The Catholic Church Is All About Rules!

Todd Nolan2

How many times have you heard this statement before? The Catholic Church is mentioned in conversation and all anyone can say is, “The Church is about rules! Rules, rules, rules!” This comment is usually made by someone who feels they are perfectly capable of making decisions without the interference of religion. When I was teaching at previous high school, I would often run into this issue about rules (especially when it came to moral theology).

Our secular culture enjoys portraying Catholics as those radical ‘kill-joys’, who lie in wait, as you express your means to happiness and the pleasures of this world, so they can rebuke you with, “NO!  You can’t do any of that! Or that, or that, or even that, too…”  (And of course they stand 10 feet tall, hold a ruler in one hand, and admonish you with the other; extending that incredibly long forefinger.)

This caricature has long been the model of everything contrary to popular culture; and the Catholic Church seems to be its poster child. She is indeed (and unapologetically) counter-cultural. Deacon Mike Talbot (www.abitadeacon.com) said it best in an article written in response to a piece that appeared in the Washington Post about Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI’s retirement:

Our call to live counter-culturally is as old as the church itself. We believe in a God who lived among us, died for us, and showed us the way to live lives of courage and conviction–whatever our culture. Catholics are called, yes, to engage with the society around them, but not to adapt ourselves to the popular sentiments of our time. Instead, Catholics are called to live in radical service to our God. This includes loving our neighbor as ourselves. This also includes letting go of pleasure as the path to happiness (spoiler: it’s not). There’s nothing modern –or moderate –about that.

http://abitadeacon.blogspot.com/2013/02/wow-washington-post-article-that-gets.html

Yes, the Catholic Church is radical, but in a good way. Jesus’ Way! Therefore, Catholics always stand in good company. Many Catholic teenagers struggle today with this idea of going against the culture. They are constantly inundated with so much ‘pleasure’, they fear ridicule if they question any of it, or hesitate to participate. I understand the sense of loyalty. They do not want to betray the other (and many times, the other is a family member or close friend).

As a teacher, I became aware of this underlying sense of loyalty early on. My response to this dilemma was informing my students about the Bible. We find countless examples where God gives us freedom before He institutes rules. I will concentrate on three specific examples from Sacred Scripture that prove this point.

Let’s begin with Genesis. At the beginning, God gives Adam and Eve dominion over all the earth; the plants, animals, all living things. (Genesis 1:28-30 NAB)  He even tells them, “You are free to eat from any of the trees in the garden…”. (Genesis 2:16 NAB)  After this, however, He establishes a rule, “…except from the tree of knowledge of good and bad”. (Genesis 2:17 NAB) God offers freedom to human beings (free-will) knowing we will misuse it.

Another example is found in Exodus, when God leads the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt. He provides for their safety and their needs.  He remains close to them as Pharaoh pursues. (Exodus 14:21-31 NAB)  It is later on that God presents Moses with the 10 Commandments. (Exodus 20: 1-17)  Again, they were given freedom first, then rules.

God knew we would misuse our freedom. That is why He instituted rules. He wants to help us remain truly free. He knows that if freedom is not properly understood and applied in the correct manner, it will leads to corruption, chaos and destruction. (i.e. Tower of Babel, Noah and the Ark, Kings of Israel, etc…) Thus, the need for rules!

Rules provide guidelines, the same as boundaries do in sports. Knowing what you should do (and not do) provides for an enjoyable experience. Imagine a baseball game where no foul balls or strikes were ever called. Or a football game where there was no out of bounds. This might seem fun at first, but it will eventually get really old, really boring, and really frustrating!

Now let’s examine the New Testament. This is a good example that also includes compassion and love. In John’s Gospel, the scribes and Pharisees present an adulterous woman to Jesus. (John 8:1-11 NAB) This crime was punishable by death (stoning). Jesus says the one without sin may throw the first stone, and as He begins to write on the ground, each man leaves the area. In the end, it is just Jesus and the woman.

He inquires if anyone has come to condemn her. Her response is, “No one, sir”, to which Jesus exclaims, “Neither do I condemn you. Go (and) from now on do not sin any more”. (John 8:11 NAB) Jesus shows compassion. (It is interesting that His compassion was counter-cultural.  Isn’t it?) He frees her of this capital offense, but then tells her not commit sin ever again. Many seem to forget that second part. Jesus freed her from a death sentence and instituted a rule to keep her safe from any and all forms of death; sin. The Catholic Church does likewise.

We live in a society that promotes indulgence, and everyone feels entitled to their way. “If you love me, you would let me live my life my way!” Heard that before? Whenever I hear people talk about the lack of love in our world, I am quick to remind that love is indeed, everywhere, however it mostly exists in a misconstrued form.”

When I was teaching moral theology, my students learned a definition for love, composed by Eric Fromm: “Love is the active concern for the life and growth of that which we love.” Active concern means you always care. Life and growth entails all forms of life and growth of your beloved (intellectual, physical, emotional, and spiritual). Rules ensure this.

Everything in our world needs to be regulated, especially our behavior (and for good reason). We are a fallen people. We need rules so our lives can correspond with God’s original plan for us. Though we are sinners, we are still called to persevere in righteousness. Jesus says in Matthew’s Gospel: “So be perfect just as your heavenly Father is perfect”. (Matthew 5:48 NAB)

The Church has always recognized the necessity for rules (and always will). It is a shame that many in society do not. Instead, they see rules as an infringement upon freedom (No rules = true freedom). During the last World Youth Day Pope Francis told the youth of our world: “…be revolutionaries” and “swim against the tide”. (http://lifeteen.com/epic-pope-francis-quotes-world-youth-day-rio-2013/) Deacon Mike would agree. Being counter-cultural “includes letting go of pleasures as the path to happiness.” Rules also build self-control.

Pope Paul VI, in his monumental encyclical Humane Vitae (July 1968), made some startling predictions about what would happen if contraception became widely accepted. It has been over 45 years since this document was written and people still believe he was wrong. (They just can’t explain where.) People have become immune to the dangers of questioning rules, and the media capitalizes on this ignorance. Telling the Church they need to be more lenient, more modern, or more progressive is like trying to persuade the residents of Mackinac Island that they need a full service gas station. (Look it up if you’re confused! All I will say is neither will happen!)

The Church will always be attacked by those, determined to undermine (and question) her authority. To those who do not need to ask why the Catholic Church follows a path, contrary to the world, no answer will ever be necessary; and for those who do no answer will ever suffice.

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21 thoughts on “The Catholic Church Is All About Rules!”

  1. Jesus left us with 2 rules follow my Fathers 10 and Love your neighbor. If you follow GODS rules you don’t need man made rules to be saved. Look what your rules have done to thousands of children that have been sexually abused and you say you care for the unborn when you can’t even protect the born or the thousands of native American children were ripped away from their families all in the name of GOD. I could go on for a long time with the centuries of history of the catholic church. I’m saved by Grace Alone not if I eat fish on Fridays during lent, Oh by the way a manmade rule. Blessings and love to all.

  2. VATICAN CITY (CNS) — God’s laws are meant to lead all people to Christ and his glory, and if they do not, then they are obsolete, Pope Francis said in a morning homily.

    In fact, the scholars of the law in Jesus’ day were so wrapped up in doctrine as an end in itself, they were unable to see that Jesus was leading people down a new and surprising path toward his glory, the pope said Oct. 13 during his morning Mass in the Domus Sanctae Marthae, where he lives.

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  5. I was born at a very interestng time in history. WWII had just ended and the nuclear age had begun. Pius XII was pope and the Catholic Church provided the moral compass for what seemed to be the whole world. Looking back, I see critical turning points. Kennedy was assassinated. John Lennon boasted (or many people took it that way) that the Beatles were more popular than Jesus Christ. My mother died of breast cancer. We put a man on the moon. The sexual revolution began. Woodstock. I lost my virginity. My girlfriend had an abortion after I stopped seeing her. I met my future wife.

    We divide time between BC and AD, but I could easily divide it between pre and post 1972. Those are two entirely different worlds to me. My faith left, returned, left, returned and left for good. What does this have to do with rules? A lot, actually.

    I can honestly say that living by the rules never hurt me and not living by them did. Nonetheless, now that I am approaching senior citizenship, I feel I don’t need too many rules anymore. But they were there to protect me and not spoil all the fun, as I once thought.

    1. “A woman should have the right to choose what goes on in her body.” Yes, she should, but when she is carrying another life, with another soul and DNA, she has no right to dispose of it.

    2. Neither you nor I, or anyone else for that matter, can tell a woman what her rights are when it is her body, not yours, mine or anyone else’s. As for DNA, I fail to see the concern. So, the DNA is all there for a human being. What is the significance of that? I don’t believe in the soul. That is a metaphysical concept for which there is no supporting evidence. I realize I am on a Catholic blog so I might not have much support.

    3. Bill, it is another life in her body. There is a heartbeat a 3 weeks. Secondly, if a pregnant woman is murdered, the murderer is charged with a double homicide. How is that possible? Is the mother the only one who can kill her fetus?

    4. Is the mother the only one who can kill her fetus?

      If the mother is not incapacitated, she is the only one who should be able to make the decision. If she is, someone should be authorized to make it on her behalf, especially if her life is in danger. Abortion and killing a pregnant woman both usually involve taking the life of a fetus. The difference is that, in most civilized societies, the abortion is legal but the killing of the fetus against the will of the mother, including by killing the mother, is illegal. What you or I think is morally acceptable or not is irrelevant.

    5. Why is prostitution illegal in 49 states if a woman has a right to choose what is done with her body?

      What the woman does with her body is not illegal. States have all kinds of laws regulating vices like gambling, drinking, marijuana use, etc. Making prostitution illegal is based on what the state considers to be in the public interest not sexual morality. Prostitution is usually illegal because it draws other socially unacceptable elements such as drugs and other vices.

    6. It is illegal to kill a 2 year old. We need to have a point where a person cannot be killed such as when the fetus is capable of living on its own. Texas set it at 20 weeks.

    7. No. But I do support death with dignity. If a person is terminally and wants assistance in dying, it should not be denied.

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