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My Catholic Community Experience: Sense of Community

Melody Velez

Union Institute and University

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My Catholic Experience and Sense of Community

In selecting a community to investigate, I chose to go with the one where I feel most

comfortable and the one I’m actually a part of. Religion now a days might be a touchy subject,

especially with the many recent horrific world events challenging our strong feelings or beliefs in

our own so called religion. In spite of that, I still feel that being a part of the Catholic community

gives me a sense of belonging and one of purpose. Not only is Catholicism one of the oldest

religious institutes in the world but one that consists of over 1 billion community members

worldwide. Catholicism has not only influenced me, but the Western world in general. When I
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think of my Church or my chosen religion, I think of a familial community, acceptance, and

faith. I was introduced to the Catholic faith by my parents and family. As a child, I was taken to

church every Sunday by my grandmother and seem to always remember attending someone’s

sacrament of Baptism, Communion, Confirmation, Penance, or some other religious celebration

at one point or another.

I was fortunate to have been able to attend a private catholic school throughout my

childhood. Having this religious background and having my family emphasize the importance of

God in our lives, has been influential in my way of life through today. Although I cannot say that

I have been totally 100% committed to my religion, I can truly say that I do still hold God as a

very important figure in my life and that of my family. I have committed to practicing my

religion at home, not just in Church. My husband and I have decided to strongly involve my two

young daughters in a Catholic upbringing, but will always be ok if they decide on their own

beliefs once they are older. In the meantime, I am working on still making sure that my girls are

baptized and engaged with our Church community in hopes of them finding fulfillment in being

a Catholic as I have. Having religion in my life has given me the opportunity to truly experience

sense of community by searching the overall elements that must be present to have a community

aw described by McMillan D. W and Chavis, D. M. Through our commitment to be together in

our faith, all four elements of membership, influence, integration and fulfillment of needs, as

well as shared emotional connection are keenly evident in my chosen community.

Membership
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The boundaries of Catholicism are both physical and unspoken. The church is considered

a sanctuary where parishioners can spend solace time of reflection and prayer. although anyone

can visit and spend time in a catholic church even if you are of a different religion, those who are

parishioners may be identified by their actual actions inside the church, such as praying with a

rosary or receiving the bread and wine from a priest at the altar. My experience with membership

I would say was earned through my parent’s upbringing in having me is part of the catholic

community since the day of my Baptism. Any persons whom want to join the Catholic Church

can do so by getting in contact or visiting a local church and ask to be part of their congregation.

After this is done one can then continue to learn more about the Catholic Church and even take it

a step further in choosing baptism, communion and confirmation. I myself find it comforting to

know that the church is willing to allow anyone who wants to join the opportunity to do so. In

regards to a geographic marker being identified for members, for this community it would be the

church location the member decides to attend. Members who are part of this community share

the same interest in learning the teachings of God and living by example.

Many religions use a common symbol system to define their membership. The Catholic

Church uses different colors and items to define certain religious holidays and special occasions

of year. For example: the color red, symbolizes passion, god’s love, and martyrdom; black

stands for mourning; and green signifies life eternal and hope. You may also find the church’s

religious statues and crucifixes covered to signify the season of lent for the church goers.
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The crucifix with the figure of the body of Jesus Christ is a symbol of sacrifice, of Jesus’

death, and his resurrection. The letters – INRI - found on the crucifix are short for the Latin

phrase which means “Jesus of Nazareth, king of the Jews. Also, the first and last letters of the

Greek alphabet - alpha and omega – are used during various times throughout the year in the

church’s liturgical calendar. These signs and symbols play a vital role as a way of focusing on

prayer and spirituality. The fish is one of the oldest Christian symbols used to identify

themselves to each other during the times of persecution in the early days when the apostles were

referred to as “fishers of men.” The symbol of peace and God’s grace is depicted by the dove.

These symbolisms serve as a tool for understanding the complexities of the religion.

My parish is probably no different than other similar christian religions. It is a place

where one can feel a sense of belonging by the ambiance of camaraderie, acceptance, and

community service. In my church community, our personal investment of time and service is

key to strengthening the membership and increasing the probability of taking “safe risks” for one

another.

Influence

Catholic religious influences are demonstrated in various ways by the priest, the

congregation, and the teachings of the bible. The priests lead and guide the parishioners by

interpreting the scriptures that encourage us to be good Christians. These influential aspects are

most apparent to me when I have the opportunity to to apply a specific passage of the bible to

my personal experience and I can make the connection and understand my role. The
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congregation influences each other giving moral and spiritual support based on the bible’s

teachings. This “book”, referred to as sacred text, is what catholics, and many other religions,

use as the golden rule. The bible is such a high influence and elicits such trust to christian

followers in the world, that it has been translated into more than 2,000 languages or dialects

worldwide.

The influence of one particular person over another without it being mutual is obsolete in

my catholic community. The parishioners are guided by the priest to co-exist and live with one

another as a group of “one.” Of course, some parishioners perform some church functions or

special activities that require training by senior members of the church. But it is important to

note that whatever the tasks that parishioners are involved in follow the guidelines of the church

and its teachings. Influence amongst the church community follows a “give and take” that

designates the power along with the trust. This enables the church and its members to function

effectively and successfully with love and kindness.

Integration and Fulfillment of Needs

The shared values of my church community help us define the quality of our parish and

the love we have for the church. The church tells us to live our lives as christians by loving one

another, staying together, having compassion for one another, and living our faith as we’re taught

by the church. The catholic church teaches us to develop our commitment to prayer and love for

the church as a community. The scriptures teach us who we are as a person transforming

friendships to a community of shared faith and values.

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“Find people who share your values, and you’ll conquer the world together,” said actor,

john ratzenberger. This thought speaks volumes on how a community can come together based

on shared values which give the membership worth and “community economy.” The catholic

community teaches us to help each other by providing the resources needed to members in

predicaments that require help from others. The resources that may be built by the church

community may be in the form of financial support for someone unemployed, spiritual support

for someone going through a family crisis, or just having the monetary resources collected by the

church members for unforeseen emergencies. But the only way this can be achieved is by having

members who espouse the same beliefs and values. In my parish, I’ve been fortunate to be able

to reach out and help my fellow parishioners during their times of need either by volunteerism or

applying my personal and professional outreach skills to both identify those in need and provide

a service to them. Specifically, for me, co-sharing and exchanging parishioners’ spiritual

testimonies provides our church community a stronger sense of belonging as we learn from each

other’s trials and tribulations.

Shared Emotional Connection

Shared emotional connections I feel is a strong element the Catholic Church displays.

Our meeting together for example for Sunday mass is only one of many. Emotional shared

connections are also displayed or felt when we all as a community sing together during mass. As

a part of this community, I find these songs are like a letter we all write to him to display our

respect and faith in him. Also receiving communion during mass is not only one of honor but one
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that is understood in this community. Us coming together to hear the word of God not only unites

us but shows our common belief in his existence. Our faith in God is one that we all share. Due

to this faith we meet to celebrate his love and rejoice.

Our trials and tribulations as individuals or as a community is something that promotes

not only emotions of strength but also fortitude. By us coming together we are all given a sense

of hope, sense of community, meaning for life and sense of belonging. We know that we are all

the same in God’s eyes and that this partnership with God and one another is a one of peace and

acceptance. Other shared emotional connections I feel we all have in common are those of love,

joy and trust but also those not so desired ones as doubt and fear. Having our shared faith in this

community then helps us get through those harder felt emotions. The deep bond I feel I have

with God is something we can relate to and only understand ourselves. We all believe that

although we are not related by blood, we are all brothers and sisters and can agree that we all

have the same father, this being Christ. Although it is something that cannot be explained to

outsiders, we feel comfortable knowing that our community understands that this is something

that cannot be seen but felt. Although as a community we are sometimes ridiculed to show

evidence that he does exist, only our community can understand the connections they only

experience.

Most Pressing Issues

In regards to pressing issues faced by Catholicism, I would say one could probably name

a few even if they are not a member of this community. For me, Catholicism is as humbling of an
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experience as it can be. For others, this may not be the case and may disagree with me. The

Catholic Church is not perfect especially when it comes to issues such as acceptance of

homosexuality, sexual scandals, premarital sex, marriage and divorce, and celibacy to mention

just a few. I chose these to focus on because although I was raised a Catholic, my current views

on issues as these would not be up to par in my community because of differing opinions. In

current modern views and changings of the times, most of these issues, except for sexual

scandals, are now being accepted and better understood. I could say that my grandmother’s

generation would have probably lived and believed in then rules and views traditionally instilled

by the church. Today though, I feel that having these pressing issues of non-acceptance can

sometimes be found as discouraging factor, to join our community.

I find it my constant struggle to try and live as God has told us to live and by his beliefs

when I feel different on issues such as those mentioned above. My personal constant struggle as

a community member is hoping that although I have different opinions on varying issues, that

God will fulfill His promise to love me, accept me as I am, and that I will be given eternal life.

As much as religion can bring a feeling of comfort and a meaningful place to some, at times it

can be the total opposite for others. At times, although I am Catholic, due to struggles such as

these, I can understand why so many different religions exist. Is it that we're all trying to find our

perfect religion? We will never know. I guess this will be a struggle that I personally will go

through while being a part of the Catholic Community.

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