or her mind and not get baptized therefore it is a no loose situation.

Read more about the Devotion:
ewtn.com/Devotionals/mercy/novena.htm#1#ixzz2O0UJOOOT

Read more about the scrutinies:
newadvent.org/cathen/13641a.htm

Peace be with you.
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Hi Mick, maybe we are misunderstanding each other. I agree completely that our Lord wants all persons to be converted to Catholicism. I have read St. Faustina’s diary, say the Divine Mercy Chaplet daily, and am familiar with that novena. Love them all! I also understand about the scrutinies as I went through RCIA and had multiple meetings with the Pastor to make sure I understood and accepted what the church teaches. When I said the OP should educate himself, I meant he should continue his studies of the faith and go through RCIA or whatever process his Pastor advises (since he is already baptized).

Would you tell someone to convert if (s)he does not believe in the real presence of our Lord in the Eucharist? That worries me. 1 Corinthians 11:29 says: “For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself”. There are situations I think where it is better to wait if a person comes to the end of RCIA and still has significant doubts.

I was not suggesting OP should not convert. My point was to shed some light on why a priest might discourage someone from converting. The things I said in my post are very real and happened to me. People who come from a devout Protestant background may encounter considerable resistance from families and friends, sometimes to the point of being ostracized. There is a very real danger that a convert who is under pressure from family and friends and not strong in their understanding of the faith and reasons for conversion is they will fall away. It is not a decision to be taken lightly. I am glad my Pastor was thorough with me.

God bless you for all you do!
 
Joannm said:
If you read the Rule of St. Benedict that is exactly what he did with men who wanted to enter the monastery had to knock at the door three times to prove their persistence in wanting to enter the order.
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Exactly what I was thinking!

In other words, keep knocking!

PAX+
 
WaitingForJesus said:
Hi Mick, maybe we are misunderstanding each other. I agree completely that our Lord wants all persons to be converted to Catholicism. I have read St. Faustina’s diary, say the Divine Mercy Chaplet daily, and am familiar with that novena. Love them all! I also understand about the scrutinies as I went through RCIA and had multiple meetings with the Pastor to make sure I understood and accepted what the church teaches. When I said the OP should educate himself, I meant he should continue his studies of the faith and go through RCIA or whatever process his Pastor advises (since he is already baptized).

Would you tell someone to convert if (s)he does not believe in the real presence of our Lord in the Eucharist? That worries me. 1 Corinthians 11:29 says: “For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself”. There are situations I think where it is better to wait if a person comes to the end of RCIA and still has significant doubts.

I was not suggesting OP should not convert. My point was to shed some light on why a priest might discourage someone from converting. The things I said in my post are very real and happened to me. People who come from a devout Protestant background may encounter considerable resistance from families and friends, sometimes to the point of being ostracized. There is a very real danger that a convert who is under pressure from family and friends and not strong in their understanding of the faith and reasons for conversion is they will fall away. It is not a decision to be taken lightly. I am glad my Pastor was thorough with me.

God bless you for all you do!
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I guess I did misunderstand you. I reread some of the posts. By the time they reach the Easter Vigil they should be comfortable with what was taught and be able to sincerely confess it.

Mick
 
mick_tinetti said:
I guess I did misunderstand you. I reread some of the posts. By the time they reach the Easter Vigil they should be comfortable with what was taught and be able to sincerely confess it.

Mick
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Hey Mick. I thought we were just misunderstanding each other, and I could have been clearer when I said the OP needed to educate himself. Take care and God bless you!
 
Ok, so I met with someone from the parish closest to my house. My initial fear of being told not to join was alleviated, but something else happend. This person was not a priest, but the director of faith formation; he heads RCIA. We talked for about 20 minutes, and within about the first 3 mintutes he told me that RCIA was the place for me to start my entry into the Catholic Church. I’m a little disapointed and underwhelmed. I felt the conversation was awkward; like I was pulling teeth to get a conversation out of this individual. Perhaps he was tired, I don’t know. One thing I do know is he did not seem as exited about me potentially joining as I was. I think I’m going to give another parish a shot at this.
 
Theophilus, sorry it did not go as you would like. It is typical in most parishes to go through RCIA even if you have already been baptized. I don’t mean to get weird on you here, but the devil does not want you to join the Catholic church. He will throw up obstacles and make you have doubts. At least this was my experience.

In the long term you won’t be dealing with the RCIA director. He’ll teach you about what Catholics believe, but that will only be for the months when you are preparing to enter the church. It is good to keep that in mind. If you haven’t tried out mass yet, you will want to do this as well. It is quite a bit different than most Protestant services. If you have the option of selecting from more than one Parish, then go for the one that you feel most comfortable in.
 
Theophilus76 said:
Ok, so I met with someone from the parish closest to my house. My initial fear of being told not to join was alleviated, but something else happend. This person was not a priest, but the director of faith formation; he heads RCIA. We talked for about 20 minutes, and within about the first 3 mintutes he told me that RCIA was the place for me to start my entry into the Catholic Church. I’m a little disapointed and underwhelmed. I felt the conversation was awkward; like I was pulling teeth to get a conversation out of this individual. Perhaps he was tired, I don’t know. One thing I do know is he did not seem as exited about me potentially joining as I was. I think I’m going to give another parish a shot at this.
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What were you hoping for?

All of this sounds very normal to me. Even Scott Hahn had to do RCIA - he had a shorter process and he also worked with a priest, but his was a rare case. Most people have to go through a normal conversion process.
 
Regarding what I was expecting…

I don’t know, I suppose Angels opening up heaven and a delegation of Bishops to roll out the red carpet and warmly receive my pronouncment of undying devotion to Christ’s Church, receive confession, then the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Christ in the eucharist.

I realize my expectations were off. I started another thread titled, “Why Is It So Hard To Join.” I’ve been set strait. Bottom line, regardless of how underwhelming my initial experience, the Holy Spirit guided bishops to create RCIA just as He has guided them to do everything else for His church. If I’m going to submit to the church’s teaching, that submission starts now.
 
Theophilus76 said:
Regarding what I was expecting…

I don’t know, I suppose Angels opening up heaven and a delegation of Bishops to roll out the red carpet and warmly receive my pronouncment of undying devotion to Christ’s Church, receive confession, then the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Christ in the eucharist.

I realize my expectations were off. I started another thread titled, “Why Is It So Hard To Join.” I’ve been set strait. Bottom line, regardless of how underwhelming my initial experience, the Holy Spirit guided bishops to create RCIA just as He has guided them to do everything else for His church. If I’m going to submit to the church’s teaching, that submission starts now.
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Good attitude!
 
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