Each Catholic strives to achieve spirituality in his or her daily life so that he or she may reach salvation. However, this is not a process that is undergone alone. Salvation of each Catholic can only be achieved through community, whether they worship the Lord in church every Sunday or reach out to others in need through a Catholic organization. In a way, each Catholic is like a member of a sports team, and if some members do not hold up their end of the bargain, the whole team suffers.

Encounters with the Divine

To have the right state of mind is essential to a good moral compass. That is one reason prayer is central to the life of a Catholic. You might have an image of someone kneeling by their bed or altar with hands folded. That is a beatific vision, but it is rarely the norm.

Prayer can involve having a conversation with God, going over some thoughts in communion with him, or reciting a Rosary and reflecting on the mysteries. It can be the Our Father at the end of the day before bed, or it might be a line thrown out to the Almighty on the way to work. Through prayer, Catholics keep returning to the teachings of Christ (and of the Church), and it gives them strength to deal with others.

At the heart of prayer is the act of celebrating the Eucharist. It both adheres Catholics into the divine and draws them out of themselves. It is a public act. Trying to be a good Catholic can be humbling, but God's mercy shines through, especially at Mass. Partaking of the Body of Christ is healing and inspiring. It helps return Catholics to the path, inspirited to go about their daily lives in a healthful way — and, of course, as part of a community.

The Power of God's Forgiveness

Catholicism is a demanding religion. Its principles — or, really, the Word of God — require that Catholics always strive to be the best. This isn't easy, of course; in fact, it is virtually impossible. But the wonderful thing about Catholicism is that it teaches that no matter how often you fail, God is all-forgiving.

This forgiveness is a tremendous gift to daily life. It means that when you are distracted or troubled or harassed, or when you fail to live up to the highest principles, you can still pick yourself up and go on. What's more, with your Father's loving mercy, you can go on feeling emboldened to try to behave better. This forgiveness gives courage, strength, and support in a way nothing else ever could. It helps make Catholics better citizens in the world as well as better citizens in Christ.

Doing Good Deeds

Hand in glove with the constant effort to be good is the impulse to do good. You may have heard of the phrase random acts of kindness. This is a secular idea that has long been fostered by the Church. Helping out and spending time with the less fortunate, the sick, and those struggling with alcoholism are all useful efforts in the scheme of the mission, which is service to others.

This is the true meaning of the word charity: kindness and thoughtfulness toward others. Again, this is what it means to be part of a community. Catholics want to foster in themselves a generosity of spirit (whether that means teaching, giving money, or helping others) and to try to see that life can be made easier for others. Charity is unbelievably rewarding, but, more important, it knits Catholics into the community of the world.

In addition to individual initiatives such as foundations to help get asbestos out of housing developments or to lobby for arms control, there are at least 1,400 Catholic charitable organizations operating in the United States. They serve 18 million people and include such agencies as the Catholic Health Association with its 600 hospitals and 300 long-term care facilities, or the Campaign for Human Development that works to help the poor. This organization collaborates with 200 smaller chapters of antipoverty groups, whose efforts aim to improve laws affecting low-income people.