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Matthew Olson

Mr. Nickell

ENGL1213

23 March 2014

Catholicism: An Unquestionable Burden - REVISED

The Church is my greatest weight. Of course, the weight of over a billion souls would likely be rather

large, especially post-McDonald's, so I suppose that nothing else is really comparable.

What does this mean? In an age of moral relativism, instability, and self-gratification, much like the

age of the Roman Empire prior to its Christian conversion, I found myself alone and empty after a

scarring experience. So, I sought the counsel of philosophy and history – surely, men had answered my

questions before! – and I was, after seemingly endless struggles with myself and others, eventually

comforted. The Church became vindicated in my heart.

The more I study, the more I am forced to accept Catholicism as the true Faith. The depth and size of

it, as well as its impacts on culture, force any serious student to step back and pay at least a bit of

attention. It took me a while to overcome my initial ambivalence toward any religion in particular –

though I was always appreciative of God and enamored with the subject in general – but once I had

crossed the proverbial Tiber, there was no going back.

I was baptized Catholic, and I vaguely recall some crossing with holy water and lighting prayer

candles, but I was hardly raised to practice the Faith. In high school, I dug into a box of things from my

infancy. I spotted a rosary within it, along with a note saying that it belonged to my great-grandmother.

I mentioned it to a Catholic friend, and he gave me some information about it. That set of events started

the arduous process of reconciliation.

Later, at the urging of the aforementioned friend, I casually flipped through the writings of the

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Church Fathers (prominent ancient Christian leaders). I quickly became impressed. I only did this,

originally, to assuage my ego. I had made a theological speculation, and he answered me with, “Well,

did the early Christians believe that?” I did not know. Anyway, he was right, and I was wrong.

My advice for anyone that wishes to be a Protestant is to avoid the Church Fathers like one would

avoid a plague. I once remarked to a professor that introducing the former to the latter is like shaking a

baby: it might teach them a lesson, but it also might kill them.

In my search for the Truth (capital 'T' intended), I asked a long series of questions. These led to some

amazing discoveries, but what most pleased me was the truth behind trusting in Christ as King.

To see Christ as King is to open yourself into supporting what's called the “Social Kingship of

Christ,” as well as, naturally, accepting His divinity. This “Social Kingship” is the expression of the

fact that Christ “has dominion over all creatures, a dominion not seized by violence nor usurped, but

His by essence and by nature.” (“Quas Primas”) This keeps our Lord as Lord and us servants as His

servants. As David was king and shepherd of the Jewish people, so his descendant, Jesus Christ, is the

King and ultimate Shepherd of all.

As a very politically-oriented person, I recognize and admire the immense good that government can

bring about. Social justice, firmly rooted in Catholic doctrine, is very important to me.

But, more and more, it seems that government must be checked by a third party. The NSA scandals,

the needless war-mongering, and the out-of-control debt all point to this reality. Who should fill this

role, though? I would, obviously, argue that it should be the Church. This Bride would shut down overt

invasions of privacy, likewise shut down pointless invasions of other nations, and would probably re-

institute the Jubilee, a celebration – rooted in both Catholicism and Judaism – during which debts are

widely forgiven.

When Christ told Peter, “feed My sheep” (John 21:17), He entrusted Peter, as His Vicar, with the role

of the visible Shepherd on earth. Tied to this, as I have noted, is the role of King. Thus, the Pope is – to

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quote the coronation ceremony – the “father of princes and kings”. Surely, society must recognize this!

My goal is to increase the powers and jurisdiction of this great entity to the fullest capacity, because I

recognize the impact that She has had and can have on the world. Documents like Humanae Vitae and

Evangelium Vitae urge respect for the sanctity of life, Rerum Novarum and Quadragesimo Anno offer

economic principles rooted in good morals, and so on. If only humanity would follow the path that the

Church has set forth! This temporal aspect, even by itself, is enough to drive me, despite how

burdensome this desire can be.

In conclusion, I will leave the reader with a quote from G. K. Chesterton. “The difficulty of

explaining 'why I am a Catholic' is that there are ten thousand reasons all amounting to one reason: that

Catholicism is true.” (Chesterton)

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Works Cited

1. "Quas Primas." New Advent. Holy See (Vatican). Web. 31 Mar 2014.

<http://www.newadvent.org/library/docs_pi11qp.htm>.

2. Chesterton, G. K.. "Why I am a Catholic." Catholic Education Resource Center. N.p.. Web. 10 Feb

2014. <http://catholiceducation.org/articles/apologetics/ap0075.html>.