What does it mean to be Catholic?

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I have been considering joining the Catholic church. I was wondering if people could tell me in their own opinions what it means to them to be a Catholic, maybe that will help me in my decision.
 
To be part of Gods royal family. It’s awsome! The traditions, the answers to questions, the enlightenment to see ourselves and the world rightly. To be in league with people like John Paul II, Padre Pio, Mother Teresa.

Through the sacraments and teachings of the church…your soul is more open and aware and attentive to God. Being catholic to me is being able to have the most intimate of relationships with God this side of Heaven.

God bless you on your search.
 
It means everything to me. After I became a Catholic, I never looked back.
 
Non-Catholics that is in the category of ‘Invincible Ignorance’ have to work harder than Catholics in their spiritual life to have an everlasting life in Paradise because they don’t have any sacraments… For Catholics, it doesn’t mean that all Catholics will go to heaven, but Catholics have more privileges because of the Sacraments & Tradition of the Holy Church… But, only the faithful Catholics will have everlasting life in paradise… 🙂
 
To be in full communion with the Church that is one, holy, universal, and apostolic, and which is governed by Peter’s successor and the bishops in communion with him, according to the teachings of the Scriptures (whom She has collected and protected) and the tradition of the Apostles and their successors, and to which Christ has given Himself in the Holy Eucharist.
 
It means to love God the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit and to love your neighbor.
 
truthquester said:
I have been considering joining the Catholic church. I was wondering if people could tell me in their own opinions what it means to them to be a Catholic, maybe that will help me in my decision.
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Partake in the one and true Eucharist…for as Jesus said…John 6:56

56 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them.

And to have the splendors of the Church, a church built on rock…zuserver2.star.ucl.ac.uk/~vgg/rc/aplgtc/hahn/m1/splndr.html

and let me share to you the words of one convert named scott hahn…zuserver2.star.ucl.ac.uk/~vgg/rc/aplgtc/hahn/m1/sctcnv.html

little while later Gerry called and said, “Listen, I’m a little scared. My friends are a little scared. We ought to really take this seriously. I talked to Doctor John Gerstner, this Harvard-trained Presbyterian, anti-Catholic theologian . He will meet with us as long as we want.” We arranged Gerry, Dr. Gerstner and me for a six hour session, going through the Old Testament in Hebrew, the New Testament in Greek, and the council documents of Church history. At the end of six hours, Gerry and I expected to be completely blown out of the water by this genius. Instead, what we discovered was that the Catholic Church almost doesn’t even need a defense. It’s more like a lion; just let it out of its cage and it takes care of itself. We just presented the Church’s teachings and showed the text in Scripture, and we didn’t feel like he had answered a single one of our questions or objections. In the end we were like, “Wow, what does this mean?” Neither of us knew. The most anti-Catholic seminarians wondering whether God might be a Catholic – we were terrified.

Then the Liturgy of the Eucharist began. I watched and listened as the priest pronounced the words of consecration and elevated the host. And I confess, the last drop of doubt drained away at that moment. I looked and said, “My Lord and my God.” As the people began going forward to receive communion, I literally began to drool, “Lord, I want you. I want communion more fully with you. You’ve come into my heart. You’re my personal Savior and Lord, but now I think You want to come onto my tongue and into my stomach, and into my body as well as my soul until this communion is complete.”

And as soon as it began, it was over. People stuck around for a minute or two for thanksgiving and then left. And eventually, I just walked out and wondered, what have I done? But the next day I was back, and the next, and the next. I couldn’t tell a soul. I couldn’t tell my wife. But in two or three weeks I was hooked. I was head over heels in love with Christ and His Real Presence in the Blessed Sacrament. It became the source and the summit and the climax of each day, and I still couldn’t tell anybody.
 
What does it mean to be Catholic? I trained to be a Prot. pastor. For me it means that no matter what I teach, I’m not out there on that limb all by myself. I don’t have to rely on my thinking alone. There is always someone smarter than me, wiser than me, who I can go to and make sure I am doctrinally correct. There is the entire Deposit of Faith. There are the Saints.

In the Catholic Church I have discoverd God as he is: kind, merciful, loving, gentle. Not the God I grew up with, who was all of those things, but boy, you had better toe their definition of the proper line or he would send you straight to hell.

I discovered people who accept me and where I am on my faith journey and understand that it is a journey - for all of us. None of us have, or ever will, arrive while we are here.

I discovered people who challenge me to always go deeper, to not be content to stay where I am, because there is an endless amount of more.

I discovered that within one single crumb of the Eucharist is enough grace to make all of us Great Saints, if we but receive it.

I discovered my Mom, the Blessed Mother.

I discovered the beauty of hearing someone tell me “may God grant you pardon and peace, and I absolve you of your sins, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

I discovered sins are sins, and character imperfections aren’t.

I discovered it’s okay to be me. And that’s good enough.

In short, I discovered God who loves me even more than I love him. It’s a beautiful thing, and I will forever be grateful he told me to “go be Catholic.”
Kris
 
truthquester said:
I have been considering joining the Catholic church. I was wondering if people could tell me in their own opinions what it means to them to be a Catholic, maybe that will help me in my decision.
Click to expand...
It means everything to me. It means following Jesus and his Church with my life. Its receiving Jesus in the Eucharist, which is his Flesh and Blood which he gave for me on the Cross.
 
It is good to know that you are converting. That is great. I guide you to the Love of the Triune God, as my brothers and sisters have given you some guidance.
To be more realistic, to be a Catholic is to believe in the Triune God and a big Yes to the full revelation of God’s love in Jesus Christ who gave the keys to Peter the Apostles. Now you are entering that open door of faith with an open heart to accept Jesus Christ to be you savior. In the Catholic Church you will find life in abundance for your life now, in the future and for eternity.
Attend the Eucharistic sacrifice of the mass, listen and watch and open your mind and heart to Jesus Christ and He will fill you with the graces you need to confirm that yes to Him.
God bless you.
In Jesus Christ and Mother Mary.
 
truthquester said:
I have been considering joining the Catholic church. I was wondering if people could tell me in their own opinions what it means to them to be a Catholic, maybe that will help me in my decision.
Click to expand...
I took it for granted most of my life, but in these trying times when everything from the media is attack, attack, attack, it’s helped me to be better and more clear at defending my faith.

What motivates me are converts, I love them. The searching, thinking, sharing, fighting, that whole big journey and to choose this Church knowing they are making enemies, even in their own families. Incredible.

Every population in the world is going to have people who error. Seeing the error as human and the Church as divine is key.

If I ever figure out a signature, I would short hand this following statement as I’ve found it to be true.

Catholics leave the Church because of something they don’t like, or a negative event.

Catholics convert to the Church because they are searching for the ‘fullness of truth’.
 
ffg the Catholic Church has been entrusted with the mission of drawing people to God, in Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. I was born to do that, as a simple man and humble priest. We must thank God for those who are converting and also those who are in need of our prayers.
God bless.
In Jesus Christ and Mary.
 
For me 2 things

The Eucharist.
A spiritual heritage and lineage that goes all the way back to Christ Himself.

I also feel a very close kinship with the Orthodox for those reasons.
 
Thank you to everybody for responding and sharing your stories with me, I do appreciate it. I have been feeling torn on what I should do, for me it’s a big decision that I don’t take lightly. I never knew it meant to much to people, I always used to think of the Catholic church as just another religous organization, and that was it but I can see from the way everybody has spoken it is much more than just that.
I don’t belong to any church, I do have a faith. Sometimes I think it’s ok to just be spiritual but I still have a longing to belong somewhere where I will be accepted for who I am. I feel very drawn to the Catholic church.
 
frjohnmaryt said:
It is good to know that you are converting. That is great. I guide you to the Love of the Triune God, as my brothers and sisters have given you some guidance.
To be more realistic, to be a Catholic is to believe in the Triune God and a big Yes to the full revelation of God’s love in Jesus Christ who gave the keys to Peter the Apostles. Now you are entering that open door of faith with an open heart to accept Jesus Christ to be you savior. In the Catholic Church you will find life in abundance for your life now, in the future and for eternity.
Attend the Eucharistic sacrifice of the mass, listen and watch and open your mind and heart to Jesus Christ and He will fill you with the graces you need to confirm that yes to Him.
God bless you.
In Jesus Christ and Mother Mary.
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I’m sorry, but I don’t know what you mean when you say Triune God. What does that mean?
 
ffg Thanks.
Absolutely, we are Eucharistic people. That what unites us to be sons of God in Jesus Christ. But there are more, the Sacraments the Teachings of the Church, Traditions etc. I do respect other Christian religions.
God bless
In Jesus Christ and Mary.
 
truthquester said:
I’m sorry, but I don’t know what you mean when you say Triune God. What does that mean?
Click to expand...
The Triune God means the Most Holy Trinity: The Father, the Son and the Holly Spirit. One of the “must believes” of the Christian faith is the belief in the Trinity. The are each individual, yet all one. All are exactly the same substance. The word the Church uses for this is “consubstantial”. What the Father is, the Son is. What the Father and the Son are, the Holy Spirit is. However the Father is not the Son and the Son is not the Holy Spirit. They are three, yet one, yet three.

Trust me, you won’t ever fully understand this. It makes the brain go sideways. Even the great thinkers of the Church like St. Agustine couldn’t explain it. He wrote a wonderful book on the Trinity (called “The Trinity”) and after roughly 400 pages he concludes, in essence, “it’s a mystery”. Which means it’s something we accept as true, believe as true, even though we don’t understand how They can be three and one and three all at the same time.

God bless you on your journey!
Kris
 
Klm
Thank you for helping. I did not see that request from ‘trustquester’. You have helped to explain the Trinity in a very simple and clear explanation. Thank you.
God bless.
In Jesus Christ and Mary.
 
truthquester said:
Thank you to everybody for responding and sharing your stories with me, I do appreciate it. I have been feeling torn on what I should do, for me it’s a big decision that I don’t take lightly. I never knew it meant to much to people, I always used to think of the Catholic church as just another religous organization, and that was it but I can see from the way everybody has spoken it is much more than just that.
I don’t belong to any church, I do have a faith. Sometimes I think it’s ok to just be spiritual but I still have a longing to belong somewhere where I will be accepted for who I am. I feel very drawn to the Catholic church.
Click to expand...
If you are into reading, Surprised by Truth is a 3 book set (I think), of conversion stories.

Also, Lighthouse media has a ton of cd’s mp3’s for sale real cheap.

Catholic media is in a boom period. Great stuff out there. Scott Hahn has some great reads too.
 
frjohnmaryt said:
Klm
Thank you for helping. I did not see that request from ‘trustquester’. You have helped to explain the Trinity in a very simple and clear explanation. Thank you.
God bless.
In Jesus Christ and Mary.
Click to expand...
My pleasure.
Kris
 
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