This is the final installment in my pieces accompanying my wife’s writings about her joining the Catholic church. Here is a link to her blog so you can see what she wrote and to what I am responding.
As we wrapped up the Right of Catholic Initiation for Adults (RCIA) classes, I was kind of surprised that Megan decided to be confirmed. As she said at the end of her post about this, there were some aspects of the theology with which she still struggled. I explained in the last post why I didn’t go through confirmation, but she decided to move forward.
Frankly, it was awkward for me to know how to respond to this. When we met twenty-three years ago and married three years later, I just never imagined that we wouldn’t be members of the same church, or worship at the same church. To my surprise, the idea of worshipping separately didn’t bother her, but it really bothered me. At the same time, I could tell (as you can see in how she writes about this in her blog) that this really was important to her and God was meeting a need in her that needed to be filled. So I purposed in my heart that I would follow her as closely as I could.
The kids and I went to her confirmation, and I invited her father too. He is a wonderful man who loves her, and was glad to come. It was a lovely service that seemed to go faster than the 2+ hours that it lasted. As she said today, the kids were supportive, and the service and her experience seemed to touch our son in particular.
Now, we are in mass together nearly every Sunday. I find that I miss communion every once in a while, but other than that I enjoy worshipping there. As we both said in earlier posts, the priest is a wonderful man, and I have found the people I know there to be genuine lovers of God. For what else can I ask? I will confess, however, that if she is out of town on a Sunday morning, I have been known to visit a nice Baptist church down the street by myself. It’s comforting for me to feel that familiarity.
I hope that reading about this process has blessed at least one person out there. Of course, our journey continues and I really don’t know how it will unfold. I guess that is part of the joy in the journey.
Emails to God 
Fayma
December 5, 2012 at 6:52 pm
I replied to yours before Megan’s decided I wanted to say the same thing to her, so I copied and pasted ( call it lazy or whatever), them I realized that mine may not have been posted on your wall. So just please read Megan’s so this OLD, OLD lady doesn’t have to go through all of that again!
🙂 Love you!!!!!
Fayma
December 5, 2012 at 6:54 pm
I have read all 6 of Megan’s post as I have yours, but I have failed to reply to any; frankly because while I enjoy them all so much and feel so moved by them, they leave me feeling inadequate to express my feelings. However, after reading Megan’s earlier and yours just now I have this to say
, “I was particularly touched with Megan’s last statement, ‘Yep, I’m home,’ then your last statement, ‘I guess that is part of the joy of the journey’.” Both statements speak volumes, as far as I’m concerned, about the wonderful people the two of you are, and the great marriage that you share.
Marilyn
December 5, 2012 at 7:21 pm
Again, it was great to read your companion piece. I’m impressed by the way the two of you came at this and your honesty about things, even about sneaking off to the Baptist Church when you’re flying solo. You are both honor-bound to update readers if there are further developments, now that you have us hooked.
I would be interested in reading what your friends thought of all this or whether either of you felt any pressures, but maybe if your friends read your blogs, you might not want to go there. 🙂
Diana Trautwein
December 5, 2012 at 11:10 pm
Thank you, John, for your accompaniment on Megan’s journey – her IRL one and this one, written on the pages of cyberspace. You have each done a lovely job, helping us to see how sometimes God does a different work in marriage partners. I imagine that work continues and will as long as you are together. That’s part of both the beauty and the great challenge of being married isn’t it? Staying connected when we go in different directions with parts of ourselves.
I also loved your reflection on “Breath of Heaven” as a prayer that is more than suitable for every parent on the planet. Indeed. Lovely thoughts – thank you.