.
FAQ: I'm considering joining the Catholic Church. Would it be a mistake?
REPLY: Catholicism is a beautiful religion, but it's not easy.
Once someone is fully committed by completing First Holy Communion and
Confirmation and undergone Christian baptism; they will be expected to
comply with everything Rome teaches and stands for, e.g. the
Commandments, the Canon Law, the dogma, the rituals, the Traditions, the
Councils, the Bulls, the Encyclicals, the rites, the holy days of obligation, and
the entire Catechism; plus everything that Jesus and the apostles taught in
the New Testament, i.e. all four gospels and all twenty-one epistles, plus
Acts and Revelation
That's a lot to remember, let alone put into practice.
And then there's the matter of mortal sin. When Catholics leave this life with
just one mortal sin on the books awaiting absolution, just one, they go
straight to Hell. It's a direct flight; no stopover in a Purgatory. Even if a
Catholic managed to be a top performer in faith and practice for fifty years,
none of that will be taken into consideration. They will leave this life as if
they'd been a pagan the whole time. Mortal sins are that lethal.
The paragraph below from CCC 1782 of the catechism of the Catholic
Church; acknowledges everyone's rights and freedoms in regard to selecting
a religion of their own personal choice.
"Man has the right to act in conscience, and in freedom, so as personally to
make moral decisions. He must not be forced to act contrary to his
conscience. Nor must he be prevented from acting according to his
conscience, especially in religious matters."
However, be aware that once someone joins the Catholic Church, they will
have to relinquish those rights and no longer be permitted to either
interpret, or apply, the Holy Bible's teachings sans hierarchy oversight per
CCC 85 which says:
"The task of giving an authentic interpretation of the Word of God, whether
in its written form or in the form of Tradition, has been entrusted to the
living teaching office of the Church alone. Its authority in this matter is
exercised in the name of Jesus Christ." This means that the task of
interpretation has been entrusted to the bishops in communion with the
successor of Peter, the Bishop of Rome."
Bottom line is: Catholicism isn't a democratic structure-- it's more like
Communism and/or Big Brother's thought control in George Orwell's novel
"Nineteen Eighty Four". I'm not saying that's necessarily disagreeable as
some folks prefer being told what to believe rather than figuring things out
for themselves; and they feel secure having a hierarchy to blame if
perchance Catholicism proves misleading-- I'm only saying that it's a level of
governance that some folks might find a bit too controlling.
_
FAQ: I'm considering joining the Catholic Church. Would it be a mistake?
REPLY: Catholicism is a beautiful religion, but it's not easy.
Once someone is fully committed by completing First Holy Communion and
Confirmation and undergone Christian baptism; they will be expected to
comply with everything Rome teaches and stands for, e.g. the
Commandments, the Canon Law, the dogma, the rituals, the Traditions, the
Councils, the Bulls, the Encyclicals, the rites, the holy days of obligation, and
the entire Catechism; plus everything that Jesus and the apostles taught in
the New Testament, i.e. all four gospels and all twenty-one epistles, plus
Acts and Revelation
That's a lot to remember, let alone put into practice.
And then there's the matter of mortal sin. When Catholics leave this life with
just one mortal sin on the books awaiting absolution, just one, they go
straight to Hell. It's a direct flight; no stopover in a Purgatory. Even if a
Catholic managed to be a top performer in faith and practice for fifty years,
none of that will be taken into consideration. They will leave this life as if
they'd been a pagan the whole time. Mortal sins are that lethal.
The paragraph below from CCC 1782 of the catechism of the Catholic
Church; acknowledges everyone's rights and freedoms in regard to selecting
a religion of their own personal choice.
"Man has the right to act in conscience, and in freedom, so as personally to
make moral decisions. He must not be forced to act contrary to his
conscience. Nor must he be prevented from acting according to his
conscience, especially in religious matters."
However, be aware that once someone joins the Catholic Church, they will
have to relinquish those rights and no longer be permitted to either
interpret, or apply, the Holy Bible's teachings sans hierarchy oversight per
CCC 85 which says:
"The task of giving an authentic interpretation of the Word of God, whether
in its written form or in the form of Tradition, has been entrusted to the
living teaching office of the Church alone. Its authority in this matter is
exercised in the name of Jesus Christ." This means that the task of
interpretation has been entrusted to the bishops in communion with the
successor of Peter, the Bishop of Rome."
Bottom line is: Catholicism isn't a democratic structure-- it's more like
Communism and/or Big Brother's thought control in George Orwell's novel
"Nineteen Eighty Four". I'm not saying that's necessarily disagreeable as
some folks prefer being told what to believe rather than figuring things out
for themselves; and they feel secure having a hierarchy to blame if
perchance Catholicism proves misleading-- I'm only saying that it's a level of
governance that some folks might find a bit too controlling.
_
