Day 19 : What do you think of religion? Or what do you think of politics?

I've had a hit or miss relationship with religion. I truly believe in God, and I pray every night, sometimes at great length. I was baptized and raised Catholic, but one of the worst people I know (my grandmother) is a Catholic, so she taints my thoughts. Then again, one of the best people I know (Jan Achenbach) is a loyal Catholic, so what do I know. 

After I miscarried in 2008, I went to "Catholic class". I was into it for awhile, but some things were rubbing me the wrong way and I quit. 

I had to go through an interview process, where they asked me a lot of personal questions about my family history with the church. I explained that I was baptized and went through First Communion, but when my parents got divorced my family kind of gave up on religion. The lady I talked to was older and very nice, but I felt like she was judging me the entire time. She wanted to know about my personal life, if I was married and if I wanted kids. I decided to just put it all out there (and I may have wanted to shock her a little), so I said that I suffered a miscarriage that almost killed me just a few months prior, so no, kids weren't on my agenda ever. She quit asking me questions. 

I started classes, and it was going okay for awhile. Then I got to class one night and the first thing that happened was the instructor passed a piece of paper around and asked us to write down our name, our contact information, and how much money we thought we would be able to donate to the church weekly or monthly. I could not believe this was happening. I know that my grandma donates a lot of money to the church, but I did not think this was something they would ask brand new members. After that, the priest came in to explain the Baptism, First Communion and Confirmation traditions and rituals. The Baptism is done to wash away sins and the person being baptized is started in the Catholic Church sin-free. This is where I had questions. I raised my hand.

“So, once you are baptized once you can’t be baptized again?” I asked.

“No. You are baptized once and then you confess your sins during Confession,” the priest answered. 

“Wait. What if I’ve sinned, like a lot, and I’ve never confessed? Can I just get baptized again and start over?” I asked, before I really thought about what I was saying.

Silence. The priest was not amused. I decided it was best for me to leave at break and not come back. 

As far as politics go, I am pretty much clueless. In the past, I always just voted for who my brother told me to. After all, he was in the Army, so the President was his boss - I wanted him to have a cool boss. This year, all I know is I am not voting for that Romney idiot, who my grandpa calls "Mutt Romney".