I am a cradle Catholic.
I have a master’s degree in electrical engineering, and have taught mathematics in college. My father was a chemical engineer.
Stuff didn’t seem right. I was like, AWOL big time, then I came back.
On this forum, I came in here venting about things wrong with the Church, but now as of less than a week ago, I suddenly became flooded with ideas, emotions, truths, etc that made me feel like a spiritual flat tire being pumped up to get ready to roll.
Now I’m on a roll, and my vocation is a prophetic one within the Catholic Church, and I’m happier now than every man I know put together. Of course, having a wonderful, faithful Catholic wife has played a large role in showing me the beauty of the Church that Julie loves so much.
My six chidren all attended Catholic schools, and I would not have it any other way.
Yes, there are problems with the Church and nobody can deny it. Gosh, it’s run by sinners so how can we expect perfection? I finally learned how: through faith.
I’ve listened to many philosophers and preachers outside the Church, and were tremendously edified, but now I am convinced. I am where I belong. I am home, and happy beyond bounds I never realized I had before.
This blind/deaf person can now hear/see the beauty of the Church’s teachings – even and especially the ones which are most problematic. Strangely, I am also completely at peace with the fact there are many who attack these teachings – they are a necessary albeit annoying part of our ministry.
Alan
PS do you remember Rich Mullins – author of Awesome God? My wife and some others were in a radical campaign to get him to become Catholic. His pinings for Catholicism and his supposedly “being too chicken” to convert and let go of “Sola Scriptura” Anyway Wednesday I think it was, I visited Fr. Matt McGinniss in Wichita and asked him straight up about Rich, as Rich frequently confided in him and knocked on his door in the middle of the night with gobs of questions – he was known for showing up unannounced at the doors of friends. Anyway, Fr. McGinniss did confirm for me that Rich was nearly ready to take his first Holy Communion and Fr. Matt was expecting to be able to give it to him within a week after his death. Rich Mullins has had profound impact on our lives, including playing a concert on my own grand piano just before his last Christmas. I mention this because I want you to know that Rich helped me accept and even embrace my Catholicism – although he spoke highly of it from a technically Protestant point of view. Here is Father Busch, the priest who married me and said “yes” to the concert when a much richer, fancier Church turned them away becuase they were too busy getting ready for Christmas, and Fr. Bernard, who founded Totus Tuus, a program for youth:
In short, please come on in. The water’s fine, and you might be surprised how many friends you have here! This from a person who was recently called heretic, crazy, troll, Saul, and a number of other things. Now i’m pleased but not proud to have worn those labels because it taught me the difference between love and anger.
(Please don’t mind the mess – we’re always remodeling our attitudes around here and sometimes passionate people bicker a bit – still we are family.)
Alan
edit>> that’s son #2 Chris, our Christmas baby, in the background – he’s now in college and working as a bank teller.
edit again>> wow I just can’t stop marveling at this photo as its image is in my mind; my piano is just off camera to the left, out of the scene and in the scene are my beautiful son, two priests I reeealy like, Rich, the Tabernacle, the Crucifix, gosh. What more do you need? This concert was at All Saints Church.