Just curious: What is your religious background, and what do you believe/practice today? I grew up in a fairly nonreligious home. The only times I can remember going to church when I was really young were for weddings and funerals. When I was in about 5th grade or so, my Mom decided she needed to start going to church, mainly cause we as a family were going through some down times. We were living in a very small town at the time (San Felipe), and she went to the United Methodist Church there by herself and liked it. My Dad was a confirmed Catholic, but hadn't been to a Mass since he was like 18 or so, and she talked him into going to a service at the Methodist Church. He liked it, and we all started going there. We made about 90% of the Sunday's from around my 5th grade until I graduated high school. In that time I had become baptized and a confirmed Methodist. I never really dislike going to church (except when hungover, which was most weekends in high school), but still never really got anything out of it. Having a clinically depressed Pastor did not help with anything. Anyway, after I left for The University, I did not step foot in a church for close to 4 years, nor did I even think about it. I grew fairly apathetic on my views on Christianity and religion in general. Around my 4th year, I meet a girl. A devote Catholic coming from a very Catholic family. Even though my Dad grew up in the same kind of family, I didn't know dick about Catholicism, besides the beliefs in the Eucharist, they have a leader called the Pope, and priests get in trouble for molesting children. After seeing her for a little while, she asks me to go to church with her. I am like sure, whatever. So I went. It was a bit different than I am used to, and I felt out of place when they all went for communion and I just sat there, but I didn't mind cause I really liked this girl. As our relationship progressed, I started to really realize how important her faith and religion was in her life. She NEVER misses Mass unless she is really ill, no matter where she is at or what she is doing. After a night of drinking in a different city she will find a church nearby to go to Mass on the weekend. Or she will go Saturday evening. But this is a must and there is no way around it. She never forced me to do this, but I would still often go so she didn't have to go by herself. After a while, I actually started enjoying going to Mass with her. After another year of so of doing this, plus the numerous family events that involved the Catholic Church (baptisms, weddings,etc) I have come to really embrace the Catholic way. When being an outsider looking in, the Catholic Church is a denomination that has way too many outdated traditions that don't make much sense. But when I started to learn about why they do things the way they do and what they actually believe (which obviously can be quite different then what anti-Catholics like to talk about), I learned to love the religion and it definitely re-sparked my faith in Christianity in general. Now I am not in a rush to become a confirmed Catholic, but I can see myself seriously considering it soon down the road. That is my story. I would like to hear some other of yalls stories. p.s. PLEASE do not turn this into any kind of "What religion is best" or "You have a disorder if you believe in a higher being" thread. Thanks
My dad is Catholic, my mom is a Methodist who converted to Catholicism to marry my dad and then converted again to Presbyterianism. My step dad grew up Catholic and became a Presbyterian and my step mother is Lutheran. I would describe myself as doctrinally Catholic but organizationally Presbyterian. I can't stand protestant ideas on grace and I don't do well with the Catholic hierarchy. I'm fortunate to live down the street from a Catholic church and not much farther from the Presbyterian one.
I come from a long line of Presbyterian ministers on my Dad's side. My Dad, however, a product of the '60's, while generally maintaining a Christian belief system, also combined that with a more holistic/eastern meditative (for lack of a better description) set of beliefs. We didn't normally attend church, except when we spent summers with my Dad's family. While I don't attend church regularly, I pray every night before I sleep, and try to live my life as I understand both the old and new Testaments teach. Although AI suppose I could go to any denomination, when I do go to church, I prefer the Presbyterian one. Just seems to fall within my belief system, and preference for manner of worship. I'm not Catholic, because I want to go to heaven.
I grew up Methodist. Went pretty much weekly until I moved away for college. During college I went probably once every 4-6 weeks for the first 3 years or so. I stopped believing somewhere during my sophomore year but just kept going thinking it was just a phase or something but after a year or so I just couldn't keep forcing myself to believe something that rang so hollow to me so I eventually just stopped going. Now I just go to Christmas Eve with my folks.
Ok: My mother was Methodist, my father was Lutheran, my step-dad was Catholic. The Catholics wouldn't allow my mom and step-dad to be married in a Catholic church, so they married in a Lutheran church. I went to Lutheran Sunday school and Catholic mass at the Catholic Student Center just outside of the South Mall at UT (but sometimes I went to the Lutheran services). The Catholic church had a band that played songs like 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy) , Sounds of Silence, and Let it Be (because that song mentions Mother Mary). That was cool. When I got my driver's license and bought my own car, my parents said "go to church if you want, if you don't want to, then don't go." I went for a while, but then I quit. When I was married, my wife and I tried various churches. We had some good and bad experiences. We ended up at Calvary Chapel. It's non-denominational. It's a good church. We went to Wed. evening church. I went to Thurs. a.m. breakfasts before work. And we went on Sunday of course. We participated in a program called Marriage Builders and went on a couple of retreats. That lasted about seven years. ...... I don't go to church anymore because they're not teaching me anything that I don't already know. I've read the Bible more than 100 times and it's old news. At church all they seem to talk about is societal norms and behavioral practices and not the teachings of Jesus. Weird. ............. Oh. And what do I practice today? I try to treat people with love and respect and help those in need. I don't preach any dogma to anyone. I don't want to hear it and they don't want to hear it. You have to try to reach people where they are.
Raised Baptist.(and i mean uber-baptist: church 5 times a week for one thing or another, twice on sunday). Switched to non-denominational in 8th grade, then Episcopal in High school i Believe (basically following my mom around to whichever church she wanted us to go to.) Went to Episcopal middle school and catholic high school. My mom is now an episcopal priest and i'm an atheist.
I was raised in a religion-free household but I started attending church with my friends in high school. So I was saved in the 9th grade and became a member of the Southern Baptist church. After being fairly active for years, I ended up moving around and I got out of church for quite some time. Now I am serving as the Young Adult Pastor at my Assemblies of God church in League City. Quite the change from my Baptist background but it was well worth it!
Grew up Episcopalian, didn't attend church regularly from about 1979 to 1990, married a Catholic girl, and am currently attending the Catholic services here but have not yet chosen to begin the RCIA program.
My dad was a Methodist until he met and married my mom, who is Catholic. He became very involved (men's club, KofC, Church Council, etc) and is now pretty much a hard-core Catholic and is very respected at their church. We were raised Catholic, even went to Catholic school (St. Austin's by campus) until switching to public schools for Jr High. Anyway, I kind of fell away after HS, though I would still attend a Mass occasionally. I also tried out a few other faiths during that time, Baptist, Lutheran, and a couple others, mostly because of whomever I was dating at the time. Anyway, I started going back at about 25 or so, then met my wife who was coincidentally a Catholic and who had also sort of fallen away, though not as far as I did. After fits and starts, we started going back to Mass regularly, though we don't worry about missing as much as some folks. Our daughter is in one of the choirs at our church (St. Elizabeth's in Pflugerville) and that has actually gotten us more involved than we had been in a long time.
I grew up Catholic... we went to church because that's just what Good Catholics do. At some point in my faith journey, I had big questions such as.... why does evil exist... why Catholic and not just Christian... etc. Well, the priests and youth pastor never seemed to have good answers for my tortured curiosity. Around that time I had friends that encouraged me to read the Bible on my own. Since then I have left the Catholic faith and am currently involved in a non-denominational Bible church. I was a youth-minister in a Southern Baptist Church for a couple years (about 10 years ago) I have a ton of respect for my Catholic friends, but I do believe they err in many ways. (save for a separate time/thread)
My parents were born and raised Catholic and I was born and raised Catholic. We went to Mass regularly (every Sunday except in the case of illness) and attended CCD up until those classes became Confirmation classes. I'm still a practicing Catholic who attends Mass regularly. I couldn't ever see myself leaving the Church and being anything other than a Catholic--it's just so much a part of who I am.
I grew up Catholic, although I am not confirmed. I fell from grace before I could complete any of the confirmation steps, save First Communion. We weren't a very religious family. My parents saw the value in church, so they tried to take my brother and me. My grandparents are devout Catholics, so of course, when we visited them, we HAD to go to church. I always fought going. Always. As long as I can remember, I have questioned everything about religion. No answer has ever made sense to me. I can't remember the last time I've been to church. I am now agnostic. I truly believe there's SOMETHING out there. I believe we have a spirit and at death it's transformed to another state of consciousness. I think whatever it is, it's too big and could never be understood by us at present form. I believe in treating people right. I believe for every action, there are positive and negative karmic repercussions for which we will all answer in the next state of consciousness.
Sorry so long: Born and raised Catholic. Dad was born and raised Catholic and took me to Mass every weekend bar none. I came to find out he had/has many doubts, but felt in important to give me a strong base. I am eternally thankful for that. My Mom is now a Catholic, but converted late in life after I was out of the house. I did a stint as an alter boy for a few years in junior high. Two years of Catholic school in junior high. Due to changing schools every year from 5th-9th grade, I missed confirmation. 7th grade Catholic school did it in 8th grade. New 8th grade school already did it. Etc… I was either too cool to do it in high school or just forgot. My parents weren’t that aggressive so it was up to me. I sort of realized I missed confirmation and took the classes as a freshman at UT. I took the classes at the Neumann Center just off campus and was confirmed at St. Austin’s just off campus. The Center (and maybe the parish) was run by the Paulist Fathers, which is a very progressive order, which makes sense as their mission is college campuses. But that was not and is not my comfort zone. When confronted with a basic question in class, like “Is premarital sex wrong in the eyes of the Church?” they would not answer directly. They basically said, “That’s between you and your God,” or some such, which is flat wrong. This pissed me off. I wanted clear teaching and clear guidelines. If I chose to ignore a rule, fine, but I wanted to know the rules and didn’t want the bearded, Birkenstocked, guitar pickin’ priest to be all Kumbaya with me. Due to this worldview, I picked the most contrarian confirmation named that I could. So much so, the bishop laughed with me afterward for doing so. I have always gone to Sunday Mass missing here and there. I discovered daily Mass a few years after college and go as often as I can; usually once or twice a work week, more during Lent. To be fair, the Church is across the street from my office and is very easy with a lunch time Mass. When I had other jobs where it was slightly less convenient, like 6 blocks away, I didn’t make it so much. My wife and I (also Catholic) got married in the Vatican. Few know this is possible, easy, and open to any couple in good standing with their parish (a member) and with at least one of the two being Catholic. Very cool, very cheap, and well worth it. PM if anyone is wants more info. I am lucky to live in Northern Virginia, which is considered by many to be one of the more conservative dioceses in the country. Since that fits with my theological and world view, it’s a nice fit. We have the Latin Rite Mass on a semi regular basis at our Church which we all enjoy. Interestingly, our 6 year old really likes it. I wouldn’t have guessed that would have been the case. The only time I slacked on Mass was when right after we had kids. For a couple of years, if I couldn’t talk my wife into going and us bringing all the kids (we have 5 now), we didn’t go. There is no cry room or baby sitting in our old and ornate church. Now she goes to the Sat vigil, and I take the 3 oldest (the ones that can sit still and quiet) to a Sunday Mass. If any of you are married with young kids and are in the same boat, I humbly suggest you drop the pretense that couples have to go together and split it up. If you can’t take care of your souls together for whatever reason, take care of your own. As soon as I committed to going every week, even if I was alone, she started going as well. The whole family is better for it. We say prayers with the kids every night. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, O My Jesus, Hail Holy Queen, St. Michael the Archangel, and Memorare. Basically, I am just getting them the prayers they need for Mass, the rosary and for school. They go to/will go to Catholic School. I say the rosary most days, but probably average 3 or 4 days a week. I say it in the car on the way to work or on the treadmill. Basically when I am multitasking, which isn’t ideal, but it works for me. Again, sorry so long. utexas_61: Welcome! Admittedly, the Mass can seem overwhelming to those that are unfamiliar. If anyone has any questions, fire away. I ain’t no expert, but I bet the crew around here can collectively get it right.
None. I was raised with parents whom were raised Catholic, but had given up on going to church and religion for a while. My parents have since found religion again with Calvary Chapel in S. Florida. I was married by a Unitarian, but I am simply agnostic. I have no ill feelings toward religion in general nor do I have a problem separating the individual dipshits from the religion (Phelps is not a representation of the religion). I actually have a fondness and an appreciation for it, even if I am on the outside of it.
The Central Texas town in which I grew up is overwhelmingly Catholic, but I grew up in the Episcopal Church. My Mother always took us there and my Dad, who grew up Catholic, attended with us. My sister and I were both Acolytes in the church. We moved to the Northern Dallas area in 1996 (freshman yr of hs for me) and joined the biggest Episcopal church in Dallas. I did some youth stuff, but not too much. Went to college and joined the Episcopal/Lutheran church on campus, where I attended about once a month. Now I'm back in Dallas, and attend the same church from HS. Our church has since broken away from the Episcopal Church b/c of the whole gay bishop thing (don't want to discuss here) but that's not why I attend. Our minister is fantastic and generally with the times. He gets me to think on levels I never thought possible. Being Christian can be difficult, but it helps me get through the perils of life.
When I was young (<5yo) we never really went to church. Both my parents families are Catholic (Good Italians on one side, Germanic euromutts on the other). My parents divorced when I was 5. My mom remarried a Baptist guy who would drag us to church every couple weeks. ****, I even went to a Baptist private school for much of elementary (central austin, big steeple, big parking garage). My mom was never really into church, and still is not. Only times I can remember here in church are when she was dragged there, and my wedding. Dad remarried a Greek lady, so I went to church with them on his weekends. So my exposure to christianity as a child was pretty interesting. One Sunday: Crestview Baptist; Monday-Friday: Big Box Baptist for school (and chapel); Next Sunday: Greek Orthodox church (liturgy in greek and english, our parish was real small so no sunday school). I didn't realize at the time how VERY, VERY, VERY different the things I was seeing really were. They all used the same words pretty much, just some of them in a funny accent. I didn't realize at the time the profound differences in meaning, though. Anyways over time, mom divorced the Baptist guy, and my father and I grew, um, estranged. Didn't do the church thing for a while. Without getting into it too much, a series of circumstances (father's health, personal issues, some life experiences) led to reconciliation with my father, at which time I started going back to church irregularly. Figured if I was going to do this thing, I needed to learn a little more about what it was. I had been indoctrinated into the Protestant view of Christian faith, and I was learning that there were very different ways of understanding and talking about the key doctrines of Christianity. The more I read and learned about the history and development of Christianity, the more I was drawn to the eastern expressions. They just make more sense to me. Anyways, so sometime around 19 or 20, I started going to church more regularly. Met my wife at church around 22, got married 2 years ago. We go to an Eastern Orthodox church. I am drawn to the more mystical aspects of Christianity. My personal theology tends toward universalism in the vein of Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory Nazianzus, who believed that all things would ultimately be reconciled to God.
