Revert Fears Telling Priest

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Irishgal49

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I recently returned to the Catholic Church after 11 years of being gone. During that time I converted to Judaism. I truly regretted it and wanted to return for some time. I am scared to tell my priest because I’m afraid that because I turned my back on Christianity that he will tell me I can’t stay. All this time this has been bothering me and I just want to be honest about it. I have tried to see if I would be OK staying in the Church or because I went to a non-Christian religion if I would be in trouble.
 
You sinned. It happens. Go to confession and tell the priest you are truly sorry. It is why we have the wonderful grace of the sacrament. God is THAT loving and forgiving. He loves us that much, but it first takes our humbling ourselves before Him in the confessional for it to actually happen.

Welcome back HOME! 👍

~Liza
 
Irishgal49 said:
I recently returned to the Catholic Church after 11 years of being gone. During that time I converted to Judaism. I truly regretted it and wanted to return for some time. I am scared to tell my priest because I’m afraid that because I turned my back on Christianity that he will tell me I can’t stay. All this time this has been bothering me and I just want to be honest about it. I have tried to see if I would be OK staying in the Church or because I went to a non-Christian religion if I would be in trouble.
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No problem to return to the Church.
After all, Jesus was Jew. You did not go that far…
The reaction depends on the Priest. Some will make a big fuss of it, some will tell nothing, others will be more balanced.
I would say: Be prepared for the worse and take it as a penance for your mistake. Take it on stride for you can take it.
It is a right of you to choose the religion you want, that is a right given by God to us. But, where there is freedom there are mistakes and it was a mistake to go backwards, to the Jewish Religion.
Thanks to God, you cane back to the True Faith. Keep your head up and if any storm comes, brave it with a smile on your face.
I do not know what you mean by this:
I have tried to see if I would be OK staying in the Church or because I went to a non-Christian religion if I would be in trouble.
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but no one is going to shoot you or burn you in the Public Square as in the Medieval Ages. I would say that it would be good to talk to a priest and take his reaction on stride, after all he is a human being and, above all, he is doing a service to you, free of charge.
 
No worries. Tell the priest.

Think about this. How can that experience of Judaism of yours ever be useful to God, if you’re not open to it? God allowed you to do it for some reason. Tell the priest, maybe he can in his own way use that experience of yours to help others (anonymously, if that’s what you prefer). He might benefit from knowing why you did what you did, in order to one day…maybe years from now, help others. And maybe you can help others directly as well who are flirting with the same thing.

Trust God to convert that experience of yours into something useful and more than that supernaturally good.

Examine your reasons for not telling…then examine your reasons for telling. Form a supernatural purpose for telling, leaving behind any other purpose…for example, embarrassment, shame, annoyance, uncertainty, vanity…or whatever.

Don’t let those things be the reasons…let something supernaturally good be the reason.

God bless, and welcome Home.
 
You just need to take this to confession. You are not the only one who has done this. Yes it was a sin. That is why we have confession. The priest may advise you on anything else that might have to be done to assist your reversion to the church.

Welcome back Home.
 
Irishgal49 said:
I recently returned to the Catholic Church after 11 years of being gone. During that time I converted to Judaism. I truly regretted it and wanted to return for some time. I am scared to tell my priest because I’m afraid that because I turned my back on Christianity that he will tell me I can’t stay. All this time this has been bothering me and I just want to be honest about it. I have tried to see if I would be OK staying in the Church or because I went to a non-Christian religion if I would be in trouble.
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Hi Irishgal49,

Do not be afraid. Tell your priest, the Church is not in the business of “crime and punishment” but of repentance and forgiveness. Priests hear all kinds of sins far worse than simply converting to another religion. I can absolutely guarantee you your priest will not be upset and he certainly won’t tell you that you can’t stay. You are not in any trouble at all!

I will say a prayer for you, that you will have the courage to confess this sin!
 
Welcome home Irishgal49!

I second what smichhertz said. Your priest will be really happy to hear you want to come back, not angry that you left. At my old parish, I met my priest in tears one day. I asked what was wrong and he told me he was crying with happiness, because someone he knew had converted to Islam a few years back but had just phoned my priest to ask how he could rejoin the Catholic Church. I imagine that will be the attitude of your priest when you tell him. You might just make his day!

I’ll be praying for you. God Bless
 
Go to confession. In all probability, the priest will welcome you back with at least figuratively open arms. Remember the story of the Prodigal Son?

Sure, it’s scary and embarrassing. The prodigal son was scared and embarrassed, too. But he also found himself wishing he could eat hog swill. That’s how satisfying sin is to those who are called to repentance–everything they are doing begins to look like hog swill (or if you’ve never seen hog swill, think dogpile.) That’s because they are really spiritually starving! He went back, asking to be treated as a servant, but his father welcomed him back with open arms, ordering the finest fat calf to be slaughtered for a feast of celebration, put a royal robe on the son who had been expecting that he might get a job at his father’s house, and a signet ring on his finger. Just about the only thing that didn’t happen is nobody did backflips and yelled, “Woot! Woot!” At least, we’re not TOLD that anyone did that, who knows, maybe someone did!

Big brother, the faithful one, was the only one who got snarfy in the situation, figuring that he “deserved” to at least have gotten a kid goat to celebrate with his friends once in awhile. He was already going to get an inheritance (kid brother, the prodigal, had run through his already, though.) Big Snarfy got told, “you are my beloved son, and everything I have is yours, but this brother of yours was dead and is now alive, was lost and is now found.”

Have you considered the story of the lost sheep and the lost coin? The shepherd didn’t go looking for the lost sheep and the housewife didn’t comb through the house for the coin because the sheep and the coin were “bad.” They did this because the sheep and the coin were valuable.

Every sinner (that would be all of us, by the way,) is valuable in the eyes of God, and as we are told, there is greater rejoicing over one who repents than ninety nine who have no need of repentance. So too, in the Church. You will be welcomed back and reassured, after a good confession, of your absolution as well as your rightful place in the Mystical Body of Christ.

I wouldn’t expect the priest to treat you to a grilled steak, though!😉
 
Welcome back!

Most probably, the priest will smile and say “Welcome Back!”

Many of my friends have come back after years and decades away. They all reported the same thing: the priest said, “Welcome Back!”
 
Irishgal,

The door is always open, and as long as you are willing, will always be open for you. Welcome back.
 
Irishgal49 said:
I recently returned to the Catholic Church after 11 years of being gone. During that time I converted to Judaism. I truly regretted it and wanted to return for some time. I am scared to tell my priest because I’m afraid that because I turned my back on Christianity that he will tell me I can’t stay. All this time this has been bothering me and I just want to be honest about it. I have tried to see if I would be OK staying in the Church or because I went to a non-Christian religion if I would be in trouble.
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If you feel this potent about it,than do it. If it isn’t what you want, no matter what the priests conveys to you, you are at the age of reason to mkae this decision.
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Dear OP:** Hah!** I wish that was **all **I had to confess compared to some of my sins upon occasion!!!
 
Thanks so much,

Sunday I went to mass with it still eating at me. I tried and tried to confess it and I hadn’t been able…well at mass the priest talked about how WE are the pearl of great price and that God is the one who seeks us out and gives everything (His Son and His Son’s life) to obtain us, to have us in a relationship with Him. I felt so terrible I determined to confess this at once. I had some items he needed to bless for my apartment and after he blessed them, I told him. He asked why I hadn’t confessed it before and I told him I was frightened and he said, “Well I’ll treat it as a confession now.” He gave me penance and I said an act of contrition and he absolved me.

Suddenly I was filled with peace like you wouldn’t believe. That last ‘dirty’ secret was gone. I felt so much better. I was meditating on the Gospel reading when Peter (after betraying Jesus) went back to fishing and Jesus had to come and tell him he had a job for him and it’s wasn’t fishing. I pictured myself on the beach and Jesus was further up the beach. I could barely see Him and he said, “Lorrie come closer. You are too far away from me.” I took a step toward Him, I took just one step and he ran to me. He embraced me and I saw all this love in His eyes like I’d never seen before in anyone here on earth. He said, “Lorrie I missed you.” Then He said, “I want you to see what your confession did this morning.” He waved his hand and the sky rolled back and I could see countless, endless people in heaven all gathered around us like we’re in a football game and they are watching us play. They were cheering, jumping up and down and shouting and I could hear trumpets playing…angels singing! I asked what was going on up there and Jesus smiled and said, “That’s what they are doing because you moved closer to me. Tell everyone that whenever someone moves closer to me, all of heaven rejoices. Remember you are not alone. They are watching you and they are happy when you move closer to me.” The vision just fades with us walking and talking and I swear I could still hear the crowd in heaven the whole time. I was so filled with emotion that I could barely contain it. I have finally found a peace inside of myself…things come at me normally but it’s like it’s no big deal. I have a peace no matter what I’m facing.

I have been at total peace, no upset, no anxiety, just this certainty/assurance that all of my sins are forgiven and that I am walking rightly with Him. I have been so happy, so joyous and all the feelings of fear and insecurity are gone. Praise be to God.

Lorrie
 
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