catholicism

catholicism

Like most religions, Catholicism is an age old religion that is believed to date back to around 30 AD. Catholics have a mission which states that they will, “bring the message of Christ to all the ends of the Earth, and call all persons to baptism to become children of God” (     ,2009). Catholics like many other Christian denominations have a strong belief in Baptism which they believe renews a person and washes them of their sins. Every religion varies depending on which part of the world you live in. I have found two religions that I have found to have similarities as well as differences and I will compare and contrast Catholicism and Islam. I have also interviewed a man who asked to be referred to as Mr. Smith who has been a Catholic since birth.
The name of the religious site that I visited is St. Philips the Apostle Catholic Church located in Statesville, North Carolina. At the very front of the church sits a wooden table that is built into the wall and is surrounded by purple flowers. On the table sits white candles and four white flowers. Above this wooden table there is a wooden cross with a crucified Jesus. In front of this table is the podium where the priest gives his sermons. Next to the podium there are more candles and a bowl that is filled with water. The carpet in St. Philips the Apostle Catholic Church is green throughout and every window is adorned with stained glass. Outside of the church are four grottos one of which has a large statue of the Virgin Mary. This same style of grotto applies to two other grottos. There is also a columbarium which is a vault where urns with ashes of the deceased are kept.
While conducting my interview I gained a large amount of knowledge about Catholicism. The first question I asked my interviewee was how many times a week do you generally attend church? He said, “Generally devout Catholics attend church three to five times a week”(Smith, personal communication, August 29, 2009).   I later learned that...