What Church Teaching Do You Have Trouble With...?

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ForwardProgress said:
If you mentally perform the act associated with the thought, it is a sin. If a thought of a naked person appears in my mind, no big deal, but if I imagine my self with her, doing sexual things with her, then it’s a sin.
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Where did you get that from? I have never heard of that before. :confused:
 
I don’t have any trouble with any of the Church’s teachings, and one reason why is this, (I heard this from a convert who now is a Catholic Priest)…he said: “Whenever I have trouble with one of the Church’s teachings, I study it until I figure out where I went wrong.” I agree with that totally.
Have any of you ever read this?
vatican.va/edocs/ENG0141/_INDEX.HTM
The Vatican web site, at www.vatican.va is filled with a gold mine of things that I believe most Catholics don’t read. The more you read and study our faith, the more it makes sense.
 
allhers said:
I don’t have any trouble with any of the Church’s teachings, and one reason why is this, (I heard this from a convert who now is a Catholic Priest)…he said: “Whenever I have trouble with one of the Church’s teachings, I study it until I figure out where I went wrong.” I agree with that totally.
Have any of you ever read this?
vatican.va/edocs/ENG0141/_INDEX.HTM
The Vatican web site, at www.vatican.va is filled with a gold mine of things that I believe most Catholics don’t read. The more you read and study our faith, the more it makes sense.
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That is where I am at with it all. I have done enough searching myself that I don’t have troubles with the teachings. I don’t think there is any problem with people questioning issues, I think it is great when they research why the Church teaches what it does, the Church has nothing to hide. 🙂
 
AmyS said:
That is where I am at with it all. I have done enough searching myself that I don’t have troubles with the teachings. I don’t think there is any problem with people questioning issues, I think it is great when they research why the Church teaches what it does, the Church has nothing to hide. 🙂
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:amen:
 
AmyS said:
That is where I am at with it all. I have done enough searching myself that I don’t have troubles with the teachings.** I don’t think there is any problem with people questioning issues,** I think it is great when they research why the Church teaches what it does, the Church has nothing to hide. 🙂
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That is my experience as well. Questioning a teaching with an open heart helps us to understand it. The hurdles will be different for everyone. E.g., the teaching on sexuality was almost intuitive for me but the teachings on Our Lady were difficult. I had to WORK to understand them, and though I personally am still not convinced that they need to stand at the same de fide level as the doctrines of the Creed (as the later decreed dogmas do), I can acquiesce to the Church’s authority to place them at that level.
 
Sex and marriage is for procreation only.

Priests be celibate.

The crucifix (it seems to go against the “Thou shalt have no graven images of thy Lord” commandment.
 
Jealousy being one of the seven deadly sins and God admitting to being a jealous God himself and if so wouldn’t that mean he is not sinless perfection? Or do the seven deadly sins only apply to humans and notto God? If they don’t apply to God then why?
 
Wow! A lot of these responses seem to be coming from the same ballpark: Church teachings on sexuality.

Can I just ask: How difficult has it been for you to remain loyal to the Church’s position on these issues within the context of your own marriage?

How many of you have honestly lapsed in this?
 
I’m not married nor do I have a girlfdriend. I lead a celibate lifestyle.
 
There are 2 things I honestly can’t wrap my mind around: Indulgences and NFP. Not that I don’t accept them as teachings of the Church, I don’t fully understand them.

Indulgences have been explained over and over to me, and I have done reading on the subject, but nobody has really given me a truly satisfactory answer. I wholeheartedly believe in Purgatory, though. I really do not want to get into a discussion on the subject in this thread, but as with other things, I am confident the Holy Spirit will speak to me about it someday in His own way, as He has on other things.

As far as NFP goes, I think there is a lack of consistency in it’s application and usage. The Church teaches that it is only to be used for grave reasons, but to be honest, many Catholics use it for less than grave reasons. Some use it to postpone having children after they are married until they are financially more secure, or ready for them, or whatever, but to be honest, these are the same reasons people give for using ABC. And despite the testimonials of people who practice it and claim it has brought them closer together, there are many times I have read testimonies from people who are frustrated with it and consider it a burden and have problems in their marriage because of it. And I think the level of committment to practice NFP has to be very high on the part of both spouses, but I don’t think that is the actual reality, from what I’ve read.

So what constitutes a grave reason? Where is the line? When should it be used? This is not defined by the Church clearly, and perhaps people are using it inappropriately. I don’t know, but I think it is not well enough addressed.
 
I have trouble with the Church teaching against the death penalty. The validity of sometimes using the death penalty has been accepted by the Church throughout its history up to the 20th century, so this is flying in the face of Church tradition.
 
Lief_Erikson said:
I have trouble with the Church teaching against the death penalty. The validity of sometimes using the death penalty has been accepted by the Church throughout its history up to the 20th century, so this is flying in the face of Church tradition.
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Luckily, we can have differing opinions on the death penalty, or so says His Awesomeness B16.
 
St_Aloysius said:
When I first came to Catholicism, understand I came as an ex-fundamentalist. As such, there was an invisible moral leesh, so to speak, I felt I possessed for quite some time. There is no longer a “leesh,” as I no longer allow myself to conform to any moral standard because of societal or religious pressure (which, here in the Bible Belt, is great) but rather out of sincere love. It became meaningless for me, I think, to follow norms and standards promulgated by my Baptist faith solely to be “morally upright.” I couldn’t–and can’t–do it. I really have to be moved out of a sincere love of God.

During the first little bit of my transition from fundamentalism to Catholicism, I was still very much an ardent, puritanical Baptist at heart–without realizing it. I decided then to follow the holy Catholic Church’s teachings without reservation or question. Orthodoxy. Good ol’ orthodoxy. I was really alarmed by Catholics who admittedly struggled with certain Church teachings–however small their concerns might have been. “How can you call yourself a Catholic!” was my internal–never external–reaction.

Well, I get it now. I really do. I’m a 14-year-old living in a region wrought with extremes: all-out puritanism or outright atheism. The latter would be so much more appealing were it not for the sanity I find in Catholicism. I have the media, peer pressure, all that good stuff, to deal with. I also find myself experiencing SSA very strongly. Usually it provokes questions and legitimate concerns rather than all-out faith crises. Still, it’s made me re-examine Church teachings in a great many areas. I never ceased to be amazed by the Church’s rationale–and sympathy–but have become able to interrupt my own biases long enough to also think outside of the Church. I agree it’s her duty to teach on faith and morals and help our consciences become aligned with God’s will, but she cannot force us to accept a single dogma–as it should be.

I’m in love with my new faith but find myself less orthodox at times than I would have liked to imagine myself. I think this has been the experience of all sincere Catholics–I’ve noticed the most devout, incredible people I know in the Church are very open about such struggles.

And the whole thing got me thinking. I want to know: What Church teaching do you have the most trouble with? Why? How has it affected your life?
Please, really, no need to immaculatize your accounts. Just be honest and blunt about your doubts and fears. The makings of any great saint start with a virtue as simple as true vulnerability.
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I don’t’ have a problem with much of what you spoke to; I just question this a little…

“I** no longer allow myself to conform to any moral standard …”**

If you have come to Jesus, through reason, to fully trust him, with unwavering belief, into an ever swelling faith , you must now learn how to love God. Walk in his ways, abide by “God’s” moral standards and believe that Jesus is his only begotten son, our Lord. I also say I love God, but I know that it is yet an imperfect love – since I am still learning how to each day improve on that. I am learning his ways, I try to follow them (many times I fall) but I am now committed to never give up again. I will carry my cross, run the race until I’ve passed-on or until Jesus returns - whichever comes first. I hope to one day be able to love God more perfectly, but I know I am far from that right now. But I will never stop walking on the path that I am set on, and which I see more clearly with each passing day.

As far as your immediate question; I don’t have a problem with any of our major Church teachings (catechism) the few that I do have I will sort out eventually; they don’t restrict me from feeling fully part of the Church; and certainly not apart from Jesus. No one is going to have it all neat & tidy like in their minds. (Except a few, Saints, etc that God permits to know more than us )

The principals need to be there though.

Accept Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the cross, that his atonement for our sins paves the way for our salvation. Confess your sin(s) be sincere and contrite when doing so, teach yourself to walk away from your sins (control the sin), ask for strength from the Holy Spirit. Accept only Jesus as Lord; get to know him and his ways like you know yourself, (all of which are the Fathers ways). Give glory and praise and worship and serve only God our father, also our Lord Jesus son who sits at his right hand, and keep asking for the holy spirit to guide you in this. Pray to the Saints & Angels for intercession, but do not worship angels or saints, only regard them as intimate followers of God and as exemplars for us. The Blessed Mother is revered and is our greatest intercessory (behold thy Mother), but not worshiped like some outside our faith have described. Everything else will come and is coming from the little that I can read into from your post. Oh……. and be humble in all that you do, all the days of your life.
Read your Bible, over and over. I find the more I read it …….the more revelations

God Bless you friend!
 
Sheeniac said:
Luckily, we can have differing opinions on the death penalty, or so says His Awesomeness B16.
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Yeah.

We’re also allowed to oppose the Catholic Church’s acceptance of religious freedom, right?
 
Yeah.
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We’re also allowed to oppose the Catholic Church’s acceptance of religious freedom, right?
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If God didn’t force Adam and Eve into subservience and unfaltering obedience to his will–as that would undermine divine love–then why should we?

What a miserable and pathetic society that would be…
 
Annullments. I’ve never understood how a “sacrament” could be declared invalid. Then why can’t the other sacraments be declared “invalid”–Holy Communion, Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Orders so on.
 
FlatAffect said:
Annullments. I’ve never understood how a “sacrament” could be declared invalid. Then why can’t the other sacraments be declared “invalid”–Holy Communion, Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Orders so on.
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Actually without proper form and matter they can. The vows (form) would be what’s found invalid in a granted annulment…my :twocents: teachccd
 
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