Growing in Faith

St. Vincent of Lerins once said, the Catholic faith consists of what is believed by everyone, everywhere, and at all times. Many Catholics grew up hearing about “The unchanging faith of the Catholic Church.” So what about this, “Can you eat meat on Fridays?”  It was a “mortal sin” to do so until after 1970.  Did Moses himself write the first five books of the Bible?  The Catholic church said so until about 1940. Did God create the world in six literal days of 24 hours? That would have been a common belief until about 1900.  As early as the year 300 there was an expression used by Catholics, “There is no salvation outside of the Church” along with “If you are not baptized you cannot be saved.” That is not what the Catechism says now.  What changed?

Obviously, some things can change, but are there beliefs which cannot change at all?  How can you tell the difference? Join Fr. Olson to discuss how doctrine and practice develop in the Catholic tradition.