I am not the religious type. I have my faith and it is unwavering, but you wouldn’t see me at mass every sunday evening or find me observing lent with the same zeal that the rest of my family does. In fact, there was an age when I religiously rebelled and didn’t go to church just because I knew it was expected of me by my parents. Suffice to say this foolishness has now graduated from one of teenage rebellion to that of convenience. Allocating 2 hours (including getting dressed,the commute back and forth and mass itself) fell at the bottom of my priority list. There was always something more pressing that needed to get done or on a rare free Sunday evening, I was loath to fill it up with a trip to church.

I know all this is very tongue in cheek and for those of you with better christian/catholic upbringing/discipline this can seem rather blasphemous even. But it is what it is. My very prim and proper parents thought it was me getting caught up in the rat race and not knowing my priorities. But no one ever asked me if it was a question of faith. Had I stopped believing? Because the answer to that is, no. I have not, I never did and never will. My faith is an essential part of me. It governs my principles, valueset and morals. All of which in turn govern my life and the way I live it. You may argue that the bible tells you to go to church and observe the sabbath and by not doing so I can’t stake a claim in living as a catholic is intended too. Or just by believing and practicing on my own terms is not ok, and that’s alright. To each his own. Society has evolved and the practice of religion should evolve along with it if retaining the younger generation is to happen. Which is why I admire the philosophies and teachings of Pope Francis. I can relate to what he says and am constantly in awe at how he has identified with current society and adapted the scripture to today’s context. His lenten message was no different to the way I lead my life on a daily basis, and all that is essentially part of what the bible asks you to do in the first place.

I may not know the verses of scripture inside out and you might find me wondering when the lords prayer became the funky rendition it is today, but for now, I’m going to go listen to the audio book of Matthew which I just downloaded onto my phone from playstore. And to me, that will suffice.