After being a atheist... God always on my path... Anger towards God

[Meemai]

Yo,

So I have been an atheïst, ever since I was young. I was born handicapped and people never taught me much of God, and I thought if there is a God, why does he stand for this? Being handicapped and all. Well after comunion all they taught me was Genesis and such. No one told me about Jesus and the amazing things he did.

My sister whom was older than me was very outspoken and anti church, my parents just let my path unfold. When I was 17 I met religious people and God started a bit in my life, then it stopped. At 21 it started again and died off, now I am 23. And I really want to go on the path.

I decided that a life without God is a life without purpose, yet I am still angry at God, that he could have given his revealation in a better way, so it would not cause so much wars and misery, that I am handicapped and all. I put my angry before God in prayer and just tell him I am angry.

Have you been angry with God at times? I do not know how to really mend this heart of hatred I have, I need to turn my anger into something useful, I want to ask Christ to help me on my path, but I do not know if I can reach him like this. Not when I have all this anger inside me.

 

[bardegaulois]

It might surprise you that your anger is not a bad thing. However, the cause of all of this suffering in the world is not God; rather, it is sin. We have every right to be angry at sin, and to fight against it within our societies, but most especially within our own souls.

But this is a fallen world, and however pious or virtuous we might be, there are still the effects of original sin to deal with. Thus, suffering is inevitable in this life. Many questioning young people, often upon first realizing the extent of suffering and injustice in this world will ask, “If God is almighty, we doesn’t He just abolish suffering?” The great mystery of our faith is that Our Lord did something even greater: rather than abolish the suffering of the world, He took on human flesh, and endured it even to an ignominious death.

In His earthly ministry, Christ called us to take up our crosses and follow him. Joining our suffering to His through His Passion, unbloodily presented at every Holy Mass, we join Him. We, through our common priesthood, might take this unfortunate effect of the sin of our first parents and offer our suffering too, for the ransom of souls, for the repentance of sinners, for the healing of the wounded. Through the grace of God, the merits of Christ, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we have the remedy for the sins that should rightfully anger us. If you want to know what to do, then offer your suffering, taking advantage of the high dignity bestowed on us through the Passion of Christ and through our own baptism.

May God bless you abundantly.

 

[TriciaF]

Being honest before God is a good way of praying.
Your anger is from puzzlement and hurt and questions, it isn’t from hate. You clearly want to love God, and it can be hard sometimes from our perspective, especially when we’re suffering or others are, and nothing fixes those things.

We all suffer of course. It doesn’t show so much in many people, but it can be very surprising sometimes to find out how difficult some people’s lives are, when we just thought they had it good! May God help and guide you in the burdens you carry.

I don’t think there is a way God could have shared his revelations, that silly human beings wouldn’t find a way to twist or fight about. Sadly!
God made everything ‘perfect’ in the Garden of Eden. Human beings still found a way to mess things up!

 

[Trident_H]

Yo,

So I have been an atheïst, ever since I was young. I was born handicapped and people never taught me much of God, and I thought if there is a God, why does he stand for this? Being handicapped and all. Well after comunion all they taught me was Genesis and such. No one told me about Jesus and the amazing things he did.

My sister whom was older than me was very outspoken and anti church, my parents just let my path unfold. When I was 17 I met religious people and God started a bit in my life, then it stopped. At 21 it started again and died off, now I am 23. And I really want to go on the path.

I decided that a life without God is a life without purpose, yet I am still angry at God, that he could have given his revealation in a better way, so it would not cause so much wars and misery, that I am handicapped and all. I put my angry before God in prayer and just tell him I am angry.

Have you been angry with God at times? I do not know how to really mend this heart of hatred I have, I need to turn my anger into something useful, I want to ask Christ to help me on my path, but I do not know if I can reach him like this. Not when I have all this anger inside me.

Shoot. Man. Having anger inside you means you’re reaching Him already. I mean if you didn’t have that anger you wouldn’t believe Him to be in some way able to fix things. You wouldn’t have that belief that He’s somehow involved. That’s called faith.

And I mean the guy who said that faith was all about being on your best behavior has obviously lived a pretty charmed life. I’ve yelled at God a number of times. When I’ve been down at my lowest ebb with grief and pain. When I’ve really had that hurt well up. I’ve been open with it. Because obviously. I mean God already knows where you’re at. He already knows how you feel. So being honest with Him seems the straightest road to answers. I mean if you make pretend with God by putting on your second face just because you’re on your knees He’s not fooled. He remembers what you were thinking just before you began your call. So you might as well come out swinging. Saves everyone time.

So yeah. The first step is accepting that what you’re doing is an honest effort. A real try to connect on the level you’re at. God’s not going to mind. He’s not scared of you venting.

The second step is channeling that focus. Because anger’s such a brute strength. Such a ramming force. So you need to do something physical for its release. Usually a charitable work that involves heavy-lifting. It’s a good way to turn a negative into a positive. I’ll let you figure out an option. I mean you said you’re handicapped and I don’t know in what way. So I can’t guide you here. You tell me.

Because I don’t think you can just think away anger. You can dissolve it by finding a source of emotional healing. A reason that answers your hurt. But when angry you can’t just think it away. Or at least I can’t.

I don’t know if I really helped you here. I mean I’ll figure this out further with you if you want. We can take a real look at this. But first I need more details.

Peace Meemai.

-Trident

 

[Jeanne_S]

It might surprise you that your anger is not a bad thing. However, the cause of all of this suffering in the world is not God; rather, it is sin. We have every right to be angry at sin, and to fight against it within our societies, but most especially within our own souls.

But this is a fallen world, and however pious or virtuous we might be, there are still the effects of original sin to deal with. Thus, suffering is inevitable in this life. Many questioning young people, often upon first realizing the extent of suffering and injustice in this world will ask, “If God is almighty, we doesn’t He just abolish suffering?” The great mystery of our faith is that Our Lord did something even greater: rather than abolish the suffering of the world, He took on human flesh, and endured it even to an ignominious death.

In His earthly ministry, Christ called us to take up our crosses and follow him. Joining our suffering to His through His Passion, unbloodily presented at every Holy Mass, we join Him. We, through our common priesthood, might take this unfortunate effect of the sin of our first parents and offer our suffering too, for the ransom of souls, for the repentance of sinners, for the healing of the wounded. Through the grace of God, the merits of Christ, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we have the remedy for the sins that should rightfully anger us. If you want to know what to do, then offer your suffering, taking advantage of the high dignity bestowed on us through the Passion of Christ and through our own baptism.

May God bless you abundantly.

Beautifully said:thumbsup:

 

[frangiuliano115]

Hello Meemai,

We all get angry at God sometimes. Know why it’s good? Because at least we know He’s around somewhere! Some people don’t have this good luck and are trying to face life alone.

When we come to know God we’re told that we are children of God. So we expect all good things from Him. We feel like we deserve only the best from Him. Then when something bad happens to us we feel abandoned, left alone and ignored.

That’s why it’s good to build up your faith when things are good - so you have that extra strength when things go badly.

You’ve probably been handicapped all your life so you have a good reason to be upset and wonder what this is all about. I have a handicapped granddaughter and understand fairly well how you might feel. No one wil ever understand you completely because we’re all different and have had different experiences in life.

So you’ll hear all this stuff about original sin and offering our suffering and all that. And it might even be true! But we can’t all understand it in the same way.

When we found out about my granddaughter I was very upset but decided it had to be accepted. Everything God sends us has to be accepted. My favorite priest told me I should look upon this as a gift from God. I couldn’t make that leap. It was accepted, but a gift? You know what, she’s the only grandchild I have that tells me every day how much she loves me and makes me laugh with the impersonations she does of different people.

So this is how it it. We’re not going to know why bad things happen to good people. You could read 10 book son it but you’ll never have a satisfactory answer because there is none. It’s simple Meemai. You’re going to have to accept that we don’t know everything, but that we still want to love and serve God by loving His Son Jesus, by reading His Word, the bible, by praying, and by accepting.

Jesus had been preaching about how those who eat his flesh and drink his blood will have eternal life. This sounded really weird and some disciples (people that were following his teachings) decided to abandon Him. Jesus then asked the apostles if they also wanted to abandon Him and Peter replied: “Lord to whom shall we go? Only you have the words of eternal life”.
John 6:53-68

In fact read all of John 6, it’s really beautiful. As it the entire gospel of John.

So it’s really this easy: There are two powers at play here.
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of wickedness.”
Ephesians 6:12

Pick the right one and hold on tight to it no matter what!

God bless you
Fran

 

[Purgatory_Pete]

Not angry with Him, but puzzled at times.
but then I think of this,
“Jeremiah 1. 5
Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
before you were born I dedicated you,
a prophet to the nations I appointed you.”

and I wonder what He dedicated for me in this life,
I am in pain and suffer much at times, as many do.
He didn’t make me a prophet because I still can’t
pick the lotto numbers correctly.

All I know is, that I won’t know.
and I won’t know until we meet and He lifts these burdens from me.
I will then give an account of how I reacted to this gift.
Did I reject it and rebel or did I accept this temporary weight
and rejoice in the fact that He trusted me to do His will.

Others around me will also answer as to how the reacted to my glorious gift.
Did they greet me with their dedicated gifts of humility and love
and did they praise God for his wise choices,
or did they torment and belittle me, whilst thanking God it wasn’t them.

Do I Hate God for this? NO, Am I angry at Him for this? NO.
I look at this the way I wish others would look at this,
with humility and love and I praise God for his wise choice.

We are all blessed with such gifts, it’s just that some of us
are a little wiser in the ways of God.

I hope this helps.
:tiphat:

 

[Meemai]

Shoot. Man. Having anger inside you means you’re reaching Him already. I mean if you didn’t have that anger you wouldn’t believe Him to be in some way able to fix things. You wouldn’t have that belief that He’s somehow involved. That’s called faith.

And I mean the guy who said that faith was all about being on your best behavior has obviously lived a pretty charmed life. I’ve yelled at God a number of times. When I’ve been down at my lowest ebb with grief and pain. When I’ve really had that hurt well up. I’ve been open with it. Because obviously. I mean God already knows where you’re at. He already knows how you feel. So being honest with Him seems the straightest road to answers. I mean if you make pretend with God by putting on your second face just because you’re on your knees He’s not fooled. He remembers what you were thinking just before you began your call. So you might as well come out swinging. Saves everyone time.

So yeah. The first step is accepting that what you’re doing is an honest effort. A real try to connect on the level you’re at. God’s not going to mind. He’s not scared of you venting.

The second step is channeling that focus. Because anger’s such a brute strength. Such a ramming force. So you need to do something physical for its release. Usually a charitable work that involves heavy-lifting. It’s a good way to turn a negative into a positive. I’ll let you figure out an option. I mean you said you’re handicapped and I don’t know in what way. So I can’t guide you here. You tell me.

Because I don’t think you can just think away anger. You can dissolve it by finding a source of emotional healing. A reason that answers your hurt. But when angry you can’t just think it away. Or at least I can’t.

I don’t know if I really helped you here. I mean I’ll figure this out further with you if you want. We can take a real look at this. But first I need more details.

Peace Meemai.

-Trident

Thanks for your reply and questions. I’ll reply to you, because you had questions. Questions which I can answer.
.
Yes I do believe God is involved, and even though I fell from faith sometimes, it is that I met a nice priest whom is very understanding that I am back on the path of God.
.
I do agree with you there, I don’t think it’s wrong to share grief with God, after all he is there. I even pray and ask God to help me understand it, this is most that is in my prayers. I am still a bit scared to open my heart to God, truly. This sounds like a weird thing to say, as God can see into my heart probably. I wonder if he does it, we have free will and would he not also want us to show our heart to him? This is a hard thing for me to do. The anger but also the low regards I have of myself.
.
And thanks your probably right, maybe I have to pray to God and just ask him to help me open my heart. I don’t think I opened my heart to anyone ever, well when I did I would regret it always. I am quite sad and angry about this, that no one ever was there for me when I needed them. Even now it makes me afraid, all I wanted was for someone to just pat me, and tell me it will be alright.
.
I think to let out anger, for me in my state writing is best perhaps. I have rheumatism and my joints are hurting quite a lot. I also have a personality disorder which makes things even harder, to connect with people etc is hard. I think all I can do that is for myself is writing. As for something good I could do, well I guess I could always share my ideas, or maybe convey a message somehow.
Sadly I am a man of thinking, I have to think my mind is always thinking, but your right thinking solves little, well emotional problems are not solved by thinking. And I can’t think anger away either…
.
You did help but of course your right you’d need more details. If you have questions feel free to ask, though personal questions might be best in a private message. Thanks for your help.

 

[Starwarsfan2]

We be all been angry at God at times , just give it up to Him , each and every day keep loving him in spite of your anger.

 

[jc4751]

Yo,

So I have been an atheïst, ever since I was young. I was born handicapped and people never taught me much of God, and I thought if there is a God, why does he stand for this? Being handicapped and all. Well after comunion all they taught me was Genesis and such. No one told me about Jesus and the amazing things he did.

My sister whom was older than me was very outspoken and anti church, my parents just let my path unfold. When I was 17 I met religious people and God started a bit in my life, then it stopped. At 21 it started again and died off, now I am 23. And I really want to go on the path.

I decided that a life without God is a life without purpose, yet I am still angry at God, that he could have given his revealation in a better way, so it would not cause so much wars and misery, that I am handicapped and all. I put my angry before God in prayer and just tell him I am angry.

Have you been angry with God at times? I do not know how to really mend this heart of hatred I have, I need to turn my anger into something useful, I want to ask Christ to help me on my path, but I do not know if I can reach him like this. Not when I have all this anger inside me.

I don’t know if you realize it, but your post is a beautiful witness to the lines in the very beginning of the Catechism – “The desire for God is written in the human heart, because man is created by God and for God; and God never ceases to draw man to himself.” You feel this desire and want to satisfy it, but there are obstacles to understanding your relationship with God and this is a source of much frustration. In turn, this frustration turns to anger.

I also don’t know the nature of your handicap, but I would also suggest that there is a blessing to it that you may not realize. People whose lives have been easy have never been forced to step back and consider what is and is not important, and what the nature of their lives is. I don’t think it is coincidence that people who have been a dealt a blow by life often turn to God for recovery. It is those moments when we understand how fragile we are, and how little we really can control in the end, no matter how well we think we have things or how well they seem to be going at the moment. (PM if you want more details on my own experiences)

The other way to look at these things is in Romans 8 and Romans 12. We may not find ourselves in a good place, but we are able to turn evil to good if we pray and trust the Holy Spirit to guide our words and actions. It is not always easy, but the witness we bear may be something that reaches others and changes their lives in a positive way, be it in a spiritual way or physical one. Franciszek Gajowniczek might have had a few things to say about that.

Another thing to think about is that we tend to approach God with a set of demands that we think make sense to us, but we only understand one tiny sliver of the world, much less God. I would maybe suggest looking at the Imitation of Christ, and some of the Catholic mystics. I was blessed with an understanding of things that came at the end of many years of questioning, doubt, and even a lack of belief, and much of that understanding came after studying those who had their own “dark night of the soul.” We want to put God in a small, tidy box, but we are really only putting ourselves in a small, tidy box most of the time.

 

[Trident_H]

Thanks for your reply and questions. I’ll reply to you, because you had questions. Questions which I can answer.
.
Yes I do believe God is involved, and even though I fell from faith sometimes, it is that I met a nice priest whom is very understanding that I am back on the path of God.
.
I do agree with you there, I don’t think it’s wrong to share grief with God, after all he is there. I even pray and ask God to help me understand it, this is most that is in my prayers. I am still a bit scared to open my heart to God, truly. This sounds like a weird thing to say, as God can see into my heart probably. I wonder if he does it, we have free will and would he not also want us to show our heart to him? This is a hard thing for me to do. The anger but also the low regards I have of myself.
.
And thanks your probably right, maybe I have to pray to God and just ask him to help me open my heart. I don’t think I opened my heart to anyone ever, well when I did I would regret it always. I am quite sad and angry about this, that no one ever was there for me when I needed them. Even now it makes me afraid, all I wanted was for someone to just pat me, and tell me it will be alright.
.
I think to let out anger, for me in my state writing is best perhaps. I have rheumatism and my joints are hurting quite a lot. I also have a personality disorder which makes things even harder, to connect with people etc is hard. I think all I can do that is for myself is writing. As for something good I could do, well I guess I could always share my ideas, or maybe convey a message somehow.
Sadly I am a man of thinking, I have to think my mind is always thinking, but your right thinking solves little, well emotional problems are not solved by thinking. And I can’t think anger away either…
.
You did help but of course your right you’d need more details. If you have questions feel free to ask, though personal questions might be best in a private message. Thanks for your help.

Hey. Yeah. I get you on this score. I understand what it’s like. I was in a lot of pain when I joined here. I was ready to take God the wrong way at every chance. I was too afraid even to pay to Him. I didn’t trust Him a lot. Even though He’d helped me. I still felt personally rejected by Him. I still felt like He didn’t love me.

But I used that feeling to give me a different purpose. Fueled me so that I could really understand and see that pain in others. I see it in you. I see us as kin in this. I also am a guy who thinks. I’m not a big doer of things. I’m a thinker of thoughts. So I get where you’re coming from. I understand what that’s like.

So my suggestion to you is 2 things. First. Use your pain to be sympathetic to others. It’ll take the edge off your anger to know that your suffering has a real purpose. 2nd. Talk to me. A lot. PM me whenever you’re really angry. Or frustrated. Or just ready to vent. I’ll be your ear in this. I’ll hear you out. Front to back. Because I know what it’s like to be locked in that. To have that level of frustration. And it was only through talking to others here. To those willing to hear me out. That I finally moved past it. And made a great step forward in my faith. So yeah. I’ll be your link in this. Use it. We’ll shore each other up in this.

Peace.

-Trident

 

[Meemai]

It’s too bad that you think life without God is without purpose.
There are many Atheists who have great purpose and accomplish extraordinary things in this world.

I don’t understand how, if you believe in God–especially the Christian God…you would then be angry at this God for giving you a body with challenges.
Most people have bodies with challenges–probably all.

If you actually believe the doctrines and the stories of the religion, it doesn’t make sense to have this anger.

.

If you mean by purpose, accomplishments or reacahing extraordinary things. I would agree, my definition of purpose is that you need a purposer, someone that gives it. After all even if I invented the medicine against cancer, and cured millions of people. I would die and become a name in the books. That is not my purpose in life, to turn to dust and be nothing than a name in books.

I assume this is your personal interpretations? Why can we not be angry with God? Anger is a emotion born out of love, the opposite of love is not anger, but indifference. After all how can you get angry at someone you do not care about? We get angry, because the person we get angry at, is a person we care about in a way. Would you get angry if in the paper it said person 500 killed person 603.

You would get angry if person 500 killed someone close to you, or you would get sad, because you have a emotional connection it’s not just a cold case.

But I do not think that going in a discussion would you would do anything. Yet some people say in this topic anger is fine, and your the only one that says we shouldn’t be.

 

[frangiuliano115]

It’s too bad that you think life without God is without purpose.
There are many Atheists who have great purpose and accomplish extraordinary things in this world.

I don’t understand how, if you believe in God–especially the Christian God…you would then be angry at this God for giving you a body with challenges.
Most people have bodies with challenges–probably all.

If you actually believe the doctrines and the stories of the religion, it doesn’t make sense to have this anger.

.

Atheists are not the most sensitive people on earth, are they?

We’re HUMAN christians, Daddygirl. We have feelings. It’s not very sweet of you to make fun of this.

So, sometimes we’re happy and sometimes we’re angry and sometimes we’re thankful.

Know the great thing? We know WHO to thank.

Fran

 

[Meemai]

Atheists are not the most sensitive people on earth, are they?

We’re HUMAN christians, Daddygirl. We have feelings. It’s not very sweet of you to make fun of this.

So, sometimes we’re happy and sometimes we’re angry and sometimes we’re thankful.

Know the great thing? We know WHO to thank.

Fran

Thanks for this post;. Nor did Daddygirl take the chance to ask me what I meant by purpose. Purpose can have more than one meaning. But to me a purpose needs a purpose giver, and just doing great deeds, is not a purpose for me in the end I’ll turn to dust and go to nothing? That is what a atheist believes, atoms that fall apart like a clockwork.

 

[frangiuliano115]

Thanks for this post;. Nor did Daddygirl take the chance to ask me what I meant by purpose. Purpose can have more than one meaning. But to me a purpose needs a purpose giver, and just doing great deeds, is not a purpose for me in the end I’ll turn to dust and go to nothing? That is what a atheist believes, atoms that fall apart like a clockwork.

Well Amen to that!

Our purpose in life is to know, love and serve the Lord.
Everything else is to flow from that. Isn’t it wonderful to know for whom you do all those good deeds – And we can all do good deeds in one way or another. God helps us to do the best we can and we can do no more.

You also touch on a very theological idea which is that you can do “works” all you want to but they will not bring to salvation; however, once you know God and accept Him in your life, good works naturally flow.

You’re a perfect example of this. Without even, probably, intending to - you have stated it perfectly.

It’s very easy to say a lot of words - but those who are living their hardship and still llove and strive to serve God are to be commended.

God’s blessings
Fran