"The Fallen Catholic Society"

Biblically speaking, fear was always used by the clergies to ensure that people would obey the rules that were allegedly bestowed by God upon humanity to avoid burning in hell. These rules were actually written by men to control the masses and to perpetuate the power of the religious leaders. As a result, telling the truth and challenging the establishment will only lead to ridicule, crucifixion, and death. -Rev. Richard Skaff

I was raised Roman Catholic and it defined me for most of my life.  I had friends whose families attended the Lutheran or Methodist church, but I felt that being Catholic gave me some sort of status so I was proud to proclaim I went to the Catholic Church.  I attended mass every Sunday morning sitting in the front pew with my family in our small home town church.  I loved sound of the chimes and the music, as well as watching the gathering of people that occurred within that hour.   It was easy to see the innate need for congregating with others who think and feel like you do to warrant one's own existence.

Then my decline in Catholicism and religion started when a new priest came to our small town church that was far different than the priests I was used to.  He was hostile and spoke of money a lot.  He was also demeaning, while placing fear in the minds of the parishioners for not tithing enough or even how they dressed.  It didn’t really matter; it seemed as if anything could upset him.  And like humble followers, most members of the congregation just sat there and took his vile behavior while sitting in the "house of God", which is supposed to be about love and understanding.

 

As a parent it is my priority to protect my children from harm especially from individuals who preached about good and kindness, but didn’t live it. And if you don’t live it, you don’t teach it.  All you do is preach it, which is pretty meaningless.  I found that a person who was telling society to “do as I say, but not as I do” was a person not to be trusted.  And if you look closely at our society and the different religions and our government, there is a lot of that going around.

So when people ask me what religion I follow, I tell them I follow humanity and that I am a card carrying member of the "Fallen Catholic Society".  I am very happy and content to give my heart and love to the humans and animals on this beautiful planet of ours.