How long have you been Catholic?

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Cradle Catholic. Was a cafeteria Catholic most of my life. Sometimes going to mass but not often. I returned to my faith in August. Took until March to get it right. I never realized how beautiful the Catholic religion is until last Holy Week. I am so happy that a friend of mine kept pushing me to do it right and not just pick and choose what I want to follow. I don’t think I could have gotten through the last few months without God and the support of my Catholic friends.
 
Hi sug,

Baptized a Catholic, then strayed for a few years in the 90’s but came back and will never stray again. Love being Catholic. 🙂

Love ya’ll,
Sheila
 
I can’t vote yet but I’ve been Catholic since April 23, 2011, confirmed at the Easter Vigil Mass this year.

My conversion story begins with an agnostic, liberal, tomboy meeting a devout Catholic, conservative, man while doing undergraduate research in the field of photovoltaic materials (solar cells). In walks this Jesus fish wearing home schooled Catholic guy and my first thought was “oh boy, he’s going to hate me.” I mistakenly thought that all Catholics are judgmental people who hate anyone who isn’t Catholic (and for some reason also thought you had to be born Catholic or they didn’t let you in :confused:. I was very misinformed somehow). Instead of finding out that he hated me, I found out that we both have a love for Captain America comics, that he is just as geeky as I am, and that we had far more in common than we had in differences.

Long story short we were best friends for two years and he’d subtly drop hints about his faith and wanting to share it with me. At first I’d have nothing to do with it, I refused to hear anything about institutionalized religion, but gradually he was convincing me through his lifestyle and his earnest commitment to his faith that there was more to life than maybe when it came to God. I was in a long distance relationship with an abusive boyfriend (emotionally, not physically) at the time and had never really had luck with men in the past and truthfully didn’t think I deserved to be treated with respect until I met this Jesus fish boy. When I realized I was falling for him I knew I couldn’t have two relationships going on at once so I broke off the detrimental one I was in and waited a month to see if I really felt the way I thought I might be feeling for this Catholic and wonderful man.

I knew I had to first tell him the most painful thing from my past that I’m still trying to forgive myself for (really it shouldn’t be so hard. If God already has in confession then what power do I have to do otherwise? I wish it was that easy) and when I did I half expected him to hate me and push me away. Instead he took me to Mass the next day. I can’t adequately describe the emotions that came over me during Mass. First it was awe and respect for the traditions going on around me, confusion for when people would respond or kneel and I had no idea what I was doing, and then something like confused anger when the Priest began the preparation for the Eucharist. I remember clearly what went through my mind was this: “Why? Why would you ever come down to this earth and let yourself get beaten and murdered for someone as messed up and irresponsible as me? I didn’t ask you to do it! I never asked for any of this!” During the time for reflection just after I got done screaming at God in my head I had an answer and it floored me. My own voice came back quietly with “That’s the beauty of it, Rae, you never had to. It’s a gift.” I’m sobbing now just thinking about it, but I was an utter mess on the floor then. My poor soon to be boyfriend had no idea what to do so he just put his hand on my back and comforted me. I’ll never forget that answer. I cried at every Mass after that for months. First out of shame for my sins against God and Jesus, then out of sorrow for His suffering and death, and then out of joy for the glorious gift he has given us all.

After I learned that anyone can become Catholic (duh!) I threw myself into the RCIA classes right in the middle of the ‘year’ but they let me in and I did a whole bunch of reading and personal one on one with the Priest to catch up so that I could be confirmed this year. I feel so blessed by God. He took my life that was heading down a dark path and He reached out His hand to me through my fiance, picked me up, dusted me off, and gave me new life and new hope. I just wish I wasn’t always so sloppy in giving Him my thanks. I’m working on developing a better prayer life but old lazy habits are hard to break. This site has drawn my attention back to how I felt when it first began and I really can’t thank you all enough.

-Rae.
Sorry if this was long or not the right place for it…I just felt moved to share.
 
Raedar said:
I can’t vote yet but I’ve been Catholic since April 23, 2011, confirmed at the Easter Vigil Mass this year.

My conversion story begins with an agnostic, liberal, tomboy meeting a devout Catholic, conservative, man while doing undergraduate research in the field of photovoltaic materials (solar cells). In walks this Jesus fish wearing home schooled Catholic guy and my first thought was “oh boy, he’s going to hate me.” I mistakenly thought that all Catholics are judgmental people who hate anyone who isn’t Catholic (and for some reason also thought you had to be born Catholic or they didn’t let you in :confused:. I was very misinformed somehow). Instead of finding out that he hated me, I found out that we both have a love for Captain America comics, that he is just as geeky as I am, and that we had far more in common than we had in differences.

Long story short we were best friends for two years and he’d subtly drop hints about his faith and wanting to share it with me. At first I’d have nothing to do with it, I refused to hear anything about institutionalized religion, but gradually he was convincing me through his lifestyle and his earnest commitment to his faith that there was more to life than maybe when it came to God. I was in a long distance relationship with an abusive boyfriend (emotionally, not physically) at the time and had never really had luck with men in the past and truthfully didn’t think I deserved to be treated with respect until I met this Jesus fish boy. When I realized I was falling for him I knew I couldn’t have two relationships going on at once so I broke off the detrimental one I was in and waited a month to see if I really felt the way I thought I might be feeling for this Catholic and wonderful man.

I knew I had to first tell him the most painful thing from my past that I’m still trying to forgive myself for (really it shouldn’t be so hard. If God already has in confession then what power do I have to do otherwise? I wish it was that easy) and when I did I half expected him to hate me and push me away. Instead he took me to Mass the next day. I can’t adequately describe the emotions that came over me during Mass. First it was awe and respect for the traditions going on around me, confusion for when people would
respond or kneel and I had no idea what I was doing, and then something like confused anger when the Priest began the preparation for the Eucharist. I remember clearly what went through my mind was this: “Why? Why would you ever come down to this earth and let yourself get beaten and murdered for someone as messed up and irresponsible as me? I didn’t ask you to do it! I never asked for any of this!” During the time for reflection just after I got done screaming at God in my head I had an answer and it floored me. My own voice came back quietly with “That’s the beauty of it, Rae, you never had to. It’s a gift.” I’m sobbing now just thinking about it, but I was an utter mess on the floor then. My poor soon to be boyfriend had no idea what to do so he just put his hand on my back and comforted me. I’ll never forget that answer. I cried at every Mass after that for months. First out of shame for my sins against God and Jesus, then out of sorrow for His suffering and death, and then out of joy for the glorious gift he has given us all.

After I learned that anyone can become Catholic (duh!) I threw myself into the RCIA classes right in the middle of the ‘year’ but they let me in and I did a whole bunch of reading and personal one on one with the Priest to catch up so that I could be confirmed this year. I feel so blessed by God. He took my life that was heading down a dark path and He reached out His hand to me through my fiance, picked me up, dusted me off, and gave me new life and new hope. I just wish I wasn’t always so sloppy in giving Him my thanks. I’m working on developing a better prayer life but old lazy habits are hard to break. This site has drawn my attention back to how I felt when it first began and I really can’t thank you all enough.

-Rae.
Sorry if this was long or not the right place for it…I just felt moved to share.
Click to expand...
Moved me to tears. God be praised! I love conversion stories!! Is there a section for this here on CAF? If not, I would LOVE a sticky with conversion stories. They are always so inspiring and often answer so many questions the rest of us have!
 
Did not vote in poll as there was not choice that I could pick.

8 years from Christ the King Sunday of this year.
 
Raedar said:
I can’t vote yet but I’ve been Catholic since April 23, 2011, confirmed at the Easter Vigil Mass this year.

My conversion story begins with an agnostic, liberal, tomboy meeting a devout Catholic, conservative, man while doing undergraduate research in the field of photovoltaic materials (solar cells). In walks this Jesus fish wearing home schooled Catholic guy and my first thought was “oh boy, he’s going to hate me.” I mistakenly thought that all Catholics are judgmental people who hate anyone who isn’t Catholic (and for some reason also thought you had to be born Catholic or they didn’t let you in :confused:. I was very misinformed somehow). Instead of finding out that he hated me, I found out that we both have a love for Captain America comics, that he is just as geeky as I am, and that we had far more in common than we had in differences.

Long story short we were best friends for two years and he’d subtly drop hints about his faith and wanting to share it with me. At first I’d have nothing to do with it, I refused to hear anything about institutionalized religion, but gradually he was convincing me through his lifestyle and his earnest commitment to his faith that there was more to life than maybe when it came to God. I was in a long distance relationship with an abusive boyfriend (emotionally, not physically) at the time and had never really had luck with men in the past and truthfully didn’t think I deserved to be treated with respect until I met this Jesus fish boy. When I realized I was falling for him I knew I couldn’t have two relationships going on at once so I broke off the detrimental one I was in and waited a month to see if I really felt the way I thought I might be feeling for this Catholic and wonderful man.

I knew I had to first tell him the most painful thing from my past that I’m still trying to forgive myself for (really it shouldn’t be so hard. If God already has in confession then what power do I have to do otherwise? I wish it was that easy) and when I did I half expected him to hate me and push me away. Instead he took me to Mass the next day. I can’t adequately describe the emotions that came over me during Mass. First it was awe and respect for the traditions going on around me, confusion for when people would respond or kneel and I had no idea what I was doing, and then something like confused anger when the Priest began the preparation for the Eucharist. I remember clearly what went through my mind was this: “Why? Why would you ever come down to this earth and let yourself get beaten and murdered for someone as messed up and irresponsible as me? I didn’t ask you to do it! I never asked for any of this!” During the time for reflection just after I got done screaming at God in my head I had an answer and it floored me. My own voice came back quietly with “That’s the beauty of it, Rae, you never had to. It’s a gift.” I’m sobbing now just thinking about it, but I was an utter mess on the floor then. My poor soon to be boyfriend had no idea what to do so he just put his hand on my back and comforted me. I’ll never forget that answer. I cried at every Mass after that for months. First out of shame for my sins against God and Jesus, then out of sorrow for His suffering and death, and then out of joy for the glorious gift he has given us all.

After I learned that anyone can become Catholic (duh!) I threw myself into the RCIA classes right in the middle of the ‘year’ but they let me in and I did a whole bunch of reading and personal one on one with the Priest to catch up so that I could be confirmed this year. I feel so blessed by God. He took my life that was heading down a dark path and He reached out His hand to me through my fiance, picked me up, dusted me off, and gave me new life and new hope. I just wish I wasn’t always so sloppy in giving Him my thanks. I’m working on developing a better prayer life but old lazy habits are hard to break. This site has drawn my attention back to how I felt when it first began and I really can’t thank you all enough.

-Rae.
Sorry if this was long or not the right place for it…I just felt moved to share.
Click to expand...
Member of the opposite sex, plus you bawled openly at your first Mass?

Sounds like my story.

Tiber Swim Class December 2009!
 
I just was welcomed to the Church at Easter Vigil. I put secularism because while I was baptized presbyterian, I was never really religous growing up. My best friend’s parents took me to church (Lutheran) as a kid and I went to a Lutheran summer camp a few years as a kid.

However, as a teen and adult I wasn’t religious. As a teen and early 20’s guy I was pretty sure there was no God and into my late 20’s to 30 I believed there was a God, not sure about Jesus though.

After I read Scott Hahn’s “Reasons to Believe” I was convinced there was a God and that Jesus was the messiah. From there I just needed to decide if Catholicism or some variety of Protestantism was the right place for me.

When it came down to it, the Faith, Theology and credibilty of the Catholic Church was by far the best IMO.
 
Been a Cradle Catholic since I was an born and baptized three days after my birth on a Sunday afternoon in November 1957

I owe much of my Faith and Thanks to my devout Catholic parents.
 
Raedar said:
Sorry if this was long or not the right place for it…I just felt moved to share.
Click to expand...
1inICXC said:
Moved me to tears. God be praised! I love conversion stories!! Is there a section for this here on CAF? If not, I would LOVE a sticky with conversion stories. They are always so inspiring and often answer so many questions the rest of us have!
Click to expand...
Moved me to tears too. Thank you so much for sharing! I still cry at random points during the Mass more than two years later; something touches me most times… if not several somethings. I just read an article by Steve Ray that says he still cries during Mass 17 years after his conversion. We definitely should have a CAF thread or forum for a sort of online version of the Journey Home over here. It would be so much fun to just sit down and read through dozens of conversion stories, especially on an otherwise discouraging day. (Not that today’s got me feeling down or anything - it doesn’t - just that I can imagine it being a great boon on those types of days.)

P.S. Welcome Home, Rae!!!:whackadoo: :D:hug3::extrahappy:
 
I’ve gone through my share of trials and challenges to my faith. I’ve had internal struggles, but I’ve been too spiritually prideful to let go. It was hard for me in college because I was aware I was clinging to it and wasn’t ready to do a 180 with my life. I felt like a hypocrite. But eventually I realized my faith was deeper than that. There was just a part of me that still believed but was petrified of being wrong. I let go of that fear of being wrong. I acknowledged my own false motivations and my own bias and decided “You know what, I don’t make perfect judgements and that’s ok.” I believe and I follow and so far my life has turned out better than I could have ever planned for. At the same time, I always go through trials where I worry about the risks involved in taking the moral path. I’m putting faith in my religion and if I’m wrong it may not look good for me. But this is the point where I acknowledge that my faith is finite. “Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief.”
 
I am a member of another faith - but I want convert to the catholics.
 
I converted to Catholicism 8 years ago from being a Baptist, so I didn’t vote.
 
I strayed for a short time and later returned but never investigated any other faiths during that very short time. The reasons were personal and selfish.

Welcome home to any others who strayed away then returned later no matter if it was a short time or a long time regardless of your reasons.
 
Cradle catholic to a lapsed Catholic for a while and now back in full force for the last 15 plus years!
 
I did not see an option “cradle catholic and still strayed from the church”. I am 53 and still not back to church. Have drifted in and out. Have not been to church since my mother passed away in September, 2010. I am the only catholic left in the family. Wife not catholic and the boys want nothing to do with the church. Guess I am a failure as a catholic. 🤷
 
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