In this post, it is claimed (in a “Big Book of Catholic Sins”) that it is a sin for Catholics to associate with non-Catholics. I hadn’t heard that before. It doesn’t seem to match up with the Catholic Church allowing Catholics to marry non-Catholics as long as the kids are raised Catholic.
My brother-in-law and nieces are Catholic. Are they sinning by associating with my sister (who agreed to raise the kids Catholic, but is not herself Catholic) and the rest of my family?
I have no idea what book that post refers to.
But no: it is not sinful, from the point of view of the Catholic Church, for Catholics to associate with non-Catholics. The idea is nonsense.
I have no idea what this “Big Book” is, but it’s crap, if it actually exists. Associating with non-Catholics is not a sin. The Church does not teach that it is a sin. Given that the Pope himself and just about all the cardinals, bishops, priests and nuns on the planet associate with non-Catholics on a regular basis, it should be obvious that it is not a sin. Either this book does not exist, or it was written by a non-Catholic who has an axe to grind with the Church (perhaps one of those fundies who believes that Catholics are not truly Christian) and is just making stuff up, or it was written by a complete ignoramus. Or it says something other than the poster who cites to it believes it says.
Interesting. I haven’t heard of this before, but it must go back pre-Vatican II. I don’t think you have anything to worry about.
Agreed, it’s ridiculous, as is a “Big Book of Catholic Sins”.
And who talks about “going to Reconciliation”? The sacrament may be called the sacrament of reconciliation, but the act is called going to confession.
The only warning I recall (from my “growing up Catholic” days) was that in a “mixed marriage”, it would be inconceivable for the children to be raised as non-catholic. Therefore, if you contemplate mixed marriage, the heathen spouse must consent for the children to be raised catholic if you expect the church to bless your union.
Otherwise, the only warning was that the non-catholics, being more sinful, would likely temp you to commit sins you might otherwise avoid. (Actually, i don’t really remember that being an explicit warning… ) And, you would miss thoe poor souls when you got to heaven and they didn’t. 
George Carlin riffed on his old priest talking about Catholic Johnny and Non-Catholic Bobby, and how Bobby was always trying to get Johnny to eat a hot dog on Friday.
Well, until fairly recently (up to about 500 years ago), everyone around you should be Catholics!
Then a bunch of people decided to not be Catholics, which provoked a little spat.
The Church does not teach that non-Catholics, or even non-Christians, are not saved. It sort of did in the pre-Vatican II days, but even then more by implication than by explicit statement. You’d have to go back a long time before you got to the point where the Church explicitly said that only Catholics are saved.
I’d like to know how are you supposed to convert non-Catholics without associating with them. If (if) that book exists, whomever wrote it was big on guilt and extreeeeeemely small on both theology and logic.
I know a nun who, as a young woman, was not allowed to attend weddings or other social events of her non-Catholic friends. This was at the direction of her local diocese. She went to secular colleges and ended up with two master’s degrees, so she did certainly some educational associating.
ETA: former nun. She left the convent before she acquired her second master’s degree.
I thought it sounded implausible that the Catholic Church teaches that it’s a sin to associate with non-Catholics.
Was it all social events, or events held in non-Catholic places of worship? I have heard (correct me if I am wrong) that Catholics are not supposed to go to non-Catholic worship services.
There were Jews around then. Some Catholics might have had dealings with Muslims or Orthodox Christians, as well. Was that a sin? If it ever was, when did it stop being one?
We were told that it was taboo to attend masses in a different faith. I had a girl lfriend who was Lutheran and was told it was a sin to go with her to church. Catholic masses are real boring.
We were allowed to go to the Orthodox masses, and my mom and I used to go to them sometimes just for variety. We also went to the Mariachi masses whenever possible. And of course the holiday masses were special, particularly around Easter and Christmas.
And then I went to a Jesuit college…
Catholic masses are certainly not all alike!
As far as I know, all social events, but I could be wrong. I see her often, and I’ll try to remember to ask her. She’s in her eighties, so this would have been in the late '30s, I think.
I could be wrong, but I don’t think even attending non-Catholic (but Christian) worship services would be considered a sin. The eucharist would be seen as invalid (essentially meaningless) but attending the service, not sinful, I don’t think.
Here’s an examination of conscience (at the bottom) from a Traditional Catholic site to see what they’d consider sins. I don’t think mainstream Catholicism would be more harsh:
Back in college, in my very, very Catholic hometown, I had a date with a Catholic Irish-American woman I met in a bar. The date was going quite well, until she asked me what parish I belonged to, assuming that I was Catholic just like everybody else. When I told her I wasn’t Catholic, her response was “It’s over. Take me home. NOW.” She didn’t utter another word.
You’re in and out in an hour. No matter how many “hallelujahs” some baptist services have, it’s still going to take a large chunk out of your Sunday.
There’s the story of the two ditch-diggers, Paddy and Liam, doing roadwork outside the house of ill repute in Ireland. As they are digging, the local Anglican minister comes to the door of the house, looks around, and goes in. Paddy says to Liam “Fer shame, him bein a man of the cloth and all…”
Then the local rabbi does the same - come up to the door, looks around, and goes in. Liam says to Paddy “Faith and begorah, fer shame, him bein a man of the cloth and all…”
Then the local Catholic priest comes up to the door and goes in. Paddy says to Liam, “Ah… One of the girls must be feelin’ poorly…”