Series

Regnum Christi
The story of how I got into a Catholic lay movement which screwed me up -- and how I got out of it.

Part I: I hear about the precandidacy
Part II: I attend the summer program
Part III: Cognitive dissonance
Part IV: I decide to buy in
Part V: The sin of pride
Part VI: We get a new director
Part VII: I get kicked out
Part VIII: Deep depression after leaving
Part IX: I leave Regnum Christi
Part X: Conclusions

For more stories from other girls, visit 49weeks.blogspot.com.   You can also read this AP article, this followup article, this one from RICentral.com (I am quoted), and this one from the South County Independent.  The response on the Regnum Christi website is here and the statement of the bishop of Providence is here.


Catholicism
How my doubts about Catholicism have grown.  Trigger warning: challenges to Catholic doctrine.  Some of these posts are more emotional and some intellectual.  You don't really have to read them in order.

Struggling with doubt:  I admit that sometimes, I wonder if it's all a big scam.
Seeking God: I don't think I know the real God.
What I do know: I renounce Jerk-God and seek out the God of love.
I thought I was over this: Doubts return despite all my efforts to shake them off.
The case for hypocrisy: Better a hypocrite than an atheist, right?
Just punishment? The concept of hell seems incompatible with a good God.
Two kinds of Catholics: The conservative version seems too harsh, but the liberal version doesn't work rationally.
An atheist argument for staying Catholic: I don't believe, but maybe I should keep trying to believe.
Prayer and Providence: I no longer believe God answers prayers.
A gaping hole I can't patch:  I try and fail to interpret away the Bible's most troubling verse.
What is believing anyway?  I have a problem with the whole concept of faith.
Theodicy: I attempt to solve the problem of evil.
Religion and morality: If morality comes from religion, why does God fail to measure up to my conscience?
The dark side of religion: Manipulation is a feature, not a bug.
Conflicting moral codes:  Why hasn't the Catholic Church been the first to promote women's equality and universal human rights?
Things I like about Catholicism: As religions go, it's pretty great.
Parable of the absent father: Why does God leave us so alone?
The epistemic bar: How much evidence do you need?
The problems I have with Catholicism:  10 of them, anyway.
I don't want this: Does belief follow the will, or should the will follow the intellect?
How can I know anything?  The scientific method works surprisingly well at existential questions.
Opposing arguments: Is Catholicism an objectively beneficial way to live, or not?
You can't be too careful: If you want to stay Catholic, don't read this blog. Or anything else.
Good honesty, bad marketing: The Church's teaching on birth control causes a lot of suffering.
Felt experience of God: An objection to the concept of "basic beliefs"
The three-step argument: Why the standard apologetics method leaves me doubtful.
Jesus, my ex-boyfriend: Thinking of God as my boyfriend was harmful.

The comment threads of many of these are very interesting, too.  Feel free to comment on dead threads, I don't mind coming back to answer.