Gonzaga Witness

Issue date: 2/1/08 Section: Faith

Media Credit: istockphoto What's Love Got to do with It?

Can I be Catholic and still be normal? That is the question. It pops up in a variety of contexts. A campus example: as a tour group of prospective students leaves St. Al's, someone pipes up with "So Gonzaga is a Catholic school. Does that make a big difference?" One can detect a note of panic in his tone, as if to say "I love your basketball team, but can I go to school here and come out normal?" This question can also creep into the dating scene. In a rare moment of lucidity a star struck lover might wonder, "Can I have a normal dating relationship with my Catholic girlfriend?" A former pastor of St. Al's touched on normality whenever he related the story of his conversion. At one point he passed an unshaven man on a corner in New York, holding cardboard sign which read "Jesus loves you." He immediately felt an intense fear and repulsion and he shouted to the God he wasn't sure existed "Don't make me do that!" Ironically enough, we Catholics probably ask the question more often than anyone. Every so often as I scroll down a humorous "You Know That You're Catholic If" list on Facebook and I run into a remark about floor length jean jumpers, I whisper to myself resentfully "I shouldn't have to be a freak to be Catholic."

Since I feel freaky more often than not, I've given this question a great deal of thought. In all seriousness, I think that the question of normality is especially poignant because it plays on two deep-seated human fears. Until we face these fears, our faith will never bring us the profundity of joy that we so desire.

Fear number one is the fear of being alone. It's very strong and very real. God himself said that it is not right for man to be alone. All other kinds of suffering seem more or less bearable as long as one goes through them with a friend. From kindergarten on, experience has taught us that there is a pretty strong connection between being "normal" and being friend material. We've all been teased for something that makes us different, and probably teased others for the same. Actively practicing a religion makes a person radically different from a large portion of the population. Unfortunately, that difference can and is used as grounds for disrespect on both sides, and not just in kindergarten. So the question becomes, are we doomed to be lonely and disrespected if we chose to be Catholic?

Continued...

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