Religion is something that everyone is born with. In most cases it is decided at your birth by your parents and usually an individual has nothing to due with it. I was born into an Irish Roman Catholic Family and was baptized Roman Catholic when I was about a week old. Being that young of course I had nothing to do with making that choice. I was baptized at Saint Anne’s Roman Catholic Church, West Milton Street, Readville, Massachusetts a suburb of Boston.
I do not remember my young years but I am sure that I was considered to be a devout Roman Catholic by both the Hannigan and Donahue Families. After all they had made that decision for me. I do remember at about the young age of four going to church with my father while my mother stayed home.
My father and mother worked diligently with the Pastor and Sister Superior to enroll me in the first grade at the age of five. This was my first encounter with someone outside of the family. Needless to say, the discipline that I was taught by the Nuns has been with me all my life. Not to mention religion on the whole. Yes, I believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Holy Trinity and the terror of hell.
In the second grade, I was taught the tradition of the First Holy Communion and accepting Jesus as my Savior. Both my parents attended my First Holy Communion Dedication. My family was proud as they should be on that day.
In the third grade, being a boy, I naturally had to become an Altar Boy because that was the tradition. I learned the litany of the Roman Catholic Mass not in English but in Latin. I learned when and how to answer the priest’s questions, when to ring the bells, when to genuflect, when to distribute the water and wine, and when to assist the priest in giving Holy Communion. During my teachings, I was also told that if there was not a Red candle burning by the Altar in a Church then it was not a Roman Catholic Church. Funny isn’t it, how the little things are remembered of our training?
In the sixth grade, my class was taught the tradition of the Sacrament of Confirmation. When one is confirmed in the Roman Catholic Church they become a Soldier of Christ. The tradition is for the Bishop anoints you in a Church service and you accept the next level of Roman Catholic Church. At this level you choose a name to add to your baptismal name. I chose John Dennis Joseph Hannigan and I was a Soldier of Christ. I had finished my church education now. It was time for me to be a pious little man and walk with the Lord and be active in my Church. And I was active in the church after all I was an Altar Boy and had become trained in Benediction, Funeral Mass, High Mass, and Marriage Ceremony.
My next few years, I grew up being part of the Catholic Youth Organization [CYO]. Here I learned the value of being a young catholic boy in the City of Boston. The CYO gave young catholic children the opportunity to meet socially at planned parties, and monthly dances. This helped the maturing process from a youngster into puberty by getting together in a social environment with the Nuns and Priest supervising. At about this time my parents talked to me about religion. The only thing that I can remember to this day follows. Never get into a discussion about religion with anyone. All Protestants are lost and Black [no meaning to the Negro race then the Black race now]. Never trust a Jew.
I graduated from Grammar school in 1948 and now it became sure that I would step out of my Roman Catholic environment and socially interface with other children my age. Naturally, there had to be some Protestant and Jewish boys and girls that I would be in Junior High School. In addition there may be other races and religions, even atheist. In order to protect me from the bad and the ugly, my father arranged for me to go to Boston College High School in the Northampton Street area of Boston. My parents reasoning, I needed a Roman Catholic education and I needed to go to Boston College when I graduated High School in 1952. The Boston College High School facility was Jesuit Priests. They were constantly teaching Roman Catholic Religion in depth, as well as, college preparatory class. Most of my teachers were former missionaries who returned to the Untied Stated and taught. The discipline was as strict as my grammar school nuns and stricter at times.
What a confusing year of my life and I started to rebel against my parents. My freshman year at Boston College High had good and bad things. I learned a lot about the other boy’s neighborhoods and their social lives. As a student, I failed miserably. When I received my final report card in June 1949, I didn’t have a grade above a C, and most were D and F. My report card should have told my parents that, I needed to transfer education to another school but their thoughts were to repeat my freshman year at Boston College High School and graduate in June 1953. Needless to say I was not happy and my personnel rebellion increase against my parents. My father reenrolled me for my freshman year.
Everything appeared to be normal at the Hannigan household. My father was involved with the following Roman Catholic Organizations – The Holy Name Society, The Knights of Columbus, Bishop Cheverus 4th Degree Knight, The Alhambra. My mother never went to church. Her reason was when I was about three weeks old, the Pastor of St. Anne’s visited my parents after my baptism at 17 Buckingham Street. During the conversation, as I was told, the Pastor told my parents that they should be good Catholics and have more children. My mother almost died during my birth and the pastor would not accept that as a reason for being a one child family. As you can see my father was a strong catholic and my mother gave up her religion after she was married. This is the environment that I grew up in as it pertained to religion. The household was insecure and I had Catholism driven down my throat.
I finished my sophomore and started my junior year at Boston College High. My grades were not too swift. Midterm examinations grades in my junior year were really bad. The Father Rector called for a meeting with me and my parents. He told my parents that I could no longer go to school at Boston College High School and that he doubted seriously if any College would accept me based on my grades. I felt a victory in that I was a Roman Catholic boy but I was getting away from the strictness of teaching at a high school level. Through my years at Boston College High School, I served as an altar boy at St. Anne’s Church in Readville.
I never gave up my Catholism when I went to Hyde Park High School for the rest of my junior year and senior year. In January 1952, I entered Hyde Park High and felt embarrassed due to the fact that my grammar school classmates that I went to school with were graduating as seniors in June 1952. They looked down on me being a junior and therefore a failure. My rebellion continued against my parents from January 1952 thru June 1953 I really didn’t do anything academically. I become a Jock and played as many sports and school clubs as I could. I was experiencing the social changes of my life with school friends of all religions.
I was initiated into the Columbian Squire Circle 525 a junior order of the Knights of Columbus under the guidance of my father when I was 16. Here I learned the secret codes and ritual of being a Squire. Another tradition to teach a Roman Catholic Boy about secret religious organizations.. I served as Bursar for one year and was the Chief Squire in 1952. I left the Squires in 1953.
