First time ever - I attended my first Catholic Mass tonight...

by ziddina 69 Replies latest jw experiences

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  ziddina

  Hi, Satinka!! [waves!!] There we go! Your name's all colorful, like a tropical sunset!!

  Your comments:

  "Mr Satinka and I accompanied our friends to a Catholic Mass for Christmas once. Very formal. And because our friends are not married, they were not allowed to partake of the communion, even though they are regular church attenders. We did not go up to the front to partake, either. We are not Catholic. We are not married, either, so we would not be allowed. Catholics have quite a lot of rules to follow.

  Yeah, I noticed that from my experiences with the Catholic kids I went to school with... There were a few who didn't end up with the nuns!!

  In the past, after leaving the jws, I have attended different kinds of churches...Christian Alliance Churches (shudder...too much like the jws), several New Age Churches (at least three different ones), Baptist Church (kinda harsh like the jws, too ), United Churches (most "moderate" and "inclusive" of all, in my experience).

  I began thinking that church was not for me. I never really felt like I "belonged."

  We are not church attenders any longer. Best thing we like to do is go for a walk in nature to feel connected.

  Oh, and interestingly...I have "goddess" cards that I draw once a week or so, for inspiration! ..."

  I TOTALLY agree with the idea of finding one's spirituality with nature!!! I see by your comment about the "goddess" cards - you've read my comment to that point, also?? I love my "goddesses" card decks - now I have two of them - one for the morning, one for the evening...

  Which reminds me... .... I want to find the name of the third "Zorya" goddess - I know the name of the one for dawn, and the one for evening, but I can't find the name of the one for midnight. It may be that her name is one that may not be spoken!!

  Anyway... Thanks for your comment!!

  Zid
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  ziddina

  Hi, AK_Jeff!!! Sharing my experience - my pleasure! Thanks for commenting!!

  Hi, BandOnTheRun- what???

  "And a Catholic service yet. You get extra points from either God or Satan. ..."

  Is that like, "If you mess with the bull, you get the horns - or a lotta bullsh*t..." ??

  Regarding your comment,

  "I could not make the leap to Catholicism. The very few things I believe the Witnesses are right about negate Catholicism. I do see it as a manifestation of continuity of the Church. ..."

  Now, I don't quite understand what you meant when you said, "I do see it as a manifestation of continuity of the Church...", but if you meant that the Catholic Church is the oldest strain of Christianity, then I see what you're saying - I think...

  For that matter, the appeal - well, one major appeal - that Catholicism has for me, is its innate paganism - it has picked up and preserved many older "pagan" or "heathen" deities in its roster of "saints".

  "It was the Episcopal Cathedral in NY, off the beaten path in NY. The majesty of the architecture, the happy faces, the intellectually rigorous sermons, the ecumenical approach all made me feel as though I was in heaven. It is High Church, Anglo-Catholic, which is very dominant in NY. Oh, the glory of the incense and ritual going back thousands of years. .."

  Both you and FlyingHighNow have recommended the Episcopalian church to me, so if I can find one in my area, I will most certainly check it out. At the Catholic mass, people pretty much showed up in everyday clothes; is that the case with the Episcopalians??? I actually enjoy dressing up a bit for church, so if the Episcopalian services require that the au - er, church members - be dressed in their "Sunday" best, I will happily comply...

  "Isn't it a shame what the Witnesses give up? Aesthetics aside, being a Witness I never felt affirmation.."

  So true, so true, so terribly sadly true...

  Thanks again for your comments, both of you!!

  Zid
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  Cagefighter

  Zid,

  I am glad to hear you are opening your heart and mind. The best advice I was given was to go "Church Surfing". I eventually settled on a local Methodist congregation here in town after years of visiting several churces. My main reasons for joining were two fold.

  1)There is a big emphasis on service and personal growth in the UMC faith. I found many churches focused on faith and salvation but, no real works (unless you mean writing a check which is important too). Maybe this ressonated with me as being raised JW in a "works based" belief but it still feels right for me.

  2) They respect and feel that the christian "traditions" that the JW's knock on all the time add benefit and context to worship and our lives as christians. They don't nit pick and hyper-analyze things and lose the whole point. I was very uncomfortable watching my first infant baptism but when I absorbed the big picture it was beautiful. It was actually a Chirstening were the family (extended as well) and the whole congregation took an oath to love, forgive and be there for this child regardless of his decisions.

  Good luck in your experiment. I know you will be blessed and meet some great people. Don't be afraid to ask hard questions like about the Trinity etc... from any leaders you might meet. I find most welcome an honest chance to discuss the more mysterious aspects of faith if asked respectfully (not like we did in field service). I had some great open minded and honest discussions that would never happen with an Elder at the KH. It's like going from East Germany to the USA sometimes. What's the point of going to church if people can't speak freely about their problems, doubts and struggles with faith?

  -Cage
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  ziddina

  Hi, Cagefighter!! I'm going to reply to your comments a bit out-of-sequence, because I need to correct one misperception...

  I am an atheist with a fascination for the very OLDEST forms of human worship, the worship of goddesses. I have begun sampling different Christian churches as a comparative exercise, from a humanist's viewpoint, as I was denied that freedom and experiences when I was younger.

  When I have attended suffiient services at churches that were considered by the Jehovah's Witnesses to be of "Christendom", I am then going to go back to a Kingdom Hall, and compare first or fresh impressions... Hopefully I will be able to view the JWs with a clear and impartial eye, at that point.

  As a "humanist", I will be looking at the way the various churches approach sin, forgiveness, excommunication/shunning/disfellowshipping, good works, higher education, self-improvement, feminism and/or womens' rights, and so on.

  I won't be paying as much attention to the level of biblical accuracy; however, the various churches will get bonus "points", so to speak, for the extent to which they allow their parishioners latitude in private biblical reading and personal freedom to interpret what they have read. Also, how much they encourage or develop the ability of their parishioners to read the bible with comprehension, especially within an historical and cultural context.

  However, rest assured that if I have any questions on the deeper aspects of faith, and of the beliefs in the Middle-Eastern god/gods, I will be sure to ask you...!

  Zid - remember, I am the She-Devil, after all...
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  Cagefighter

  Zid,

  I would hardly consider myself an expert on the topic but I do appreciate the confidence. I approached life with a very similar viewpoint for some time which led me to the conclusion that all religion is there to help us make sense of ourselves and the universe. Proverbs 14:12 says, "There is a way that seems right to a man but it leads to death". In my opinion ALL religion not just christian addresses this fatal trait in humanity. I am just a guy that saw the need to address that issue and picked a team. Is it a perfect team, certainly not but the 1993 Dallas Cowboys (best team ever) had a few flaws too. The point for me is that my team supports me, pushes me, and loves me and I return the favor. People who take this approach to religion as opposed to the "we must cover the earth with our literature or doctrines" approach seem to be much happier and spiritual. The more I seek the God of the bible the more light, order and love come into my life. Maybe it's because that is what I know first or that is what is most convienent. Everyone must find their own path and I love to see people opening themselves up to different traditions and practices. I think spiritual people, neo-pagan, buddhist, christian have more in common than they do not.

  I am glad you are exploring and putting yourself out there. May you find more light, love and peace.

  -Cage
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  shamus100

  It bothers me a great deal on this site - how people get Catholics mixed up with Christian Fundumbmentalists. Most Catholics are very nice, honest, and outgoing people. So what if they believe in god and you don't. It's not a big topic of conversation with them.

  I don't know why people leave a cult and think they can ditch everyone who doesn't think exactly how they think. It's no better than belonging to a kingdumb hall.
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  ziddina

  Hi, Shamus!!

  I'm curious - do you want to point out the comments that caused you to say, "It bothers me a great deal on this site - how people get Catholics mixed up with Christian Fundumbmentalists. ..."

  Hey, I'm not the brightest crayon in the box, and I need a little help... Personally, I would never confuse Catholicism with fundamentalism - though I think that the Catholic Church has used its power and influence to move political issues towards a biblical viewpoint, as in attempting to limit or eliminate government funding for abortions, allowing gay marriages, and so on...

  But that's not the same thing as fundamentalism, is it???

  Zid
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  shamus100

  Hint: Not all Catholics believe in that nonsense. Jeez, they're not even allowed to use contraception for goodness sakes. They do, they do... ;D Remember, not all religions are as stupid as Jehovahs Witnesses.

  There are too many threads to count that deal with people who do that - I'll let you find them.
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  ziddina

  OH!! I think I see what you're saying...

  The Catholic church, though having "official" stances against certain "unchristian" behaviors - contracepion, abortion, mistresses, gay marriages, and so on - they - the Catholic church - won't "officially" excommunicate people [at least nowadays - remember Copernicus and Galileo??] and force the rest of the congregation - church members - to also "shun" them...

  Yeah, the Catholics are much more easy-going in that aspect... Less dogmatic...

  Hey! Just to let you know - if you have cable TV, IFC "Independent Film Channel" - is running "Religulous" right now!!! You won't hear anyghing more from me for the next hour and a half - I'm watching "Religulous"!!!

  Zid
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  shamus100

  It's an awful show, Zid. :( NOT FUNNY, JUST STUPID GLOBAL LABELLING. ;)

  Stay and kiss me... :)