Formerly Atheist Catholic

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Nadelsa

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Hello everyone.

I was born and raised a Catholic. I have received all my sacraments. Yet during my rebellious teenage years, I became an Atheist. I was very much interested in the rationalist movements of Dawkins, Hitchens, etc. Once I became an Atheist I realized that my quality of life decreased gradually. And it wasn’t until a few months ago that I decided to come back to God.

The problem is that sometimes I still have doubts. The arguments that I have heard used against religion sometimes race through my head. Yet at other times, I believe I feel the Holy Spirit and my faith is strong. Is this normal? I have been reading the Bible daily, praying the rosary every night, and trying not to sin. I feel as though my faith is growing, but I want it even stronger! I know that is easier said than done, and that sometimes even the most devout Catholics have doubts.

My question is, what are some good tips for additional things that I can do to increase my faith? I really want to have a good relationship with God.

Thank you.
 
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Read. Study Read, study.
Rinse, repeat.
Get involved in your parish.
 
Nadelsa said:
I was very much interested in the rationalist movements of Dawkins, Hitchens, etc.
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When were these rebellious years that you’d read about Dawkins as an atheist?..
Hitchens, good choice.
Nadelsa said:
Once I became an Atheist I realized that my quality of life decreased gradually.
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Correlation does not imply causation… but… what do you mean by “quality of life”?
Would this have coincided with the 2008 economic crash that was felt all over the world?
Nadelsa said:
And it wasn’t until a few months ago that I decided to come back to God.
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I didn’t know that was a decision people could make… but ok…
Nadelsa said:
The problem is that sometimes I still have doubts. The arguments that I have heard used against religion sometimes race through my head. Yet at other times, I believe I feel the Holy Spirit and my faith is strong. Is this normal?
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Of course it is. It’s called cognitive dissonance. Google it.
Nadelsa said:
I have been reading the Bible daily, praying the rosary every night, and trying not to sin.
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It’s not about what you do. It’s about what you believe in.
There are many people who believe in a particular god, but practice none of the things that religion suggests.
Nadelsa said:
My question is, what are some good tips for additional things that I can do to increase my faith? I really want to have a good relationship with God.
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The best way is to integrate into a community of like-minded individuals. You’ll be amazed at how effective the ad populum fallacy works within us humans.
So, if you want to believe, be involved with a community of believers. There are usually social volunteering events organized by people from churches, you could join in.
 
Nadelsa said:
The problem is that sometimes I still have doubts.
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Why not tell us your doubts and we might be able to help?

I never paid much attention to Dawkins because I saw a few clips of him on YouTube and realised i could counter his points easily. Recently I went back and watched William Lane Craig debate Hitchens, Krauss and Harris (Dawkins wouldn’t do it) and i was shocked at how poor they were, with the possible exception of Harris. My conclusion is that they preach to the already converted. Their arguements are poor and easily countered.
 
Nadelsa said:
I really want to have a good relationship with God.
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How can you have a relationship with an invisible God you have never met? I believe Mathew 25:34-40 gives an answer…

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, 36 I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’

40 “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
 
And “anyone who tells you they know, they just know what happens when you die, I promise you, you don’t. How can I be so sure? Because I don’t know, and you do not possess mental powers that I do not. The only appropriate attitude for man to have about the big questions is not the arrogant certitude that is the hallmark of religion, but doubt. Doubt is humble, and that’s what man needs to be, considering that human history is just a litany of getting shit dead wrong. This is why rational people, former atheists like yourself even, must end their timidity and come out of the closet and assert themselves.”
 
That’s not true, Ellipses. The Bible teaches that “the beginning of wisdom is fear of the Lord.” Without being in humble awe of God you can make no strides whatsoever toward the truth. Believers in Christ do NOT believe it is better to embrace doubt than move continually toward the truth. Jesus revealed himself as the Way, the Truth, and the Life.Either you believe what he said or you do not.

To the OP, it sounds like God is calling you back to him and you are responding. That’s great–you are on the right path. As others have said, read and study. But also work on prayer and increased use of the sacraments. Try daily Mass, or at least Mass on some weekdays besides Sunday. Try monthly or bi-weekly confession. The more you use the sacraments, the more grace and light you are given. Ultimately, we can do all we can, but God directs our path toward him.
 
As someone who lived as an atheist for several years and struggled with disbelief the one thing I’d say is there is no absolute proof of God. If there was what would be the point of faith? For me there wasn’t any intellectual argument or evidence that drew me back, it was the fact that I needed God and he was there.
 
Hitchens is a good choice? Have you actually read Hitchens? That tells me you don’t know what you’re talking about.
 
Nadelsa said:
The problem is that sometimes I still have doubts. The arguments that I have heard used against religion sometimes race through my head. Yet at other times, I believe I feel the Holy Spirit and my faith is strong. Is this normal?
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This is normal. Even those of us with really strong faith, like myself (I am not bragging about this by the way, faith is a gift from God, I did not do anything to earn it and I am just lucky to have it), will have a shadow of a doubt sometimes that we need to immediately chase away. It’s the Devil doing his bad work, messing with our heads. If you were in the habit of doubting, it’s like somebody who was in the habit of smoking - it’s harder to get rid of the craving than for someone who never smoked or just smoked once a year.

I recommend going to Adoration and while you’re there, looking at Jesus, think of all the saints, especially the modern saints, who had such faith in Him and His presence. Think about their lives and how they were able to face death with a smile on their face because they knew they would soon be with Jesus. I truly believe that the great saints, including like I said the modern ones like St. Therese and St. Padre Pio, possess a superior knowledge of things that can’t be proven but must be taken on faith. Between them and Jesus, I stay strong in the face of what I believe to be devils at work.
 
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Yes, when this happens, I usually argue with myself and have the points and counterpoint about the topic.
However, it can get mentally exhausting.
 
i think you are doing everything right

maintaining faith can be very difficult

praying the Rosary gives me a lot of peace ; i hope this prayer does the same for you

Good Luck to you

brian
 
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Nadelsa,
First of all, Congratulations for coming back to the Church! Your story is a bit like mine: I was raised Catholic but fell way after I left school. I was never an atheist but I ended up being very unhappy. To cut a long story short, I returned to Mother Church after about twenty years of wandering around in the gloom of spirtual darkness. As time goes on I have less and less doubts about my faith. Any doubts, I find, come in waves - they arrive, then they disappear. My faith get stronger and the doubts get weaker.

Here’s a tip: Pray every day and as often as possible. God loves you and wants a relationship with you - that’s why He created you! And pray the rosary. The more you pray, the stronger your faith will get and the closer you will be to the Lord … and the closer you are to the Lord, the happier you will be (that’s how holiness works).

I assume you attend Mass every Sunday - very, very important!
 
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Nadelsa said:
I was very much interested in the rationalist movements of Dawkins, Hitchens, etc.
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The so-called “New Atheists” aren’t very impressive. Their arguments are quite easily defeated. I think Hitchens was generally a more respectable person than the other three “horsemen,” but in essence, much of what they say is regurgitated classical atheism mixed with a condescending nonsense. Nothing “new” about it. Dawkins has a severely flawed understanding of Aristotelian and Scholastic thought, and that flaw has been used to undermine his arguments time and time again.

I once found the “New Atheists” appealing, primarily because they told me what I wanted to hear - I’m delusional, stupid, ignorant, and a failure of natural selection for believing. All religious people are dumb and emotional. They cling to old superstitions and hold back progress. Etc. The God Delusion spoke to me on a personal level. Because of it I was thoroughly convinced that I’ve been a moron for the last 10 years.

Having now studied the counterarguments and developed a less …elementary… understanding of Aristotle, I can see there are indeed rational reasons to believe in God.
Nadelsa said:
Once I became an Atheist I realized that my quality of life decreased gradually.
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I can also attest to this. I’ve become more reckless and conceited since I gave up on the whole religion deal. I’m not afraid to admit it. But that’s only natural. Self-preservation, self-fulfillment, etc should replace things like love and humility in a naturalistic and materialistic worldview. If there’s nothing to aspire to – no end goal, no objective good – our own personal gain should suffice. Right? That’s the ultimate implication. Enter Nietzsche.
Nadelsa said:
The problem is that sometimes I still have doubts. The arguments that I have heard used against religion sometimes race through my head.
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They don’t go away.
Nadelsa said:
Is this normal? I have been reading the Bible daily, praying the rosary every night, and trying not to sin. I feel as though my faith is growing, but I want it even stronger!
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Here’s the deal.
Faith is a virtue, a gift from God, that we open ourselves to. So they say. We can do any number of things – check all the boxes on the devotional list – and still not have faith. I did that for many years and discovered that I never really believed to begin with. In fact, I once had the audacity to say, “If I weren’t Catholic, I would be an atheist. But nothing will ever shake my faith.” Then my best friend was killed and everything changed.
Nadelsa said:
My question is, what are some good tips for additional things that I can do to increase my faith? I really want to have a good relationship with God.
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I don’t know. It’s a journey that is unique to each person. I’m in a similar boat to you, probably leaning more on the agnostic side than Christian, so I’m open to advice as well.
 
If you don’t ever have doubts you probably aren’t thinking enough about your faith. Most people will doubt from time to time and I second the prayer of Lord I believe, help my unbelief
 
Yes it is a good choice.
Yes I have read him.
And yes I know what I’m talking about.

Each person reads things through their own perception bias filter. Mine makes Hitchens make a lot of sense… Yours, apparently, does not.
 
It’s very normal to have alternating feelings of doubt and extreme piety when you’re first starting to come back into the fold. They may fade with time or they may not.

My suggestion would be to keep praying, keep reading your Bible, keep trying to stay out of sin, but slowly start to add in positive actions of Faith. Try to live as a Christian. Don’t burn yourself out though! Slow and steady wins the race.
 
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