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Reason 6: "Others never knew their faith well and were ignorant of basics. They were easily misled in their lack of understanding, exploited by those who attack Catholic beliefs and practices for their own purposes."
Often there is a lack of formation in the Catholic philosophy of life. The connections between the Word of God, Catholic worship, and a Catholic way of life have not been made. The joy of discovering the way each mystery of Catholic faith is grounded in Scripture, centered in Christ, and proclaimed in the liturgy has never been experienced. This lack of integral faith formation leaves a vacuum.
An obvious sign of a vacuum is our culture's obsession with television programming which appeals to the cruel and violent side of human nature. Talk shows that encourage a public confession of sins and indiscretions in a crazed Roman Coliseum type atmosphere only leave the vulnerable victims more wounded.
In contrast, the Sacrament of Reconciliation allows Christ's peace to enter our hearts. We verbalize ours sins and come to grips with them in privacy with the complete assurance of confidentiality through the seal of the confessional. Whereas the "talk-show" confession falsely confirms that we are "alright" in our sinfulness, the sacramental reconciliation reminds us that our sinfulness is a wound -- but that we are made whole in Christ Jesus. We are liberated from our sins and renew our confidence and hope in God's mercy and strength.
Another sign of a vacuum is vulnerability in faith. Often our secular education far surpasses our Catholic faith education. A typical example of this is when first year Catholic college students in secular universities are shaken by their Philosophy 101 course. We need to remember that we have access to the richest intellectual tradition in the world with minds as brilliant and diverse as St. Augustine, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Catherine of Siena, St. Teresa of Avila, Avery Dulles and Pope John Paul II. We cannot forget or neglect this intellectual tradition. We need to learn it. We need to teach it.
We need to support parents, the primary catechists in the family, and catechetical programs so that our Catholic children can grow in the faith from an early age. We need to prune what might not be authentic from our catechetical programs and nurture those things that promote and serve a Catholic way of life and belief. We need to continue to promote effective adult education experiences. Adult education needs to become a primary ministry in our parishes, not an afterthought.8
We need to be attentive to the opportunity to reach out to inactive Catholics in our sacramental programs and in every sacramental moment, whether it be a wedding, a funeral9, Midnight Mass on Christmas, Palm Sunday, Ash Wednesday or Easter Sunday. We want "ashes and palm" Catholics to become "eucharistic" Catholics. As in all education, we need to stress the fundamentals of our faith.
Reason 7: "Some have been kept from full communion with the Church because of a marriage outside the Church."
One of the doctrinal treasures of the Church is the doctrine of the indissolubility of marriage. When Catholic couples reverence God and each other through fidelity to their wedding vows, they discover what authentic Christian freedom in the Holy Spirit actually is.
We do need to be sensitive to those who have had difficulties in their marriages. Very often we may know a friend who may have had no personal responsibility for the breakup of a marriage. In some cases, it is possible to seek a declaration of nullity (annulment). Contact your priests, lay advocates or our Marriage Tribunal. In situations where Catholics have been married outside the Church after the breakup of the initial marriage, we encourage them to come to Mass even if they cannot receive Communion. We encourage them to pray, to seek spiritual direction and to be open to God's grace.
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