Countin’ Down
To the Whys...
I was recently asked a challenging question: “ Write down 10 reasons why you are glad to be Catholic.”
Only 10!?
Firstly, let me preface this by saying that I’m glad to be a Christian, or at least trying to be recognized as one, as best as a fallen daughter of Adam can be. Being a Catholic Christian is the way that I identify and practice my faith AS a Christian.
Secondly, while I sincerely believe that the Catholic faith IS the One True Faith, I do not disparage anyone’s choice. God has given us free will and I trust that in His Perfect, Permissive, and Providential will, He has a plan. It took me many years to get to where I am today, TOTALLY grateful to have been called into and back into the Catholic Church. As a former protestant who chose to convert to Catholic faith, and who ALSO fell away from the faith and THEN REVERTED BACK to the faith, I offer a unique perspective to the one who chooses conversion AND to the one who falls away from the faith.
Therefore, this treaties is not meant to challenge ANYONE’S belief, nor is it
going to be a deep theological dive into apologetics. I am just rising to the challenge given to me: “What are 10 reasons that you are glad to be Catholic” and offering simple, not complex answers.
So, why am I glad to be a Catholic?
1.The depth, breath, width, beauty, reverence, courage, and resilience of the faith.
A few examples:
Modern man cannot build a medieval cathedral, but uneducated craftsmen using hand tools were given the gift to see into the future with a faith as solid as the stone walls that they were building that one day their progeny would fill the pews. That’s Catholic faith!
The Pieta. ONLY God given talent could transform cold marble into a form so lifelike that one can feel the haunting suffering of a mother holding her son’s dead body. Michelangelo was heaven sent to carve a soul from marble
Countless martyrs willing to die instead of denouncing their belief in Jesus, His Church, and/or His True Presence in the Eucharist. Viva Christo Rey!
2. The mysticism of the faith.
Experiencing The Mass is an incredible mystical event that occurs daily around the planet. Under the Old Covenant, the High Priest would DARE to enter the Holy of Holies ONCE A YEAR on behalf of the ENTIRE nation. During every Mass, the veil between Heaven and Earth thins to the point where every participant is offered a glimpse, however brief, into the glory that awaits the believer. Blessed be the ones who experience that moment!
3. Being a part of something that is global and that connects our “now” to history’s “then”.
The word “catholic” is usually interpreted to mean “universal” but it can also mean “of the whole”. Being Catholic means that at any time of the day or night, Catholics are part “of the whole” and our prayers, sacrifices, masses, etc, are EACH a vital “part of the whole” worship given to God and ALL that is linked, like a timeless chain, back to Jesus and the Disciples. Whoa!
4. The 7 sacraments instituted by Our Blessed Lord
Baptism protects and opens the soul to the Holy Spirit, which compels the believer to confess, accept (be confirmed) while discerning one’s vocation (marriage or Holy Orders) always in readiness to receive the Eucharist, and Healing Blessings.
5. The apostolic succession of the priesthood.
Knowing that Catholic priests can trace their ordained lineage back to the very hands of Jesus who laid His Holy hands upon the head of St. Peter is mind boggling. An unbroken lineage from Jesus to Peter down through the ages to the priests at my local parish! Blessed be our priests!
The Old Covenant required a PRIEST, and ALTAR, and a SACRIFICE. Modern PRIESTS continue the ritual set forth by God after the destruction of the Jewish Temple. Jesus, of course IS the NEW TEMPLE, and His consecrated PRIESTS perform an “unbloody SACRIFICE” on an ALTAR in “temples” of faith today.
6. Instinctively living out our faith through our charity.
Loving Jesus and living the faith PRODUCES “good works”. How could you NOT “work” for the Lord who died to save you? A Christian is a man or woman of works!!
7. Being connected to the faith that was started by Jesus Christ when he gave the keys to the kingdom to Peter.
This irrefutable fact of history, supported by biblical text, is a bridge transcending time , linking us to the wisdom of the church for over 2000 years which has led and taught and directed the faithful to be ever true AND steadfastly faithful TO the truth. The TRUTH cannot be changed or broken or exchanged to suit our wants. God leads. We follow His plan, not our wants.
8. Receiving absolution through reconciliation.
I STRUGGLED with the Sacrament of Reconciliation until recently. Within MINUTES of an impromptu “confession,” I missed death by inches. I got over my fear at that moment because I realized two truths: Satan OBVIOUSLY hates a “clean soul” and I WANT to be as “clean” as I can to make my transition from here to eternity smoother. The second thing that I realized is that Guardian Angels are REAL and can move fast when a poor sinner’s time is not “up.” God must want me around for something…
9. Catholics are pro-life.
THIS is THE REASON I converted. When my heart began to understand and accept the beauty of life, I experienced a crisis of faith after reading the “catechism” of the denomination that I practiced where I discovered the teaching that this church condoned the ending of God’s little ones.
10. Believing that the Eucharist is the body and blood of Jesus truly alive and truly present in the Eucharist and in the Tabernacle.
Wise St. Augustine famously noted that the New Testament is hidden within the Old, and Old Testament is revealed in the New. God resided, first as a Cloud and Pillar of Fire leading the Israleites to freedom, and then He filled the Tabernacle with His Glory. He still live among us. Yes, God’s spirit IS everywhere, but He IS alive, body and soul, in the Eucharist, feeding us with LIVING MANNA. Come! Adore Him!
11. Mama Mary!!
Oh, I was supposed to stop at 10 “whys”. But I can’t leave out Mama Mary!! There is TOO much to say about Mama so I will say only this: Mary was the first Christian. She is our BEST example of how to lead a Christian life. She said, “Yes” when most would have said, “No.” She rose to the challenge TO lead us to her son with the loving humility that ONLY Our Perfect Mother can. Her last words in scripture were no doubt quiet and humble, yet Mama Mary’s words SCREAM with conviction and truth: “Do as He says.” What she didn’t say may be her loudest message, “Then you will find Him.”
I’ll stop here.
I came. I left. I came back. I’m NEVER leaving again.
I am SO grateful to be a Catholic Christian.
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