Don’t call yourself a Catholic Learning House

Don’t call yourself a Catholic

August 26, 2011 – 7:32 pm

You duped me, O LORD, and I let myself be duped;
you were too strong for me, and you triumphed.
All the day I am an object of laughter;
everyone mocks me.

Whenever I speak, I must cry out,
violence and outrage is my message;
the word of the LORD has brought me
derision and reproach all the day.

I say to myself, I will not mention him,
I will speak in his name no more.
But then it becomes like fire burning in my heart,
imprisoned in my bones;
I grow weary holding it in, I cannot endure it. – Jeremiah 20:7-9

Whoa! Next time I’m ticked off at God, I’m going to look up this passage and just point to it! I don’t think I’ve ever recalled such angry words at God in the Bible, but I could be wrong.

My anger usually stems from frustration with other people, especially Catholics. I find myself more patient with someone who is not Christian. I can speak to them in faith to let them know that my face is the face of the Catholic Church.

I have had wonderful conversations with Catholics who disagree with the Church, but they also have a deep love for it and they wouldn’t leave it.

But I have found myself in situations where I’m surrounded by Catholics, but it’s very hard to believe it by the way they talk. Sometimes the Holy Spirit takes over and intelligent words actually form and come out of my mouth. Most of the time, I sit there seething, because I don’t want to say what I’m really thinking:

Don’t call yourself a Catholic if you really are not. Don’t call yourself a Catholic if you have no intention of ever going to Mass. Don’t call yourself a Catholic if you demand to be married or want your baby baptized in Church, yet you’re not willing to follow the rules and guidelines to prepare for those events and you have no intentions of attending Mass after the event. Just have your party and be done with it.

I see no point in calling yourself a Catholic when all you do is talk in a derogatory way about the Faith. Don’t call yourself a Catholic if you think all priests are pedophiles.

Disassociate yourself. Call yourself anything you want, but don’t call yourself a Catholic. Because you’re not talking or acting like one.

Okay, I feel better now!

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