The Congregation Of The Children Of Israel

The Congregation Of The Children Of Israel

The next place that we went was The Congregation of the Children of Israel. When we were on our way there, I kind of got lost. Then I realized that it's almost in the middle of nowhere! When we got there, and I saw the building, I thought it looked AMAZING! They had this little hut looking thing made out of bamboo right as you go through the front door. At that moment, I wished that I had one of those! (haha)
When we walked in, we were welcomed by Rabbi Gerson, the leader of the center. As I was looking around, I felt like if I were to touch anything, I would break it. Everything looked so fragail and so shiny. It was amazing looking. The feeling I got when I was in the building is kind of un-explainable. I felt welcomed, but at the same time totally different. After a while, when Rabbi Gerson had been talking to us for a little bit, I felt comfortable being there. He had a lot to share and a lot, I felt, he wanted us to know about his beliefs. I actually learned alot and he also told us a lot that I had already learned before. He told us about how long you have to go to school to become a Rabbi and how long he had studied their language (hebrew). After talking to us for a while about himself, the building, the people and the religion, he asked us about things. He asked us about our school, where we had gone and where we were going after we talked with him. Towards the end, he showed us the Torah that he reads out of every time he leads prayer. They looked really old and we're written in Hebrew. I can say that the Torah was most likely the best part of being in the Center. I didn't really have any questions for Rabbi Gerson. The one that I did have was asked by someone else. I wanted to know who (out of a male and female) wears the little hat thing and why. He said that it was because it was out of respect for GOD. I thought that was a little interesting. I didn't really learn much new stuff. Most of what I was being told was things I already knew. But it definitly was an interesting experience going to the building.

St. Joseph's Catholic Church:)

St. Joseph's Catholic Church

The third and final place of worship that we visited was St. Joseph's Catholic Church. When I first saw it, it didn't really look like a "normal" church that I was used to seeing. As I walked in though, I could tell. When we walked in, I didn't really feel all that comfortable. It's probably because every church that I've been in I was forced to go, looked down upon and I always had bad experiences when I would go. Other than that, it looked and felt like any other church. We were greeted by Mrs. Benedict and Father David McGuinness. We talked a while with both of them and they told us a little about themselves, their leaders and the church. Then Father McGuinness informed us that it was his day off, that he was leaving and Mrs. Benedict would be showing us around and answering questions. She took us into the actually praying place where they worshipped and held mass. She told us about the holy water that was on either sides of the door and that when people come in, they dab their fingers in it and bless themselves as they go in. It was HUGE! It had the most beautiful stained glass windows I had ever seen. She informed us that they had expanded it to fit more people. They expanded it like, twice it's size. I saw to my right as I was seated the Lady of Guadalupe. I made a comment that my mom has a medallion with her on it and that she was my families guardian. I can say that I thought the building itself was really cool, but I don't believe in the same things that they believe in. As she was talking about what Mass was and how they go about it, it reminded me of my grandmother. I actually started to cry a little. I didn't really have any serious questions for her to answer because I had grown up with that religion 95% of my life. So I pretty much know everything about it. So I didn't ask her any questions. I just sat back and listened to what she had to say. I can say that I was quite glad to leave. For me, it was really boring and really tiring. None the less though, quite educating for the rest of the class.

Give Me A Reason To Believe....

The reason that I think there are religions is because people need something to believe in. They need something that they can hold dear and that will make their fears of death more of a reward. People want to know that when they die they will reap what they've done throughout their lifetime. Say if someone throughout their life was always helpful, always "good", and always made sure that they were doing the right thing, if they were Christian, Christians would believe that because of those actions they would go to heaven where their souls can be eternally saved. Other religions are basically the same way just different beliefs and "rules". People want to believe that they are in one way or another rewarded for following those beliefs and "rules".