How can I have confidence in God's protection?

[CLaDeaux]

If God will allow good Christians who obey Him and who pray for his protection often (Like clergy) to be overcome by a “natural evil” such as a mental illness that causes them to lose their free will and commit horrible evils on mankind (which are obviously against His will), then what is the point of praying for God’s protection? Why would God allow a good Christian like that who ASKED for his protection not to receive it, and to be reduced to such a horrible state of being out-of-control and committing horrible evils on themselves and others [Remember, I’m talking about evils that are against God’s own will]? What “greater good” is served when a person who has served God faithfully all his life is allowed to become “criminally insane” and commit atrocities on God’s other children? Where was his guardian angel? Where was the old “God will never give us more than we can bear” addage? It has me seriously questioning if God really DOES protect us. How could God let that happen to someone who put his complete faith in Him? And if God will let a person like that fall into ruin, how can I possibly have any faith that God has MY best interests at heart? When is He going to abandon me to a fate worse than death? This is a terrible predicament to be in. If you could help me solve this one, it would be great. Thanks!

-Carol

 

[thistle]

If God will allow good Christians who obey Him and who pray for his protection often (Like clergy) to be overcome by a “natural evil” such as a mental illness that causes them to lose their free will and commit horrible evils on mankind (which are obviously against His will), then what is the point of praying for God’s protection? Why would God allow a good Christian like that who ASKED for his protection not to receive it, and to be reduced to such a horrible state of being out-of-control and committing horrible evils on themselves and others [Remember, I’m talking about evils that are against God’s own will]? What “greater good” is served when a person who has served God faithfully all his life is allowed to become “criminally insane” and commit atrocities on God’s other children? Where was his guardian angel? Where was the old “God will never give us more than we can bear” addage? It has me seriously questioning if God really DOES protect us. How could God let that happen to someone who put his complete faith in Him? And if God will let a person like that fall into ruin, how can I possibly have any faith that God has MY best interests at heart? When is He going to abandon me to a fate worse than death? This is a terrible predicament to be in. If you could help me solve this one, it would be great. Thanks!

-Carol

I recommend a book by Father Benedict Groeschel called Arise From Darkness: What To Do When Life Doesn’t Make Sense.

 

[CLaDeaux]

I recommend a book by Father Benedict Groeschel called Arise From Darkness: What To Do When Life Doesn’t Make Sense.

OK, thanks, I will give that a try. I just hate it when I get these questions in my head that seem to mean “the end of the universe as we know it” until I find the answer.

Carol

 

[Liberian]

C LaDeaux,

Hello and welcome to the Catholic Answers Forums! I hope you have a blessed and fruitful time here.

Do you have any specific examples of this happening? You have presented a rather dreadful scenario but without a specific example it is not possible to say whether this has actually happened.

I can tell you that in at least one case where a good Christian was “overcome by a ‘natural evil’ such as mental illness” the disorder was there in the beginning. In this case the good Christian was “overcome” so that she could start to deal with this defect here on Earth rather than waiting until she reached Purgatory–if indeed she would have made it that far. (I ask your prayers that her being “overcome” not be permanent.)

• Liberian

 

[Veritas41]

I recommend a book by Father Benedict Groeschel called Arise From Darkness: What To Do When Life Doesn’t Make Sense.

That reminds me of an episode of *Father Benedict Groeschel Live *on EWTN where Father Groeschel mentioned his patron saint, St. Benedict Joseph Labre (I think I spelled that right), whom I had never heard of before. Father Groeschel said St. Benedict was likely schizophrenic and lived on the streets, but he had a great devotion to Christ in the Eucharist, and when he died, the people who knew him all acclaimed him as a saint. I think it’s interesting that someone with such a severe mental illness could still attain a high degree of sanctity. Clearly being mentally ill doesn’t mean someone is abandoned by God.

 

[CLaDeaux]

C LaDeaux,

Do you have any specific examples of this happening? You have presented a rather dreadful scenario but without a specific example it is not possible to say whether this has actually happened.

I can tell you that in at least one case where a good Christian was “overcome by a ‘natural evil’ such as mental illness” the disorder was there in the beginning. In this case the good Christian was “overcome” so that she could start to deal with this defect here on Earth rather than waiting until she reached Purgatory–if indeed she would have made it that far. (I ask your prayers that her being “overcome” not be permanent.)

• Liberian

Yes. About 5 years ago a good priest who had served in our diocese for many years was suddenly arrested for setting his church on fire. The Church never gave good details as to what caused him to do it. All we know now is that he is “retired” in Fl.

There is also the recent case of the priest in Ohio that is accused of killing a nun in a “ritualistic” manner. I don’t know if there is any verdict on the case yet, maybe he ISN’T guilty, so I am hesitant to use this as an example, but the link an article from April can be found here: bishop-accountability.org/news2006/03_04/2006_04_15_Yonke_LandmarkMurder.htm

The whole notion just has me shaken. My point about “mental illness” wasn’t that God abandons us if we have a mental illness. It was the fear that God may abandon some to a mental illness, accident, brainwashing, etc. that causes them to lose their ability to distinguish right from wrong and begin to do things that are seriously against God’s will (Antisocial Affective Disorder would be an example). In fact, I’m sure that if I didn’t suffer from “Pure O Obsessive Compulsive Disorder” (An anxiety disorder that makes a person fear that s/he will end up harming others) myself, I may never have though of this question in the first place. I just want to know that God is really there and DOES protect us when we ask for it - or at least that He will not ever abandon us to anything as horrible and contrary to His will as that.

-Carol

 

[CLaDeaux]

That reminds me of an episode of *Father Benedict Groeschel Live *on EWTN where Father Groeschel mentioned his patron saint, St. Benedict Joseph Labre (I think I spelled that right), whom I had never heard of before. Father Groeschel said St. Benedict was likely schizophrenic and lived on the streets, but he had a great devotion to Christ in the Eucharist, and when he died, the people who knew him all acclaimed him as a saint. I think it’s interesting that someone with such a severe mental illness could still attain a high degree of sanctity. Clearly being mentally ill doesn’t mean someone is abandoned by God.

Yes, I am familiar with that Saint. My point was not that being mentally ill means that that person has been abandoned by God. My point is actually more about God allowing one to lose one’s free will through ANY natural evil and abandoning that person to a life of evil acts.

-Carol

 

[Daniel_Marsh]

Hi Carol, have you ever read through the book of Job, Psalms and Proverbs?

 

[CLaDeaux]

Hi Carol, have you ever read through the book of Job, Psalms and Proverbs?

Yes, the assurance of God’s protection (or at least that He doesn’t send affliction upon us in this life because we “screwed up”) contained in these books is what has me confused as to how it is that God does NOT seem, then, to always protect good, prayerful people from falling into a state of the loss of free will that causes them to do things that are clearly against His will. If God is not protecting us (or at least some of us) from things like that, what IS he protecting us from? If He can allow someone like a priest to fall into that kind of ruin, how can I ever expect that he will keep ME safe from anything that I ask protection from?

-Carol