The poverty in what is often called "cafeteria-style" or "pick-and-choose" Catholicism is that it fails to entrust one's life completely to the sovereignty of God. In a word, it is a failure to wholeheartedly trust in the Lord.
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| Copyright 2015 by Leighton Drake |
This post is intended for Catholics because Protestants, by the very nature of their religion, deny the authority of the Catholic Church. So for them this is a non-issue. I believe they are wrong in their position concerning the authority of the Catholic Church, but to be wrong does not imply a lack of integrity or sincerity. They are following what they believe to be true and I give them the benefit of the doubt they are doing this with integrity. I have known a lot of very holy Protestants that could teach some Catholics (including this one) a thing or two about being an on-fire disciple of Jesus Christ.
But for the Catholic, the authority of the Church to teach in Christ's name is a huge issue. One could argue it is the issue. Why? Because the doctrines of the Trinity, the Eucharist and all the other sacraments, the divinity of Jesus Christ, and the rest, receive their authority through the ministry of the Church that Christ founded.
And if the Church has been given the authority to teach in the name of the Author of life (see the root for the word "authority"), then one would be unwise to dismiss the teachings of the Church on any matter. On the other hand, if the Church does does not possess that authority, Catholics are following a man-made religion and may very well risk their eternal salvation.
And if the Church has been given the authority to teach in the name of the Author of life (see the root for the word "authority"), then one would be unwise to dismiss the teachings of the Church on any matter. On the other hand, if the Church does does not possess that authority, Catholics are following a man-made religion and may very well risk their eternal salvation.
It is not the purpose of this post to argue for the God-given authority of the Catholic Church. For an excellent and concise treatment of this, I recommend the book, By What Authority, by Mark Shea, a former evangelical Protestant turned Catholic.
I would rather like to briefly address the question:
If the Catholic Church was founded by Jesus Christ, and was bestowed by Him with the authority to teach in His name on matters of faith and morals, as the Catholic Church claims, how does one justify to oneself the picking and choosing of articles of faith and morals without risking disobedience to the Lord Himself?
I know: it is a big question. But I think it is an important one.
When I came to the doors of the Catholic Church (literally--- and they were locked, incidentally--- but that is a story for another time), I found myself facing that question head-on. I knew I could not, with any integrity, become Catholic unless the Church could claim the authority of Christ Himself. If He was not the Head of the Body, as Paul said, I could not with integrity be part of that Body.
If Christ was not the Head of the Catholic Church, the Church was no more than a man-made institution that basically made its claim upon the Gospel of Jesus Christ without any authority to do so. This would be, to my mind, the height of arrogance, and I could have no part in it.
If Christ was not the Head of the Catholic Church, the Church was no more than a man-made institution that basically made its claim upon the Gospel of Jesus Christ without any authority to do so. This would be, to my mind, the height of arrogance, and I could have no part in it.
I poured myself into study and investigation (I was much younger in those days and could be up till all hours of the night and still function the following morning). I desperately wanted to be a Protestant because most of my extended family, including my beloved mother, were Protestant. I also had--- perhaps a silly notion--- dreams of becoming a minister (quite a stretch for a guy who months before had claimed agnosticism and shunned all forms of Christianity).
However, the wise words of C.S. Lewis, from his classic work, Mere Christianity, haunted me:
I hope no reader will suppose that "mere" Christianity is here put forward as an alternative to the creeds of the existing communions--- as if a man could adopt it in preference to Congregationalism or Greek Orthodoxy or anything else. It is more like a hall out of which doors open into several rooms. If I can bring anyone into the hall I shall have done what I attempted. But it is in the rooms, not in the hall, that there are fires and chairs and meals. The hall is a place to wait in, a place from which to try the various doors, not a place to live in.... And above all you must be asking which door is the true one; not which pleases you best by its paint and panelling. In plain language, the question should never be; "Do I like this kind of service?" but "Are these doctrines true: Is holiness here? (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity, from the Preface, emphasis mine)
Through prayerful study, I became convinced that Catholicism is true, and I remain convinced, more than ever, by her claims to authority. (Frankly, from a fleshly point of view, sometimes I think it would be much easier to not be Catholic! But truth must always trump comfort.)
I was twenty-eight when I began the process of initiation into the Church, a process that is wonderfully marked by occasions of conversion and rites that take the human person's faith journey with utter seriousness, and offer a depth of conversional opportunities sorely lacking in many ecclesial communities.
When I made my profession of faith for the first time, I did so with the conviction that I was "all in." I had tried life on my terms, and that was an utter "fail," so I happily submitted myself to the teaching authority of Jesus Christ, whom I had asked to be Lord of my life, displacing a myriad of idols I had knelt to over the years.
One of the toughest teachings I encountered was--- not surprisingly--- the Church's teachings on contraception. Not because the teaching didn't make sense--- I read Humanae Vitae to become informed on the reasons for the Church's teachings, and found it brilliant and beautiful, and so prophetic--- but because, frankly, I was terrified. What if we ended up with twenty-odd children (following the example of St. Catherine of Siena's parents!)?
But, scared as I was, the words of Christ, "Fear not!" echoed in my mind as I determined to follow Him all the way, not just part of the way. How arrogant would it be for me to approach the Blessed Lord and say, "I will follow you, Lord--- but on my terms"!
My fears, of course, proved to be a waste of energy. The blessings of openness to life and working in cooperation with God's bodily design through Natural Family Planning over the years has been immeasurable. The Church's teachings on marriage and fertility have done more to mature and strengthen my faith in God's providential care than anything else, in fact. The big, scary "Yes" of submitting to God's authority regarding fertility makes the countless opportunities to say "Yes" to the Lord in other areas of the spiritual life much less daunting. The "Yes" to God's plan in marriage leads to life in the fullest sense.
On the other hand, to treat the Church's teachings like optional culinary items on a buffet table is to cheat oneself of the fullness of faith. It is simply a poverty to live a half-hearted commitment to the Catholic faith.
The only reason to believe and follow anything is because it is true. And Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life (cf. Jn 14:6). He also said to the Apostle Simon Peter, "You are Peter [rock], and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matt 16:18-19, RSV).
Either the Church teaches in the Blessed Lord's name, or it doesn't. Once it is acknowledged that the Church was founded by Christ and has the authority to teach in His name, it is impossible to pick and choose what one believes to be true from the deposit of faith with any integrity. "Cafeteria-style Catholicism" becomes an act of sheer arrogance and futile subjectivity.
People come to the Church because they need Jesus. They seek communion with God. People who say they have a relationship with Jesus but don't need the Church are missing the whole point of Jesus' mission. He came to save a lost humanity, and in doing so He established a family, the family of God, and to be part of that family is to be part of His family. The Church is the "universal sacrament of salvation" (cf. Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church). The Church is the way He established to bring us into communion with Him, and through Him, with the Father, by the power of the Holy Spirit Who proceeds from the Father and the Son. In the life of the Church, we live in relationship with the Blessed Trinity.
When I say "Yes" to the Church, I am saying "Yes" to Jesus. I am, in a sense, living the spiritual reality of Mary, who gave her fiat to God in the fullness of time so that we might have eternal life. Imagine Mary saying to the angel Gabriel, "Let most of it be done to me according to your word... most, but not all."
Sort of loses its spiritual power, doesn't it?
She gave God her full, unconditional "Yes."
We are called to imitate her and do no less. In imitating Mary in her response to God, we open the door to Jesus.
On the other hand, to treat the Church's teachings like optional culinary items on a buffet table is to cheat oneself of the fullness of faith. It is simply a poverty to live a half-hearted commitment to the Catholic faith.
The only reason to believe and follow anything is because it is true. And Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life (cf. Jn 14:6). He also said to the Apostle Simon Peter, "You are Peter [rock], and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven" (Matt 16:18-19, RSV).
Either the Church teaches in the Blessed Lord's name, or it doesn't. Once it is acknowledged that the Church was founded by Christ and has the authority to teach in His name, it is impossible to pick and choose what one believes to be true from the deposit of faith with any integrity. "Cafeteria-style Catholicism" becomes an act of sheer arrogance and futile subjectivity.
People come to the Church because they need Jesus. They seek communion with God. People who say they have a relationship with Jesus but don't need the Church are missing the whole point of Jesus' mission. He came to save a lost humanity, and in doing so He established a family, the family of God, and to be part of that family is to be part of His family. The Church is the "universal sacrament of salvation" (cf. Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church). The Church is the way He established to bring us into communion with Him, and through Him, with the Father, by the power of the Holy Spirit Who proceeds from the Father and the Son. In the life of the Church, we live in relationship with the Blessed Trinity.
When I say "Yes" to the Church, I am saying "Yes" to Jesus. I am, in a sense, living the spiritual reality of Mary, who gave her fiat to God in the fullness of time so that we might have eternal life. Imagine Mary saying to the angel Gabriel, "Let most of it be done to me according to your word... most, but not all."
Sort of loses its spiritual power, doesn't it?
She gave God her full, unconditional "Yes."
We are called to imitate her and do no less. In imitating Mary in her response to God, we open the door to Jesus.
People need Jesus! It's not rocket science.
That's the beauty of the Eucharist, by the way: Jesus is wholly "given for you" (cf. Lk 22:19).
Will you be wholly given for Him?
"It is not hard to obey when we love the one we obey," said Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, admired by Catholics and non-Catholics alike for the depth of her Christian witness.
To obey the teachings of the Church for love of Jesus brings a depth of life and joy that we will never know if we live a "conditional" Christianity.
That's the beauty of the Eucharist, by the way: Jesus is wholly "given for you" (cf. Lk 22:19).
Will you be wholly given for Him?
"It is not hard to obey when we love the one we obey," said Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, admired by Catholics and non-Catholics alike for the depth of her Christian witness.
To obey the teachings of the Church for love of Jesus brings a depth of life and joy that we will never know if we live a "conditional" Christianity.
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