The sunk cost fallacy is a lack of reasoning when it comes to a position. It goes like this. Let’s say you are walking to a store to buy an item. About 1/2 way to the store, you realize the store is now closed. Instead of turning back home, you reason to yourself “I have already walked 10 blocks, so I will just continue on all the way to the store”. Or let’s say you are painting a room for a friend, and realize that you bought the wrong color of paint they requested, but you paint the room anyway instead of returning to the store to get the right color. Or let’s say you are being scammed by another. Your friend provides you damning evidence and then tells you “they are scamming you, stop giving them money!” But instead you reason to yourself, “I have already given them money, so why not give them more”. This is called the sunk cost fallacy. When pride becomes part of the investment.

This fallacy is used in the illogical reasoning of many Catholics near and dear to your heart. Instead of listening to the Gospel and heeding all the warning lights you have clearly showed them, they reason it away by the sunk cost fallacy.

They will think for example in this fallacy, “I have put in many years of service in the RCC, so it doesn’t matter if this person is telling me the truth, I will just continue on”. Or “My parents and grandparents died Catholics, they spent decades of time in the RCC, so I will just continue on”. Or they think “but what about all my sacrament participation, “good” works, and stellar Mass attendance?” as they view leaving the RCC as a sunk cost by these things, thus it envelops this fallacy.

Despite what you may have heard, Roman Catholicism is an effort/works religion. The more you put in, supposedly will be a return on that investment. It is a very much quid pro quo mindset when they think of God.

Be aware of this mindset and reasoning when you question and witness to Catholics. Challenge this reasoning. Ask questions in reference to the sunk cost fallacy such as “are you worried that all that time and effort is all for not?” Then point out the ONLY effort we can rely on is Jesus Christ’s perfect effort, to place their faith alone in Him!

The RCC and every cult like religion employs through their indoctrination the sunk cost fallacy as a way to keep the Catholic from ever leaving despite any challenge to the RCC doctrines. The person who says “I was born a Catholic, and will die a Catholic” is very much using the sunk cost fallacy in their reasoning. They are basically telling you that even if Jesus Himself came down from Heaven and showed them the same things from His word you have shown them, they could not leave the RCC based on the time and investment they put into the RCC.