The Psychology Behind The Phatmass Addiction

[Nihil Obstat]

i'll go....here comes the brutal honesty.....

Intro
Hi. My name is Nicholas Hardesty. I've been addicted to Phatmass for a month now.

Background Information
I've been a catholic all my life. but only w/in the last year and ahalf have i learned more about it and subsequently learned to appreciate it. i'm from owensboro, ky which has a large catholic presence. but, i go to school in columbia, ky (lindsey wilson college) which has a large "bible-christian" presence. so i am a definite minority......which is why i first came to this group. i came b/c the more i successfully defend my faith, and the more i witness it being successfully defended by others, the stronger my faith becomes. when i started putting off my homework and checking this site like 50 times a day, i knew i was addicted.

Psychoanalysis
for one, i see this need to show people that i am at least marginally competent at discussing my faith w/ others. i see myself wanting, to a degree, the approval of the other members here. i think that's b/c i respect this group so much and b/c i realize that there are so many people here who are more skilled then i am. when those people affirm my actions here (when someone compliments a post or a thread i start does well), it kinda makes me feel good.

i also see w/in myself the need to feel accepted, or to feel like i belong. at school, i am the oddball when it comes to my faith. no one here is as fervent about catholicism as i am (this doesn't say anything about ME. instead, it speaks volumes about my environment.) so, its good to be here and know that the one thing that usually isolates me at school is the one thing that unites me here.

furthermore, i realize that i have always gained affirmation and validation through excelling in intelectual pursuits. and i think apologetics is an intellectual pursuit. so basically, the more i learn and the more i successfully apply what i learn, the better i feel about myself.

i'm also addicted b/c i am constantly compelled to share this excitement i feel about my faith w/ others. this has been such an amazing and amesome experience for me, that i just want eveyrone to know about it. i want them to feel that same excitement too! along w/ that, i want to expel all the crazy myths that are out there about catholicism and i want to share the TRUTH of the matter. oh, how the truth does set one freeeeee!!! i hope my excitement never goes away. sure, it may wax and wane, but may it never diminsh. i want to cultivate it and nurture it so that it stays w/ me forever.

finally, i just have a thrist for learning everything i can about catholicism. i read all this valuable info and i just soak it all up. i hunger and thrist for knowledge. i am dying to learn as much as i possibly can. and you guys know ur stuff! plus, i love how if i ever have a question i can just post it here. its like i have my own apologetics staff just waiting to help me. that is so amesome!

SSOOOoooo, that's why i'm addicted (yea, when i said "psychoanalysis" i wasn't joking!)

Closing
in closing, i guess i would just ask that everyone be patient w/ me. right now i am probably more sensitive to how people respond to my posts then i probably should be---but at least i realize that. but, as soon as i feel certain that i belong here and that you guys still accept me even when u don't agree w/ me, then all of that initial sensitivity will pass.

i also ask for your patience b/c i still have alot to learn. you may have to repeat things or state things to me that seem elementary. often times my opinion probably isn't as educated as it should be. so, just bear w/ me, kindly correct me, and i will do my best to become as informed as possible.

thanks phatpham.......and i hope this doesn't freak anyone out.
nick

 

 

Hi. My name is Amy. I've been addicted to Phatmass for 5 days now. :bugeyes:

I'm a homeschooled graduate, Tolkien freak, poetry writing, coffee-guzzling, internet junkie. I joined the group when I commented on one of my friend's pro-life buddy icons and she directed me here (I don't know if she's on the message boards...Jill, where are you??). I received such a warm welcome that I kept coming back. I don't usually get on on message boards because the group is already so tightly knit that they forget to let others in. I felt like part of the group the moment I posted here.

The reason I'm addicted? There are many reasons. Not the least of which being that I spend alot of time on the computer, and I enjoy posting here because I don't have to wait hours to get a response. I was so psyched to find a thoroughly Catholic environment to escape to, so I latched on.

I like my addiction. w00t for phatmass!

 

 

Lol, if only they had both been able to see the future. :evil:

[Gabriela]

Lol, if only they had both been able to see the future. :evil:

 

Amen.

[morostheos]

Aww, I remember seeing this thread way back when and being too shy to post anything.  :blush: