WHAT WE BELIEVE
I believe…
What does that mean?!
So should i come to mass if i’m not catholic (yet)?
Where can I Study more? I’m interested in deepening my Faith in God.
i’ve been hurt by someone in the church.
is there still a place for me?
As Catholics we believe and profess each and everything that is contained in the Nicene Creed, which all Christians professed for millennia as what made someone a Christian and what we pray every Sunday together, which is translated into English as:
I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen.
and that everything contained in the word of God, whether written or handed down in Tradition, which the Church, either by a solemn judgment or by the ordinary and universal Magisterium, sets forth to be believed as divinely revealed.
We also accept and hold each and everything definitively proposed by the Church regarding teaching on faith and morals.
And we adhere with religious submission of will and intellect to the teachings which either the Roman Pontiff or the College of Bishops enunciate when they exercise their authentic Magisterium, even if they do not intend to proclaim these teachings by a definitive act.
YES!
Even if you’re not Catholic. Sunday Mass is where we as Catholics worship God according to the way Christians have worshipped God from the days of the Apostles, and what we hope you one day will fully participate in too!
It might be different than what you’re used to. There is no band on the stage, there’s a big table in the center of the church and everyone is looking towards a Crucifix and a box with a candle next to it. The leader of wears funny looking clothes and doesn’t seem too focused on you being there. And on top of it, everyone is standing and sitting and kneeling and doing Catholic calisthenics That’s okay. Be courageous. Say hello. Pray.
We ask that you don’t receive Holy Communion (the piece of “bread” that is distributed when everyone gets in line) — for Catholics this is the most important profession of our Faith and that receiving Communion means you are Catholic.
(Catholics, do you want motivation to go to Mass? Here!)
Sure! Here!
(https://www.wordonfire.org/articles/fellows/3-reasons-why-you-should-be-catholic/)
And here!
(https://www.catholic.com/magazine/print-edition/christian-yesbut-why-catholic)
and here!
(https://catholicexchange.com/why-be-catholic/)
and here!
(https://catholic-link.org/50-reasons-to-be-catholic/)
YES.
The Church is made up of really sinful people — that’s the reason why we’re here — because we know we need God’s concrete action in our lives and that the Church is bigger than just our sinful selves. I am so sorry that you have been hurt. It’s worth talking about and finding healing. It is easy for us sinful human beings to muck it up for others, and Jesus talks pretty seriously about how He doesn’t want that for you, especially in his Church.
God still wants you here. His holiness is what draws us sinful humans to His holiness and the holiness we have seen in his Church, like through the Saints and especially through his healing in the sacraments. While we as members of the Church can’t change what we believe, even about difficult teachings (because we believe it came from Jesus), we can be with you on our own journeys of conversion in the Lord’s Church.
Whether your hurt is big or small, God wants us to have healing in Holy Mother Church. I pray that you will have the courage to reach out, to talk, to come to the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament and allow Him to share your suffering. Your suffering is not foreign to Him. He loves you.