The Pope admits that sometimes he loses faith.....is this common among Christians or others?

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kingblaze84
kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
The Pope himself, a famous Christian, admitted that sometimes he doesn't even have faith in his own religion. I find that interesting as a non-religious person because I stopped being Christian at age 15 or 16 for losing faith myself. He also admitted that he re-discovers his faith after some time, but for even the Pope himself to doubt his own religion at times at his age of 80 something is stunning to me. I would understand a regular person losing faith, but the leader of a church with millions of followers?

Is this the case of reality coming through for the Pope? For anyone who is Christian or believes in a ? , do you have moments where you doubt your ? is even real? As a secular person, I tend to believe there is something out there, but never truly sure if it is a ? or not.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/pope-admits-darkness-own-faith-204403995.html

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  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
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    And if one loses faith in their ? time to time, how do/did you regain that faith back, if it ever came back?
  • playmaker88
    playmaker88 Members Posts: 67,905 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    i think losing faith in things is symptom of the stress that derives from seeing what goes on around you its a human thing not a christian/religious thing
  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted
  • gns
    gns Members Posts: 21,285 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Now that im an adult idk if ive ever truly believed
  • MARIO_DRO
    MARIO_DRO Members Posts: 14,425 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    ALL CHRISTIANS WAIVER IN FAITH FROM TIME TO TIME, ITS APART OF BEING HUMAN.. BUT TO SAY, "sometimes he doesn't even have faith in his own religion" IS CRAZY.. WHEN THINGS GET BAD OR WE DONT SEE HOW THINGS CAN POSSIBLY TURN FOR THE BETTER; AT THAT TIME, WE LET OUR FLESH/THOUGHTS TAKE OVER OUR SPIRIT. BUT THATS THE WHOLE THING WITH FAITH; HOW "STRONG" IS YOUR FAITH IN ? .
  • Ether44mag
    Ether44mag Members Posts: 890 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Pope trynna relate to the followers who are starting to doubt this religion ? to make them feel like its ok to doubt lol Pope knows wassup trust me,he knows the truth
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
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    i think losing faith in things is symptom of the stress that derives from seeing what goes on around you its a human thing not a christian/religious thing

    Yeah that seems fair, I remember being sure there is a ? in my teenage years and that faith weakening as I got older and became more aware of the world. The Pope is likely exposed to a lot of life's flaws, such as earthquakes, and at times probably wonders what the hell his own ? is doing. It still surprises me a little that the head of a church can admit that publicly though.
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
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    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    Ether44mag wrote: »
    Pope trynna relate to the followers who are starting to doubt this religion ? to make them feel like its ok to doubt lol Pope knows wassup trust me,he knows the truth

    LMAO yeah I'm slowly starting to think the Pope knows deep down his religion is not real, I never heard of a Pope or any other religious leader in modern times saying they doubt their own religion at times.

    I do know Christians who are wishy washy on their faith for sure (probably most), but the Pope publicly saying all this is a big sign he's realizing that maybe Jesus isn't gonna come back any time soon. I would think a guy as religious as the Pope would have zero doubts at his age, but he said he's dealt with these doubts for years now.
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    MARIO_DRO wrote: »
    ALL CHRISTIANS WAIVER IN FAITH FROM TIME TO TIME, ITS APART OF BEING HUMAN.. BUT TO SAY, "sometimes he doesn't even have faith in his own religion" IS CRAZY.. WHEN THINGS GET BAD OR WE DONT SEE HOW THINGS CAN POSSIBLY TURN FOR THE BETTER; AT THAT TIME, WE LET OUR FLESH/THOUGHTS TAKE OVER OUR SPIRIT. BUT THATS THE WHOLE THING WITH FAITH; HOW "STRONG" IS YOUR FAITH IN ? .

    I can understand all that, but the Pope did say that he doubts his own faith at times, especially when he deals with victims of natural disasters or those who have lost someone close to them.

    In a world full of tragedies like this one, how do you personally keep your faith in Christianity? I have family who is Christian and when I ask them how they keep their faith, a lot of them say they just need something to believe in.
  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Options
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
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    Outside of the comments Pope Francis made yesterday, he also told a group of scholars last year that he "often" has a crises of faith and often isn't sure what to believe. It seems the Pope is not very secure in his own faith, and might even be agnostic based on how he's talking lately. I wonder if many Muslim, Hindu, and Jewish leaders feel the same way deep down, considering the state of the world and the apparent laziness of the gods, assuming they even care what happens on Earth these days.
  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.
  • Ether44mag
    Ether44mag Members Posts: 890 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
    Options
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    The doubt is ? telling you something !

    The Pope KNOWS people are waking up! we are in the age of aquarius

    before was the age of pisces represented by a fish in christianity

    people are leaving christianity and the Pope knows this , its all an act! just like a good salesman does,say things that you can relate to ,thats all

    if Jesus was really coming back it would be the other way around;people who did not believe would start to believe

    wake up! why would the ? Pope have doubts ? why would jesus let his biggest representor on earth have doubts ? smh

    people are waking up about everything ,bad food,corrupt governments ,not just religion...


    one question for all the believers: what if it was all a plan from the devil ? dont you ever think about that ? isnt it possible ? giving us an imposter to worship ? its impossible ? I actually think it would be the perfect plan to deceive ? 's children,make them believe in a subtle way that we are not ? 's children and that Jesus is his ONLY son ,do all the ? up ? you want but if you ACKNOWLEDGE that Jesus is ? then you are saved lol sounds pretty evil to me

  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
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    Ether44mag wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    The doubt is ? telling you something !

    The Pope KNOWS people are waking up! we are in the age of aquarius

    before was the age of pisces represented by a fish in christianity

    people are leaving christianity and the Pope knows this , its all an act! just like a good salesman does,say things that you can relate to ,thats all

    if Jesus was really coming back it would be the other way around;people who did not believe would start to believe

    wake up! why would the ? Pope have doubts ? why would jesus let his biggest representor on earth have doubts ? smh

    people are waking up about everything ,bad food,corrupt governments ,not just religion...

    That is not necessarily true everyone experiences doubt differently and people are not leaving Christianity in any serious numbers get your facts correct worldwide Christianity is actually growing........... i've been through this same debate many many times already and it's become tiresome. WHEN PEOPLE really begin to leave the religion in serious world-wide percentages it will be one of the signs that the return of Jesus is near A great falling away of faith is part of prophecy as it is now Christianity is actually growing in parts of the world.

    Is the pope acting??? i don't believe he is because every christian i know goes through feelings of doubt at some time in their life. IF people understood the religion they would know that their is nothing shocking about a pope or any christian having a bout of doubt for whatever reason
  • Ether44mag
    Ether44mag Members Posts: 890 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
    Options
    zzombie wrote: »
    Ether44mag wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    The doubt is ? telling you something !

    The Pope KNOWS people are waking up! we are in the age of aquarius

    before was the age of pisces represented by a fish in christianity

    people are leaving christianity and the Pope knows this , its all an act! just like a good salesman does,say things that you can relate to ,thats all

    if Jesus was really coming back it would be the other way around;people who did not believe would start to believe

    wake up! why would the ? Pope have doubts ? why would jesus let his biggest representor on earth have doubts ? smh

    people are waking up about everything ,bad food,corrupt governments ,not just religion...

    That is not necessarily true everyone experiences doubt differently and people are not leaving Christianity in any serious numbers get your facts correct worldwide Christianity is actually growing........... i've been through this same debate many many times already and it's become tiresome. WHEN PEOPLE really begin to leave the religion in serious world-wide percentages it will be one of the signs that the return of Jesus is near A great falling away of faith is part of prophecy as it is now Christianity is actually growing in parts of the world.

    Is the pope acting??? i don't believe he is because every christian i know goes through feelings of doubt at some time in their life. IF people understood the religion they would know that their is nothing shocking about a pope or any christian having a bout of doubt for whatever reason

    if we are speaking in logical terms, what would seem to be the "moment of clarity" ?:

    1. Believing in the story of a human being born out of a ? ,that is said to be ? 's only son,who got killed on a cross and asked ? "why have you forsaken me" ? when in actuality he was supposed to know that was ? 's plan all along; be killed so he can resurect and wash away our sins ...

    or

    2.having doubts about this whole story


    and again I must remind you all that : believing in Jesus is not ACTUALLY believing in jesus...believing in jesus is having faith in the people who wrote the story...you guys are vouching for ;Matthew ,Peter ,John etc...jesus did not write a single word in the bible....


    lolll I'm so happy I woke up lol I'll say it AGAIN!

    when you believe the story of Jesus you are actually vouching for the people who WROTE THE STORY !!! why dont ya'll pray to the disciples instead ? you guys are basing your whole faith on THEIR WORDS ,THEIR VERSION,THEIR FACTS!! lol

    who cosigned their story ? how do we know they are not liars ? we cant even totally trust our presidents but yet those guys wrote a book and you believe every word lol
  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Options
    Ether44mag wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    Ether44mag wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    The doubt is ? telling you something !

    The Pope KNOWS people are waking up! we are in the age of aquarius

    before was the age of pisces represented by a fish in christianity

    people are leaving christianity and the Pope knows this , its all an act! just like a good salesman does,say things that you can relate to ,thats all

    if Jesus was really coming back it would be the other way around;people who did not believe would start to believe

    wake up! why would the ? Pope have doubts ? why would jesus let his biggest representor on earth have doubts ? smh

    people are waking up about everything ,bad food,corrupt governments ,not just religion...

    That is not necessarily true everyone experiences doubt differently and people are not leaving Christianity in any serious numbers get your facts correct worldwide Christianity is actually growing........... i've been through this same debate many many times already and it's become tiresome. WHEN PEOPLE really begin to leave the religion in serious world-wide percentages it will be one of the signs that the return of Jesus is near A great falling away of faith is part of prophecy as it is now Christianity is actually growing in parts of the world.

    Is the pope acting??? i don't believe he is because every christian i know goes through feelings of doubt at some time in their life. IF people understood the religion they would know that their is nothing shocking about a pope or any christian having a bout of doubt for whatever reason

    if we are speaking in logical terms, what would seem to be the "moment of clarity" ?:

    1. Believing in the story of a human being born out of a ? ,that is said to be ? 's only son,who got killed on a cross and asked ? "why have you forsaken me" ? when in actuality he was supposed to know that was ? 's plan all along; be killed so he can resurect and wash away our sins ...

    or

    2.having doubts about this whole story


    and again I must remind you all that : believing in Jesus is not ACTUALLY believing in jesus...believing in jesus is having faith in the people who wrote the story...you guys are vouching for ;Matthew ,Peter ,John etc...jesus did not write a single word in the bible....


    lolll I'm so happy I woke up lol I'll say it AGAIN!

    when you believe the story of Jesus you are actually vouching for the people who WROTE THE STORY !!! why dont ya'll pray to the disciples instead ? you guys are basing your whole faith on THEIR WORDS ,THEIR VERSION,THEIR FACTS!! lol

    who cosigned their story ? how do we know they are not liars ? we cant even totally trust our presidents but yet those guys wrote a book and you believe every word lol

    my friend you are throwing in your own thinking into the statement..... did the pope say that he's having doubts about the whole faith??? No. which is why i said everyone experiences doubt differently you don't know the nuances behind how individuals are feeling about their faith at any particular time.

    You didn't wake up to anything you simply decided to follow your own reasoning devoid of understanding which is fine if that's your choice but to me you are asleep not awake at all. I read your posts about religion and most of them are based on your own assumptions and not what is actually written in scripture. WHY WOULD we PRAY TO THE DISCIPLES WHEN THEY TOLD US NOT TO??? lol every time you say things like that you enforce the fact that you know very little.

    RELIGION IS BASED ON FAITH so yes Christians have faith in the gospel and through that faith individuals believe spiritual connections are created with ? as the holy spirit indwells in them we are taught the truth from the lie because of the guidance of the holy spirit.
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
    Options
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    I can understand Peter doubting, he knew what the prophecies were for the Jewish messiah. But since Jesus supposedly died and rose from the dead, his disciples should have laid the foundation for Jesus being the "savior". But the foundations the disciples laid out aren't even good enough for the Pope himself! He doubts the foundations of his own faith "often" and doesn't really seem prideful and arrogant.

    He actually seems like a mostly humble person, so his faith faltering so publicly is a little shocking to many people worldwide. Peter probably had doubts in his last days too to be fair, but in the year 2017, I would think the foundations of Christianity are pretty concrete. Yet Pope Francis isn't concrete in his own beliefs LOL, WOW. Very interesting.
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Options
    Ether44mag wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    The doubt is ? telling you something !

    The Pope KNOWS people are waking up! we are in the age of aquarius

    before was the age of pisces represented by a fish in christianity

    people are leaving christianity and the Pope knows this , its all an act! just like a good salesman does,say things that you can relate to ,thats all

    if Jesus was really coming back it would be the other way around;people who did not believe would start to believe

    wake up! why would the ? Pope have doubts ? why would jesus let his biggest representor on earth have doubts ? smh

    people are waking up about everything ,bad food,corrupt governments ,not just religion...


    one question for all the believers: what if it was all a plan from the devil ? dont you ever think about that ? isnt it possible ? giving us an imposter to worship ? its impossible ? I actually think it would be the perfect plan to deceive ? 's children,make them believe in a subtle way that we are not ? 's children and that Jesus is his ONLY son ,do all the ? up ? you want but if you ACKNOWLEDGE that Jesus is ? then you are saved lol sounds pretty evil to me

    Word, why would Jesus allow his biggest representative on Earth, the POPE HIMSELF, to have doubts?? LOL If Jesus can't even help the Pope himself remove his own doubts at the age of 80 something, then something is terribly wrong.

    Supposedly, Mother Theresa was a huge doubter of her own religion too, and she even wrote a letter to her friends saying she might be an atheist lol smh. If these icons of Christianity doubt their own religion, then I don't even know what to say.
  • kingblaze84
    kingblaze84 Members Posts: 14,288 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
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    For those who don't know, Mother Theresa, maybe the most famous female "Catholic" of all time, was so disheartened by the lack of action from Jesus that she stopped praying and possibly died an agnostic or atheist. She told her friends prayer was a waste of time and lost faith in Jesus' ability for action before her death. The details are still surprising to me, just read this article a short time ago

    http://www.cbsnews.com/news/letters-reveal-mother-teresas-secret/

    August 23, 2007

    In life, Mother Teresa was an icon — for believers — of ? 's work on Earth. Her ministry to the poor of Calcutta was a world-renowned symbol of religious compassion. She was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

    But now, it has emerged that Mother Teresa was so doubtful of her own faith that she feared being a hypocrite, reports CBS News correspondent Mark Phillips.

    In a new book that compiles letters she wrote to friends, superiors and confessors, her doubts are obvious.

    Shortly after beginning work in Calcutta's slums, the spirit left Mother Teresa.

    "Where is my faith?" she wrote. "Even deep down… there is nothing but emptiness and darkness... If there be ? — please forgive me."

    Eight years later, she was still looking to reclaim her lost faith.

    "Such deep longing for ? … Repulsed, empty, no faith, no love, no zeal," she said.

    "What do I labor for?" she asked in one letter. "If there be no ? , there can be no soul. If there be no soul then, Jesus, You also are not true."

    According to her letters, Mother Teresa died with her doubts. She had even stopped praying, she once said.



    --Truly amazing. Mother Theresa admitted to feelings of disgust and feeling no love for Jesus near her death. I can imagine what Pope Francis has written in his private letters somewhere, I wouldn't be surprised if the Pope is a private atheist or agnostic at this point. He sounds a lot like Mother Theresa these days LOL
  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    I can understand Peter doubting, he knew what the prophecies were for the Jewish messiah. But since Jesus supposedly died and rose from the dead, his disciples should have laid the foundation for Jesus being the "savior". But the foundations the disciples laid out aren't even good enough for the Pope himself! He doubts the foundations of his own faith "often" and doesn't really seem prideful and arrogant.

    He actually seems like a mostly humble person, so his faith faltering so publicly is a little shocking to many people worldwide. Peter probably had doubts in his last days too to be fair, but in the year 2017, I would think the foundations of Christianity are pretty concrete. Yet Pope Francis isn't concrete in his own beliefs LOL, WOW. Very interesting.

    Unless you know the pope you really cannot say that he isn't prideful also those sins i mentioned are not the only ones that can create doubt ANY SIN CAN CREATE IT. Doubt is experienced by everyone, the apostles are role models their behavior is closer to how Christ acted AND peter was called the rock, if the rock of the church experienced doubt all of us can.

    Christians today are susceptible to all the to all the sins the apostles were susceptible to because we are still human and humans have weaknesses. ALL OF THIS IS IN THE BIBLE SO THE POPE HAVING DOUBTS is not shocking to anyone who studies it.
  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
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    The thing about faith in ? is that it's not supposed to only rest on feelings because feelings will change back and forth. To me faith has always been a combination of hope,feelings and determination SOMETIMES you will have all 3 sometimes you will only have one.

    Worse case scenario you will lose all 3 but even then they often come back.
  • zzombie
    zzombie Members Posts: 11,280 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Options
    Ether44mag wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    zzombie wrote: »
    doubt is extremely common and takes different forms but for most people it's temporary even peter doubted

    That's what I always found a little strange about Christianity, people are supposed to believe, but for many, there is no compelling reason to believe. And I think the Pope at times himself feels there is nothing to back up his faith. Obviously he's still a Christian but it's a little funny that even the Pope says he himself doesn't really believe at times. I didn't know doubt among Christians was EXTREMELY common, interesting.

    I guess many Christians are getting impatient waiting for Jesus' return......

    If the people in the Bible doubted and had crisis of faith what makes you think that people today won't. The people in the Bible are like role models so if they messed up, don't you think we would too.

    Most Christians who are pre-occupied with the end times or in the return of Jesus are missing the point.

    With the foundation Jesus laid out for his followers, I would have thought that the POPE of all people would not have these kinds of doubts. To be a Pope, I would think that person has years and years of study and dedication to the Bible to believe 100% that his faith is real. Instead, he revealed he still has doubts up until this day.

    Pope Francis seems to yearn for his ? to be more active, you think he's looking at Jesus the wrong way? Should Christians not expect their ? to be active?

    The pope is not more faithful than peter and even peter doubted that's in the bible itself.... so you really should not think that the pope in 2017 is more faithful than peter.

    peter walked with Jesus and was still weak so this pope is no better. ? is active but ? being active the way we wish him to is just an example of man's pride and arrogance.... which are sins i expect all men even the pope to suffer from to some degree which could be why his faith faltered in the first place.

    The doubt is ? telling you something !

    The Pope KNOWS people are waking up! we are in the age of aquarius

    before was the age of pisces represented by a fish in christianity

    people are leaving christianity and the Pope knows this , its all an act! just like a good salesman does,say things that you can relate to ,thats all

    if Jesus was really coming back it would be the other way around;people who did not believe would start to believe

    wake up! why would the ? Pope have doubts ? why would jesus let his biggest representor on earth have doubts ? smh

    people are waking up about everything ,bad food,corrupt governments ,not just religion...


    one question for all the believers: what if it was all a plan from the devil ? dont you ever think about that ? isnt it possible ? giving us an imposter to worship ? its impossible ? I actually think it would be the perfect plan to deceive ? 's children,make them believe in a subtle way that we are not ? 's children and that Jesus is his ONLY son ,do all the ? up ? you want but if you ACKNOWLEDGE that Jesus is ? then you are saved lol sounds pretty evil to me

    Word, why would Jesus allow his biggest representative on Earth, the POPE HIMSELF, to have doubts?? LOL If Jesus can't even help the Pope himself remove his own doubts at the age of 80 something, then something is terribly wrong.

    Supposedly, Mother Theresa was a huge doubter of her own religion too, and she even wrote a letter to her friends saying she might be an atheist lol smh. If these icons of Christianity doubt their own religion, then I don't even know what to say.

    The pope is allowed to have doubts because the pope is human and therefore imperfect HAVE you ever stopped to think that perhaps you have a wrong idea of what ? promised to do??? or that you don't know how the rules work
  • whatevathehell
    whatevathehell Members Posts: 4,015 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 2017
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    the honesty he showing with this, esp in his position, is astounding. I cant imagine trying to live life by a certain creed and doubting that ? ...thats like doubting your existence. glad my parents aint force religion on me when I was younger.