Monsignor Pope Ping for OSV column.
Evangelization is to the person of Jesus Christ, not to a church.
“Becoming Catholic”
Always about the Catholic Church.
Never about Christ.
You need to listen to the truth from the mouth of Jacob Prasch. He is annoited to explain why Evangelicalism is the only way.
Catholics apparently have higher standards.
I too feel that there needs to be a better balance on this. My husband grew up Luthern, baptized, confirmed was practicing until we married in the Catholic Church and agreed to raise our children as Catholics. He never really considered conversion until the kids stated their first communions and he wanted to participate in the Eucharistas well. Looked into it and same thing. Three years education in the Catholic faith. As a young father working raising three kids it was a lot to ask and it almost seemed insulting to me. The Catholic Church sometimes makes all other faiths feel less than or faulty. He did not go through with it. We felt it was a rejection of him as a Christian. Sad that the church cannot find a better way to convert those who want to fully participate. He lives his life as a Catholic for his children and that is more than I could ask for.
After my dad got his marriage annulled after 29 years and made me an official bastard I learned the best way to square with the Catholic Church is give them money.
I got a girl pregnant at age 18 and both families insisted on a Catholic wedding. Ended up coming down to giving them $5000 then all ok in the Catholic God’s eyes !
Testified over a 2 year period against a priest in molestation case which turned out to be more about money then the crime. He was not the only pervert in a cassock I encountered.
After 12 years of Catholic School I’m done but am happy for anyone who feels they are finding their way to God by any means.
If she had not been baptized before, and she had not been married before then she can marry a catholic and it would be an ok marriage with the church. It is handled in the bible, not a problem, happens all the time.
If she is divorced, her first marriage needs to be handled before a priest will marry her. If she as been baptized in another christian faith, there is more work before the priest will do the marriage. It may be easier to go through the conversion which is normally finished at Easter.
She can always get married first and become Catholic later. The only down fall is that a priest may not do the ceremony.
You are right, the church does not make it easy. But they want their new Catholics to be real Catholics. Not just converting for the ceremony.
There is another even more daunting hurdle, that Monsignor, perhaps, would have been wise to mention.
Annulments are not granted on demand. Annulment is available only if the marriage was initiated improperly:
- One of the spouses had been married and that marriage was not annulled
- One of the spouses was not free to marry for some other reason, e.g. had a vow of celibacy
- One of the spouses could not form free consent to marry, e.g. was too young
- The marriage was initiated for corrupt reason, e.g. to obtain citizenship
- The marriage was not intended to be a monogamous union for life, e.g. the spouses agreed to take lovers on the side
- The spouses did not intend to have children even though they could conceive, e.g. agreed on systematic use of contraception
- The spouses could not sexually consummate the marriage, e.g. were too old to have sex.
- A spouse was Catholic but did not have a wedding in a Catholic Church, nor had a dispensation from the bishop
- I probably forget a case or two
In most other circumstances, the Church might recommend a civil divorce in order to protect security and dignity of the victimized spouse, but the Church would not grant annulment. For example, if the marriage was conceived properly per the points above, but over the course of the marriage one spouse became abusive, started cheating, or developed an addiction, — that marriage cannot be annulled. In such case, the spouses might separate and obtain a civil divorce for legal protection, but the marriage is valid in the eye of God and so the spouses are not free to remarry so long as the other souse lives.
In short, joining the Catholic Church as adult is even harder than the article implies. Just like in general, discipleship of Christ imposes severe burden on the disciple.
too many churches put their man made (maybe bible inspired but still distroting/timeline etc thru the lens of man’s) standards/rules on people and yes it turns many off.
Just as kids can skip grades etc people who have Jesus already working in their lives should be able to hurry through some of the man made formalities to belong to a church. When you catch fire from God you want to dive in not have to follow some check list and program like you’re in quality control to see if you pass inspection.
Meanwhile, too bad the Catholic church and other churches who are helping pour in thousands of illegals in to the USA don’t set higher standards of following God’s way of not using tax payer funds to do it or setting them up on govt assistance but just only use local church raised funds, people who actually want to support that - especially when other citizens already in the community are in need of help. Or Churches handing out food boxes for years to illegals and the food was not local donations but govt assitsed large food buys. Some of whuch do nothing more than hand out food boxes to feel good, they don’t actually try to get to know the situations and get people up and out of needing food box. Not following Acts ways of church pull together and help community in need but just a business of churches being on govt dole of getting some form of helps from tax payer monies and spreading it around. It’s out of line with God’s word.
However, I also recognize that the Catholic Church has the best understanding of all that is Holy, including all that isn’t written in the accepted books of the Bible.
This means that the knowledge and understanding I seek is kept in a place where, because of my perceptions, I am unable or unwilling to enter.
Worse still is Satan’s infiltration into the Church and his corruption of both Scripture and our understanding in these times.
Saint Michael the Archangel,Thanks for your posts. I know you take a lot of slings and arrows when you open these Catholic threads to all.
defend us in our battle against principalities and powers,
against the rulers of this world of darkness,
against the spirits of wickedness in the high places.Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle,
be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil; may God rebuke him, we humbly pray;
and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host,
by the power of God, cast into hell Satan and all the evil spirits
who prowl through the world seeking the ruin of souls.
Amen.
Easy come, easy go.
The Catholic Church is wrong about the papacy and this current pope proves it. The pope does not speak with authority when he is clearly making it up to suit his own earthly political views. He is a fraud.
The Bible also clearly says that no one comes to the Father but by me eliminates the falsity of praying to Mary and saints.
it recognizes the first marriage as null.
enough money and you can get an annulment...….
Any one can come to Jesus Christ, but becoming a member of the early church was a different ball game.
Does any one read about what the early members did to become members? does any one read that the members
became workmen for the church and gave their life to it?
Does any one even have a hint of what a church member was or do they even give a dam?
This phoney church member stuff today makes me sick.
Meaning that Catholicism not only presumed that the actual act of baptism effected regeneration, even without the Scriptural requirement of repentant personal faith (Acts 2:38; 8:36,37) - thus resulting in unregenerate members as children, but what it required for converts was not Biblical faith in the evangelical gospel of heart-purifying justifying regenerating faith. (Acts 10:36-47; 15:7-9) but indoctrination into Catholicism,
with her distinctive Catholic teachings that are not manifest in the only wholly inspired substantive authoritative record of what the NT church believed (including how they understood the OT and gospels, which is Scripture, especially Acts thru Revelation);
In Scripture baptism and conversion always go together, though it is the conversionary faith that baptism requires and expresses that precedes baptism, (Acts 10:43-47) though that can be the occasion of effectual believing.
Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost. (Acts 2:38)
To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. (Acts 10:43-44)
And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? (Acts 10:45-47)
And when there had been much disputing, Peter rose up, and said unto them, Men and brethren, ye know how that a good while ago God made choice among us, that the Gentiles by my mouth should hear the word of the gospel, and believe. And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us; And put no difference between us and them, purifying their hearts by faith. (Acts 15:7-9)
But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. (Acts 8:12)
Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus. When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. (Acts 19:4-5)
What's left to discuss?
The Catholic church was in full power when Acts 15 was written.
Also when the 7 churches were mentioned in Revelation 1-3.
Thank you, dear Salvation.
Thankfully, becoming a Catholic and becoming a Christian are not the same thing.