Becoming Catholic

OSV.com ^ | 03-28-19 | Msgr. Charles Pope

[Salvation]

Becoming Catholic

Question: I had reason to hope my niece was going to convert to the Catholic faith. But there were so many obstacles the Church set up that discouraged her. She was asked to go to classes, and they told her that her marriage was not valid and she would need an annulment. Further, it was necessary to wait until Easter, etc. The nearby evangelical church set up no such obstacles, and she was able to join at once and be considered a member. I hear so much talk of evangelization today, but I share my niece’s frustration. Can we not streamline this process?

— Name withheld

Answer: There is a kind of appealing simplicity that you describe in many Protestant denominations. But there are problems with the approach that should give us pause. Ultimately evangelization is more about conversion than mere membership. We are summoned to embrace the saving teaching of the Lord and to walk according to it.

Because adults make informed decisions, the Church considers it important to teach them the fundamentals of the Faith so that they can know what it is they are agreeing to when they enter the Church. Although some of the Scriptures portray an almost instant, on-the-spot baptism, the consensus in the early Church shifted to a lengthy, three-year period of instruction (called the catechumenate) prior to baptism. This likely was because of the insight that quick conversions often led to quick departures or a falling away when the true demands of discipleship became known.

Instructions are most insisted upon for those who are unbaptized. In the case of those who are baptized and come from different Protestant denominations, the length and content of instructions will depend on their background. It is up to the discretion of the pastor who discerns with each individual what is needed. It is certainly not required for those already baptized to “wait until next Easter.”

The concerns about a person’s marital status are rooted in the very words and teachings of Jesus himself. He teaches without ambiguity that for a person to marry, then divorce and enter another marriage, puts them in an ongoing state of adultery in the “new” marriage (cf. Mt 5:32; Mt 19:1-9; Mk 10:11-12; Lk 16:18, etc). He adds rather firmly, “What God has joined together, let no one divide” (Mt 19:9).

It will be further noted that when the Lord was evangelizing the woman at the well, he brought her to a moment of conversion, and she asked for the gift of faith. But the Lord Jesus saw fit to first raise with her the fact that she had been married five times and was now living with a man outside of marriage. Her conversion would not be complete or adequate until she was willing to live chastely. Then the graces could flow.

For reasons of their own, many Protestant denominations have decided to practically overlook such passages. But the Catholic Church takes the Lord’s teaching on these matters rather seriously, as he clearly intended that we should. In some cases, after an investigation based on evidence, the Church may use its power to bind and loose, to indicate that the previous marriage was not “what God has joined,” and it recognizes the first marriage as null. A person’s current marriage then can be blessed and recognized. But we simply cannot set the Lord’s words aside as if they were of little importance.

Thus some conversions to the Catholic faith will take some time to be faithful to the teachings of the Lord and the nature of true conversion. It is worth the diligence required.

[Elsie]

How about when he told his Apostles "whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; whose sins you retain, they are retained"? Sounds like a grant of authority to me.

What does THIS sound like to you?

Call no man father?

[Elsie]

Why don’t you guys argue over baptism or church authority or sovereign grace or any of the thousand other things you are divided by.

Says the guy whose chosen religion lost LOTS of ground to the EO folks, lost even more to the DAMNED! Prots, can't decide whether Vatican One is best or Vatican Two, or what's up with them SSPX dudes or queer priests or even their own POPE!!

[Elsie]

It’s hilarious, and sad, that the only thing you all agree on is (a) Catholics are wrong; and (b) When in doubt, see rule (a).

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Twenty-Five Rules of Disinformation

#4. Use a straw man. Find or create a seeming element of your opponent's  argument which you can easily knock down

to make  yourself look good and the opponent to look bad.

Either make up an issue you may safely imply exists based on your interpretation of the opponent/opponent arguments/situation,

or select the weakest aspect of the weakest charges. 

Amplify their significance and destroy them in a way which appears to debunk all the charges, real and fabricated alike,

while actually avoiding discussion of the real issues.

[Mom MD]

Grace is unmerited favor. If one merits it it is payment for services rendered, of grace.

Christ’s atonement on the cross was not an initial start. He said it is finished not iit is a good start from the cross. Christ and nothing else is sufficient for our salvation. When you add the necessity of works and not dying in mortal sin (all sin is mortal and none is too much for Christ to forgive) to be saved then you cheapen what He has done.

It is my sincere wish for you Catholics that you would come to know the peace and assurance of the sufficiency of Christ’s sacrifice and stop trying to earn His favor and grace. You already have them if you have trusted Him for your salvation

[Elsie]

... or wear a Talisman that negates the judgment penalty?’

Like a BROWN scapular?

[aMorePerfectUnion]

“When one goes to Mass to pray to God and worship Him, then God can share His graces with you that He feels you merit.”

Not in Scripture.

[Elsie]

The Brown not quite getting it done?

Then try the GREEN!!

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While the rosary, the Memorare, and other prayers are wonderfully powerful ways to intercede for others, Our Blessed Mother decided, in 1840, to help us get a little more creative in regards to how we pray for healing and spiritual conversion for the people in our lives.

 

https://www.catholiccompany.com/getfed/green-scapular-devotion-6141

 

Exactly six years later, Mary appeared again, and Sr. Justine asked her these important questions. Our Lady’s reply was surprisingly simple and rather intriguing:

“This scapular is not like others [it is not based on a religious habit] but merely two holy images on a single piece of material. Therefore, no special formula is required to bless it or enroll someone in its use. It suffices that it be blessed by a Catholic priest and worn by the one whom we desire to benefit by Our Lady’s intercession. If, on the other hand, the person is unable, or even unwilling, to wear it or carry it, it may even be slipped, unknown to them, into their clothes, possessions, home or work environments, etc."

 

 

 

[Elsie]

 

See also[edit]

• Brown Scapular
• Blue Scapular
• Red Scapular
• Fivefold Scapular
• Miraculous Medal

[Elsie]

...it is more than likely that they are meant metaphorically here.

Dang!

And just when I was taking a liking to seeing a 'brood of vipers' or a 'whitewashed tomb'!

[Elsie]

When you become a Catholic and quit being an all-knowing snarky Protestant that does a hell of a lot of copying and pasting things you know about come back and we can discuss Catholicism.

 

 

 

 

Twenty-Five Rules of Disinformation 

 

2. Become incredulous and indignant.  Avoid discussing key issues and instead focus  on side issues which can be used show the topic  as being critical of some otherwise sacrosanct group or theme. This is also known as the  'How dare you!' gambit.

5. Sidetrack opponents with name calling and ridicule.  This is also known as the primary 'attack the messenger'  ploy, though other methods qualify as variants of that approach. Associate opponents with unpopular titles such as 'kooks', 'right-wing', 'liberal', 'left-wing', 'terrorists', 'conspiracy buffs',  'radicals', 'militia', 'racists', 'religious fanatics',  'sexual deviates', and so forth. This makes others  shrink from support out of fear of gaining the same label, and you avoid dealing with issues.

 

8. Invoke authority. Claim for yourself or associate yourself with authority and present your argument with enough 'jargon' and 'minutia' to illustrate you are 'one who knows', and simply say it isn't so without discussing issues or demonstrating concretely why or citing sources.

18. Emotionalize, Antagonize, and Goad Opponents. If you can't do anything else, chide and taunt your opponents and draw them into emotional responses which will tend to make them look foolish and overly motivated, and generally render their material somewhat less coherent. Not only will you avoid discussing the issues in the first instance, but even if their emotional response addresses the issue, you can further avoid the issues by then focusing on how 'sensitive they are to criticism.'

 

---

A four-bagger in any book is as good as a home run!

[Elsie]

Great tune you’re carrying there, Dude.

Still wondering about my gender?

[Elsie]

I see you are, Elihu

[Elsie]

The Answer

We don't want to and all of these words show that we ain't goin' to!

[Elsie]

Did you learn your craft at ebb’s knee?

[Elsie]

...after seeing all your kind, compassionate, loving, Christian-disciple-like (John 13:35?) posts …

I love it when a plan comes together.

[Elsie]

John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

 

 

Actually; a new scrap of papyrus has been recently found that attaches to the end of that verse.

It reads...   and my Mother.

[Elsie]

Is there any hope for me? 😁🤣😆👍🇵🇭

 

 

Well; when ya croak, the Mormons may get one last crack at ya!

[Luircin]

It’s an open thread. I’m going to post to it.

You are allowed to post or ignore as you like.

I believe the phrase is, if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.

[Elsie]

Eternal life is based on God’s judgement of each individual by truly accepting God and obeying His teachings and commandments and not dying in mortal sin.

 

That's NOT what the final 'book' that Rome added to the 'canon' says:

 

Revelation 20:11-15
"Then I saw a great White Throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and THE BOOKS WERE OPENED. Another book was opened WHICH IS THE BOOK OF LIFE. The dead were judged according to their works as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to their works.  Then death and Hades were thrown into the Lake of Fire. The Lake of Fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written IN THE BOOK OF LIFE, he was thrown into the lake of fire."

 

Revelation 21:27

Nothing impure will ever enter it, nor will anyone who does what is shameful or deceitful, but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

 

 

I guess the question is: How does a person get their name written there?

 

 

 

[Elsie]

I have not tried to insult anyone, but I may have tried to challenge them to think and accept God’s truth.

Then you are gonna be the last kid called to play on ebb's and Song's team.