Hello, My name is Mary Christine

By -
(I love to take photos of churches)
I was thrilled to be asked to participate in this blog.  I have had a few days of technical difficulties, coinciding with Blogger's meltdown, but I think we are all good now.  I am humbled and honored to be here.

Let me introduce myself.  I call myself a Catholic Revert.  I was a cradle Catholic.  I came from a family with two Catholic priest uncles.  I went to Catholic schools until I was in 10th grade.  As a child, I wanted to be a nun.  When I became a teenager, I hit a brick wall and turned left... I went off the deep end and stayed there for a while.  I left the church and became a detractor of most things Catholic (but kept a Rosary, and prayed it relatively frequently).

At the age of 39, while going through another divorce, a friend very frankly said to me "Don't you think it is time you went back to church?"  I couldn't argue with her since my life was clearly a mess.   I was terribly afraid to go back, but I did.  

It took another two years for me to go to confession and truly try to live in conformity with all of the "rules" of the Catholic Church.  I cannot describe to you what it is like to receive Holy Communion after twenty-five years of exile.  

I have now been back home for twenty years, but I will never forget what it is like to be away.  I cherish my place in the Church, and my ultimate goal is my final home in Heaven.  

I am just finishing a four year Catholic Biblical School.   I am now considering where to go next.  It will probably involve more school, but I am praying to hear God's call for me.  

I am in awe of the women who have always done the right thing, gotten married and stayed married,  stayed loyal to the church, and not had the kind of ugly history I have.  You are truly my heroes.  But that is not my story.  It is my hope that my story might give a glimmer of hope to someone else who is as hopelessly lost as I was.  

We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him, who are called according to his purpose.  -- Romans 8:28

Comments

  1. Autumn12:22 pm, May 15, 2011

    Your story is God's story, Mary Christine, don't forget that! I rejoice in your return to the Church :)
    I too haven't had a perfect life or an easy ride, but God has more need to pour out His grace as a result :)
    God bless, and lovely to meet you.
    Autumn xx

    ReplyDelete
  2. Jackie Parkes MJ12:28 pm, May 15, 2011

    What an amazing testimony!

    ReplyDelete
  3. joannaB733:30 pm, May 15, 2011

    Great to have you on board and my life still isn't perfect - working my way through :-)

    ReplyDelete

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