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Unmasking Catholicism Mary Ann Collins, a former Catholic nun |
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Appendix B Leaving the Catholic Church involves more than just understanding doctrinal issues. There are often emotional issues as well. I have had to deal with these issues myself. I also correspond with former Catholics who are currently dealing with them. Some people see God's truth, simply and suddenly, like a light being turned on inside of them. They walk out of Catholicism and into Biblical Christianity, without emotional turmoil. That is wonderful. It is a precious gift from God. For many former Catholics, there are difficult emotional issues that we have to deal with. Often our new friends in our new church don't understand them. Christians often assume that, once Catholics understand doctrinal issues and Biblical principles, then that is the end of the matter. But for many of us, it isn't. There can be a lot more involved than just intellectual understanding. Catholics are used to having priests tell them how to think and what to do. As a result, it can be difficult for former Catholics to learn to pray for themselves, read the Bible for themselves, and take responsibility for their own life. We can overcome this difficulty, but it requires determination, persistence, and prayer. Loyalty, Guilt, and Rejection Some former Catholics are under emotional pressure to return to the Catholic Church, because they don't want to hurt their family members. In addition, the Pope is called "Holy Father," and the Catholic Church is called "Holy Mother Church." As a result, people may feel as if they are betraying their father and their mother if they leave the Catholic Church. Jesus addressed these issues when He said:
Some former Catholics have had to face control, manipulation, intimidation, rejection, and false accusations. If you are going through something like this, then remember that God is faithful, and His grace really is sufficient. He will get you through it. In addition, the experience will give you a new appreciation for the rejection and misunderstanding that Jesus endured for our sakes. He left the love and appreciation of Heaven, to come here to earth and be falsely accused, misunderstood, rejected, and mocked, in order to save us. The Apostle Paul said:
The process of qualifying for that blessing is no fun at all. But if we see the eternal perspective, then we will be able to endure it, and to trust God while we are going through it. The Apostle Peter said:
Try to find an understanding friend or prayer partner to stand with you, as you go through this. You can pray together. Your friend or prayer partner can help you keep a Biblical perspective when you are under emotional pressure. If your family is pressuring you to come back to the Catholic Church, then this is probably not a good time to try to share your new-found, Biblical faith with them. Mind Control The Catholic Church claims that it has the right to control how Catholics think. We were taught to believe whatever we were told, and to obey the priests. During Mass, we were told when to stand, when to sit, when to reply to what the priest said, and what to say. This attitude of passive compliance was constantly reinforced. This is more than just our personal experience. It is official Catholic doctrine. For documented information about it, please read the chapter, "Mind Control." So how do we overcome this? The Bible gives us the answers. Psalm 23 tells us:
(If you have a Catholic Bible, many of the Psalms are numbered differently. I recommend that you get a Protestant Bible.) God is able to restore our soul. He can undo the damage that the Catholic Church did to our thinking and our emotions. God is able to change our minds and our emotions, so that they will reflect His truth, and agree with His Word (the Bible). We need to agree with God, instead of agreeing with the Catholic Church. God tells all Christians to be transformed by the renewing of their minds. (Romans 12:2) And He always enables us to do what He tells us to do. This renewing of our minds is especially necessary for former Catholics, because we have been indoctrinated with unbiblical beliefs, and subjected to mind control. The Apostle Paul tells us to take every thought captive to the obedience of Jesus Christ—not the obedience of the Catholic Church. (2 Corinthians 10:3-5) God is willing and able to teach us how to lead righteous lives. The Bible and personal prayer are keys to this. We need to ask God to change our hearts. We can pray with Scripture, which says:
The Bible can correct our thinking and instruct us in how to live righteously. It can enable us to understand whether or not doctrines are Biblical. It can equip us to live Godly lives. The Apostle Paul said:
When reading the Bible, it is important to approach it with a spirit of humility, and to ask God to help us understand it. If we are faithful to do this, then our thoughts (and therefore our actions) will line up more and more with God's thoughts and God's ways of doing things. This is a process. It takes time. God is patient with us. We need to be patient with ourselves. We not only need to read the Bible, we also need to study it. We need to become so saturated with Scripture that it becomes a living part of us, like a skin graft, or a branch that is grafted onto a tree. The Bible says:
Fear Until the Second Vatican Council, Catholicism taught that there is no salvation apart from the Catholic Church, its sacramental system, the priesthood, and the Pope. (Since Vatican II, there have been a variety of teachings about salvation. These range from saying that there is no salvation outside the Catholic Church, to saying that salvation can be found in nonChristian religions.) This is not Biblical, but it can still be deeply ingrained. Once we learn better, then our minds understand, but it may take time for our gut feelings to catch up with our thinking. There can be other forms of fear. One man told me that when he was a child in parochial school, the nuns terrorized him. For example, they said that the children would burn in Purgatory for every minute that they talked in class. What kind of picture does that give of God? There are also official curses. When I was confirmed, the ritual (which was in Latin) included a curse that was supposed to come upon me if I ever left the Catholic Church. The anathemas of the Council of Trent still curse anybody who disagrees with any of the doctrinal statements of that Council. The Blood of Jesus is more powerful than any curse. God is able to protect us and bless us, whether or not the Catholic Church wants Him to. God is in control—not the Catholic Church. The Bible says:
Anger Many former Catholics go through a period of being angry. One reason is a feeling of betrayal. For some former Catholics, it has taken years before they were able to trust again. In addition, anger is one way of handling fear, rejection, and the pressure to return to the Catholic Church. It can provide emotional strength, and it can help you stand your ground instead of allowing yourself to be controlled and manipulated. However, long-term anger is not spiritually or emotionally healthy. Jesus told us to forgive people. He said:
No matter what has been done to us, we cannot afford to become bitter. Bitterness defiles people, and it spreads like a spiritual cancer. The Bible says:
It can be difficult to forgive the people who taught us false doctrines and ungodly religious practices. However, you don't have to do it alone. God will help you. Jesus said:
If you are willing to forgive, then God will enable you to do it. Ask God to increase your desire to forgive. Ask Him to change your heart and help you forgive. Nobody Has All the Answers When we were Catholics, we mistakenly believed that the Pope is infallible. It is easy to carry this mindset over to other things after we leave the Catholic Church. Nobody is infallible. The Apostle Paul wrote about a fourth of the New Testament. Much of our theology is based on his writings. He was taken up to the Third Heaven, where he learned things that he was not allowed to tell other people about. (2 Corinthians 12:1-4) But Paul made a point of telling us that even he did not have all the answers, and some things about God are beyond our comprehension. He said:
Paul said that he only knew "in part" and that his understanding was like looking in a mirror ("glass") that doesn't give a clear reflection. If the Apostle Paul didn't have all the answers, then nobody does—not Luther, not Calvin, not other great men of the Reformation. They loved God and they did the best that they could, but they were not infallible and they did not have all the answers. We should love them and be grateful for them, but we need to be careful not to wind up treating them like infallible popes. The same thing is true of our pastors, our church leaders, and the people who wrote the notes of our Study Bibles. The same thing is true of theologians and seminary professors. These men base much of their teaching on the writings of the Apostle Paul. But even Paul did not expect people to accept what he said, just because he was the one who said it. The Bible commends the men of Berea, because they used Scripture to test Paul's teachings. The Book of Acts says:
We need to follow the example of the Bereans. The Bible says that all Christians are supposed to test what they are taught. It says:
According to Strong's Concordance, the word "prove" means to test or examine. We need to test everything against Scripture. This is especially true today, because there is so much deception and false teaching in the world. We need to develop the habit of automatically checking everything out against Scripture. God Is For Us, Not Against Us Some Catholic traditions give the impression that God enjoys making us suffer. For example, Teresa of Avila told of a time when she was sick, in pain, with a fever, and she fell into the snow. According to Teresa, God told her: "This is how I treat my friends." She replied: "No wonder you have so few." (I'm quoting this from memory, so it may not be completely accurate.) Another example is some apparitions of "Mary" that portray Mary as loving, and Jesus as a harsh judge. The picture is that of a loving mother, who is trying to protect her children from a child abuser. Another example is harsh teachers in parochial schools, who taught children that God is out to get them. These things are totally contrary to the picture of God that is given in the Bible. God the Father loves us so much that He sent Jesus to save us from our sins. Jesus loves us so much that He was willing to die a horribly painful death in order to enable us to become reconciled to God. Ephesians 3:19 speaks of "the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge." Many Scripture verses speak about the love of God. A few of them follow:
If your Catholic training gave you reasons to be afraid of God, instead of loving Him and trusting Him, then you need to saturate yourself with Scripture and get to know who God really is. When the negative thoughts and feelings come, you can combat them with the truth of Scripture. The Bible says:
The distorted picture of God that many Catholics were taught is a "high thing" that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. It raises itself up in our minds and our emotions, and it blocks us from seeing who God really is. It hinders us from understanding God. We can pull these things down by taking our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ. Ask God to show you how to do this. One way of doing this is to become more aware of the chatter that goes on inside our heads, and to notice when it is talking about God. Then compare what it says with what the Bible says. There was a time in my life when I became aware of a number of false teachings, false impressions of God. As I read the Bible, I found Scripture verses that told the truth that was the antidote to those false teachings. I memorized those verses. When the false teachings raised their head, I quoted those Scripture verses to myself. I kept doing that, until the false teachings lost their power in my mind and my emotions. Catholic Condemnation It is not unusual for people who leave the Catholic Church to have Catholic clergy, family members, or friends tell them that they are apostate, their new church is a cult, and they are going to Hell. Sometimes family members say things like: "You were born Catholic and you will die Catholic." In other words, because you were sprinkled with holy water when you were a baby (without your consent), the Catholic Church owns you and you have no right to leave. This denies the free will that God gave to us. In the face of such condemnation, some former Catholics are afraid, because they were taught that they cannot get to Heaven without the Catholic Church. The Bible has the antidote to such fears. It says:
That includes the Catholic Church. It is not able to separate us from the love of God. Almighty God does not need to get permission from the Catholic Church before He can love us, bless us, and protect us. Self-condemnation Some of the Catholic saints seemed to think that self-condemnation is a virtue. For example, Catherine of Sienna saw a vision of Christ. She looked away for a second. When she looked back, the vision was gone. She tormented herself with self-condemnation, because she had looked away from the vision. Another example is Francis of Assisi. He was full of self-condemnation. His biographers interpreted that as a sign of holiness. As Catholics, we were taught to study the lives of the saints and to follow their example. That can easily result in imitating their self-condemnation. This may not be as much of a problem for younger Catholics, who were raised in a generation that promotes positive self-esteem. But it is a problem for many of us. It used to be a problem for me, until the Bible gave me some understanding of what it really is. Jesus called the Holy Spirit, "the Comforter." (John 14:16; 14:26; 15:26; 16:7) According to Strong's Concordance, the word "comforter" means intercessor, consoler, advocate, comforter. According to Webster's Dictionary, the word "comfort" means, "to impart strength and hope to; to relieve of mental distress; console." The Bible calls the devil, "the accuser of our brethren." (Revelation 12:10) It's the devil's job to accuse us. Why should we do his job for him? The Holy Spirit comforts, encourages, and strengthens. The devil accuses. We need to follow the example of the Holy Spirit, not the example of the devil. We need to comfort, encourage, and strengthen people. That includes ourselves. Self-condemnation is a "high thing" that exalts itself against the knowledge of God. It blocks us from realizing that God loves us. It hinders us from recognizing God's love. According to the Bible, Christians are not under condemnation. The Bible says:
Acts 10:9-16 tells of a vision that Peter had. A sheet came down from Heaven. It was full of all kinds of animals (ones that Jewish law calls clean, and ones that Jewish law calls unclean). A voice told Peter to kill them and eat them. Peter protested, saying that he had never eaten anything unclean. The voice replied:
According to Strong's Concordance, the word "common" means "profane." According to Webster's Dictionary, "profane" means "impure, defiled." When self-condemnation hits us, we can remind ourselves that Jesus Christ took away our sins. He paid a horrible price to be able to do that. If God calls us clean, then who are we to disagree with Him? When we sin, the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin. This is very different from self-condemnation. It is life-giving, rather than destructive. The Bible puts it this way:
The Bible assures us that, because we are children of God, we are not under condemnation. However, we need to remember that our freedom in Christ is not a license to sin. The Bible says:
Emotional Isolation If you studied and imitated the mystics, or if you were in a convent or a monastery, then you may have a problem with emotional isolation. When I was in the convent, we were told that we should be emotionally detached, that we should only express love in a detached way. We were taught that human attachments interfere with closeness to God. This is contrary to Scripture. Adam was very close to God. He walked and talked with God every evening. But God said that wasn't enough. God said that Adam needed human companionship. God said: "It is not good that the man should be alone…" (Genesis 2:18) The Bible says that God spoke to Moses "face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend." (Exodus 33:11; also see Numbers 12:6-8) That is an unusual level of intimacy with God. Moses was a married man with children. And he was an emotional man. When the people murmured against him, Moses "cried unto the Lord." (Exodus 17:3-4) When God became angry with the people of Israel, Moses pleaded with God to have mercy on them. (Exodus 32:9-14) When his sister Miriam had leprosy, Moses became emotional. The Bible says:
Emotional detachment is a pagan ideal. It is praised by stoic philosophy and Buddhism. But it is contrary to Scripture. The Bible encourages fervent prayer. It says:
You can't do that without feelings. According to Webster's Dictionary, the word "fervor" means, "intensity of feeling or expression." Synonyms for "fervent" are, "fiery, vehement, impassioned, passionate, eager, keen." If you are emotionally detached, then how can you pray fervently for someone? Jesus wasn't emotionally detached, and nobody has ever been closer to God the Father than Jesus was. When Jesus saw that Lazarus was dead, and Mary and Martha were grieving for him, Jesus "groaned in the spirit, and was troubled," and he wept. The people saw this as showing the intensity of Jesus' love for Lazarus. (John 11:33-36) The Apostle Paul wasn't emotionally detached. He had a fatherly love for Timothy, whom he called his "dearly beloved son." (2 Timothy 1:2; also see 1 Timothy 1:2 and 1:18) Jesus told us that, in order to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, we need to become like little children. (Mark 10:15). Children are emotional. They have strong feelings and they express them. Their love is personal, emotional, and affectionate. God designed us for fellowship, not for isolation and detachment. Isolation is spiritually and emotionally unhealthy. That is why prisoners who are kept in solitary confinement for long periods of time often go insane. If you were taught to be emotionally isolated, the first step towards freedom is to recognize the problem. Then you can pray for God to heal you and give you His perspective. You can also deliberately do things to counteract it. Animals are safe. Can you have a pet? If not, then you can make a point of being affectionate with other people's pets when you have the opportunity to do so. You can go to petting zoos, or to pet stores that allow you to pet the animals. Children are safe. You can pick up babies and put your arm around young children. As you show affection for them (both verbally and physically), you will become more comfortable with it, and you will enjoy it, instead of feeling awkward. It takes time and effort and thought to learn to be affectionate after years of emotional starvation. But it is well worth the effort. It will bring emotional healing, and it will give you a greater understanding of God, and of the men and women in the Bible. The Catholic Undertow There is something that I call the "Catholic undertow." Have you ever been swimming in the ocean, and tried to swim back to shore, but the undertow kept pulling you back out to sea? Well, something similar can happen to people who have left the Catholic Church. Several things contribute to this, including fear, rejection, inappropriate guilt, and the practical consequences of mind control. Some Catholics encounter "culture shock" when attending another church. Also, no church is perfect. No matter where you go to church, sooner or later somebody will disappoint you or hurt you (and they may not even realize it). People who want you to return to the Catholic Church may add to the difficulty by putting pressure on you, or trying to indoctrinate you with Catholic teachings. One way to deal with the undertow is to just refuse to give in to it. Stand your ground. Be a bulldog and keep holding on. Pray for God to give you strength and wisdom. Realize that what you are going through is not unusual. There is nothing wrong with you. Many former Catholics go through this kind of thing. It is not wise to make important decisions when you are under emotional pressure. Applying this principle will give you strength, if you are feeling the pressure of the Catholic undertow. Just refuse to make a decision until the emotional pressure passes. When people get married, sooner or later they will have bad emotions, and their level of commitment will be tested. The same kind of thing happens when somebody leaves the Catholic Church and joins a Biblical church. Our emotions change with the weather, with our health, and with our circumstances. But God's truth doesn't change, and our commitment to Him shouldn't change, either. You didn't leave the Catholic Church because of feelings. You left because it had practices and doctrines that are contrary to Scripture. You left because you wanted the truth. Well, don't let emotions pull you back. The truth hasn't changed just because your emotions have changed. Hang on. In time, your emotions will come around again. Reinforcing Our Foundations We former Catholics need to reinforce our Biblical foundations. It is important to read Scripture and to have it become a part of us. You may want to read The Gospel According to Rome by James G. McCarthy (Eugene, Oregon: Harvest House Publishers, 1995). It shows that many Catholic practices and doctrines are contrary to Scripture. McCarthy is a former Catholic. His book is easy to read, thoroughly documented from official Catholic sources, and compassionate in its presentation. James McCarthy's video, Catholicism: Crisis of Faith, was life-changing for me. It ministers on far more than just the intellectual level. You can order it from bookstores by giving them the ISBN number (ISBN 0-962-9152-0-3). You can also order it from D&K Press. They have it in English and Spanish, and they ship all over the world. Their phone number is (800) 777-8839. They also have a website (www.DKPressChristianBooks.com). The video is also available in other languages. (See Appendix H.) Finding a Good Church Do you have a good church? If not, then you need to find one. The first thing to do is to pray for God to lead you to the right church. Keep on praying until you find it. A good church is a place where people believe the Bible, have sound doctrine, and are full of love for God and for one another. Sound doctrine is important. There are some doctrines that are non-negotiable. If a person doesn't believe them, then he or she is not a Christian. These include the Incarnation (Jesus is both God and man), the Atonement (Jesus died for our sins), and the Resurrection of Jesus. However, there is far more to Christian life than just sound doctrine. Love is essential. In Revelation 2:1-5, Jesus spoke to a church where the people rejected false teaching, did good works, and had patience and courage under adversity. However, He rebuked them, because they let their love fade. This was such a serious problem that Jesus told them to repent and rekindle their love, or else He would deal with their church. People have different personalities. So do denominations, pastors, and congregations. As a result, individual churches have different personalities. You can find out about a church's doctrine with a phone call to their office, but to get a feel for a church's personality, you will have to visit it a few times. If you are not comfortable with a church that you try, pray about it. The lack of comfort might indicate that there is a problem. However, it could just be culture shock. Any Protestant church will be different from what we were used to as Catholics. The primary reason for going to church is to worship God and to learn about His ways and His character, through preaching and Bible studies. Hopefully, you will also make friends who will enrich your life and encourage you to become a more mature Christian. In order to do that, you will probably need to make the effort to get to know people. You may not be able to find a church that meets all of your needs and desires. Perhaps you want to have activities with other single Christians, or you have children who need good programs for youth, or you find that the pastor isn't as available as you would like him to be. Perhaps the music is not well done, or it is different from what you are used to. Don't let such things discourage you. Be grateful for what you have. One way to get things into perspective is to remember our persecuted brothers and sisters in other countries. For example, in Indonesia, Christians are grateful to be able to meet together without being attacked by Muslims. In North Korea, Christians have to meet secretly and quietly. They don't dare worship out loud, for fear of being heard by hostile people. All of us have strengths and weaknesses. So do pastors. So do churches. There are no perfect churches. It is probably a good thing that there aren't, because knowing human nature, if we found one, we would probably make an idol out of it. Not being able to find a perfect church makes us depend on God. And that's good. What About Our Families? For former Catholics, there are two concerns relating to families. The first is how to deal with misunderstanding, condemnation, and pressure to return to the Catholic Church. I have already discussed these issues. The second is family members who don't know Jesus. We long to have them know Him and love Him. We have found a treasure that is so beautiful, so wonderful, so priceless, that we want to share it. How do we share Jesus with family members who don't know Him? The first thing to do is to pray for them. The Bible says:
We can pray for God to remove the blinders and open their eyes, and enable them to desire and understand the truth. Jesus told a parable about a man who sowed seed into four kinds of soil. (Matthew 13:3-23; Mark 4:2-20; Luke 8:5-15) The first soil mentioned in the parable was so hard that the seed couldn't get into it. It just stayed on top of the ground, until the birds ate it up. It doesn't do any good to throw good seed (truth about Jesus) onto hard soil that can't receive it. So pray for God to make your family members hungry for Him and receptive to the truth. You may want to do a lot of praying, before you start sharing with them. Before you talk to them about God, spend time talking to God about them. When you are walking on a path, there are two ways of getting off it. You can go too far to the right, or too far to the left. Similarly, when it comes to sharing the Good News about Jesus, we can make two mistakes. One is to be afraid of speaking about our faith. The other is to talk about it in a way that turns people off, instead of helping them come closer to Christ. If you are hesitant to share your new faith with your family, the cause is not necessarily fear. It may be a matter of timing. Perhaps they aren't ready to hear about it yet. Or perhaps you need to become more solidly grounded in your faith before you share it with your family. It's one thing to share your faith with a stranger in a shopping mall. It's quite another thing to share it with your own family. Sharing your new faith with family members can result in rejection and other forms of emotional pressure. You need to be solidly grounded in your faith first. And you should have a support system—fellow Christians who will pray for you and give you wise counsel, practical advice, and moral support. Remember that there is much more involved than intellectual understanding of doctrines. We are dealing with living people, not with intellectual abstracts. This is ministry, not a debating club. You can win an argument and lose a relationship. Jesus told us to speak the truth in love. There is more involved than an accurate explanation of doctrinal issues. We need to show love and respect for the people we are talking to. And we need to avoid saying, or doing, anything that might make people feel that we are nagging them, or pressuring them. Jesus left people free to make their own decisions. When the rich young man turned away from Him, Jesus looked on him with love, but he let him go. He did not try to pressure him or manipulate him. (Mark 10:17-22) We need to follow Jesus' example. If our friends and family members decide to leave the Catholic Church, it should be based on their convictions—not ours. Jesus said: "…ye shall be witnesses unto me…" (Acts 1:8) "Be" refers to what we are. What we demonstrate in our lives is more important than what we say. Talk is cheap. It's no good talking about the Good News, if we are living like bad news. People will be watching us to see if we have the fruit of the Spirit—"love, joy, peace, longsuffering [patience], gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance." (Galatians 5:22-23) Our lives should demonstrate God's love. Remember that we are dealing with people, not just issues. Having people be open to the Gospel is impacted by the kind of relationship that we have with them. We need to show love for them. We can look for opportunities to show them love, consideration, and understanding When we do speak with our family members and friends, we can ask God to show us what to say and how to say it—and how much to say. In our zeal, it is easy to overload people with more than they can handle at one time. There are two prayers from the Psalms that I find helpful:
A "watch" is a watchman, a soldier on guard duty. In this prayer, David asks God to be a sentry on guard duty, a sentry who will not allow the wrong words to come out of David's mouth. We can ask God to do the same thing for us. This is an area where balance is needed. It is good to pray for God's guidance and protection when sharing our faith, but we should not allow ourselves to be hampered by fear of making mistakes. God promised to make everything work out for good for those who love Him. (Romans 8:28). That includes our mistakes. If we love God, then our mistakes will work out for our good. If the people we are talking to love God, then God can make our mistakes work out for their good. So we can be spontaneous and natural when sharing our faith. We can trust God to reach people, in spite of our failings. We need to be careful not to develop false expectations, because they can lead to discouragement or confusion. It took many years for me to realize that some foundational teachings of Catholicism were unscriptural. For me, the light came on slowly and gradually, over a long period of time. In contrast, I have a friend who came to salvation within a few hours. Some Christians came to his door and shared the Gospel with him. He left Catholicism, became a born-again Christian, and never looked back. For him, it was a very quick process, almost instantaneous. Don't assume that it will be slow and difficult (as it was for me), or that it will be quick and easy (as it was for my friend). Just love the people and pray for them, and ask God to guide you. Be grateful for any progress that you see, even if it seems to be small. It would be good to give them the Jesus video. This will help increase their love for Jesus and their desire to know Him better. The Jesus video is widely known for its excellence. It has been translated into over 700 languages. You can order it from the Jesus Film Project. Their phone number is (949) 361-7575). Their website is www.JesusFilm.org. The video ends with a salvation message and a prayer. Personally, I would tell people about that, to give them the option of deciding whether or not to watch that part of the video. You don't want them to feel that you tried to sneak something up on them. Encourage them to read the Bible and get to know Jesus better. (Encourage them gently. Don't nag them. In our zeal, we can become pushy without realizing it.) If you feel that they are ready to learn that there are some problems with Catholicism, I recommend getting the video Catholicism: Crisis of Faith. Watch it yourself several times and get to know it. Pray for them to be receptive. Then offer to watch it with them. If you can afford it, you may want to give copies of the video to family members. This video deals with unscriptural doctrines and practices in a gentle, respectful way. It reaches people on many levels—not just intellectually. You can order it from bookstores by giving them the ISBN number (ISBN 0-962-9152-0-3). (For more information about ordering it, see Appendix H.) Where do we go from here? Pray. Love them. Ask God to guide us. Share about how much Jesus means to us. There are no cookbook formulas or magic fixes. We have to depend on God every step of the way. A helpful website is www.JustForCatholics.org. It has a series of short, simple articles that explain salvation in ways that are especially appropriate for Catholics. These articles are available in several languages. It also has a Questions and Answers section, with about 150 short articles. You can refer your Catholic family members to this website, or you can print the articles for them. Should you give Unmasking Catholicism to your Catholic friends and family members? Please pray about it before you do. For some people, it will be just what they need. But other people may not be ready for it. I discuss some tough issues. This book is not appropriate for everybody. We need to share our faith with the people we love, but at the same time we need to remember that we are not responsible for their salvation. We should do the best that we can, but if they fail to respond, we should not allow ourselves to become discouraged or depressed because of it. Ultimately, it is between them and God. God doesn't have any grandchildren. Every man and woman has to decide whether or not to become a child of God. We can't do it for them. But we can pray. And we can be encouraged, because God loves them more than we do. Renewing Our Minds We former Catholics have habitual ways of thinking that are contrary to Scripture. We also have emotional responses that are rooted in false teachings. The Bible tells us:
According to Strong's Concordance, the Greek word for "transform" is metamorphoo. This is the origin of the word "metamorphosis." It means the kind of radical transformation that occurs when a caterpillar becomes a butterfly. As former Catholics, we need to have our thinking become radically transformed so that it agrees with Scripture, instead of agreeing with the Catholic Church. In addition, some things in our culture are contrary to Scripture. Where there is a conflict, we need to agree with the Bible, instead of agreeing with our culture. With God's help, we can overcome all of these things. God has enabled His people to overcome everything that exalts itself against the true knowledge of God. The Apostle Paul said:
Since the Bible is the key to renewing our minds, it is important to become thoroughly familiar with it. Our bodies need food every day, and our souls need Scripture every day. We need to develop the habit of reading the Bible and asking God to help us understand it and apply it in our daily lives. We may have struggles from time to time. Trials and tribulation are a normal part of life. However, God is able to keep us from falling. (Jude 1:24) We can overcome every obstacle, because God is faithful and He loves us. Prayers Some people have found the following prayers to be helpful in breaking any remaining spiritual or emotional attachments to the Roman Catholic Church. Before you read them, I'd like to say a few words about written prayers. When we were Catholics, we were used to "canned" prayers. We said them during Mass. Many of us prayed rosaries. Some of us recited written prayers, such as novenas, litanies, and prayers which were given to visionaries by apparitions of "Mary." Some written prayers were "indulgenced." If you said them, you were supposed to get indulgences. I remember being told that certain prayers always "worked"—if you said them, you would get what you wanted. This was treating prayers as if they were magic formulas. God is not a Coke machine. You can't put in the "right" words and have your Coke (the thing you wanted to get) automatically come out. However, there is nothing wrong with using written prayers, if it is done in the right spirit. We pray the Lord's prayer. Some hymns are prayers. The following prayers are just examples. You may want to use them as prayers, or you may prefer to look at their content, and then share your heart with God in whatever way is appropriate for you.
Praying Scripture Many Catholics spend their lives praying written prayers. They have not learned how to pray naturally and spontaneously from their heart. I have found it helpful to use the Bible as a springboard for personal prayers. That isn't the only way that I pray, but it is something that I often do when reading Scripture. If you are not used to praying spontaneously, Scriptural praying can help you get started. There are many prayers in the Bible. Have you ever prayed through them, as if they were your own? It is one way of having Scripture become a part of us. It is also a way of knowing that we are praying according to God's will. For example, if God showed the Apostle Paul that Christians need wisdom and revelation, then we know that praying for those things is according to God's will. We can use Paul's prayer as a springboard for our own prayers. When we pray the Lord's Prayer, we are praying according to Scripture. But there are many other Biblical prayers that we can pray. We can appropriate them and make them our own. For example, here is one of Paul's prayers for the Christians in Ephesus:
At first, this may look intimidating. Most of this is one long, complicated sentence. However, we can break it down into bite-sized pieces. There are many ways that this passage could be approached. I will give an example. This is how I approached that Scripture passage. As you read it, you may see ways that are more appropriate for you. Also, every time you come to this passage, you may find new treasures in it and new ways to pray it. Please take the following as just one possible working example of how this Scripture passage could be prayed.
As you read the Bible, you will find many prayers. You will also find many statements that clearly indicate God's will for us, which can be the basis for prayers. Some passages can be prayed directly, word for word. One of my favorites is in Psalm 139:
I also like to participate in the heavenly worship that was shown to the Apostle John in the Book of Revelation. We can share in the song of the Redeemed:
Isaiah also had a vision of heavenly worship. I like to join in the prayer of the seraphim, who cry out to one another:
Leaving the Past Behind Our past experience as Catholics can be useful. We can draw from it to help other people. But in a sense, we need to leave it behind us. Our focus needs to be forward, on the new things that God has for us. The Apostle Paul said:
We need to get to know God better. We need to have our minds become transformed by the truth of Scripture. We need to learn to trust God at a deeper level, and commit our lives to Him in a more radical way. God has good adventures waiting for us. He has things that are "exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us." (Ephesians 3:20) I'd like to share a poem with you.
May the Lord bless you, comfort you, strengthen you, and encourage you. May He increase your love for the Bible and give you greater understanding of it. And may He give you an ever-increasing revelation of how much He loves you. |
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Copyright 2003, 2007 by Mary Ann Collins. All rights reserved. |