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Navigating Faith After a Broken Church: Why I’m a Methodist in a Catholic Pew

I’ve been asked more than once—and often with a puzzled look—why someone with a degree in Biblical Studies, who once aspired to be a United Methodist pastor and abstained from the vote that fractured the UMC, now attends a Catholic church. The answer is both simple and deeply personal.

The truth is, the schism in the United Methodist Church broke my heart. I watched as beloved friends and mentors were caught in the middle—some feeling left behind, others feeling forced out. It wasn’t just a vote. It was a spiritual and emotional earthquake that left cracks in relationships and faith communities that may take years to heal. In the aftermath, I couldn’t bring myself to return to church right away.

For eight months, I stayed away from any church building. Not because I had lost my faith, but because I was grieving. I didn’t know where I belonged anymore. I was still a Methodist in belief and spirit, but my spiritual home had been divided, and I didn’t recognize the rooms anymore.

Eventually, I found myself at the doors of a Catholic church. It wasn’t a decision I made lightly, and I don’t pretend to have all the answers. I went not because I had suddenly adopted every Catholic doctrine, but because I was seeking refuge. A place to pray. A place to sit with God. A place to heal.

RCIA (the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) was, ironically, one of the hardest parts of this journey. What was meant to be an introduction to the Catholic faith actually threw me into a crisis of faith. I questioned everything—my upbringing, my theology, my future. And yet, through all that, I stayed. Because despite the differences, the liturgy, the reverence, the quiet presence of Christ in the Eucharist—all of it offered a kind of spiritual balm I didn’t know I needed.

Today, I consider myself Catholic-leaning and in communion with Rome, even if not officially received into the Church. I still carry my Methodist roots with deep love and gratitude, but I’ve found spiritual nourishment and peace in Catholic worship.

This is what it looks like to navigate faith in the aftermath of division—not abandoning what I was, but embracing where I’ve found Christ most clearly. For now, and maybe for always, that place is in a Catholic pew.

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