Do you as a Catholic or Orthodox feel like a minority in America?

I have to admit it guys, I do feel like a minority as an American Catholic in a land dominated by Protestants. It doesn't bother me really but discrimination against non Protestant Christians especially Catholics and Orthodox Christians is one of the things they won't tell you about in school, it's something that you have to find out on your own. In a land thats 25% Catholic, only one has become president and Catholics are hardly ever run. Now, I am not making light of the fact that Jews, Muslims, Buddists, Hindus, Athiests, Agnostics, etc are minorities as well and get a lot of bad treatment by the majority but knowing what I know, I feel as an American Catholic that I am a minority. There are really three things that make me who I am, and they all are sort of a trinity in a way, its my Catholic faith, my ethnic blood, and my political beliefs.

Yes, there are fewer Catholics than Protestants as a whole, but when you break it down by denomination, there are more Catholics than Methodists, more Catholics than Presbyterians, more Catholics than Baptists, etc.

Plus, of the ten people who sought our party's nomination, four were Catholics: Kucinich, Braun, Clark, and Kerry (of course). Our governor, Jennifer Granholm, is also Catholic.

Only on 'those days' here at DU, though, when we've been selected as 'today's whipping boy'...

there are a lot of Catholics in the greater NY area, and as well as a lot of Jews, who are far more tolerant of Christianity (at least the NY ones) in my experience than some of our Protestant brethren across the country. The Church is always accorded respect, and even gets coverage for things other than scandals. Midnight Mass was broadcast live on a local station and the NBC affiliate broadcast the one from Rome, on tape delay.

I had to laugh that on Christmas Eve, in the first 2 rows on the left side of the Church, where the dignitaries sit, of the 4 'pairs', 2 were Jews and 2 were Catholics. Mayor Bloomberg was there with I think his girlfriend, and former Mayor Koch was there, who as a gay Jew seems to love going to Mass . Curiously absent was Giuliani although his former fire commissioner was there, as well as Raymond Kelly, the current police commissioner. (Hopefully, they are both Catholic since they received communion.) I think those are invited guests.

I think its regional honest, I come from a diverse but a probably mostly protestant area.

Catholics are often ridiculed in my area by the whacky Religious Right types who know nothing of the Catholic Church or the teachings of Christ for that matter.