No. While there are different types of Catholics, both liturgically and culturally, all Catholics are supposed to follow the same beliefs (doctrines) and moral code. Unlike other Christians, doctrinal beliefs do not change from parish to parish within the Catholic Church. All Catholics are supposed to follow the same beliefs and morals.
That being said, not all Catholics follow the same beliefs and morals equally. Some strive very hard to live as good and faithful Catholics, in accordance with Church teaching. Others may not strive nearly as hard. Those Catholics who consistently show a pattern of failing to adhere to the Church’s doctrinal teachings, and/or its moral code, are called Lapsed Catholics.
Most of the time, being a Lapsed Catholic is a private matter, usually known only by God, the sinner and the priest in the confessional. The Catholic Church takes great care to safeguard the privacy of personal sins, and generally does not make public statements about a particular Lapsed Catholic.
On rare occasions, however, Lapsed Catholics can be public figures, whose scandalous behavior becomes a source of public confusion. For example, sometimes a Lapsed Catholic may be a celebrity or politician, who might give the appearance that the Catholic Church condones certain heresies (false teachings) and/or sinful behavior. When this happens, said Lapsed Catholic is supposed to be corrected by his bishop, and he is supposed to be denied communion by the priests until he publicly repents of the publicly scandalous behavior. Sadly, however, it is possible for clergy to be lapsed as well. When a Lapsed Catholic, who is a celebrity or politician, is enabled by a lapsed bishop who refuses to perform the duties of his vocation, it becomes a source of great public scandal that besmirches the reputation of the entire Catholic Church.
It should be noted that when such situations occur, they are not the result of authentic Catholic teaching, but rather the failure of individual sinners. The failure of Judas Iscariot was not the result of Jesus’ teaching. It was, rather, in spite of it. Since the time of the Apostles, the Catholic Church has always had lapsed members. Jesus warned us this would always be so, until his Second Coming on the Last Day.1
In contrast, a Practicing Catholic is one who tries to faithfully follow the teachings and morals of the Church, in practice, in spite of personal failings that are confessed and repented of. Nobody’s perfect. All Catholics sin. All Catholics have misbeliefs from time to time. So long as Catholics are seeking to follow the teachings of the Church, and remain open to correction, confession and repentance, they remain Practicing Catholics. So in the end, while there are many different types of rites, forms and jurisdictions in the Catholic Church, giving the Church her rich diversity, there are only two types of Catholics in practical application: practicing and lapsed.
For more information on this, see…
There are Only Two Types of Catholics: Practicing and Lapsed
- Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43
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