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Just a question which I've been thinking for a while now. My mom has cancer and the family(excluding me) went from moderately religious to superficially religious. I can't say it was the cancer itself that caused it, it was an experience in a church Involving the priest that left people like my grandparents feeling like unapologetic heathens.
Anyways for people who have had experiences like this and don't mind sharing, has cancer affected you religiously? Did you lose faith or find its true power?
I'm really sorry to hear that. My Father died from cancer quite a few years ago and it happened to fast I couldn't believe it. He only lasted several months. He had never been religious and I can honestly say it didn't have any influence on my atheism one way or the other. It was pretty difficult though. I didn't realize that you were religious at all based on your posts, I thought you were completely an atheist. I have known people who became religious after the death of a loved one though and I guess that people also become less religious as you've described about your family. I wish your Mother and family the best Coos.
I'm really sorry to hear that. My Father died from cancer quite a few years ago and it happened to fast I couldn't believe it. He only lasted several months. He had never been religious and I can honestly say it didn't have any influence on my atheism one way or the other. It was pretty difficult though. I didn't realize that you were religious at all based on your posts, I thought you were completely an atheist. I have known people who became religious after the death of a loved one though and I guess that people also become less religious as you've described about your family. I wish your Mother and family the best Coos.
He is an atheist. Notice that he excluded himself from the family.
My father died in July of last year from multiple myeloma (a very rare blood cancer). It didn't affect me at all really. The only thing that bothered me was knowing I would never see/meet him again. My mom, older brother, and younger sister got more religious. Didn't bother me though. As long as nothing is pushed on me, I don't care what somebody believes.
My daughter had 3.4 stage Hodgkins disease when she was 17 and a senior in high school..I had dropped out of the church we attended due to problems not appropriate to this thread.(except that h was not in the home)...I remained a believer, but, well lets just say a lukewarm believer..I was struggling to help raise two grands and give their mom a home..Money was very scarce..I had no friends and was too proud to let my own family (who lived in another state) know my circumstance..That was when I really discovered that if I prayed sincerely and hard enough for God to hear and help that he would..He never sent me a check for groceries, or gas to travel the 300 mile round trip twice a week for my daughters chemo and other treatments.. He placed certain people in my life who would pay a visit to the house and leave a twenty in a place where I was sure to find it, or slipped it in my purse or beneath my daughters pillow at the hospital..I spent lots of nights sitting in a hard chair in waiting rooms when she was in the ICU, many times I didn't have money for a cup of coffee, but many times a stranger would bring an extra cup and hand it to me..There are many other instances of kindness of strangers, but the main point is that I grew very close to God at that time and could feel his presence and peace no matter how bad things were..I learned that the spirit had never left and was stirring in me for years, but I was ignoring it, I was aware of it, but did not nourish it with faith and prayer until I had no one else..God/Creator Jesus and the Holy Spirit are in my life daily and I acknowledge them many times during the day..In rl I am pretty silent with words about my belief.. I guard my relationship with God from those who would say I am not a "real christian" because I don't believe what they do but I hope it shows them that I am in my actions and deeds..Coos, yes, I found the true power of faith through caNCER..
I want to express my sympathy for you and your family and your mother. I think these situations affect people differently, with some holding on to faith, and some becoming disillusioned, etc. I'm sorry it sounds like the church has made your family feel worse.
About 3 and 1/2 years ago my 19-year-old son was nearly killed in an auto accident. We didn't know for nearly 2 weeks whether he would make it, but he did, and is just fine now. At the time, being agnostic, I really did not become religious, but I found myself praying sometimes, just because I needed to think maybe a vibe, or even force of my own will could help him in some way.
I also had a very good friend who died of cancer a few years ago. He never became religious, but at the time of his diagnosis (nearly 20 years before his death) he used rational thinking to essentially "think" his way into a positive attitude; and whatever it is--faith, logic, optimism--that you can summon, and I mean deep inside you--this can keep you going.
That you all for your response. My mom is suffering from cancer in the right breast and back, The second one she has had for over 6 years now and its really a battle that has no end as they can only make it temporarily go into remission. After quite a bit of Chemo, the former has gone down in size from 20mm to 12mm.
News of this came on the morning of new years eve, it was a pretty emotional time for all of us specially since we were spending yet another year without any other family members and for me(The breakup 2 weeks before with a gf I had gone out with for a year, everyday vomiting from gastritis and very important exams through january didn't really help me). I think the one thing that made this bearable was neither faith, optimism or logic but humour. The chemo started to work after a while(and many different medications later, all with secondary effects) the second tumour is close to my mum's spine so she needs to take medication that soften her bones and that has left her in a delicate state.
Half a year later we were back in venezuela and went to a church my grandparents knew, I attended partly because I was tricked and I really wish I didn't because after the service we went to the father's house which was next to the church, the father's name is kiki and he had some history with my grandparents. We sat and talked for a while until my mom asked the father to give her blessings. This is where it started to get weird, he said that he was channeling the spirit of jesus and began to say things to my mum like "I'm feeling some pain in my leg, do you have problems with your leg?", he got this one right but then again she was limping when we came in.
"Do you often cry about this?" Baffled my mom answered no
"alone when others aren't looking?" No, never
"Are you sure?" Yes!
"Someone, i see a....a woman....with a name that starts.......with the letter.....E, do you know anyone who fits into this" Um no father
Then the guy went on to describe my grandmas house:
"The holy spirit is telling me about a virgin statue on a small table near the entrance door" Eh no father, we don't.
"A cross?" No but we do have a table
"I see"
I was on the verge of not being able to take it anymore, my grampa was eyeing up the exit door like a hungry wolf and my dad had his hand covering my brothers mouth because he was giggling. The guy's actions were similar to those Colin Fry shows and I would have found that to be hilarious if my mother wasn't involved, I just felt sick at how useless the guy had been at giving my mom some spiritual support.
The last thing the guy did was that as we were saying goodbye he sort of tripped, gave out a little painful sigh and told my mom off because apparently she was channeling her pain to him. He then urged my family to attend church both on Wednesday and Sunday. After we left no one really spoke of the event again, they didn't go to church either day and the religious phrases they used dropped dramatically.
Right now we have full confidence that the cancer will go but my mom says it will probably take another year or so
Coos, what a difficult time for you and your family..I send good thoughts of comfort and healing to your mom and to you..Your humor is a good, healing emotion and it has helped me through some tough times too..Your mom seems to be a lady with a very strong will, and I think that has a whole lot to do with a persons healing...
Coos, what a difficult time for you and your family..I send good thoughts of comfort and healing to your mom and to you..Your humor is a good, healing emotion and it has helped me through some tough times too..Your mom seems to be a lady with a very strong will, and I think that has a whole lot to do with a persons healing...
That you blue62 with all that behind us, theres happy days ahead
I think your relationship with God during any life changing event depends on your relationship with Him before the event. If you look at God like Santa Clause and expect that you will get whatever you want, if you ask the right way. You will be disappointed if you don't get what you want when crisis comes. If on the other hand you believe we were created to spend an eternity with God in our heavenly home. When crisis comes you can know His presence, lean on Him to help you through, not necessarily out of, whatever comes your way. The loss of a loved one is them tempered by the knowledge that I will see my daughter, mom, dad, brother and a host of other friends in a place where there will be no pain or sorrow.
My mother died of colon cancer and my father died of lung cancer. I believe in what the Bible says that "time and chance happeneth to all." It doesn't make it any easier when you are going through this, but God allows things to happen in all of our lives. Personally for me I view it this way. I think we as humans view life differently than God does because being alive is all we really know. But if we have true faith in God, and we know that he has power over both life and death, then as the Bible states "death has lost its sting".
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