Being a Catholic in the United States in 2010 is not easy. Everywhere you go you are assaulted by the media encouraging you to do what feels good. Catholicism is not about giving in to your desires and always doing what makes you happy. It is about realizing that God has a plan for your life. The ultimate plan is for you to join Him in heaven.Unfortunately, if you do most of the things American society thinks is ok, a trip upstairs to meet the heavenly Father is probably not in your future. You are much more likely to need shorts and some air conditioning where you are headed! Sex, drugs, alcohol, cheating, lying, adultery... All ten commandments are broken in the first five minutes of the evening news, prime time TV shows or movies.
I was talking to my mother recently about teen pregnancy. She grew up in New York City in the 1950s. She didn't know anyone who got pregnant in high school. Why? Because people would have been horrified, embarrased, guilty, ostracized. You were sent away to have the baby. Sometimes it was put up for adoption, other times the grandmother would raise it as her own child. Many times the family moved out of town to avoid the whispers and stares. There were a million punishments for an unmarried girl who got pregnant in the 1950s. Society did not tolerate it well and that was a lot of incentive to avoid it. Too many people were following the Catholic Church's rules back then and didn't accept it well when someone decided to step out of line.
Fast forward to today when phrases like "baby momma" and shows like "16 and Pregnant" don't even raise any eyebrows. Why has teen pregnancy risen astronomically over the last 50 years? Because enough people started to accept it. Now, it's a slight inconvenience not a scarlet letter.
So many of the church's teachings center on the strength of the family and the importance of following God's rules. What is the purpose of these rules? Why does the church think it is so important to raise a child in a home with a mom and a dad who are married? I think their rules are in place simply to keep people on the straight and narrow as much as possible. They are intended to be an external moral compass to compliment your internal moral compass. You can choose to follow the rules of the Church, or not.
Personally, I choose to follow (or try to follow since I am NOT perfect) the Catholic rules. This does not make me stupid or old fashioned. It simply means that I believe in Jesus and want to follow his teachings to the best of my ability. But society wants me to go to the movies instead of church, to cheat on my husband if the sex isn't good, to cheat on my taxes and to lie about anything that is inconvenient.
I think it's harder to be Catholic in 2010 than it was for mom and dad in 1950. Few people around me go to church so if I want to sleep in, I can. No feeling bad, no guilt, no neighbors saying, "We missed you in church on Sunday. Are you feeling alright?"
The warrior woman comes out in me when people make fun of Catholics or discourage me from following my faith. I fight to be Catholic every day. My sword is my determination and faith that if I live as Jesus wants me to, I will have rewards in heaven beyond all imagination.
I'm willing to fight myself and the influences around me on earth for a chance to spend eternity in heaven. To me it's a fight worth winning.
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