Feeling unworthy

[moira]

Today at Mass I had a feeling of being unworthy to be there. Especially when receiving Holy Communion. I attend Mass every week and regularly go to Confession. But then I seem to fail miserably. I guess that’s what Confession is for.
Does anyone else have these feelings? If so, how do you overcome them?

 

[Trishie]

“God is asking me, the unworthy, to forget my unworthiness and that of my brothers, and to dare to advance in the love which has redeemed and renewed us all in God’s likeness…to laugh, after all, at the preposterous idea of ‘worthiness’” Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, Thomas Merton.

“Glory be to Him whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine; glory be to Him from generation to generation in the Church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever. Amen.” [Ephesians 3: 20-21]

“Since in Jesus, the Son of God, we have the supreme high priest who has gone through to the highest heaven, then we must never let go of the faith that we have professed. For it is not as if we had a high priest who was incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us; but we have one Who has been tempted in every way that we are, though He is without sin. Let us be confident, then, in approaching the throne of grace, that we shall have mercy from Him and find grace when we are in need of help.” [Hebrews 4: 13-16]

“I have chosen you, not rejected you, do not be afraid for I am with you; stop being anxious and watchful for I am your God. I give you strength, I bring you help, and I uphold you with my victorious right hand” [Isaiah 41:9-10]

Saint Therese of Lisieux encourages us in our attempts towards holiness in our vocation to love and serve. Of her own response to the call, she wrote, “This desire could certainly appear daring if one were to consider how weak and imperfect I was, and how after seven years in the religious life, I am still weak and imperfect. I always feel, however, the same bold confidence of becoming a great saint because I do not count on my own merits since I have none, but I trust in God who is Virtue and Holiness. God alone, content with my weak efforts, will raise me to Himself and make me a saint, clothing me in His infinite merits. I didn’t think then that one had to suffer very much to reach sanctity, but God was not long in showing me this was so and in sending me the trials I have already mentioned.” Therese remarked that such holiness may “not be evident to the eyes of mortals.”

 

[dje101]

Today at Mass I had a feeling of being unworthy to be there. Especially when receiving Holy Communion. I attend Mass every week and regularly go to Confession. But then I seem to fail miserably. I guess that’s what Confession is for.
Does anyone else have these feelings? If so, how do you overcome them?

I’ve felt unworthy too. I think the thing to remember is that we ARE unworthy to be communing with the Lord in such an intimate way, yet Christ died for this and God calls us to this. You are acknowledging one of the two parts…our unworthiness. The second part is that God’s mercy and love are revealed ever so clearly by the fact that despite our unworthiness, He still calls us to the supper of the lamb and desires for us to live in communion with Him.

So, how do we overcome this sense of unworthiness? Just remember that you are following God’s will when participating in the mass and receiving communion. Do an examination of conscience to determine if you’ve committed any mortal sins, which break that communion with the Lord. If you have not committed any mortal sins, then still accept communion. I don’t think this mentality of unworthiness is a bad thing; in fact, I think this mindset is one that is encouraged by the fact that we pray “Lord, I am not worthy that you should enter under my roof. But only say the words, and my soul shall be healed.” The fact is, we ARE unworthy to commune with the Lord, but His mercy and love is what makes it possible, and that mercy is what we should be focusing on.

 

[Aunt_Beana]

Last fall our priest told us that we could not receive communion. We kind of “fell apart” during the process to annul the 6 prior marriages (none in the Church…we are recent converts) and divorces that we had between us. We no longer wanted to live in sin and married by the Town Clerk in the park. We had been receiving communion at that church for the six months before and as soon as the actual marriage announcement hit the the town newspaper, we were told to step back from communion. The homily that day was infused with how “some people just shouldn’t be Catholics”. We have been drifting from one church to another and feeling “unworthy” ever since. We want and need to receive the Body of Christ…Would appreciate any thoughtful caring (name removed by moderator)ut…Aunt Beana:bighanky:

 

[mountee]

AuntBeana, Since you are new here I would suggest that you submit a message to an apologist on this issue, they give truly great responses but are very busy so be patient. The priest was only following the Church’s laws when he told you not to receive communion in light of your marriage statuses. I know it can be very confusing, I learn something new on this forum virtually everyday, but the Catholic Church has some requirements regarding valid Catholic marriage. Please be patient and if this is the path for you let the priest guide you through the process. God bless you.

 

[JRKH]

Today at Mass I had a feeling of being unworthy to be there. Especially when receiving Holy Communion. I attend Mass every week and regularly go to Confession. But then I seem to fail miserably. I guess that’s what Confession is for.
Does anyone else have these feelings? If so, how do you overcome them?

Would it surprise you to hear that nearly everyone has these feelings; that not only are the common but, to a reasonable extent, they are healthy?
Yes - I said healthy.

Why? Because feeling unworthy should drive us, not to despair, but to gratitude.
Gratitude for the great gift of salvation, of the Eucharist, of God’s grace upon us who are poor and unworthy servants (Luke 17:10).
Gratitude for the hope in our hearts that one day, when our sojourn here is done we might here our Lord say, “Well done good and faithful servant” (Mt 25:21).

So try to recognize such feelings for what they are - as prompts to gratitude and spurs to greater effort in our faith journey. An invitation to deeper prayer and understanding and a closer relationship with our redeemer.

Peace
James

 

[JRKH]

Last fall our priest told us that we could not receive communion. We kind of “fell apart” during the process to annul the 6 prior marriages (none in the Church…we are recent converts) and divorces that we had between us. We no longer wanted to live in sin and married by the Town Clerk in the park. We had been receiving communion at that church for the six months before and as soon as the actual marriage announcement hit the the town newspaper, we were told to step back from communion. The homily that day was infused with how “some people just shouldn’t be Catholics”. We have been drifting from one church to another and feeling “unworthy” ever since. We want and need to receive the Body of Christ…Would appreciate any thoughtful caring (name removed by moderator)ut…Aunt Beana:bighanky:

Please do not despair or “church hop”. God has given you great grace already and it is perfectly understandable that you are heartbroken at not being able to physically receive him in the Eucharist.
But know this…you DO receive him every time you attend mass and humbly submit to the dictates of His Church. He knows and He will bless you for it.

Also - I agree with the poster above who suggested asking about this in the “ask an apologist” forum…Or perhaps just starting a new thread…Depending on where you are, and the particular circumstances…perhaps some folks here can help put your mind at ease.

And welcome home to the Church and also to the boards…Happy you are here.

Peace
James

 

[Contra_Mundum_1]

I’m sorry things are difficult, but please don’t lose and hope and don’t feel unworthy. This is not about you and your value as a human being (because God loves you and you truly are precious, never forget that) but about your situation. There are rules about what makes a marriage valid and priests must do what is right. By asking you to not take communion he is helping you becase to let you receive could well be dangerous for your soul. I hope that your situation will be resolved soon. God bless.

 

[NiceMimi]

To Moira and Aunt Beana:

Christ died for our sins. No one is perfect. I wouldn’t worry about not being perfect. That was not the point of Christ dying for our sins. God loves us no matter what.

Aunt Beana, just follow what the priest says about the annulments. Once you are done, I believe you will be able to celebrate the Holy Communion again. Several people I know who had to wait for an annulment were able to celebrate Holy Communion again once the annulment went through. Not being able to celebrate Holy Communion doesn’t mean God does not love you.

In Christ,
Mimi