Which box am I in?

At times like the census we are asked to define ourselves in a survey. While this is usually a straightforward affair some like religion present a challenge – which box do I tick? For most of my life this was easy as I was brought up catholic and so I ticked accordingly. However, like many of my contemporaries it seems like the church has stayed the same while I have aged and my views on life and the universe have evolved. For decades I have sought a pathway within the church and have attached myself to the Franciscan approach and to people like Fr Richard Rohr who eloquently presents a view that I understand and appreciate. His daily meditations are still a source of inspiration. See: https://cac.org/daily-meditations/

It follows many themes but underlying are hope, love, the prophetic and inclusion.

And yet there is a far greater contrary positions on exclusion, moralising, and the great silence on the many issues that I’m concerned about. The structure of the church as I have experienced seems to stay in the conservative, patriarchal mode treating us in the parent-child approach.

The church is full of so many contradictions. For example, I am heartened by the Australian Bishops conference support for the Uluru Statement from the heart and the Yes campaign  https://mediablog.catholic.org.au/bishops-issue-statement-on-indigenous-voice-to-parliament/ but to my understanding, this message is not getting inserted to the sermons in your local parish.

The broader Australian church seems dominated by the conservative right-wing types that espouse neo-liberal values. Reading the Quadrant e.g. https://mediablog.catholic.org.au/bishops-issue-statement-on-indigenous-voice-to-parliament/ and hearing others speaking as Christians make my blood boil that they should be seen to be speaking from a ‘christian’ perspective. How could I be aligned to such a group of people?

So where does that leave me?  Do I have the energy to push from the inside to shape a better church? What do I believe in and where does that best sit in terms of the religious spectrum?  Which box should I click on the census form?

I do believe in the power of gratitude (the Buddhists seem best at that); in the connections of all life and the natural world (modern science, first nations people and the Gaia followers excel here); my responsibility to live in harmony, to walk humbly and lightly upon the earth; and basically to act from a position of hope and love having kindness to ourselves, each other and the natural world.

Joanna Macy is pretty close to the mark. Those tenets are definitely aligned with the Gospel just not with the Christian churches!

A shame to have to tick ‘other’ though!