There is no such thing as “self-identifying” as a Catholic. Either you’re practicing the religion or you’re not. If you’re on the table with you’re feet in the stirrups, you’re stopped practing the Catholic religion.
Well, what if someone doesn’t accept your definition (if you’re on the table with you’re feet in the stirrups, you’re stopped practing the Catholic religion) of what it means to be Catholic? Who gets to decide who is a Catholic? Is it someone who accepts the Pope’s pronouncements on contraception or who accepts the Pope’s pronouncements on the war in Iraq? Which is the critical choice, and why?