Ashley Posted April 13, 2004 Share Posted April 13, 2004 If you already accept Jesus Christ and have a personal relationship with him, why enter the Catholic Church? Where somany doctrines are bizarre, i mean isn't it safer and better to not risk it? What I mean why put up with the Catholic Church's hokus-pokus and hidden meanings about certain things when you could just have a simple relationship with Jesus Christ. I just don't understand why anyone (short of being forced to, but hey it happens) would willingly enter the Catholic Church where their focus is taken off Christ so much and focused on other things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
traichuoi Posted April 13, 2004 Share Posted April 13, 2004 yea because from your posts it sounds like you focus on Christ...whatever (there's sarcasm in what i'm saying in case you took it literally) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iacobus Posted April 13, 2004 Share Posted April 13, 2004 My parents both entered the Church via RCIA. They were drawn to the Church's relationship, the unity, AND THE DOCTRINEs. BTW, what doctrines, dogmas, hidden meanings are you refering to? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homeschoolmom Posted April 13, 2004 Share Posted April 13, 2004 (edited) [quote name='Ashley' date='Apr 13 2004, 03:12 PM'] If you already accept Jesus Christ and have a personal relationship with him, why enter the Catholic Church? Where somany doctrines are bizarre, i mean isn't it safer and better to not risk it? What I mean why put up with the Catholic Church's hokus-pokus and hidden meanings about certain things when you could just have a simple relationship with Jesus Christ. I just don't understand why anyone (short of being forced to, but hey it happens) would willingly enter the Catholic Church where their focus is taken off Christ so much and focused on other things. [/quote] Jesus didn't come so that we could all have an independent relationship with him. He established a church to teach us and guide us. Look at the chaos that Protestantism has with everyone's independent idea of what a relationship with Christ is. Not to say that people don't have a relationship with Christ, but you can't just make up your own way of relating to him. And what makes you think that the Catholic church is focused on anyone other than Jesus? It's [i]all about[/i] Jesus... The saints, Mary, angels... are all about Jesus and his business... Prayers to the saints and angels merely ask them to [i]pray with us[/i] to God. Edited April 13, 2004 by homeschoolmom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PedroX Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 Ashley, Have you ever attended Mass? Everything that Happens, from the Procession to the Recession points towards Christ. I'm confused, though, I thought you were Jewish? peace... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusader_4 Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 Thanks Ash u hit the nail on the head for the exact reason i entered the Church. What better way to get to know Jesus then to join the Church he made and teaches us through? I couldnt think of any more logical way to connect with Jesus. Hey Jesus is God he is complicated so complicated he is ineffable (not infallible) so therefore his Church should be a little difficult to understand sometimes...Just like ppl had trouble understanding Jesus and his ways. Why stay on the outside of the pool when you can dive in? Hey Just me though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willguy Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 [quote]If you already accept Jesus Christ and have a personal relationship with him, why enter the Catholic Church? [/quote] If you have a peanut butter sandwich, why would you go eat a seven-coures meal? [quote]Where somany doctrines are bizarre, i mean isn't it safer and better to not risk it?[/quote] The same could be said about not joining. I mean, what if it is the truth? Why risk not joining and not knowing the truth. [quote]What I mean why put up with the Catholic Church's hokus-pokus and hidden meanings about certain things when you could just have a simple relationship with Jesus Christ.[/quote] Where does the Bible say that God is simple? God is complex beyond our understanding. [quote]I just don't understand why anyone (short of being forced to, but hey it happens) would willingly enter the Catholic Church where their focus is taken off Christ so much and focused on other things.[/quote] I have yet to find anything in Catholicism that takes my focus off Christ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enda Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 [quote name='willguy' date='Apr 13 2004, 10:42 PM'] I have yet to find anything in Catholicism that takes my focus off Christ. [/quote] Preach it on, Brother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 I also had to agree.......I have been more focused on Christ than I have ever been ever since I joined the Church.......everything is so right now, I am where I needed to be.......I have turned away from so much sin since I decided to convert and am growing in faith every day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sojourner Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 [quote name='Joseph' date='Apr 14 2004, 10:06 AM'] I also had to agree.......I have been more focused on Christ than I have ever been ever since I joined the Church.......everything is so right now, I am where I needed to be.......I have turned away from so much sin since I decided to convert and am growing in faith every day. [/quote] That's true for me as well. I've never been all that on-fire for my faith, but recently, I can't stop talking to people about it. It's been a conversion of the heart unlike anything I've ever experienced. I'm excited to keep growing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dUSt Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 [quote]If you already accept Jesus Christ and have a personal relationship with him, why enter the Catholic Church?[/quote] To help your relationship with Christ grow. [quote]What I mean why put up with the Catholic Church's hokus-pokus and hidden meanings about certain things when you could just have a simple relationship with Jesus Christ.[/quote] Because I don't think any relationship that is "simple" has matured enough. My relationship with Christ is very complex, and for that, I am extremely grateful. I am in the Church because the Church brings Christ to me. [quote]I just don't understand why anyone (short of being forced to, but hey it happens) would willingly enter the Catholic Church where their focus is taken off Christ so much and focused on other things.[/quote] Has it crossed your mind that the Church actually helps people focus [b]more[/b] on Christ? That would seem like the most logical reason why people who already have a love for Christ would join the Church, doesn't it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marielapin Posted April 14, 2004 Share Posted April 14, 2004 I joined the Church to take the emphasis off of myself and my own interpretations, biases and failures and to place my entire life squarely under Christ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DesiringMore Posted April 23, 2004 Share Posted April 23, 2004 i have to admit that before i came back home to The Church, i had been raised Catholic yet never saw the focus on Christ. the Saints, Mary, the Pope were some main focuses but i never heard anything about a focus on Christ. does that mean that i was being taught true Catholicism...NO...i learned many years later, 5 to be exact, after becoming Methodist and going to college to major in Religious studies, that the main focus of everything Catholics do is on our Lord Jesus Christ. I had to study very much in school on other denominations, religions, and such, thinking i would never return back to the Catholic church until this past summer i prayed for God to bring me real friends. low and behold He did and those friends were Catholic. through walking the journey with them in the past 1/2 year, going to Mass, opening myself to what God was placing in front of me, and doing major research papers on Catholicism a lot of what i had thought i knew had been many misconceptions of the Churh and the people i saw weren't living out their faith as TRUE CATHOLICS. But after i met this group of friends and continued to experience things with them, it was undeniable that Christ was calling me back home to The Church where the focus is on Him...when i left the church my junior year of high school i thought that the only thing that matter was the personal relationship with Christ and living out your faith daily, following Him but the more i went to school and the deeper my faith grew, i found that YES, this is important, but God desires UNITY and unity amongst His children. I found that you must have a foundation built on Christ but there is more than just that. Tradition, Sacraments, Truth are SO IMPORTANT and undeniable but it wasn't until i begged and asked Him to open my heart and show me did He. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HS_Dad Posted April 23, 2004 Share Posted April 23, 2004 [quote name='homeschoolmom' date='Apr 13 2004, 03:33 PM']Jesus didn't come so that we could all have an independent relationship with him. [/quote] Hey, HomeSchoolMom, it is important to be charitable. Jesus came for many reasons, to glorify the father, to establish a Church, to come as the unblemished Passover Lamb of redemption, and to establish relationships with individuals, each of whom is unique... [quote name='homeschoolmom' date='Apr 13 2004, 03:33 PM']He established a church to teach us and guide us. Look at the chaos that Protestantism has with everyone's independent idea of what a relationship with Christ is. Not to say that people don't have a relationship with Christ, but you can't just make up your own way of relating to him. [/quote] Please explain "chaos of Protestantism"... "Chaos" seems like such a strong term. I assume you are talking ecclessiology (sp?), but recognize in humility there are some pretty wide variance in Catholic practice as well, which some might call chaotic... Everything in love. In Him.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
homeschoolmom Posted April 23, 2004 Share Posted April 23, 2004 Hey, you can't play in my playground if you're gonna pick on me!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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