I’ve figured it out. It explains so much. A great many of my Catholic friends are simply Protestants. They object to and Protest not only many basic Catholic teachings, but the whole tenor and worldview of the Catholic Church. Included in this are a great many self-consciously “real Catholics” and “uber-Catholics”.

Now of course it’s tricky “judging” another person’s Catholicism. Technically speaking, every baptized person is Catholic, whether they know it or not – though most are not in full communion with the Catholic Church. This is because there’s no other Church to be baptized into.

So I’m not talking literally here. I don’t want to make the mistake Mr. Voris et. al. are doing in saying “I’m a REAL CATHOLIC and you’re not.”

So with that in mind, and using a bit of literary license, there is a Protestant worldview and a Catholic worldview, and most of my Catholic friends are steeped in the former.

They believe that a good end justifies a bad means; they endorse torture; they think that art or fiction that depicts sin is itself sinful, regardless of the context in which or the purpose for which the sin is depicted; they believe individualism trumps obedience to authority; they believe rational criticism is suspect; they are anti-intellectuals; they think activism is more important than prayer or faith; they give lip service to chastity, but they are deeply suspicious of it; they are libertarian and believe that government should not even build and maintain roads (some of them have actually said this to me); they can’t tell good writing from bad; they do not understand what the fullness of Reason is.

Anyway, these are all hallmarks of the Protestant worldview.

And, to our shame, we Catholics, many of us, are marching under this banner.