My faith is wavering- please help! Doubting Jesus!

[mariafransisca2]

The sites I particularly recommend to you is

St. Gemma Galgani, with her autobiography and diary
stgemmagalgani.com/2008/11/autobiography-of-saint-gemma-galgani.html
stgemmagalgani.com/2008/11/diary-of-st-gemma-july-1900.html

Miracles of the Church and Miracles of the Saints
miraclesofthechurch.com/
miraclesofthesaints.com/

Eucharistic Miracles of Lanciano (eucharist becomes real flesh and blood, and still preserved until now, after 1300 years)
eucharisticmiracles.blogspot.com/

May the merciful Jesus bless you

I pray for you

 

[mariafransisca2]

Oh, and I would suggest you to watch this catholic channel to strengthen your faith
youtube.com/user/catholichannel

May the merciful Jesus bless you

 

[JenniferB]

Oh, and I would suggest you to watch this catholic channel to strengthen your faith
youtube.com/user/catholichannel

May the merciful Jesus bless you

Thank you very much for the references! I think right now I really need to focus on regaining my faith in Jesus’ divinity. Then trying to reconcile with the Church will come next. However, I think there will always be some points of the church that I don’t agree with. Now that I don’t know how to reconcile! I’ll just have to live with it.

 

[Obby]

Jennifer,
It is the prophecies written in the Old Testament that prove the divinity of Jesus. Even an atheist would have to admit all the books of the Old Testament were written before Jesus was born. We know this beyond a doubt because there is historical proof that the Greek translation called the Septuagint was finished long before Christ was born.

Why do I tell you this? Because I want you to know that the stories and rituals of the Old Testament are “types” or “shadows” of the story of Christ. It would be impossible for anyone, except God, to have arranged stories and rituals to allude to Christ.

For example, read the story of Joseph in Genesis chapters 37 through 50, Joseph is a type of Christ. He was the brother rejected by his Jewish brothers, who suffers greatly and then becomes the savior of the Gentile world.

Look at the story of Abraham and Isaac. Genesis 22.

Now, look at a few amazing prophecies that are not stories, Isaiah 53 which is a horrible foretelling of the Lord’s passion 500 years before it happened. You MUST read this chapter, it is amazing.

Psalm 22 which is also a foretelling of the passion a 1,000 years before. “they pierced my hands and feet” “cast lots for my garments”

How about this following prediction: Which was written when the God of Israel was not known around the world and like I said before, this was written long before Christ was born.

Malachi 1:11 For from the rising of the sun even to the going down, my name is great among the Gentiles, and in every place there is sacrifice, and there is offered to my name a clean oblation: for my name is great among the Gentiles, saith the Lord of hosts.

The “Clean oblation” means a bloodless sacrifice - this is an amazing prediction when you think of it. The Hebrew carries the idea of a grain offering, like wheat, bread, communion wafer.

The first prediction about Christ is also the first prophecy in the Bible: Genesis 3:15 where God predicts that the “Seed” of the woman will crush the devils head. Not the seed of the man or the human race, but the seed of the woman, which every Christian believes is a prediction of the virgin birth of Christ.

 

[fred_conty]

Originally Posted by JenniferB
At the same time, since I believe in an all loving and all compassionate God, I don’t believe He will turn His back to any of His children that may not have followed Jesus. What happens to the people before Jesus was born? Are they all condemned to Hell because God made them be born before Christ?​

Hi,
How many fleas can gather on a golf ball?
How many cups of water are in the ocean?
How may galaxies are in space?

The answer: Does it really make a great deal of difference what the answer is?

Some questions just aren’t important and like swarming mosquitoes can drive us crazy.
Let it be.
If our sweet Jesus thought it important, he would have touched on that.

Isn’t it sufficient just to say, “I trust in you O Jesus” and rest it in his hands. I’m sure He is smart enough to figure it out justly without our help.

The problem isn’t really ours but Jesus’.

The problem we face is salvation, for ourselves, and for others, right now.​

“the whole world is in his hands…” Song

 

[followingtheway]

I’ll definitely say a rosary for you. And don’t worry I took a poll on Catholic Answers about this subject, many people believe Non-Catholics will go to Heaven. But as for me, only God knows. Everyone had doubts. It’s better not to be quick to demonize yourself.

God bless and I hope you sort this problem out. You are in my prayers. :byzsoc:

David

 

[fred_conty]

JenniferB comment:
I just find it hard to buy that every single word in the Bible attributed to Jesus is 100% correct​

Hi,
The Holy Bible are books and therefore contain all sorts of literary types of writing.
The Psalms are poetry and mostly written to be sung.
There is historical fiction, that is the story is based on history but actually is a fictional tale.
Part of them are actual history.
Some are to teach us about this life in this world.
Some are biographies.
Some are fictional.

But all the books had both a human author and a divine author.

The first book was written about 1500 years before Christ.
the last book was written about 150 years after Christ.

There are lots of other interesting things as well.

Here’s a short narration about how the Bible came to be.
www.Catholicapologetics.info/apologetics/protestantism/wbible.htm

And here is a site that goes into explaining what some have thought
to be errors in the bible.
www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/most/getwork.cfm?worknum=216

Once you being reading books on the Bible, it is hard to stop.

 

[JenniferB]

Some questions just aren’t important and like swarming mosquitoes can drive us crazy.
Let it be.

Isn’t it sufficient just to say, “I trust in you O Jesus” and rest it in his hands. I’m sure He is smart enough to figure it out justly without our help.

The problem we face is salvation, for ourselves, and for others, right now.​

“the whole world is in his hands…” Song

You sound like my husband. He doesn’t understand why I torment myself with this. He says no matter who I talk to or how many books I read, I will NEVER ever know the truth until I die and (hopefully) reach heaven and am worthy enough to stand before God.

I don’t know what it is that is in me that makes me continually seel. It seems that no matter what I do or how much I pray, I will never get anything good enough for an answer. It’s like I need Jesus to erect a billboard on a road by my house saying, “Jennifer B. I love you. I am here. All your worries are moot because I have taken caren of everything and everyone.” I feel like until I see this, I just can’t buy anything.

My faith is wavering. My passion is lessening, but my heart is telling me to hold on and ride this storm out.

 

[JenniferB]

I’ll definitely say a rosary for you. And don’t worry I took a poll on Catholic Answers about this subject, many people believe Non-Catholics will go to Heaven. But as for me, only God knows. Everyone had doubts. It’s better not to be quick to demonize yourself.

God bless and I hope you sort this problem out. You are in my prayers. :byzsoc:

David

God bless you for your non-judgemental answer. It is good to know im not alone. And thank you for your prayers. As you can see, I need them. God bless you.

 

[fred_conty]

JenniferB comment:
Do I think he was an ascended Holy man that was closer to God than I can ever hope to come in my lifetime? (referring to Jesus)​

Hi,
He is more that a Holy man Jennifer. He is the very Son of the Most High God, a natural Son of God the Father in union with the Holy Spirit. He, being God, is eternal and we are his creatures. So Jesus was not closer to God because He is God.

We acknowledge this in the Creed at Mass. “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, and His Only Son Our Lord…”

This is why we kneel to Him and don’t kneel to each other.

When you read the Bible, read it with this in mind and then you will understand it much better.

In passing, we genuflect to Jesus when we first come into church because He is really present in the tabernacle under the appearance of bread. He is actually alive in person just as He was when He walked the streets of Capernaum only under the appearance of bread. Since He is our loving God we genuflect to Him as we come into church.

 

[Jcnava15]

THANK YOU so much for writing this and putting it in these terms. I can definitely see how studying the historical Jesus would help strengthen my faith in Him. While I never doubted His extistence (or God’s), it is hard to come to terms with His divinity when there are other religious teachers out there.

I must make peace with the fact that I will never be a “you’re must be a ____ or you will go to Hell” kind of Christian. As a matter of fact, I don’t want to be. But in order to be in good standing with my faith, I will just have to not think about it. Period. Thinking about it makes me doubt the goodness and love of the Church.

Thank you everyone for your kind responses. I continue to pray daily that I find peace in Jesus and continue to strengthen my faith in a merciful and ever-loving Father God.

You’re very welcome.

I have to say I am on the same boat. I have studied countless apologetics. Debated with skeptics/atheists and what not. Even though, I feel very sure that what I believe is true, I have a persistent doubt.

I think it might be because I have throughout my life, up until recently, been a pessimist.
As a pessimist it’s easy to say that if something is too good to be true, it must not be. Yet that doesn’t say anything about the reality of things. C.S. Lewis talks about how when he was an Atheist he would doubt his atheism, and be scared that God really did exist.

I think doubt at least for me, is not really something that can be cured by more evidence, or signs. They help, but are short term solutions.

I think doubt is more a personality characteristic of certain people, including me that has nothing to do with the facts that we are presented with.

I know that when I am in relationships I tend to doubt whether or not my girlfriend really likes me, if she is being faithful to me. Sometimes I act needy just to sort of coerce her into reassuring me that she really likes me.

This type of doubt is painful, as it is not based on some question I can point to that once I get a good answer for it, I will be a ok.

I always have a new question. I think it’s because I am insecure, and I want security so bad, that I must run everything that could potentially offer me security through countless tests before I grab on to it. Whether it is faith, relationships, or anything else.

This type of doubt is a personality trait, and as such must be worked on in a manner that targets it from that perspective.

Wow… sorry if this is long, but it was therapeutic for me to write this. In a way, by answering you I have answered myself. Thank you, I hope you got something out of this as well.

 

[fred_conty]

JenniferB comment:
My faith is wavering. My passion is lessening, but my heart is telling me to hold on and ride this storm out.​

Hi,
“Jesus I trust in You.”

Jesus tests us different ways at different times in our life.
Someone once said, that if you don’t have any sufferings, then you have something to worry about. Because He tries those whom He loves and has faith in.

“Jesus I trust in Your Love, Heart, goodness and support”.

It will pass.

 

[fred_conty]

I have to say I am on the same boat. I have studied countless apologetics. Debated with skeptics/atheists and what not. Even though, I feel very sure that what I believe is true, I have a persistent doubt.

I think it might be because I have throughout my life, up until recently, been a pessimist.

Hi Jcnava,

Maybe this will help and maybe it won’t.

Ultimately it is God who gives us faith and we remain beggars at his loving hands.
But He told Peter to strenthen the brethern in their faith. So we can help or unhelp.

He has given me a strong faith for which I am so truely greatful. And I have asked myself
why is my faith strong besides his being merciful to me? And I thought about this some time ago to come up with the answer.

I believe He is the Son of God and whatever He says or does is without error.
Everything I do and feel in my faith rests on this one thought and belief.
If this is true and it is, then I live in the truth, have the truth, and am absolutely right in all that I believe because He supports it, the absolute truth.

How do I know He is God Himself? Because, tho others have raised people from the dead, none have raised themselves from the dead but Jesus Christ.

The other way that supports this is his saints, all sorts of them, from all walks of life, doing miraculous things, Mary being the prime saint who has appeared to us many times.
And they all sing pretty much the same Catholic song.

And then we have Jesus Himself who has appeared several times to saints.

And then the inner voice is undeniable when He talks. Once in a while when this occurs it is different than other times when there is something in me giving me a thought or direction.

But I know He is the Son of God without question and I know that He is with us.

At Mass is is just wonderful to be there in His loving presence bathed in his love. There are very few times I don’t cry out of gratitude for just being there. He is so good and kind to us. It is such a previlege for Him to ask for my presence. Even now I’m sniviling just talking about it. And I think about the universe, with millions of galaxies and billions of stars, and who knows how many planets and black holes. Such power and grandeur. And here I am at His Mass which is so much more that all that put together, and He made this known to me! a nothing. How great He is … He is truly the Son of God to whom I give praise and adoration.

He is indeed the Son of God, whom I believe and trust.

 

[JenniferB]

And then the inner voice is undeniable when He talks. Once in a while when this occurs it is different than other times when there is something in me giving me a thought or direction.

But I know He is the Son of God without question and I know that He is with us.

At Mass is is just wonderful to be there in His loving presence bathed in his love. There are very few times I don’t cry out of gratitude for just being there. He is so good and kind to us. It is such a previlege for Him to ask for my presence. Even now I’m sniviling just talking about it. And I think about the universe, with millions of galaxies and billions of stars, and who knows how many planets and black holes. Such power and grandeur. And here I am at His Mass which is so much more that all that put together, and He made this known to me! a nothing. How great He is … He is truly the Son of God to whom I give praise and adoration.

What I wouldn’t give for your kind of adoring faith. I pray that God continues to keep your faith in Him as strong as you describe! That sort of faith is priceless and I envy it a great deal. Hearing you speak of it keeps me going in search of it. I hope to find it and be in your position one day soon.

And to hear the voice of God, how wonderful! I haven’t heard Him speak to me yet and I beg him to all the time. I feel like I need that reassurance, just as JCNava has said. I can certainly see how being a Doubting Thomas is in my personality, though. That makes lots of sense to me.

 

[dedo]

All of us have dark times when we face trials that may include doubt about our relationship with Jesus. I heard even Mother Teresa had a dark period that lasted a long time. The question is how do we respond to these situations?

Once I heard a helpful suggestion that the best way to deal with these times is with a “faith affirmation” based on scripture.

Thus no matter how bad things look, you try and develop the reflex to approach the situation with a statement about God / Jesus’ love for you.

“God is still on His throne, and He has good things for me.”
“Thank you Lord for renewing my strength, so that I can fly like and eagle; so I can run and not faint.”

 

[fred_conty]

I feel like I need that reassurance, just as JCNava has said. I can certainly see how being a Doubting Thomas is in my personality, though. That makes lots of sense to me.

Hi,
But the greatest part of Thomas was not when he said He would not believe, but rather
“My Lord and my God”. The recognition He gave to Jesus as God. That is when it all falls into place. For everything then is right with him.

It may be that He is preping you for helping others when you find Him. He may be doing to you what He did to the disciples on the road to Damascus. When they met Him on the road they didn’t recognize Him. Then when Jesus sat with them at supper, He took bread, blessed it and then gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened. Then in their excitement they went to tell the others. This may be your role someday, to tell others to get them excited about the greatest thing that ever happened…

 

[JenniferB]

Fred: I hope that all of this has meaning and that there is a purpose to this struggling. You mentioned something in another post about how it is easiest to have faith during good times in life but harder to have faith during the struggling and trials of life.

This saddened me a great deal because right now, to an observer, I have a wonderful life. God has protected me and blessed me with so many wonderous things, family, friends, a wonderful home, the ability to help charities i feel strongly connected to, and amazing husband. I should be shouting Jesus’ name from the rooftops instead of doubting him and his deity. It makes me feel like Im broken.

 

[GEddie]

Fred: I hope that all of this has meaning and that there is a purpose to this struggling. You mentioned something in another post about how it is easiest to have faith during good times in life but harder to have faith during the struggling and trials of life.

This saddened me a great deal because right now, to an observer, I have a wonderful life. God has protected me and blessed me with so many wonderous things, family, friends, a wonderful home, the ability to help charities i feel strongly connected to, and amazing husband. I should be shouting Jesus’ name from the rooftops instead of doubting him and his deity. It makes me feel like Im broken.

No shame in that, we are all broken. That you feel it means you are psychospiritually whole. (Catch 22?)

 

[JenniferB]

No shame in that, we are all broken. That you feel it means you are psychospiritually whole. (Catch 22?)

Catch 22, indeed! How does this make me psychospiritually whole? So confused! Lol

 

[coolduude]

…

So, I beg for your prayers for me to find my strong faith again.
Thank you.

Before I begin my response to this, I do want to apologize in that I haven’t read the whole thread. If I raise a point or ask some questions that have already been covered, please forgive me. Four pages of a thread is a tad too much for me to read right now With that in mind:

I don’t feel that people of other religions are not “saved” in the Christian way. Because I believe that God is **all encompassing love **and compassion, I don’t believe that He would send any loving and moral person to Hell because they happened to be born in India and believe in someone named Ganesh. However He is able to save them (giving them a chance to recieve Him at Heaven’s Gate, dismissing their earthly beliefs because of thier moral character, etc) I believe that if He can, He will.

I’ll take this part first because it seems to be causing you the most problems. You’re right: God is love (1 John 4:8). Whoever tells you differently is the heretic. And let me tell you what I learned in my theology class from a conservative, orthodox, Catholic teacher: that God judges you on your morality system. Let me explain. There can be pagans in Heaven who were born hundreds of years before Christ. Why? If they were virtuous and followed the moral code of their day (and had no knowledge of Judaism), then God considers them good people- good enough for Heaven. The same goes for people today. If they are born in the remote jungle or desert, or somewhere where there is no Christianity, then God will judge them based on the morals of their society and how they followed those.

God wills all men to join Him in Heaven. That’s what it comes down to. But in His Infinite Justice, not everyone will get there. I don’t think I need to expound on that right now.

Do I believe that Jesus was able to perform miracles, heal the sick and blind, raise the dead, etc? Do I think he was able to speak to God and had a direct connection to Him? Do I think he was an ascended Holy man that was closer to God than I can ever hope to come in my lifetime? Yes. I can believe in that. But if God says that we are all His children, what makes Jesus being the Son of God any different?

It’s the last question here that makes all the difference. The simple answer is that Jesus is God.
God=Jesus
Jesus=God
They’re the exact same thing.

Jesus came to save us, something that only God can do through Himself. No human would suffice. Jesus was special because He is God incarnate that came to save us from our evil ways.

I can’t exactly stress that any more unless you have questions on His mission or the Incarnation or something like that. But really, Jesus is special because He is God.

I know what you’re feeling. Not so long ago I doubted Jesus’ Divinity (to a certain extent I still do, but now that I drilled the right answers into my head, my doubts aren’t too bad ). But I did recently lose a lot of faith and, with a lot of time and effort, I gained all of it back, and then some. You are in a dark, dark valley right now. But if you do everything right you will be atop the tallest mountain very soon.

The most important advice I can give you is to just hang in there. Don’t give up on God (and the Church) and He won’t give up on you. These struggles serve to make you stronger, which it certainly did for me. The position you’re in now stinks, no doubt about that. But you’ll get out of it.

Hang in there. If you can’t do it for God, do it for yourself. You won’t regret it.

PS- If any of what I said above is wrong, please someone correct me. The last thing I want to do is be incorrect on such an important matter.