Your Image of GOD is Too Small w/ Fr. Gregory Pine O.P. 

Im a recovering atheist, found my way back to god about 3 years ago, however i still have this chip on my shoulder regarding the bible. Im very glad these talks landed in my recommended

Fr. Gregory is one of my favorite people on PWA

I had scrupulosity the first year or so after my conversion, and having mostly overcome it now, I realize there were two very good fruits that came out of it that now make me glad/grateful I actually went through it. The first was that it taught me that we really are expected to be docile to our confessor (provided he is generally a good and orthodox priest), and that this obedience is especially pleasing to Christ - if you're scrupulous, it's true that unless the priest says something you know is clearly contrary to Church teaching you have to listen to him and defer to his judgment, no matter how much you've read or researched it on your own. This was painful for me, because I wanted absolute clarity and certainty without having the ability yet to discern or judge with common sense. It didn't get better until I decided, at what point are you going to agree to let go of yourself, be obedient, and listen to him even if it was scary, or uncertain? The second was, through all of the reading on moral theology, and all the zillions of confessions it helped me form my conscience in a very short amount of time, both by study and by hearing someone else judge actions so frequently. Praise God for both of those things! There's hope for those with scruples. It's a difficult cross, but it helps you develop good habits in the end if you let it.

I developed really bad scrupulosity once I decided to read the Bible (I’m 21 btw). So many parts about eternal punishment and moral standards are left out during Mass. This led to me having a reaction of going way too far in the other direction out of fear (I went from being morally loose to way too strict). I developed such a fear of God that I was terrified of stepping out of line, which is good, but the reality is that I will fall out of line often (especially when new to the spiritual life). Also it didn’t help that I didn’t really know how to interpret Scripture which left me with a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” feeling (I debated typing the phrase I just typed because I was scared I might be cursing) it was absolutely miserable. Also the worst part of scrupulosity is seeing sin where there is none. When picking up trash in the morning at my job I was scared to pick up a piece of grass along with the piece of trash because I considered that to be stealing the grass from the property to which it belonged (same goes with mulch or a stick). Also I had to realize that there’s a difference between simply noticing a woman’s attractive features and lusting after her. Or just because I simply witness the crotch of some dude doesn’t make me homosexual (I realized this because the thought struck me that the Jews circumcised each other, and therefore it was more a matter of the heart rather than simply seeing). Can you blame me though? So much of western culture is pornified which made me associate simply noticing sexual characteristics on others as sin. I knew I had problem when I started questioning whether or not the angels or Jesus sinned (based on things in the text). That’s really when I realized that I’m seeing sin in circumstances where no sin exists. It’s been 2 years and I feel like I’m finally starting to recover (exposure therapy definitely helps). It’s been such a tough battle. Anyway, we need to spend more time forming the consciences of kids in Catholic Schools so they don’t end up like me. I could’ve been saved so much misery these 2 years had I been taught something as simple as semi-deliberateness (when you realize that something you’re doing is sinful so you immediately stop, therefore making it not mortal). Or maybe I was taught it but just didn’t pay attention.

MATT your uploads make my day, you are doing the Lord's work. Thank you from Spain -Jim.

Fr Gregory didnt even skip a beat answering Matt's questions on wind. He was so matter of fact...ha ha. ❤

1:11 most important theological question of our time

Great points made. Just to add that OCD can cause scrupulosity. A lot of people suffer in silence.

Literally asked God to take my scruples from me, and here is this video as soon as I open RU-vid. God is GOOD

Really insightful but way too short. Please make a longer one with symptoms of scrupulousity and how a scrupulous person can get by without freaking out every now and then

Fr Pine: God wants to save the whole humanity Matt: fArT

Never personally experienced scruples myself. My wife has though, and my advice to her was to always reflect on the loving nature of God, and how he wants to love you and for you to love him. I find that if people do not have a good relationship with their parents, especially their fathers, scruples, and despair at the thought of God are common. Cultivating a true devotion to the Sacred Heart I believe can heal these wounds. I personally don't have a great relationship with my Mother so Marian devotion was hard for me. My wife gave me the most profound advice though, "Mary was the Mother you needed, not the one you got". So to those with Scruples, God is the Father you always need, not the one you got.

That was absolutely beautifully said. Wow…

I'm not scrupulous, but I'm having trouble right now and questioning the trinity. And this from Fr Gregory Pine really helped me accept that I may be thinking too small.

I always enjoy listening to Fr Pine because I learn a lot from him; sometimes in order to fully absorb what he has said I have to listen more than once.

This was very helpful. Especially the part about humility.

As a scrupulous person, It doesn’t help to have Catholics publicly state things are sinful that actually aren’t.

Very helpful.

The church will quote Fr. Gregory’s eloquent dissertation on Christ farting for generations.

I always learn something here. Keep up the great work! 🙏😊

Thanks, Father!

First +Christ is King

Our image of God must be too small. We are finite. How can we possibly understand or know the infinite.

get Fr Leo Patalinghug or Fr Mathias Thelen on your show? Just a suggestion. 😁

I’ve never heard an explanation of scrupulosity that made sense and this one was no different. I’ve heard it called spiritual OCD which it is not. I’ve heard it’s a lack of trust in His mercy which may be part of it. My thinking is this. I trust His justice. People say God loves you. I say He even loves people in hell but they’re still there. My take is it’s a deep almost unhealable emotional wound that happened even before we developed memory. Abuse or neglect that taught us we are not lovable and have no value. When it comes to this issue I’d explain my experience like this. I believe things I don’t feel and I feel things I don’t believe. I am very knowledgeable in the faith and believe intellectually that He loves me but a question asked of me at a retreat floored me. A deacon was speaking to me and abruptly asked: do you think God loves you? I froze as I realized I didn’t! Ben Shapiro says facts don’t care about your feelings. Feelings also don’t care about your facts.

Nailed it

BRRRAAAAP

I hab basically the most difficult day in a long time. I got up at 4am tongo to work and from the esrly morning on I started to habe blasphemous thoughts.

I did not hear anything about scrupulosity. Did I miss it?

What If farting was intentional to make us laugh

There is a book. City of God by Venerable Mary of Agreda. I haven't read I all. I believe that Our Lady only ate fruit and veggies. She ate exactly what her body needed for the day no more, no less. She did not need to bathe or use the restroom. She never ate or drank more than her body needed for that moment. We have to use the restroom, etc. As we eat more than what we need to survive. I believe that Our Lord lived the same way.

The title you chose is nice, but I would’ve voted for choosing something involving farts.

The Christian belief is that Christ was newly human and fully human ....

Fr Gregory is basically paraphrasing St. Ireneaus

I like your videos Matt but come on, the farting thing was totally inappropriate. The other parts of the video were well made though

I’ll pass on Gregory Pines’s delivery.

"Is farting ...?" 😂

One minute in and two blokes talking about farting! Please- I'm out yet again- why do I keep coming back here???

I wish humans didn't have bowel movements or have to pass gas. Is the human body filthy? We are so similar to animals. As for scrupulousity, I fear making mistakes and I fear being too confident of my salvation. I know people who don't think they do anything wrong and I strongly fear being like that. They seem self satisfied and complacent. Lucky them I suppose because they aren't attentive to every little detail. I worry too much in general

It's NOT what God is. It's WHO God is. And you know English. Start with the difference between the two sentences, and you'll be quite a ways to knowing.

No one has seen God

Salvation is done at His conception? The Medjugorje thing was bad enough but now Father Pine is inferring that Our Lord didn't need to die on the Cross to be THE sacrifice who sits at the right hand of God? On the crossbeam was spoken the seven final words of Our Salvation On the crossbeam BEGINS our salvation! Were the souls released from sheol by Jesus before then? Was the temple veil torn in two before then? - and seriously - your opening question - Where is the reverence for Our Lord? You're channel seems to be going south.

Well...when one is threatened to be sent to eternal hell fire for ONE mortal sin, and one truly believes that, how can one not be over scrupulous? That is why I came to the conclusion that Catholicism must be be false in its current form. "God" as taught in Catholicism is truly a horror to behold. Either He is chooses not save the billions of feeble sinful humans from hell or wants to, but is incapable to do so...either way, both make the Catholic "God" not that great.

Part 1: Perfect timing. I thought Jesus was the Fullness of God. But, he wasn't because: he said: I can't do nothing until the Father shows me. So, that answers the question; that I thought I knew God. I just heard Bishop Barron, or Fr Mike say: that God does the opposite of how we think. Like, he became the Son of God; as human. I didn't appreciate that you said: he became so low; that it is compared to farts. The Egyptians believed in that too; Egyptology. That God was a poop to fertilize the earth. God wants us to rescue you us from the fentanyl; the humanity being a garbage dump; and Jesus going through the garbage dump to save one drug addict; in the midst of poop; it is worth a million worlds. As the devil imitates this; and perverts one slave is worth a million dollars; - Sound of Freedom movie. I know you guys did not mean to sound; crass; because: in which you said it respectfully. But I am not comfortable with it; because: this is what Egyptology teaches. What does the Bible say?