What Is Catholicism?

Rules, rules, rules. Why are there so many rules? What's the deal with the Catholic Church telling me what to do? Why is the Church so restrictive?

These are all great questions, but they are born out of the wrong approach. They are born, most of the time, out of a lack of understanding. I, at one time, felt the same way. There were particular "rules" of the Catholic Church that I just didn't agree with. This preoccupation with the "rules" is, I believe, at the heart of the identity crisis the Catholic church is facing currently.

I asked the teens the other night at a youth group meeting, "What is Catholicism?" None of the teenagers present had an answer to that question. All of them had been through religious education of some sort. Some of them had gone to, and still go to, Catholic schools. I can say that I am not surprised at their lack of understanding of what Catholicism is. I don't fault them for their lack of understanding. Until the past few years, I too, had a lack of understanding of what Catholicism was. While our Catholic religious education system does a good job at teaching (in most situations) the rules of the Church, where we have failed is in getting Catholics to understand Catholicism on a deeper level. So now we have a couple of generations of people that feel that Catholicism is just a religion, a sect, or a set of rules.

Catholicism, in its true essence, is a way of life. It is transformation. It is a call to live an authentic life. Catholicism is much more than just showing up to church on Sunday and occasionally receiving the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It is more than following the rules set forth by the Pope.

The other thing I did at the youth group meeting that night was challenge the teens to take one "rule" of the Church that they think is too restrictive and try to understand why the Church holds that particular position. I then explained that if they did so that I guaranteed that that rule would point to something Jesus said in the Gospels. The teachings of the Church are there as a guideline for us to live the lives that Christ wants us to live. They are there to challenge us to become better people, not to prohibit or restrict us.

I don't know much about other Christian traditions, but I imagine that most of them were founded on the thought that Catholicism was too restrictive. The founders of these churches, I imagine, did not want to be challenged to go outside their comfort zones, so they left and started their own churches.

Catholicism is a choice. It is a choice to truly live out the Gospel in our lives. And yes, living out the Gospel involves sacrifice. It involves stepping outside of our comfort zones and doing what is right despite how hard it is. Catholicism is counter-cultural. If there is one thing we, as Catholics, are called to do above all else, it is this: "I give you a new commandment: love one another. As I have loved you, so you should love one another. This is how we will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:34-35) This is how we will reclaim our Catholic identity.