Hard Won Faith #3 , A Revolution

OK, folks, you've been very patient. Today I'll try to describe one of the KEY moments of my life, that changed the whole trajectory of the next 55 years and on beyond. Your lives, too, have been deeply affected by what happened to me next, in that "empty" Catholic Church.

As I started up the aisle toward the central double doors that led outside, I "heard" a soft voice speak my first name, "Carolyn". Nothing more. Did I hear it with my ears? Or only interiorly? Or not at all and just imagine it? I turned to see who had spoken, stood peering through the darkening church, and saw No One. Stood a few seconds or moments longer. Since I could find no sign of another human, I decided "It must have been God." And from there, not knowing how else to respond, I took that flying leap of faith from which I still have not exactly landed.

I decided, "It had to have been God Who spoke. There's no one else here. If God calls me by name, inside a Catholic Church, He must be calling me to be a Catholic." This settled, I knew what to do, having surreptitiously watched my practicing friends: I slowly genuflected for the first time in my life, and made the sign of the Cross. When I got up from that unsteady genuflection, I considered myself a Catholic, and have never really looked back since that moment.

But what happened when I waltzed happily into my house, arms full of books on Catholicism, a newly purchased cross around my neck? And I only 14 years old? Oops, sorry, got to run. Fill you in next time! bye!