Have you ever converted to a different religion?

[adduncan]

I was born/raised Presbyterian (PCUSA) and I became Catholic my senior year of college.

(Put those eyebrows back down, there are a lot of us out there! )

My thought process on the subject started my junior year. With college came a bit more personal responsibility and some analysis of how I grew up and where I wanted to go. When I looked at the church I was raised in, I saw a good bit of doublespeak: claiming to base their doctrine on the principle of sola scriptura , but their policies often contradicted that. It's one thing to have challenges come up that make it difficult to be consistent, but there were some instances that were just blatant w/out apology.

In addition, I got to meet people who were Catholic and very serious about their faith - so much so that they could explain reasonable and complete answers to questions I had. It turns out everything that I had learned about "what Catholics believe" from my well-meaning Presbyterian pastors was wrong.

In the end, I decided that Catholicism just made more sense and was historically more consistent w/ Scripture than the protestant denominations. I was received on Easter Vigil in 1990.

Adrienne (PNAM-2003)

[Choo-ChooAKA]

Both of my parents' fathers were Baptist ministers on the East Coast, so they were truly "raised in the church." Strangely, however, they were never comfortable in the Baptist churches in California (where they ended up settling 30 years ago). They said the preaching style of Baptist ministers in California was far different from what they grew up with and they no longer had any urge to spend all of their time in church (I guess they had gotten an overload as children). 3 hour services were far too long. Therefore, although we went to a Baptist church, we were not involved in any activities other than going to church on Sunday and my parents were constantly criticizing the minister, the parishoners, and even the beliefs of the church.

I don't think their questioning of beliefs came from their childhoods, but they simply were, as adults, beginning to question fundamental Christian principals. In fact, they would tell me, when we got home from church, to take it all with a grain of salt. Yet, they stayed in the Baptist church for many years and hid their true beliefs - strange, yes, but I don't think this is all that uncommon. Converting to anything that's not Christian can be, as a previous poster said, psychologically damaging. Old friends look at you like:

Anyway, I stopped going to church the minute I left home - it was all just a formality and my social life was elsewhere. As a parent, though, I felt I had to ground my children somehow in some type of religious training because, no matter how confusing my experience was, I cannot say it was worthless. At least I was given some type of spiritual, if not religious, foundation.

I, ofcourse, started my quest with the Baptist church. I probably would have stayed and done the exact same thing my parents did, but my husband's family is Jehovah's witness and he leans toward that direction. He is unimpressed by the loooong services and "antics" of some Baptist preachers, so I told him we could go to a Jehovah's witness Hall and check that out. We went for a few weeks and I actually thought it was OK, until this man jumped up in front of the church and started saying that if you're not Jehovah's Witness, you're going to hell; it's wrong to have friends who aren't witnesses, etc., etc. That was the last time I stepped foot inside a Witness's Hall. The one thing I was impressed with, though, was that the church was so ethnically diverse. Unlike other religions where people are separated by their ethnicity (i.e. White Baptist/Black Baptist), there is no segregation among Witnesses (that I've seen). This extends to marriage partners, too. Kind of refreshing.

From there we explored Unitarian (seemed like kind of a non-religion) and a few more religions, which we could not agree on and neither of us really cared enough about them to push the issue. Finally, my Mom invited me to her new church (she had finally broken away from Baptist), which was Religious Science. Religious Science is a mixture of the best of all religions, but is not Christian. The beliefs of Religious Scientists lean more toward Buddhism/Taoism and even Judaism and Muslim than toward Christianity. My husband had all but given up by this time, so I went by myself. I was a convert at my first service.

Now, I feel like I've found a spiritual home, but I'm not sure about a Church home. I know, what do I mean by this? Aren't they one and the same thing? Well, I don't know. Honestly, I think children should grow up with a little more structure than Religious Science offers. They need some black/white thinking for a little while; maybe it will make their lives easier when it comes to those tough teenage years - or maybe they will just feel judged, I dunno. Religious Science has very few parameters. So, although I go to a Religious Science church, it feeds my soul, and I encourage my children to practice meditation, affirmations, etc., I'm still looking for something to augment what I'm doing now.

Plus, my husband, who will not claim Jehovah's Witness and hardly ever goes to the Hall, thinks I'm an Heretic and making our children into little Heretics because I'm not Christian. He says very little since he's not exactly devout, but I would like to augment my spiritual life with something that he can feel more comfortable with being a part of. At this point, he would probably be ecstatic if I wanted to go back to Baptist again (LOL)!

So, I've converted from Baptist to Religious Science, but I'm still searching for "more."

Question for you: What do you think about structure, parameters and dogma in the church? Are they/can they be helpful, or do they cause too much shame and guilt to be good? (Soror Ideal, if this question is going to "hijack" your topic, please feel free to delete it.)

Sorry for such a long message. This a very interesting topic!

CG
Eta Gamma Omega
via Eta Lambda, F'90

[NinjaPoodle]

Originally posted by straightBOS
I actually liked the conservatism of the Anglican service.

Question--what is the basis of the Anglican sect? I'm really not familiar with them.


I'll add my story also.

When my family moved me and my 2 brothers from Chicago to San Francisco, I was 5 years old and was not a member of any church. My great grandmother, Southern Baptist, wanted us to go to church with my aunt, United Methodist, but also wanted us to go to a Baptist church. So, the 3 of us went to a Baptist church nearby but stopped going after a couple of visits. I just remember that church, Calvary Baptist, gave me my first bible, King James Version, and yes I still have it.

Anywhoo, my aunt started taking us to her church services and of the 3 of us, I was the only one who was baptized and became a member of the church. I never felt like a member there. Even though I would attend Sunday school, the snow trips, join the youth and young adult choirs, I felt like the people were snobs and hypocrites. Also, I never felt moved by the services or any sense of spiritual involment. However, every summer, from the ages of 6 through 16, I would attend a camp, which was run by the local (catholic) archdiocese (sp?). It was not a religious camp but on Sundays did perform a full mass. It was my first exposure to Catholicism. The difference with the service at camp as opposed to a regular Mass was it was all done by the kids. I found it very happy and joyous and fun. At the time, I thought the religions were pretty much the same so I didn’t see anything wrong with receiving communion.

Anyway, for a while I felt catholic and was going to officially convert until I actually figured out what it means to be a catholic. Since I didn't agree with the doctrine, I dropped that idea. In high school I participated in a group called Young Life, and had a great time with them. YL is a Christian based national youth org. I got tired of them because they were always having "club". (their term for religious service). Their camp was fun but every night we were there (7 days) we had mandatory club for at least 2 hours. Boring! So during my early adult years I floundered around and looked casually into other religions but decided not to go the organized route. I’m happy with where I am today after having done research on other religions. So I guess you could say I ‘ve converted to just being happy

[aephi alum]

NinjaPoodle, the Anglican Church goes back to the time of Henry VIII. IIRC (and history was never my strong suit), Henry wanted to divorce his wife, and the Pope wouldn't let him... so he split from the Church. A lot of the older Protestant sects were getting founded around the same time.

The Anglican Church is very similar to the Catholic Church; High Church, I'm told, is almost identical. The big difference is that the head of the church is England's ruling monarch, rather than the Pope.

[Gyrl7]

I normally will not discuss religion with anyone for various reasons, however, this post intriqued me and made me want to reply.

When I was born my mother was studying to become a Jehova's Witness. So basically, that is what we were coming up. I personally hated it. I know that you shouldn't hate any religion, but remember I was a child at that time. Not receiving Christmas gifts as a child, having to have to stand in the front of the class with the teacher because I was not allowed to say the pledge of allegiance (simply because of the phrase "one nation under God") because of "my mothers" religion was not acceptable to me, no matter how well she explained it to me. I always wanted to go to church where the people sang, clapped real loud and had a good time. At that time it seemed to range from Baptist to Penticostal. I made a vow that whenever I grew up, I would NOT be a Jehova's Witness. It wasn't just because we didn't celebrate Christmas, but it didn't sit right with me. Some of the things my mother did as a Jehova's Witness, I was kind of shocked at. I recall actually getting a beating for going to my Grandmothers Church which was Penticostal. My mother and Grandfather never did get along after a heated discussion about me going to their church, he didn't see why I had to get beat for going and was OUTRAGED. I was happy as can be, I had a good time at my Grandmother's Church (Bible Way), but I paid dearly for going.

1. Like my mother had her gall bladder removed in 76, but she had to do it without blood. Now if she needed an emergency blood tranfusion she was pretty much screwed.

2. When the Witnesses would have gatherings, alcohol was always permitted. My mother will always say the drunkest she has ever been in her life was as a Jehova's Witness.

3. Once you are dis-fellowishipped, you are pretty much shunned from all of the other JW's. Now what if you want to come back to the fold. My mother can on one hand exclulding the thumb, how many of the JW's still speak to her now that she has left.

4. No prayers could be in the name of Jesus.

The above are just to name a few.

Anyhow, my mother started reading the King James Bible and the Jehova's Witness Bible. She started finding a lot of contridictions (please do not ask me to explain the contridictions, just remember at that time I was only 10). In late 81 early 82, she started watching Fred KC Price of Ever Increasing Faith Ministries on television. Every Sunday at 8am, BET was no where to be found back then, shoot Bobby Jones probably just got saved himself. Not to long after that Jimmy Swaggart started coming on, then Oral Roberts, alas, GOD heard my silent cry. My Mom's went for major surgery in June of 1982. She had already decided that she wanted to become born again, so she did the "sinners prayer" with my Aunt who was an Evangelist and my Aunts Pastor. I was just relieved to come from my summer vacation with my Grandmother knowing we would be going to church on Sunday.

I don't know who was the most happy her, because she was now a Born Again Christian or me because we were no longer Jehova's Witnesses.

I am by no means saying one religion is better than the other, just sharing my experiences coming up.

[aephi alum]

Guess I should share my story... I'll try to keep it short, but it's hard to condense a lifetime's spiritual journey into one post

I was raised in a very strict Catholic household. As far as my dad was concerned, Vatican II never happened. We abstained from meat every Friday, went to confession and Mass every Saturday, my dad used to do the "old-style" Lenten fast where you fasted every day, etc. I was sent to Catholic school through 5th grade, and was only allowed to transfer out when my father realized that the public schools provided a far superior secular education.

As I got older, I started to realize that there were things in Church doctrine that I wasn't too thrilled about, for example, the infallibility of the Pope. I also had a bad experience at CCD where I asked a question and was basically told "Don't ask questions, just accept what you're told." (I was right, too!)

I thought very hard about whether to go through with confirmation, but I knew I would have been thrown out of the house if I didn't, so I did it.

I had a lot of Jewish friends growing up, and through them I learned a lot about Judaism - both the beliefs and the culture. When I got to college, I found myself drawn to a newly formed local sorority, all of whose other members were Jewish - and from them I learned even more about Judaism, and did some research on my own. Eventually I began to study with a rabbi, and came to the conclusion that I wanted to be Jewish.

One thing that particularly attracted me to Judaism is that you are not only allowed, but encouraged, to ask questions and debate things. That was not my experience with the Catholic Church.

While all this was going on, I met a wonderful young Jewish man who is now my husband. At first glance, it looks like I converted for his sake, but I did not; I chose Judaism for my own reasons, I was not coerced in any way, and I really hate it when people assume otherwise. He would have married me whether I converted or not.

My parents were, and are, unthrilled with my choice. My dad wouldn't walk me down the aisle at my wedding, and almost didn't come at all. My mom wishes that I would have at least remained a Christian... but while I have a lot of respect for Jesus' teachings, I just don't share the Christian belief that he is God.

I hope I have not offended the Catholics and other Christians here - it just wasn't the right path for me.

Apologies for the long post.

[Ideal08]

I'm glad people are enjoying this thread! I'm definitely learning a lot. Soror ChooChooAKA, your question would not be considered a hijack. What I am trying to stay away from is people getting hurt feelings and offended behind people's views. This is the reason that I wanted conversion stories ONLY, to make sure people were protected from jump.

The reason that I posed the question is simple, really. All my life, I've looked at different religions, even as a kid. I was raised Baptist. Each summer, I attended Vacation Bible School at both Baptist and Methodist churches (I'm goin' on a journey, through time and through space... ). My grandmother worked for a Jewish family, and would teach me a few principles about that. Then in high school, I had a good friend who was Baha'i. I thought that one was the most interesting of all, but not enough to convert. I continued to go to events with him, though all through college. Then I got to college and met a guy who is a Hebrew Israelite. All these years, he and I have communicated and debated each other, or even just listened, about religion. I don't know a lot about it, but he's sending me stuff in the mail about it soon. After having the conversation with him, I just wondered how many people actually covert to different religions or even denominations. I am SO grounded in my faith that at times it's hard for me to even THINK about the idea of another religion. But I like to learn about them, still: how they are the same and how they are different. It's just really interesting

I've been Christian for 29 years, y'know? And I don't necessarily have a problem with the religion. I just sometimes wonder, what if I'm wrong about some things? So it made me wonder who had converted and how they felt during that time period. I imagine that it's really hard. And that seems confirmed by some of the stories here, because people take religion probably more seriously than anything else in life. I knew that there would be stories of families not speaking and things of that nature. I was just interested in hearing the stories. I'm not necessarily thinking of converting, but sometimes it's a trip to even READ about a different religion because I'm constantly debating points with myself inside my head. Weird, huh?

I'm glad you all think this is an interesting topic, too. I hope we can continue having a healthy dialogue about it!

[REIKI]

Originally posted by Choo-ChooAKA
Both of my parents' fathers were Baptist ministers on the East Coast, so they were truly "raised in the church." Strangely, however, they were never comfortable in the Baptist churches in California (where they ended up settling 30 years ago). They said the preaching style of Baptist ministers in California was far different from what they grew up with and they no longer had any urge to spend all of their time in church (I guess they had gotten an overload as children). 3 hour services were far too long. Therefore, although we went to a Baptist church, we were not involved in any activities other than going to church on Sunday and my parents were constantly criticizing the minister, the parishoners, and even the beliefs of the church.

I don't think their questioning of beliefs came from their childhoods, but they simply were, as adults, beginning to question fundamental Christian principals. In fact, they would tell me, when we got home from church, to take it all with a grain of salt. Yet, they stayed in the Baptist church for many years and hid their true beliefs - strange, yes, but I don't think this is all that uncommon. Converting to anything that's not Christian can be, as a previous poster said, psychologically damaging. Old friends look at you like:

Anyway, I stopped going to church the minute I left home - it was all just a formality and my social life was elsewhere. As a parent, though, I felt I had to ground my children somehow in some type of religious training because, no matter how confusing my experience was, I cannot say it was worthless. At least I was given some type of spiritual, if not religious, foundation.

I, ofcourse, started my quest with the Baptist church. I probably would have stayed and done the exact same thing my parents did, but my husband's family is Jehovah's witness and he leans toward that direction. He is unimpressed by the loooong services and "antics" of some Baptist preachers, so I told him we could go to a Jehovah's witness Hall and check that out. We went for a few weeks and I actually thought it was OK, until this man jumped up in front of the church and started saying that if you're not Jehovah's Witness, you're going to hell; it's wrong to have friends who aren't witnesses, etc., etc. That was the last time I stepped foot inside a Witness's Hall. The one thing I was impressed with, though, was that the church was so ethnically diverse. Unlike other religions where people are separated by their ethnicity (i.e. White Baptist/Black Baptist), there is no segregation among Witnesses (that I've seen). This extends to marriage partners, too. Kind of refreshing.

From there we explored Unitarian (seemed like kind of a non-religion) and a few more religions, which we could not agree on and neither of us really cared enough about them to push the issue. Finally, my Mom invited me to her new church (she had finally broken away from Baptist), which was Religious Science. Religious Science is a mixture of the best of all religions, but is not Christian. The beliefs of Religious Scientists lean more toward Buddhism/Taoism and even Judaism and Muslim than toward Christianity. My husband had all but given up by this time, so I went by myself. I was a convert at my first service.

Now, I feel like I've found a spiritual home, but I'm not sure about a Church home. I know, what do I mean by this? Aren't they one and the same thing? Well, I don't know. Honestly, I think children should grow up with a little more structure than Religious Science offers. They need some black/white thinking for a little while; maybe it will make their lives easier when it comes to those tough teenage years - or maybe they will just feel judged, I dunno. Religious Science has very few parameters. So, although I go to a Religious Science church, it feeds my soul, and I encourage my children to practice meditation, affirmations, etc., I'm still looking for something to augment what I'm doing now.

Plus, my husband, who will not claim Jehovah's Witness and hardly ever goes to the Hall, thinks I'm an Heretic and making our children into little Heretics because I'm not Christian. He says very little since he's not exactly devout, but I would like to augment my spiritual life with something that he can feel more comfortable with being a part of. At this point, he would probably be ecstatic if I wanted to go back to Baptist again (LOL)!

So, I've converted from Baptist to Religious Science, but I'm still searching for "more."

Question for you: What do you think about structure, parameters and dogma in the church? Are they/can they be helpful, or do they cause too much shame and guilt to be good? (Soror Ideal, if this question is going to "hijack" your topic, please feel free to delete it.)

Sorry for such a long message. This a very interesting topic!

CG
Eta Gamma Omega
via Eta Lambda, F'90

I think that some level of structure is important in any belief system simply because if you don't have some discipline and focus then it will be hard to make any substantial level of spiritual/psychological growth and maturity. I think that any parameters should be simply utilized for the purpose of pacing yourself, and not to prevent yourself or others from growing at their own pace. Dogma is a control mechanism, in my opinion, especially when the church holds it as the absolute truth and regards all other faiths as invalid or untrue. I think that this is what causes the guilt and shame. In my opinion, a legitimate faith is one that recognizes the legitimacy of other faiths. If a faith claims to be the absolute truth of all truths, I would run the other way Not even Jesus claimed to be the absolute truth. . . . He said I am the way, the truth and the light. In my opinion, that meant that whatever truth there is to life that can be found, can be found inside of me. Fear is not liberating, and I refuse to believe that the purpose of religion is to live your entire life in fear and psychological bondage to men. So to answer your question, can structure, parameters and dogma be good. . . yes, when not misused.

[Choo-ChooAKA]

Wonderful words of wisdom.

Gyrl7 - yes, I've noticed that, too about Jehovah's Witnesses. The ones I know drink like FISH!!! :eek I thought it was just a phenomenon among the witnesses I know, but maybe not?! Since I don't drink, I suppose I could never have been a witness anyway.

[GeekyPenguin]

Originally posted by aephi alum
NinjaPoodle, the Anglican Church goes back to the time of Henry VIII. IIRC (and history was never my strong suit), Henry wanted to divorce his wife, and the Pope wouldn't let him... so he split from the Church. A lot of the older Protestant sects were getting founded around the same time.

The Anglican Church is very similar to the Catholic Church; High Church, I'm told, is almost identical. The big difference is that the head of the church is England's ruling monarch, rather than the Pope.

AEPhi Alum, you are very much correct. My Theology professor (at a Jesuit University) is an Anglican, and that is the explanation he gave us.

[Gyrl7]

Originally posted by Choo-ChooAKA
Wonderful words of wisdom.

Gyrl7 - yes, I've noticed that, too about Jehovah's Witnesses. The ones I know drink like FISH!!! :eek I thought it was just a phenomenon among the witnesses I know, but maybe not?! Since I don't drink, I suppose I could never have been a witness anyway.

Girl you could get your party on as a Jehova's Witness for real! When my mother would have some of the Witnesses at her house, they would be chilling listening to Millie Jackson (the cussing-gutter mouth Millie Jackson) while drinking. However, could not go to the bars.

[Eclipse]

Originally posted by REIKI
I think that some level of structure is important in any belief system simply because if you don't have some discipline and focus then it will be hard to make any substantial level of spiritual/psychological growth and maturity. I think that any parameters should be simply utilized for the purpose of pacing yourself, and not to prevent yourself or others from growing at their own pace.

I agree!

Dogma is a control mechanism, in my opinion, especially when the church holds it as the absolute truth and regards all other faiths as invalid or untrue. I think that this is what causes the guilt and shame. In my opinion, a legitimate faith is one that recognizes the legitimacy of other faiths. If a faith claims to be the absolute truth of all truths, I would run the other way Not even Jesus claimed to be the absolute truth. . . . He said I am the way, the truth and the light. In my opinion, that meant that whatever truth there is to life that can be found, can be found inside of me. Fear is not liberating, and I refuse to believe that the purpose of religion is to live your entire life in fear and psychological bondage to men. So to answer your question, can structure, parameters and dogma be good. . . yes, when not misused.

This is where I disagree. I think a lot of people have used religion to bring about shame, but there really shouldn't be. To me, the parameters in my belief system are there for MY benefit. Not to control me, make me feel guilty, shame, etc. but to bring me joy about what God has done for me.

My personal story is not a conversion from one religion to another, but from attending church to having a true conversion.

I was "raised" Christian. My mother grew up Baptist and so did my father, but he was really turned off by what he saw as the hypocrites in the Baptist Church. After they got married my mother wanted them to attend church together, so they found this little Episcopalian church near our house. My father was confirmed as an Episcopalian and when I was about 13 so was I. I just remember doing it because I was "supposed to" and all of the other kids in my age group at the church did at the same time. I found the confirmation classes EXTREMELY boring and would fight to stay awake. I was happy when I was finally confirmed because that meant I could take communion (and you know they were serving REAL wine!). I wasn't excited about communion per say, just the fact that I got to 'legally' drink wine. I found church as a whole pretty boring actually. When we went to visit my grandmothers Baptist church I liked the music, but thought they were too loud. The shouting ladies scared me too.

My family continued to attend this church, although my father less than any of us. We were pretty active in the church. My sister played flute for the church band and in her sophomore year of college got pregnant out of wedlock. The priest (who was always at our house visiting for some reason or another and frequently around the dinner hour) came by and told my sister and parents that she could no longer be in the band because she was not married. At the time we all talked about how judgemental they were, couldn't believe it, etc. and pretty much stopped going to church as a family. That was my senior year in HS.

I went away to college and hardly ever went to church, although I would have probably called myself a Christian. I dabbled in Islam a bit, mainly because of their pro black stance and my respect for Louis Farrahcan (sp??). I believed there was no true path to God and everyone had to do it there way. I moved out of state after college and in a search for community (my new state was predom. White) I started to attend church again, but never found any connection. Where I found the greatest connection was this Pan African discussion group that met on Saturdays. While I don't think anyone would have called it a religion (I don't recall anyone doing it) we spent a lot of time talking about the ancestors and pulling strength from our ancestors in our prayers. There were a people from different religions or probably no region that attended and it wasn't really an issue. I was extremely un happy in my new location and decided to bight the bullet and move back home. After a while my grandmother got extremely ill and I moved to her home town to live with her and my uncle who had downs syndrome. Both were deeply religious (Baptist) and I frenquely took them to church. I was really about my 'obligation' more than anything else, cause I saw a lot of people playing church. After my grandmother's death I because the primary care giver for my uncle for a while and since he wanted to be in church every time the doors opened so was I. I think for the first time I really started listening to and absorbing the messages. They seemed to apply to me and my situation and gave me strength and confidence through a very tough time. During one service I felt (I now know it is the Holy Spirit) something say it was time for me to stop playing church and really give my heart to Christ. I did and although I have fallen more than a few times since then and haven't nearly done things the way I am supposed to I haven't looked back. I love the personal relationship I have with Jesus and am in a church, while not perfect, is really focused on teaching the word and growing people in Christ. I've learned most of all that my eyes should not be on what other people are are aren't doing but on Jesus and Jesus along and what is said in the Word.

You know, several people have commented on their family's attitude when they converted. Mine is not as dramatic, because most of my family claims Christainity, but what is interesting to me is those people who have an attitude with you because you are now trying to be serious with your walk. I have some who are Sunday morning Christians only and are truly like when they realize you don't do some of the things you used to do.

[beauty_6049]

I was baptized Catholic even though I had grown up in a Baptist church. I had gotten used to their teachings and practices until my parents sent me to a Cathloic school. I was never confirmed Catholic and never fully understood/believed all of the teachings. My boyfriends father is pastor of a Baptist church and eveytime I attend I seem to have a better understanding of the readings and the sermons. I feel comfortable witnessing in this environment. Does that give me a reason to change religions? All POSITIVE criticisms would be appreciated!

[stardusttwin]

Originally posted by beauty_6049
My boyfriends father is pastor of a Baptist church and eveytime I attend I seem to have a better understanding of the readings and the sermons. I feel comfortable witnessing in this environment. Does that give me a reason to change religions? All POSITIVE criticisms would be appreciated!

I would say YES! But I don't see that as changing religions- I think its just attending another denomination (which is essentially man made).

I spoke earlier of my change from Lutheran to Baptist-my decision to attend this church was because of the preaching of the word and the understanding I was finally getting out of it. My church doesn't tell you what the Bible says-they expect you to participate and study the word for ones self. Bible study is held weekly and its great to be in an environment with people my age discussing and studying the word. No longer could I get by reciting by rote tried and true verses - I had to study (and learn again as an adult) the Bible. What was great during this rediscovery period-is that my own faith has been strengthened by knowing where to turn for support when various issues in my life arise.

Now, if I had found a Lutheran church that I felt as comfortable and accepted in I probably would have stayed in that denomination- it just happened that after much prayer (of wanting a church home) I was led to attend this church and it happened to be Baptist. I didn't even care I was just worried about how my Mom would take it(iIwas christened and confirmed as a Lutheran). After discussing with my girlfriend and some more prayer I just put it out there and told my mother of my decision (to join this new church and be baptized as an adult). My Mom was initally skeptical but she has attended services with me and is happy that the principals and actions of the church are Word oriented. Although she braggs about my church choir (because they can sang) she prefers the quiet solitude of a Lutheran service. Ultimately she is happy that I've found a church home that encourages me and supports my walk with Christ. That's what should be the point (not the denomination which you do it with). So beauty_6049 I would encourage you to keep an open mind and don't worry too much about denomination.

but what is interesting to me is those people who have an attitude with you because you are now trying to be serious with your walk. I have some who are Sunday morning Christians only and are truly like when they realize you don't do some of the things you used to do.

Girl, I could go on and on about this....but I won't....changing your life or making a committment to walk properly brings the devil out in many forms, family members/friends/coworkers etc...just know you are not alone with this one!

[Eclipse]

Originally posted by beauty_6049
I was baptized Catholic even though I had grown up in a Baptist church. I had gotten used to their teachings and practices until my parents sent me to a Cathloic school. I was never confirmed Catholic and never fully understood/believed all of the teachings. My boyfriends father is pastor of a Baptist church and eveytime I attend I seem to have a better understanding of the readings and the sermons. I feel comfortable witnessing in this environment. Does that give me a reason to change religions? All POSITIVE criticisms would be appreciated!

There are some serious differences in the Catholic and Baptists churches. For example, baptism (babies vs. "age of concent" only) and communion (Catholics the bread/wine 'become' Jesus--Catholics will have to help me with this one, I never understood it--while for Baptists it doesn't) Make sure you understand those differences and are their aren't any serious disagreements with what you believe and what the Baptist church teaches. Like stardusttwin stated, it is really about getting in a place where the Word is explain and Jesus is exalted! If you feel that you are getting that at the Baptist church, go for it! Also know that most Baptist churches will probably want you to be baptized again since Catholics do not baptize by immersion.