A week before I married your mother, a Parish priest whom I just got acquainted made a remark that “children’s religion is determined by the mother’s belief”.  It hit close to my heart as I am Catholic and your mother is a Baptist.

 

I was educated in a Catholic school and indeed my first memory of reading was through a Children’s Illustrated Bible. Just like any traditional Catholic family, my parents encouraged us to attend mass every Sunday, pray the rosary at 6:00 PM and we participated in every Catholic festival as much as possible.

 

At Secondary school, I met your mother and we got married two decades later in a Catholic Church.

 

It can’t be avoided at times when fellow Catholics' ask and wonder why I married your mother. Most times I just replied, “why not?” Many Saints and even St Paul were once non-believers but they eventually gave their life for Christ. I guess my response was pretty simplistic, not entirely Biblical in a sense. But how could I not admire your mother who (being a devout Protestant) agreed for us to get married in a Catholic Church, never objected on raising you as a Catholic and even chastised us at times when we missed or we arrived late at a Catholic Mass?

 

It just naturally follows that she will ask questions about Catholicism as she asked about the furnishings in the church, why we celebrate some events and generally why we do what we do. Don't ever be offended as she asks these questions with a sense of yearning and longing of someone who is trying to understand our faith. Indeed, if anyone asks about our Catholic faith, we should be able to guide them on the Biblical and Christian Basis of our belief. Of equal importance, in whatever we do, we should aim to be the reason that they will believe in the Catholic faith.

 

I hope that I can help you learn the basic aspects of the Catholic teachings and guide you through the Biblical principles that guided many Catholics in their life. I therefore organised my basic understanding of our faith in modules and quizzes to help you remember them by heart.

 

Just don't forget however that you already have great virtues such as forgiveness and kindness. Please nurture these virtues as we adults tend to struggle with our own childishness rather than being like children as Jesus asked us to be.

 

My parents used to tell me that the most they can give me was education and with sacrifice they did. More than education, they also showed me faith which I am also passing on to you.

With love,

Dad