The "Extra" Stuff

The Extra “Stuff”

Recently I had a conversation with my close friend who is not Catholic, although a sure Christian. So we get to talking about his family’s history in which denomination and such, and I find out that some of his relatives/ancestors were Catholic. On a side note, I like to think that, if Christian at all before the 1540’s, all of our ancestors were Catholic. I ask him plainly, “and why aren’t you Catholic, what made you decide otherwise?”

I got a great answer out of him. A very truthful and sincere “I don’t need all the extra stuff.  Some of my friends are Catholics, and they are happy with that but none of it matters for my salvation. What matters is the work of Jesus Christ on the cross and I can add nothing to that.” A fine reply. We had some people over to our house and I did not want to start on a long drawn out conversation. I chose prudence; saying what needs to be said, only when it needs to be said, and otherwise letting people have their say. Sometimes I do really want to reply. Heck, I might even have a fantastic reply but my words don’t always need to be heard. Even if I never discuss this with this person again, there are times where people need to be listened to and not spoken at.  So I said nothing other than acknowledging his sentiment, and I do sincerely identify with his words, but not all of them.

The “extra stuff” in Catholicism might seem extra to one who is not of the faith, but to a Catholic they are vital. Likewise, take a step further; imagine this conversation taking place with a non-Christian. They might see Christmas, Easter, other holy days, going to retreats, participating in communion, and tithing as the stuff of religiosity, or otherwise “extra.” And seriously, do Christmas, Easter, and going on retreats do anything for our salvation? Do they add to the work of the cross? No, and no. But – Don’t they strengthen our faith? Don’t they have usefulness and obligation? All Christians participate in these but are they required for our ultimate salvation? No.

As a Protestant I was objecting to the same topics: if they are not required for salvation then why confess to a priest, believe in the Real Presence, and the other Catholic dogma. What I was thinking is that they were just dissimilar beliefs, like the way you and me believe or don’t believe that pepperoni is better than sausage on a pizza. What I started to consider though, is the consequences, not of the belief, but of the possible truth. I started to think, “what if that bread is really Jesus, what if it is true?” I would even tell myself, “if it is, then aren’t I consuming it no matter what, and therefore, I am not missing out or doing anything wrong.” I thought that was pretty slick, but then I read 1 Corinthians 11:29, “whoever eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment upon himself.” I asked myself, if it is just a symbol, how again am I drinking judgment upon myself? Is there any other parallels instance where God judges us for metaphors and symbolism?

So again I implore the consequences. One might not believe in confessing to a priest, but if they really can and are supposed to forgive sins why am I not doing that? Leading on, if they are supposed to forgive sins then that means one is expected to confess, right? As a protestant I believed I was “ever forgiven;” that once Jesus forgave my sins he forgave them all future, present, past – an idea that is hardly biblical first of all. But even if I was right, the logic and scripture do not match up. James tells us to confess our sins to one another (5:16), 1 John 1:9 says “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Why confess if you are already forgiven? Protestant websites filled me with other hope that the confession was relinquishing God’s judgment on me (see “gotquestions” website) or other illogical arguments. The fact is: the bible says we need to confess. And just for the non-Catholic, the Church does not teach that a man forgives sins. We believe God, and only God will forgive sins. The Priest is participating in the High Priests authority (see Hebrews) as an ambassador, literally, as Paul tells in Ephesians 6:20, Philemon 1:9, and an ambassador carries the will of the King with him. For more on Jesus giving the power to forgive sins check out the Gospel of John 20:19-23.

Even Jesus, God Himself was Baptized for purposes John did not fully comprehend.

There remain many other examples to pull from. Do we need to pray to saints? Do we need to pray the Our Father? I would argue the only “extra” in the Christian faith is the practice of something harmful to ourselves and others. The Catholic faith is purported to be as old as Pentecost, circa 29AD. A priest said to me, “Satan has tried to destroy us, we have tried to destroy ourselves, but it cannot be done.”

If we are really the body of Jesus Christ, not just a metaphor, how can anything we teach be extra?