Struggling with Faith

[Drew518]

Im having a ton of trouble right now with my faith. I came back to my faith in July and have been to confession and have done my best to go to mass regularly. Im also doing my best to pray everyday and read a passage from the Bible everyday. But I still feel like my soul is dead.

Maybe its cause I keep finding all my faults that I haven’t mentioned in confession. Or maybe its just my lack of knowledge. I try and read about stuff like State of Grace or Mortal Sin, and hear everyone’s stories about how they can understand God’s will for them so clearly, and it just makes me depressed a little bit. Makes me feel that even though I’ve been working to repent from my sins, my soul is still dead and everything I’ve done the past few months has meant nothing.

Like today, I know for a fact that I have a mortal sin I need to confess; at least one. And I know I can’t accept Christ at Communion. So my brain just says why go to mass when you have this sin on your soul and cant accept Christ. I mean confession is tomorrow followed by a mass. But it just bothers me that I feel my soul is dead. It feels like I’m missing out on everything. Anyone have any advice?

 

[LegoGE1947]

Im having a ton of trouble right now with my faith. I came back to my faith in July and have been to confession and have done my best to go to mass regularly. Im also doing my best to pray everyday and read a passage from the Bible everyday. But I still feel like my soul is dead.

Maybe its cause I keep finding all my faults that I haven’t mentioned in confession. Or maybe its just my lack of knowledge. I try and read about stuff like State of Grace or Mortal Sin, and hear everyone’s stories about how they can understand God’s will for them so clearly, and it just makes me depressed a little bit. Makes me feel that even though I’ve been working to repent from my sins, my soul is still dead and everything I’ve done the past few months has meant nothing.

Like today, I know for a fact that I have a mortal sin I need to confess; at least one. And I know I can’t accept Christ at Communion. So my brain just says why go to mass when you have this sin on your soul and cant accept Christ. I mean confession is tomorrow followed by a mass. But it just bothers me that I feel my soul is dead. It feels like I’m missing out on everything. Anyone have any advice?

You could still go to Mass During Communion you pray for “Spiritual Communion” with The Lord. (Anyone know the prayer I’m referring to that a woman’s voice over prays during Daily Mass on EWTN?) Or you can come forward with arms folded across your chest and the Priest will simply make the Sign of the Cross over you.

 

[Avila123]

You are not alone in your struggle, many people have the same issue at different times. I wonder whether the best option is to speak to your Priest as you are describing an ongoing situation which isn’t going to vanish overnight. Maybe you could catch him after mass or ring him and ask if you can come for a private talk because you are having problems. He can at least give you consistent spiritual advice or put you in contact with a Spiritual Adviser or Mentor.

On the plus side, hard as it may to believe, but persisting in faith and prayer when you struggle is admirable. It shows strength of faith and courage.

As an extra, you could post up a prayer intent, so that your CAF friends can pray together for you to have the help you need to grow in faith?

May God bless you.
You have my prayers as soon as I stop typing.

 

[AmyMCGS]

I go through what I call “spiritual dry spells” periodically. I find it helpful to absolutely surround myself with Scripture and messages of faith. I do that by:

• listening to Christian music (KLOVE) in the car, and Catholic talk radio when possible (local station has a weak AM signal)
• Facebook is a daily habit for me. I “like” several Catholic pages, so that those links are in my daily newsfeed.
• I also enjoy Pinterest, so I subscribe to many Catholic pages
• My screen savers & wall calendars all contain Scripture messages
• I read mostly Christian fiction, so that even when I’m not studying Scripture, there are still positive messages there

Those are just a few examples, but I find it really helps me to be constantly surrounded by faith-filled messages in my normal daily activities. I feel like maybe the spiritual messages still sink in even when it’s hard for me to consciously focus on them.

 

[JRKH]

Adivce…
First - take this matter to your confessor. He will perhaps be able to help you sort through some things.

Second - Try not to get too wrought up in your failures but rather - rejoice in your successes. Going to mass - even if you cannot receive communion is a success. It means you have not given in to the depression. Rejoice in this success. Go - and gather in the graces of simply being among your fellow Catholics and listening to God’s Word.
Participate in a spiritual communion and let the sorrow of your sin (which prevents you from receiving) wash over you. This too is a blessing for it will impress upon you more fully a desire to never commit that sin again.

Third - Look to the Lord. Rest in His Love and His mercy. Tied in with the above…Turn your focus more to doing good and not just avoiding bad. Nothing builds up faith better than faith in action. Offer everything that you do to the Lord. (See the prayer in my signature).
Do everything for the Love of Him.

If you do these things, I believe that you will find yourself more joyful and that you sin less often - especially mortal sin.

Peace
James

 

[Michael_Mayo]

But I still feel like my soul is dead.

But it just bothers me that I feel my soul is dead. It feels like I’m missing out on everything.

Does that feeling of death diminish your faith in God?

 

[fred_conty]

Im having a ton of trouble right now with my faith. I came back to my faith in July and have been to confession and have done my best to go to mass regularly. Im also doing my best to pray everyday and read a passage from the Bible everyday. But I still feel like my soul is dead.

Maybe its cause I keep finding all my faults that I haven’t mentioned in confession. Or maybe its just my lack of knowledge. I try and read about stuff like State of Grace or Mortal Sin, and hear everyone’s stories about how they can understand God’s will for them so clearly, and it just makes me depressed a little bit. Makes me feel that even though I’ve been working to repent from my sins, my soul is still dead and everything I’ve done the past few months has meant nothing.

Like today, I know for a fact that I have a mortal sin I need to confess; at least one. And I know I can’t accept Christ at Communion. So my brain just says why go to mass when you have this sin on your soul and cant accept Christ. I mean confession is tomorrow followed by a mass. But it just bothers me that I feel my soul is dead. It feels like I’m missing out on everything. Anyone have any advice?

“…I keep finding all my faults that I haven’t mentioned in confession.”
Are these faults serious faults or just faults? Because if you feel like some may be serious then what would follow would be…"…it feels like my soul is dead."

In serious sin, one is dead, it does not allow the Holy Spirit to be present in your temple, the soul.

But if you can say that you have told all your serious sins in confession and have hid none, then it is only your feelings and emotion which are dictating this idea.

This is the reason why the saints do not pay attention to their feelings, good or bad, but live by faith alone. This takes practise to live by faith and ignore feelings. Even if the feeling are good, and it gives us pleasure, they are somewhat dangerous. For living from one feeling to the next for assurance that we are in union with God does not work well. Because the next feeling may be a downer, even tho there is no rational or spiritual good reason for it. And so we now would feel dead to God and far from him because we rely on our feelings instead of our faith and knowledge.

So examine your conscience, and if you have not hid serious sin, then begin to live more for God thru your faith, and try to wean yourself off of emotions for they should not lead you.

Of course when serious sin enters the picture, then it is true that death also enters.
But then this is based on truth, not emotion.

May God our Father give you grace and peace.

 

[Drew518]

“…I keep finding all my faults that I haven’t mentioned in confession.”
Are these faults serious faults or just faults? Because if you feel like some may be serious then what would follow would be…"…it feels like my soul is dead."

In serious sin, one is dead, it does not allow the Holy Spirit to be present in your temple, the soul.

But if you can say that you have told all your serious sins in confession and have hid none, then it is only your feelings and emotion which are dictating this idea.

This is the reason why the saints do not pay attention to their feelings, good or bad, but live by faith alone. This takes practise to live by faith and ignore feelings. Even if the feeling are good, and it gives us pleasure, they are somewhat dangerous. For living from one feeling to the next for assurance that we are in union with God does not work well. Because the next feeling may be a downer, even tho there is no rational or spiritual good reason for it. And so we now would feel dead to God and far from him because we rely on our feelings instead of our faith and knowledge.

So examine your conscience, and if you have not hid serious sin, then begin to live more for God thru your faith, and try to wean yourself off of emotions for they should not lead you.

Of course when serious sin enters the picture, then it is true that death also enters.
But then this is based on truth, not emotion.

May God our Father give you grace and peace.

Some of them are serious faults. I ended up fighting back tears during mass today because all I could think about was my sin and how sorry I was.

 

[JRKH]

Some of them are serious faults. I ended up fighting back tears during mass today because all I could think about was my sin and how sorry I was.

This is actually a blessing…Tears of sorrow AND Joy for with this kind of sorrow - how likely is it you will commit the sin again?

Peace
James

 

[LegoGE1947]

This is actually a blessing…Tears of sorrow AND Joy for with this kind of sorrow - how likely is it you will commit the sin again?

Peace
James

I think Augustine experienced the same thing and could say “The tears did me good.”

 

[fred_conty]

Some of them are serious faults. I ended up fighting back tears during mass today because all I could think about was my sin and how sorry I was.

I’m not sure you understood what I was saying about your faults.

When asking if these were serious, I mean to say, have any serious faults not be forgiven in confession. If this is the case, then there is good reason that you feel dead.

If these faults were not serious, then there is no reason for you to feel dead.

In fact you don’t need to feel anything to know if you serious faults have been forgiven in confession because they either were forgiven or they were not. Feelings have nothing to do with that.

But if you have no serious faults and still feel that you are dead, then feelings are leading your spiritual life which should not be. Then something else is at work.

May God bless and keep you. May God’s face shine on you. May God be kind to you and give you peace.

 

[Drew518]

I’m not sure you understood what I was saying about your faults.

When asking if these were serious, I mean to say, have any serious faults not be forgiven in confession. If this is the case, then there is good reason that you feel dead.

If these faults were not serious, then there is no reason for you to feel dead.

In fact you don’t need to feel anything to know if you serious faults have been forgiven in confession because they either were forgiven or they were not. Feelings have nothing to do with that.

But if you have no serious faults and still feel that you are dead, then feelings are leading your spiritual life which should not be. Then something else is at work.

May God bless and keep you. May God’s face shine on you. May God be kind to you and give you peace.

These serious sins haven’t been confessed yet. I just had remembered these during an examination of conscious. Im going this weekend to confess.

 

[fred_conty]

These serious sins haven’t been confessed yet. I just had remembered these during an examination of conscious. Im going this weekend to confess.

May God our Father give you grace and peace.

 

[LegoGE1947]

May God our Father give you grace and peace.

I need prayer for our son Brian who is apparently in an adulterous relationship. He says he is divorced from his wife and is dating another girl, but the Circuit Clerk says no divorce has been filed.

 

[Euwe]

Im having a ton of trouble right now with my faith. I came back to my faith in July and have been to confession and have done my best to go to mass regularly. Im also doing my best to pray everyday and read a passage from the Bible everyday. But I still feel like my soul is dead.

Maybe its cause I keep finding all my faults that I haven’t mentioned in confession. Or maybe its just my lack of knowledge. I try and read about stuff like State of Grace or Mortal Sin, and hear everyone’s stories about how they can understand God’s will for them so clearly, and it just makes me depressed a little bit. Makes me feel that even though I’ve been working to repent from my sins, my soul is still dead and everything I’ve done the past few months has meant nothing.

Like today, I know for a fact that I have a mortal sin I need to confess; at least one. And I know I can’t accept Christ at Communion. So my brain just says why go to mass when you have this sin on your soul and cant accept Christ. I mean confession is tomorrow followed by a mass. But it just bothers me that I feel my soul is dead. It feels like I’m missing out on everything. Anyone have any advice?

The fact that you’re asking the question here about how to restore your faith suggests to me that your soul isn’t dead. Far from it in fact:thumbsup:

The advice given thus far is great. I wish you well,

 

[Bookcat]

Regarding venial sins --one does not need to confess all ones venial sins. They can be forgiven in a more general way then and in other ways outside of confession (including Holy Communion).

Regarding mortal sins that one* forgot *to confess…

A person who repents and thus intends to avoid mortal sin and goes to confession intending to confess all their mortal sins --but then forgets some. If that person remembers this later -does that mean he needs to not go to Holy Communion? No. For that mortal sin was absolved with the rest. One may go to Holy Communion.

He simply is to confess the forgotten mortal sin in the the next confession.

It would be good for you to make an appointment to see a Priest outside of the regular confession times for not only confession but for direction.

Sometimes with those who return to living the Faith more intensely there can be some confusion about what is what. With time and counsel that can be cleared away.

As to “feelings” they do not necessarily match reality. Keep following Christ! (Prayer, Sacraments, Mass, Reading the Bible etc). In him is* true life *even if ones feelings may not always match that reality. Remember we “walk by faith not by sight” and one could throw in that feelings too are not always a good “spiritual compass” (despite Star War’s “Luke trust your feelings” exhortation…)

Jesus is the *Good Shepherd *-and he loves you and is with you -even carrying you on his shoulders…