Day 29

From what you saw and heard, what was the best part of Catholicism for you?


Honestly,  there wasn't a best part for me. Much of what George was doing just seemed Christian to me. He read the Catholic Bible and followed the Catholic rites, but it just looked like Christianity in the end. That's not a bad thing, but it does say something that an observer like myself ultimately saw a Christian rather than a Catholic.

What improvements, if any, did you witness in your husband?


This is a hard one as well. I came into this month expecting to see a more Catholic guilt-ridden husband, but it never really happened. I guess it's hard to experience that in only a month of study, though. He does seem to be more willing to engage in a conversation about God and Jesus without making immature and annoying comments. So, maybe he's more respectful of the faith and the faithful? I don't know. I didn't actually read all of his posts. What do you think?

What was the most annoying aspect of the religion for you?


There wasn't anything annoying about the religion actually. George tends to get a little wordy when he's talking about his "feelings", but I think that comes with the territory. This whole thing might make him less annoying, but I'm not sure. He's got that "little brother" persona tattooed on his brain pretty strongly.  The "older sister" in me will always be able to detect his idiosyncratic immaturity. Call it a gift, I guess.

You went to Mass with George, were you comfortable in that setting?


I was very comfortable. Like I said last month, Catholicism isn't much of a stretch for me. We had a hard time with some of the prayers, but I felt fine in there. 

George said he will stay away from meat. Has he? How's his health?


NO! He has not stayed away from meat. To be fair, though, he only ate it a few times and they were not the main course, rather ingredients that were unavoidable. He did drink this month and, of course, gained some of that weight back. He claims he's around 68 kg these days which is still lighter than he started in March. I think his health is doing better. I won't say "good" because he's stubborn about getting his BP checked again, but he's not smoking or drinking excessively. That's a win.

Would you ever consider becoming a Catholic?


I don't think so. I prefer the accessibility of Protestantism. George gets caught up in all the excitement of penance, sacrifice and rituals. That's not what it's all about for me. I prefer a direct relationship with God and Jesus.

Catholicism is just one of many Christian religions George will be experiencing this year. Do you believe that the message is all the same or is there something hidden in the approach?


I have no idea. Ask George. He's the one picking around for that kind of stuff. All I know is that you can call it what you want, but Jesus is the root of the whole thing. Personally, I think George is going to discover a lot of overlap anyways. Different approach with the same result, right?


Next month is Quakerism, what are your impressions on what you've heard so far?


I don't know much about these guys. George showed me a picture of the founder, but besides that I'm not sure what to expect. He mentioned something about riding his bike because of the environment. Oh, and he keeps rattling on about his ancestors being Quaker in the 1800's or something. It's interesting nonetheless.   


And that's it from the wife, kiddos. Any questions for me?