Saturday, April 7, 2012

Becoming Episcopalian : Tomorrow night


From Chicago-

How do I feel about reaching this point in my faith journey? It's hard to say. It feels rather anticlimatic. It was what I needed to do. Also, becoming Episcopalian is hardly that big of a change. The Episcopal Church is the via media, the middle way, between Catholicism and Protestantism. As I told someone on Facebook, I still feel Catholic. I'm just not Roman Catholic anymore.

I do feel a little bit sad. It's sad when you end any relationships, even when it's clear it wasn't working out. To end the relationship with my church of second baptism...well, there's definitely a bit of sorrow. (And yes, I did say second baptism. I was baptized as an ELCA Lutheran as a baby, but then my parents thought that wasn't good enough, and baptized me Catholic when I was 2. I asked the pastors if they wanted to baptize me a third time just to make sure, and they thought I was good to go, ha.)

I am happy, too. It's nice to be part of a family that welcomes you even if you disagree--no matter how big the disagreement, or how small. It's nice to be part of a family that doesn't judge you. You won't hear the phrase "cafeteria Episcopalian" uttered except in jest. It's nice to go to church and not be afraid that intolerance, disguised as doctrine, might be printed in the bulletin or talked about during the homily. It's nice to be part of a church that gives you latitude to question, to discern, to grow spiritually, while giving guidance that doesn't hinder growth.

More here-

http://www.chicagonow.com/running-with-a-book-cart/2012/04/becoming-episcopalian-tomorrow-night/

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