By Carrie Fortney
When my husband Rodger told me that he wanted to join the Catholic Church, I thought he was crazy! But I wasn't surprised. The Holy Spirit had been preparing my heart for "drastic change" -- I just didn't know what form it would take. It is by the grace of God that He brought us to the Maronite Church. We joined the Catholic Church in May 2007, from evangelical Protestantism, and although the only things we knew about being Catholic were Maronite, due to canon law we were automatically Roman rite -- even though we had never been to a Roman Mass. We are so grateful that the respective Bishops allowed us to transfer to the Maronite Church. Since then our lives have been utterly transformed by the grace of God through Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, especially through the Mysteries (sacraments), prayer and the lives of the Saints. The Lord has brought us closer to Him-- He has plunged us to depths unknown to us before. The Maronite Church’s Divine Liturgy, prayers, iconography and music are so rich and beautiful and have brought to us a fuller understanding of Sacred Tradition and Scripture. And since the Maronite Church is an Eastern Catholic Church we have gained new perspectives of Faith and Tradition that all Catholic’s share, while also causing us to appreciate even more the diversity in cultures and traditions that make up our Catholic Church. St. Maron, pray for us!
When my husband Rodger told me that he wanted to join the Catholic Church, I thought he was crazy! But I wasn't surprised. The Holy Spirit had been preparing my heart for "drastic change" -- I just didn't know what form it would take. It is by the grace of God that He brought us to the Maronite Church. We joined the Catholic Church in May 2007, from evangelical Protestantism, and although the only things we knew about being Catholic were Maronite, due to canon law we were automatically Roman rite -- even though we had never been to a Roman Mass. We are so grateful that the respective Bishops allowed us to transfer to the Maronite Church. Since then our lives have been utterly transformed by the grace of God through Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit, especially through the Mysteries (sacraments), prayer and the lives of the Saints. The Lord has brought us closer to Him-- He has plunged us to depths unknown to us before. The Maronite Church’s Divine Liturgy, prayers, iconography and music are so rich and beautiful and have brought to us a fuller understanding of Sacred Tradition and Scripture. And since the Maronite Church is an Eastern Catholic Church we have gained new perspectives of Faith and Tradition that all Catholic’s share, while also causing us to appreciate even more the diversity in cultures and traditions that make up our Catholic Church. St. Maron, pray for us!