Non-Catholics - Story

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To all the non-Catholics on this forum, welcome. I am interested in the different denominations represented here. Please introduce yourself and let us know which denomination you subscribe to and the beliefs of that denomination. I would also like to know why you came to this forum and if you were formerly a Catholic or other denomination, what made you change.

To all Catholics and others reading this thread (myself included) PLEASE DO NOT DEBATE. :nope: I am interested in learning more about the individuals and their beliefs, not debating who is correct. Please limit responses to individuals to a welcoming comment.

Thank you and welcome.
 
Hello!

Before I start…which power plant? Nuclear in Byron or Cordova? Just curious! 😃

Anyways, my story isn’t exactly the norm. My mom was baptized Roman Catholic and is not practicing and my dad is 3rd generation Arian Pentecostal.

I was raised Arian Pentecostal, and after a wild ride through high school, God led me to the truth. Praise the Lord!

Right now I do not subscribe to any denomination. I visit a Reformed Church in my home town often, and am basically an unofficial member. It teaches the five points of Calvinism, infant baptism (something I don’t agree with), and most other standard Protestant beliefs. I also visit the Roman Catholic churches in neighboring Iowa because I enjoy going to Mass every now and again.

Any questions…feel free to ask! 🙂

~mango~
 
Hi Mango,

Sorry to disappoint, but I work at a lowly coal-fired plant a little west of Ottawa. A small one, relatively speaking.

I’m originally from NW Iowa. Do you attend U of Iowa?

What is it about the Mass that you enjoy?
 
Ottawa, eh? Our High School played Ottawa-Marquette quite often in Football, if I remember correctly.

Yep, I attend the U of Iowa. I’m at home right now in NW Illinois, but I’ll be moving back to Iowa City in 6 weeks or so.

I’m not sure what it is exactly that I like about Mass. There are a few things that come to mind immediately. I really like the Congregation participation, and I enjoy the Liturgy (although, I could see it getting old). I also like some of the music.

~mango~
 
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jmacclure:
To all the non-Catholics on this forum, welcome. I am interested in the different denominations represented here. Please introduce yourself and let us know which denomination you subscribe to and the beliefs of that denomination. I would also like to know why you came to this forum and if you were formerly a Catholic or other denomination, what made you change.
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Thank you for kind welcome Jeremy 🙂 Currently, I am of no denomination and am searching for my beliefs. I have just crossed the RCC off my list, but I have enjoyed learning about the RCC through the years. I am attending a Presby church and will be attending inquiry classes there when they start up again. It is time to move forward and learn about other denominations 🙂

Mango, you’re a Hawkeye? Cool! I’m a Hawkeye too-by birth anyway 😉

Becky 🙂
 
Hawkeyes :rolleyes: I’ll take the Cyclones any day. 👍

Becky, thank you for the reply. Even if you decide against the RCC, be sure to stick around.

May God be with you on your search and may He lead you where He needs you to be.
 
Hi Jeremy-

I am a Moravian - don’t know if you’ve ever heard of them. They were formed about 50 years before Martin Luther by followers of John Hus - known at that time as the Unitas Fratrum (Unity of the Brethren). They have been in the US since the early 1700’s and have churches all over the world now - but still a fairly small denomination. Moravians are more Catholic than they realize, I think. We have liturgies, follow the same basic schedule for scripture readings, baptize babies, etc. - the main difference is, of course, communion. The Moravian teaching follows along with consubstantiation, but I have always been taught the bread and wine are what you believe them to be - if you think they are the Body and Blood, then they are, or if you think it’s just a symbol, then that’s what it is. I still attend the church I grew up in, but have not taken communion in over a year, because I no longer believe what they teach concerning that particular sacrament.

I have been attracted to the Catholic church my whole life, but have only begun to immerse myself in it in the past couple of years. And what started out as trying to disprove their beliefs only ended up proving them - and the more I read, the more I want to read, and the more I want to convert! My husband is extremely anti-Catholic and basically put a stop to my attending RCIA classes. So now I am in the holding pattern, praying that the Holy Spirit will soften his heart.

Thanks for letting me share -
Melissa
 
Melissa,

Thank you for sharing. I will say a prayer for your husband as well.
 
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jmacclure:
Hawkeyes :rolleyes: I’ll take the Cyclones any day. 👍
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Oh no you didn’t! Cyclones, bleck.

THE WORD IS FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FOR IOWA!

😃

Besides, you don’t see us Hawkeye’s rioting ever, do ya now?

~mango~
 
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jmacclure:
To all the non-Catholics on this forum, welcome. I am interested in the different denominations represented here. Please introduce yourself and let us know which denomination you subscribe to and the beliefs of that denomination.
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hey jeremy -

My name is ken. I was born into an agnostic family though I was baptised catholic. I remained agnostic until my late teen years when I became a Christian. I stayed at one church since then (non-denom) though my beliefs could best be described as Reformed Baptist with broader Reformed and Lutheran leanings.

My interest in Catholicism comes primarily from my own wrestling with it, the interest of friends in it and my love of church history. Through the years I have come to repect the Catholic view of particular doctrines while atthe same time being less convinced of the overall claims of Catholicism.

As far as favorite subjects go, I particularly like anything dealing with language and meaning, whether hermeneutics, postmodernism, skepticism or anything of that sort. I also enjoy the history of rhetoric and the use and interpretation of texts and the bible in the ancient/medieval world.

ken
 
Ken,

Welcome, I hope we Catholics here can adequately satisfy your interest (without being too overbearing).
 
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mango_2003:
Oh no you didn’t! Cyclones, bleck.

THE WORD IS FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT FOR IOWA! 😃
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Hawkeye fans :rolleyes: Amost as bad as Husker fans!

Dear Lord, please let me not have stirred up a hornet’s nest with that one.! 😃
 
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jmacclure:
Ken,

Welcome, I hope we Catholics here can adequately satisfy your interest (without being too overbearing).
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It’s a fun board though maybe a little fast moving. This place gets an incredible number of posts every day… I do like it though 😃

ken
 
Doesn’t Iowa stand for Idiots Out Walking Around?

Kidding. KIDDING. I personally have driven through Iowa several times and found it very flat.

Jeremy, I appreciate the spirit in which you started this thread. I responded to a previous thread like this, only to be asked what I was doing on this board and have people begin to attempt to convert me (or, in one peculiar case, write me off as unconvertable). I am sure that, given my recent stand on the “family life” board on the issue of strip clubs, the numbers of people holding that view have increased dramatically.

I will not tell you what the stand was, but suffice it to say that it was a very minority sort of view.

Anyway, back to our story.

My father was RC; my mom a non-practicing Lutheran who converted to non-practicing RC when I was in seventh grade so they could marry in the church. I went to RC schools through college, including 8 years with the Jesuits. In high school, I decided that RC didn’t make a whole lot of sense, and I became more or less agnostic.

I still am. If I had to put myself in a category, I’d call myself a Zen Buddhist, if only because of my strong agreement with Zen’s emphasis on detachment. I meditate and practice martial arts, although I am not particularly diligent about either.

Thanks for the welcome. I actually like Iowa; I have been to the Grotto at West Bend twice, and I find it one of the oddest things I have ever seen.
 
Auberon Quin:
I still am. If I had to put myself in a category, I’d call myself a Zen Buddhist, if only because of my strong agreement with Zen’s emphasis on detachment. I meditate and practice martial arts, although I am not particularly diligent about either.
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Sounds like you’ve got the “detatchment” thing down. 👍

ken
 
Hi Auberon Quin,

Thanks for replying, and don’t worry about the Iowa comment, I’ve had to deal with Minnesotans most of my life. 😛

While I don’t post often, I have really come to despise the lack of civility that has appeared in threads like this. That’s why I stated things the way I did. If by chance conversations did degrade, I would have the thread closed.

Thanks for being here, hopefully we can both learn from each other as this forum progresses.

God bless.
 
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jmacclure:
Thanks for replying, and don’t worry about the Iowa comment, I’ve had to deal with Minnesotans most of my life.
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Close, but no cigar. Think cheese.
 
Auberon Quin:
Close, but no cigar. Think cheese.
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I figured it was one of the two, but I couldn’t pass up a small jab at Minn. 😃 I’m originally from NW Iowa and went to college in eastern South Dakota. Minnesota tends to be the predominate antagonist in those areas, but I do enjoy a new challenge.
 
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jmacclure:
I figured it was one of the two, but I couldn’t pass up a small jab at Minn.
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Who could?

If it helps any, I’m not local.
 
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