As I travel along my spiritual journey, I explore the subject of Christianity and touch on the Catholic faith, as I am familiar with it.
I became a Catholic upon my baptism at 2 months old.
For children, Catholic masses can seem long, especially high mass. When I was 4 years old, with my dangling feet swinging back and forth below the church pew, I learned the meaning of eternity, as I was told to sit quietly during the mass for over an hour in all my rambunctiousness.
When you are born into a religion, you learn what to believe. But I was also curious about what other religions taught.
I attended Anglican and Baptist church services (both Protestant) with my friends, to see how they worshipped. I learned that they taught similar messages to the Catholic faith.
Faith in Jesus is the route to salvation for all Christians, but Catholics also believe good works have merit, and there is a place called purgatory separating heaven and hell. Protestants believe adherence to Scripture has more merit than good works.
Catholics, like all Christians, believe that God so loved the world that he sent us his only son Jesus to give us everlasting life. Salvation hinges on your faith in Jesus, not your religious or church affiliation, as many people in the world do not have access to churches.
As the Dalai Lama says, all religions are good, and are all based on love and compassion. I do not view the Catholic Church as better than any other church, but it is what I know, so am using it as an example. It taught us to be humble, forgiving, compassionate and loving. The overriding message was: “to be a good person”.
I respect all religions. They may not be perfect, but they are run by humans trying to build a human family to follow the wishes of God, and they help a lot of people in need.
http://www.cbn.com/spirituallife/200questions/article_9.aspx
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