- Feb 5, 2002
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The only Good Catholic is a Lapsed Catholic. That’s what the Democrats believe. That’s what they preach. That’s what they demonstrate. And this has been going on for a very, very long time. It’s just now center stage for the first time in a heat of a presidential election. So many Catholics (otherwise clueless on political matters) are just now seeing it for the first time. I’ve been saying it for years.
I defined the terms “Lapsed Catholic” and “Practicing Catholic” in a previous essay here. Basically, there are only two kinds of Catholics. Those who are “lapsed” are those who don’t believe, and/or practice, all of what the Catholic Church teaches. They think they’re entitled to “pick and choose” what they want to believe about the Catholic Faith, having Catholicism on THEIR terms. They think that their Catholic baptism entitles them to do whatever they want. They’ll go around saying things like “once a Catholic, always a Catholic,” and insist that nothing could ever possibly separate them from the Church. They’ll call themselves “devout Catholics” or “ardent Catholics” (whatever that means), while simultaneously telling Church leaders they’re wrong about this belief or that, and insist that “the Church must change to get with the times.” Some people call them “Cafeteria Catholics,” while others call them “Fake Catholics,” but the proper term is “Lapsed Catholics” because they are experiencing a lapse of faith in the Church and its teachings.
It seems these people are only critical of one particular type of person — a Practicing Catholic. Truth be told, they hate Practicing Catholics, who actually believe ALL of what the Church teaches and try to put it into practice in their lives to the best of their ability. These Practicing Catholics are a pariah to Lapsed Catholics, because they make them look bad, and they expose their lack of faith for what it really is — weakness.
You see, a strong person, who disagrees with what the Catholic Church teaches, will leave the Catholic Church entirely. Maybe he’ll become an Episcopalian, or a Methodist or something, but he won’t continue to insist on identifying himself as a “Catholic” while demanding that the Church change to accommodate his lack of faith.
I know this because I converted to Catholicism from Evangelicalism, with a brief stop in Anglicanism. Once my beliefs changed, and I no longer subscribed to Evangelical tenets, I didn’t stay put and demand that everyone else (including my denomination) change to accommodate me. No. I was strong enough to be honest with myself and everyone else. I packed up my things and left my Evangelical church, stopping over in an Anglican church for a while, before joining the Catholic Church. You see, that’s called spiritual strength. It’s about having the courage to put your self-identification where your faith is. I haven’t seen much of that kind of strength or courage among Lapsed Catholics. Rather than admitting the truth, that they’re not really Catholic anymore, they insist on continuing to identify as “Catholics,” as a sign of weakness.
Continued below.
Democrats Say: “The Only Good Catholic is a Lapsed Catholic”
I defined the terms “Lapsed Catholic” and “Practicing Catholic” in a previous essay here. Basically, there are only two kinds of Catholics. Those who are “lapsed” are those who don’t believe, and/or practice, all of what the Catholic Church teaches. They think they’re entitled to “pick and choose” what they want to believe about the Catholic Faith, having Catholicism on THEIR terms. They think that their Catholic baptism entitles them to do whatever they want. They’ll go around saying things like “once a Catholic, always a Catholic,” and insist that nothing could ever possibly separate them from the Church. They’ll call themselves “devout Catholics” or “ardent Catholics” (whatever that means), while simultaneously telling Church leaders they’re wrong about this belief or that, and insist that “the Church must change to get with the times.” Some people call them “Cafeteria Catholics,” while others call them “Fake Catholics,” but the proper term is “Lapsed Catholics” because they are experiencing a lapse of faith in the Church and its teachings.
It seems these people are only critical of one particular type of person — a Practicing Catholic. Truth be told, they hate Practicing Catholics, who actually believe ALL of what the Church teaches and try to put it into practice in their lives to the best of their ability. These Practicing Catholics are a pariah to Lapsed Catholics, because they make them look bad, and they expose their lack of faith for what it really is — weakness.
You see, a strong person, who disagrees with what the Catholic Church teaches, will leave the Catholic Church entirely. Maybe he’ll become an Episcopalian, or a Methodist or something, but he won’t continue to insist on identifying himself as a “Catholic” while demanding that the Church change to accommodate his lack of faith.
I know this because I converted to Catholicism from Evangelicalism, with a brief stop in Anglicanism. Once my beliefs changed, and I no longer subscribed to Evangelical tenets, I didn’t stay put and demand that everyone else (including my denomination) change to accommodate me. No. I was strong enough to be honest with myself and everyone else. I packed up my things and left my Evangelical church, stopping over in an Anglican church for a while, before joining the Catholic Church. You see, that’s called spiritual strength. It’s about having the courage to put your self-identification where your faith is. I haven’t seen much of that kind of strength or courage among Lapsed Catholics. Rather than admitting the truth, that they’re not really Catholic anymore, they insist on continuing to identify as “Catholics,” as a sign of weakness.
Continued below.
Democrats Say: “The Only Good Catholic is a Lapsed Catholic”
