Session 2 of our High School Youth Group -- The Catholic Response to Atheism
The two main objections to God's Existence: "The Problem of Evil" and "The God of the gaps"
Listen online [here]!
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High School Youth Group – Fall 2020 – The Catholic
Response to Atheism
November 1st - Session 2 – Why Do
Atheists Reject God’s Existence?
“The fool hath said in his heart: There is no
God.” -Psalm 13:1
I. Review of last class (October
4th – Introduction to the Course)
A. Calendar and Course Structure:
1.Calendar of the year. Important dates: October 18th,
Safe Environment Presentation (hand in the opt out form if you weren’t at the
presentation); November 29th, No Class, Thanksgiving break; December
20th, Last Class of Fall, resuming January 10th and
continuing until May 2nd.
2. Course structure: Class on Sundays between Masses, about 10:40-11:20am.
Eucharistic Procession and Adoration with Religious Ed program on the final
Sundays of the months.
3. Students are expected to consistently attend classes, and
participation in monthly Eucharistic devotions is mandatory.
4. Parents and other adults are welcome to sit in on classes.
B. The Catholic Response to Atheism (after Christmas, the Dogma of the Trinity)
1. It doesn’t take faith to believe in God. His existence is
proved by human reason.
2. We can prove God’s existence as part of the way to help
people be open to the faith.
3. The real reason why many people are atheists is that they
don’t want to follow God’s law.
4. The best response to atheism is to be saints!
II. Is God’s existence something
that is obvious and immediately clear to all?
A. God’s existence is something that can be proved, but it
isn’t inherently obvious
B. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are
created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable
Rights…” – Nope, it isn’t self-evident that there is a Creator, let alone that
he gave all men rights. But it can be proved through reason.
C. Although it is not self-evident or immediately clear to all
that God exists, once it is proved that God exists, this truth cannot
rationally be denied.
D. If we could see the Divine Essence clearly, then it would
be a tautology that God exists – his very nature is pure existence and it is
simply impossible and even irrational to say that God doesn’t exist. However,
we do not see God in himself, but only in his works (in the universe he
created) – therefore, we must work to prove his existence, showing the cause
from the effect.
III. The two main objections to
the existence of God
A. The Problem of Evil – If God is all good, there would be no
evil or suffering in the world; but there is evil and much suffering, therefore
there is no God.
St Thomas, “It seems that God does not exist; because if one
of two contraries be infinite, the other would be altogether destroyed. But the
word "God" means that He is infinite goodness. If, therefore, God
existed, there would be no evil discoverable; but there is evil in the world.
Therefore God does not exist.”
1. This sometimes takes the form of: “If there is a God, he
must not care about us. Look at all the evil things he allows and all the
suffering, and all the prayers that are ignored.”
2. Another aspect of this argument focuses on God’s judgment
of sinners: “I just can’t believe in a God who would send someone to hell for
all eternity!”
3. Or again, another form of this argument relates more
specifically to priests and believers: “I could believe in God if I ever found
a Christian that acted like Christ!” or “How can anyone believe in God when so
many priests are so terrible?!”
4. What are other versions of this argument you have heard?
B. “God of the Gaps” – New scientific knowledge has answered
all the questions about nature, there is no longer any need to appeal to “God”
as a creator.
St Thomas, “Further, it is superfluous to suppose that what
can be accounted for by a few principles has been produced by many. But it
seems that everything we see in the world can be accounted for by other
principles, supposing God did not exist. For all natural things can be reduced
to one principle which is nature; and all voluntary things can be reduced to
one principle which is human reason, or will. Therefore there is no need to
suppose God's existence.”
1. “I don’t believe in God, I believe in science!”
2. “In the old days, people thought Zeus was throwing
thunderbolts – but now we know what lightning really is. That is why we don’t
need God any more.”
3. “The Big Bang explains the beginning of the world and
evolution explains the beginning of man, we don’t need God to explain any of
it!”
IV. A simple response to these
two main objections (we will give a much fuller answer later this year, after
examining the proofs for God’s existence)
A. The response to “the problem of evil” – St Thomas, “As
Augustine says (Enchiridion xi): "Since God is the highest good, He would
not allow any evil to exist in His works, unless His omnipotence and goodness
were such as to bring good even out of evil." This is part of the infinite
goodness of God, that He should allow evil to exist, and out of it produce
good.”
B. The response to “the God of the gaps” – St Thomas, “Since
nature works for a determinate end under the direction of a higher agent,
whatever is done by nature must needs be traced back to God, as to its first
cause. So also whatever is done voluntarily must also be traced back to some
higher cause other than human reason or will, since these can change or fail;
for all things that are changeable and capable of defect must be traced back to
an immovable and self-necessary first principle, as was shown in the body of
the Article.”
V. Something to look forward to:
The 5 Ways of Proving God’s Existence!
1. From Motion = The First Unmoved Mover
(if things move, something must have set them in motion, but
this can’t go back forever)
2. From Efficient Causes = The Uncaused Cause
(if things cause, something must give them the power to cause,
but this can’t go back forever)
3. From Contingency = The Necessary Being
(if things exist, something must make them exist, but this
can’t go back forever)
4. From Gradation of Perfection = The Absolutely Perfect Good
(if things are somewhat good, then something which is
perfectly good must make others good)
5. From Order = The Intelligent Designer or, more accurately,
the Divine Governor
(things act for a purpose, have a design, someone must have
designed them)
