A reflection on certain elements pertaining to the Catholic faith, its doctrines, theologies and beliefs. If anyone finds this, let alone reads it, I wholeheartedly welcome and indeed encourage discourse. Let's keep it civil though.
One of the fundamental prerequisites to understanding Christianity is that there is no unanimous interpretation shared by all peoples and cultures. Christians worldwide belong to a large number of denominations; each denomination contains varying sects; each sect of each denomination contains many individuals, each responding differently to the dogmas and philosophies of their worship system. In all these, one can segregate adherents further: there are, for example, conservative Protestants and liberal Protestants, social and political Evangelicals. Oxymoronic as it is, there are atheist and cultural Catholics - (these are not really Catholics, but identify as such through their cultural heritage or background, sometimes merely for attaining admission into Catholic schools).
All this is common knowledge, even amongst those unlearned in the nuances of Christian pluralism. However, I confess I was unsure what to make of the apparent versatility of labels with which Christians identify themselves during my school years. I recall a bewildering conversation in eighth grade: a friend rejected the existence of God, but he belonged to the Church of England. I was ignorant then, so naturally this made no sense. To my mind, being Catholic was unequivocally synonymous with being Christian. Therefore, the "church of England" must be the English Catholics – to which I must also belong. But what has the Church of England to do with Australia? Is there a Church of Australia? And what do you mean, you do not believe in God? You just said you belong to a church. What in hell kind of a church does not believe in God?
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Myself (right) at Confirmation, probably about 1997.
I like to think I would have made more sense of this had I gone through the Catholic education system myself, or at least elected religious studies in high school. Alas, I did neither. My only experience of religion was what I experienced through my church. I mean, I had unknowingly attended Protestant youth groups; I once attended mass at a Baptist church. These always struck me as somewhat odd; they lacked the solemnity of the mass I was used to being forced to sit through. The services lacked the structure I was familiar with. And the people of these other churches seemed too "weird" for my comfort – kind of like Ned Flanders' boys in The Simpsons. Otherwise they struck me as alarmingly over the top – too "happy-clappy" as the saying goes.
Yes, I was slow on the uptake regarding Christian denominations. Therefore, on the chance I am not the only person who dodged this historically significant information, I have decided, following this introduction and the next introductory-like chapter, to explore the history of Christian denominations rather than give a comprehensive history of the Catholic Church itself. Five seconds of Wikipedia browsing – merely as a starting point, of course – is enough to break the ambition of providing a short and accessible summation of so vast a topic.
Before that however, there are some basic questions and answers I would like to establish. To begin then, let's answer a question I still find commonly asked: Is Catholicism the original form of Christianity?
Put simply, the answer is yes. Notwithstanding its historical transformation, theological development and eventual Romanization – plus many other elements this book will address - Catholicism is spiritually closest to the form of worship practiced by the earliest Christians. Perhaps a more pertinent question is whether Catholicism is the true form of Christianity? And does it essentially matter?
In this book I will attempt to explain why I believe Catholicism is the truest and most pious way of following Christ. I also believe it is the most honest and authentic way to place ourselves before Our Lord. From the outside, our hierarchical system of so many saints and angels, of the Blessed Virgin Mary whom we place between ourselves and God, may seem unnecessarily complicated - even polytheistic. Yet other Christians largely misunderstand Catholicism, often due to the failings and misconducts of certain adherents. I will explore these issues and other topics such as the validity of miracles, the devotion to Mary, the Holy Eucharist and much more, offering reflections in sequential chapters. First however, I think an understanding of the very nature of God, irrespective of denominational differences, is an appropriate point to commence from.
