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The Catholic Church Fails to Actually Practice Universal Love

A Simple Altar Prepared for Mass Where ALL Are Welcome to Receive The Holy Eucharist

The Catholic Church fails to actually practice universal love even though the Church's teachings emphasize that God loves all people universally and without limit, reflecting a universal dignity inherent in each person. However, the practice of love within the church can be challenging because it involves universal benevolence—the will to love everyone—while also being deeply personal and applied differently based on individual needs.

Criticisms arise from the perception that the church's institutional practices sometimes exhibit exclusivity or fail to meet certain individuals' needs for connection, which contrasts with the doctrine of universal love.

In truth, most ‘religions’ fail miserably in this area but I’ll stick to our own grouping so as not to directly offend others.

Theological Foundation of Universal Love

God's Love: Catholic theology teaches that God loves all people infinitely, creating them in His image and giving them inherent dignity and worth. Catholic Canon law makes it very clear that all liturgical rites TOGETHER make up the “One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church”. To state otherwise is to contend this law of universality.

Universal Benevolence: The church's goal is for individuals to practice universal love, meaning a benevolent will to love all people, recognizing their equal dignity and value.

Differentiated Love: God's love is infinite, but how it is applied can vary based on an individual's needs, much like a parent's love is directed differently, yet fairly, to each child.

Challenges in Practice

Institutional Exclusivity: Some people perceive the Catholic Church as exclusive or discriminatory, which clashes with the concept of universal love and the universal nature of the word "Catholic" itself.

Only those of the Catholic denomination can receive the Eucharist, divorced Catholics cannot receive the Eucharist, being actively gay is sinful (considered self exclusion from the sacraments). Too many Catholics (Roman Catholics especially) insist that theirs is the only true faith. Bishops and even cardinals are now on record saying that other denominations aren’t real religions. Division and exclusion are rampant. Yet the Canon Laws of the Church state clearly that all are ‘equal in dignity and validity’.

Difficulty in Universal Application: While the ideal is to love everyone, actual human loving can be challenging. It requires an effort to apply universal love to everyone, including those who are difficult to love, which can be a struggle for individuals and communities.

Socio-Cultural Context: Practices in a local church or community can sometimes lead to a feeling of exclusion, with people being more focused on their existing groups or facing difficulties in connecting with newcomers.

In summary:

The Catholic Church teaches a theology of universal love rooted in God's infinite love for all humanity. However, the practice of this love can be inconsistent, with perceptions of institutional exclusivity and the inherent human challenge of applying universal benevolence in a deeply personal way leading to criticisms that the church does not always fully embody universal love in practice.

Insistence by Catholics, clergy or laity, that they are the one true church is based upon Apostolic Succession tracing back to the twelve apostles and Jesus Christ Himself. However, this is an accurate statement for ALL churches with full Apostolic Succession and valid priesthood orders and NOT exclusively true of the Latin/Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, nor any other rite. Thus the Catholic Canons give equal dignity and validity to each of them.

When individuals, especially Episcopate, say otherwise they are in conflict with church law and sow the seeds of division in direct opposition to Christ’s call for unity. Together we ALL form the “One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church”. Not one liturgy, rite or even denomination, however you choose to say it, can make this claim exclusively of the others.

People making such sweeping statements show their own bias and prejudice and do not echo the espoused position of ANY of the Catholic Rites. Yet such individuals gather followers of their own who share these biases and cause ever deepening rifts between Catholic rites and between Catholics and other denominations.

The disconnect between stated beliefs of universal love are evident in the historic abuses, wars/crusades, witch hunts, inquisitions, et al and the subsequent cover ups or outright attempts to rewrite the narrative of these historical occurrences.

Churches who claim Christ as their exemplar must act in ways consistent with that example or they are simply hypocrites. It is this very disconnect that drives so many people away from organized religions to practice only a personal ‘spirituality’ which is often more in keeping with true Christian values yet they are then no longer part of the church.

The Catholic Church Fails to Actually Practice Universal Love - Enter St. Brigit's Community Catholic Church

St Brigit’s Community Catholic Church is an attempt to return to the original values and teachings of Christ. Having evolved from the Old Catholic and Old Catholic Apostolic Churches our clergy has full Apostolic Succession and valid priesthood orders through nine distinct lines of succession reaching directly back to the Apostles and Christ (indeed that is the very meaning of Apostolic Succession).

When we say that we are ‘inclusive’ we are not claiming to be “pro” anything except Christ's directives to “Love all” and “judge not”. Literally ALL are welcome to join us at the altar and everyone, including all youth up till twelve years of age and all baptized Christians from any denomination, are invited to receive the Holy Eucharist.

On the cross Christ assured the repentant thief that they would be together this day in Heaven. Despite the man's guilt, he didn’t have to meet any qualification standards except to turn to Christ and ask His mercy. No talk of afterlife qualifications such as purgatory. Nothing! Just the Love and Mercy of Christ and heaven was assured.

Christ’s entire message was about infinite Love and absolute mercy for ALL MANKIND! There is nothing we can do to earn or deserve salvation yet Christ IS the way!

When a ‘religion’ complicates Christ’s Divine Commission that group is as guilty as the scribes and Pharisees whom Christ condemned for having so many laws/rules they made it impossible for people to actually come to God.

“What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you shut the door of the Kingdom of Heaven in people’s faces. You won’t go in yourselves, and you don’t let others enter either”. Matthew 23:13

By imposing burdensome legalistic requirements and focusing on human traditions, the scribes and Pharisees made it difficult for people to understand what God actually required and to enter heaven.

Today the Catholic Church has 1752 Canon Laws for the Latin Rite and separate books of Canons for the Eastern Rites. Most of the Latin Rite Canons have multiple subsections and qualifications making them extremely detailed volumes done up in two huge books. Burdensome legalistic requirements yet again?

St. Brigit’s Community Catholic Church has only eleven sections in our canon laws with a total of 134 canons, including the sub sections. The Old Catholic and Old Catholic Apostolic Churches have similar small and readily understood numbers of canon laws.

Christ said that He had fulfilled the law and the prophets and simplified the commandments into the Love God, Love your neighbour and love yourself. If we truly love ourselves, others and God then we will keep the commandments and do much more to actually become like Christ. This adds a whole new twist to the adage to Keep It Short and Simple, lol.

The Catholic Church Fails to Actually Practice Universal Love

The Catholic Church Fails to Actually Practice Universal Love - Enter St. Brigit's Community Catholic Church

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