I would think following the rules would be important. You overlook the acknowledged fact the majority of US Catholics are Democrats and lean liberal in most elections. You ignore the polls that show a majority of American Catholics are opposed to removing a woman's right to choose or discrimination based on one's sexual orientation. There's a complicated dichotomy of separating religious from political edicts. It's in the same vein as being Jewish or Hindu.
Religion is for the most part the result of parenting.
So attacking someone for being Catholic is not far from attacking someone's ethnicity. So go ahead and disagree with tenets of Catholicism. It is, for the moment, a free country. I'd plead guilty to ridiculing those who feel sooooooo strongly about their religion but don't have the slightest clue how to defend it. It's no different than politics.