Making progress - I think

[Gal. 5:22,23]

My wonderful hubby has given me his blessing to become Catholic - if that's not an act of God, I don't know what is!

Anyway, I met with the director of the RCIA program at my local parish. The meeting started off wonderfully, she and I really clicked. At the end of our time together I asked her to tell me about this parish. She said, "Well, there are three types of Catholics. The liberals are Charismatic, then there's the conservatives, and then there's us - we're progressive. Times have changed and things are no longer black and white. There's a lot of gray. For example, when God said in the OT, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth,' He did not mean that literally. What He was really saying was 'Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.'

She then went on to say that Christ did not come to atone, but to teach us how to love. Her parish believes the Creed, but other teachings that come from Rome (she singled out birth control) must be left up to your conscience. If your conscience says ok to b.c., then that's what you need to listen to.

I asked about the issue of homosexuality. She said that's a gray issue and that Jesus came for everyone. Same response when I asked about women priests - gray issue, many important women in Scripture, blada, blada, blada...

She asked me what I had been reading and I told her the Catechism, the Imitation of Christ, and different books by Catholic apologists. She told me to stop reading so much orthodoxy and recomended books by Richard Rohr and Joseph Martos (never heard of either of them).

There are only two parishes in my town. I chose this one because they have the tabernacle up front in the church and they have adoration every Wednesday. The other parish had neither. I had met with the priest at the other church and I got the same wishy washiness.

So, what to do? And by the way, the Charismatics I know are very conservative.

Edited July 27, 2005 by Gal. 5:22,23

[homeschoolmom]

How far to the next town...?

[Brother Adam]

That is the most depressing thing I've read all day.

That RCIA director needs serious correcting and should be immediately fired.

Gosh I'm not sure what to say to you. The Catholic Church is what she is. Perhaps you can be a voice and a becon of light to these wayward heterodox Catholics, but I recognize the need for new Catholic converts to have a time of nurturing too, obviously you won't get that from these parishes. Is there another parish further away you could go to?

[homeschoolmom]

You really don't want to raise your children in a wishy-washy parish. If it were you alone, I would say maybe stick it out and try to bring about changes. But having children there, you can't be running all over the place putting out "heretical fires."

Sad, very sad...

[photosynthesis]

Praise God that your husband gave you his blessing to convert...

It is so unfortunate that you came into contact with such heresy. RCIA programs need to be teaching what the Church teaches, not someone's opinion. Unfortunately, a lot of parishes have fallen into this "anything goes" mindset. At least they have Adoration, that's awesome...

As far as parishes go, while it says in Canon Law that we are to go to the nearest tabernacle, I think it might be OK to seek a parish that's outside your town (church scholars help me out). That might be realistic if you have a car or know someone who could drive you. Don't settle for wishy-washy catechesis that isn't really catechesis. Seek the Truth. There are parishes out there that have good catechism programs. If you know any faithful Catholics in your area, ask them. If not, www.masstimes.org is a good resource.

[MilesChristi]

Friend,

Bring this up with the pastor. If he doesn't do anything about it, then I would recommend writing to the bishop of your diocese. Let him know that you are in the process of converting. Tell the bishop what your RCIA director has told you about these so-called "gray areas." Certainly mention that she has discouraged you from reading the Catechism and include her name. Ask the bishop where he thinks you should go for further instruction in the faith.

I'm sorry that you encountered this sort of carp, especially early in your process of entering the Church. You deserve so much better. I hope that this injustice will be corrected.

God bless you!

Prayers...

[Gal. 5:22,23]

Funny thing is, she felt led to tell me about two women who wanted to become Catholic and how conservative they are. She said she eventually had to tell them that her parish was not the one for them and recomended one that was more in line with their beliefs. She didn't tell me the name at first and I didn't ask. But later she shared it with me. It's about 45 minutes away. When you add Atlanta traffic to that, well, who knows how long it would take me. They have perpetual adoration!

I think a couple session of RCIA at the local parish will decide it for me. We evangelicals love Scripture too much to listen to the garbage I was subjected to today.

[homeschoolmom]

Tell her that if her parish isn't the one for you then it doesn't seem to be very Catholic. That's the idea, after all-- ONE faith, ONE Church... Not pick and choose. Do what MilesChrisi has suggested...

[Gal. 5:22,23]

[quote name='homeschoolmom' date='Jul 27 2005, 04:21 PM']Tell her that if her parish isn't the one for you then it doesn't seem to be very Catholic. That's the idea, after all-- ONE faith, ONE Church... Not pick and choose. Do what MilesChrisi has suggested...
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The parish just got a new pastor two weeks ago. And I hate conflict.

I knew this wasn't going to be easy...

[homeschoolmom]

Oh, then perhaps you should go talk to the pastor and explain to him your situation. He may not be fully aware of the situation yet.

[Brother Adam]

Hey, you really do not need to confront them at all, it isn't your job. You are not even Catholic, you shouldn't have to concern yourself with it. You really do deserve so much better and I am so sorry that you ran into that. It is what our program (Religious Ed degree) is working so hard to change! I would simply print off and hand them a copy of "Catechesi Tradendae". Tell them to carefully read #5 and 20 and leave it at that. Find a parish where you can grow and be nourished in the faith. No one expects you to listen to and fight heresy when you need to be drawing closer to Christ as a candidate or catechumen learning about and soaking in the Catholic Faith.

[homeschoolmom]

If the priest is new, he may not be fully aware that there is this problem. It would be doing the parish a service to bring it to his attention.

[Brother Adam]

It is absolutely nuts for her as an incoming convert to have to defend the Catholic faith against those who should be teaching her. If she is spending her time doing that it is taking away from her time for preparation to receive the sacraments, grow closer to a Christian community, get involved, and time to be taught and time for prayer. If she were a long time Catholic of a dozen years at this parish, maybe. But we cannot leave it to the responsibility of those who aren't even Catholic yet and desire to enter the faith to correct catechists. As I said, that is nuts, and I'm just plain nuts, so I recognize insanity when I see it :

[homeschoolmom]

I didn't mean for her to correct the catechist. However, I think it would be a prudent and kind act for her to make an appointment with the priest, sit down and say, "I am interested in becoming Catholic. However, when I met with your religious ed. person, I was told (fill in the heresies here) which I know to be contrary to Catholic teaching. I wanted to bring this to your attention, Father, as I understand you are new here."

[Brother Adam]

You are asking her to get involved in the politics of the Church, something that gets very messy, very fast as I found out and you are asking her to get in between the new pastor and the director which isn't fair to her either. If she really really wants to, okay, but I know most people coming into the Church wouldn't want to.

[homeschoolmom]

Unless she is going to drive the 45 minutes to a different parish, she's going to have to be involved. She needn't even have a face to face visit... a letter would do.

How is the RCIA director going to receive serious correcting and/or be fired if no one suggests there's a problem?

[Cathurian]

Wow, that's terrible Prayers for you.

[Brother Adam]

[quote name='homeschoolmom' date='Jul 28 2005, 10:23 AM']Unless she is going to drive the 45 minutes to a different parish, she's going to have to be involved. She needn't even have a face to face visit... a letter would do.

How is the RCIA director going to receive serious correcting and/or be fired if no one suggests there's a problem?
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All I can tell you is that the politics get far more involved than a new Catholic should get involved. Who says a letter to the priest is going to do anything? Maybe the priest feels the same way? And who says the Bishop will even have time to respond to her letter? Who says the Diocesian DRE and education leadership also doesn't feel the that there is no correction needed? She could end up feeling the backlash of a whole bunch of angry heterodox people in the Church and get absolutely no where.

I think we can all agree that what should happen is she should be able to approach a parish priest or DRE and get nothing but orthodox Church teaching. Anything less and the Church has failed our catechumens and canidates and we've failed in our missionary mandate.

[homeschoolmom]

Let's not turn this into a debate. I agree that in the ideal world a person could walk into any Catholic parish anywhere in the world and receive wonderfully orthodox religious instruction. You and I and everyone here knows that we don't live in an ideal world. Let's say that nothing is done in this situation. Gal. 5 finds a great parish an hour away. That's great for her. But, a new group of catecumens will start RCIA in a month and be taught heterodoxy... Perhaps without the new priest even being aware. (I'm sure the RCIA director doesn't start the class with "Hi, welcome to heresies 101." Sometimes it takes time to work it's way to the surface.) And many people my be lead astray.

I'm merely suggesting that the issue be brought to the parish priest's attention. The battle is HIS not Gal. 5's What the priest (who is supposed to be the pastor of his parish) does with that information is on his soul.

[Brother Adam]

And all I'm suggesting is it is not Gal 5 who confronts this person. Perferably it should be an orthodox diocesian DRE or someone with authority over this wayward RCIA director. Gal 5 should give someone else the information of who this person is, and someone in the right place can go about correcting this person.