P
Peeps
Guest
Aquineas11, I’m not talking about the Mysteries of Faith. Of course, God and His Salvation Plan are mysterious to mere human beings. Of course, we can’t “explain” God fully.“Uh, yeah you guys are right, what I’m saying is too mysterious! Call that crowd back! Let’s say whatever gets them to stay or gets our numbers up!!”
I’m talking about the little (and big) “traditions” (small “t”) that make the Mass and the Church difficult and at times frustrating for newbies and non-religious people and non-Catholics to follow.
And I’m not proposing that these traditions be done away with or simplified. What I’m proposing is that these “mysteries” be explained in a modern pamphlet or in an online site that people can easily obtain and read through. In other words, catechesis–explanations.
My husband and I would have never come into the Catholic Church if we had been kept in the dark about the Mass and other “Catholic” practices. Fortunately, as Evangelical Protestants who were used to studying and seeking understanding, we made an appointment with a priest in the parish that we first visited (and we were utterly confused about the OF Mass–it did not look in the least bit “Protestant” to us, other than the Lord’s Prayer–and that had a different “ending” in the Catholic Church!).
That dear priest verbally walked us through the Mass from start to finish, explaining everything from the Bible (he knew we were Evangelical Protestant–smart man!). And then he recommended that we join the parish’s Apologetics Class, which was absolutely stellar, taught with academic prowess by two professors who were converts from Evangelical Protestantism themselves!
In other words, we got all the explanations we needed to understand the “mysteries” in the Catholic Church, and I think that everyone should have that same kind of knowledge and training. We were blessed!