Can doubt ever constitute a grave sin?

[homeloan]

I see your point. I would just add that, if something is really bugging you and you can’t seem to find a good answer, you shouldn’t hesitate to bring it up with your priest. At the very least, the priest can be part of this ongoing conversation on all theological issues, both glorious and mundane!

I agree. But when I see how busy they are (we’ve got 3), I just think, “boy, this better be pretty important because the last thing they need is to be holding some eccentric parishioner’s hand debating some abstract theological issue…”

 

[mathematician]

hi holly,
doubts may be grave sin, difficulties, never.

If doubts are a grave sin quite a few saints are in big trouble. Therese of Lisieux to name but one.

 

[antoniosantos]

I have doubt. I can see the Church has several degrees of doubt.

It appears “Involuntary Doubt” is OK. Not so for “Voluntary Doubt”. It gets worse, it seems with "Incredulity, downright nasty with “Heresy” left unchecked becomes “Obstinate Doubt” (muy malo) and “Apostasy” is like sleeping with the Devil and “Schism” is like Henry the VIII’th.

For me, I’m definitely not “Schism”, pretty sure I’m not “Obstinate Doubt (Heresy)”, maybe not too far off from “Incredulity”, so I’m probably “Voluntary Doubt” and definitely “Involuntary Doubt”.

However, my doubt is more of a question than a real doubt. I believe in the Creed but I want to know why God created such a violent world when it would seem He didn’t have to.

After all, He is omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent & omnificent. In other words,
He has unlimited power,
Infinite awareness,
Complete, universal knowledge,
Exists at all places at all times,
He has unlimited creative power.

Given those attributes of the Almighty, there seems to be a redundancy with Him giving us “free will”. Because He has complete, universal knowledge & infinite awareness, therefore He knows beforehand who will obey and who won’t.

So why would He subject us to all this misery only to see the majority of us condemned to the Netherworld for all of eternity just for the brief flicker of time that we would have spent here on Planet Earth disobeying, which He knew we would all along?

So, is a question the same as a doubt? I don’t think so, but “Cathologists”, well-versed in “Cathology” may disagree. I don’t see the harm in asking tough, probing questions. After all, God gave us brains…

hi homeloan, your thoughts are interesting. did anyone was gracious enough to explain or answer your “doubts” in a theological approach? incidentally, I have almost the same question as you do, which i have been submitting to this forum hoping for an intellegent answer. so far none. God Bless.

 

[homeloan]

hi homeloan, your thoughts are interesting. did anyone was gracious enough to explain or answer your “doubts” in a theological approach? incidentally, I have almost the same question as you do, which i have been submitting to this forum hoping for an intellegent answer. so far none. God Bless.

Hi Antonio; no, not yet. At least not specifically. However, if you follow some of the posts on several of the various topics, most of these issues are being debated, sometimes pretty aggressively!

Let’s keep “crying out in the wilderness” for answers so we can discuss & debate these most difficult, complex questions.

I believe that if respondants just hunker-down and call us reprobates, they’re doing themselves a disservice. Debate like this should strengthen ones faith, not dissipate it.

Your post, and others, prove that these provocative theological questions, asked by RC’s / Christian’s, are valid. Thanks for you response!

 

[Holly3278]

If doubts are a grave sin quite a few saints are in big trouble. Therese of Lisieux to name but one.

Well, those saints obviously went to confession quite frequently. Not to mention that according to the Catechism, it depends on the type of doubt.