“Gallup looks at moral issues in the United States” (CR, April 9) contains several misleading statements about the Catholic faithful. It implies that 40 percent of Catholics find abortion acceptable, 63 percent accept embryonic stem cell research, 67 percent accept sex between unmarried men and women and 61 percent believe that it is alright to have a child out of wedlock. The above statements are both preposterous and impossible.
One-hundred percent of Catholics are opposed to these practices. The church, the Magisterium which is our moral guide, requires that Catholics be opposed to the above. One cannot be a Catholic and believe in these things. This is a prime example of the difference between identification and faith. One may identify as a Catholic, but really not be a Catholic because they lack the faith. Unfortunately there is a large group of individuals who fall into this category.
These “Cafeteria Catholics” pick and choose only those parts of the faith which they accept and practice. They are not real Catholics, because they do not accept and practice all parts of the faith. They do not meet the requirements of the church. It is a misnomer to call them Catholic.
Catholics do not have the option, nor do they want it, of picking and choosing which parts of their faith they will accept. They must accept the Catholic faith, and the moral guidance of the church, in their entirety.