2016 - Why I Am Catholic

It is the first day of a brand new year.  At midnight all counters rolled over to zero and we begin a new year with hope that it is better than the last.  The year of Grace 2015 saw the death of my wife's sister, a wonderful woman who brought up seven children while dealing with an alcoholic husband and keeping her faith. It also saw my wife finally getting her knee fixed and she is now walking much better than before. There was a mixture of good and bad in 2015 but one thing that hasn't changes is that I am still a Catholic and I am in love with the Church that Christ built and continues to build.  Here are some of the basic reasons why I am and why I always will remain a Catholic. 

First of all the Catholic Church is Christ centered. Our eyes are fixed firmly on Christ in the Eucharist.  The Eucharist is the triumphant Jesus, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity there in the flesh.  Other Christians are centered on the Bible.  The Bible of course is the very Word of God but this very book tells us where salvation lies and that is in the Eucharist and the book uses the very words of Christ to convey this truth.  Catholics love the Bible but we worship Christ in the Eucharist. 

Secondly, I am head and heels in love with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. My sisters have fallen away from the Church and my younger sister attends something called "Willow Creek."  I guess that this is some sort of a Church of What's Happening Now sort of place.  My sister's Facebook account shows a picture of them attending Christmas Eve services at this place and the "altar" appeared to be designed like a set for a play.  It did not look very reverent to me.  My Church on the other hand was decorated simply but beautifully with a couple of Christmas trees and poinsettia plants.  We did not need theatrics, or slide shows because we had Jesus in attendance at the Eucharistic Banquet. 

Third, no other denomination can offer the true Eucharist. Imagine while my sisters were being entertained by a minister juggling bowling pins and quoting John 3:16 I was receiving inside of me the very Body and Blood of Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist.  How can a slide show compare with this?  Imagine, God Himself being inside you, making your soul a dwelling place of God.  Keep the entertainment, I want to be close to God. 

Fourth, when I enter a Catholic Church I feel a sense of peace.  I see the glow of the sanctuary lamp and I know Christ is in this place.  The times I have been in Protestant places of worship I do not feel that closeness to God. 

Finally, my Protestant brothers and sisters have to depend on music and sermons to feed their spiritual life. If a pastor is not a good speaker on one particular Sunday my Protestant brothers go home without feeling that their spirits have been lifted.  For a Catholic, we do not depend on our emotions because we have been nourished by Christ's Body and Blood. 

So I am a Catholic because I know that the Catholic Church was the Church started by Christ and as such it enjoys the protection of the Holy Spirit and it will be here until Christ returns for us at the end of time.  Christ will come to claim his bride, the Catholic Church.

God bless you on this first day of the year,  I pray on this day for peace to break out world wide and may it start with your heart.   

Convert-a-Catholic 2016 has been launched!  Save me the clutches of the Catholic Church, convince me that the Catholic Church is wrong and I will drop it like a hot potato. Click here to make your pitch!