These here days I’m around a lot of Catholics. I’m also reading a biography of Martin Luther’s life…. sooo…. Basically I am extremely curious what the catholic church is all about these days. You know, post-reformation…. I was in with a resident and the topic of conversation turned to religion. It comes out that this individual is catholic. I say “I’m non-denominational christian, but if I had to slap a label on it I’d probably be Lutheran. I don’t know much about the Catholic church, what are you all about?”
The response?
“Well I’m a bad Catholic, but I believe…”
And I listened to Jesus’ life, death, resurrection, and ascension paraphrased. nothing about the virgin Mary, nothing about the pope, nothing about images of Jesus or anything.
I’ve decided in order to get the lowdown about those things I should ask a good Catholic. do you agree?
Good luck finding a good Catholic. My experience is that there’s a pretty broad spectrum of Catholics, even if there’s a really narrow spectrum of truly Roman Catholic thought. While one can be a bad Catholic in myriads of ways, one can only be a good Catholic one way–which means there aren’t many good Catholics.
Hi, Gracie! I’m happy to answer any questions you may have about Catholicism. I think most Catholics would describe themselves as “bad Catholics” in the sense of an awareness of our own sinfulness – at least, that’s why I use the phrase. You’re right that the beliefs your friend described are the heart of Catholicism. If there are other things you’re wondering about, feel free to email me!
Thanks for the comments! Both of you bring up very good points that the mark is impossible to hit. I guess my friend, the Catholic, is a bad Catholic in the same way that I’m a bad non-denominational Christian. We’ll see what I come up with in my research. Dorian, I might have to take you up on that offer. I hardly know where to start!