Lux Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Hello, I'm pretty new to this website (let me know if I'm in the wrong section or on the wrong website for this), but I've decided that I should bring this topic to others more knowledgeable than me. I was raised non-religiously- I've not been baptized. One visit to church with relatives as a child and a bat mitzvah have been the extent of my formal religious experience. Yet ever since I learned about religion I've decided that's what I want. I want to believe in God, I really do. Recently I've been very attracted to the beauty of the Church, and I'm pretty sure that if I can become religious, I'll become a Catholic. I love the idea of the rosary, of Mary, of the Mass. But it's not so simple as professing faith, because I have not been able to make myself believe in God. I don't want to push my concerns away to make it easy. If I'm going to convert, I want to do it right. I don't want some kind of half-hearted experience that may not even last. I have lots of issues that I need to resolve, for example- the Virgin Birth and Eucharist. I can't see myself legitimately accepting that because I've been so grounded in science growing up, and I don't believe in miracles. But then I suppose it all comes down to belief in God. So please, try to convince me. I'm willing to think and work hard. Hey, I'll even try praying, although you'll have to tell me how to do so:) Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrossCuT Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Unrelated but your avatar is beautiful! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lux Posted August 8, 2014 Author Share Posted August 8, 2014 Unrelated but your avatar is beautiful! Thanks! I'm always a fan of Bouguereau:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CrossCuT Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 (edited) Is that the artist? I must stalk him immediately! (Sorry for derailing your thread, I would send you a PM but you do not have access to that until you have 100 posts!) FORGIVE ME Mavens of Meh I KNOW NOT WHAT I DO! Its just a very breathtaking piece! PS, If you like that artist, you may like JW Waterhouse!! (He is one of my faves) Edited August 8, 2014 by CrossCuT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marigold Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 First, welcome! At the moment I'm reading Father Seraphim Rose: His Life and Works. He's Orthodox, not Catholic, but came to faith in a similarly roundabout way as what it sounds like you're describing. Everything else fell into place, and then finally he realised there was Christ the person right there. I doubt you will be able to convince/not convince yourself of THE FAITH if you take it as a philosophy or a set of beautiful experiences or practices. Do you know Christ? Do you know about him - have you read the gospels? In my experience, and in Father Seraphim's, only searching for (and in our cases, finding) the person of Christ were able to 'convince' us of the truth of his death, burial and resurrection for the salvation of all. In fact, I'd say he himself is the convincing factor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lux Posted August 8, 2014 Author Share Posted August 8, 2014 Is that the artist? I must stalk him immediately! (Sorry for derailing your thread, I would send you a PM but you do not have access to that until you have 100 posts!) FORGIVE ME Mavens of Meh I KNOW NOT WHAT I DO! Its just a very breathtaking piece! PS, If you like that artist, you may like JW Waterhouse!! (He is one of my faves) Yes, this piece is called La Petite Mendiante. All of his work is equally stunning, though! I really enjoy Waterhouse's work, as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihil Obstat Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 Lux, have you tried praying yet? If so, in any particular way? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lux Posted August 8, 2014 Author Share Posted August 8, 2014 First, welcome! At the moment I'm reading Father Seraphim Rose: His Life and Works. He's Orthodox, not Catholic, but came to faith in a similarly roundabout way as what it sounds like you're describing. Everything else fell into place, and then finally he realised there was Christ the person right there. I doubt you will be able to convince/not convince yourself of THE FAITH if you take it as a philosophy or a set of beautiful experiences or practices. Do you know Christ? Do you know about him - have you read the gospels? In my experience, and in Father Seraphim's, only searching for (and in our cases, finding) the person of Christ were able to 'convince' us of the truth of his death, burial and resurrection for the salvation of all. In fact, I'd say he himself is the convincing factor. I haven't read the Gospels at all- I guess I've kind of been stalling in that area. To be honest, I'm not sure how to start. Do I go from the Old Testament and progress in order? It's a bit overwhelming. I'll have to look for that book you mentioned. Lux, have you tried praying yet? If so, in any particular way? I haven't prayed much at all. I tried just "talking" for God but it wasn't structured enough and I felt uncomfortable. Recently I've been saying the Hail Mary prayer (because it's the only one I know). But generally prayer isn't a part of my daily life because I'm not sure what to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marigold Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 I haven't read the Gospels at all- I guess I've kind of been stalling in that area. To be honest, I'm not sure how to start. Do I go from the Old Testament and progress in order? It's a bit overwhelming. I'll have to look for that book you mentioned. I haven't prayed much at all. I tried just "talking" for God but it wasn't structured enough and I felt uncomfortable. Recently I've been saying the Hail Mary prayer (because it's the only one I know). But generally prayer isn't a part of my daily life because I'm not sure what to do. No, I'd start with the four gospels - of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. They're the accounts of Christ's life and death, and his teachings about the Kingdom and the fulfilment of everything that happened in the Old Testament ;) Don't worry about being overwhelmed, just go with it - I was in your position not that long ago. I opened the Bible at the beginning expecting to read about Jesus within a few pages! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nihil Obstat Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 How about trying to pray the rosary for a week or so, see how it goes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clare Brigid Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 (edited) Lux, you are truly blessed. You must already be receiving actual graces from God. Otherwise, I don't think you would be seeking so earnestly. Please understand, first of all, that divine and Catholic faith is a gift of God, who enables the intellect to assent to the entire teaching of the Catholic Church. You need to pray for this gift. It's okay if you feel like you're at sea or totally in the dark when you ask God for this gift. He'll take 1,000 steps toward you for every one you take toward Him. Just keep asking. Attend a Catholic Mass every Sunday. Just go. You're welcome there. Sit toward the back if that makes you more comfortable. Aside from that, I would suggest that you prepare for this gift of faith by reading some books by C.S. Lewis, who, I think, offers a lot of help to people with your concerns. Read his books Mere Christianity and Miracles. Those are the two that would help you the most, I believe. Edited August 9, 2014 by Clare Brigid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KnightofChrist Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I haven't read the Gospels at all- I guess I've kind of been stalling in that area. To be honest, I'm not sure how to start. Do I go from the Old Testament and progress in order? It's a bit overwhelming. I'll have to look for that book you mentioned. I haven't prayed much at all. I tried just "talking" for God but it wasn't structured enough and I felt uncomfortable. Recently I've been saying the Hail Mary prayer (because it's the only one I know). But generally prayer isn't a part of my daily life because I'm not sure what to do. You could start with the Gospel according to Saint John. It has been one of my most favorite books of the Bible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anastasia13 Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 No, I'd start with the four gospels - of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. They're the accounts of Christ's life and death, and his teachings about the Kingdom and the fulfilment of everything that happened in the Old Testament ;) Don't worry about being overwhelmed, just go with it - I was in your position not that long ago. I opened the Bible at the beginning expecting to read about Jesus within a few pages! A lot of people talk about John which is more about the love and spiritual/metaphysical stuff. Other people can probably describe it better than I. Matthew is the first in the Bible, and it seems to be the most Jewish one. It's often been my favorite because of the way it expresses things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anastasia13 Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 I always thought this was an interesting quote from the movie Keeping the Faith: The truth is, I don't really learn that much about your faith by asking questions like that... because those aren't really questions about faith, those are questions about religion. And it's very important to understand the difference between religion and faith. Because faith is not about having the right answers. Faith is a feeling. Faith is a hunch, really. It's a hunch that there is something bigger connecting it all... connecting us all together. And that feeling, that hunch, is God. And coming here tonight, on your Sunday evening... to connect with that feeling, that is an act of faith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Catherine Therese Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 Just a quick note on a different way of looking at miracles, in case its helpful - The laws and theorems of science arise from the trends in the behaviour of things we observe in the world around us. The observation must be able to be replicated - the phenomenon must be reasonably frequent - for a theorem and then eventually a law to result. Science is our attempt to describe and codify the NORM we have observed, and to predict and extrapolate to the norm that we have not yet seen. A miracle is simply an event outside of that norm. A statistical outlier, if you will. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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