B
BennyBoy89
Guest
Please pray for my family and me. Things just really haven’t improved at all with the situation of them being non-church-going evangelicals (can’t find a church that’s good enough for them…) and me being Catholic. They really haven’t made things pleasant for me, and I’m trying so hard not to have bitter feelings toward them, but I do.
For example, one night by brother was claiming that he was afraid to sleep in his room, so I grabbed my holy water and my prayer book with a prayer for the home. I was also going to place a palm cross from Palm Sunday in his room. My brother didn’t want any part of it, and my mom said “Ben, don’t be doing any Catholic things; this is a Christian home.” It ticked me off. I replied that “A Catholic home is a Christian home.” My mother then replied, “Not every Catholic home is a Christian home.” She was getting a dig in because she believes in being “born again.” I asked her why she will anoint her house with oil she buys from the Christian bookstore but I can’t sprinkle water that’s actually been prayed over. She informed me that holy water isn’t in the Bible.
Other things like this have been going on. My mom won’t admit to it, but she has been treating me differently ever since I began the conversion process. Anytime I quote anything from the Bible, even if we’re not arguing, she gets weird with me. I feel like I need to lie everytime I go to confession or adoration or else I’m afraid she’ll be cold to me the rest of the day. We’ve been fighting constantly, and not necessarily about religion. My mother and I both suffer from depression, which I see a doctor for.
I’ve tried to talk to my dad about it, but he’s “Mr. Ecumenical” and tells me I need to worry about witnessing for Christ, not the Church. I’m trying so hard to be a good Christian, but I just feel like a failure because of how I fight with my family. Trust me, they judge everytime I mess up as proof that my conversion meant nothing. They also judge me and the Church based on the non-practicing and ex-Catholics that they know. I’m just absolutely miserable with my family, and I feel guilty because of it. I feel like the Catholics I know are more my family than my biological family is, which in a sense I guess is true.
One bright side is that yesterday at confession I ran my grandmother’s (mom’s mom) best friend, who is a devout Catholic. She’s always been close with our family, and all of us refer to her as our aunt. This was the first time that I had seen her in a long time, and she was very encouraging and told me that she would be praying for my family and for me. I felt like God was letting me know that He’s not going to let me go it alone. My dad’s side of the family, who are Lutheran, are also warming up to my conversion.
Just please pray for me that I can get along with my family and do the right thing, instead of giving into bitterness and judgement. Please pray for them as well.
For example, one night by brother was claiming that he was afraid to sleep in his room, so I grabbed my holy water and my prayer book with a prayer for the home. I was also going to place a palm cross from Palm Sunday in his room. My brother didn’t want any part of it, and my mom said “Ben, don’t be doing any Catholic things; this is a Christian home.” It ticked me off. I replied that “A Catholic home is a Christian home.” My mother then replied, “Not every Catholic home is a Christian home.” She was getting a dig in because she believes in being “born again.” I asked her why she will anoint her house with oil she buys from the Christian bookstore but I can’t sprinkle water that’s actually been prayed over. She informed me that holy water isn’t in the Bible.
Other things like this have been going on. My mom won’t admit to it, but she has been treating me differently ever since I began the conversion process. Anytime I quote anything from the Bible, even if we’re not arguing, she gets weird with me. I feel like I need to lie everytime I go to confession or adoration or else I’m afraid she’ll be cold to me the rest of the day. We’ve been fighting constantly, and not necessarily about religion. My mother and I both suffer from depression, which I see a doctor for.
I’ve tried to talk to my dad about it, but he’s “Mr. Ecumenical” and tells me I need to worry about witnessing for Christ, not the Church. I’m trying so hard to be a good Christian, but I just feel like a failure because of how I fight with my family. Trust me, they judge everytime I mess up as proof that my conversion meant nothing. They also judge me and the Church based on the non-practicing and ex-Catholics that they know. I’m just absolutely miserable with my family, and I feel guilty because of it. I feel like the Catholics I know are more my family than my biological family is, which in a sense I guess is true.
One bright side is that yesterday at confession I ran my grandmother’s (mom’s mom) best friend, who is a devout Catholic. She’s always been close with our family, and all of us refer to her as our aunt. This was the first time that I had seen her in a long time, and she was very encouraging and told me that she would be praying for my family and for me. I felt like God was letting me know that He’s not going to let me go it alone. My dad’s side of the family, who are Lutheran, are also warming up to my conversion.
Just please pray for me that I can get along with my family and do the right thing, instead of giving into bitterness and judgement. Please pray for them as well.
