Thursday, June 24, 2010

I Accept Catholic Teachings: Or, Understanding Why I Believe What I Believe

I'm not awed by authority. Part of that's probably from spending my youth in the sixties. Part, I suspect, is because I'm firm-minded. Or stubborn. Or obstinate. Which word fits depends partly on your point of view.

I like to make my own decisions - and really resent someone else trying to do my thinking for me.

So I became a Catholic?!

I've posted about this before. (November 24, 2009, September 19, 2009)

There's been a bit of buzz in the online Catholic community, about people and organizations who claim to be Catholic but seem to be making up their own version of Catholic beliefs. I've posted about this, too - I've put links in the "related posts" below.

Thinking My Way Through to Belief

Before I converted to Catholicism, being the sort of person I was, I had to think my way through what I believed about something before I could really believe it.

Now that I'm a practicing Catholic, being the sort of person I am, I have to think my way through what I believe about something before I can really believe it.

Every human being has free will: I can decide to believe whatever I want. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1730) So can you. A few minutes from now, I could decide to abandon Catholicism and start following Thor. That'd be a daft thing to do: but in principle I could make that choice.

Being a practicing Catholic hasn't taken away my free will: and it certainly hasn't made me a "different person." Not deep down inside.

Being Catholic has Changed Me: But Not By Much

What has changed in me are a few details about the process I go through in evaluating a belief.

These days, when I learn about some detail of the human condition that's new to me - that happens pretty often - I go to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and some other officially-sanctioned resources like the USCCB (since I live in America) and the Holy See.

Knowing What I Believe, and Why I Believe It

While doing my research, I find out what the Church teaches - or where the best minds of the Catholic Church are, in sorting out some new wrinkle in culture and technology. That shows me what I need to believe.

Then I start studying how the Church arrived (or is arriving) at that teaching - and the reasons given for why we're supposed to believe it. After a while, I have a pretty good idea of why I believe what I believe.

For me, that's important. I like to know as much as I can about what I'm committed to.

The Human Brain: Hot Stuff; But Not That Hot

Some things, like the Trinity, I accept as something I simply can't understand.

Like most adult humans, my brain weighs about three pounds - give or take. ("Brain Facts that make you go, 'Hmmmmm'.") I think it's unreasonable to assume that the circuits and programming packed into a few pounds of neurons, glial cells, and whatever else we use to think with, can fully understand everything. Even with the resources of the Internet at my disposal.

God's God and I'm not. I may not like it: but that's a fact.

Related posts:

4 comments:

Elizabeth Mahlou said...

Interesting post. I know others who have also thought their way to belief. I thought my way out of it, then God reached down, conked me on the head, and brought me into it. We apparently each have our own paths to God; He just makes sure we find them.

Brian H. Gill said...

Elizabeth Mahlou,

It's been a bit of both for me, actually. But I'm the sort of person who has to think through those "conks on the head."

What amazes me is how many different kinds of people God's made. The variety is dazzling.

Angela said...

Cool post. My friends who convert or are on the way to conversion seem to be awed at the Catholic Church's emphasis on using intellect in partnership with things of "the heart".

Brian H. Gill said...

Angela,

Thanks!

Mind and heart, in the Western senses of the words, are important. I've noticed that words like "balance" and "moderation" show up a lot in the Catholic documents I read.

Like it? Pin it, Plus it, - - -

Pinterest: My Stuff, and More

Advertisement

Unique, innovative candles


Visit us online:
Spiral Light CandleFind a Retailer
Spiral Light Candle Store

Popular Posts

Label Cloud

1277 abortion ADD ADHD-Inattentive Adoration Chapel Advent Afghanistan Africa America Amoris Laetitia angels animals annulment Annunciation anti-catholicism Antichrist apocalyptic ideas apparitions archaeology architecture Arianism art Asperger syndrome assumptions asteroid astronomy Australia authority balance and moderation baptism being Catholic beliefs bias Bible Bible and Catechism bioethics biology blogs brain Brazil business Canada capital punishment Caritas in Veritate Catechism Catholic Church Catholic counter-culture Catholicism change happens charisms charity Chile China Christianity Christmas citizenship climate change climatology cloning comets common good common sense Communion community compassion confirmation conscience conversion Corpus Christi cosmology creation credibility crime crucifix Crucifixion Cuba culture dance dark night of the soul death depression designer babies despair detachment devotion discipline disease diversity divination Divine Mercy divorce Docetism domestic church dualism duty Easter economics education elections emotions England entertainment environmental issues Epiphany Establishment Clause ethics ethnicity Eucharist eugenics Europe evangelizing evolution exobiology exoplanets exorcism extremophiles faith faith and works family Father's Day Faust Faustus fear of the Lord fiction Final Judgment First Amendment forgiveness Fortnight For Freedom free will freedom fun genetics genocide geoengineering geology getting a grip global Gnosticism God God's will good judgment government gratitude great commission guest post guilt Haiti Halloween happiness hate health Heaven Hell HHS hierarchy history holidays Holy Family Holy See Holy Spirit holy water home schooling hope humility humor hypocrisy idolatry image of God images Immaculate Conception immigrants in the news Incarnation Independence Day India information technology Internet Iraq Ireland Israel Italy Japan Jesus John Paul II joy just war justice Kansas Kenya Knights of Columbus knowledge Korea language Last Judgment last things law learning Lent Lenten Chaplet life issues love magi magic Magisterium Manichaeism marriage martyrs Mary Mass materialism media medicine meditation Memorial Day mercy meteor meteorology Mexico Minnesota miracles Missouri moderation modesty Monophysitism Mother Teresa of Calcutta Mother's Day movies music Muslims myth natural law neighbor Nestorianism New Year's Eve New Zealand news Nietzsche obedience Oceania organization original sin paleontology parish Parousia penance penitence Pentecost Philippines physical disability physics pilgrimage politics Pope Pope in Germany 2011 population growth positive law poverty prayer predestination presumption pride priests prophets prostitution Providence Purgatory purpose quantum entanglement quotes reason redemption reflections relics religion religious freedom repentance Resurrection robots Roman Missal Third Edition rosaries rules sacramentals Sacraments Saints salvation schools science secondary causes SETI sex shrines sin slavery social justice solar planets soul South Sudan space aliens space exploration Spain spirituality stem cell research stereotypes stewardship stories storm Sudan suicide Sunday obligation superstition symbols technology temptation terraforming the establishment the human condition tolerance Tradition traffic Transfiguration Transubstantiation travel Trinity trust truth uncertainty United Kingdom universal destination of goods vacation Vatican Vatican II veneration vengeance Veterans Day videos virtue vlog vocations voting war warp drive theory wealth weather wisdom within reason work worship writing

Marian Apparition: Champion, Wisconsin

Background:Posts in this blog: In the news:

What's That Doing in a Nice Catholic Blog?

From time to time, a service that I use will display links to - odd - services and retailers.

I block a few of the more obvious dubious advertisers.

For example: psychic anything, numerology, mediums, and related practices are on the no-no list for Catholics. It has to do with the Church's stand on divination. I try to block those ads.

Sometime regrettable advertisements get through, anyway.

Bottom line? What that service displays reflects the local culture's norms, - not Catholic teaching.