Advice Needed From Catholics

Lynna21 · Feb 19, 2012

What is one piece of advice you would give to someone just starting out in this faith/religion? Something you wish someone had told you. Or just a little wisdom. I was baptized Catholic but was never confirmed or went to church. So I'm in the process of basically becoming Catholic.

Any advice. I'm sorry if I sound ignorant in this post but I'm just beginning my 'studying' of this religion.

Thank you

Michie · Feb 20, 2012

Lynna21 said:
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone just starting out in this faith/religion? Something you wish someone had told you. Or just a little wisdom. I was baptized Catholic but was never confirmed or went to church. So I'm in the process of basically becoming Catholic.

Any advice. I'm sorry if I sound ignorant in this post but I'm just beginning my 'studying' of this religion.

Thank you

My advise as a convert is this.

Although the RCC is united in what she teaches. Do not expect unity within the Church. You'll get as many interpretations about those teachings as you would in a protestant Church concerning Scripture.

Concentrate on those teachings & not on those trying to change them somehow. Read the Catechism of the Catholic Church.

Be prepared to work. Catholicism is high maintanance. Especially if you plan on fulfilling your promises when you join the RCC.

Always read your Bible. Don't expect the Church to be the only one feeding you Scripture.

Catholicism is not touchy feely, so do not be disappointed.

I'm sure there is more but it's getting late.

God bless you & keep you on your journey.

FullyMT · Feb 20, 2012

Pray often, go to Mass regularly with a community you can feel a part of not just during worship (this would probably require you to volunteer in the parish without waiting to be asked).

JacktheCatholic · Feb 20, 2012

Lynna21 said:
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone just starting out in this faith/religion? Something you wish someone had told you. Or just a little wisdom. I was baptized Catholic but was never confirmed or went to church. So I'm in the process of basically becoming Catholic.

Any advice. I'm sorry if I sound ignorant in this post but I'm just beginning my 'studying' of this religion.

Thank you

Confirmation will bestow additional graces/gifts that will help you battle evil. I say that because Confirmation makes you part of the Churches militant. One can relate this to the Tongues of Fire and then Peter preaching boldly the Gospel and making thousands of converts in one day.

I suggest finding a good Catholic Church in your area and setting a meeting with the priest. They may want you to attend RCIA so you can get a review of what you previously learned and have an opportunity to answer any questions. Then I would most certainly seek and get the Sacrament of Confirmation.

VincentHChough · Feb 20, 2012

Dear Lynna,

Ask friends and family that you trust who are Catholics. Get a recommendation for a priest in your area who can guide you.

Maybe the most important thing is to develop a prayerful life. If you are not used to this, start out with just 5 or 10 minutes a day. Talk to God as you would talk to a close friend. Tell him every need, fear and joy. Then listen.

Blessings to you,
Vince

BabyChristian22 · Feb 20, 2012

Lynna21 said:
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone just starting out in this faith/religion? Something you wish someone had told you. Or just a little wisdom. I was baptized Catholic but was never confirmed or went to church. So I'm in the process of basically becoming Catholic.

Any advice. I'm sorry if I sound ignorant in this post but I'm just beginning my 'studying' of this religion.

Thank you

The most important thing to know about the Catholic Church is that it's the only Church that was founded by Christ. Eastern Orthodox will try to make this claim, but they don't have Peter. We know that the Bible is inspired because of councils of the Catholic Church that told us so by the authority that Jesus gave to the Church.

Beware of Catholics who say they are Catholic but who are actually dissenters. They are wolves in sheep clothing. When in doubt about what the Catholic Church teaches, go with what it says in the Catechism of the Catholic Church or in a Papal Encyclical. Never believe what mass media news reports about the faith. The mass media almost always gets it wrong. Fact check the fact checkers. I wish I would have had or known about the following orthodox Catholic resources:

The Vatican Official Website

EWTN

Catholic Answers

New Advent Catholic Encyclopedia

Catholic Culture

Salvation History

Papal Encyclicals

Girl Scouts Why Not? - the truth about Girl Scouts partnering with Planned Parenthood

American Heritage Girls - a spiritually healthy alternative to Girl Scouts

Bible Christian Society

Scripture Catholic

Our Catholic Faith

Rachel's Vineyard - healing the pain of abortion - one weekend at a time

Political Responsibility Center

National Catholic Register

Catholic First - collection of writings of Catholic saints readable online

National Catholic Bioethics Center

Stay Catholic

Catholic Match

The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights

St. Thomas More Society Law Firm

First Things

The Institute for Advanced Physics

The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty

WarriorAngel · Feb 20, 2012

Well, after all i went through - i will say this.

Stand firm when it seems all hell is breaking loose against you. Be firm through the trials.

Thats the very first step - in which i implore that you pay attention to. Because the weak fall away if they cannot get thru that very first step.
Be vigilant.

2. Read the Catechism.
3. Read the Bible through the lens of the Catholic teaching - we ought NOT try to give an exegesis on our own.
4. Read history of the fathers if you like or have time. CHURCH FATHERS: Home
5. With all your heart give thanks to the Lord for His life, death and resurrection and for staying with us on earth in the Eucharist.

6. Confession is great for the soul. Feels like a shower after climbing through the mud all day.

AND prayers for you.

Peace.

benedictaoo · Feb 20, 2012

Advice? stay off of this forum. For real. You need to go to RCIA and you can take it from there. If you want advice, get it from your a cleric, not ppl on the internet.

and, you know, the saying, "keep it simple, stupid..." well, if I had it to do over. I'd stick to just going to Mass, devotions and reading good books. There is a such thing as too much information and we'll never be able to know fully the mind of God anyway.

Rhamiel · Feb 20, 2012

pray, read the Bible, go to mass, try to be the best person you can be, and when you mess up try to admit to it and pick yourself up and try again

do not push yourself on understanding or being comfrotable with everything
I was raised Catholic and I was not comfrotable with praying to saints for most of my life
understanding will come with time
for now just try to be faithful to the teachings of the Church even if you do not fully understand them

ivebeenshown · Feb 20, 2012

Be as involved as possible in person. As benedictaoo said. You will see me on here because my internet usage is habitual, not because it is an amazing spiritual benefit (though the folks on this place are nice.) The internet is for sharing some news articles, some jokes, some prayer requests, and having countless never-ending fruitless arguments.

Angeldove97 · Feb 20, 2012

As a convert to the Catholic faith...
Practice the faith a little bit every day. I stay grounded in the faith by remembering/having a habit of doing little acts throughout the day.

Pray the Rosary~ our Blessed Mother is such a powerful prayer warrior for us! I prayed the Rosary each day while I was going through the conversion process and praying the Rosary with my husband (we were only dating at the time though) saved our relationship.

tadoflamb · Feb 20, 2012

Lynna21 said:
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone just starting out in this faith/religion? Something you wish someone had told you. Or just a little wisdom. I was baptized Catholic but was never confirmed or went to church. So I'm in the process of basically becoming Catholic.

Any advice. I'm sorry if I sound ignorant in this post but I'm just beginning my 'studying' of this religion.

Thank you

Go to mass.

God bless. :crossrc:

WarriorAngel · Feb 20, 2012

ivebeenshown said:
and having countless never-ending fruitless arguments.

Wolseley · Feb 20, 2012

Buy all the Catholic apologetics books you can get your hands on---by guys like Scott Hahn, Karl Keating, Jeff Cavins, Steve Ray, and Patrick Madrid, among others. Get books like "Surprised By Truth" that tell the stories of Catholic converts. Buy a set of the old Baltimore Catechisms and read through them. Go to Dave Armstrong's site and browse: Biblical Evidence for Catholicism

And pray, a lot. And of course, get thee to Mass every Sunday and Holy Day.

JesusIsTheWay33 · Feb 20, 2012

1. Never give up.

2. It's not about you, it's about Christ.

3. Don't jump to conclusions: always read further on the faith before you take someone's word on the finer (or not so fine) points of it.

4. Reread the gospels.

Brooklyn Knight · Feb 20, 2012

Less reading and saying, and more doing. If you don't have any ailments, or any problems in your life, or aren't bogged down in general by life, lending a helping hand is a great way to go about it.

Value the Beatitudes, strive away from the 7 Deadly sins.

You'll be golden.

whitetiger1 · Feb 21, 2012

Lynna21 said:
What is one piece of advice you would give to someone just starting out in this faith/religion? Something you wish someone had told you. Or just a little wisdom. I was baptized Catholic but was never confirmed or went to church. So I'm in the process of basically becoming Catholic.

Any advice. I'm sorry if I sound ignorant in this post but I'm just beginning my 'studying' of this religion.

Thank you

May get yelled at for this, but I wish someone had told me not to convert to Catholicism if I was happy being a plain Christian (for lack of a better word(s) ). My advice take it slow

wkmt2819 · Feb 21, 2012

I would say to learn as much as you can about the Eucharist. I believe the entirety of salvation history and the fulness of Jesus Christ is found in the Eucharist and the more you understand it (especially in the context of the Passover), the more you will be open to the graces. Also read God's Word on your own using a bible that shows links between NT and OT passages (I think the NJB with commentary is really good). And I think it is very important to get involved in some smaller group (especially if you're in a very large parish)

Catholic Wife · Feb 21, 2012

The first thing I wish someone had told me when I converted is to get involved in parish life. It can keep you motivated to continue growing in your faith when you surround yourself with others with the same beliefs.

Also, read about our Catholic faith. You may not understand or agree with every teaching of the Church, but through reading (there have been lots of good sources mentioned here) prayerfully and with an open mind, you will likely come to understand -- or at least accept those things you may not understand now.

Finally, go to Mass -- daily if possible. It can open your heart to the truth like nothing else can.

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