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Some of these thoughts may make sense. But don't count on it.
Browsing All posts tagged under »religion«
Related by Blood
When we were young, my cousins and I got together at least once a week. We all grew up in big, Italian-Catholic families that were in a constant state of competition — the fathers vying to see who could smoke the most cigarettes, and the mothers to see who could have the most babies. Holidays […]
Afterthoughts (Part 4)
October 2, 2013
Time, I eventually figured out, was a critical factor. Centuries could pass, and you might sit there in Purgatory, shuffling from one depressing room to another, and watching as your great-great-grandchildren are born, grow up, die, and through some fluke of good luck, go straight to Heaven. By then, of course, no one would be […]
Afterthoughts (Part 2)
September 16, 2013
If Hell was the bottom of existence, a fiery chasm where the despicable and the disobedient sank and settled and stayed forever, then Heaven was the top. Floating above the loftiest peaks and even the highest clouds, it was a place infused with yellow sunlight and immeasurable goodness. All interactions there were calm and devoid […]
Afterthoughts (Part 1)
September 9, 2013
I think about the afterlife a lot, mostly because I no longer accept that there is such a thing. The wish is still there, but the conviction has vanished. This process of changing context, of moving from faith to doubt to skepticism, has been long and gradual. There was a time when I was thoroughly […]
Where Has All the Magic Gone?
April 5, 2013
Someone sends me a link to a video. I click on it, and within seconds I’m watching a man who seems to be striding on foot across the surface of the Thames River. Onlookers in the video are leaning over railings and peering from windows, pointing at him, astonished at the sight. I ignore the […]
Wondering What to Believe (Part 4)
October 12, 2012
The Mormons came to the door again last night, and I didn’t handle it well. The last time they showed up – several months ago – I invited them in. Maybe I was in a better mood then, or felt sorry for them because it was raining so hard, or because it was late and […]
Wondering What to Believe (Part 3)
October 4, 2012
“I knew I was finished with religion.” Well, not quite. Actually, not even close. I went through a period of resentment and anger toward my early education, feelings that dissipated over time, day by day, as I drifted into my twenties. But when necessary or convenient, it was always easy to blame the Catholic Church […]
Wondering What to Believe (Part 2)
September 25, 2012
My grandmother died on March 3rd, 1966. The event struck the family like a cue ball smacking hard against the pack, scattering everyone to distant parts of New York State, and then to the far reaches of the country. Heading northwest out of the Bronx, my immediate family began to adjust to the exotic landscape […]
Wondering What to Believe (Part 1)
September 16, 2012
I am like a lot of people. In the beginning, long before I knew what was happening, religion was planted inside of me. Grafted, really. Nourished by holy water and incense, its vines spread everywhere, like ivy growing up around the trunk and along the branches of an evergreen. Soon it was impossible to tell […]
Minor Indiscretions (Part 1)
June 16, 2011
We all have dark, scary places we drag around from our childhood. It may be the basement, or the attic, or Aunt Trudy’s weird doll collection. Or Aunt Trudy herself. For me, it was the Confessional. The very word still evokes an image in my mind, with attached feelings otherwise reserved for thoughts of the […]
The Long Hall
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May 17, 2014
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