Catholic & Single Where Is Mr./Ms. Right? (Part 2)

Nov 10, 2005

In my last article, I gave a prelude to the answer of “Where is Mr./Ms. Right?” by offering an explanation as to why it is so difficult today for single Catholics to find this person they seek for marriage. There were many reasons presented, but not the most important reason.

 

The most important reason why it is so hard for single Catholics to find the right person is because the numbers of available single Catholics who believe and are committed to all the Church teaches have declined significantly. Of all the challenges singles face today, what has to be the hardest is finding someone who has not given in on one or more important issues of faith that affect the way a Catholic is to live.

 

Issues like abortion, contraception, euthanasia, homosexuality, same-sex marriage, the ordination of women, and many more have distorted society and thus tempted even the most sincere Catholic to question Church authority.  It is this very questioning of Church authority that diminishes the person’s ability to practice their Catholic faith in full.

 

Understand what I am saying here. I am talking specifically about the Church’s authoritative teaching on faith (what we are to believe) and morals (how we are to live that faith).  It is worth stating (even to those of you who know it so well) that the Pope and bishops in union with the Pope are the authoritative teaching body of the Church. The Pope himself cannot err (is infallible) when it comes to public pronouncements about faith and morals.

 

You would be amazed how many people disagree with this who claims to be Catholic. Well, they certainly have to disagree with this in order to take up a positive position on the issues I stated above.

 

One of the inspirations for my starting www.AveMariaSingles.com eight years ago was the amazing amount of single Catholics I would run into who all had the common denominator of losing hope in ever meeting someone who shares the depth of their faith. The number deal breaker in their past relationships?  The desire to use contraception within the marriage.   Forget the obvious no-no of premarital sex.   We are talking about Catholics who believe they can use a form of contraception (i.e., the Pill, condoms, etc) within their marriage. 

 

Many broken hearts I would find all over the country, on the verge of despair because they would invest so much time in a relationship only to find out some “zinger” this person regarding something that is a true dissent from a major Church teaching. 

 

There is so much happening in Catholic evangelization today that gives hope for a turnaround.  But there is so much work to do. Through the magnificent papacy of John Paul II, who has set the tone for a true and faithful promulgation of the Second Vatican Council, all of us Catholics can make great progress in education about our faith in order to strengthen the weak and bring back the “lost sheep”.

 

But make no mistake. For now, the percentage of 100%, true-blue, practicing Catholics among those who state they are Catholic is a vast minority. To throw out a figure, I will say the percentage is 10% of the 60 million Catholics in the U.S. alone.

 

If that figure depresses you, I’m sorry. I wish it were not true. But Christ, who desires our happiness and has great interest in our vocation, will not be denied.  But we must do our part. The reality of the situation must absolutely convict us to change the way we understand how we will come to meet one of these rare 10%. 

 

So now how and where can we meet the right person as we face these obstacles and challenges?  We will delve into this in the next column.