Am I Catholic?

[Illume]

Hello good people.

I was just wondering if I would be considered a catholic. I was baptised as an infant, but I now attend a protestant church, and i recently got re-baptised. But the thing is that now I am "re-discovering" the beauty of my catholic faith. I especially love the way it feels when I pray the prayers of the rosary and when I watch mass on TV. I doubt my mother would allow me to go to Mass and if she found a rosary or anything like thar I'm pretty sure she'd freak, but even so there are some doctrines of the church that I still have trouble believing; especially Marian doctrine and the validity of Tradition.

So am I catholic because of my baptism or what?

 

[Dark_Lite]

Out of communion Catholic.

 

[Illume]

And that means?

 

[StPaul]

Hello good people.

I was just wondering if I would be considered a catholic. I was baptised as an infant, but I now attend a protestant church, and i recently got re-baptised. But the thing is that now I am "re-discovering" the beauty of my catholic faith. I especially love the way it feels when I pray the prayers of the rosary and when I watch mass on TV. I doubt my mother would allow me to go to Mass and if she found a rosary or anything like thar I'm pretty sure she'd freak, but even so there are some doctrines of the church that I still have trouble believing; especially Marian doctrine and the validity of Tradition.

So am I catholic because of my baptism or what?

Interesting question!, and this would be the place to find out . If you have any questions you want answered there are many here that would love to help you!

When you say that you were baptized as an infant, were you baptized as an infant in the Catholic Church? I ask, because the mere fact that one was baptized as an infant does not mean one was Catholic, but if one were baptized in the Catholic Church as an infant, then one would be a Catholic.

If you were re-baptized in a different church, that would mean that you accepted the doctrines that the Church teaches, thus dissenting from Catholicism. If one were originally Catholic, and wanted to return to the Catholic faith, I think-and I may be wrong- that all you would have to do is to go to confession.

In the view of Catholicism, there is only one Baptism. If you were baptized as an infant "in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit", then it was a valid Baptism, and there is no need for another one.

I hope you get the answers that you seek. Continue to search for God with an earnest heart,... He will never lead you astray!

God Bless

 

[InnerPhyre]

Hello good people.

I was just wondering if I would be considered a catholic. I was baptised as an infant, but I now attend a protestant church, and i recently got re-baptised. But the thing is that now I am "re-discovering" the beauty of my catholic faith. I especially love the way it feels when I pray the prayers of the rosary and when I watch mass on TV. I doubt my mother would allow me to go to Mass and if she found a rosary or anything like thar I'm pretty sure she'd freak, but even so there are some doctrines of the church that I still have trouble believing; especially Marian doctrine and the validity of Tradition.

So am I catholic because of my baptism or what?

Yes you are Catholic. There is only one baptism. As long as your first one was valid, your second one was just a dip in some water. One cannot undo baptism.

 

[Bradford]

One question. Did you ever recieve the sacrament of Confirmation?

 

[ps139]

Did you receive First Communion? Just curious.

 

[StPaul]

Ahh... the Sacraments of Initiation,... I knew I was forgetting something!...

 

[thereselittleflower]

Beieng only 14, I would doubt that he has been confirmed . . . and that is not necessary to be Catholic

Having not yet received communion is not a problem either . . .


If you are baptized Catholic, you formally entered the Church body and are indeed Catholic . .

You are a lapsed Catholic . . meaning that you are not a practicing Catholic, and until you go to confession, you cannot receive the sacraments, especially the Eucharist . .


But your baptism in infancy bestowed Grace upon you, and brought you to life in the spirit in Christ . . . that Grace is what you are feeling operating in you now . . drawing your heart back to the Church you are formally a part of . . .

Your second baptism is really no baptism as it cannot do again what your first one did . .

Your first baptism was when you received the new birth, when you were born again. That is a tremendous gift!


Given your age, seek God on how to procede . . . see if you can seek the advice of a priest near you, in your area . . .

Start to study Catholic apologetics . . . it will really help you understand some of the issues you are having problems with.

If your mom would freak out over a rosary, try getting a cheap rosary ring . . the one I have cost 75 cnets and it has a cross surrounded by 10 bumps for the beads of the rosary decades.


I was baptized and raised Eastern Orthodox. I had a conversion expeireince in high school and became protestant, not really understanding the faith I came from . .. for the next 30 years I remaiend protestant until God started to quickly show me things that were fairly big problems with Protestantism . . . . that started my search for the truth which quickly pointed to the Catholic and Orthodox Churches . .

But, as with you, I had a big problem with Marian doctrines . . those were overcome with much prayer, learning, and yeilding to God . . . All I can tell you is that it has been tremendous to make this journey coming home to the fulness of the Catholic faith.


Ask the questions you have about Mary and the Validity of Tradition here at OBOB . .start a thread for each one, and people here will be able to help you understand what these beliefs are and what they are not . .

What I and every other convert to Catholicism have found is that the "problems" we had with these things were really the result of our perspective, and the fact that we did not understand them or what they were based on.

Once those elements were given us, we found if we were going to be true to the truth, we had to embrace Catholicism with all our heart.


Let God guide you back home.


Peace in Him!

 

[ThereseTheLittleFlower]

I was baptized and raised Eastern Orthodox. I had a conversion expeireince in high school and became protestant, not really understanding the faith I came from . .. for the next 30 years I remaiend protestant until God started to quickly show me things that were fairly big problems with Protestantism . . . . that started my search for the truth which quickly pointed to the Catholic and Orthodox Churches . .

But, as with you, I had a big problem with Marian doctrines . . those were overcome with much prayer, learning, and yeilding to God . . . All I can tell you is that it has been tremendous to make this journey coming home to the fulness of the Catholic faith.


Ask the questions you have about Mary and the Validity of Tradition here at OBOB . .start a thread for each one, and people here will be able to help you understand what these beliefs are and what they are not . .

What I and every other convert to Catholicism have found is that the "problems" we had with these things were really the result of our perspective, and the fact that we did not understand them or what they were based on.

Once those elements were given us, we found if we were going to be true to the truth, we had to embrace Catholicism with all our heart.


Let God guide you back home.


Peace in Him!

I was interested in Catholicism before my mom died, attended Mass a week later, and decided like a week or two later I was going to convert!

Then in Easter of 2002, I decided I was going to become a nun! Unsure on why, wish I knew! Sr. Jean Rene, told me, that if the thought entered my head, there's a reason why.

Renee