WHY STAY CATHOLIC?

A year-long parish series exploring why Catholics remain faithful to the Church founded by Jesus Christ.



00 AN INTRODUCTION TO THIS SERIES


Over the past several decades, millions of Americans have changed churches, stopped attending church altogether, or begun moving from one Christian community to another.


Many Catholic families know this experience personally.

A son leaves the Church after college. A daughter begins attending services elsewhere with friends. A spouse, sibling, grandchild, or neighbor drifts away from the faith in which he or she was raised. Sometimes the departure is gradual. Sometimes it happens suddenly. Often it is accompanied by sincere questions:


  • Why does the Catholic Church matter?
  • Aren't all Christian churches basically the same?
  • If I love Jesus, does it matter where I worship?
  • Why remain Catholic when another church seems more welcoming, more engaging, or more helpful?


These are important questions. They deserve thoughtful answers.


This series is not written to criticize other Christians. Many people outside the Catholic Church sincerely love Jesus Christ, read Sacred Scripture, and seek to follow Him faithfully.


Rather, this series begins with a different question:


Did Jesus Christ establish a Church and entrust unique gifts to her care?


If the answer is yes, then choosing a church is about more than personal preference.


Catholics believe that Christ founded a Church, entrusted His authority to the apostles, gave her the sacraments, and remains present in a unique way in the Holy Eucharist.


If that is true, then staying Catholic is not simply a matter of family tradition, habit, or comfort. It is a matter of remaining close to gifts that Christ Himself intended for His people.


Over the coming year, we will explore questions about the Eucharist, the Mass, the Bible, the Church, salvation, confession, Mary, the saints, and many other topics that often arise in :


Whether you are a lifelong Catholic, someone wrestling with questions, or someone trying to understand why a loved one left the Church, I hope you will join us.


The goal is not merely to defend Catholicism.


The goal is to discover more deeply what Christ has given His Church—and why those gifts are worth holding onto.


TAKEAWAY


The question is not whether good things exist elsewhere. The question is whether Christ entrusted unique gifts to His Church that we should not willingly leave behind.


SCRIPTURE FOR REFLECTION


"Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." (John 6:68)


— Fr. Augustine, O.P.