Gabriela Linares

Journal #8

I was using this opportunity as our class goes over the religion Christianity as a chance to explore
my own faith and practices. As a child I knew I believed in God, and from the small amounts of religion
my parents shared with me I knew they grew up Catholic but wanted to do things a bit differently with
us. My mother struggled to find a church for us when she moved from Puerto Rico because she didnt
always feel welcomed by the churches in our neighborhood. So, for most of my childhood we never
attended church.
Recently, my family started attending to church regularly, practically every Sunday. We feel
comfortable at our new church. It is a Congressional Church deemed as Progressive by some, but we
mostly see them as very open. I dont know anyone who goes to a church like mine, but I like it. For a
family just getting back into the idea of going to church, it fits us perfectly. Along with this new routine,
I found myself getting closer to people who were more religious, exploring their ideas and beliefs in an
attempt to figure out mine. Mostly, I talk to my boyfriend who is very religious, but very open to
conversation. He understands that I am still figuring things out and teaches me without really
preaching to me. Therefore, I took this section of the class to learn about the history behind the most
widespread religion of the world; a faith I feel I also belong to.
One of the things we discussed in class was the concept of confession, commonly practiced
among the Catholic sect. The idea of confession is to confess any sins made. A chance to talk one-on-
one with a priest, whether face to face or behind some sort of barrier and ask for forgiveness for any
sins committed. I am not Catholic and have never gone to confession, so it was interesting to get the
perspectives of the classmates who had done so. Some described it as a reflection of yourself or a
way to see how you have grown and matured based on the confessions you make. It also gives you a
chance to look back at your mistakes, with a little guidance, and figure out how to make up for your
mistakes. Sometimes its enough for people to simply confess their sins; others feel like they can find a
way to make things better after confession. The question was brought up about how whether simply
confessing was enough. I think that if you can take the step to admit your mistakes, you can also make
the conscience decisions to also try and better the situation, but thats up to the confessor. I also like
the idea of being able to talk to a priest, and God in way; a person with no prejudgment. It makes you
comfortable and can often help you make the right decisions. Plus, it always helps to get things off your
chest. Most importantly, its another connection to God, which is very important to those of the
Christian faith.
Another concept we went over was the idea of prayer. As Rabbi Heschel said, Prayer begins at
the edge of emptiness. In other words, prayer comes when everything else has been done and you
need that last bit of faith; that last chance to put it all into something elses hands. We talked about
whether people regularly pray. I find that those who wouldnt call themselves religious still have some
form of prayer. They wish. They wish while driving through tunnels, at 11:11, as they throw a penny
into a fountain, as they blow out birthday candles, at shooting stars, etc. Everyone has made a wish at
one point or another. For Christians they call it prayer because their making the connection to a God
which they believe exists. For others their making a similar connection, just not to something necessarily
named. We also differentiated the idea that a person who prays does not see themselves as nervy as
others might, looking in. But rather, the person praying is simply being the most honest with
themselves they can be. They are being as modest as possible. Again, prayer is that connection to God
that Christians deem so important.
One of the last aspects of Christianity we went over in class was the concept of saints. Saints are
very significant in Christian religion; in some sects it is more important than in others however. I believe
the concept of saints is fairly original to Christianity. In the Christian religion, saints are seen as
exemplars for people to model themselves after. They are the primary instructors of the religion. They
have upheld the teachings of Jesus Christ giving the sense of being closest to God, yet since they are
humans; continue to provide a connection to the human race. They are like a bridge between the two.
As teachers of a religion, they have a closer relationship to their pupils than most. One key element to a
saint was that their teachings were never new information, simply a new way of making the teaching
more relatable to the followers. People were inspired by saints from the very beginning. These early
Christ-bearing men were easier to relate to than just reading scripture. They were a sort of moral
catalyst inspiring groups of followers every day. Additionally, these early Christ-bearing men were
the first modest men; not teaching to be followed but teaching to help people become more moral for
them.
All these concepts are pathways to God. Ways to speak to God, be heard and in some ways be
answered to. They are all bridges between God and his followers. This is very important to Christianity
and I believe a key element into why it has lasted so long and reached so many people.