I have been asked recently by family members and even by the church, why I want to be Catholic. I had to struggle for several months with the decision and an answer.
First, after being part of a church that was in a community I no longer lived in, it was important to be involved in a local church. This church is 6 doors down the street. My former church was part of the affluent suburbs and not very understanding of those struggling to make a living. This church is very close, I can walk there and it’s made up of people in my own neighborhood and town. I know them and they know me. There is no pretence. I don’t have to be embarrassed that I’m not rolling in money, and that I don’t have nice clothes to wear to church. People come to Mass in jeans, dresses, suits, and sweat pants. What they wear is irrelevant.
Secondly, there is a nasty underbelly to the “Worship Leading” going on in some churches. I was part of it at one time and found myself uneasy. The ugly side to some of this Worship is that it is pure showmanship. “Ooo, look at me, see how reverent and led by the Holy Spirit I am. Why, it makes me lift up my hands, shed a tear, and stop everything to focus on Him (me).” I know acting when I see it and I’d had my fill. It’s nice to find a church that worships with classical music, up in the loft, being led by local talent and a choir director that teaches music at Wayne State University. Strings, horns and organ, it’s all there and there is interesting and culturally diverse choir music.
One of the things I love is symbolism and the Catholic Church has tons of it. There s a reason behind everything they do; the procession, the holding aloft the body of Christ, the colors worn by the priests, and the Feasts that we seemingly endlessly celebrate. There is some of that in other churches, but not as richly presented.
The real questions seem to pertain to my former Protestant/ Lutheranism. Okay, I have been a Lutheran for 30 years. When I began in the Lutheran Church, the biggest difference between Catholic and Lutheran worship were the lack of prayers to The Virgin Mary and The Saints. Otherwise, it was nearly exact, which is why I know the responsive words to the priest’s cantor. Our pastors wore cassocks just like the priests and in Catechism class, we learned about the saints (with a little s) and the symbols used in the church as well as the Lutheran Symbolism. I have always been interested in symbolism, history and traditions so a return to this in the Catholic Church feels familiar.
Finally, I have always been rebellious and I am one of those people who are seemingly full of contradictions while I prefer to view them as contrasts. I consider myself to be a feminist. I believe in a woman’s right to choose, but I am personally conflicted. I DO believe that the “products” of abortion are, in fact, a child. I do not stand in the way of others who believe differently. I think priests should be able to marry and women should be able to become priests. I also believe in equal rights for same sex couples and feel they should be embraced like everyone else by the church. I have found that in this church, I can have opinions that differ and I don’t have to fear excommunication or being shunned. There are a lot of people there that have differing opinions. I don’t feel like taking my toys and playing elsewhere. The Catholic Church has made changes but admittedly slow. I can live with that. I may be one of the voices that force change. The fighting that Luther did, led to the demise of those stupid Indulgences or “Get out of Hell Free Cards” the Catholic Church used to sell. Luther and others, confronted the sexual frolicking of the priests, the Popes fathering children, and the convents that were little different from brothels and in doing so, forced change. (Read a World Lit Only By Fire) Our RCIA teacher knows the history of the church quite well and says its proof positive of God’s existence, that being as corrupt as it was, God allowed the Catholic Church to continue. Because I’ve read a lot about the Reformation from varying sides, I know there are skeletons in nearly ALL of the closets of the churches of today.
My kids are cranky about having to eat fish during Lent, my plans of following a fast, and me pestering them to go to Mass with me. They don’t like me being different. They aren’t entirely surprised. Our living room is full of Jesus in two paintings and loads of candles with Saints and The Blessed Virgin, a Virgin snow globe and several books on Christianity. I’m not dumping Protestantism; I’m embracing Catholicism, so shoot me.
I HAVE decided to become Catholic and on March 1st, I will go to Detroit to the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament, for a ceremony called The Rite of Election in which the church says “We accept you”. I’m very excited to take my first communion as a Catholic on Easter Vigil Saturday night, with or without the blessing of friends and family. I’ve never been known to “go with the flow” all that well and they should know that by now.
