My mother's side of the family is Roman Catholic and my father's side of the family is Buddhist. I don't really know the details but I do know that my dad had to convert to Catholicism to marry my mom. Converting to another religion is a big deal, especially since my dad still doesn't know anything about being Catholic and he's been married to my mom for over 20 years (hell, he doesn't even know how to pray).
I bring up Catholicism in my blog post today because I realize it's played a huge role in my life. Both good and bad.
My parents had put me in a private Catholic school for nine years (kindergarten through eighth grade).
Every Wednesday, everyone was required to go to mass at the church (sometimes there would be a short service held in the cafeteria instead).
On Sundays, I took Vietnamese classes and shortly after I would have religion classes (in Vietnamese).
I never really questioned my faith because I was surrounded by people that had the same religion as me. This was until my sixth grade World History class that I realized there were more religions other than Catholicism and I became curious.
"I don't think I want to be Catholic," twelve-year-old me had said out loud during a family gathering. Everyone had stopped eating and gawked at me. My aunt Tweety was so furious she slapped me in the face and said I need to repent for my sins. I cried. I didn't understand why everyone was mad at me and why I was struck.
I realize now that was a really dumb thing to say considering the fact that my mom's side is very serious about Catholicism and are very conservative.
Now that I'm in college, I'm glad I got the chance to meet many people from different backgrounds (i.e. races, religious and political views). It's amazing how sheltered I was because I was put in the same environment for a majority of my life. I don't think it's okay to force a child to believe in something and then scold them for being curious.
So in the end, the joke's on my mom and dad...
I'm liberal hippie trash.
My parents had put me in a private Catholic school for nine years (kindergarten through eighth grade).
Every Wednesday, everyone was required to go to mass at the church (sometimes there would be a short service held in the cafeteria instead).
On Sundays, I took Vietnamese classes and shortly after I would have religion classes (in Vietnamese).
I never really questioned my faith because I was surrounded by people that had the same religion as me. This was until my sixth grade World History class that I realized there were more religions other than Catholicism and I became curious.
"I don't think I want to be Catholic," twelve-year-old me had said out loud during a family gathering. Everyone had stopped eating and gawked at me. My aunt Tweety was so furious she slapped me in the face and said I need to repent for my sins. I cried. I didn't understand why everyone was mad at me and why I was struck.
I realize now that was a really dumb thing to say considering the fact that my mom's side is very serious about Catholicism and are very conservative.
Now that I'm in college, I'm glad I got the chance to meet many people from different backgrounds (i.e. races, religious and political views). It's amazing how sheltered I was because I was put in the same environment for a majority of my life. I don't think it's okay to force a child to believe in something and then scold them for being curious.
So in the end, the joke's on my mom and dad...
I'm liberal hippie trash.
You are so funny! It's not easy to leave a powerful religious upbringing behind. I left Catholicism behind too, and even at this age, I am still seeking. I guess what my upbringing gave me was a love for the spiritual--but not organized religion. You might write a post on what you believe now...
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