Catholic Since Birth
I was brought up in a practising Catholic family. My father’s family are Italian (which almost means Catholic), and my mother has an English heritage, and was brought up Anglican. Mum became a Catholic a few years after marrying Dad, which I think was a pretty big thing to do, especially as a priest had called Mum an ‘impediment’ to the marriage, before they got married. That didn’t go down well. But I’m digressing…
I was brought up in a practising Catholic family and we went to Mass every Sunday. I also went to a Catholic primary school and high school, so these factors were the basis for my belief in God/Christianity. I have had people challenge my belief basis…along the lines of…if you were brought up Jewish you’d follow the teachings of Judaism, or brought up Muslim, you’d follow Mohammed etc. That seemed like a reasonable challenge, so at one point I decided I would test myself out and try not believing in the existence of Jesus, and see if I could go along with that. But that didn’t work…I failed my non-believing test, so for whatever reason, I do believe in God and the life of Jesus. Whether that’s because of my upbringing or my faith, I don’t really know, but I now don’t feel the need to question myself too much about it. I believe in Jesus and see God as a best mate who is always there. That’s why I go to Mass
I’ve also had people who question the physical evidence or proof behind my beliefs. I can also understand where that comes from. I work with medicine in a hospital and we have to question the evidence base behind most things that we do. It’s hard to verbally explain the evidence base for my beliefs, but I know it’s there for me. (I actually think it would be harder to prove that God doesn’t exist, but that’s a whole other subject). I’m aware that I don’t have all the answers to satisfy everyone else, but I still believe in God, and that’s why I go to Mass.
The priests where I choose to go to Mass have a knack for making the readings relevant to my life and the world today. This is important for me and also a reason why I go to Mass.
A reason some Catholics have told me they don’t go to Mass despite believing in God, is that they don’t believe or go along with everything the Catholic Church preaches, and they would feel hypocritical to go to Mass, with that being the case. To be perfectly honest, I don’t go along with or fully agree with (or perhaps don’t fully understand) everything, myself. One example…if I was to turn up to a confessional booth, I would have to say it has been 25 years since my last (compulsory) confession (at primary school). It’s not that I haven’t done anything wrong for the last quarter of a century, it’s more that I don’t feel the need to tell it to a priest…I’d personally prefer to go direct (to God). A couple of my Catholic friends disagree. They think it’s a good thing to have to say it out loud to someone, but for me, for the time being, I’ll stick to direct, because that’s what I’m comfortable with. I don’t let this (or some other things) stop me from going to Mass.
Another reason that I’m aware of, that some Catholics don’t go to Mass, is that they’ve had bad experiences with a particular priest, or at Catholic school. All I can say is that it would have been a shame if my mother had been permanently put off going to Church, by the silly ‘impediment’ comment made by one priest in 1970. Also, my father went to Catholic boarding school in the 1940s and he has any number of incidences of wrong (but not extreme) things that he witnessed, but he puts that down to individuals, and not representative of the Catholic Church. I can’t comment on how some more extreme bad experiences (and lack of action to correct them) would make some Catholics feel about going to Mass, as I have not been in that situation. I can only imagine that it would be very difficult.
I see God as a best mate and I go to Mass to remind me to say thanks for everything, even things that I initially thought were a curse. I was born with a cleft lip/palate which required multiple repair operations from when I was 3 months old. Looking and sounding different was sometimes hard especially when people would stare and make comments. There actually weren’t too many occasions when that happened, but enough to make me think, why me, it’s so unfair etc. When I was 21, I went to Mexico with a friend and we were travelling between Acapulco and Mexico City. Our bus stopped for a break at a small town called Chilpancingo, and we got off for a bit. While I was there I saw a grown man who was also born with a cleft lip, but it had never been repaired. I guess his family couldn’t afford it. I immediately changed from my childhood thinking of ‘why me’, to thinking (and still thinking) that I am the luckiest person on earth. I was born in a country that was able to patch me up, under the public health care system. I thanked God for that. But in doing so, it made me wonder about that man in Mexico and what did he have to thank God for. I thought about that for ages and still don’t really have an answer, but I’ve concluded that that’s because I don’t know him. He may well have a lot to be thankful for.
I think knowing what it’s like to be different has given me empathy for other people, and I am now thankful for the way I was born. I would never in a million years have thought that I would ever thank God for that. I have a lot of other things to be thankful for, including a great family, great friends and a comfortable and safe life. If I don’t go to Mass, I tend to forget to say thanks (and pray in general). So I go to Mass because I am grateful, and it reminds me to check in with God, in case I’ve forgotten during the week (which is often the case).
Finally, attending Mass has provided me the opportunity to get involved with causes that put Christian values into practice. I know I don’t need to go to Mass to get involved with organisations that promote social justice, but the reality for me is that outside of Church, I haven’t. A few times a year I do a shift at a homeless shelter, Teresa House. It’s so worthwhile and again makes me realise how fortunate I am, which in turn makes me want to go to Mass.
So, in summary I go to Mass
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because I believe,
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because the priests make the scripture relevant to my life,
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because I am thankful,
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because it sets aside a time to pray and reflect, and
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because it promotes social justice.