Why Catholic?



Occasionally someone will ask, “Why would an intelligent woman such as yourself (or some other similar phrasing) want to be a Catholic?”   So here’s the short list:

  1. The Real Presence - Which as a Catholic I often take for granted.  But every time I enter into a non-Catholic church, I immediately notice that there is something missing.  Yes, I know that Christ is present to all those who seek him, but the Presence of Christ in the Eucharist is something very different, which I have only found when entering a Catholic church.
  2. Christ-centered worship - which is probably the result of him being present in the Eucharist.  When I was much younger, I didn’t think it a problem to attend Sunday service in any number of Protestant churches.  But there was one thing that bothered me about the worship in all of those churches.  It always seemed to be focused on humanity and not on Christ.  Easter sermons were about political oppression or social inequality, and what our role should be in making things right.  Christ’s sacrifice for our sins seemed to get lost in the concern over these and other issues.  Not that these issues aren’t important, but IMHO, we should take up those issues after, not during Sunday service.  It’s like the Mary-Martha situation in the Gospels.  In the end there is only one thing with which we should be concerned.  Yes it is true that these days there are many Catholics (priests and lay people) who have a more Protestant approach to the practice of their faith, and think that it’s a good thing.  But to me service to our fellow human beings is an outflow of my faith, not the faith itself.
  3. The teachings, history, and communion of saints - a real wealth of resources from which I can draw inspiration and strength.

So there’s the short list, any elaboration will be addressed in future blog entries.