Before I begin my response, you should know that it’s almost 2am over here in NH, and I’ve been up all night writing an article for publication — so I’m a little punchy, please bear with me and with any typos, etc. I may write.
I wish I could say with any certainty what specifically drew me to a Catholic college … My mother tells me that I was baptized in a Protestant church when I was born, that I attended for a few years, but all this ended when my family (as a whole) lost its faith in all religion. Originally I attended an all-woman’s college in PA, but I was homesick for NH, so I decided to transfer. I was accepted at both Mount Holyoke College in MA and St. Anselm College in NH. For some reason, the atmosphere at St. A’s appealed to me more than that at the other school. While it was a “typical” college on the weekends — parties, etc. — during the week, their was a solemnity about the campus … an almost disciplined air. I wondered if this was because of the fact that many classes were taught by monks living on campus. Even on the weekends, the parties were never to the iniquitous scale of non-Catholic colleges — often, the wildest parties were held off campus. But, I think I would be reducing the exact quality of what my pull to the Catholic church was quite a bit if I merely said that its somber, disciplined quality appealed to me … I know there’s more to it than that. Perhaps this might get close to explaining it: I’ve always felt a pull toward religion, a need to belong fully to a faith. I attended several churches over the years (pre-college, that is). There was always something about their doctrines that bothered me, that didn’t make sense … in a way, it seemed like they were an imperfect copy of the original church — the first truly Christian church: the Catholic Church. I could see the products of the Catholic faith transferred into their doctrines and “rituals,” but they were faded, indistinct, and barely reminiscent of the original — just like a poor copy would be. I always knew that if I ever officially joined a religion, it would be the Catholic religion — if, for no other reason, only because it was the first, the original.
I’m not sure if these are good reasons, but then again, I’m not sure if I’m explaining my impulse toward Catholicism correctly — in truth, I’m still not certain why I have such an impulse.
Well, it’s incredibly late over here, and I need to sleep. But thank you for responding to my post.