A bit long this one...

Q. Decisions especially big, life-changing ones are like a pendulum. So when I left Catholicism, I swung to the complete other end of almost atheism quickly.
A.  The vast majority of guys who leave the Church do so not because of the Creed but because of the Commandments. There's usually something about their lifestyle they feel judged on but don't want to change, or some bitter experience they can't forgive or reconcile.

Q. But I've always believed in a creator.
A.  And He believes in you!

Q. What I don't like about Catholicism is that there are dogmas, ideas you are not allowed to challenge.
A. For example?

Over the last 2000 years I honestly don't know of any dogma that hasn't been challenged, argued and debated.

Further, it is natural to query what you don't understand. Animals can't ask questions, angels don't need to, but man can and needs to. The Church encourages this (as seen through her centuries of studying and teaching philosophy and theology. The idea of a university was a Church idea for example).

From my experience however, "dogma" is a word that evokes strong emotions even though they exist in all fields of learning, including science. And the strong emotions many times cloud right thinking...  But in science, for example, they are called "laws (of nature)".

Q. So what is a dogma and how is it like a law (of nature)?
A.  Well both dogmas and laws of nature attempt to define and describe a truth of creation, a reality. They both express what is. So for example the dogma of the birth of Christ expresses the fact in history/reality that at a specific geographic location and at a specific point in time, there was a human called Jesus who was born of a virgin woman. The law of buoyancy expresses the fact in reality that a thing will float in water if the weight of the volume of liquid it displaces is greater than its own weight.

It is good here to also note that the dogma and the law - i.e. the expressions or formulations of the dogma and the law came waaaaay AFTER the reality they express. This is important because it clarifies another common misconception: laws and dogmas do not create or cause the reality they define. Or to put it another way, realities exist independent of their dogmatic or legal expressions/formulations.

The law and the dogma are also effectively shortcuts to thinking about those realities. It's like the investigation has already been done - tried and tested - for you. All you need to do is learn the conclusion. So in Catechism class you simply learn the Creed. You rarely if ever go into all the arguments for and against that led to that specific word being used in the Creed. But we accept the Creed as true on the authority of the Church/the one teaching us. In physics class you simply learn the formulas. You rarely if ever go into the trials and errors that led to those specific numbers being used. But we accept the formula as true on the authority of the scientific association/the one teaching us. In both cases, with dogma and with formula, we now have tools we can then use to know how to relate to other realities e.g. to decide if this boat will float or to decide whether this stand is Christian or unChristian.

To arrive at the dogma or law a lot of "experimentation" had to be done. In dogmas the debates and arguments attempt all sorts of ways to understand the reality and to fit it in with other realities we're more sure about. For example: the dogma of the Trinity. There have been all sorts of ways attempted to explain it. But the one that fits in best with the other reality/dogma about the oneness of God for example, is the one the Church uses to distinguish person and nature. In physics the law of gravity went through all sorts of permutations before finally settling on its present formula that fits in best with the other realities we're aware about like the law of friction or electromagnetism.

Point is what laws are to science, dogma is to religion. Can you question the laws? Of course! Can you flout the laws? You can attempt! But you usually will end up injuring your body or some body.

Can you question the dogmas? Of course! Can you flout the dogmas? You can attempt! But you usually will end up injuring your soul or some soul. Whether physical or spiritual, nature will not be mocked. (That's another law or dogma for you!  )

Great to be back!

Have a great week!