“I shall ask you one question” (Mk 11:29)
WHY SHOULD I BELIEVE?
To the question: Why should I believe? I would answer: Why should you breathe? I can breathe deeply or shallowly, through my nose or mouth, fresh or smoky air, but I have to breathe. It is the same with faith.
One day some Parents came to see me, very concerned that their child, who does not want to go to church, keeps repeating the question they feel helpless with: Why should I believe? They themselves are deeply religious Catholics. Prayerful, think by faith and follow God's word in their lives and the Word shapes their lives in real terms, and the Lord Jesus is someone who is really close and much loved by them - but what to say to a child when he says that he does not feel or understands it at all?
It is difficult to answer the question about faith, proving that God exists. Not only because convincingly taking such evidence usually exceeds the parents' competence and the child's patience. Both, parents and the child intuitively sense that the evidence for the existence of God can at most strengthen the religious beliefs of someone who is unambiguously believing, but it will not bring closer to a loving God, nor will it awaken love for God in anyone.
Personally, I would then try to answer the question with a question - one that may initially seem like an escape from a serious conversation. So, to the question: Why should I believe? I would say: Why should you breathe? I can breathe deeply or shallowly, through my nose or mouth, fresh or smoky air, but I must breathe; I will only stop breathing when I die. It is quite the same with faith. We were created in such a way that a complete lack of faith is impossible for us. I am not talking now about faith in the sense of having beliefs from which virtually little comes. Because in this way - apparently - someone can believe in God, in various lofty ideas, for example in progress, in universal human brotherhood, in democracy, etc. If this or that faith is not expressed in real attitudes and actions, it is only apparent faith, and I may not even realize whom or what I really believe in.
However, I do believe in something or someone. The Bible teaches and reminds us in various ways that if we give up faith in the true God, we become believers and worshipers of certain idols. Believing means recognizing someone or something as the highest value that is worthy of unconditional worship and for which we are ready to give up on others.
Usually as the idols in which a man believes and becomes their slave, man choose some positive values. Money and abundance, pleasure and comfort, pursuing a career, exercising power, or good opinion among people, are good in it selves, and there is nothing blameworthy in the desire to achieve and possess them. It is only a misfortune that a person recognizes one of these values as the highest value - and begins to preform wicked deeds in its service. Idolatry begins when one of these values becomes an idol, more important than the principles of justice and even our own children. Yes, we can also believe in worthless idols - in the allegedly highest value of alcohol, drugs or debauchery. We can even believe in idols that are completely worthless - we can falsely believe in the ultimate nonsense of our life and begin to bow down to this hideous idol whose name is despair. Either way, it's impossible to be human and believe in nothing or anyone. Just like it's impossible to live without breathing.
So it is quite misleading to divide people into believers and non-believers, and by implication - believers or not believers in God. Not all those who consider themselves and are considered to be believers in God truly believe in Him, i.e. they truly entrust to Him (or at least want to entrust themselves) with their whole self, and in this perspective they try to arrange all their affairs. On the other hand: Not all who consider themselves and are considered unbelievers really do not believe in Him. St. Augustine, when he said that God has enemies among those who consider as His friends, but He also has friends among those who consider as His enemies. He is the only one who knows everyone's hearts to the end.
Let us note that even by rebelling against God, man intuitively understands that only faith in Him is authentic faith. After all, the question: "Why should I believe?" - I think for everyone without exception it means: "Why should I believe in God?”
Finally, let us once again refer to St. Augustine. He acutely noticed that ultimately we have only two life scenarios to choose from. We can love God to the point of giving up ourselves, or we can love ourselves to the point of rejecting God. Everyone has to choose.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george