Confused - Becoming Catholic

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WindowsLM

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Hello all,

Forgive me if this is the wrong section. I’m am in the process of becoming Catholic, I’m a 25/m if that matters for anything.

The more I read and go through my lessons, it seems the more I understand the more confused I get. Now I have a list on questions for my friends and priest that I make and go through, but they seem like basic questions.

Example: The blessed Trinity

The more I think I understand about it the more confusing it becomes. Perhaps it’s the discussion questions and the way the book words it. Questions like, was the Holy Spirit always there? What does it dwell in our souls and what does it do for the church?

Is confusion like this normal? I pray for understanding, and do my best, but just when I think I’ve got something figured out, then I seem to come out more confused than when I went in.

Thanks in advance for your comments.
 
i think it is perfectly normal. there is a lot of knowledge and doctrine to understand and, naturally, questions, arise. if they didn’t, i would say you are not taking your studies seriously.

the questions will not stop once you are confirmed. the conversion process is a journey. being confirmed will be a step, but not the end of the journey.

i encourage you to continue to ask the questions you have to better understand the catholic faith. if you don’t ask, you won’t learn.

hope this helps. don’t give up.
 
If you do not yet know of Fr. Corapi, he is a great priest and speaker on the Catholic faith. I bring him up because he has a saying that applies here; I don’t know if it’s his originally or if he is quoting someone, but either way it’s good:

“A thousand questions don’t equal one doubt.”
 
Thank you for your replies.

That is a nice quote, I have not heard of him, but I will research him, thanks.
 
Hello,

I don’t want to get into my long, meandering conversion story, but suffice it to say that I began looking into becoming Catholic during Easter 2005, was confirmed during Easter 2007, walked away from the Church months later, and now am back to stay. I mention all of this just to indicate that the Faith isn’t something that can be studied and applied like Physics or Mathematics, but it must be experienced – and the experiences won’t always make sense. Outside of all the doctrines, the question which I had to ask myself was one of the most simple but most difficult: Do I want to follow Christ?

Trust me, I ranted and raved against the ‘yes’ which my heart was signalling, but I always give into myself…and thank God for that…
 
It takes prayer to understand Catholicism. Ask God to aid you and pray as you learn.
 
Hi “Windows” 👋 God bless you, I will keep you in my prayers.

The Holy Trinity is a Mystery… for Cradle Catholics, included. The Holy Trinity, existed from all eternity… Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Evidence of this Mystery has existed… from the earliest books of the Bible. Take the Book of Genesis…

“God said, 'Let US make man in OUR own image, in the likeness of OURSELVES…” (Gen. 1:26)

Do you see the use of the “plural”? The Holy Trinity! 👍

There is a famous story of St. Augustine. One day, he was walking along a beach, contemplating the Mystery of the Holy Trinity. He came upon a young boy, who had dug a hole in the sand; the boy was taking water from the ocean in a little pail and was spilling it into the hole in the sand.

St. Augustine asked him “What are you doing?” The boy said… “I’m trying to put the ocean into this hole”. St. Augustine laughed, and said “Well, that is impossible! You can’t put the entire ocean into that hole”.

The boy, responded… “Nor can you understand the Mystery of the Most Holy Trinity”. Then, according to the story… the boy vanished.

I have heard, that even in Heaven… we will not be able to completely fathom the Mystery of the Most Holy Trinity. But we believe, by Faith.

I hope this helps in some way. God bless you.
 
We’ll never be able to understand the Trinity, but there is an anology that can be used. You’ve no doubt heard of the shamrock and St. Patrick, but here is one based off of it that I think even more enlightening. Draw a circle. Draw anothe circle exactly like it on top of it. Do the same thing again. Now you have before you, three circles, and one circle. Now if the circle trinity, which exists in two dimensions can be so mysterious, how much more mysterious is our Lord, who exists out of time and space completely.

Hope that helps.
 
WindowsLM said:
Hello all,

Forgive me if this is the wrong section. I’m am in the process of becoming Catholic, I’m a 25/m if that matters for anything.

The more I read and go through my lessons, it seems the more I understand the more confused I get. Now I have a list on questions for my friends and priest that I make and go through, but they seem like basic questions.

Example: The blessed Trinity

The more I think I understand about it the more confusing it becomes. Perhaps it’s the discussion questions and the way the book words it. Questions like, was the Holy Spirit always there? What does it dwell in our souls and what does it do for the church?

Is confusion like this normal? I pray for understanding, and do my best, but just when I think I’ve got something figured out, then I seem to come out more confused than when I went in.

Thanks in advance for your comments.
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Faithful prayer and living according to His will inevitably brings a depth of understanding we may not at the present have - it’s a true pilgrimage. Assenting in Faith is the first step and continuing in this way in humility brings light to the intellect. A good help in approaching the questions of faith through intellectual study, especially regarding the doctrine of the Most Holy Trinity, is Frank Sheed’s Theology for Beginners; many have found this work extremely helpful.

God bless you on your journey home!
 
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