THE CATHOLIC COMMUNITY: A UNION OF HUMAN AND DIVINE INSTITUTIONS
People often understand the word “community” as a group of individuals living together sharing the same set of traditions, interests and beliefs. Normally, there is always an idea that there is harmony between the people a part of that community. But the image seems different for an outsider. This is true on my part. Learning to a new set of traditions, interests, and beliefs seems to be intimidating at first, especially for people like me who are suddenly placed at a new environment. This is the situation that I faced when I was newly got in the United States a decade ago. I believed then that being in a new place and being exposed with an entirely new culture would be a major problem. Wishing for a way to recover from this depressing feeling, my prayers seem to be answered when I was invited to a party with my friend. This opened the doors to a totally new experience.
This gathering was a Christmas party hosted by the Catholic Church in our area. This is the very first community that accepted me on the earlier days of my stay in the United States. It was one of the latest events that I consider memorable. The people that go in that church welcomed me with smiles, started to chat with me, and offered their food as if I was family. These are some of the qualities that made me fall in love with the Catholic community in out area. Since then I’ve become one of the most active members of the church.
However, these were just the beginning. After every meeting and after every hearing of mass, I am constantly discovering certain things about the community. The social arrangements and the practices in the Church seem to show itself in both formal meetings and casual encounters of the people who goes with that church.
The community within the Catholic Church is more than simply making friends. It is more of making a second family. Yes, believe it or not the community is likely to treat every member like one of their own family. Maybe this may be based on the beliefs and traditions of the Catholic Church, especially of the Church being made up of both the divine and human aspects. It is the union and continuous relation between the two that keeps the community going. The spirituality and faith by each member is seen in the way they care for me and the other members (and non-members) of the Church.
These values that the community has seem to rubs off on my own actions. For example, I have been a part of a lot of charity projects from food drives to free services to the community. The Catholic community has helped me understand how important and satisfying helping those who have less in life than I am. In addition, it has helped me understand the importance of the idea of a family in both the material and spiritual meaning.
After ten years, this community has become a big part of my life. It has been one that set up the foundations of my beliefs and ideas about goodness and decency with myself and how I deal with others. Moreover, the community has positively set up my ability as an individual to act within the virtues and principles of my faith. Good behavior and the way that I act in public in the same way are based largely on the good values that I have learned from the Catholic Church. My opinions on certain issues both social and political tend to base itself on my understanding of doctrines, faith and my spirituality as taught by the Catholic Church.
Mostly, the community that I have chosen to join has influenced my growth as a person a lot. Though I will not arrogantly say that I am perfect, the community that I belong helps me when I change direction on the path of what I believe as good and right. It makes me consider life changing decisions with the beliefs that I have learned in the past ten years in the community. Overall, this community that I chose to be a member of showed me the importance of the family. Not just speaking in plain terms, but also in the every meaning of the word. I would even say that it molded my identity and that realizing that I am actually a part of something greater that I ever imagined. Throughout this discussion I kept on saying that I decided to be a part of the Catholic Community, when I think about it, it appears that in some miraculous way, the community chose me. And for that, I am very grateful.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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