Hole the pickle, hold the lettuce, hold all those rules that so upset us.

Ed Kuhlman likes his Catholicism made to order. He likes some of the trappings, but those pesky rules have got to go. Ed wasn’t ‘comfortable’ in the Catholic church in which he was raised, so he set out to find a church that was more in tune with him.

Kuhlman’s mother Karen came across a newspaper article about the Ecumenical Catholic Church USA, a national independent Catholic church, and gave it to Kuhlman.

After looking into the church, Kuhlman found what he was looking for.

Hooray for Ed. Moreover, Ed then found his special calling.

About five years ago, he started studying to become a priest in the church.

“It was kind of natural progression,” Kuhlman said. “I didn’t join the church planning on becoming a priest.”

Ed has tapped into something. The one universal religious truth that everyone can accept these days. “It is all about you”. For Ed, this is not about truth and trying to live God’s will as revealed by Jesus and handed on to the Apostles. No, this is about finding a church in line with Ed’s will. As Ed’s mother said:

“My husband and I are very proud of him,” Karen said. “It seems this is tailor made for him, and I think he is tailor made for it.”

So what is this Church that is tailor made for Ed? Some notable items:

  • We believe that all Holy Orders (bishops, priests, and deacons) are open to both men and women. [Of course]
  • We believe that celibacy for those in Holy Orders is a personal decision. [Very personal, I’d say]
  • We believe in the sanctity of marriage as a life long commitment between a man and woman. [Can’t you just smell a caveat coming?] We also believe that within certain marriages there may be circumstances or conditions that make life within that relationship unbearable or dangerous and thus divorce becomes appropriate or even necessary.
  • Realizing that Jesus is merciful and it is he alone who understands fully the reality of any human decision,the church welcomes to all the sacraments those who have been divorced and/or remarried. [A no brainer]
  • We believe that contraception is a personal decision of the married couple. [They are going to do it anyway, right?]

Catholicism made to order, just the way you like it. Just remember, here at the BK Catholic Church, it is all about you.

Read the full article here.