Want to guess who first alerted me to the research report about faster brain shrinkage among Catholics, born-again Protestants, and atheists? The email included this observation, "Now this explains why you became Roman Catholic." Very funny.Really, I did laugh. But after reviewing the methodology, I know this research couldn't possibly apply to my aging hippocampus.
Participants, all 268 of 'em, were primarily "Southeastern Protestant Christians" aged 58 and older. I, on the other hand am a Jew who was born in NYC to parents from Brooklyn; Jesus didn't show up on my radar as Christ until I was in my 40s; cavorting with Jesuits has helped my thinking expand; and being Roman Catholic does, at times, make my brain explode. Dayenu.
