. . . you know, the Catholic one.

I was a senior in high school in Ft. Wayne, Indiana, where a young woman classmate extended a friendly invitation for me to accompany her to her Catholic church. (My sociology teacher at South Side High, a Mr. Arnold, was also a Catholic--and a devout one, at that--who was always putting in a plug for his faith during class, which I found mildly annoying but who are Mormons to complain about religious plugging?)

My dad at that time was president of the Indiana-Michigan mission, headquartered in Ft. Wayne, and was into proselytizing big time. So I thought, well, this would be a good time for me to get proselytized.

So, off me and my Catholic friend went to attend her church.

I remember how dark it was entering the front entryway of the local cathedral. I noticed a small stone bowl in a shadow-veiled corner, went over to it and asked, "What's this?" as I put my hand inside. It was full of water.

She replied, "It's holy water." I quickly pulled my hand out, whereupon it began to smoke and shrivel up and turn black and then fell off (OK, not really).

After wiping my fingers dry, we proceeded into the cathedral, where the faithful were gathering for Mass, and took our places in a pew mid-way back from the communion table.

This was, by the way, in the early 1970s, when the Catholic Church was going through a liberalization of sorts in some of its American churches. The priest doing the service that day was a young, outgoing, smiling, cheerful hip guy who took out a guitar and started strumming and singing some soft folk rock.

I had never seen this in Mormon sacrament meeting and thought it was kinda cool.

Then he commenced his sermon by telling the congregation that he was going to talk about abortion. I knew that the Catholic Church had pretty strict views on abortion so I listened with interest as to what this young hip priest dude had to say.

He told the assembled faithful that he was taking his abortion remarks from an article in a recent issue of "Reader's Digest" magazine. I don't remember the details of what he preached from "Reader's Digest" that day, other than it was light and pleasant and that he said people had different views on the subject.

This wasn't exactly what I had experienced in Mormon sacrament meeting, either.

After he had wrapped up his laid-back and chilled-out remarks, the priest invited us all to turn to our neighnr sitting next to us, introduce ourselves and chat it up about abortion. I remember how I didn't really regard this as a subject to talk casually about with total strangers so I really didn't have a whole lot to say.

This meet-and-greet over abortion went on for a few minutes, then it was time to move into the heavy stuff.

Led by the priest, rounds of congregational kneeling, singing and chanting in unison commenced from prayer books located up and down the pews. I didn't do the kneel thing but did join in reading and singing along with everyone else from their prayer books.

Next, the Communion.

The priest blessed the Eucharist and everyone got up from their seats and started moving toward the center aisle, heading slowly in the direction of the table up front. I shuffled along with them, peering up the aisle to see where and toward what I was being herded. I saw the priest putting the wafer into the receiving mouths of the faithful and thought that this would be a good time for me to make my retreat since I didn't want any wafer burning a hole through my tongue. I reversed course and made my way back in the opposite direction to my seat.

Whew and pew!

That was my first encounter with the Catholic Church. It wasn't a great or abominable encounter, but it was memorable.

Later as an adult, I was in New York City and casually walked into a few Catholic cathedrals down in Manhattan that were open to the public (unlike Mormon temples, where you had to show a pass and slit your throat to get in).

I sat down alone in the vast soaring emptiness of one in particular, where I absorbed the quietness; smelled the wafting incense; watched the softly flickering candles playing shadow tricks on the statues of the saints lining the walls (not Latter-day Saints); gazed up at the lofty arched ceilings and the stained-glass windows through which filtered light was streaming--all the while hearing the occasional faint background mummering of prayers being individually offered up by the bowed faithful sitting here and there in the pews.

It was actually a nice, meditative experience (unlike the Mormon temple Celestial Room where you awkwardly wandered around dressed up like the Pillsbury Dough Boy, while wrinkled temple workers eyed you carefully as they methodically moved you out to the locker room).

A few years later I was in Brasov, Romania, where I visited the "Black Church," a medieval Catholic cathedral. It was noticeably ancient, dusty and run-down--kinda like Mormon General Authorities--but at least there were no LDS usher at the door glad-handing me in.

Below is a travel webite on Romania's famous "Black Church" (which, by the way, also apparently sports some kind of a great and abominable rotating advertisement for the Mormon Church). Geezus Christ:

http://www.brasovtravelguide.ro/en/brasov/sightseeing/black-church.php



Edited 31 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 12:22PM by steve benson.

Interesting to read. I didn't think you'd get to take communion anyway. Catholics are not so welcoming with that. In fact not at all being as you were not Catholic.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 01:14AM by steve benson.

If you go up for communion they'll likely give it to you. But since they use a communal cup for the wine -- you might not want to partake anyway. ;)

I've outed myself as a onetime, Mormon Catholic school girl on tumblr so I might as well do it here too.

I feel scared. ;)

Having been raised for 22 years in the church of the devil. I like to go in cathedrals as well for the reasons you stated, but as for the services (( _ _ ))..zzzZZ

I remember one time a priest referred to himself as "Jim" in a homily. Oh my!

It was like him telling us his secret name… hmmm…

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 03:26AM by steve benson.

Only non-Mormon church service I've ever attended. The main thing I remember is the fancily outfitted priest walking in, swinging the thing with smoke coming out of it. And feeling awkward, not knowing when to stand, kneel, or sit or what the others were saying. The other thing I remember about that day is hearing Dire Straits for the first time on the car radio--Sultans of Swing--while driving to the church, and loving it.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 02:01AM by munchybotaz.

when i was about 12 i would walk about a half mile to the library. on the way was a big beautiful catholic church with the doors always open. after watching others go in and light candles, i wanted to do that too. it was so beautiful. by the time i was 13 i would go once a week and light a candle for myself. pray to get out of the crazy house i lived in. It gave me peace and comfort. nobody ever bothered me.

when i was 14 we moved away. i missed it so much. i would go to the woods and do the same thing. that was my secret. my tbm parents would have flipped out it they had known.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 02:26AM by steve benson.

Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 02:34AM by steve benson.

Great account! I didn't realize you spent some childhood time in Ft Wayne - I taught there for five years at one of the large parochial (non catholic) schools in town. Are you referring to the Cath of the Immac. Conception downtown?

The point being that the Catholic church I visited was in the general metro area of where I lived in Ft. Wayne but, alas, I don't remember its name. It didn't say "Great and Abominable" above the door, however.



Edited 5 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 12:24PM by steve benson.

Please tell me that Mormons aren't STILL calling it "the church of the devil." Sigh....

I got taught in institute that ALL non LDS churches are the great and abominable whore. That was only last year.

"It was actually a nice, meditative experience (unlike the Mormon temple Celestial Room where you awkwardly wandered around dressed up like the Pillsbury Dough Boy, while wrinkled temple workers eyed you carefully as they methodically moved you out to the locker room)."

Steve...would you say that mormonism is half new-age Catholicism, half new-age Judiasm, and half new-age....new-ageism?? (for the 19th Century at least)??



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 01:40PM by nonmo.

Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 10/24/2011 01:48PM by Nightingale.

@honestone, I attended a Catholic funeral last year where the entire congregation regardless of religion was invited to partake of communion...apparently special dispensation was available to do so. And it was a military chapel funeral for a deceased officer, and it has been my experience that military chaplains are a lot more ecumenical that many clergy elsewhere.

Santa Maria degli Angeli in (or near) Assisi,Italy. It's a massive building that surrounds the tiny church originally consecrated by St Francis, when he kicked off what eventually became the Franciscan Order.

The atmosphere in there was hushed and reverent, but nobody was trying to hustle you through it. If you wanted to just sit and reflect for a while, nobody pestered you to move along.

I think I experienced a higher degree of reverence there - and I'm not the sort who is overly "reverent" in the Mormon sense - that at any other time or place I can remember. It was lovely.

Mormon temples can't hold a candle - so to speak - to something as magnificent as this.

Also in this league is the San Grada Familia in Barcelona.