Dear Grace,
A close group of friends were talking. All were brought up Catholic — three are practicing Catholics, one had an annulment and is remarried to a Protestant, and one is remarried without an annulment and now going to a Protestant church.
The conversation went in the direction of answering the question “What does it matter to be Catholic?” Shockingly, my friend who teaches religious education, does a weekly hour of Adoration, and says a daily rosary was the one who asked this. I knew that the who is remarried had hard feelings toward the Church, but the other took me totally by surprise. This friend revealed that not only does she really not know what she believes, even though she is doing such good things as Adoration etc., but that she is troubled because she thinks her husband doesn't even believe in God. I am so tongue-tied in these situations. So my question is, how can I help her/them? Do you have any suggestions?
Grace answers: Yes, I do have a suggestion, and I will be very direct about it. You need to learn your Catholic faith! If you knew it, you would not be tongue-tied in these situations because you would always have something to say. At our baptism, we enter and become members of the household of God. And, with that membership come not only privileges, but also responsibilities. One of our greatest responsibilities is to share the faith with others. The disciple of Christ must not only keep the faith and live it, but also profess it, confidently bear witness to it, and spread it. Service of and witness to the faith is necessary for salvation (CCC # 1816). But how can we share what we do not have?
After many years of teaching the Catholic faith and writing about it, I have come to firmly believe that if any Catholic lapses or leaves the Church, it is only because he does not know what he has. Why would one go anywhere else if he knew that he already had it all — the full means to salvation? That would not make sense. It is precisely because some Catholics do not know what they have that they would ever think of asking such questions as your friend did. But to answer her question — of course it matters that we are Catholic! Shouldn’t it matter that we are members of the Church Jesus Christ established?
Often, what we see is that many Catholics learned their faith as children, but slowly the world and all its lures and temptations begins to creep in. Before they realize what is happening, different ways of thinking and behaving are introduced.
I once sat in a conversation with a group of young women, all baptized Catholics, as they discussed how many children they would have. Each one had a very definite idea of the number of children she wanted, as well as when she would have them. After listening for a while, I spoke up and declared, “Well, I do not believe in birth control, so that takes care of my opinion.” One of them looked at me in total amazement and asked, “Why don’t you believe in birth control?” I responded, “Because it is not in God’s plan for us and the Church teaches us that.” Still bewildered, she asked, “But why?” It was clear to me how little she and the others understood about the Church’s teaching on marriage and sexuality. This needs to change.
Our faith is so beautiful. It is because we do not know it well that we may sometimes fail to see it that way. I will grant you that some of the Church’s teachings, especially the moral issues, may seem difficult to live by, but the reality is that if we truly understood the meaning and purpose of the teachings, we would realize that, as a mother, the Church teaches them only for our good.
Our Holy Father John Paul II is calling for a New Evangelization — a new springtime in the Church. I often tell people, “Wake up and see what you have! You are so rich! You have it all!” We have the Eucharist — Jesus — not symbolically, but truly present in His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. That alone is reason enough to be Catholic! And there is so much more.
Your friends need you. They need you to be informed. You can help them get to heaven. Jesus said, “From those to whom much has been given, much will be required” (Lk 12:48). On the day we die, we will face Him for the first time and we will have to account for our life, all of it. Will we be able to say to Him, “Lord, I did the best I could to teach others about You”?
There are many opportunities to better learn the Catholic faith. Why not take a course on the Catechism of the Catholic Church? Locally, in my area of south Texas, I am offering such a one-day conference in a few weeks, and I hope many will come. I am certain that if you inquire carefully, you will be able to find something where you live. Lent is an especially good time to spend time with God. Get to know what Jesus taught. It will change your life, and the lives of those around you.
© Copyright 2005 Grace D. MacKinnon
For permission to reprint this article, or to have Grace speak at your event, contact Grace MacKinnon at grace@DearGraceMinistries.org .
Grace MacKinnon holds an MA in theology and is a syndicated columnist and public speaker on Catholic doctrine. Her new book Dear Grace: Answers to Questions About the Faith is available in our online store. If you enjoy reading Grace’s column, you will certainly want to have this book, which is a collection of the first two years of “Dear Grace.” Faith questions may be sent to Grace via e-mail at: grace@DearGraceMinistries.org. You may also visit her online at www.DearGraceMinistries.org.
