- Mar 28, 2023
- 6
- 1
- 42
- Country
- United States
- Faith
- Christian
- Marital Status
- Married
Hello everyone,
This is something that's been poking at me recently.
Just some background, when I was late teen and young man in my 20s (I'm 40 now) I was very antagonistic towards religion. I think a big part of that had to do with the fact that I was 18 when 9/11 happened and that event turned me aggressively against religion. I remember an old slogan back then: "Science flies you to the moon. Religion flies you into buildings." I ignorantly lumped all religions into one box and would regularly mock religion, including Christianity, and those who followed it.
Now, I was never an atheist but I bounced back and forth during those years between agnosticism and deism with the belief that following any organized religion was simply buying into a fairy tale. Sure, God may exist but miracles and the Resurrection and all that? C'mon!
During those years, a friend turned me onto Christopher Hitchens and I used to watch his two-hour long debates thinking the other guy was such a stupid fool arguing for the credibility of what amounted to myths. And though I thought I was taking joy in believing I was somehow smarter and more enlightened than believers, I always felt an empty hole within and I would look at believers with almost a sense of jealousy. It took me until nearly middle-age to finally acknowledge it. I wouldn't say I had a "ah-ha" moment but it was more like a slow walk towards Christ. Or like a small flame inside of me that finally, I allowed to grow instead of snuffing it out. I went from never thinking about God at all to not being able to stop thinking about Him every single day.
Recently, I learned about the Unforgivable Sin, and while I may not have a 100% clear grasp on it, it's been concerning me greatly. I spent so much of my adulthood mocking God, mocking the Holy Spirit and mocking believers. What I'm afraid of is that the damage is done, so to speak, and my ignorance and mockery has tainted my soul to the point it may not be redeemable. I hope I have this wrong. Is there anyone here who can lay out clearly what the Unforgivable Sin is exactly and tell me honestly, have I committed it? Is there no way back?
I thank you all in advance.
This is something that's been poking at me recently.
Just some background, when I was late teen and young man in my 20s (I'm 40 now) I was very antagonistic towards religion. I think a big part of that had to do with the fact that I was 18 when 9/11 happened and that event turned me aggressively against religion. I remember an old slogan back then: "Science flies you to the moon. Religion flies you into buildings." I ignorantly lumped all religions into one box and would regularly mock religion, including Christianity, and those who followed it.
Now, I was never an atheist but I bounced back and forth during those years between agnosticism and deism with the belief that following any organized religion was simply buying into a fairy tale. Sure, God may exist but miracles and the Resurrection and all that? C'mon!
During those years, a friend turned me onto Christopher Hitchens and I used to watch his two-hour long debates thinking the other guy was such a stupid fool arguing for the credibility of what amounted to myths. And though I thought I was taking joy in believing I was somehow smarter and more enlightened than believers, I always felt an empty hole within and I would look at believers with almost a sense of jealousy. It took me until nearly middle-age to finally acknowledge it. I wouldn't say I had a "ah-ha" moment but it was more like a slow walk towards Christ. Or like a small flame inside of me that finally, I allowed to grow instead of snuffing it out. I went from never thinking about God at all to not being able to stop thinking about Him every single day.
Recently, I learned about the Unforgivable Sin, and while I may not have a 100% clear grasp on it, it's been concerning me greatly. I spent so much of my adulthood mocking God, mocking the Holy Spirit and mocking believers. What I'm afraid of is that the damage is done, so to speak, and my ignorance and mockery has tainted my soul to the point it may not be redeemable. I hope I have this wrong. Is there anyone here who can lay out clearly what the Unforgivable Sin is exactly and tell me honestly, have I committed it? Is there no way back?
I thank you all in advance.
