I went to a protestant church for a rummage sale and ended up having an interesting discussion with a dynamic senior pastor. His enthusiasm was augmented by the fact that his church was growing by leaps and bounds. At this particular event he had church members distributing promotional DVDs to all the bargain hunters gathered there - including me. Later when I viewed my DVD I could see how this was an effective marketing tool for increasing church membership. It was professionally made and highlighted their church in a very appealing manner. In the course of my conversation with the pastor he got around to inviting me to Sunday worship service. I told him I was Catholic. He replied, no problem, Catholics are welcome here. I asked him if he ever studied Catholicism and if he knows what the Catholic Church actually teaches. First he looked around to make sure that nobody else could hear what he was about to reveal, then he replied that he was once Catholic! He followed up by telling me that the teachings of the Catholic Church contradict the teachings found in the bible. It was this discovery (of contradictions) that led him out of the Catholic Church He also informed me that I can talk to a local Catholic priest who will confirm the existence of these contradictions.
He wanted to continue our discussion from his office where he could show me certain documents to support his claim. I was curious to see what he was about to show me. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time at that moment. From the little that I did talk to him I got the impression that he harbored contempt for the Catholic Church. So, in realizing this I knew that he was not predisposed to listen to anything that I might say. At one point I had to tell him that I was interested in having a dialog and not an argument. Then the most fascinating part of our discussion occurred when he asked me this question; “Do you know what your problem is, as a Catholic?”
I was taken aback by what he said next; “Your problem is that most of my congregation is made up of ex-Catholics!” It was a profound statement and it cut right to the bone. He made his point and I agree – this is a big problem for the Catholic Church. I replied that those ex-Catholics don’t actually know what they left behind. In other words, they weren't fully catechized Catholics making a fully informed decision to leave the Catholic Church. For instance, how many Catholic clergy can you think of that left the Church for Protestantism? In contrast I can think of many Protestant ministers that left their livelihoods to become Catholic.
I enjoy reading conversion stories. There are many books available on this subject as well as Internet sites. When people have a conversion experience they are more than willing to share their experience as a way of helping others find the fulfillment that they have found. In my research of looking for these stories I have noticed that there are more Protestant to Catholic conversion stories available than the reverse. I particularly like reading about Protestant clergy that find their way into the Catholic Church. Their conversion usually hinges upon the study of early Church fathers. Often the study was undertaken with the intent to improve their protestant services by incorporating some early Church practices. Becoming Catholic was the last thing on their minds when starting their endeavor! They found that the early Church looks more like the Roman Catholic Church of today. But as they say, all roads lead to Rome. It is also important to note that these pastors never look back on their protestant past with any disdain. Rather, they affectionately look at them as grace filled moments on their journey towards God.
In contrast, you never read about Catholics studying Church history and then decide to become Protestant. Catholic convert John Henry Newman phrased it well; “To be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant." I think Catholics who are well informed (such as priests) leave the Church when their own personal desires conflict with Church teachings. In the words of Cardinal Ratzinger "We are moving towards a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one’s own ego and one’s own desires."
As Catholics we can point to the Catechism as a sure norm for dogmas and doctrines. Our biggest problem is that many Catholics aren’t familiar with the Catechism nor do they have one in their home. This lack of catecheses is a problem that now extends back several generations. In I Peter 3:15 we are exhorted to: “Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence…” and many of us are not prepared.
He wanted to continue our discussion from his office where he could show me certain documents to support his claim. I was curious to see what he was about to show me. Unfortunately, I didn’t have the time at that moment. From the little that I did talk to him I got the impression that he harbored contempt for the Catholic Church. So, in realizing this I knew that he was not predisposed to listen to anything that I might say. At one point I had to tell him that I was interested in having a dialog and not an argument. Then the most fascinating part of our discussion occurred when he asked me this question; “Do you know what your problem is, as a Catholic?”
I was taken aback by what he said next; “Your problem is that most of my congregation is made up of ex-Catholics!” It was a profound statement and it cut right to the bone. He made his point and I agree – this is a big problem for the Catholic Church. I replied that those ex-Catholics don’t actually know what they left behind. In other words, they weren't fully catechized Catholics making a fully informed decision to leave the Catholic Church. For instance, how many Catholic clergy can you think of that left the Church for Protestantism? In contrast I can think of many Protestant ministers that left their livelihoods to become Catholic.
I enjoy reading conversion stories. There are many books available on this subject as well as Internet sites. When people have a conversion experience they are more than willing to share their experience as a way of helping others find the fulfillment that they have found. In my research of looking for these stories I have noticed that there are more Protestant to Catholic conversion stories available than the reverse. I particularly like reading about Protestant clergy that find their way into the Catholic Church. Their conversion usually hinges upon the study of early Church fathers. Often the study was undertaken with the intent to improve their protestant services by incorporating some early Church practices. Becoming Catholic was the last thing on their minds when starting their endeavor! They found that the early Church looks more like the Roman Catholic Church of today. But as they say, all roads lead to Rome. It is also important to note that these pastors never look back on their protestant past with any disdain. Rather, they affectionately look at them as grace filled moments on their journey towards God.
In contrast, you never read about Catholics studying Church history and then decide to become Protestant. Catholic convert John Henry Newman phrased it well; “To be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant." I think Catholics who are well informed (such as priests) leave the Church when their own personal desires conflict with Church teachings. In the words of Cardinal Ratzinger "We are moving towards a dictatorship of relativism which does not recognize anything as for certain and which has as its highest goal one’s own ego and one’s own desires."
As Catholics we can point to the Catechism as a sure norm for dogmas and doctrines. Our biggest problem is that many Catholics aren’t familiar with the Catechism nor do they have one in their home. This lack of catecheses is a problem that now extends back several generations. In I Peter 3:15 we are exhorted to: “Always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope, but do it with gentleness and reverence…” and many of us are not prepared.
