Be Not Afraid

Clare G WROTE: As Sister Lucy, one of the 3 visionaries of Fatima explained: "People must recite the Rosary every day.”

- Nobody needs to recite the rosary. Ever. It is not required by the Roman Catholic Church. Neither is any other devotion. I am glad this was mentioned. This is exactly the kind of thing that tends to worry Catholics for nothing. Hopefully the information presented here will help some people to stop worrying.

In the case of the Rosary, Saint Louis de Montfort says, in his book “The Secret of the Rosary:”

“None of these Rosary memberships binds under pain of sin. It is not even a venial sin to fail in this duty because such an undertaking is entirely voluntary and supererogatory…So whenever the Rosary clashes with a duty of one's, state in life, holy as the Rosary is, one must give preference to the duty to be performed…If you have been unable to say it (the Rosary) because of some duty required by obedience or because you genuinely forgot, or because of some urgent necessity, you have not committed even a venial sin…And, my dear Catholic people, even if you fail to say your Rosary out of sheer carelessness or laziness, as long as you do not have any formal contempt for it, you do not sin, absolutely speaking.”

No prayer of the rosary, no sin. Simple.

Also, there is no need to listen to anything said at Fatima. There is no need to listen to any other “vision,” either. Just because something (like the rosary) was mentioned at Fatima doesn’t mean we have to pray it.

The Fatima vision is something called a “private revelation.” It is not part of the main revelation of the Catholic Church at all. And no Catholic has to pay any attention to it.

The Catechism itself points out:

“67: Throughout the ages, there have been so-called "private" revelations, some of which have been recognized by the authority of the Church. They do not belong, however, to the deposit of faith. It is not their role to improve or complete Christ's definitive Revelation, but to help live more fully by it in a certain period of history.”

In short, If it is a “private revelation,” you don’t have to believe it. I cannot count how many times priests have explained this to me over the years. At first I didn’t believe them. But I do now. The Catechism passage above makes it impossible to argue the point.

Private revelations are NOT required for salvation by the Catholic Faithful. And this is good. The Church recognizes that many of these “private revelations” can contain things that not everybody can easily accept. Visions of Hell written by the Saints, for example, can be needlessly terrifying. The Church tends to focus more on the Love of God as a motivation for a Christian life, rather than on the threat of Hell, which could simply discourage those of a gentler frame of mind, or a delicate conscience, from pursuing the Faith. That is why these “visions” are not elevated to the status of original Revelation. Any one of them (or all of them) could be completely untrue. We are not required to take them seriously in any way.

So “private revelations” are firmly out.

Clare G also wrote: “Know your Faith better by reading and studying a good Catholic catechism, one published before 1960, such as the Catechism of the Council of Trent or the Catechisms of St. Pius X, or the original version of the Baltimore Catechism published in 1880.”

- Be very, very careful when reading ANY Catechism. Some Catechisms can be needlessly strict and frightening. Anyone experiencing worries about their faith should AVOID any Catechism published before 1960. Such Catechisms often read like ironclad rule-books. They make virtually EVERYTHING sound like mortal sin, even when that is certainly not the case. Catholics need to watch what they accept into their hearts as “truth.” Vatican II, in the 1960s, was designed to REMOVE many of the frightening, strict beliefs that were starting to creep into Catholic Doctrine. That’s why modern Catechisms are often far gentler than something like, say, the Baltimore Catechism.

Also, if you are easily worried about sin, AVOID reading the Baltimore Catechism (in particular) at all costs. Father Thomas M. Santa, director of a Redemptorist website called Scrupulous Anonymous, advises Catholics constantly to stop reading the Baltimore Catechism if they suffer from needless fears about their salvation. The Baltimore Catechism is just about the most forbidding presentation of Catholic Doctrine in existence. It deals out terrifying punishments for practically every little thing under the sun, even – ESPECIALLY – things that are not mortal sins.

Clare G WROTE: “With fasting, one can hope to be chaste. Without fasting, one cannot even consider it. Christian fasting cuts like a knife into the heart of 'the flesh'. It says a definitive No to sin, and Yes to Jesus.”

I'm glad this was mentioned. Catholics are not required to fast at all. Only on Good Friday, and Ash Wednesday, and one hour before receiving communion. Fasting on other days is referred to as “Devotional Fasting.” And it is completely voluntary, because it is a devotion. Just like the Rosary. If voluntary fasting presents a stumbling block for you, don’t do it. It is not required. There is no sin in this at all.

Also, Catholics were once required to fast on all Fridays of the year. This also was changed by Vatican II. Interestingly, it still says in Canon Law that Catholics are to abstain from eating meat on ALL Fridays of the year. But just because something is written in Canon Law does not mean it must be taken at face value.

Catholic apologist Jimmy Akin has written an excellent article in which he points out that no Catholic is obligated to do ANY fasting, abstinence from meat, or penances on most Fridays at all. Hope this helps!

http://www.jimmyakin.org/2004/07/more_on_friday_.html

Mortification of the flesh through fasting, as described in Sacred Scripture is still held up by the Church as one of the "three pillars of the spiritual life." — together with prayer and almsgiving.

Hence St. Paul says, "We wrestle not
against flesh and blood, but against principalities,
against powers. Put on therefore the whole armor of
God." - St. John Chrysostom


With fasting, one can hope to be chaste.
Without fasting, one cannot even consider it. Christian fasting cuts like a knife into the heart of 'the flesh'.
It says a definitive No to sin, and Yes to Jesus.
Prayer, on the other hand, is the heart of chastity. In prayer, our mortal bodies begin to experience the resurrection of Christ.

If fasting pushes the flesh down, prayer raises it up again. It enables the body to be truly fruitful in the Spirit.

God looks down from heaven upon the sons of men, to see if there are any that are wise, that seek

after God. . . . They eat God’s bread, But they do not call upon his name.
Psalm 53:3-5

I’ve had several questions about Church teaching over the years. Many things confused me. Often, simple misunderstandings about what is sin and what is not can lead to needless worries about one’s salvation.

Here is a short list of several misunderstandings about Church teaching I have had in the past. Do any of these sound familiar to you? I was told these things by several other Catholics over the years. I didn’t know enough about the Church (at the time) to identify many of these things as the mistakes that they are.

I was told:

1.) I must pray the Rosary every day. If I don’t, I am guilty of a lack of Charity in prayer, and will be sent straight to Hell for mortal sin. (I eventually learned that the Rosary is a DEVOTION. And no Roman Catholic has to pray devotions. Ever. They are total extras. It is no sin for a Roman Catholic not to pray the Rosary.)

2.) I cannot work on Sunday. This is an Offence against the Fourth Commandment. Violating this will send me straight to Hell. (The Vatican actually teaches that you CAN work on Sunday. Just try not to forget to go to Church.)

3.) I cannot lie. Every lie (no matter how harmless) is a mortal sin, and will send me straight to Hell. (This is absolutely NOT true, according to official Vatican teaching.)

4.) I cannot waste anything. Even wasting one square of toilet paper is an Offense against God’s Bounty (Charity,) and will send me straight to Hell. (Okay, this one is just plain bizarre.)

5.) I must tithe (give 10% of my income to the Church.) If I don’t, this is mortal sin. Once again, I will be sent straight to Hell. (I eventually learned that the Roman Catholic Church does not teach tithing. At all. I cover this in detail in several of my other posts. We give whatever we want, according to our conscience (Corinthians 2.) No pressure.)

6.) I can have no rest or relaxation. If I am not out doing enormous penances, charities, and “good works,” serving the Church, volunteering at the soup kitchen, helping the homeless, etc., I will guilty of sloth and laziness, will be in mortal sin, and will be sent – you guessed it – straight to Hell. (This one particularly disturbed me. I am very solitary. I spend almost ALL my time by myself, and have no real inclination to do any of these things. I’m very shy. I was finally shown that all these things are simply there IF WE WISH TO DO THEM. It is most certainly NOT a mortal sin not to do them, according to official Catholic teaching. Millions of Catholics live alone, go nowhere, do no real “good works” to speak of. And the Roman Catholic Church has NEVER declared such people to be on the way to Hell. Apologist Jimmy Akin wrote an excellent article on this, here:

http://www.jimmyakin.org/2006/01/fear_of_going_t.html ).

This is just a small sampler of the various misunderstandings about sin that make Catholics uneasy about their salvation on a daily basis. It is my impression that a lot of people worry about baseless things like this – and many, many others.

Often, all that is needed to make such fears go away is correct theological knowledge about the Church and its practice. It is a true shame that more accurate information on these matters is not always readily available, even over the Internet. It would help many people.

bduch, I have just completed RCIA and you need to know nothing going in. That is what the classes are for, to introduce you to the Catholic Church, so relax and dont try to figure everything out at once take it one class and one subject at a time. Please ask questions as they come up and remember to enjoy your journey!!

Please ask whatever questions you wish. This group is for help and support. The format is deliberately non-threatening. You should feel free to ask your questions, and to receive clarification on anything that might be disturbing your peace.

Bduch has said "The religion confuses me and I really want to be prepared to join RCIA when the class starts again at my local parish, but theirs just so much to take in that it overcomes me! Can anyone help"

Catholicism can seem intimidating at first glance. It can be very easy to feel overwhelmed by the seemingly endless rules and regulations of the Church. But this complexity is actually quite deceiving. The Church, in fact, is very gentle on its followers, and remarkably undemanding. It is very easy to be Catholic. It is a shame how this simple truth often gets lost when many people try to investigate the Church as it stands. This group is meant to help people not feel so overwhelmed, so the Church (and God) can be understood without anxiety or worry.

Again, please ask whatever questions you might have.

bduch, you need to calm down first, if your freaking out i cant help you.
calm down. what do you need help in

I need alot of help! The religion confuses me and I realy want to be prepared to join RCIA when the class starts again at my local parish, but theirs just so much to take in that it overcomes me! Can anyone help me!!!!!!!:si gnofcross:

Beautiful group god bless And I have questions