Topic: What are the rules of the Catholic Church?

Date originally posted: June 30, 2003

Source of this posting: Moderator response to emailed question

Moderator who originally posted this source: Cathy Rusin

Question:   I am having a real hard time understanding the rules of the catholic faith. Right now my heart is being inspired by another church that is not catholic and I do not understand why I can not persue my faith there. The atmosphere is wonderful, the people are friendly, the message is so clear, and I just feel like that I belong there. The only problem is that I have always been taught that I can never leave the catholic church. I guess I don't understand as long as you have that personal relationship with God and follow his commmands than why can't we go where we feel the most benefical? And why do we have so many rules and regulations about the catholic church that we are suppose to follow but feel more inspired somewhere else. Can you shed some light on me please.Thanks,Mindy

Answer: 

Mindy,

I am glad that you wrote. A lot of people confuse religion with following rules, and so no wonder they are very inspired to live out their faith!

It would be really helpful for me to have some examples of the particular "rules and regulations" that cause you to question your Catholic affiliation. Some may be real topics for struggle, others may be misinterpretation of what the Church actually teaches.

In the meantime, I just want to say a couple of things, briefly, about where and how to worship. One of my sisters joined the Episcopal Church, where she is very active, and finds great support for her faith. She was afraid to tell our father about this decision, afraid she'd disappoint or anger him. Dad's response? "God loves everybody the same. It's good that you're going to Church."

At the same time, it DOES matter, to me, as your sister in faith, to our Catholic Church as a whole, whether or not you are finding sustenance in your faith life within our tradition.

You speak of a personal relationship with God - which is important, essential - how wonderful to have and recognize and nurture that! Yet don't forget that we live in a community of people - we are interdependent, not independent when it all comes down to it. So what you do or don't do affects others. The good news is that as members of the Body of Christ we can help and support each other to be Jesus' disciples, to be his hands and feet and voice in our world. Can you do that in another Christian denomination? Most certainly, we hope! Do we want you to be able to do that as a Catholic - definitely!

It's good to find a welcoming, supportive community ... and important to find one that also challenges you to grow as a person of faith. Please be certain that this new group is a recognized Christian denomination ... too often 'cults' come around college campuses and bring people into unhealthy practices by overly friendly and affirming messages.

One last thing - have some patience with the gray areas, Mindy. As you are maturing as a young adult, it should be becoming clearer that very little is 'black and white' in this world. That goes with our faith too, in some respects. There's always going to be a tension between wanting to know and do 'what's right' and allowing for human limitations or circumstances.

But please do email me back with the specific rules you're having difficulties with, and let's continue the conversation! It is good, it is impressive that you care enough about your faith to seek out answers and ways to grow - please know that I'll be praying for you in this process.

Peace,
Cathy Rusin