After
writing and posting on Catholic forums for many years, I felt it was time for me to start a blog to talk about all
things Catholic, as I have seen and experienced them. At this point in my life I feel I would be
remiss if I didn’t share what I’ve learned and have come to understand about
being Catholic as a woman, a wife, and an American.
The
story of how I became Catholic
was printed in This Rock Magazine, September 1995: http://archive.catholic.com/thisrock/1995/9509fea1.asp. I have to say that if I were to write my
story now, it would be less polemical.
Practicing my Catholic faith for over twenty-five years has softened my
judgment of others while hardening my resolve to embrace the truth.
Let
me begin by explaining what
religion means to me in the two main lessons it has taught me.
My
first lesson, one that has kept me grounded through many trials and
tribulations: God is (Hebrews 11:6).
“God is” sounds simplistic and naive
in today’s secular world. However, as a
child growing up in America, God’s existence was a given. Indeed, our public schools taught it, and our
culture and laws supported it. Today,
doubting God’s existence has become more than an intellectual exercise. Faith is being attacked on every side,
especially by the elite. Therefore, I believe it is vital we restate the simple
fact that “God is.” We Catholics need to
defend this truth. If and how we do it will affect every aspect of our lives,
believers and non-believers alike.
My
second lesson comes from the second part of Hebrews 11:6: “God rewards those
who seek him.”
This isn’t an “I’ll get candy from
mom if I’m good” reward. It’s the reward
of union with God, a union closer than that of husband and wife because it
completes all others in the perfection of divine love. In order to come to that we must please God
by having faith in him and doing as he
commands. Again, this may appear simplistic,
but because so many have given up practicing or rejected the truths of the faith
to “go with the flow,” it needs repeating, again and again.
The
verse from Hebrews is the foundation of my life in Christ and his Church. It’s what led me, at last, to full union with
Christ’s Church.
I think it is fitting to remind
ourselves of these simple truths during the Lenten Season. And, the election of a new pope gives us the
opportunity to renew our commitment to the faith. Each of us must determine how God wishes us to
fulfill his commands to believe and to act out the faith. Christ, through his Church, has given us the
Sacraments, the prayer life of the Church, and the means to do good works so that
we can be holy and do good for the benefit of our loved ones and our world. It’s up to us to do it.
