Among Friends

[jaxs mom]

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@IamMrsG wrote:

As my own father, who never attended church in his life and had no known (to us) relationship with God, lay dying, I whispered to him that God loved him and begged him to allow himself to accept it (Dad never felt worthy.).

I was raised in a hellfire and brimstone church. God was the bogey man to this little girl, and, as an adult, I’ve joked that I became a Christian only because our church scared the h3ll out of me. It wasn’t until I was a grown woman with my own child that I learned about the depths of Love.

I was totally, completely, utterly in love with our infant son. When it crossed my mind that I would gladly die for him, it suddenly dawned on me, that if I, in my human limitation could love this much, how much more does God love us. The bogey man perception dissolved.

House_Cat, ask your father if he believes in Love. If he answers affirmatively, then he has his answer. Organized religion has a tendency to forget that God is Love.

"My dear friends, let us love one another, since love is from God and everyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. Whoever fails to love does not know God, because God is love."   --I John 4:7-8.

@ QVC Moderators: This is an Important Thread. Please, moderate it closely to prevent it from being steered off course, but, please, allow it to continue.

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As someone who is a Catholic convert but still struggles with understanding God and faith I think this is a really insightful and beautiful testament.

[depglass]

Tell him not to worry, the God you believe in is going to take care of him, too. 

[Lucky Charm]

Only read the first page, so I may be repeating here...

Seems like cat's dad wants to believe in God, but just can't come around to it.

Maybe he's scared at his age at what is on the other side.

None of us know, of course.

But my faith calms my fears.

Maybe that's what he's hoping for.  Something to calm his fears. 

[blackhole99]

Religions perpetuate the myth and that's not a bad thing,  it's whatever gets you thrrough this life. I do believe in G-d, not as a savior, but as a supreme intellect which we as humans cannot comprehend. The idea of dieing and going back to the source is a comforting thought to me. I tell my son, when I die have me cremated and put my ashes in my herb garden.

[violann]

Take a look at G.K. Chesterton. Some of his work may resonate with your dad's situation, some perhaps not.

I sometimes identify myself as a Catholic Agnostic- I distrust the fallibility of the human aspects of the Catholic faith, yet I know without question that something in the process of birth/life/death/life is continuous.

The saying "Coincidence is God's Way of Remaining Anonymous" is a reality for me.

You are both in my positive thoughts and prayers.

Wanted to add, I personally don't agree with the statement "You either Believe or Don't".

I do think that circumstances can some times warrant a sort of "flexibility" of Faith.

I also know that my concept of GOD changes back and forth. I think that's OK.

[HiLo]

I'm glad you mentioned Lee Strobel, an intellectual and confirmed atheist at one time. The Case for Christ is an excellent choice for those who are seekers, definitely one for the intellectual .

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@MacDUFF wrote:

@house_cat

You're a wonderful daughter and I think your parents are truly blessed. 

For me, the questions, doubts, fear, anger always come at 3:00 in the morning when there are very few distractions lol!  When, similar to what you said, I can only contemplate the inevitable.

I've been very close to several people who either knew they were going to die soon (my best friend...liver cancer...30 yrs old) or who were just realistic...my adopted mom, who is 93 yrs old, to name two.  All of them wanted to talk about G-d and heaven.  These conversations are some of my most cherished memories, and I hope you will also cherish yours...I only wish I had had the opportunity to talk so intimately with my parents.

For me, I wasn't dying, but I thought I was (don't ask lol).  All the ideas I had about G-d...all the rationalizing, all the philosophies of my friends/priests/pastors/family/famous thinkers, all the cute thoughts about G-d being in the trees, all the words I put into His mouth because they sounded good to me...everything went out the window.   It all boiled down to this (a paraphrase from several sources):

If G-d is not real, if the Bible is not Truth, then it's all of no importance..."all" meaning my beliefs, my actions, my thoughts.  But, if G-d is real, and if the Bible is His Word to us, then it's all supremely important.  There is no middle ground.  The option of believing anything I wanted is not open to me.

Lee Strobel's book, The Case for Faith, is an excellent read for an intellectual type.

Science schmience!  "Reason" is what got in my way!!  LOL!

Your thread started an interesting discussion at work!

Have a great evening y'all.

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I have also enjoyed C.S. Lewis' writings on his personal journey to faith in Christ.  I suppose he could have been called an agnostic B.C.  

[HiLo]

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@jubilant wrote:

You might want to suggest to him that he can pray right where he is at and ask God for faith to believe.  It is my belief that we don't just pursue God....He pursues us too.  That could be what is happening as he draws closer to his time.

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Absolutely right Jubilant:  The Bible teaches that God does the seeking.and that even faith itself comes from Him.  Brings to mind the classic by Francis Thompson "The Hound of Heaven".

[goldensrbest]

I too think that GOD,is speaking to your dad,and i know GOD uses many ways to do that.

[MacDUFF]

@house_cat

@HiLo

@jubilant

@VAbelle

Hilo, yes, I actually enjoyed Strobel's Case For Christ much more than The Case for Faith.  He has "a Master of Studies in Law Degree from Yale Law School" and is "an award-winning journalist."  His wife became a believer in the G-d of Israel, with all that it entails, and he set out to debunk all that "nonsense." 

Loved how he approached it as a legal investigation...interviewed 11 or 12 Ph.D.s with impeccable credentials to exam the eyewitness, documentary, corroborating, scientific, rebuttal, identity, psychological, profile, fingerprint, medical, and circumstantial evidence.  An excellent read...intellectually stimulating, if nothing else.

Agree that He pursues us out of an unfathomable Love in ways and for reasons we can't totally comprehend, and, for me, there came a time when I had to turn and face this Great Pursuer, the Hound of Heaven.  (Admittedly, I threw up my hands in disgust, annoyance, resentment, surrounded by the debris of broken hearts all around me, and in the Italian, New Yorker sort of way, said: "Whaaaaaat?  Who are you and whaddaya want from me, already?"  LOL)

And something 'belle said reminded me of Pascal's Wager...ever hear of that?

Are you from Hilo?

[reiki604]

When my dad was at the end of life nobody in the family would allow him to talk about his feelings about it because they were all too in denial and fear themselves. I was the only one who accepted the inevitable and we spoke about his fears, feelings and just about anything else imaginable. I think this is what you can offer your father. He is not looking for you to provide him with any answers or advice. Instead the best you can do is offer your love and support.

When my dad did pass, there was sadness but an acceptance as well. There was nothing left unsaid between us. That is a blessing that few have and I hope you can get to that point as well.