What Keeps You Catholic?

[Ave Maria]

I stay Catholic because of the overwhelming evidence that the Catholic Church is the one, true Church which was founded by Jesus Christ and which He promised that the Holy Spirit would protect against the gates of Hell. I stay Catholic because of the Most Holy Eucharist which can be found in every single Catholic parish in the world. I stay Catholic because of the Seven Sacraments.

 

[Tomm]

Because I'm convinced, very convinced, after hearing about Fatima + Lourdes. RCC is the only choice for me.

 

[Ave Maria]

Because I'm convinced, very convinced, after hearing about Fatima + Lourdes. RCC is the only choice for me.

I am interested in hearing further explaining if you don't mind, Martin Tom. What about Fatima and Lourdes convinced you that the Catholic Church is true?

 

[Goatee]

I believe that the CC is the only true church but, i do also think that it is not as 'true' as it was in its infancy.

 

[mea kulpa]

I believe that the CC is the only true church but, i do also think that it is not as 'true' as it was in its infancy.

I think its just as true but not as innocent as it was in its infancy

 

[Goatee]

I wish i could see the church at its infancy.

 

[anna ~ grace]

I wish i could see the church at its infancy.

I think the answer could be found in the Middle East. From what I have read, the Catholics (and Orthodox) of the Middle East, the Chaldean Catholics, Maronites, Syriac Orthodox, Copts, and Assyrians have a deep and beautiful faith that is rich and powerful.

 

[thehehe]

The Eucharist keeps me and will always keep me.

 

[Goatee]

Sometimes i think the church is very far away from what Jesus intended.

 

[pdudgeon]

Sometimes i think the church is very far away from what Jesus intended.

that's why we have the examples of the Saints and the Magisterium to look to.

However bad it gets for us we can look to them--to their examples and their writings--and regain our hope and our perspective that one day Jesus WILL be back, and all of this waiting will be over with.

But until that day we have one thing to do; hope and pray.

 

[anna ~ grace]

What keeps you Catholic as opposed to something like Eastern Orthodox? That might sound provocative or kind of competitive, but what are your thoughts?

 

[tadoflamb]

Hey, friends. I'm not Catholic, but can't technically call myself a Protestant either, so this is in no way meant to discourage or provoke, but rather, help an outsider to learn. With things as they are in the Vatican, what, yet, do you still love about Rome, her History, and Church? What keeps you Catholic, as opposed to anything else?

In Christ ~ grace

To use the same passage I used towards the end of RCIA when asked if I would like to continue with the process of becoming Catholic, "To whom shall I go?"

I don't know what it is with me. It seems like I work under a system of bells and buzzers. Catholicism has that 'ring' of Truth to it, while everything else falls flat. Non-Catholic faiths simply fail to speak to me.

I experienced this yesterday running around the downtown of a quaint upstate New York community. My wife and I stuck our heads into a number of churches wanting to see the insides. Service was going on in all of them and as soon as I poked my nose in, something didn't seem right. I simply love the Catholic Church and being an active member of this faith.

 

[anna ~ grace]

Thank you, Tad, that is helpful!

 

[StevenMerten]

NAB2 MAT 23:2
Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to his disciples, saying, The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice.
​

I am Catholic because Jesus wills me, as well as all His followers, to be Catholic. Jesus tells us how evil the Pharisees who sit in Moses Seat are. Then Jesus tells us that we must respect God's authority in them. Untill Jesus Himself tells the world to follow someone else as the leader of His Church, then the Leaders of Christ's Church, are the Catholic Church.

We also have the Sacraments which Christ gave to His Church.

NAB MAT 16:13 Peter the Rock.
When Jesus came to the neighborhood of Ceasarea Philippi, he asked his disciples this question: "Who do people say that the Son of Man is? They replied, "Some say John the Baptizer, others Elijah, still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets." "And you," he said to them, "who do you say that I am?" "You are the Messiah," Simon Peter answered, "the Son of the living God!" Jesus replied, "Blest are you, Simon son of John! No mere man has revealed this to you, but my heavenly Father. I for my part declare to you, you are 'Rock', and on this rock I will build my church, and the jaws of death shall not prevail against it. I will entrust to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you declare bound on earth shall be bound in heaven; whatever you declare loosed on earth shall be loosed in heaven." Then He strictly ordered his disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.​

 

[anna ~ grace]

I am Catholic because Jesus wills me, as well as all His followers, to be Catholic.​

That is a really unique and kind of arresting argument.

Thank you, Steven.​

 

[concretecamper]

Hey, friends. I'm not Catholic, but can't technically call myself a Protestant either, so this is in no way meant to discourage or provoke, but rather, help an outsider to learn. With things as they are in the Vatican, what, yet, do you still love about Rome, her History, and Church? What keeps you Catholic, as opposed to anything else?

In Christ ~ grace

The Mass

 

[anna ~ grace]

The Mass

What is it about the Mass that you love the most?

 

[servant of Merciful Love]

I could not live without the Sacraments, especially the Holy Eucharist....and I love the Communion of Saints; they are 'family'.

 

[anna ~ grace]

Orthodoxy is lovely, too, and thanks to Orthodox articles and CFers, I got to see the sense and value in venerating the Saints, and petitioning Mary. Learning to see Christian faith as something beyond "the Bible says" or "that's not Scriptural" is extremely difficult, and is really kind of taking a while, and not going as smoothly as I would like. The part of me that answers that way keeps fighting the part of me that kind of knows deep down that the first 1,500 years of Christianity were relevant and valid, and not Sola Scriptura.

What strikes me about Catholicism is an emphasis on love and sacrifice going together. In Orthodoxy I see an emphasis on asceticism and on wisdom. In Catholicism, I see an emphasis on love and sacrifice. And it kind of seems to me that, on some level, a heart could always be Catholic, even if she never got the chance to formally join Rome.

Orthodoxy, while beautiful and ancient, is something I noticed I was trying to fight my way into, against my husband's wishes. Today, I'm just no longer frantic to become Orthodox. I can appreciate and be very, very thankful for and to Orthodoxy and Orthodox Christians, but I'm not tearing everything apart to join. I think part of me was so frantic a few years back to "become Orthodox", that I lost sight of what it meant to focus on being a Christian.

 

[Goatee]

I have wrestled with thoughts on the CC for a long time as some of my threads will testify.

I may not agree 100% with all of Catholicism and I may be saddened by the Church's sometimes 'evil' past but, I know that Jesus Is the cornerstone of the CC. He is also steering the church through the turbulent waters.

However rough it is, I want to remain on board, with Jesus!