A
Argh
Guest
I hope this is the right place to post this. Not sure exactly, but I think it fits in here best.
In my effort to become a better Catholic for Lent, and thus a better person, I thought I might identify the reason(s) that I am not as good of a Catholic that I should be and get help.
So I think I just have the problem of being ignorant. My religious education was terrible. Not that it’s entirely to blame, a lot of it’s my fault. My mother and stepfather belong to a Catholic church, but arent what you call “practicing” either. My father, ironically a buddhist, did a much better job. Anyways, in summary, in religious ed. at our church we were taught without any explaination or depth. The educational “excersises” made us feel like we were in kindergarden and/or being punished. The volunteer parent teachers did put a lot of effort into it, but it just didnt quite make it through our hormone soaked brains.
For example:
Who’s St. Thomas Aquinas?: Never mentioned in religious education. Would have been sooo much better for them to say “According to St. Aquinas, who’s writings are the foundation of many of the Church’s teachings, (insert blank)” In fact, the only saints we were taught anything about were the apostles.
Why is Mary so important?: Never got any clear answer. Still gotta figure that one out (getting there though).
Praying the Rosary: Never taught in my relgious ed. Didnt know what a rosary was until I was a teenager and my buddhist father gave me his grandmother’s. Never prayed w/rosary, dont know how. Yet another thing to Google…
Abortion: I have realized that abortion is infanticide for some time now, but I didnt always believe so. Abortion was mentioned once or twice during religious eductation.
Sexuality/Contraception: Basically, we were initially taught that sex is a dirty thing and should never be talked about again. Or at least that’s how I interpreted it.
I guess the whole “American high school experience” didnt help. Being Catholic wasnt exactly a popular thing to be. Knocking religion was pretty cool, however. This made me extremely cynical of the Catholic church, or what I *percieved *to be the Church. I didnt want to listen to what I wasnt supposed to do. My turning point occured when I began tai chi with my father’s old friend from high school, Rob. He not only happened to have studied tai chi and wushu from some very prominent people, he also is a devout Catholic who rigourously studies the saint’s teachings and the Vatican’s edicts/documents/thingamabobs. He too agreed with me that religious ed. at our church was lacking and was the first person to treat me like an adult when it came to religion. So he talked about Catholcism with me and gave me a copy of Meister Eckhart.
Any help where I could get started? I think the best thing to do is to get over my embarrassment of talking abou it and see a priest, and start reading the bible regularly.
Sry about the long post or if it’s in the wrong place. Oh, yeah, I cant spell, sry.
In my effort to become a better Catholic for Lent, and thus a better person, I thought I might identify the reason(s) that I am not as good of a Catholic that I should be and get help.
So I think I just have the problem of being ignorant. My religious education was terrible. Not that it’s entirely to blame, a lot of it’s my fault. My mother and stepfather belong to a Catholic church, but arent what you call “practicing” either. My father, ironically a buddhist, did a much better job. Anyways, in summary, in religious ed. at our church we were taught without any explaination or depth. The educational “excersises” made us feel like we were in kindergarden and/or being punished. The volunteer parent teachers did put a lot of effort into it, but it just didnt quite make it through our hormone soaked brains.
For example:
Who’s St. Thomas Aquinas?: Never mentioned in religious education. Would have been sooo much better for them to say “According to St. Aquinas, who’s writings are the foundation of many of the Church’s teachings, (insert blank)” In fact, the only saints we were taught anything about were the apostles.
Why is Mary so important?: Never got any clear answer. Still gotta figure that one out (getting there though).
Praying the Rosary: Never taught in my relgious ed. Didnt know what a rosary was until I was a teenager and my buddhist father gave me his grandmother’s. Never prayed w/rosary, dont know how. Yet another thing to Google…
Abortion: I have realized that abortion is infanticide for some time now, but I didnt always believe so. Abortion was mentioned once or twice during religious eductation.
Sexuality/Contraception: Basically, we were initially taught that sex is a dirty thing and should never be talked about again. Or at least that’s how I interpreted it.
I guess the whole “American high school experience” didnt help. Being Catholic wasnt exactly a popular thing to be. Knocking religion was pretty cool, however. This made me extremely cynical of the Catholic church, or what I *percieved *to be the Church. I didnt want to listen to what I wasnt supposed to do. My turning point occured when I began tai chi with my father’s old friend from high school, Rob. He not only happened to have studied tai chi and wushu from some very prominent people, he also is a devout Catholic who rigourously studies the saint’s teachings and the Vatican’s edicts/documents/thingamabobs. He too agreed with me that religious ed. at our church was lacking and was the first person to treat me like an adult when it came to religion. So he talked about Catholcism with me and gave me a copy of Meister Eckhart.
Any help where I could get started? I think the best thing to do is to get over my embarrassment of talking abou it and see a priest, and start reading the bible regularly.
Sry about the long post or if it’s in the wrong place. Oh, yeah, I cant spell, sry.
The place to start…here! There are lots of people here to practice talking about religion with. Also try the CCC (the Catechism of the Catholic Church). You can buy it for maybe $10 or read it online 
Math is the way to go…no labs.