Ignorance of faith risks creating cafeteria Catholics, pope says

That is probably one of the most profound sentences I've ever read.  

Since Vatican II, many Catholics have been poorly catechized or not catechized at all.  As a result, many think they can pick and choose which teachings to accept.  Being a true devout Catholic means accepting the teachings of the Church in their entirety.

Ignorance of the faith puts Christians at risk of following a "do-it-yourself" religion, Pope Benedict XVI said.

People need to become more familiar with the creed because it is there that the "Christian moral life is planted and ... one finds its foundation and justification," the pope said Oct. 17 at his weekly general audience.

Before an estimated 20,000 people gathered in St. Peter's Square, the pope began a new series of audience talks to accompany the Year of Faith, which marks the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council.

He said he hopes the series of instructional talks, which is expected to run until Nov. 24, 2013, will help people "strengthen or rediscover the joy of faith and realize that it isn't something foreign to or separate from everyday life, but is its soul."

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