Missing my old religion

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bookish

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Hi, guys. I almost don’t want to write this here, since I am sure it will be either controversial or at least probably portray me in a negative light here. But before I can go to confession and pray about it, I wanted to talk to fellow Catholics about my problem: I miss Wicca, my old religion, terribly. I miss everything about it. The way it made me feel, the good friends I had, the knowledge, the peace, everything.

I came back to Christianity just last year via fundamentalist evangelicalism, though I was raised in the Catholic Church (well, raised by kinda-sorta Catholics–you know the type) up until my teens. I re-joined the Catholic faith late last year after being rightfully convinced that it was the one true faith. And I was, really and fully, content and secure with it. But ever since then I’ve had longings for Wicca, little smatterings of sadness and remorse at what I had. What I have given up is nothing compared to Jesus Christ–I know this deep down–so I am not sure why I miss my old faith so much. Perhaps Satan is tempting me. Perhaps I’ve let myself get too sentimental and I’ve slipped up. Perhaps since springtime has come (I’ve always been very sensitive to nature and my surroundings) it is making me miss the way I used to celebrate it.

I usually don’t have a problem with this. I am able to quell these longings through prayer or just avoiding the thoughts altogether. I am usually very strict in my faith. I accept all the teachings of the Church, really admire and love the Pope, pray daily, go to Mass and confession whenever it is required, etc. So it bothers me, and I know it must hurt Jesus, when I dwell on what I left behind.

Does anyone else ever miss the religion they left? How did you overcome this?

Last of all, I wanted to ask you guys to pray for me even though this isn’t the prayer request section. I thought this might be a more appropriate category, though, since it pertains more to my faith than to simply asking for prayers.

Thank you so much for listening.
 
Bookish,
You said it yourself, Satan is tempting you, especially since you
have been devote.
Remember Who it is that gives us nature and all that is good and
Praise Him for it and celebrate the Creator.
I will pray for you to be able to resist the temptations you are
facing.
Seems I’m always short on time but I hope this is helpful.
 
I imagine that is why St. Paul speaks of our struggles in this world in living our faith in Christ as a “race”. In deed a race is tiring, gruelling at times and often it is easy to want to stop running and defer to an easier path one of less resistance, greater ease, more subject to temporal satisfaction.

Being Catholic calls one to live to the highest intention God longs for his children, that of Sanctification (Be holy as your Father is Holy). One has said that being Catholic is not hard, it’s downright impossible outside of God’s grace. Perseverence in the face of adversity, even when it comes from within yourself, will bring great blessings and spiritual growth.

Read some of the stories of the greatest Saints their lives where often full of adversity. This is not scandelous, this is what is real about living our faith. For if you profess to believe something yet it crumbles to the ground when the weight of adversity is placed upon it, did you truly believe it with every ounce of your heart? Yet when you meet that adversity head on and discover the fortitude to stand by what is right and true regardless of the cost to eartly desires it brings about life changing blessings. God knows clearly our hearts but it seems to me that often our journey in life often is about becoming aware ourselves of our strenghts and our weaknesses. Perhaps God is allowing you to choose him over lesser things. Perhaps you need to see the strenght of your faith in Christ through the perspective given through adversity. I suspect this trial is a great grace that God will unfold for you in his time.

It’s like making tempored steel. You can only make this superior steel by removing the carbon (the weaknesses) out of the iron. It takes the adversity of the striking hammer to remove it. Our adversities met with fortitude and sacrifice have a similiar spiritual deminsion. You become a transformed and stronger son of our Heavenly Father when you persevere through trials both great and small. Perhaps God has deemed this trial as essential for your spiritual growth. When you are feeling the longing for lessor things perhaps visualize Christ on your final day looking into your eyes and saying “well done my good and faithfull servant.” Use this trial to live your faithfulness to Christ. I’ll be praying for you!
 
  1. Talk to Jesus about it in prayer - with open heart, and surrender it to Him.
  2. Maybe you can get involved in some prayer grour or ministry, find new friends etc?
 
I do understand where you are coming from. Even though I wasn’t anything except Catholic I still went down a path of deep sinful behavior. I can understand what it means to miss some of what I thought of then as “harmless fun.”

What you say here isn’t all that controversial. If you came here and posted, “I miss the evil I experienced in my former religion,” we’d be checking your forehead for a fever and delirium! But you didn’t. You are missing some very real emotions that were tied to your former religion.

I’ve met many former {insert name here} who miss the fellowship of their former beliefs. They miss that warm gush, the tingles up the spine. They miss what many people call the ‘warm-fuzzies.’ I missed them too, as I left my former (incorrect) beliefs. I ask many people of other beliefs, “So what do you do when the warm-fuzzy wears off? Where are you in your beliefs when what you believe doesn’t constantly give you that new high?”

Please know that to be truly Catholic we don’t always walk in the Spring (the Resurrection.) We wander in the desert. We feel the cold of winter. We feel the loneliness up on the Cross. To be truly united with Christ is to walk every step of His journey. Yet at the same time, since God is outside of time, we live everything all at once. We live Jesus incarnate, His living ministry, His Crucifixion, death, Resurrection, and Ascension all at once.

He is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. That is something to truly get emotional about!
 
bookish said:
Hi, guys. I almost don’t want to write this here, since I am sure it will be either controversial or at least probably portray me in a negative light here. But before I can go to confession and pray about it, I wanted to talk to fellow Catholics about my problem: I miss Wicca, my old religion, terribly. I miss everything about it. The way it made me feel, the good friends I had, the knowledge, the peace, everything. I usually don’t have a problem with this. I am able to quell these longings through prayer or just avoiding the thoughts altogether. I am usually very strict in my faith. I accept all the teachings of the Church, really admire and love the Pope, pray daily, go to Mass and confession whenever it is required, etc. So it bothers me, and I know it must hurt Jesus, when I dwell on what I left behind.

Last of all, I wanted to ask you guys to pray for me even though this isn’t the prayer request section. I thought this might be a more appropriate category, though, since it pertains more to my faith than to simply asking for prayers.

Thank you so much for listening.
Click to expand...
You are on the battlefield in spiritual warfare! Try Googling “Catholic spiritual warfare prayer” and read through them. One will fit your situation exactly. The evil one is trying to lure you away from the truth. One of the prayers will bring fast relief. When you are most tempted, or feel the longings the strongest, make the sign of the cross and command the evil one away from you. It is very powerful medicine.

Merciful and loving Father, You conceived of bookish from all eternity as an irreplaceable part of Your Divine Plan. Graciously bestow strength in this time of need. You see the evil one circling and tempting with lies. Send Saint Michael the Archangel to defend bookish in battle against the evil one’s servants, who seek the destruction of souls. Reveal Your truth and beauty as never before, allowing bookish to see that worshipping the Creator is greater than worshipping mere creation, as good as it is. Father in Heaven, all strength, all truth, all peace and serenity come from You. Draw bookish’s heart close in this time of danger, and spread Your Heavenly protection like an Angelic blanket, shielding this precious soul from all danger. We ask this through our Risen Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen! Alleluia!

Christ’s peace be always with you.
 
bookish,
You have the truth in front of you. Satan does not want you to have it. Keep praying and receiving the sacraments regularly. If you want you can even do some fasting. All these things fight the devil. I will be praying for you.

God Bless,
Matt
 
You’re certainly not alone in this. I practiced Wicca before I became a Christian and then was a non-denom Christian before becoming Catholic. There are still moments when I miss aspects of both Wicca and the casual, social air of my old non-denom church. Sometimes I think “I wish I could have that again.” But the idea of giving up what I’ve gained in the Church could hardly compare with being able to partake of the True Body and Blood. As the other posters said, keep praying and focusing on what you’ve gained by coming home to Catholicism. Also keep in mind that old cliche “the grass is always greener.” Plus, you said you just recently came to Catholicism (or came back to it) a year ago. So you’re still getting used to not having Wicca and its trappings in your life. Just keep strong and, even if you don’t necessarily have a strong emotional tie to the Church at any given moment, remind yourself of all the wonderful, intellectual reasons for your decision to return to Catholicism.
 
One of the things I learned from reading C.S. Lewis and G.K. Chesterton is that no religion man has created is 100% wrong. God always hides some little spark of truth in that can lead you to Christ, if you’re really looking for Him.

For example, one of the things I remember and appreciate about Wicca - their appreciation for nature. 🙂 So may I suggest taking a retreat? Either arrange one through your church, or just set one up for yourself. Find some area where you can be close to nature as well as to a church (perhaps a monastery in your area) - someplace where you can easily go outside, walk around, breathe the fresh air, and also attend Mass and receive the Eucharist every day if possible.

You might also want to write down the things in Wicca you are missing - and see if you can find a way to incorporate any of those things in your daily walk with Christ. Perhaps you’d like to set up a little altar or icon corner in your home, with candles, where you can say your morning and evening prayers.

Also you may want to arrange for a face-to-face confession with a priest you respect, and ask his advice.

Whatever you do, don’t be worried and don’t give in to the temptation to chuck it all and go back to Wicca. The good things you found in Wicca got you this far - now you need to keep going! 🙂
 
Maybe…something that could help you…Since you love nature and feel strong about spring…is that you could go outside in a peaceful spot and pray there everyday of spring surrounded by nature. 🙂
Or something like that.
 
I know what it’s like. I miss lots of old religions I’ve been involved in before. But if I went back I’d miss what I’ve found – forever, and horribly!
Wicca is a made-up amalgamation of old European, A.N.E., Eastern and Native American ideas pasted together in a very modern, self-conscious, industrial-age arrangement that imitates the way we like to imagine ancient people thought. It bears little resemblance to any real ancient belief system. Its appeal is the drama, the ability of anyone to wander in and got hrough some initiations and training and soon be a leader, the ability of anyone to redefine what it is, and of course the feeling of “knowing” things hardly anyone “knows”. Beyond that, the idea of loving nature is just as much a part of Christianity as paganism, and the camaraderie is here, too. We have if anything even more art happening here, and lots of holidays. Don’t be tempted to return! I know how bad things can get, in Wicca or any false religion, for there you are without shelter when the enemy comes to play with you. Hold on to the truth and stay the course. Pass the test. Run the race so as to get the prize. Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth and the Life and He has proved it thoroughly. A lie could never give the same satisfaction, nor can a lie save your soul from desolation.
 
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