Have you ever wondered—even for a moment—if all of this was real? If the Faith that we profess and the God we worship is true and good and worth giving up our lives for? It can be tough to navigate the questions and doubt that we all face.
Juliette asked, “Is it a sin to question the Faith? As I grow older, I find myself wondering about the Truth and questioning if we had gotten it all wrong from the beginning. When I’m in that state, I always do reflect on my life and how God has led me this far and I always go back to choosing God’s love and God’s way, but did I sin when I questioned his existence, his love, or his presence?”
Fr. John Paul Erickson, priest of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis and guest host of Go As Your FatherTM, offered this consolation and advice: “You speak for many, not just for yourself. Frankly, you speak for professional church people like myself, because at times there are questions. Especially … that great mystery of the reality of evil and the allowance of evil. It’s hard, sometimes, to realize what God is doing and why he’s doing it. And the questions about—God are you there? What are you doing? Maybe this whole Catholic Church thing is just kind of craziness—I don’t think they’re sinful at all.”
These doubts and thoughts can become problematic if we respond to them in the wrong way.
“It becomes a real problem when we deliberately entertain them. When we deliberately seek out answers or programs or books that weaken our faith. When we, rather than going to the Church with our questions, we go to those who are the enemies of the Church [and] we ask them what’s the answer to these problems—that can be problematic,” explained Fr. Erickson.
So, what should we do when faced with difficult questions and wonderings about God and his goodness? It’s essential that we turn to God with our doubts.
“Just as damaging, if not more, is when we have these questions we stop talking to God. We have to speak to the Lord even when we are questioning his existence or what he’s doing. That time it seems to me particularly important. Cry out, ‘Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief!’ ‘Lord, where are you? What are you doing?’”
Listen to the segment for Fr. Erickson’s advice on dealing with doubt through our Blessed Mother’s example:
Tune in to Go Ask Your Father weekdays at 1pm ET / 10am PT on Relevant Radio®.
