Leap of Faith: A Spiritual Invitation

[author_by_night]

In today's world, sharing your beliefs is taboo. If you do share them, you are judged, you are told not to share them so loudly, and there are hateful people who actually do horrible things to people of different faiths than themselves.

A few years ago, I did a Livejournal Invitation wherein people shared their beliefs. The purpose was to express your beliefs - whether Christianity, Islam, Taoism, or even Atheism - without fear of condemnation, without fear of judgement. I learned so much about my flisters, and about faiths I knew little about or had never heard of at all. I am going to open the invitation once more.

Say anything, anything at all. And your beliefs do not even have to be specific to a religion - if you believe in reincarnation, if you believe in ghosts, if you believe in parallel universes... those may not necessarily be tied to a religion, (although they may be), but they are still beliefs, and I'd like to hear about them. 

One warning, however - I will state that this is not a debate. We are not here to condemn other beliefs - only to express our own.

Comments

[alexiscartwheel.livejournal.com]

I apologize in advance that this will likely be very long, but it's an interesting topic. :)

My parents are both Catholic, and I grew up in the Catholic Church. I attended Catholic school in grades five through eight. I was an altar server for nine years. And I wasn't traumatized by any of these experiences.

When I attended a public high school, I began to notice a lot of anti-Catholicism among my peers, especially coming from fellow Christians. That really surprised me. I would not have characterized my experience with the Church as oppressive or indoctrinating. Yes, I went to religion class every day and to Mass several times a day. Does that mean I was forced into an intellectual box? Not at all. I remember having a very interesting discussion about Genesis and evolution in my grade seven religion class which has helped shape my stance on the issue--they're not mutually exclusive--ever since then.

I find comfort in the familiarity of the Catholic Mass. I like knowing that wherever I go in the world, even if I do not understand the local language, I can understand what is happening during the mass.

I enjoy the pageantry and the history of the Church. Catholic Churches are, in general, beautiful. They are full of color and symbolism. Just going into a church has a calming effect for me.

I love liturgical music. Especially the "old standard" type hymns accompanied by the organ. For me, music is one of the most moving elements of worship. There are certain songs that whenever they are played in Church I will cry. (I used to make fun of my mom for doing the same thing, but now I understand.)

All this is not to say that I don't have problems with some of the Church's teaching. The official policies about women, particularly concerning women's involvement in the liturgies and women's right to choose, do give me major pause. In the past four or five years I've begun attending Anglican services sometimes. The beliefs and practices of the Anglican Church are very similar to Catholic beliefs, but I've found Anglicans to be a little more--modern, I guess. More liberal. However, at this point, even though I split my time between Catholic and Anglican churches, sometimes tending more towards one or the other, I consider myself Catholic. It's part of my upbringing and my identity.

I don't think the Christianity is right for everyone. I think that each person should practice whatever faith leads them to spiritual fulfillment, even if their faith is contradictory to mine, and I respect the views of atheists as equally valid (my little brother, unlike me, considers himself an atheist). I cannot make myself believe that God would only accept one spiritual path or one way of being a good person. I simply practice what is meaningful to me, and I hope that others do the same.

[alexiscartwheel.livejournal.com]

I just noticed I typed that I went to Mass several times a day! Make that several times a week. I did go to Mass daily some weeks--when it was my turn as an altar server--but rarely more than once in a single day!