BARBARA'S TCHATZKAHS

I was raised staunchly Catholic. My father converted (much to the horror of his family) to marry the Polish Catholic girl he was in love with. And he embraced Catholicism with all his heart. It helped give him purpose, direction and a compass - something that had been lacking in his Protestant upbringing. When we moved to Central New York when I was 9, we went to the big Catholic Church in town. And there it started, the hypocrisy... the unnecessary meanness... the do as I say not as I do... Even corporal punishment. When I was 17 I was teaching Bible Studies to a Christian Youth group at the local Baptist Church's community center. The Church issued me a warning... for READING THE BIBLE! Then one day, my brother - who was coming down with the flu - forgot one of his books for his CCD class. The nun made him walk all the way back to his school (4 miles) in the driving snow - instead of putting him on the bus. When he got to school he had a 102F fever and went to the hos...

HOW TO MAKE FRIENDS & INFLUENCE PARISHONERS My Nana, of blessed memory, used to tell me, "Barbara, even a worm will turn." What she meant was, given enough time, power and sense of entitlement - some people will even turn on those who were once their friends. My Nana was a formidable woman in her own right and she was on point with that observation. It was she, who was a devout Catholic, who got our family to break the tradition of no meat on Friday - well before the Church said O.K. And I watched her mince no words with a Monseignor who was angry that yours truly was actually reading the Bible as a teenager. We see it in Judaism, we see it in politics, we see it in everyday life. Sometimes you just can't please people - the more you try to make things right or do something good for them - the nastier and more accusatory they get. Pope Benedict XVI is on a roll and has really been working overtime to bring back the good old days. I am just waiting for a new In...