Unsure about the church

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Eruvande

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I struggled to know where to put this query, but I reckon here will do as well as anywhere. I’ve just had a bout of serious illness, which has knocked me sideways. Previously I had been dithering between the Catholic church and the Orthodox. I currently attend an Anglican church. It sounds harsh, but I’ve kind of come to the conclusion that trying to explore Orthodoxy is a bit like trying to nail jelly to a wall. It’s like everything is a mystery.

I kind of think that yes, God has mystery, but also that He reveals things to us.

I know my charismatic Anglican church is only a compromise. Beautiful people, great work in the community. But ultimately, they don’t have the real presence, and that, I have found, really does matter.

Which leaves me with Catholicism. It feels familiar and yet strange at the same time. My husband is oddly antagonistic about it. He is much more of a slow thinker than I am, and takes a while to come to a conclusion. But he is still largely an evangelical.

If you’ve read this far, thank you and well done. I’m unsure of what to do - I can occasionally get to mass, but the priest is very busy to approach him. Would it be ok to phone up cold? I’m not sure I have the courage to do that. Would I be best to just keep trying to get to mass and see what happens?
 
You are correct that many priests are very busy, there just are not enough to go around, but I am certain that if you can wait on them they will respond to a phone call. I will pray for you to be lead forward by the Holy Spirit as you pursue our faith.
 
Definitely, call for an appointment as this deserves more than a passing few words after Mass. You can meet with the priest and get some clarifications. Often, a parish will have a program you can attend to learn more about the faith, ask any questions you may have, discuss any reservations, etc. Welcome to CAF and we will pray for your journey into the Church.🙂
 
Eruvande said:
I struggled to know where to put this query, but I reckon here will do as well as anywhere. I’ve just had a bout of serious illness, which has knocked me sideways. Previously I had been dithering between the Catholic church and the Orthodox. I currently attend an Anglican church. It sounds harsh, but I’ve kind of come to the conclusion that trying to explore Orthodoxy is a bit like trying to nail jelly to a wall. It’s like everything is a mystery.

I kind of think that yes, God has mystery, but also that He reveals things to us.

I know my charismatic Anglican church is only a compromise. Beautiful people, great work in the community. But ultimately, they don’t have the real presence, and that, I have found, really does matter.

Which leaves me with Catholicism. It feels familiar and yet strange at the same time. My husband is oddly antagonistic about it. He is much more of a slow thinker than I am, and takes a while to come to a conclusion. But he is still largely an evangelical.

If you’ve read this far, thank you and well done. I’m unsure of what to do - I can occasionally get to mass, but the priest is very busy to approach him. Would it be ok to phone up cold? I’m not sure I have the courage to do that. Would I be best to just keep trying to get to mass and see what happens?
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Participate in RCIA. They should let you attend as an inquirer whether you’re ready to enter the Church or not at this point.
 
Eruvande said:
I struggled to know where to put this query, but I reckon here will do as well as anywhere. I’ve just had a bout of serious illness, which has knocked me sideways. Previously I had been dithering between the Catholic church and the Orthodox. I currently attend an Anglican church. It sounds harsh, but I’ve kind of come to the conclusion that trying to explore Orthodoxy is a bit like trying to nail jelly to a wall. It’s like everything is a mystery.

I kind of think that yes, God has mystery, but also that He reveals things to us.

I know my charismatic Anglican church is only a compromise. Beautiful people, great work in the community. But ultimately, they don’t have the real presence, and that, I have found, really does matter.

Which leaves me with Catholicism. It feels familiar and yet strange at the same time. My husband is oddly antagonistic about it. He is much more of a slow thinker than I am, and takes a while to come to a conclusion. But he is still largely an evangelical.

If you’ve read this far, thank you and well done. I’m unsure of what to do - I can occasionally get to mass, but the priest is very busy to approach him. Would it be ok to phone up cold? I’m not sure I have the courage to do that. Would I be best to just keep trying to get to mass and see what happens?
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Focus on the Catholic Church and not the Orthodox which is a schismatic part of the Catholic Church.
 
yes, you can phone the parish office and make an appointment with your priest. probably more effective than trying to hunt him down after mass. it’s totally fine, people do it all the time

god bless you on your journey
 
Usually everyone refers a person to the priest, but there is no reason a person cannot be referred to the Deacon for inquiry into the faith. That is what our parish does, and it works out very well. Of course, if they decide to participate in RCIA, Father meets with them at some point.
 
Used2beSherryG said:
Definitely, call for an appointment as this deserves more than a passing few words after Mass. You can meet with the priest and get some clarifications. Often, a parish will have a program you can attend to learn more about the faith, ask any questions you may have, discuss any reservations, etc. Welcome to CAF and we will pray for your journey into the Church.🙂
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👍👍
Also see about getting into this season’s RCIA program if available… if for no other reason than to get some questions answered.
If you do decide to seek acceptance into the Catholic church you might need to go over the missing classes, which any team member would most likely be willing to do, or a Deacon ( I know mine will).
 
CB_Catholic said:
Usually everyone refers a person to the priest, but there is no reason a person cannot be referred to the Deacon for inquiry into the faith. That is what our parish does, and it works out very well. Of course, if they decide to participate in RCIA, Father meets with them at some point.
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absolutely correct… we do forget about our wonderful Deacons… I just did so in my last post… thank you for mentioning these wonderful people.
 
Just call and set up an appointment with a local Priest! I made an appointment with a Priest a couple of years ago when I was in a similar situation. We met many more times. One of the best decisions I’ve ever made! I know it can be intimidating but they really do love helping people in their faith journey.

JMR
 
Thanks everyone for responding - I’ll be honest, I was expecting a telling off for being so ridiculous. I’m going to try and get to mass again before Christmas, but will maybe leave phoning up until after Christmas, as I know it’s a busy time and I wouldn’t want to bother anyone
 
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