Reflection 9: I’m Not Ashamed of My Faith

As we approach the Lenten season, with Ash Wednesday being one of my favorite days of the year (that will be its own post soon) I have been sitting with something that has been weighing on me.

I am tired.

Tired of the stereotypes.

The assumptions.

The subtle eye rolls and the facial expressions that say everything even when no words are spoken. When I talk about my Catholic faith, sometimes it feels like people pretend to listen, but their faces tell me they have already decided what they think. And it hurts more than I want it to.

The best way I can describe it is this. Imagine someone explaining their culture to you. Maybe they share that they drink horchata or eat tamales at Christmas instead of turkey. And you listen, but your expression quietly says, That is weird. That is strange. I would never do that. You may not say it out loud. But it is there. That is what it feels like sometimes when I share my faith.

I know people of many different religions. Jewish. Mormon. Many others. And I genuinely enjoy listening to what they believe. I try to listen to understand, not to judge, not to respond, not to debate. So it is hard when that same courtesy is not returned. I am not asking anyone to convert. I never pressure my friends. I do not force anyone to attend Mass. I invite them if they are curious. I invite them to receive a blessing if they come with me. But I never push.

Yet somehow it feels socially acceptable for someone to lean over and say, I would never be Catholic, with a tone that implies something far worse. As if it is disgusting. As if it is something to be appalled by. And that is what I am tired of.

There is also the common argument that the Catholic Church has done terrible things throughout history. And to that I say this. I am deeply sorry for the ways religious people have hurt others. That pain is real. But the sins of human beings are not the same thing as Christ Himself. Religious people hurt Jesus too. That is the human part of the Church. The broken part. The part in need of redemption. But Jesus, the Trinity, our Lord and Savior, that is not cruelty. That is not corruption. That is not abuse. That is Love.

My faith is not something ugly. It is not something to mock. It is not something to reduce to headlines or a fragment of history without understanding the fullness of it. It is something sacred to me. What I really want is simple. Respect. The same respect I try to give others when they speak about what is holy to them.

You do not have to agree with me. You do not have to believe what I believe. But please do not treat it like it is something shameful.

I do not know exactly where this post is supposed to land. I just know I needed to say it out loud.

Because I am not ashamed of my faith.

And I am tired of feeling like others expect me to be.