I was brought up in a family full of Catholics. It was an obligatory presence and back then a required mandate. My mother’s families were all devout followers. My father, having barely survived being shot down in World War 2, converted to the faith through his conversations with a reassuring Navy Chaplain in a far-away island in the Philippines. It felt ‘right’, he often said, ‘it felt like home’. And, although he grew up in a house with little structured religion, his recovery from his peril led him to feel safe within the confines of the religion’s framework.
Returning home from the war with his new found faithfulness and meeting my very-Catholic raised mother, it seemed like his draw to the church was a destiny. He became an every-Sunday attendee, eventually becoming a deacon. Daddy would drag us to service even on the Sunday mornings when Mom wanted a few extra hours of sleep. My siblings and I all received a parochial education. In those days, catechism was taught right along with reading and arithmetic. You will hear no complaints from me regarding my fine education, but I will share with you that I hesitated even at a very young age at embracing the doctrine.
I left the church at 18 years old. I was on a spiritual trek and searching for something that would fulfill me and answer my many unanswered queries as to the whys and the wherefores. I studied hard the many world doctrines, and as the story goes, I found my answers and embraced my ideal spirituality as I blossomed into a reverent almost ministerial soul.
While I am thankful for the opportunities and the basic foundation I was given at birth, I am more grateful for the latitude I was given in exploring the other possibilities, and in so doing, forming my own voice. My father always told me, “I do not care what you believe, just as long as you believe in something and you keep it a constant in your life.” I have done just that, and his advice has served me well.
My temple lives inside of me, and I visit it every day. It is a very sustaining place from which to rise. The many aspects to living a spiritually inflected life are each fulfilling in their own way. My special blend – resulted from my early Catholic years, to the comfort found in Judaism, to the serenity of the Eastern religions have all come together in a perfect harmonious amalgamation. This is my church, my foundation – the one that I lean on in helping myself during tough times such as these, and in helping others through theirs. It is one crusade that has proven very beneficial.
So, when I hear someone say…’See you in church’, I simply smile and utter inaudibly, ‘See the church in you!’.