Why Believe in God?
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Starting right out of the gate here with the ultimate question of life: Does God exist? Which really speaks to a deeper question - Why am I here?
Grappling with the "God question" is a lifelong pursuit, so we're never going to be able to answer every question about God on a single webpage. And we're still working through these questions too! But here is the truth of what we know and believe about God as Christians.
Click on a question to learn more:
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who is god?
Christians believe that God is the higher power who created and "runs" the world. We are a monotheistic religion, meaning we believe in one God, but we believe that God is three persons in one: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus), and God the Holy Spirit (the three of whom make up the Trinity). Typically when people are talking about God, they are referring to the first person of God, the Father and Creator.
The fundamental beliefs about God is that He is omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, which means He is all powerful, present everywhere at all times, and outside of time and eternity, respectively.
Practically though, the most important things to know about God is that He formed each person - including you - individually and purposefully. He has a plan for each person (which we don't often see or understand) and created us purely out of love. His ultimate desire is to spend eternity with us in heaven, but out of His love, He gave humans free will so as to not force that love. He is also abundantly merciful for those who turn to Him, but also a fair and just judge to those who do not. Through the Commandments and His son Jesus' teachings, He provides guidelines on how to live in reflection of His love.
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who is satan?
Sin goes all the way back to the beginning of Creation. In the very beginning, humans and God were in perfect harmony, with one another, with self, and with God. Then, evil entered the world through the Fall - Adam and Eve disobeyed God's one command not to eat the fruit of a certain tree, and harmony with God and each other was broken.
Adam and Eve were convinced to eat of the tree by Satan, a fallen angel who refused to worship God. He caused them to be confused and doubt what God had said, and they believed him instead of God.
Essentially, Satan has been trying to turn God's creation against Him, because that is the only way to hurt Him. God so longs for our love, so Satan tries to get us to doubt Him. He has been using us as pawns in his own game against God since the very beginning and will until the end of time.
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Can you prove that God exists?
No, there is no real "proof" that God exists - that's kind of the whole point. Free will is the ability to choose to do good, evil, or nothing. If there were a “perfect” proof of God’s existence, then you would be forced to believe. Since you have free will, there is no “proof” that will force you to believe.
That being said, there are many things outside of traditional faith that point to God.
Creation: The world exists. Most scientists believe the universe came into existence at the “Big Bang” about 13.8B years ago (which was actually first theorized by a Catholic priest within the realm of faith!). Nothing comes into existence without a cause. The cause of the universe must be outside the universe since the universe didn’t yet exist. What, besides God, is outside the universe?
Nature: The world around us has patterns. The planets move in orbits, and the elements follow the periodic table. When you see a car, is it likely that a tornado passed through a junkyard and randomly assembled that car in that pattern (and color?) The nature, space, even the way the human body works - none of that can be random. What, besides God, accounts for the patterns we see in nature and even our own creation? What, besides God, accounts for the apparent “laws of nature?”
Truth: People hold universal moral truths. For example, it is always wrong to intentionally kill innocent people. Without universal moral truths, how would we could we say that one person is good or another evil? This source of truth must come from somewhere, and Christians believe that source is God.
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how and why believe in gOd?
Blaise Pascal, a French mathematician, pointed out that if you believe in God and are wrong, then it costs you nothing, but if you deny God and are wrong, then it costs you everything. “Pascal’s wager” says that the only intelligent bet is … to bet on God.
Many people describe God as a feeling, the knowledge that things are happening for a reason and that Someone is watching over them. Sometimes this happens in big, dramatic ways, like being saved from a tragedy, or other times it's the small whisper.
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how can I hear god?
You may have heard someone say that they heard God speak to them. God doesn't typically speak to us in a dramatic way that sounds like a regular human voice (though sometimes He does). Most of the time, hearing God requires being truly quiet and listening.
A great way to hear God's voice is to read His word. The Bible is God's love letter to humanity, the story of how we came to be and how much He loves us.
Here is a great description from the Bible about how God speaks:
God Speaking
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why does god allow bad things to happen?
If God is all good, then why do bad things happen? With faith, we believe that God is good but tolerates evil either so that some good may come of it or because it fits some plan that is beyond human understanding.
There is also the effect of free will, that God has given people the freedom to choose good or evil. And of course, Satan certainly tries to make evil seem very appealing.
In other words, God doesn't cause evil, but He permits it. The frustrating thing is that we don't always know why, but that is kind of the point of faith - we don't have to know to believe.
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DO I HAVE A PURPOSE?
Phrased another way, does God care about and know you? The answer is unequivocally yes. God forms each person individually. He knows you deeply, down to your every thought and hair on your head.
And because of that, we know that He has a purpose for you. You aren't here by accident. You aren't a mistake. You aren't random or forgotten. He cares for you and provides for you, even when it doesn't feel like it. You are His beloved child, and He has incredible plans for you that only He knows.
All He asks for is your love. That's faith. But he leaves the response totally up to you. He will never force you to love or follow Him, but He will always be waiting if you decide to do so, even at the very last moment of your life.
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Have more questions?Of course you do. We'd be surprised if you didn't! This is just a very high-level overview of what Catholics believe about God. Now the question turns to you: What do you believe?
We exist to help you form that answer (which is lifelong, not a one-time statement). So keep asking questions, or join us for our events and programs to keep grappling with these questions and their nuances. -
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