D
Debutante
Guest
Please bear with me as to the length of this post. Some background is necessary in order to put my questions in proper perspective.
I am a lapsed (sort of) Catholic. To be honest, it wasn’t a case of my leaving the church. It was more that the church didn’t have a “place” for me. Ten years ago, I would have described myself as a “psychic” – until I met a priest who told me the proper terminology for a Catholic was “mystic”. He was the first priest I’d ever met who had faith enough to believe in things most people can’t see/hear/feel. Any other religious I’d tried to discuss these matters with either wanted to send me to a psychiatrist, or an exorcist.
Eventually, someone referred me to the Charismatics. They didn’t seem to be attuned to the same things I am – and frankly the “speaking in tongues” gave me the creeps. My Pre-Vatican2 understanding of what that spiritual gift entailed didn’t match up with what they were doing – so my one (and only) attendance at their meeting wasn’t something I’d care to repeat.
And so – I settled into a solo prayer life. I seldom attend church services, however I did make sure my child was baptised.
When my daughter turned three, she began to describe the same type of things I saw/heard/felt and I promptly decided that rather than have her go through the agony I went through in Catholic grammar school (wherein the nuns were positive any talk of such things were “of the devil”) – I’d simply send her to a secular school and teach her the essence of the Baltimore Catechism myself. For the same reason (to protect her from well meaning, but ill-informed amateur therapists and amateur demonologists) – I kept her out of CCD. Although she may not be able to tell you the exact subdivision of a particular concept in the Baltimore – she can make Catholic moral decisions in line with its teachings. I was quite careful in that aspect of her religious education.
Now that she’s a young adult, she’s expressed a desire to complete her Catholic education with the sacraments she’s never had (Penance, Communion, Confirmation). She’s old enough to be discrete about her “experiences” so I doubt she’ll have the same trouble I did as a child.
I honestly do not wish to go to the parish rectory and discuss my sanity (or perceived lack thereof) in my decision to keep her away from the heavy duty stuff (which the nuns terrified me with as a child). Nor do I want to hear a lecture on my lack of moral responsibility when I did what I felt was the most “moral” thing to do (given my experiences with people who “believe” something only in the abstract – but not when it confronts them in the “real world”).
That’s pretty much why I’m throwing my questions out on a messageboard anonymously.
I’d appreciate any advice as to how she should go about obtaining what she missed out on (at this late date) – and a general idea of how much class time (?) must be devoted to the process at her age (early 20’s). She’s a good student and will be attempting to fit in any religious instruction in an already overcrowded academic schedule.
Thanks
I am a lapsed (sort of) Catholic. To be honest, it wasn’t a case of my leaving the church. It was more that the church didn’t have a “place” for me. Ten years ago, I would have described myself as a “psychic” – until I met a priest who told me the proper terminology for a Catholic was “mystic”. He was the first priest I’d ever met who had faith enough to believe in things most people can’t see/hear/feel. Any other religious I’d tried to discuss these matters with either wanted to send me to a psychiatrist, or an exorcist.
Eventually, someone referred me to the Charismatics. They didn’t seem to be attuned to the same things I am – and frankly the “speaking in tongues” gave me the creeps. My Pre-Vatican2 understanding of what that spiritual gift entailed didn’t match up with what they were doing – so my one (and only) attendance at their meeting wasn’t something I’d care to repeat.
And so – I settled into a solo prayer life. I seldom attend church services, however I did make sure my child was baptised.
When my daughter turned three, she began to describe the same type of things I saw/heard/felt and I promptly decided that rather than have her go through the agony I went through in Catholic grammar school (wherein the nuns were positive any talk of such things were “of the devil”) – I’d simply send her to a secular school and teach her the essence of the Baltimore Catechism myself. For the same reason (to protect her from well meaning, but ill-informed amateur therapists and amateur demonologists) – I kept her out of CCD. Although she may not be able to tell you the exact subdivision of a particular concept in the Baltimore – she can make Catholic moral decisions in line with its teachings. I was quite careful in that aspect of her religious education.
Now that she’s a young adult, she’s expressed a desire to complete her Catholic education with the sacraments she’s never had (Penance, Communion, Confirmation). She’s old enough to be discrete about her “experiences” so I doubt she’ll have the same trouble I did as a child.
I honestly do not wish to go to the parish rectory and discuss my sanity (or perceived lack thereof) in my decision to keep her away from the heavy duty stuff (which the nuns terrified me with as a child). Nor do I want to hear a lecture on my lack of moral responsibility when I did what I felt was the most “moral” thing to do (given my experiences with people who “believe” something only in the abstract – but not when it confronts them in the “real world”).
That’s pretty much why I’m throwing my questions out on a messageboard anonymously.
I’d appreciate any advice as to how she should go about obtaining what she missed out on (at this late date) – and a general idea of how much class time (?) must be devoted to the process at her age (early 20’s). She’s a good student and will be attempting to fit in any religious instruction in an already overcrowded academic schedule.
Thanks
