My religious journey so far has been a rather good one. I was raised in the Catholic Church. I went to Catholic school from grade school through high school. I feel my parents did a great job in raising me in the Catholic Church. They were very involved in the church community and I feel that help me not understand the church teachings but also help give me a sense of belonging in the church as well. The church I grew up in was a very old gothic style church built in the mid 1800’s in Cleveland Ohio. It was one of the first Catholic Churches built in the city of Cleveland, and is a Polish church built mainly by Polish immigrants who came here during the height of the immigration movement. I feel one of the main reasons that made my church experience growing up was that the church was not only a staple of the community but it also help me with having an appreciation for my Polish heritage. My great grandparents where the first to be active members and attended this church, and the rest of my family from my grandparents, parents, and my brother, sister, and me followed in their footsteps. I think having a strong family history and background in a church community helps let you know where your place in the church is. I feel my experiences I had in my church growing up were very unique and maybe different from most people because I am not sure many people can say they belonged to the same church as the great grandparents, grandparents, and parents, and attend the same school as they did. I think that is a very neat experience to have and know that my family had a vital role in the success of the church through the years. I still am a practicing Catholic although I do not attend mass on regular bases like I should. I still believe in the churches practices and what it stands for even though I am not as strongly involved in the church as I was when I was growing up. I feel religion has had a mostly positive impact on my life. I have found that religion has really helped me get through the difficult times I have had in my life as well as the good ones. I think religion helps you when you are facing challenges in your life by making you question things. I feel when you start to question things in life you remember what you were taught about your religion and faith and that helps get you through those difficult periods. The only negative I have experienced with religion is when other religious groups try to convert you from your faith to theirs and tell you that what you believe and were taught is wrong. I am all for people being able to try to go out and get new members for their church and their faith, but just because your religion may not be the same as someone else’s does not mean you have to bad mouth that religion and tell you your religion and teachings are wrong and you need to convert to theirs in ordered to be saved.