I feel like I’ve been losing my faith lately. … I think the root cause is because I’ve been getting frustrated with how things have been going lately. I’ve also been disappointed with the way that some fellow Catholics act.
Hi BT,
You and St. Paul have a lot in common. He was disappointed with the way that some fellow Catholics acted also. Think of how difficult that must have been for him, seeing as how the best he could do in his circumstances was send a letter appealing to their better qualities.
I want to come back to the issue of faith, but first there is something you really need to hear. Please know I say this with love; I would not spend time writing this only to make someone feel - perhaps - worse. What you need to hear is this: Stop using other people as the excuse for what you do. That’s a very bad habit to start and a difficult one to break if it gets established, so do yourself a favor and stop it.
This is what I mean:
I’ve also been disappointed with the way that some fellow Catholics act. They claim to be good Catholics, but the things they do are hardly Christian.
Can you see the similarity in your statement and a man with an alcohol addiction that says something like: “I only drink because my wife treats me like ____ and my kids don’t respect me. I feed them, buy them clothes, put a roof over their head, and they don’t care a whit about me. That’s why I drink.”
Which is baloney! If, in my fictional example, you could remove the supposed cause, that is, make his wife and kids treat him like a Prince, the guy would still drink. He’d just find another “good reason.” Maybe his family treats him too well now. :nope: Likewise, if I could push a button and make your problematic Catholics vanish, would that fix it, and your faith would then be sound, and you’d have faithful attendance at Mass/Sacraments? Only you know the honest answer to that question, and I am not asking for a response, just that you answer the question for yourself.
The more “stuff” you put on the pile of “why I have difficulty with my faith” means you will have to sort through more junk to get to the bottom of the pile, to the reason(s) that will truly decide the issue for you. That is why I urge you to make a more serious examination of your reasons.
Okay, I’m off the soap box now.
Back to faith.
I think I still feel His presence sometimes, but it’s just been really hard. Anyway, I’m just rambling.
When I read this I see a testimony to the reality of actual grace. Funny how we have different perspectives, isn’t it?
Almost everyone I know has had a crisis of faith at one point or another. I say almost because I haven’t asked everyone I know. If I did, it’s possible I could report a unanimous result. Often these were not brought about by a crisis, but more a matter of routine, boredom, and a sense that you’ve gotten all out of the faith you’re ever going to get. Our Liturgy, being as fixed as it is, sometimes makes people feel they worship by rote and after a time they tire of it. These are real feelings, BT, and there is nothing sub-human or dishonest about feeling them. The question becomes then, what can you do about it?
Well I can think of several things. You know our Church is a community, and you know that in any community worth being in the people who are doing well have an obligation to their brothers and sisters who are not. So one thing you can do is seek the help of the community. Okay, how? Well there are many answers, but mine would be to start with your priest. Tell him how you feel, faith slipping away, etc. and seek his counsel. Next I would go to some of your fellow parishioners that you know and trust and ask them if they’ve ever experienced what you feel and how did they handle it?
Then there is your own motivation. If your life in Church is dull, spice it up! Find something to get involved in that makes the Church more real and meaningful to you. Pray more. Read more. Go on a retreat. These are things that can break up the routine.
Then there is the matter of belief. This is a touchy area, and is best discussed with your priest than on a forum. But drifting away, judging from what people who came back to the Church relate to us, is all too often characterized by a lack of faith that starts out under the guise of being bored, then moves to questions of faith, and without any real effort to try and rediscover them - i.e. doing nothing about it, leads to abandonment. So if there are issues along this line, I would suggest you make some effort now to try and rediscover the meaning it once had to you. Again, your priest is the go-to guy for these issues.
I’ll pray for you, BT, that you might, through grace, have answers and find His peace.
