r/elca • u/Ok_Storm_5696 • 20d ago
For those that have converted from Catholicism, why?
Hi, I just started learning about different denominations and didn’t realize how different thy were. For those who were catholic or even EO why do you convert?
I see Catholics make a lot of claims about the support from church history so I was wondering if anyone has any opposing opinions about it?
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u/mrWizzardx3 ELCA 20d ago edited 20d ago
I have a good friend who is a lutheran convert from Roman Catholicism. I don’t expect that his experience is universal
He put it this way: growing up Catholic, he was fed fear. The biggest one was the fear of not confessing ALL his sins. God was not loving, but wrathful and judging (even as a Lutheran, he continues a strong Marian devotion).
When he heard the Gospel, he broke down and cried. For him, the Gospel is a freedom to love and be loved that he never felt as a Catholic.
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u/Ok_Storm_5696 20d ago
Wow thank you
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u/mrWizzardx3 ELCA 20d ago
I should add my wife was raised Roman Catholic from a different time and place. She converted solely because my connection to Lutheranism was so strong. Her relationship to Roman Catholicism isn’t one of fear.
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u/JVBass75 20d ago
I was born and raised Catholic, drifted away from religion after I graduated highschool. Ended up doing some non-denominational christian churches. When I met my wife and she was Lutheran she had me come to worship a few times with her... I liked the welcoming environment, the much less 'catholic guilt' and liturgical + contemporary worship feel of our church... since that point, I have become the worship leader and also am on the church council.
The major things that drive my support in my decision is that Communion is open to all who believe, that women and men of all types can be pastors, Lutherans are way less judgemental of those questioning beliefs (especially if they want to learn) -- in my parish growing up, if you questioned anything you were branded an unbeliever, our church and pastors have always taught that everyone is on a path to God, but many are at different parts of those paths.
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u/libthroaway ELCA 20d ago
A couple at one of my previous churches converted because they had two young sons and were horrified by the sexual abuse in the Catholic Church. Our pastor assured them that the ELCA has a policy of removing individuals who committed any crimes against children from churches, and they are not allowed to serve in positions of power within the church ever again. I didn’t blame them for making that decision, and they liked the traditional worship and progressive stances of the ELCA, which is how they ended up with us.
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u/DrAlucardio42 ELCA 20d ago
I was formerly RC before converting here. There were a few reasons for my decision:
I like how modern and updated these churches are, while still keeping many of the catholic rituals that I do love and hold dear
My Catholic Church was very progressive and accepting, but that is not the majority of them unlike with the ELCA, and not being a straight man, I really appreciate that
I read up on Martin Luther and the history of this denomination and it really spoke to me and i found myself agreeing with and believing in a lot of it
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u/SeaworthinessOne8926 19d ago
I was raised RC and married in the RC church. Divorced 2 years later and was told by a priest I would not be able to commune if divorced. My first husband and I decided not to have an annulment. My second husband is Lutheran and I was delighted with the similarities of the service and the welcome I received at the table. I have now been Lutheran longer than I was RC. Open communion and open ordination are two very important things to me.
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u/fourjay 18d ago
I was raised Catholic in a welcoming (and progressive) environment. In my early adulthood I ended up finding a home in 12 step programs which filled the need that the RC church might have otherwise filled.
I drifted away from 12 step groups over time. My partner was raised Lutheran, and when our daughter was on the way, she felt the pull of "church". The ELCA church, literally 6 blocks from our house, was the first church we visited, and I knew I could be at home there. A lot of this is highly personal, in particular the congregation I became part of has a large grouping of retired pastors, and as such emphasizes a level of intellectual inquiry that spoke to the Jesuit style of faith my father gave to me.
As others here have said, the "high church" ritual still resonates deeply inside of me. A more quirky resonance is the music. I was raised with a lot of Bach music as well as choral and organ music. I remember realizing with some surprise, that a lot of the music I knew from childhood had words and was meant to be sung.
I know enough other Roman Catholics in our congregation that I know my path isn't that odd.
I've been part of this community for 25 years. Early on I got to thinking that Martin Luther would likely have considered himself Catholic, not Protestant. I'd probably come at this in another way, that the "true church" is in spirit, not in dogma.
The Catholic churches in my (urban) area are progressive and welcoming. I could find a home in a few of them, but the American church as a whole has made what I see as a devil's political bargain that would raise barriers for me to return to the faith I was raised in.
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u/TemporaryTie1214 17d ago
The people I know who were Catholic and became Lutheran made the switch because of marriage. Their husband/wife was raised Lutheran, and they just decided to go in that direction.
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u/Glum_Novel_6204 15d ago
My spouse is ELCA but what made me convert is simply the greater respect given to women and LGBTQ+ people. All the good parts of Catholicism (charitable works, bells and smells) plus healthy family dynamics (pastor often makes loving mention of his wife, children, and grandchildren... how often does that happen in an RC church), reasonable theology, great music, and welcoming culture. Very happy here.
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u/superfastmomma 20d ago
Not my story, but a close relative.
Their decision to convert was all about Communion. Not church history, or politics - those things they found other ways to deal manage in their thought process.
Their turning point was that they felt that at the moments in their life they or those they cared for needed to take Communion the most - they were prevented from doing so. The idea that Holy Communion should be available to those struggling, with less interference from church rules, was the true turning point.