Catholic Church vs Methodist Church

As a child, I was quite confused about the concept of

was believing in God and praying- nothing more,

nothing less. As I grew older I realized

the reason of my state of confusion- I was practicing

was raised a Catholic while my father had been raised

a Protestant in the United Methodist

Church. I was christened in the Catholic church and I

attended a Catholic institute for my

first year of school. I studied and took part in the

Catholic teachings at school as well as

attended mass with my family on Saturday nights.

The

church with my family in a completely different

building- the United Methodist Church. I

never really questioned this religious lifestyle but I

between the two customs of worship. A couple of years

Protestant and I have been a member of the United

that I am older, I can significantly see the

differences between Protestantism and

Whenever I step into a Catholic church, the first

the building and the artwork that adorns the ceilings

spacious and contains rows and rows of seats that

accommodate a large crowd.

I noticed

that in behind each row of seats were padded bars on

parts of the service. In contrast to the United

Methodist Church, there are a number of

statues that surround the church including a statue of

crucifix with Jesus on it is positioned in the center

of the front wall- the focal point within

the church. Throughout the church, a number of

windows allow the light from outside to enter. The

lighting in the church is quite dim.

From this, a solemn and humble setting is felt.

I’ve been to a lot of Catholic masses and it seems as

as identical as the next one. The people seem to

simultaneously say and perform gestures

(the sign of the cross) without even thinking. I

noticed how concentrated the older people

were as they participated in the worship. The service

choir situated in the back of the church began the

songs and the people would repeat the

verse. I thought the choir sang very harmoniously. I

service when the choir would sing.

I believe that the most important part of the worship

The people who took part in the Eucharist looked very

receiving the blood and body of Christ, these people

prayed intensely on their knees. I did

not participate in this part of the service because I

didn’t feel comfortable for the United

Methodist beliefs about Communion are quite different

It was not hard for me to follow the sequence of the

to other churches before and I pretty much knew what

as I could in the service. I sang and I prayed but I

was not able to recite the short phrases

and make the gestures within the service. I did not

feel lost nor confused but I did feel as

if other people knew that I wasn’t Catholic because I

didn’t fully participate in the service.

Unfamiliar surroundings can never really be

welcome as I thought I would be. It seemed as if the

God and didn’t exactly acknowledge anyone else. I

participate, instead I felt I should try to

participate. I didn’t receive the warm reception

that I see at my church. In some ways, I felt out of

place but I didn’t let that feeling get in

Between the Catholic church and the United Methodist

differences than similarities. The structure of

worship is quite similar but the manner at

which it was performed is very different. The only

“Our Father.” The arrangement of the building is also

similar as well as the music played.

Another similarity is the Priest of the church and the

however I have been a member of a church where the

After understanding both worship services, I am able

Nowadays it seems as if people go to church for the

go at all. For me, church is a very important factor

in my life. I go to church not only to

talk with God, that can be done basically anywhere. I

and friends- to be a part of a community of people. I

strengthened when I see my family praying together.

In addition, experiencing a different

religion enables me to learn about the different

personally enlightening my spirituality.