Well This Is An Odd Situation

[Jimbo9889]

Hello Brothers and Sisters, a fellow believer here is seeking your counsel and prayers for my Deeply Cared For Friend Megan.

I have been trying to impress upon my friend Megan to return back to The Faith and I was trying to explain certainly the less than welcomed Teachings on Sexuality, she began to embrace The Teachings and I was trying to show her the real meat and potatoes of what it is I believe and try to live for as it fits into the Teachings of the Church, she was going to go to Confession after many years of not, and she wanted to Pray with Me, it was phenomenal.

However, the next day, she told me she was really thinking about it and she “had a conversation with God” and what she got from this “Conversation” was that: She could Pick and Choose, she doesn’t have to confess to a priest but to God alone, she can still partake in the Sacrament of Communion in this “confessed to God” state, she could still use Contraception too. Obviously she is trying to Tailor what I believe to her own lifestyle. Now do not get me wrong, while yes she is taking part in the Sacrament of Communion with sins Unconfessed with full knowledge that she knows I told her not too, there is also a sense of innocence and genuineness about doing so not something malicious in her awareness.

Nonetheless, your counsel and prayers are welcomed, especially when it comes to reconciling and navigating through this rather awkwardly uncomfortable spot of The Love of God [Enduring the Witnessing of a Sacrilege in Full Knowledge] and The Love of Thy Neighbor [Loving this particular individual despite what they are doing].

 

[Warandpeace]

1. Why do you know about this woman’s sex life? You should not.
2. We have a responsibility to choose our friends wisely. Perhaps this isn’t the best choice. Per the spiritual works of mercy you should admonish the sinner, and if they refuse to repent then treat them as an unbeliever.
3. Don’t judge

 

[YoungTradCath]

1. Why do you know about this woman’s sex life? You should not.
2. We have a responsibility to choose our friends wisely. Perhaps this isn’t the best choice. Per the spiritual works of mercy you should admonish the sinner, and if they refuse to repent then treat them as an unbeliever.
3. Don’t judge

I don’t see how he knows her sex life. Contraception seems rather openly talked about.

 

[Jimbo9889]

I think its pretty clear if one is using Contraception one could very well be engaged in sexual activity, or is open to it and that pains me, but to not being willing to accept that chance of this hard reality is to be in denial and not willing to live according to the Truth. To say this is a “bad friendship” says nothing of the bond we have for each other too, hence how much I care about her.

Nonetheless, your counsel and prayers are welcomed, especially when it comes to reconciling and navigating through this rather awkwardly uncomfortable spot of The Love of God [Enduring the Witnessing of a Sacrilege in Full Knowledge] and The Love of Thy Neighbor [Loving this particular individual despite what they are doing].

 

[Warandpeace]

If all you know is that she is on birth control, then she may not be committing any sin. While probably not the healthiest choice (cancer risks), there are many reasons a women could be taking birth control. You haven’t said if this woman is married or not, if she is married then the morality is a bit different since there is a possibility of the pill aborting. Nevertheless, it sounds like this person has a poor education about the faith, the correction of which takes time. Conversion also takes time. The only thing you can really do is pray for their conversion and engage them in conversations about the faith.

 

[Ruthie_again]

Jimbo, it doesn’t matter how you know about her sex life, as long as you are not a part of it! I am glad she confides in you.

Be patient, and pray for her, and for knowledge of how to help her. It may help you to know that, when I committed myself to being Catholic, I didn’t understand why the ban on contraception. But I knew the Church was right about everything else, and decided to take it on trust. Now I understand it.

Pray especially to Mary, that she bring Megan under her gentle mantle, and to St. Michael for her protection. We now experience a slight pause while I

I think the biggest thing to deal with here is her self-confessing. I hope this helps…

Does she read the Bible? If so, show her Jn 20:19-23. After His resurrection, Jesus breathed on the Apostles so that they received the Holy Ghost, and then gave them the power to forgive - and not forgive - the sins of others. This power has been passed down from the Apostles to their successors, the Bishops and priests. That is why we go to them for Reconciliation - we do not have the power to forgive our own sins. The only one who can is Jesus, and he gave that power to the Apostles in a special way. When they absolve us, they are standing in for Jesus; they are not doing it by their own power or judgment, but by His. They are not acting as mere men.

When the priest absolves me, I look at his hand. I don’t see the priest’s hand, but the hand of Jesus Himself. Even though I can’t see the hole, I know it’s there. Jesus Himself is forgiving me.

Then show her Mt 16:24. (repeated in Mk 8:34 and Lk 9:23.) Jesus tells us, “If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” To confess our sins, out of the deepest part of ourselves, is truly to deny ourselves. We don’t want to, out of fear of humiliation and/or being spiritually naked before another person. Well,

Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the praetorium, and they gathered the whole battalion before him. And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe upon him, and plaiting a crown of thorns they put it on his head, and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him they mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they spat upon him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. And when they had mocked him, they stripped him of the robe, and put his own clothes on him, and led him away to crucify him. (Mt 27:27-31)

And when He was hanging there, nails through His hands and feet, thorns sticking into His head,

…those who passed by derided him, wagging their heads, and saying, ‘Aha! You who would destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself, and come down from the cross!’ So also the chief priests mocked him to one another with the scribes, saying, ‘He saved others; he cannot save himself. Let the Christ, the King of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.’ Those who were crucified with him also reviled him. (Mk 15:29-32)

He went through all that for us; the humiliation as well as the pain. He didn’t do it so that we could feel good about ourselves. He atoned for our sins - He paid for them in advance. That doesn’t mean He forgave them in advance. If we want to be free of all our sin, we have to imitate His humiliation. When I look at it that way, confessing to a priest doesn’t look like much.

There is also James 5:16. There is nothing I can find in the Bible that tells us to pray for ourselves, or (especially) that we can forgive our own sins.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is my homily for the day.

But, Jimbo, none of that matters if she doesn’t understand, or believe in, the Real Presence. She may be unworried about offending a mere wafer. :crying:

I have some verses for that, too - but it’s harder to prove, to someone who is sure it is not the Body and Blood.

And, thanks for making me do a Bible study.

 

[mcmitton]

In my thinking, “cafeteria-style” denominations pick and choose what parts of Catholicism with which they are comfy. That’s why there are sooooo many denominations.

I think Catholicism is the complete church as instituted by Christ, and developed by his earthly successors. When one considers the Ten Commandments that are to be followed, the Catholic church really is the complete church. We just can’t pick and chose which laws we wish to follow.