Twice, I have travelled to countries who are known as devoutly Catholic: Italy (2006) and most recently Ecuador, and here's my conundrum: these people who shout that they are Catholics don't go to church much at all. I have seen so many breathtakingly beautiful churches with no one in them. In fact, in Italy, people are very proud to tell you they are Catholic but when you ask if they attend mass, they say, "oh...no." Perhaps it is due to the very real lack of ordained priests but that's not my first inclination.
The last two years has seen my nose in a bible more than all the time prior to 2009. Oh, I know the bible stories - old and new testament - but as for sitting down to read the bible myself and hook the stories and lessons together, that was never required of me in my Catholic upbringing. A fact I had confirmed by my mother-in-law about a month ago when she said, "I don't know the bible very well. We never read it much." Whaaaaaa??? I know, right?!
Matt (my husband) thinks the Catholic church wants to concentrate on the lessons which is why we never discuss the history of the bible or the inconsistencies in many of the gospel stories, even thought EVERY SINGLE PRIEST learns this stuff at seminary. That makes it so much more interesting to me!!! Matt says that's what a bible study class is for. Now for those who know me pretty well, I don't consider myself a very good Catholic. I'm not murdering, stealing, worshipping false gods, coveting my neighbor's goods or anything, but as a Catholic, you're supposed to be "all in" with the doctrine and this is where I have some issues. There seems to be quite a bit of doctrine I cannot find anywhere in the gospels, which, as far as I know, is the only bit of text we have on what Jesus said. Not gonna get into that right now (maybe another post) but suffice it to say, I would rather take my studies of Jesus' teachings on their own and live my life in that fashion.
I go to mass: because I find comfort in the service, because it's familiar and I like the music, because often times the readings seem to address exactly what I'm dealing with at a particular time. AND, I read the bible, most often the gospels, because that story interests me most of all. I will continue to bat around the idea of no church and yet devout, believer in Jesus as my savior without the doctrine and trust that eventually I will be able to see what adjustments to make and given the motivation to make them.
Oh, and I still need an Alleluia, dangit.
The last two years has seen my nose in a bible more than all the time prior to 2009. Oh, I know the bible stories - old and new testament - but as for sitting down to read the bible myself and hook the stories and lessons together, that was never required of me in my Catholic upbringing. A fact I had confirmed by my mother-in-law about a month ago when she said, "I don't know the bible very well. We never read it much." Whaaaaaa??? I know, right?!
Matt (my husband) thinks the Catholic church wants to concentrate on the lessons which is why we never discuss the history of the bible or the inconsistencies in many of the gospel stories, even thought EVERY SINGLE PRIEST learns this stuff at seminary. That makes it so much more interesting to me!!! Matt says that's what a bible study class is for. Now for those who know me pretty well, I don't consider myself a very good Catholic. I'm not murdering, stealing, worshipping false gods, coveting my neighbor's goods or anything, but as a Catholic, you're supposed to be "all in" with the doctrine and this is where I have some issues. There seems to be quite a bit of doctrine I cannot find anywhere in the gospels, which, as far as I know, is the only bit of text we have on what Jesus said. Not gonna get into that right now (maybe another post) but suffice it to say, I would rather take my studies of Jesus' teachings on their own and live my life in that fashion.
I go to mass: because I find comfort in the service, because it's familiar and I like the music, because often times the readings seem to address exactly what I'm dealing with at a particular time. AND, I read the bible, most often the gospels, because that story interests me most of all. I will continue to bat around the idea of no church and yet devout, believer in Jesus as my savior without the doctrine and trust that eventually I will be able to see what adjustments to make and given the motivation to make them.
Oh, and I still need an Alleluia, dangit.
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