This morning after Mass, one of the OCIA teachers walked up to me and asked,
“When are you going to do right?”
I laughed, caught off guard—I genuinely didn’t know what she meant.
She smiled and said, “We just have to bust down those walls so you can officially become Catholic!”
I replied kindly, “Well, I am a catholic.”
She responded, “I think you mean little ‘c’ catholic.”
I nodded and said, “Yeah, but that’s what Jesus founded—a universal church. I don’t believe it was the capital ‘C’ Catholic Church. That structure came years later.”
She kept pressing, and in a moment of genuine curiosity I asked,
“If we’re truly apostolic, then why aren’t we Jewish?”
Silence.
She followed with, “Well, you have to be Catholic to take the Eucharist.”
Then I gently asked, “Where does the Bible say that?”
More silence.
I added, “Ya know, that’s just not important to me. Besides, you can’t prove Jesus was speaking literally when He spoke of the Eucharist. And during the consecration, we ask, ‘May it become the body and blood of Christ.’ That wording suggests God still has the right to say, ‘Nope, not today!’”
These conversations aren’t easy, and I want to be clear—my heart is genuinely seeking truth, not trying to be argumentative. But I also believe it’s okay to ask questions, to wrestle with doctrine, and to not rush a decision just because others think you should.
Faith isn’t about pressure; it’s about peace, relationship, and trust in God’s timing.
Ironically—and hilariously—this whole exchange came right after a homily on how others should know us by our love. The timing couldn’t have been more off. It was a great reminder that the way we talk to each other matters just as much as the truth we’re trying to share.
I don’t believe in pushing people through a process just to check a box. I believe in walking with Christ and letting Him lead, even when the road looks different from others’ expectations.
A Note on Church History
The term “Roman Catholic” didn’t exist in the time of the apostles. Early Christians were simply known as followers of “the Way.”
The word catholic, meaning “universal,” was first used in the second century to describe the global body of believers. But what we now call the Roman Catholic Church—with its centralized authority in Rome—gradually developed over centuries, especially after the fall of the Western Roman Empire and into the medieval period.
The full structure wasn’t solidified until long after the apostolic age.
We’re all navigating faith one step at a time. Let’s give each other space to walk it honestly.
Comments
Post a Comment