Spirituality and God

I grew up in a Catholic family and a Catholic Neighborhood, really when you are from Milwaukee; it's hard to not grow up in a Catholic Neighborhood. We went to church every Sunday and I went to Catholic school all the way through high school. At the time I thought everything I was learning in school was true. I didn't question what I was being taught in Religion classes. I just memorized the genealogy of Adam and Eve through Jesus. I had to in order to do well in the class. When I got to high school I started to realize there was a lot to question about religion. I did my questioning, but I never wavered from my strong beliefs because I had a supportive family and church. I was allowed to ask questions and people were willing to talk to me about hard topics like abortion and homosexuality. I was confirmed into the Catholic Church my Junior year of high school and was so on board because my faith was in tune with the Catholic Church I knew.

Some would say the Catholic Church I grew up in was not Catholic. We did things very differently than most. We had liturgical dancers, dramatic gospel readings, hand gestures during the Eucharistic Prayer, and a Priest that encouraged us to think outside the box and question the messages that Rome was sending. I never really understood how much of a gift my Church was until I got to college. I went to Winona State University, in Winona, MN. A very Catholic town, but a public school. I was in a little bit of shock when some students responded to me negatively because I was Catholic. That had never happened growing up in Milwaukee, and going to Catholic School. I got questions like, "Why do you worship Mary and the Saints?", "Where does holy water come from, is there a special plane that brings it from the Holy Land?", and "Why is the Pope so old?"

I started questioning the Catholic Church more and more. Not because of other students reactions to me being Catholic, but I started to see the Catholic Church was not on board with the way I was thinking. I started becoming a feminist activist, and declared myself to be Pro-Choice and I started wondering where my Catholicism fit into all of this. My faith is God has never wavered, but my faith in the Catholic Church started to go down.

I've come to terms with the fact that I still want to be Catholic. I think I can be Catholic and a Feminist. I can hold the political beliefs and hold and be Catholic. Does that mean I don't get angry with the Catholic Church? Of course not! Why can't women be Priests? Why can't Priests be married? Why can't God be neither male nor female? Why is it so bad to think that Jesus could have been married and had sex? Why can't women have more authority in the Church? Why can’t homosexuals get married if they are in committed relationships? Aren’t we totally missing Jesus’ message? He hung out with the lepers and outcasts! He was so radical because he brought so many new ideas. He wanted people to see that there was more to faith than tradition. There is a place for tradition, but there is also a place for change.

I am still Catholic, though I may not go to Mass every week. I am still Catholic even though I don’t agree with everything the Church says. If I did agree wouldn’t that be boring? I have a strong faith, and I will continue my strong relationship with God, even if I decide that I may not want to be an active member of the Church. I’m not going away anytime soon. I can be Catholic and hold my beliefs! God told me so!

I'm recommending a movie this time: Iron Jawed Angels (It's awesome!)