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Quik-Click Guide
Who is a Catholic Seeker?
Why Catholics Become Seekers
"Spiritual but not Religious"
What Seekers Can Do
How to Assess Your Relationship to the
Church
How We Can Help Seekers
“Seekers
can begin to find in the Church fulfillment of their heart's
desires. They are invited to undertake a spiritual journey
that is
focused on Jesus Christ and his Kingdom of salvation, love,
justice
and mercy.... This is the Church's invitation to seekers
who want to
discover a satisfying answer to their spiritual hungers.
Her invitation
is rich: to seekers, old and new, and to those who might label
them-
elves as alienated or indifferent, the Church offers Jesus
Christ and
his love, the fulfillment of hope.”
--U.S. Conference
of Catholic Bishops,
United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
(2007) pp.6-7.
Who is a ‘Catholic Seeker’?
By definition, a seeker
is one who searches. In a
spiritual context, a seeker is someone who searches for a
deeper, more meaningful spiritual life or for a more
comfortable, nurturing spiritual home. Often spiritual seekers are also searching for a resolution to
some conflict or tension between themselves and a particular
church or religious community.
The term “Catholic Seeker” is commonly used to describe
individuals baptized into the Catholic community who no longer
feel spiritually at home there. Catholic seekers may include
active, inactive, alienated, discouraged and former Catholics
who are disillusioned, confused or troubled about their
relationship with the Catholic Church.
Why
Catholics Become Seekers
There are a wide variety of circumstances and reasons why
some Catholics become spiritual seekers.
Almost always, a Seeker’s relationship with the Church is
complicated by the fact that we are all human beings and the
Church is both a supernatural and a human community.
Human persons grow and change -- or fail to grow and change --
as the world around them grows and changes. We are all spiritual
pilgrims, and the church is a pilgrim church.
For that reason, nothing is complete, finished or perfect here.
We are always “on the way,” and everyone travels at a different
pace. This creates the possibility for tension, and sometimes
conflict, between the faith community and individual members.
That tension may express itself in a variety of ways. For
example,
•
Some Seekers feel a conflict between their faith and the institutional
church.
•
Others are troubled by some aspect of Church teaching or Catholic
practice.
• Some aqre happy being Catholic but do not feel at home in their local parish.
•
Others are frustrated because the faith they learned as children is
no longer adequate for adults.
•
Some Seekers are discouraged or disappointed by change, or the lack of
change, in the Church.
•
Other feel that some of their personal or spiritual needs are
better fulfilled in another church or tradition.
• Some Seekers have been abused or offended by a representative
of the church or are scandalized by the behavior of some Church members.
•
Others have gradually drifted away from the Church and now feel
estranged or unwelcome.
•
A number of Seekers have rejected their association with the church but are
still troubled by some experiences, issues or questions which
were left unresolved.
What every Seeker shares is a sense that
something important is missing, unfinished or unsatisfied in
their life. All Seekers hunger for something which will fill the emptiness.
Some Seekers may feel that they are re-living their teenage
years.
In the process of becoming a mature, responsible, and faithful
adult, the Seeker may have to re-appropriate what they have been
taught to believe, and renegotiate their relationship to
religious authority. It is an exciting, but also challenging,
and sometimes scary, experience.
‘Spiritual’ but
not ‘Religious’
Spiritual Seekers often describe themselves as “spiritual but
not religious.”
Being spiritual but not religious describes a very sincere
desire to remain spiritually alive, even when a person is
disillusioned by organized religion or alienated from an
established faith community. However, being spiritual but
not religious is much like being married but physically
separated or emotionally estranged from one’s spouse. It is
painful and sometimes destructive over a long period of time.
Human beings are social beings; our faith is a deeply personal
relationship nurtured, expressed, affirmed, celebrated and
challenged in the context of a very real relationship with the
community of faith.
Catholics believe that an individual’s relationship with God is
mediated (encountered and expressed) in and through the
admittedly imperfect human community of the Church, which we
believe to be “the Body of Christ.”
Although an individual may find it necessary, even healthy, to
limit or withdraw from active participation in the faith
community at certain times, it is painful and lonely to remain
separated from the community -- “spiritual but not religious” --
on a permanent basis.
What Seekers
Can
Do
If
you or someone you know is a Catholic Seeker, here are some things
you can do:
• Continue to pray for the spiritual gifts of patience,
wisdom and discernment.
• Find a Catholic faith community where you can worship
regularly, even if you
attend services in another church.
• Investigate new forms of
personal and communal prayer such as Taize
Prayer, Centering Prayer, or
Lectio
divina.
• Identify friends or colleagues with whom you can share
your personal faith
journey confidently and honestly.
• Join a faith-sharing group where you can discuss
matters of faith with other
Catholic Seekers.
• Avoid people or circumstances where talk about church
is too polarized or
bitter.
• Seek a spiritual director
or guide with whom you can meet regularly.
• Ask a trusted friend or spiritual guide to suggest
good books by traditional or
contemporary spiritual writers.
• Read more about the history of the church to
appreciate how it has changed
over the years.
• Study the documents of the Second Vatican Council.
(An accessible resource
is Bill Huebsch’s Vatican II in Plain
English.)
• Meditate on the lives of the saints, old and new, who
were the pilgrims,
prophets and pioneers of their day.
• Participate in retreat and renewal opportunities
offered by local parishes or
nearby retreat centers.
• Live your faith by getting actively involved in
community service and social
justice activities.
• Learn and practice strategies for healthy living
recommended for co-
dependents by 12-Step programs.
How We Can Help Seekers
The
Catholic parishes
in Waterloo are eager to encourage and support our sisters and
brothers who do not feel at home in the Catholic faith
community.
If you or someone you know is a Catholic Seeker, we welcome the
opportunity to discuss your concerns and questions in a safe,
understanding and nonjudgmental environment, even if you do not
anticipate resuming participation in the Catholic faith
community.
The Catholic parishes in Waterloo provide the following
opportunities:
Listening Sessions
These open-forum opportunities for Catholic Seekers and inactive Catholics held periodically
throughout the year in a
non-church location
A Seekers’ Faith-Sharing Group
This
faith-sharing group meets monthly to discuss the spiritual needs of Catholic
Seekers, inactive and alienated Catholics who are troubled by
their past or current relationship to the Catholic Church.
For More Information about the
Seeker's Group click here
Companions on the Journey
These small faith-sharing groups
meet monthly and provide an opportunity for spiritual discernment
under the direction of a professional spiritual director.
For More Information about Companions
Click Here
Continuing Adult Formation,
Education
and
Spiritual Growth
Opportunities for Adults
The parishes sponsor a variety of continuing
formation, education and spiritual growth opportunities throughout the year.
We suggest that
individuals who have been away from the Church for some time may
want to consider participating in a program like Catholic
101 or The Rite of Reception for Adults.
For a Directory of Adult Formation Opportunities Click Here
For Highlights of Adult
Formation Opportunities This Month Click Here
A Private Appointment
We would be happy to arrange a private, confidential appointment
with a pastor or
a pastoral staff member at any time.
If you or someone you know is an inactive, alienated or former
Catholic who
is interested in discussing their relationship to
the Catholic Church,
please contact a pastor or staff member at one of the Waterloo
parishes
or contact:
Director of Adult Faith Formation
320 Mulberry Street, Waterloo IA 50703
Phone: 319-234-9912
Email: DBQ208s3@arch.pvt.k12.ia.us
Posted 12.18.07
• Last Update 05.01.08
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