About this thing...(not for the squeamish)
I'm one of those Catholics, that ... are happy to be one. I always was and I'm pretty happy my parents raised me in that faith. I'm not bitter I can't be a priest, I'm not mad at the pope for not distributing condoms and I like to go to mass, pray the rosary and go to confession. Like I said, this post is not for the squeamish, if you can't handle a load of big fat Catholicism, you better run now. On the other hand, when you click on the "Being Catholic" category on the left, you will find maybe... 4,5 posts total from over 170 and there's a reason for it.
I'm a happy Catholic and I don't think all religions are the same but there is something about putting it out there that I don't like. Unfortunately saying that you are Catholic in the industrialized Western hemisphere of the world implies not only what that means but also what it means to non-Catholics or wannabe-non-Catholics, or to "Catholics, but" (those are the ones that say: I'm Catholic, but...) and especially to other Catholics ;). So saying "I'm Catholic" can mean a whole range of different things, depending on who you say it to. I've made the experience that once it's out, it distracts people from seeing me... and ultimately from seeing my faith as well, because what pops up in front of their eyes and mind is the whole "issue" they have with Catholicism and I swear 90% of people have an "issue" and most are dying to tell you all about it. Yeah, I can talk about it from a cultural, political or whatever point of view, but I don't really want to. And what people will try to get at most, is ultimately for me to discuss my faith in a non-personal way and that's impossible. It's like asking an acquaintance to discuss your marriage with you over coffee, where you both express your opinions and judgements in an objective manner about this very personal thing. Uh, right.
I won't put a Catholic flag on this blog, I'm not a crusader, I'm just me. If you want to see something Catholic, you will, whether I call it that or not. I'm sure some of you are pretty relieved and some of you a little disappointed. Which exactly proves my point...
Posted at 09:57 AM on December 26, 2003