Religeon search

I was raised Roman Catholic as well. But what we were taught, both at mass and Sunday school, was to hate everything that wasn't a member of our church because they were all Devil worshipers. Protestants were Devil worshipers in disguise, don't even get started on the nonchristian religions such as Judaism, Islam, etc. And Catholics that belonged to other churches, were on the right track, but still wrong because they weren't with us. So I lost faith in Christianity before I even started school.

 

What part of it that isn't fulfilling? In order to find what you are looking for, you need to define what you are looking for.

I was raised Catholic and my mom is a devoted Catholic. My dad is what I call "seasonal" Catholic. I am more of a dog-holic
Joke aside, over the time, I formed my own thoughts and still is. I consider myself an agnostic or humanist nowadays.

 

I'm afraid this presents you with a real dilemma and only you can decide what to do. If you leave the JW faith it will certainly have an impact on your family and it will affect their relationship with you, but if you remain it will be impossible to live authentically as a member of the LGBT community and in the long run that will cause you a great deal of stress too.

If you like the Christian way and draw strength and hope from Jesus' teachings, you could explore the possibility of joining a different church, but this will still put you at odds with your parents because there is little tolerance of different faiths amongst JW's. If you decide to join a different church though, do your research first. Outwardly, churches may appear nice and welcoming and do allsorts of happy, clappy things on a Sunday, but this is often nothing more than veneer. When you peel it away you may uncover all of the rotten fundamentalism that is present in JW teaching.

This website https://www.gaychurch.org/ provides a list of churches around the world that offer a warm welcome to LGBT people. They're from different denominations, so they'll have different ideas and patterns of worship and you'll still have to explore what they stand for, more generally, but you'll be able to do so without any fear of personal rejection. Ultimately, you may decide that Christianity (or religion) is not for you, but there is no great hurry to make these decisions. The only decision that is looming, is your future relationship with the JW faith. I hope you can find a way that is right for you.