Moments Of Faith, Moments Of Doubt

[benyjets23]

“Some people have moments of doubt. I have moments of faith.”

  The above quotes my faith walk.  Since I was 15 (I am now 26) I struggle with doubts.  Is there a God?  Who was Jesus?  And stuff like that.  I know that there are good reasons to answer that God exists and Jesus rose again, but it does not change the internal questions and uncertainity.

 My question is are there people here who doubt their faith?  Who, like me may have his heart in the right place, who loves God and Jesus and yet still can't shake their doubts?  What do you do?

  I have talked to a Priest who has struggled with his own doubts, and I have read articles about Mother Teresa who went through her doubt phases.

Ben

 

[Church_Militant]

Read “Story of A Soul” by The Little Flower.
Guess what my friend…you’re human. God loves ya and loves to hear from you when you doubt.
James 1:5 But if any of you want wisdom, let him ask of God, who giveth to all men abundantly, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.
Pax vobiscum,

 

[AlanFromWichita]

Paul Tillich, a late big-name theologian, was quoted in a Catholic magazine as saying, “doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is an element of faith.”

After much study and consideration, I now take that to mean, in part, that there really can’t be faith without doubt. If there was no doubt in our worldly minds, then faith would not be required.

I’ve also heard some say that the opposite of faith is not doubt, but indifference. That’s interesting, but I think it’s a little abstract for my taste.

Alan

 

[Patchunky]

CHRIST IS RISEN!

Hi Ben

See if you can find a book called WITH GOD IN RUSSIA by Fr.Walter Ciszek, SJ. This is one of the books that changed my life.

I have had many “moments of Faith” also. Sometimes they are as simple as hearing our priest proclaim CHRIST IS RISEN at Resurrection Matins or singing Matins outside in chilly dawn and watching the Sun rise over the mountains as we sing about God creating the Light.

Other times, it was more profound. Visiting relatives in Communist Czecho-Slovakia in 1989 and sitting by myself during Divine Liturgy because my cousin had to stand behind a pillar in a small side chapel so the Secret Police wouldn’t see him, he was a teacher and would have lost his job. Going on the Calvary Pilgrimage and watching the peasant women climb the 40 concrete steps on their knees to the Station where Jesus carries His cross.

One of the most emotional was in the village where my grandparents were born and raised. I was staying with cousins who I had met for the 1st time. We went to Divine Liturgy and the Cantor came over to me, took to the front of the choir loft, handed me a prayer book and simply said “SING”. I turned to a hymn that I knew and just let loose. I could heads turning and looking up at me and my cousin wiping tears from her eyes. I finished and looked at the Cantor and his tear streake face and he said “We thought you had forgotten all this and us…” He thought because I lived here in America that I had lost my faith in God and the traditions of my Byzantine Rite ancestors. It was emotional for all of us…

This is a path you have to walk alone. We will be here to help you along when you stumble or question but we can’t make the decision for you, that’s between you and God.

I will light candles for you tomorrow at Divine Liturgy…

CHRIST IS RISEN!

 

[Ahimsa]

Do you doubt your own existence?

Do you doubt that you are seeing words on the computer screen?

Do you doubt whether you have doubts?

Doubt is simply a type of thought. Next week, you’ll have another type of thought, perhaps thoughts of faith. Thoughts change constantly. You can’t depend on your thoughts.

Who is it who is aware of thoughts, who is aware of doubt, who is aware of faith? Where did that “who” come from? What is the source of that “who”? You can simply call it “The Source”, or you can call it “God”.

 

[AlanFromWichita]

Ahimsa:

Who is it who is aware of thoughts, who is aware of doubt, who is aware of faith? Where did that “who” come from? What is the source of that “who”? You can simply call it “The Source”, or you can call it “God”.

I like the way you are taking this. For that matter, if “I” have a body, soul, and spirit, who is this “I” to whom this is given?

Alan

 

[UKcatholicGuy]

Hey beny,

thats a great song by the way! anyway, I can relate 100% to what you said. I too have more doubt than faith. But, according to some posts, maybe we just really have a ot of faith. I like to look at it that way. The devil attacks those who are most closely following God. So we must be doing somethbing right to be having all these doubts!

But if theres one piece of advice i can give you: PRAY. Prayer is the answer to everything, literally everything. The God of the universe is right there at our fingertips!! We can literally talk to Him whever we want! wow! PRAY PRAY PRAY! This is the only thing that gets me through. Good books help a lot, but prayer is absolutely key. Faith is a gift from God, not an intellectual understanding, so we MUST pray for faith.

PRAY PRAY PRAY! ask the Holy Mother to pray for you. Ask the angels and saints to pray for you. Pray Pray Pray! Add your request for faith to a prayer list. you can find them on the internet, ewtn has one. Get as many people as you can to pray for you. and remember: PRAY PRAY PRAY!

 

[UKcatholicGuy]

Hey beny,

thats a great song by the way! anyway, I can relate 100% to what you said. I too have more doubt than faith. But, according to some posts, maybe we just really have a ot of faith. I like to look at it that way. The devil attacks those who are most closely following God. So we must be doing somethbing right to be having all these doubts!

But if theres one piece of advice i can give you: PRAY. Prayer is the answer to everything, literally everything. The God of the universe is right there at our fingertips!! We can literally talk to Him whever we want! wow! PRAY PRAY PRAY! This is the only thing that gets me through. Good books help a lot, but prayer is absolutely key. Faith is a gift from God, not an intellectual understanding, so we MUST pray for faith.

PRAY PRAY PRAY! ask the Blessed Virgin to pray for you. Ask the angels and saints to pray for you. Pray Pray Pray! Add your request for faith to a prayer list. you can find them on the internet, ewtn has one. Get as many people as you can to pray for you. and remember: PRAY PRAY PRAY!