Currently Questioning Religious Beliefs

[Viki63]

There are scientific attempts to prove the existence of God. Those are more or less successful, depending on one’s point of view.
Then there are people who get knocked off their horse and spoken to by God in a voice like thunder, such as St. Paul. This happens much much more often than people imagine. Those folks stop wondering and get busy trying to do the will of God. And somewhere in the Bible it says, if you do his will, you will know him.
You can come from the distant past, trying to figure out what caused the Big Bang. Or you can come to the present, the relatively recent past, and take a look at Jesus, who seems to have risen from the dead, because if he didn’t, why would each of his disciples have submitted to a martyr’s death rather than recant? That clinches it for me.
Besides, I heard his voice also.

 

[GaryTaylor]

The word-the law is written in the heart, true this can be re-enforced by supernatural intervention. And it probably does occur more than we would be lead to believe. Still in the greater percentage its Faith to believe and thus to then be realized what you believe.

 

[Joko2599]

Sometimes I also feel like the Church is hostile to other groups and not accepting.

 

[ynotzap]

Sometimes I also feel like the Church is hostile to other groups and not accepting.

The Catholic Church is never hostile to other groups,and not accepting. Some members in the Church are, or may be. That’s the danger of scandal, the Church suffers for the example of it’s members. Jesus said that scandal will come, but woe to those from whom scandal comes. We don’t accept what we can’t if it counters our belief, but we can agree were we can. There is the Ecumenical Movement to come to an agreement on things we can agree.

 

[Linusthe2nd]

Throughout my life, I have been a faithful and devout Catholic. However, for the past few months, I have been questioning my beliefs. I am more leaning towards Agnosticism now. By nature, I like the scientific process, and have found many theories that explain the universe in a way that does not require religion. I feel like I am losing my belief in a higher power. Not necessarily going against it, but rather remaining neutral on the existence of God(s).

At times, I feel like my religious beliefs may inhibit certain scientific theories and social progress (although this by no means affects my beliefs in general).

So why am I here? I’ve heard a lot of irreligious commentary on the subject. But before I make up my mind, I want some members of the Catholic community to offer me some insight. Are there any thoughts? Thank you.

Are you saying you have been living in the state of grace, receiving the sacraments regularly, have a regular and serious prayer life, truly know your Catholic faith ( have read the Catechism of the Catholic Church ) and now doubt the faith? Doesn’t seem possible to me.

Why should science alone cause you to loose your faith? True science cannot and does not contradict the Faith because God ,who is Truth, is the auththor of both Faith and Science and he does not contradict himself.

Science cannot prove the universe created itself, it cannot prove it sustains itself and it cannot prove it directs and governs itself, irrespective of Hawkings, Dawkins, Krause, et al.

Linus2nd

 

[ynotzap]

Joko2599: Can you really say you were converted to the Catholic Faith is the first place?
Did you have an encounter with Jesus, turning from sin and turning to God? Or did you just follow a format of receiving the Sacraments and formal indoctrination without really being honest with what you learned, and did you really learn about the faith and apply it to yourself? If you did not have this encounter, you were not really converted. So can I think that you are giving up the Faith you never had? Faith is a gift from God, accepting Jesus for the Savior, God-man, and Redeemer, and committing ourselves to Him and His teachings. Can you honestly answer this? Do you have the courage to answer this? Man scientist are Godless. One astronaut made the statement that when out in space, looking at the Universe and the earth, how could anyone doubt the existence of God. You don’t hear that true statement from many scientists, or even astronauts. Few there are who find their way.
The philosophy of the Agnostic is that you can’t know, know God. This is a big lie perpetuated by ignorant minds and one that is perpetuated by Satan, I guess you can’t know that either. Many do not, even some Catholics. Some of us really do. Again we can’t give what we don’t have, no blame but we can seek it if we really want to.

 

[lynnvinc]

Throughout my life, I have been a faithful and devout Catholic. However, for the past few months, I have been questioning my beliefs. I am more leaning towards Agnosticism now. By nature, I like the scientific process, and have found many theories that explain the universe in a way that does not require religion. I feel like I am losing my belief in a higher power. Not necessarily going against it, but rather remaining neutral on the existence of God(s).

At times, I feel like my religious beliefs may inhibit certain scientific theories and social progress (although this by no means affects my beliefs in general).

So why am I here? I’ve heard a lot of irreligious commentary on the subject. But before I make up my mind, I want some members of the Catholic community to offer me some insight. Are there any thoughts? Thank you.

Christianity has brought us science through its transcendental conception of God and the idea that all the things in nature work according to God’s natural (scientific laws), though God is not something in nature, but beyond; so in this way science is way to understand the physical/empirical world without consideration of God. To focus on a scientific study we can subtract God from the equation, and that’s because of our conception of God as being the author of creation but not in creation itself. I think atheistic science as a method I think is fine; I think God may be more pleased with us attributing natural phenomena to natural causes than to some anthropomorphic deity made in the image of our limited understanding.

What I mean is that many religions explain the universe and its workings as due to various gods, goddesses, and spiritual forces. If it thunders, perhaps Zeus is angry. Or it is the tree spirit that makes it grow and its leaves sway in the wind, or the brook babble.

In the Judeo-Christian concept, God is “totally other,” beyond and transcendent of nature, and yet immanent, very near, with us, according to what we read in the Bible – the experiences of prophets, saints and the advent, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. John of the Cross said that the only sense we need for belief in God is hearing – to hear what is written in the Bible.

You can get to science thru Christianity and our Christian concept of God – and there is nothing in science that goes against Christianity, since it is all based on God’s natural laws & whatever we discover scientifically is God’s natural laws and can help lead us to a greater understanding and appreciation of God. However, you cannot get to God thru science, since God is both the “seen” and the “unseen”; God is infinitely greater and more encompassing than science.

One of my insights has been to understand God a wee bit better thru parallels: the universe from the tiniest of starts in the Big Bang; all of life on earth thru some microscopic DNA strands replicating and thru evolution over millions of years to the grand panoply of species, big whales, very intelligent beings (us); from a tiny babe in a poor manger to the King of Kings, the King of our hearts. Who could have imagined on their own – we had to learn this and have even had difficulty in accepting it. I think it is a great time to be living, knowing science and understanding God in ways we could not have known before, when we thought the earth was flat and the sun revolved around it. For me science only strengthens my belief in and appreciation of God.

I think religious people go thru phases and cycles in which they have lesser and greater faith and belief; and there is greater merit in clinging to faith when one is beset by doubt – the dark night of the soul. Prayer is a great way to get help, and help beyond imagining.

I have found the following YouTube video helpful, which starts out “There are two ways to live your life: One is though nothing is a miracle. The other is though everything is a miracle.” Everything is a miracle – some miracles have scientific explanations, and some do not…yet youtube.com/watch?v=CZZFO9F8FWU

Another film that might help (tho there a few tiny issues with it) is The Perfect Stranger – see youtube.com/watch?v=XPPwQApwBsA