What does it mean to have a personal relationship with God?

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Did you read the second part of my post? I care when I see people struggling and in pain and hurting.

I am not a Hallmark card type of person though 🙂
 
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I will pray that you manage to find God, the real God who loves you. When you do meet him, it won’t be a matter of “I have to go to church because there’s this rule and if I break it, God sends me to hell.” Instead it will be, “God is really present at church and I want to go there and see him.” As someone who went from missing Mass on most Sundays for about 20 years who now tries to attend Mass daily and Adoration a couple times a week, I’m not down there because I’m afraid of Hell, in fact I’m honestly not afraid of Hell now, or even afraid of Purgatory, because I trust God to just take care of me. It feels much better than when I was running around committing sins (much worse stuff than missing Mass) and kind of relying on humans to meet my needs, as humans always fell short (especially in sinful situations). Sin doesn’t look very attractive anymore, as it would make God unhappy (like making your mother or dad cry, to me), mess up my life, and by taking me out of the state of grace reduce my ability to help others through prayer. If I fall out of a state of grace I can’t receive Jesus in the Eucharist and I can’t get indulgences or merits to help the Holy Souls and losing those two things would make me a sad panda. Sin is just not worth it, it’s not any fun when I think of all the negative aspects.

I am not advocating for sin, but I do think people who’ve been in sin or addiction or some really bad trouble can have some of the strongest relationships with God because they know what it’s like to be really down in the dirt and have God almost inexplicably pull them up and out, just because he loves them because they know they sure didn’t earn God’s love through their behavior.

The people on here mean well. I think one problem with this forum is that everybody who regularly posts here has their own developed relationship with God, whether they see him more as a friend or more as a helpful but authoritative figure, and when somebody comes in the room who has no relationship with God it’s hard to imagine because folks here generally love God and/or are in some kind of holy awe over him.
 
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I don’t identify myself as a “prima-faIcie” sinner. It is not my fault how I am born. My faults become my faults as I live. And the sins I accrue as I live are also not god’s to assess.
 
paspec said:
I stated “What does it mean to have a personal relationship with God?”
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To me, a personal relationship with God means surrendering yourself to His love. Think about your relationship with your wife. You give a huge part of yourself to her to make her happy, to be honest, to love her. You’ve decided to share your life with her. With God it’s even better. By loving God you are better able to love others, to help them when they need it, and provide guidance to them if needed. By surrendering yourself to God, you also want to get to know him better, so you pray, and read about Him. Your love will grow and you’ll experience more of His love through His Grace. You’ll learn to forgive others more easily, and you’ll find His forgiveness. The greatest gift a person can give to someone is to sacrifice your life for them. Would you sacrifice your life for your wife? Well, Jesus sacrificed His life for us, and by that He makes us worthy. I hope this helps.
God Bless
 
It is very telling that you Catholic people become so belligerent if somebody is a bit more confrontational or arduous or disrespectful about your faith.

Almost as if you are about to lose smth. I didn’t ask anything too controversial. I asked how a relationship can be possible, and I was a bit sarcastic at some of the answers. Makes me a troll.

I don’t know how I should return to the faith if this is the kind of ideology I should consider.

This is not directed at anyone personally. I am sure you are great people if i met you in person.

But, you know…“Catholic - All-encompassing”!? Hmmm
 
paspec said:
I don’t identify myself as a “prima-faIcie” sinner. It is not my fault how I am born. My faults become my faults as I live. And the sins I accrue as I live are also not god’s to assess.
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We all have faults, none of us are perfect. Even the Pope is in confession regularly. It sounds like you are denying God.
Can you name one person who is without fault? One person who is perfect? Jesus said 'let the person who is without sin throw the first stone"
I wonder why they all walked away.

On your confrontational statement, do you see my responses as confrontational? I am very used to the disrespect and confrontation my faith gets. I am like a Catholic spec of sand in an atheist world. I can count on one hand the people in real life I know, in my circle of family and friends and acquaintances who have any belief or faith.

I suspected you of being a troll because you have a wife on another thread and a girlfriend on this thread. CAF gets lots of trolls.

You stated no absolution is possible and you cannot return to faith. Your ideology is it is not possible. That is for you to work out, you and your wife. Does she still want a catholic wedding ?
 
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paspec said:
It is very telling that you Catholic people become so belligerent if somebody is a bit more confrontational or arduous or disrespectful about your faith.
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That’s not really fair given that at least 4 or 5 people on this thread including myself, Convert, Gingersnaps, Divine and Emeraldlady have given kindly responses. Unfortunately it seems like you’re choosing to focus on other responses.

God bless.
 
paspec said:
I was brought up traditional Catholic. Catholicism, for me, mostly meant that I am fighting a losing battle against god, because I am conceived a sinful person, no matter how hard I try will remain a sinful person, and therefore better be lucky enough to die in the state of grace so my wretched life may be potentially redeemed.

If a god so much wants me to be with him and wants a personal (and even loving) relationship with him, I don’t understand how it’s constantly about me “not being good enough”. I wouldn’t tell my girl she is not good enough, even if she exhibits (even blatant) faults. I love her regardless and won’t abandon her. Surely, god must be at least as good as that…

(And yes, I have heard "It’s not god throwing you into hell for your sins, it is your own willing to abandon god that does that; “the gates of hell are closed from the inside”, …but again all my fault…everything my fault…that is an abusive relationship in my books)

What does it mean to have a relationship with god?
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Think ya learnt it wrong. Many of us have done so. Catholic teaching actually speaks of a loving God. But humans tend in any case to have a distorted image of Him, as the catechism teaches that Adam had as a result of the Fall. A God who is distant, aloof in His superiority, angry. This, however, is not the true God, not the God Jesus came to reveal whose nature is much more aptly described by the great passages of 1 Cor 13 on love.

God’s love for man is huge, unimaginable, beyond boundaries. Man was made for communion with Him, while Adam set humankind on a different course, away from God. We’re here to learn why that is so wrong, and Jesus came to reveal a God who is definitely worth believing in and loving, a God we need. “Apart from Me you can do nothing”, Jesus tells us. Anyway, as we come to truly know God we cannot help believing in, hoping in, and loving Him.
"Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." John 17:3
 
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Nobody is without fault. But how am I in mortal sin for not going to church on Sunday?
 
If you know God and Catholic teaching you’ll absolutely know that gospel isn’t made up.
 
That is for you to ask your Priest, not a stranger you don’t consider kindly and caring on an internet forum.

I am a practicing Catholic. I live by the Rules of Catholicism. I also live by a rule of life according to my state in a religious community. I do know if you have conditions like illness, travel, caring for infants or others, it is not a mortal sin, to not attend church.
I also agree whole heartedly with the Pope when he says we can be like the Pharisees.

Just a few weeks ago I was having a chat with my Bishop who has been my Spiritual Director through my discernment journey. I said, I do not feel it is enough just to pray, we must be active and doing.
He said, yes, the teaching is, if you have something against a brother, or he or she has something against you, go make amends, then come back up to the Altar. I have thought quite some time how he has tied the two together. We must make our world right. We must not be hypocrites perhaps, I don’t know.
He also said Prayer leads to Charity. That is one of the fruits of prayer, charity. Active doing in some form or another.

Mortal sin has three conditions. Again that is a topic for your Priest 🙂 I know from reading your other thread, you have grown up in a very traditional Mass. Have you ever tried the Latin Rite Norvus Ordo or the Latin Rite Extraordinary Form, not of that Mass that you were raised in?
 
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paspec said:
Nobody is without fault. But how am I in mortal sin for not going to church on Sunday?
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Deliberately not going to Sunday Mass is, for a Catholic, grave matter. Whether it is also a mortal sin requires that (1) the person has full knowledge that it is a mortal sin, and (2) that the person gives full consent of the will to commit the act. Only God knows if that applies to you.

I will say that some of my fellow Catholics drive me crazy when they constantly talk about “mortal sin” when what they mean is “grave matter” - an act that is objectively seriously wrong, but which fact alone does not make it a mortal sin.
 
I have tried every possible form of Catholicism to conclude it is harmful. The reason why I am asking and posting here is to hear ppl’s thoughts who are in it.
 
paspec said:
I have tried every possible form of Catholicism to conclude it is harmful. The reason why I am asking and posting here is to hear ppl’s thoughts who are in it.
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Ok I am going to ask, why do you think Catholicism is harmful? I am asking a serious from the heart question 🙂
 
paspec said:
I can write that too. I can make up this Gospel.
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Then you’re a better writer than I am!
I was Protestant most of my life.,when I started learning about the Catholic faith, my eyes were opened to the rich history and traditions of the Church. I read many books and listened to many podcasts, then spoke to a priest, a deacon and a nun asking many questions. One podcast I especially like is Called to Communion, an EWTN radio show. Dr. David Anders answers many questions such as yours. Catholics and the Catholic Church are humans and have human faults. We are far from perfect. But the Catholic Church teachings are the real thing. Christ is perfect and wants us to be.
 
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