In an effort to better understand the beliefs and teachings of The Catholic Church, I thought that it would be prudent to not only research the topic, but also to speak with a member of the Catholic faith. That being said, I began my research by educating myself on the particulars of the Catholic faith before speaking with Josefina (Josie) Ramirez. Josie, a 53 year old native of Lake Jackson, Texas, was raised Catholic, is quite devout, and takes all of the teachings of and dictates of the Catholic Church to heart. When asked what differentiates the Catholic Church from the Protestant version of Christianity, Josie indicated that one area was how Catholics regard religious authority. “[Protestants] seem to turn only to the Bible for religious instruction. It seems to me that they listen to their ministers, but stick to their own opinions if they disagree with anything. Catholics, on the other hand, believe that the traditions of 2000 years of study, prayer, and revelation are not something to be disregarded. Nothing in Catholicism contradicts the Bible, but we have the advantage of all those centuries of thought and guidance to help explain the mysteries of Christianity and how to lead a better life.” Most scholarly Catholic websites seem to justify Josie’s perception, by suggesting that while “Christ is [Catholicism’s] primary authority; this authority has been passed from Christ to His Apostles” (Basic Catholic). While the Catholic Church recognizes the authority of the Bible, it also acknowledges that the “Bible must be interpreted,” and that members of the faith should look to the Church, its authorities, and its traditions for this interpretation (Basic Catholic). In fact, rather than disregarding the authority of the Bible and scripture, Josie pointed out that some of the more controversial issues facing the Church derive precisely from its insistence on following the patterns of behavior set forth in scripture. “Mary and Mary Magdalene are very important in the Bible,” said Josie, “but, there’s nothing to indicate that Jesus ever made them equal to his disciples.” When asked if that fact could be contributed to the predominant culture in ancient times, Josie pointed out that Jesus violated cultural norms whenever he felt it was called for, as was the case in Matthew 21:12 when he entered the temple and overturned the money-changers’ table. “It certainly wasn’t a sign of respect to cause such a ruckus in the temple and I don’t believe that such behavior would normally have been tolerated,” she said laughingly. “In fact, I believe that scripture specifically states that this was viewed rather poorly by the Jewish authorities.” Once again, Catholic commentary seems to substantiate Josie’s perception of this fundamental Catholic belief. In 1994, Pope John Paul II declared an ex cathedra proclamation of faith on this matter, which stated that “…the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all of the Church’s faith” (Ordinatio). According to the Catholic Church, no one has the “right to receive the sacrament of Holy Orders” (Miranda). To be ordained a priest requires, first and foremost, that the individual be called by God to the priestly vocation. “Not that God couldn’t call women to the priesthood,” commented Josie, “but the Bible makes it clear that He did not choose to do so. There are certain things that one accepts on faith.” When asked for her opinion as to the reasoning behind asked this decision, Josie chuckled and replied “Perhaps being a priest was relegated to men because God knew they couldn’t handle being a mother,” but then added, “Seriously, the Catholic Church stresses the importance of the family because God stresses the importance of the family. Rather we like it or not, only women can give birth and by implication, I suppose this is where Catholicism directs a woman to focus her life. That is of course, unless she too chooses to remain celibate and dedicate her life to the Church by becoming a nun.” The question of the ordination of women is a matter of Church dogma, but surprisingly, the issue of a celibate priesthood is not. Josie’s priest, who was once an Episcopalian minister, is married. Josie explained that her priest converted to Catholicism, and, since he was married, Church doctrine allowed an exception to the rule of celibacy. Generally, Catholic doctrine holds that “celibacy is a logical requirement for the priesthood because it enables priests to focus their lives on attending to the salvation and needs of their parishioners” (Miranda). In addition, the rule of celibacy seems to align with the Church’s theological supposition which indicates that “Lust for sex is a result of original sin and the fall of mankind” (Miranda), and therefore, “the Church believes that all men and women are called to lives of chastity” (Miranda). Because a priest chooses to answer the call to the priesthood, he chooses “duty to God over the duty that he might offer a wife and children” (Miranda). As the exception of Josie’s priest exemplifies, however, celibacy is “not a dogma or doctrinal teaching of the Church, but is, rather, a disciplinary teaching of the Church that can be altered by the Church’s hierarchy when circumstances dictate that such a change is appropriate” (Miranda). As someone with a Protestant Christian background, I must profess that I have never fully understood the place of Mary in Catholicism. In investigating this topic of faith online, it was rather easy to find reasonable answers as to why Mary garners so much attention in the Catholic faith. For example, one website points out the fact that Mary has more scripture verses written about her than any other woman in the New Testament. This seems to convey rather clearly the Catholic faith’s message that she is an iconic figure who deserves more reverence and attention than most Protestant denominations are willing to afford her. When asked how she viewed the importance of The Virgin Mary in Catholicism, Josie replied: “Sometimes I’ve encountered feminists who ask me why I don’t resent the way that the Catholic Church presents women. They suggest that I should feel as though I’m being oppressed or something. The Catholic Church honors Mary because God chose Mary to be the mother of Our Lord and Savior. Only the Catholics seem to recognize how important that fact is. Mary remained perfect, blameless, and virginal throughout her life and eventually ascended into heaven. Only the Catholic faith acknowledges those facts and affords Mary due homage.” When asked about the frequently disputed Catholic belief that Mary remained virginal throughout her life, Josie remarked that “it always surprised me that Protestants found the idea to be so implausible. She then added that “Protestants believe all of the rest of the story of Jesus’ birth. They believe that he was born to The Virgin Mary and that he did not have an earthly, biological father. They believe all that, but they find it hard to believe that someone would remain celibate after giving birth to Our Savior. That doesn’t make sense to me.” As mentioned previously, unlike Protestantism, the Catholic Church holds its vast traditions, which includes the various “creeds, Church councils and teachings of the Catholic Magisterium as equal to the teachings and authority of scripture” (Bennett). These sources indicate that Jesus is the “Messiah (or Christ) of Israel,” as well as “God himself in the flesh, God the Son, the second person of the Blessed Trinity” (Bennett). When asked to explain how she perceived Jesus and how she would explain the Church’s definition of him, Josie replied that “the Church sees Jesus as being both fully human and fully divine.” She then added, “My understanding is that, because of the fall from Grace in the Garden of Eden and Original Sin and all that, it is not in the power of the normal, run-of-the mill human being to resist sin, and never has been. Therefore, it took a sinless, perfect person’s death to redeem humanity for its history of sin. Since humanity obviously could not pay this price on its own, God, or rather an aspect of God that we call Jesus Christ, took to the flesh and became human. He was human, but he was also fully divine.” Josie’s point seems to underscore the well received theory that “had Jesus not been God, he could not have saved us from our sin, for only God is able to give salvation” (Bennett). Josie obviously finds comfort in the fact that Catholicism embraces the feminine side of humanity, as well as the masculine. Even more than in the story of Mary, Josie finds comfort in the story of Saint Monica, the mother of St. Augustine who worried terribly about her son’s behavior and the state of his soul. As the mother of two children, Josie understandably sees hope in this ancient story. Of course it is this understanding of the saints that unites the Catholic Church to the Eastern Orthodox Churches and separates it from most Protestant denominations. Saints, broadly speaking, are those who follow Jesus Christ and live their lives according to his teaching. Catholics, however, also use the term narrowly to refer to especially holy men and women who, through extraordinary lives of virtue, have already entered Heaven. Like all Christians, Catholics believe in life after death, but they also believe that their relationship with other Christians does not end with death. Catholic prayer to saints is in recognition of this communion. Josie said that, “Many non-Catholic Christians believe that it is wrong to pray to the saints, claiming that our prayers should be directed to God alone.” In a review of available Catholic commentary, one finds the Church in agreement. As one such site put it “true worship (as opposed to veneration or honor) does indeed belong to God alone, and we should never worship man or any other creature as we worship God. But while worship may take the form of prayer, as in the Mass and other liturgies of the Church, not all prayer is worship. When we pray to the saints, we’re simply asking them to help us, by praying to God on our behalf, or thanking them for having already done so” (About). In closing, Josie was asked how she perceived other religions and the people that believed in them. Her response was “that [she] knows that God loves everyone and that God knows how hard it is for people who are raised in a religion not to follow that religion. Therefore, she feels the important thing is for everyone to follow the dictates of their own conscience and the religion that they have been taught to uphold. “People know what is right and wrong,” she said, “When they honestly try to live a good life and do what’s right, I think God understands. It is not my place to judge others. God will do that and I think, somehow, there will be a way for good people of other faiths to choose salvation.” Asked if her answer reflected the position of the Catholic Church, she said, “I really don’t know, but it’s how I feel. There are good people in every religion and I think basically we all believe similar things and have similar ideas of right and wrong. We all worship the same God, we just call Him different names. However, God expects us to follow the dictates of our religion. As a Catholic, I have to follow the Church.” Asked to explain her statement, she said, “If I had never been taught to believe the dictates of the Church, it would be different, but I was taught and therefore, they are part of my conscience and my moral system. To violate the dictates of the Church, would, therefore, be quite serious for me, much more so than for a non-Catholic.” Works Cited “Basic Catholic Beliefs and Practices.” Ancient-Future.net. 2007. Web. 27 Oct 2011. <http://www.ancient-future.net/basics.html>.

Bennett, David. “Jesus?: The Catholic Understanding of Jesus Christ.” Ancient-Future.net. 2007. Web. 23 Oct 2011. <http://www.ancient-future.net/jesuschrist.html>.

Miranda, S.M. “Church Teachings on Controversial Topics.” Ancient-Future.net. 2007. Web. 23 Oct 2011. <http://www.saintaquinas.com/controversial.html>. Morrison, David & Bennett, David. “What About the Virgin Mary?” Ancient-Future.net. 2007. Web. 27 Oct. 2011. < http://www.ancient-future.net/marynew.html>.

Richert, Scott P. "Why Do Roman Catholics Pray to Saints." About.com. Web. 25 Oct. 2011. <http://catholicism.about.com/od/thesaints/f/Pray_to_Saints.htm>.

Paul, John. "Ordinatio Sacerdotalis." Apostolic Letters. The Vatican, 22 May 1994. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. <http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jp-ii_apl_22051994_ordinatio-sacerdotalis_en.html>.