Faith vs. Religion | Part 1 | Learning my Religion

Shortly after I was born - I was baptized in a Methodist church. My mother was born and raised a Methodist and was very deeply devoted to her faith, as well as that branch of "religions". My father on the other hand was "nothing". His mother jumped around many religions and never seemed to settle on one. His biological father died when he was very young although Pops thought he was Catholic. It seemed Grandma would change religions as she changed husbands. There was Lutheran; Catholic; Evangelical and lastly, when he was about to marry my mother - she was identifying as a Mormon.

Let's just say politely that the Mormon thing didn't sit well with my Ladymother - and she told my dad in no uncertain terms that he was now a Methodist and that is how their children would be raised. Honestly, he could care less. As I said - he was nothing.

Pops had moved out on his own when he was 16 and had enlisted in the merchant marines using a fake id. After he was actually of age - he then joined the Army and served until shortly before moving to Chicago and meeting my mother. Religion just wasn't a factor in his life. But once he met Babs and the Langford family - she made certain that would change.

Muzzie was ALL about her faith. She was all about the church and the community and love she'd always felt within there. She & her family would talk about Armitage Ave Church as if it was 5 million times more important than the Vatican (oh, those Catholics they'd say - shaking their heads and doing an eyeroll). The fact that 4 of her 5 brothers married Catholic girls and converted might have something to do with my Grandma and her 5 daughters disdain for that "branch" of religion. When we moved to our neighborhood - they joined Joyce United Methodist Church and that's where I learned everything about God and Religion.

I was born in 68 and grew up in the 70's & 80's. Church was a huge part of my life.

As a child, I never questioned it - I never rebelled from it and because of the amazing people at our church - I embraced it - I loved it. Sunday school and then services each Sunday led to coffee hour with our members - who truly were like family. Kids played and our parents talked and gossiped about things.

When I was 18, the pastor I'd grown up with had to transfer to another church. He'd literally been my pastor since I was a baby and it devastated me. The church brought in new pastors - but it was NEVER the same for me. My interest in Sundays @Joyce became non-existent and I'd only go if my mother asked me for a holiday or special day. My faith hadn't changed - but my messenger of that faith was gone. That made ALL the difference in the world. No one to this day could or would ever replace him and the impact he made on me growing up.

I believe that his sermons resonated so well with me because they weren't "preachy" and while they did correspond to that weeks scripture - they were always spoken and tied to present life. At one point I actually thought I'd make a good Methodist Minister because I felt like I could take it one step further and make it more interesting for people to relate to. I always thought we shouldn't rely so much on the Bible - but more on being a good person and following the 10 commandments.

In 2004, prior to when Tim and I got engaged - he asked me how I felt converting to the Catholic Church and raising any future kids in that religion. It's not that it was that important to him persay - as he was a "Cradle Catholic" - meaning he went through the motions out of sheer obligation - but truthfully, the church aspect wasn't that important to him. However, it was very important to his parents. They were & are - true Irish Catholics. Pray before every meal - rosary said daily and church every week - without fail, When we'd go back to visit - they'd often ask him if he'd attended church in the city. He'd nod - but I'd bet bacon on it that it never happened though.

I sat down and really thought about it. What was the difference between a Methodist and a Catholic? I truly didn't know and like everything - I began to dig into it. To be honest, after much research, I felt like it's really the same, with a few subtle differences surrounding rituals and privileges. I also talked to my friend Steve as he had recently converted to the Catholic Church. We had many discussions and it boiled down to the the Apostle's Creed. When I recited it - could I make a commitment to what I was saying? For the most part - I was ok with it. There was one verse - where it said that I would only believe in the CATHOLIC church that I balked at. For 35 years I'd followed the Methodist church - so was I betraying that just because the Catholics believed they were better? It bugged me - but I got past it because my mother and her mother and her sisters all gave the side eye to the Catholics and were good Methodists - so really I started to see that every "religion" thinks they're better than the other. I started the RCIA program in Sept 2004 and over the course of the next 6 months - was confirmed as a Catholic. When I had the conversation with my mother - I thought she's be upset - but instead - she took it gracefully and said all that mattered was that I kept true to the principles of my faith. It didn't matter what church I went too - all the was important to her was that I'd never lost my spirituality.

I did and kept some of my Methodist virtues - singing of the hymns; reading of scriptures and listening intently to the sermons or homily. Tim and I started going back to mass weekly and adopted some of his families rituals like praying before each meal. Although the children never did come, I have stayed a Catholic since 2005.

But then some things changed.

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Faith vs. Religion | Part 2 | Losing my Religion but maintaining Spirituality