Giving up Faith

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Senf2233

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So I have been talking to a community group about “Once saved Always Saved”. My stance is you cannot lose your faith but you can give it up(give it to something else). While one of my group members responded by saying quote “If you give up your faith in God you never had faith to begin with”. Where would you guys stand on this. I believe you can give it up usually to things of this world(Money, Time, Things, ect.)
 
Hi, and welcome to CAF.

A person can lose their Faith even when he or she absolutely does not want to and has everything to lose by doing so.

As far as once saved, always saved goes, I have people in my circles who believe this and it seems like a sinner needs Blessed Assurance that God will always be there and that once saved, a sinner has a pass into heaven, regardless if they sin after being saved.
 
People can receive grace, be justified, have faith and lose it.
 
We cannot save ourselves, if God decided He saves us we are saved because His call to eternal life is supernatural, coming TOTALLY from His decision and surpassing ALL power of human intellect and will.

John 15:16; You did not chose Me, but I chose you.

Acts 13:48; … as many as had been appointed for eternal life believed. – Not even one former unjust, idolaters, drunkards, etc. said no to God’s salvation.
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No one can keep himself or herself saved, if God decided and Decreed with an Absolute Decree from all Eternity that take us up to Heaven then God keeps us saved and at the end He takes us up to heaven.
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God bless
 
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Senf2233 said:
So I have been talking to a community group about “Once saved Always Saved”. My stance is you cannot lose your faith but you can give it up (give it to something else). While one of my group members responded by saying quote “If you give up your faith in God you never had faith to begin with”. Where would you guys stand on this. I believe you can give it up usually to things of this world (Money, Time, Things, etc.)
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There are the gifts of theological virtues or faith, hope, and charity, received with sanctifying grace. Sanctifying grace may be lost through mortal sin.

Catechism
1813 The theological virtues are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character. They inform and give life to all the moral virtues. They are infused by God into the souls of the faithful to make them capable of acting as his children and of meriting eternal life. They are the pledge of the presence and action of the Holy Spirit in the faculties of the human being. There are three theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity.77
77 Cf. 1 Cor 13:13.

1815 The gift of faith remains in one who has not sinned against it.80 …
80 Cf. Council of Trent (1547): DS 1545.
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There are sins against faith, hope, and charity.

Sins against faith are:
  • Voluntary doubt
  • Incredulity
  • Heresy
  • Apostasy
  • Schism
Sins against hope are:
  • Despair
  • Presumption
Sins against charity are:
  • Indifference
  • Ingratitude
  • Lukewarmness
  • Spiritual sloth (acedia)
  • Hatred of God
 
CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA Predestination of the elect exlains.

ante prævisa merita
“Asserts that God, by an absolute decree and without regard to any future supernatural merits, predestined from all eternity certain men to the glory of heaven, and then, in consequence of this decree, decided to give them all the graces necessary for its accomplishment.”

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Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma by Ludwig Ott;

a. There is a supernatural intervention of God in the faculties of the soul, which precedes the free act of the will, (De fide).

Our cooperation with God’s graces, caused and the product of God’s Supernatural Graces and His Supernatural Intervention in the faculties of our souls.
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b. Without the special help of God the justified cannot persevere to the end in justification. (De fide.)

No justified/ saved can persevere to the end without God’s special gift of grace, His gift of Final Perseverance, this is an INFALLIBLE protection of the salvation of every receiver. – De fide Dogma and also Infallible teachings of the Trent.
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As we see above:
The gift of faith remains in EVERYONE who has received His gift of Final Perseverance, this is an INFALLIBLE protection of the salvation of every receiver.

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CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA Divine Providence explains;

His wisdom He so orders all events within the universe that the end for which it was created may be realized.

He directs all, even evil and sin itself, to the final end for which the universe was created.

Evil, therefore, ministers to God’s design (St. Gregory the Great, op. cit., VI, xxxii in “P.L.”,
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303 The sacred books powerfully affirm God’s absolute sovereignty over the course of events.
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311 For almighty God, . . . because he is supremely good, would never allow any evil whatsoever to exist in his works if he were not so all-powerful and good as to cause good to emerge from evil itself. 177

324 Faith gives us the certainty that God would not permit an evil if he did not cause a good to come from that very evil, by ways that we shall fully know only in eternal life.
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301 God does not abandon his creatures to themselves.
He not only gives them being and existence, but also, and at every moment, upholds and sustains them in being, utter dependence enables them to act and brings them to their final end .
Recognizing this with respect to the Creator is a source of wisdom and freedom, of joy and confidence.
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God bless
 
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We are tested in various ways all the days of our lives.
We must endeavor to persevere in our faith. With God’s help will shall finish the race! 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
 
OSAS is opposed to free will. We can choose to reject Christ and Christianity, just as we choose to accept Christ.

The “then you never had faith to begin with” is a difficult position, because it says then that no one actually can be assured of Salvation. OSAS firmly hold assurance of salvation. This is where the discussion breaks down and you will get “well, you worship Mary” or another attempt to divert the conversation.
 
TheLittleLady said:
OSAS is opposed to free will. We can choose to reject Christ and Christianity, just as we choose to accept Christ.

The “then you never had faith to begin with” is a difficult position, because it says then that no one actually can be assured of Salvation. OSAS firmly hold assurance of salvation. This is where the discussion breaks down and you will get “well, you worship Mary” or another attempt to divert the conversation.
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Ay’yup…very thankful the Lord allowed me to wander and suffer.
To dip my toes into Calvinism, ect…so when He did call me back I had a much deeper appreciation and understanding of my faith.
I truly hope every Catholic that has not done so devote one hour a week, perhaps during adoration and read through the Catechism.
It brings into focus and cements our beliefs. It also lays waste to doubt and answers a lot of questions.
 
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Senf2233 said:
My stance is you cannot lose your faith but you can give it up
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Life’s not easy. It’s more difficult for some of us than others. I often hear, “If there was a God, why would He allow this or that?”

In those moments, I believe, it is very possible for someone to lose their faith.
 
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