A Few Questions From Some One Interested In Catholism

[Guest guest...]

hi there i've been talking to my freind about becoming a catholic,
i've always been a christian but i dont really know much about it, when i grow up i want my kids to have some kinda faith. my friend was explaining some of the basics and i really like the idea of pergatory(sp?) she seems really keen for me to read stuff about it all but i just wana know why theres such a hurry in converting-i mean i'm totally open to it, but it feels like a big commitment for a 17 year old,and could you briefly explain what catholics CAN'T DO?

cheers, bexs

[Laudate_Dominum]

I hope this response isn't an overload, its just that your questions are pretty broad and I'm not sure how to best answer.

If you're able, you may be interested in scooping up the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. [url="http://www.amazon.com/Compendium-Catechism-Catholic-Editrice-Vaticana/dp/1574557203"]http://www.amazon.com/Compendium-Catechism...a/dp/1574557203[/url]

You can also look at it online here: [url="http://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html"]http://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_c...ium-ccc_en.html[/url]

As far as being in a hurry goes, I know for myself when I think upon my past before I was Catholic I wish I could somehow go back and tell myself about the Church. I seriously doubt that you would regret becoming Catholic after having truly lived the Faith for a time.

The essence of the Faith is about knowing the love of God and truly being a child of God. I'm not saying it is something to be hurried, the Church has a process (RCIA) which makes sure that new converts understand the teachings of the Church and everything before they join, but if you believe that God is calling you to the Church I would say it is not something to be put off either. Perhaps your friend seems hurried because he or she is excited for you and wants to share being Catholic with you?


What Catholic can't do.. hmm.. Mostly normal stuff like lie, steal, commit adultery, etc.. But it's not so much a negative, meaning it's not really about not doing things it's more a positive; it's about living according to God and thus according to truth, the structure of love and the meaning of being a person ("Man is called to a fullness of life which far exceeds the dimensions of his earthly existence, because it consists in sharing the very life of God." - JP2). The teachings of the Church all have an inner meaning and logic, and I've found that when I study about the teachings which contemporary society often has problems with (such as no pre-marital sex), the deep truth, wisdom and beauty of these teachings is quite clear. But to answer the question completely would require a pretty long list, but this is no different from the fact that answering the question "what shouldn't moral people do?" would also require a long list of possible evil deeds that a person could potentially commit.

But the more controversial teachings that non-Catholics often don't understand are usually related to sexual morality (see [url="http://www.catholic.com/chastity/chastity_questions.asp"]here[/url]). As I said, the Church teaches that premarital sex is a serious sin (see [url="http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/marriage/mf0071.html"]here[/url], and[url="http://www.catholic.org/featured/headline.php?ID=321"]here[/url], and links below); the Church teaches that homosexual acts are sinful (but this does not mean that people who have same sex attraction are evil, an involuntary attraction is not the same as a sinful act. see [url="http://couragerc.net/"]here[/url] and [url="http://home.pacbell.net/perozich/83sexeduc.html"]here[/url]); the Church teaches that marriage is an indissoluble bond and thus divorce in relation to Catholic marriages is not acceptable (but this does not mean that couples in abusive relationships or something of that sort are forced to stay together, this is talked about in links above and below). Another misunderstood teaching is that regarding contraception ([url="http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_25071968_humanae-vitae_en.html"]here[/url]). The Church teaches that artificial contraception violates the integrity of conjugal union but this does not mean that Catholics have to have a dozen kids which is how some people misunderstand the teaching (see [url="http://www.catholic.com/library/Birth_Control.asp"]here[/url] and especially [url="http://www.nccbuscc.org/prolife/issues/nfp/"]here[/url]). Oh, and of course abortion is considered a grave sin because it is understood to be nothing less than the murder of an unborn child (see [url="http://www.priestsforlife.org/magisteriumteachings.html"]here[/url] and [url="http://www.vatican.va/edocs/ENG0141/_INDEX.HTM"]here[/url]), the Church teaches the sanctity of all life, but this hardly means that the Church is insensitive to the crises in women's lives that may make them tempted to consider such a thing (see [url="http://www.priestsforlife.org/crisis.html"]here [/url] and [url="http://www.priestsforlife.org/plgroups/utozsites.html"]here [/url] and [url="http://www.nccbuscc.org/prolife/issues/abortion/teaching.htm"]here[/url] and [url="http://www.usccb.org/prolife/programs/rlp/99rlvand.htm"]here[/url]).

Ok, those are the hot button things that non-Catholic usually have a problem with.

This is a Catholic site for young people which talks about these sorts of topics: [url="http://www.pureloveclub.com/"]http://www.pureloveclub.com/[/url]

This is cool too:
[url="http://www.catholic.com/chastity/pure_love.asp"]http://www.catholic.com/chastity/pure_love.asp[/url]


The heart of the Faith is the Bible and here is where you can get good Catholic Biblical resources:
[url="http://www.ignatius.com/Bible-C6.aspx?SID=1&"]http://www.ignatius.com/Bible-C6.aspx?SID=1&[/url]

Here is some stuff for finding out more about Catholic teaching in general:
[url="http://www.ewtn.com/faith/teachings/teaching.htm"]http://www.ewtn.com/faith/teachings/teaching.htm[/url]
[url="http://www.saintaquinas.com/overview.html"]http://www.saintaquinas.com/overview.html[/url]
[url="http://www.archchicago.org/catholic_values/catholic_teaching.shtm"]http://www.archchicago.org/catholic_values...c_teaching.shtm[/url]
[url="http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM"]http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/_INDEX.HTM[/url]

Oh, and in my opinion it is essential to understand the spiritual life if one is to fully appreciate Catholicism. I might recommend getting "Story of a Soul" by St. Therese of Lisieux, or perhaps an overview of the spiritual life such as "Fire Within" by Fr. Thomas Dubay.

I hope this helps. God bless you.