Can You Be Catholic and Disagree with Doctrine?

Catholic Dissenters Should Call the Episcopalians

I found this article to be a good read. I agreed with all the points and it is a much needed response to the growing dissent of Roman Catholics from the dogmatic truths of our faith. Granted, I wish the article articulated this message in a less "preachy" or easy-to-perceive-as condescending manner. I don't think this was the author's intent at all, either way, and I can understand the author’s impatience with this growing disrespect and scandal within the Body of Christ by cafeteria Catholics who pick and choose what they will believe as if the Gospel is just some other ideology. We preach Christ the Savior not Christ a Savior.

St. Augustine in the fourth century said, “If you only believe what you like in the gospels, it is not the Gospel you believe in, but yourself.” The Catholic Church claims to bear the entirety and fullness of the truth about human existence—not scientific truths or the accurate answers to historical mysteries, but the truth about man, the truth about the human condition, it’s meaning and it’s purpose and the true eschatological end of all of mankind. Based on this vision of the human person, a certain and rich moral framework for life can be drawn forth. Hence, the Church teaches infallibly on matters of faith and morality. We believe in a Christ who proclaimed that His Spirit will come upon His Church and protect His Gospel until the end of time—not a Christ that said we will come to understand the truths He wished to teach at some time in the future. Catholics who dissent lock themselves in a position of contradiction by holding that Catholicism is the true faith while simultaneously believing that the Church has erred on matters of faith and has some sort of authority to “edit” the whole, entire Gospel truth she has received. If the credibility of the apostles, of the Holy Spirit’s protection of the Church is compromised, with it goes the credibility of Christ.

The truth is accepted whole and entire or not at all. Truth does not and cannot change. This is not a matter of unyielding compromise, but it is simple logic: the Church cannot be wrong on a matter of faith or morality in its teaching or else it contradicts its own doctrine that it cannot err in regard to such matters, and thus, the position of the cafeteria Catholic validates the idea that the the Church of Rome is the Whore of Babylon many Protestants make her out to be.

A Letter to Catholics in Disagreement with Rome

Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

The Lord God has invited all of humanity to Himself with the gift of salvation and Catholics have a special role in witnessing to the truth that He has given us. This is the truth of our Catholic faith and we participate in a special way with His redemptive works. We are called to transform the fallen world in our words and deeds. In our reception of the Lord Jesus Christ in the sacraments, we literally as St. Peter said become “partakers in the divine nature.” He strengthens us in our weakness to carry out the arduous Catholic vocation of Christian virtue.

The catechesis of the average Catholic in the United States is outrageous. This has led to many Catholics being lukewarm in their faith-practice, apathetic toward the faith, and worse, vocal dissidents. It is common practice for Catholics to mistake the Church's doctrines with her disciplines. The doctrines, or dogma, of the Church must be adhered to as it is irreversible and permanent; on the other hand, her discipline, as history has shown us, can and has changed. Catholic theologian Scott Hahn often recounts that he took for granted the Protestant conviction that authority for Christians rested in Scripture alone. He was surprised to find that Scripture did not support his view. On the contrary, St. Paul wrote in his first letter to Timothy that "the Church of the living God", not the Bible, is "the foundation and pillar of the Truth" (1 Tim 3:15).

Certainly, a Catholic who willfully denies the teaching authority of the Church in regard to faith and morality is guilty of heresy and is excommunicated by the act itself—it does not have to be formal. The penalty of excommunication fundamentally underscores two realities: the seriousness of the assent of faith and the desire for the excommunicated Catholic to reconcile with God and the Church through conversion of heart and mind. This was fully present in the early Church. St. Paul makes reference to it in his first letter to the Corinthians (cf. 1 Cor. 5:1-4).

The Catholic Church certainly does not consider itself a Christian denomination. The divisive concept of "denomination" is quite foreign to her. The Catholic Church was founded by Christ, whose authority was passed to St. Peter, the prince of the Apostles, and that apostolic lineage is preserved through the apostolic succession of bishops all over the world. The Catholic Church consists of many different rites and jurisdictions, all under the bishop of Rome, currently Benedict XVI. The Catholic Church has weathered a lot over the years and is the Church of many great saints and sinners who had one goal: to work out their salvation in accord with the authentic teachings of Jesus Christ. Contrary to the typical American disposition in regard to matters of faith, we cannot simply do it our way. We did not create the Catholic faith. We received from the Catholic faith from our parents, our pastors, our bishops, and ultimately from the hands of the Apostles. If what we have received is from the Apostles then we can be confident that what we have received the faith from Jesus Christ who established the Church to preach and safeguard His teachings.

The Church is a loving parent. She is our Mother and therefore she is naturally concerned for the welfare of the children born to her in the waters of Baptism. "It is in the Church, in communion with all the baptized, that the Christian fulfills his vocation. From the Church he receives the Word of God containing the teachings of 'the law of Christ.' From the Church he receives the grace of the sacraments that sustains him on the 'way.' From the Church he learns the example of holiness and recognizes its model and source in the all-holy Virgin Mary; he discerns it in the authentic witness of those who live it; he discovers it in the spiritual tradition and long history of the saints who have gone before him and whom the liturgy celebrates in the rhythms of the sanctoral cycle" (CCC 2030).

We cannot pass on the fullness of faith when we make ourselves the final arbiter of the Truth. It is contradictory to profess simultaneously a love for the Church and distrust in her teaching authority. Just as we heed the advice and warnings of physicians to maintain our biological and psychological health, we must adhere to the Church’s Magisterium for they have been given the charism via the Holy Spirit to hand on faithfully and fully the truth Christ wants us to receive so that we might have all the tools necessary to successfully work out our salvation. We owe it to ourselves to learn what the Church teaches, to examine her reasoning with an open heart, and to associate ourselves with the work of spreading the Faith. We are Catholics through our baptism and public professions of faith; we assent to all the Church teaches through these actions and bind ourselves to follow the Church’s laws and practices.

For Catholics who dissent—not those who carefully question or struggle with theological and moral positions of the Church in order to understand and conform to the truth she preaches—the act of declaring that the Church is objectively wrong on theological and moral matters is no small matter. In fact, it is scandalous to call yourself Catholic after having taken such a position. To be Catholic means to be in communion with the Bishop of Rome, the Pope. If you do not mean the criterion, that is, assent fully to the Catholic faith, one cannot be truly in communion with the Vicar of Christ and successor of St. Peter the Apostle. Pray. Discern. Question with sincerity and purity of heart. Stay close to the sacraments (particularly Confession if you find yourself in a state of objective mortal sin). Don't easily succumb to temptations and the false earthly comforts in place of the will of God; Christ Himself said of those who do such, "I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full."

Sincerely yours,
Eric

Worthiness to Receive Holy Communion

General Principles
by Pope Benedict XVI

1. Presenting oneself to receive Holy Communion should be a conscious decision, based on a reasoned judgment regarding one’s worthiness to do so, according to the Church’s objective criteria, asking such questions as: "Am I in full communion with the Catholic Church? Am I guilty of grave sin? Have I incurred a penalty (e.g. excommunication, interdict) that forbids me to receive Holy Communion? Have I prepared myself by fasting for at least an hour?" The practice of indiscriminately presenting oneself to receive Holy Communion, merely as a consequence of being present at Mass, is an abuse that must be corrected (cf. Instruction "Redemptionis Sacramentum," nos. 81, 83).

2. The Church teaches that abortion or euthanasia is a grave sin. The Encyclical Letter Evangelium Vitae, with reference to judicial decisions or civil laws that authorize or promote abortion or euthanasia, states that there is a "grave and clear obligation to oppose them by conscientious objection. [...] In the case of an intrinsically unjust law, such as a law permitting abortion or euthanasia, it is therefore never licit to obey it, or to 'take part in a propaganda campaign in favour of such a law or vote for it’" (no. 73). Christians have a "grave obligation of conscience not to cooperate formally in practices which, even if permitted by civil legislation, are contrary to God’s law. Indeed, from the moral standpoint, it is never licit to cooperate formally in evil. [...] This cooperation can never be justified either by invoking respect for the freedom of others or by appealing to the fact that civil law permits it or requires it" (no. 74).

3. Not all moral issues have the same moral weight as abortion and euthanasia. For example, if a Catholic were to be at odds with the Holy Father on the application of capital punishment or on the decision to wage war, he would not for that reason be considered unworthy to present himself to receive Holy Communion. While the Church exhorts civil authorities to seek peace, not war, and to exercise discretion and mercy in imposing punishment on criminals, it may still be permissible to take up arms to repel an aggressor or to have recourse to capital punishment. There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia.

4. Apart from an individual's judgment about his worthiness to present himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, the minister of Holy Communion may find himself in the situation where he must refuse to distribute Holy Communion to someone, such as in cases of a declared excommunication, a declared interdict, or an obstinate persistence in manifest grave sin (cf. can. 915).

5. Regarding the grave sin of abortion or euthanasia, when a person’s formal cooperation becomes manifest (understood, in the case of a Catholic politician, as his consistently campaigning and voting for permissive abortion and euthanasia laws), his Pastor should meet with him, instructing him about the Church’s teaching, informing him that he is not to present himself for Holy Communion until he brings to an end the objective situation of sin, and warning him that he will otherwise be denied the Eucharist.

6. When "these precautionary measures have not had their effect or in which they were not possible," and the person in question, with obstinate persistence, still presents himself to receive the Holy Eucharist, "the minister of Holy Communion must refuse to distribute it" (cf. Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts Declaration "Holy Communion and Divorced, Civilly Remarried Catholics" [2002], nos. 3-4). This decision, properly speaking, is not a sanction or a penalty. Nor is the minister of Holy Communion passing judgment on the person’s subjective guilt, but rather is reacting to the person’s public unworthiness to receive Holy Communion due to an objective situation of sin. [N.B. A Catholic would be guilty of formal cooperation in evil, and so unworthy to present himself for Holy Communion, if he were to deliberately vote for a candidate precisely because of the candidate’s permissive stand on abortion and/or euthanasia. When a Catholic does not share a candidate’s stand in favour of abortion and/or euthanasia, but votes for that candidate for other reasons, it is considered remote material cooperation, which can be permitted in the presence of proportionate reasons.]

St. Paul expressed similar sentiments here:
For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, "This is my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me." In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me." For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we should not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are chastened so that we may not be condemned along with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:23-32)