Interviewer: Ever wondered what other people of faith believe, what their faith means to them, how they live it? That’s what this audio podcast is about. It’s called “All Faith Counts,” because well, all faith does count. The more each of us knows about other people’s faith, the more we understand, accept, and respect them for their belief. Hopefully, this is a reminder of all the good faith brings to our world. Today we’re going to hear from a millennial Catholic as he shares how he lives his faith.

Lionel: My name is Lionel Jimenez. I’m a student at Utah State University, studying aviation maintenance management, and I’m 21 years old. Aviation, since I was a child, is something that I’ve always loved and I’ve always been passionate about, so this is just right for me.

Interviewer: Lionel has been kind enough to share his belief system, and what centers his faith.

Lionel: The main core element of our faith is to kind of help the most vulnerable, help the people that need it the most. I grew up Catholic, and I just didn’t really know too much about the faith, I just knew, “follow the rules and you’ll go to heaven.” And growing up, I learned that there was much more than that, that the core element of our faith was to help the most vulnerable, to help people in need. And that really helps me every day because that’s kind of when I think about that I want to help the most vulnerable, help people out.  And a lot of people say, “Oh, well, you don’t have to be religious to do that.” And that’s a very valid statement, and that’s something that if people help other people and they’re not religious, great. But for me, the reason why I’m religious is because I want to incorporate these values into my life. So, my faith is really what guides me to be a better person, to ultimately help the most vulnerable.

Interviewer: The Bible is the holy book of scripture embraced by the Catholics. Lionel believes in the words of his Bible and applies this ancient scripture to his millennial life.

Lionel: Of course, the Bible is something that people wrote, you know, a long time ago, and so it’s great to have that history there. I read the Bible. I use it as an example, as a guide.  I read something that says, “Treat everyone with respect,” and you think about that in your life today, and you’re like, well, you know, some people treat homeless people very horrible. If you read the Bible you see that God was treating people that were poor with a lot of respect. And it’s pretty interesting how a lot of common things that happened then are still happening today.

Interviewer: Catholics observe many traditional holy days unique to their faith. Three of those observances fall together each year: Ash Wednesday, Lent, and Easter. Each celebration has purpose and symbolism.

Lionel: You know, we have Ash Wednesday, where we put ashes on our forehead. And so that kind of symbolizes where you begin, and where you’ll end up. So, it’s kind of a very strong symbol, and kind of a humbling sort of thing. It starts the beginning of Lent. Lent is a period where we pull back. It’s kind of a rethinking period, a time where in our faith, illustrates where God gave up everything for us. He died for us, for the people. And so, as Catholics we’re taught during that Lent period, to do a lot of sacrificing. We fast and on Fridays, we don’t eat meat. We also have something that we give up during Lent. It could be a bad habit that we give up, but it doesn’t even have to be a bad thing; it could just be something that we do that we enjoy that we kind of sacrifice for a little bit. The way we see it is God gave everything up for us, so what can we do to kind of represent that? And then, when He died, He just didn’t simply die and that was it. He died and was resurrected. And so that resurrection is what Easter brings about is the whole coming back to life. The whole reason behind the death was not for a tragedy, but for us to be free.

Interviewer: Another important practice in the Catholic faith is the sacraments.

Lionel: Our sacraments are—they’re kind of more rituals of a process through life. At baptism, we kind of become children of God, and that’s when we were little. And our first communion of course, is our first participation in the Last Supper. These are all basic rituals that help us get closer to our faith and to be a little bit a part of what He did.

Interviewer: Each week, faithful Catholics join together and receive communion. For Lionel, its symbolism lasts far beyond the meeting.

Lionel: Communion. So, you have the blood and bread of Christ. And so basically, during the Last Supper, God was with His apostles, and He knew that He was going to die, that He was not going to be there. But He wanted to have something left behind. And so, He did this in the form of saying, “Take this bread, take this wine as a symbol of my love to symbolize that I’m still here. That way you don’t feel alone.” And that’s why every Sunday we do that to represent Him. His bread is the body, and the wine is His blood. So, I mean, when I receive the blood and body of Christ, I feel a little bit more motivated to keep going. I feel like I’m not alone. I feel like I’m being supported, I feel like this is something that really gets me through my week.

Interviewer: Confession is another principle Catholics practice in their faith. For Lionel, it’s not meant to be a guilt‑trip, but to feel forgiven.

Lionel: During confession, you basically go in a room with a priest. There’s a wall between you and the priest, and the priest is actually facing a different direction. This is a typical setting. And there’s kind of a little blind, a little curtain. So, you can kind of see his shadow, but you can’t really see his face. And the same for them; they can’t really see you. What happens is you communicate your information and stuff to the priest, and the priest will communicate that information to God. He’s kind of a middle person in that format. He’s like that older brother that the younger brother did something that was kind of troublesome, and the younger brother’s like, “Okay, let me go ahead and explain to my parents what you did, and the best way to help you be forgiven.” Because we know we’re going to be forgiven because that’s the way God is merciful, God is forgiving. And so, once you do it, you feel lighter, you feel enlightened, and it’s a very beautiful process of you physically being able to say what you did, and be forgiven.

Interviewer: Some feel Catholicism is filled with rules and restrictions; restrictions that may drive many millennials away from the faith. Lionel feels those teachings have a different purpose.

Lionel: There’s rules and teachings that my religion encompasses. And I think that’s where people are going to get the wrong idea because they feel like, oh, you have to follow these rules. I kind of disagree with that because they’re not really rules, they’re ways of life. But they’re there to guide you, and to help you. I never feel oppressed. I actually feel more free when I participate in my faith.

Interviewer: When talking with Lionel about Catholicism, it would be less than honest not to get his feelings about the actions of priests who have abused others. He is very open to sharing his thoughts about these terrible incidents.

Lionel: With the whole situation that’s going on with priests, and the sexual harassment a lot of people ask, “Why are you even Catholic, that’s horrible, why are you a part of that?” And, well, we don’t follow priests, we follow God. And that’s the main purpose. A lot of times people think that we’re okay with these things that are happening. Of course not, those things are horrible, and I get very upset when I hear about these things, and I make sure that that’s not happening around me. There’s a lot of things that I don’t agree with, and there’s a lot of things that I feel should change. But the way I go by it is always go back to that main value that we all share.

Interviewer: Forgiveness is a central theme of Catholicism. For Lionel, there is beauty in forgiveness.

Lionel: Forgiving someone is quite difficult. In life, it’s really—it’s something very beautiful, and it’s something that is giving someone a second chance. I used to be a paramedic, and one of the things that I didn’t like seeing was all my other co-workers get upset with the people that were doing drugs, that were doing all these things. They were in the ambulance and saying, “Oh, well this is what happens when you do this and that, and that.” And for me, I didn’t like that because I think these are people just like me, and they’re someone that was put in a bad situation. Forgiveness is something very beautiful because you’re able to understand that. You’re able to say, “Oh, you know, you made a mistake, but I forgive you, and let’s move on, and let’s be better people.” You know, it’s a difficult thing to accomplish, but at the same time, it’s very beautiful because someone is getting a second chance.

Interviewer: And finally, doubt is something most all people of faith will face. Lionel sees these moments as opportunities to build, not deny his faith.

Lionel: You have to challenge your faith, you know? Question every single little thing. When you read the Bible, when you participate, question your faith, challenge your faith so you can learn more, and you will not be disappointed. Because there was a time where I was asking myself, why am I still doing this? And you know, I could’ve stepped away. And so, yeah, people that step away, I think they just need to dig a little deeper and do a little bit more research.

Interviewer: Thank you, Lionel, for taking your time and sharing with us the ways your faith builds your character and brings good into your life. We invite you to visit faithcounts.com, to learn and be inspired by different faiths because our world is a better place when all faith counts.