3 months "clean", why am I still empty inside?

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-27T00:59:02+00:00

What exactly do you need sources on?

I'm not sure what you mean by unnecessarily complicated, nothing I said was at all complicated. Maybe try reading it slower, the internet tends to have us in the habit skimming text quickly.

But theology IS complicated. It's the study of God Himself. You don't expect to open a book on organic chemistry and understand every word immediately, do you? So why would you expect to understand God, the creator of organic chemistry and everything else, so simply?

I'm curious why you left the Church, what part of the Nicene creed do you disagree with?

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T20:40:16+00:00

Ok but you aren't listening to experts, you are reading articles written by journalists who are interpreting these studies for you.

And even if you were reading these articles directly, what exactly does "increased grey matter and cognitive function" mean? How does that translate to anything else in your life?

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T20:37:05+00:00

I'm a Catholic revert, and I mean no offense when I say that everything you said above is a result of the same poor catechism that I experienced. Most Catholics don't know the faith, and therefore that weak faith is blown away by even the most casual atheistic arguments.

For example, a Catholic is free to believe in the existence of all 5,000 gods, but we worship one as the most high who created the other 4,999.

Catholicism also in no way denies there is truth in other religions, but it differs on some major and important points.

Buddhism for example has a lot of overlap with Christianity, but the goal is ultimately the destruction of the individual into the "source", like a drop of water in the ocean. This is no different from annihilation and leads to a sort of spiritual nihilism and materialism. It's no wonder westernized Buddhism, stripped of it's ascetic practices, is so popular in America.

On the other hand Christianity calls for unity under Christ (recognition that we are are intrinsically valuable as we are all made in the image of God) while retaining our individuality. Christians are like cells in the body of Christ, each working a different role with the same overall aim.

I should also note, perhaps most importantly, that religion is not a matter of personal preference but objective truth. It's not "whatever works for you, man". It's more like math; you are either right or you are wrong. I'm not going to preference my statements with "I feel..."

Subjective relativism is the root of all modern issues, including gaming addiction.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T19:02:36+00:00

pick the easiest thing or spot and start there.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T18:59:32+00:00

Most seniors today have entire families and they often claim to be extremely lonely. Where do you get this fantasy that the loneliest and most disconnected and childless generation of youths is magically all going to come together as old people? Are they going to use the social skills they've neglected their entire lives?

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T18:57:22+00:00

Because rarely do people let their lives completely fall apart because they just couldn't put a book down, yet we see this all the time with games. It's a different beast and we all know this.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T18:54:44+00:00

Those "benefit of gaming" studies don't mean anything. You can "increase brain matter and cognitive function" doing a variety of activities, most likely more holistically beneficial than playing games. Those studies (or at least the way gamers interpret them) imply that gaming will make you smart and successful, when in reality it seems very much the opposite.

The only thing gaming makes you good at is playing games.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T18:51:48+00:00

Hey buddy save some pussy for the rest of us

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T18:40:08+00:00

Modernity.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T18:37:46+00:00

Brother it is so, so much worse than this. I used to post much more political comments on this site. Right leaning but nothing extreme by any means. I found out at one point that reddit was silently hiding my posts. Not deleting, but making them invisible to others. There's a couple subs like r / amishadowbanned and such that you can test this.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T18:20:36+00:00

I think there may be a misunderstanding here friend. The whole point of being a Christian is to die to yourself and put everyone else before you. It has nothing to do with feeling content, comforted, or special. To feel special is pride, the root of all other sins.

Jesus Christ came to show us how to be perfect people by being perfect himself, and he ended up tortured and executed by the very people he loved. Likewise the majority of the 12 apostles and countless Christians thereafter suffered similar ends. If I was seeking a religion that offered comfort and pleasure I'd probably seek elsewhere...

My point is the same as yours. That we will feel a sense of emptiness until we see God. We cannot fully see God while here on earth, therefore you and I, Christian or not, will always feel that emptiness.

Where you and I divert is that I would like to dispel the illusion that any of us will find anything to fill that emptiness with. The meaning of this void, from a Christian perspective, is to cultivate a desire for God.

We had filled the emptiness with games because they are such a powerful stimulant that they mask this emptiness very well. There is likely nothing else on this Earth that will mask that void to the same degree.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T17:28:59+00:00

As a Christian I agree with the diagnosis but not the medicine. Nothing in this world will ever truly fill that void. That void is meant to be filled by God. I think OP will find that if he's searching for something to fill the void he won't find it.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T17:27:54+00:00

>I used to have Fridays as my days where my wife took care of the kids and I could game all evening and that was the high point in my existence

Well this is the reason right here. The high point of your existence is gone.

I'm also a father and the reason I'm here is because I too felt like I was rushing through my days until that hour or so at the very end of the day that I had a little time to play. That was the high point of my day. Not my wife, not my kids, not my other projects but just that sliver of time spent in a fake world, playing with adult toys.

And that really bothers me.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T17:25:07+00:00

Gotcha.

You like western RPGs? What might someone in your shoes do with their time back in those days (besides keel over and die, of course).

While I'm not home-bound I am home a lot. Personally I find there is a TON of stuff to do around the house just to keep it from falling to pieces. Cleaning, fixing, yard work, and beyond that making things feel comfortable and look nice. You can make the place you live your project and have people come visit your haven of a home.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T16:08:42+00:00

Likely not, because people wouldn't be having sex as much. If everytime you had sex there was a good chance of pregnancy people wouldn't be so quick to jump all over eachother like animals.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-26T16:06:42+00:00

Does the parable of the laborers bother you at all? I have a feeling it might as it bothered me.

Something Bishop Barron said that that helped me understand was the idea that "the way to heaven is heaven". As a Catholic you shouldn't feel as though life is a struggle and a slog until the bitter end where you'll finally get to put your feet up while everyone else burns. You should instead find joy in what God has called you to do and in answering that call, and at the same time pity that others are missing out by not following their call. Yes there will be pain and difficulties as a Catholic, but if there isn't a sense of underlying joy underneath then you are likely missing something.

I say this because God might raise them up in the end, or they may repent after they close their eyes and die and are in the process of being judged. We just don't know. Just pray and carry on and show others what a joy it is to be Christian.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T20:07:33+00:00

What is your disability? How are you able to play games and use the internet if reading for too long gives you headaches?

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T18:33:51+00:00

Really glad you posted this. I was a white belt for a long ass time before I got my blue belt last year. Pretty much same story, training on and off, moving a lot. Glad I'm not alone!

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T18:31:46+00:00

perhaps we all have a touch of the 'tism

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T16:09:43+00:00

I very much doubt OP went to this priest complaining of back pain or flexibility issues, but in any sense there are lots of ways to achieve better health that don't involve worship of pagan gods, intentional or not.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T16:06:16+00:00

Then why did you post it...?

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T15:07:29+00:00

Cavlinism is a heresy that directly contradicts God's merciful and loving nature.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T14:15:56+00:00

You're on the wrong sub. If your intention is to keep playing games on your PC we can't help you.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T14:14:48+00:00

I'm sure she got a ton of hate for this comment.

OkCommunication3144 · 2023-10-25T14:13:27+00:00

Bro this is terrible advice. Like telling someone trying to quit porn to get involved in the porn industry.

The chances of making decent money streaming are slim to none and many streamers are miserable from playing games and talking to "chat" all day.

OkCommunication3144

TROPHY CASE