Are You a Cafeteria Catholic? In 2022, a study was conducted among Catholics, gauging their adherence to a number of Catholic teachings: abortion, euthanasia, and the death penalty. What percentage of Catholics do you think agreed with the Church teaching on all three issues? 70%? 30%? 10%? Unfortunately, all three of these numbers would be all-time highs in the history of the survey. In actuality, the number of people who agreed with all three teachings, came to .9%. Point…. nine…. that’s less than one out of every one hundred people! Now, obviously, when I see studies like this, I have a lot of questions. Were these regular church going Catholics or people who haven’t gone to church in 30 years? Were the questions worded clearly and accurately or with an intention to mislead? Given the complexity and controversial nature of these three issues, are they the best to ask to gauge adherence to Church teachings or should we be caring about other issues? Questions like these should always run through our heads when we encounter such staggering numbers as these, pumping the breaks so we don’t overreact and make rash decisions, as we are prone to do these days. I know that there are a lot of faithful Catholics in the United States. But it does sort of confirm a suspicion we all have, right? It does highlight a problem that we’ve all faced, particularly online. There is definitely a disconnect between what the Church teaches and what a lot of Catholics profess to be true. Some will see this data as further proof of cafeteria Catholicism, that the vast majority of people pick and choose what they want to believe, actively disobeying the Church and denying its authority. And maybe this is true. I have met people who are obstinate in their beliefs and indignant towards Church leaders. They know better. But is this really the problem? Is this the case for the majority of Catholics? In my experience, most people think that they are good people. Most people are trying to do their best. At least among those who attend mass regularly, there is a real desire to be faithful to the teachings of Jesus and his Church. For me, the disconnect between what the Church teaches and what a lot of Catholics profess to be true is not the result of hard hearts, it’s poor catechesis. I can almost guarantee that a large part of the 99.1 percent of people who held a belief contrary to Church teaching… believed that they were expressing Church teaching. Survey’s like these present a problem, for sure, but it’s important that we latch on to the wrong cause. Rather than dealing with a hard-headed people who hate the Church, what I believe we have are faithful people that don’t even know that they don’t know. I wonder, and this may be a more challenging question for some than others, I wonder… if that might describe… you. I know it’s easier to focus on the “bad Catholics,” the people who knowingly pick and choose what to believe, but is it possible that there might be blindspots of your own faith, teachings that you don’t fully understand or maybe even ones you’ve never heard of. I say this without any sense of accusation or judgment. To me, this is just stating the obvious. Of course there are things that I don’t fully understand. Of course there are still things for me to learn. To say no with any sort of confidence would be arrogant and foolish. How can you know that you things you don’t know? The question, then, isn’t so much is it possible that there are things we need to learn… but what am I doing right now to fill in those gaps, to learn something new, to make sure my plate has a complete, balanced meal and not just the things I already know and like? For instance, how well can you describe the dogmas of the Trinity? If someone on the street were to stop you and ask, is Jesus God, a man, or a mix of both, would you know how to respond? These are of course mysteries, meaning they can never be fully mined to their depths, but having a working knowledge of the creed and essential qualities of God is fundamental to being a Christian. If you don’t feel confident in that, maybe spend some time with section two of the catechism. What about the liturgy? We attend mass every week, offering worship and praise to God, but can you clearly and accurately explain how the bread and wine turn into the body and blood of Jesus? Or what about the role of the priest and why his words at mass are so important? As a Catholic, the elements of our liturgy are not new and they are not random—every single element has history, symbolism, and faith. If there’s something you don’t understand or couldn’t explain, you might want to look up the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, or any number of popular commentaries. There is, of course, a plethora of questions when it comes to morality. Medical ethics, sexual ethics, mortal vs venial sins, vices and virtues. Do you know what the principle of Double Effect is and why it’s critical to a moral life? Can you explain why self-defense and certain military actions are allowed but murder and the death penalty are not? What about how to handle ectopic pregnancies or what to do when the life of a pregnant mother is at risk? If not, part three of the catechism is a great place to start, but the USCCB’s website has great answers to many of these questions as well. What about the spiritual dimension of our faith beyond the dogmas of God. Our life of prayer is so critical to the spiritual well-being of the Church, and yet most do not know that the official prayer of the Church, what priests are bound to pray and what lay people are recommended to observe is not the mass and it is not the rosary… but the liturgy of the Hours. If you’ve never heard of this or don’t pray it as a part of your spiritual life, maybe give it a look. You can find the prayers for free online or download the iBreviary app on your devices. And finally, what about the political, social, and economic life of the Church? It would surprise many to know that the Church defends labor unions, criticizes both socialism and capitalism, requires that richer nations care for the needs of poorer nations, puts limits on private property, and defends the right of refugees to emigrate to other countries. How well do you know the principles of the common good, solidarity, and the universal destination of goods? If you could use a refresher, the Catechism is good, but even better is the compendium of the social doctrine of the Church, an entire catechism devoted specifically to Catholic Social Teaching. Naturally, this is just a drop in the bucket, but hopefully it at least helpful in pointing out that there are multiple buckets—theology, liturgy, morality, prayer, and social action. You may know one of them really well, maybe your faith as survived on it for years without even knowing that there were other buckets. but maybe this is a reminder to begin exploring the things you don’t even know you don’t know. I do not believe for a second that the majority of Catholics are hard-hearted, stubborn individualists that make up their own Gospel and openly reject the teachings of the Church. Maybe a few do, but it’s not many. What I do believe is that there is just so much to know in our Church, and it’s easy to develop blindspots, or to even learn something incorrectly along the way. For those of us working as ministers in the Church, helping to shepherd people to full life in the Church, this is important to remember. What people need is not harsh judgments, tough love, and protection against bad Catholics trying to bring down the Church. What they need is gentleness. What they need is patience. What they need authoritative, easily accessible resources for people to do the research for themselves. Because, really, isn’t that what we all need. Even those of us who have studied the faith for years and have a decent grasp of what the Church teaches have areas we need to grow in. Without the humility to admit that we might be wrong, without the persistence to keep asking questions, we run the risk of unknowingly becoming cafeteria Catholics: filling our plate up every day with the same food, having no idea that our body is lacking nutrients. If we want to be good, faithful Catholics, we need to learn to love it all.