Susan Sarandon On Religion And The Catholic Teachings She Never Understood (VIDEO)

(Huffington Post) – Susan Sarandon, the oldest of nine children, was raised Catholic and attended Catholic grammar school as a child. Though she grew up with faith, Sarandon says that even as a child, she had many questions about religion — questions that got her into trouble and ultimately made her rethink her relationship with religion as an adult.

In this video from “Oprah’s Master Class,” Sarandon explains exactly which Catholic teachings she never understood and shares what happened when she asked innocent questions to better understand her religion.

“I was a very quiet kid, a very wanting-to-please kid,” Sarandon says. “But certain things didn’t make sense to me and when I questioned [them], there was a problem.”

One of the first religious teachings Sarandon questioned was the rule that marriage must take place in the Catholic Church. “I asked how Joseph and Mary were married, since Jesus didn’t make it up until later,” Sarandon recalls. “[As punishment], I had to go stand in the hallway. That’s when the trouble began, when I was in third grade.”

Sarandon’s questions may have been misconstrued as mischievous, but she insists that all she was looking for were answers that made sense to her. “I was not trying to be a wise-ass,” Sarandon says. “I just didn’t understand why they would put babies in limbo just because they weren’t baptized… Or why they would say every other religion was bad.”

Sarandon says that she believes religions each have something valuable to offer. “I think that all religions at their core have some really magnificent teachings, and most of them are very similar,” she explains. “It’s the institutionalization of these religious principles that don’t serve me well.”

Watch the video at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/06/08/susan-sarandon-religion-catholic_n_3399166.html