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Drew
wrote:
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Hi, guys —
My name is Drew and I'm from Canada. I have
a bit of a dilemma.
I was born and raised Pentecostal but have
lately felt the Spirit's pulling me towards the
Catholic Church. I have done a fair amount
of research about doctrines, R.C.I.A. and
such, and I would not have a problem except
for a very complicated family situation.
My wife is a Pastor, trained and employed
by the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. I
am a worship leader at my local Pentecostal
church, and she is an assistant pastor. I
have discussed Catholicism at some length
with my wife, but she firmly disapproves of
it for herself. She thinks that the Roman
Catholic's believe in strange and non-biblical
things. I have determined they are simply
things she does not understand about the Catholic
interpretations of the Bible.
I have spent a great deal of time reading
on issues such as:
- the Rosary
- Mariology
- Sainthood
- Confession, etc.
I suppose I'll cut to the chase. I know that
participation in the Eucharist is paramount for a Roman Catholic.
I know that if I were Catholic, I would be
expected to only receive Holy Communion at
Mass, and not anywhere else. I am willing
to accept that. My question is simply this:
- Can I become an active member of the Roman
Catholic Church, assuming I do all that
is required:
- attend Mass once a week
- go to Confession on a regular basis
- take part in the Eucharist
- and believe the appropriate doctrines
and still remain heavily involved in my
Pentecostal church as a worship leader
and volunteer?
Thank you for your time, and God Bless You.
Drew
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{
Can
I become a member of the Catholic Church and
still be involved in my Pentecostal church? }
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John
replied:
Hi, Drew —
Thanks for your question.
Your story is similar to mine. I
was heavily involved in my Charismatic
Baptist Church. I was in Music ministry
in two different churches. I guess
the only difference is I wasn't married
and
I was the one who was ordained.
You could, in theory, remain involved
in Music ministry, however, a lot
depends on what is being taught in
this church. If that Church is particularly
anti-Catholic, that could present
a problem.
It could be a cause of scandal to
some Catholics, if you are leading
praise and worship up the street
at the Pentecostal church and then
receiving Holy Communion at Mass.
People who were aware of it, might
not understand that you were not
a member of that church, but simply
volunteered there. On some level,
it's really not advisable. I tried
to do it for a while, but it just
didn't work out. Once you come home,
you really want to immerse yourself
in all things, Catholic.
If you have talents, you should consider
volunteering them in the Catholic
Church. You might consider finding
a Catholic Charismatic prayer group
in your area. Perhaps you could join
a Catholic Charismatic Music ministry.
That would probably make your transition
into the Church that much easier.
Your average lay Catholic is not
familiar with Charismatic gifts (e.g.,
Tongues, Prophecy, etc). If you are
used to openly using those gifts,
it might get frustrating being surrounded
by folks that don't know about them,
let alone embrace them.
The bottom line is you may be able
to technically continue doing what
you are doing, but I don't suggest
it along with the other reasons I previously mentioned. It may also be a bad witness
to your Protestant friends. By continuing
as praise leader, you may be signaling
them that there is something lacking
in the Catholic Church that you need
to get in their church. That's not
to say we can't learn from our Protestant
brothers but we need to be careful
about the signals we send.
It's one thing if you were to join
them on occasion for the sake of
fellowship. I do that myself on rare
occasion. After all these people
are my friends. I enjoyed playing
in their ministry team but to do
so on a regular basis is not wise.
I hope this helps,
John
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Mike
replied:
Hi, Drew —
Thanks for the question.
If the Holy Spirit is calling you
home to the Church you have to answer
that call.
In the same way your wife has to
respect your free will to choose
what you believe is correct,
you have to accept her free will
to believe what she thinks is correct.
One of the big differences between
Christianity and Islam is that Christianity
respects the free will of its members
to:
- come and go
- believe or not believe in whatever
Church or denominations they wish.
Islam means submission, (not much
room, if any, for free will here.) and Muslims who convert to another
faith are persecuted or killed.
When Catholics receive the Blessed
Sacrament, it is an outward sign that
we are in a Common Union with Our
Lord and the one Church He established
on St. Peter and His successors in
33 A.D.
To attend a Catholic Mass, as a Catholic, receive Holy Communion, and then
go up the street to attend another
non-Catholic Christian denomination,
would be like saying:
I really didn't mean to
say I was in a Communion (Common Union) with the
Catholic Church.
If you are interested in what faithful Catholics believe, consider buying a cheap copy of the Catechism of the Catholic Church.
With time, you may be able to confirm,
with your wife, what you already know
about the faith and share with her
other teachings she misunderstood or was unaware
of.
Mike
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