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The minimum requirements for being a Catholic are called the precepts of the Church:

 Attending Mass every Sunday (or Saturday evening) and holy day of obligation.

 Going to confession annually or more often (or when needed).

 Receiving Holy Communion during Easter. (Receiving weekly or daily Holy Communion is encouraged, though.)

 Observing laws on fasting and abstinence: one full meal on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday; not eating meat on Fridays during Lent.

 Supporting the Church financially and otherwise.

And, in the United States, the American bishops added two more precepts:

 Obeying the marriage laws of the Church.

 Supporting missionary activity of the Church.

You can find out more about the precepts of the Church in Chapter 11.

Catholics are also required to pray daily, participate in the sacraments, obey the moral law, and accept the teachings of Christ and His Church. If you haven’t grown up knowing and accepting the faith, then you need to make sure you know and agree with all that the Catholic Church teaches before you can truly practice the faith.

Practicing the faith is the most difficult part of being Catholic. Obeying the rules isn’t just mindless compliance. It involves appreciating the wisdom and value of the various Catholic rules and laws. Believers are asked to put that belief into action, to practice what they believe. Catholics are taught that all men and women are made in the image and likeness of God and that all men and women have been saved by Christ and are adopted children of God. That belief, if truly believed, requires that the person act as if she really means it.

Every organization, society, association, and group has rules. Even individual families and homes have their own rules, which exist for one purpose: the common good of all the members. Just like directions on a bottle of medicine tell you the proper use of something, Church laws are signs that warn you of danger and give you the proper directions to your destination. The laws of God — be they the Ten Commandments, the Natural Moral Law, or the moral teachings of the Church — exist to protect us and to ensure our spiritual safety.