lapsed Catholic
Left the Church
A lapsed Catholic is someone raised in the Catholic faith who no longer practices it—they've stopped attending Mass, receiving sacraments, or following Church teachings.
The term implies the person hasn't formally converted to another religion but has drifted away or consciously stepped back: He describes himself as a lapsed Catholic who hasn't been to confession in twenty years.
The word lapsed suggests falling away from a standard rather than actively rejecting it.
- fallenHaving dropped down
- fallen awayAbandoned former beliefs
- apostateOne who renounces faith
- backsliderOne who reverts
- confessionAdmission of wrongdoing
guilt · mass · rosary · catechism · Vatican II · communion · penance · Easter · Christmas · incense · holy water · parish · nun · priest · altar boy · sacrament · baptized · confirmation
- Catholicsparishioners, parishioner, communicant, archbishops, bishops
- ex-believersapostate, ex-believer, former believer, deconvert, backslider
- Former Rolesex-president, ex-wife, ex-husband, ex-boyfriend, ex-girlfriend
- baptismchristening, infant baptism, adult baptism, water baptism, immersion