The 5 Biggest Mistakes Catholics Make (And How To Avoid Them)

[Michie]

There are many different approaches to living the Catholic Faith. Some people prefer more traditional devotions such as novenas and formal prayer while others choose to speak to Jesus using spontaneous prayer. Some like the Charismatic movement while others pray in silence. As long as your approach is faithful to Church teaching and brings you closer to Christ, it really is a matter of personal choice.

However, over the course of my life as a Cradle Catholic, I’ve discovered 5 big mistakes that will definitely hurt your faith. I have personally made most of these mistakes and the results were not pretty. Instead of getting closer to Christ (and being a good example for others), I ended up heading in the wrong direction. In order to spare you some agony, I present my list of the 5 biggest mistakes Catholics make and how to avoid them.

1. Checking The Box- “What do you mean I’m not a good Catholic? I go to Mass on Sunday!” This was my philosophy for most of my life. I went to Mass every week and thought that I was fulfilling my duties as a Catholic. After all, there are tons of Catholics who don’t even go to Mass! Unfortunately, even though I was physically going to church and saying the prayers, my mind was a thousand miles away.

Those of you who are married, in a relationship, or have close friends realize that speaking to a person once a week doesn’t help to build a close relationship. If you want to get closer to someone, you need to speak with them often. The same principle applies to our relationship with Christ. If all we do is show up for Mass each week, we’re never going to REALLY know Him. This situation becomes even worse when we don’t even pay attention at Mass. If we want to become good friends with Jesus, we must talk to Him (in prayer) frequently. We should listen to Him speak through the Bible and we should encounter Him in the Sacraments of the Eucharist and Confession as often as we can.

2. “My Faith Is A Personal Matter” - “I can’t impose my personal beliefs on others.” Sometimes known as “religious indifference”, this is rooted in the belief that one religion is as good as the next. People who fall into this trap believe that our religious beliefs are personal and shouldn’t be “forced” on others. While we shouldn’t force our beliefs on others, we should “always be ready to make a defense to any one who calls you to account for the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15) and be willing to “preach the gospel to all nations” (Mk 13:10). Before He ascended into Heaven, Jesus instructed the Apostles:

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