Essay About Moving Back To North Carolina

Beginning just before my senior year I went through a series of trials that continued through most of my senior year. I wanted to do something for myself, and was encouraged to attend the National Catholic Youth Conference (NCYC). I decide to go, and so in January I set off for Indianapolis. Once at the conference, I listened to music, met other catholic high schoolers, and participated in workshops. I learned a lot about my faith, and about different forms of worship. This was something that I had not previously been exposed to, as while I was a member of one of the largest parishes in Central Ohio, it is a very traditional parish that had not exposed me to much more than the basic teachings of the church, and also had not demonstrated

I grew up in Greenville South Carolina. Growing up in the south, I was always around people who are more traditional in viewpoints, especially when surrounding the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual/Transgender, Questioning, and more community. I went to a high school where no one hesitated to throw around extremely derogatory terms. I had friends who had expressed their feelings of not fitting into their biological sex, I felt bad for them because they lived in fear of people finding out and what their reactions might be. They constantly feared for their safety.

I grew up as a Catholic in Vietnam. I have never been in an environment truly united with faith outside of church. As I went to school, we Catholic students were surrounded and outnumbered by other religions or non-believers or agnostics. Though we usually receive an understanding and tolerating stance, some still find it a “cool” and funny act to tease or make fun of one’s religion and beliefs. At sixteen I traveled to America hoping I’ll get a better education. Here, I was introduced to a whole new environment: most of the people were Christians. The opportunity not only boosted my confidence but also enriched my knowledge and understanding in Christian belief. For the first time, it felt like “home” (I found no better way to express this

I’ve been a Catholic from the start; born and raised in a Catholic family. I went to church every week, learned the prayers, and every so often I even read the readings in front of the entire church. This was something constant in my life, a routine that was like a habit; I couldn’t stop. My parents have instilled in me that this is something that could only be beneficial for me. However, it was inevitable for me to wonder. I was handed my beliefs, and I took possession of it, whether I liked it or not. I actually didn’t get the proper opportunity to decide if it was what I wanted to do. With not having much to do with it, I put my bad thoughts aside and continued on with life.

A favorite experience I had was going to Greensborough, North Carolina this summer to compete in Seventh Grade Nationals with my AAU basketball team. I always enjoy tournaments where we stay at hotel for the weekend, because I have a good relationship with many of my teammates and have a good time with them during those trips. But, this trip to Nationals was something special. First of all, it was almost a week to hang out with my teammates, play basketball, relax, as well as explore the different stores and restaurants in Greensborough. In addition I met my cousins and aunt, who live in North Carolina, for the first time I can remember. We did not win any games, but we competed, going back and forth against one team and having a double-digit

My time within the faith community has impacted me both negatively and positively on complete opposite ends of that spectrum. As a baby believer, I accepted a job working in a large, two hundred staff member church with three thousand volunteers on the roster. Thus, began a six-year journey that exposed me to varying forms of Christian Community. Staff gatherings, retreats, a life group, missions and volunteer groups, the Christian motorcycle community, and Freedom Session small groups. I had never read the bible, been discipled, baptized, prayed out loud, accepted Christ into my heart, or even prayed the sinner’s prayer. I started my Jesus journey spending sixty hours a week with lifelong mature Christians who spoke the foreign language of

I first have to say that though I identify as a Christian I am not a big advocate in the religion itself. This stance comes from various experiences that I have had and/or witnessed happen in the church. I do know some preacher’ kids that stay in the church when they are older but there are a few that leave. The reason this may be, or at least it’s the reason for me, is that what is taught in the church isn’t practiceded by the people of the church. Because of this I have taken a step back from religion and I feel like this has allowed me a new look on life, myself and religions in

The arts during 1200’s-1300’s were highly influenced by many people, however two men made the biggest influence out of everyone. Saint Dominic and Saint Francis made a huge impact in many city’s architecture, marble sculptures, and paintings. In the city, the Pisa baptistry is one that can be a focal point when one wants to look at the architecture that made this time period a historical time. From the buildings exteriors to the hallways of the interiors, they were designed to have features from different aspects. Along with the baptistry, the pulpits that priest relayed their message from had massive marble sculptures in front of them. The sculptures shown historical events like the birth of Jesus. However, it is the close details that give it it’s unique look. Likewise, many art paintings of this time give insight of how Siant Dominic and Saint Francis.

Like the preceding generations following the same monotonous pattern I was to be a firm believer in the Methodist church and spread the word of a benevolent God. Like most of my other regular church going 12-year-old peers, I was confirmed into the Methodist church without really understanding what that meant. The most involved I had ever been in spreading faith was posting bible verses alongside my Instagram photos and going on the occasional mission trip. This is what I thought faith meant. As I grew older, I started to think more critically about the church and legitimacy of its teachings. I observed the way that similar communities of faith negatively interacted with opposing belief systems, the lack of separation between church and state on issues like same-sex marriage, and the blind indoctrination of children into a belief system before their ability to think critically developed. My struggle

Growing up in my family going to church and having a relationship with God was as essential as breathing. My entire upbringing, I was brought up in the Baptist church. I have experienced a wide range of Baptist churches; from Haitian, to traditional, to non- traditional I been to them all. I have even been to other Protestant churches such as Seven Day Adventist, Evangelist and Lutheran churches. Evidently, I have a great deal of experience with the protestant branch of Christianity. However, in all my years, I have never visited a Catholic Church. So I decided to finally experience this branch. Before I went into the church I did some research on their traditions and origin. During the experience I took the most note I could take without standing out. Finally, I connected my observations to the development of social life.

From my distant childhood memories, I believe that our family went to church regularly. However, after Hurricane Katrina, our family didn’t attend church because we were so occupied with rebuilding our lives. Yet, I was still able to have exposure to Christ from my God-fearing parents and my Catholic school. Eventually, due to the conviction in my parents’ hearts, we found a church home. From there on, I could receive the Word in a church setting regularly. As time went on, I matured in my faith and became fond of the things of God. I wanted to discover him and understand why I believed in Him. In my early high school years, I talked about Him with my friends for I had a passion for Him. However, it was becoming increasingly aware to me that I was being a lukewarm

Around the age of 8, all of that changed. All of a sudden, my mother, my siblings, and I stopped attending church on sundays with my grandmother. After that, my life seemed to become hectic. My mom and dad split up and argued more and more. I struggled in school and I didn't have a close bond with my family anymore. Throughout my entire childhood, I noticed that when times got rough, that was the only time my mom thought it was appropriate to go to church. We stopped going to my grandmother’s church and began attending an Apostolic Church, where the pastor begged for money and tricked my mom into paying thousands in tithes. The experience I had during this time of my life caused me to become antagonistic towards religion.

Rincón de San Lazaro from the outside does not look like the typical Catholic church portrayed in movies, it seemed like an office type building that blended in with the rest of the architecture in the neighborhood. The parking for the church also reminded me of an office building or shopping center, it was hard to find a spot and I ended up parking in one of the shopping centers in front of the church. When I walked through the large doors of the church, everything changed. The altar of the church was a stone wall with a large cross with Jesus crucified on it and there was a statue of the Virgin Mary on the side with two large bouquets of flowers held up by podiums. When I walked to the

Religion has never truly appeared in my life as something of higher importance. Ever since I was little, my family dragged me to church in hopes I would potentially get something out of it. It is prevalent that I never really retained anything from the sermons and the talks about God. Although I was still open to attending the service, I was always full of questions that no one could fully answer. I decided to sit in on an Apostolic Pentecostal church service that my best friend had been attending. While there, I began to understand why religion is important for various people, how religion can be perceived in different ways, and how sometimes it is okay to not truly believe in one religion or another.

I have been a believer since the age of seven. I can remember the exact feeling as the Holy Spirit filled me with such longing to be a part of the family of God that I could barely sit still until the invitation to come forward was given. But even before that, I had been in church from infancy. My mother served as minister of music for many years, and church functions were as natural to me as breathing. But it does not take much for the tender heart to be wounded by those that - no matter how well-intentioned- think they know better than God, and manage to impose their judgement and harsh words on others. I was too new to my walk, and too stuck at my traditional faith maturity level, to understand I should not confuse the people of God with the heart of God. I stopped going to church, and, often- with the exception of times of struggle- I did not even pray. I had no idea the relationship I was missing out on because, you see, the church I grew up in knew the Word of God but they failed to share the heart of God. Therefore, I saw the Lord only as my judge and jury, I did not understand the grace, mercy and goodness of God. I couldn’t