“Thomas saith to him: Lord, we know not whither thou goest; and how can we know the way?” (St. John 14:5)

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For years I felt the horror of the belief that my mind and soul was merely a bunch of firing neurons. I tried to believe this, at times, with all my might, desiring to believe what was most true. Why did I think atheism was most true? There was no logic behind this, but merely the belief that scientists in general, being weaned from childish things, were manly enough to believe in the cold nothingness of pure matter.

Many rebel now against this cold nothingness, and reject logic altogether, thinking it cold and mechanical and unspiritual. That to be truly spiritual, they think, is to be emotional. And so they look for emotional experiences to ground their faith. But is the human heart anything like a sure guide?

Yet if we reject the passions of our hearts, what are we left with but cold, dead reason? Is that any way to live? So they ask. As Catholics, we do believe that God will send us consolations and comfort. Our part here below is not to pursue such things, however, but to suffer for the truth and trust. “He that hath my commandments, and keepeth: he it is that loveth me. And he that loveth me, shall be loved by my Father” (John 14:21). Our part is to face these dark nights of the soul with courage. Consolations will come not when we will it but when God wills it.

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They say now that God is an unscientific idea, a holdover from superstitious times when humans saw consciousness in everything, in the stars and the moon. No, they say, it is brutal evolution by natural selection that takes these atoms and forms them into slimes and bugs, crawling things and swimming things, mighty beasts and even … minds like ours. It’s a cold calculation, natural selection. But to disbelieve it, they say, is emotionalism. Sentimentality. Can’t you see we are animals? they say.

The belief in evolution is not based on sound logic, however. It’s based on a false anti-emotionalism, a desire to appear logical. But in seeking to demolish everything comforting about reality, it turns the world on its head. It teaches that perfect comes from imperfect, that cars design engineers, that students teach teachers. It teaches that life and light come from murk and slime.

Science was original with Christianity’s faith in God’s rational order. The laws of physics and chemistry, of biology and psychology, are all exquisitely crafted by our Designer. Imperfection is the merciful work of Perfection, who condescends to create us. It is only lately, when science has lost its theological and philosophical roots, and fragmented into isolated disciplines, that people have forgotten that all this order is connected, meaningful, and rational, having its source in the most rational and meaningful Being of all, and that is God.

The Apostles converted people to Christ by showing them the scientific evidence. Many, many ancient prophecies in Scripture were all fulfilled by his coming. This was confirmed again by Fathers of the Church, and again by modern archaeology with the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, dated back to centuries before His birth.

“I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and magnify thy name, and thou shalt be blessed. I will bless them that bless thee, and curse them that curse thee, and IN THEE shall all the kindred of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 12:1-3, written at least 1500 years before Christ, when the Hebrew nation was tiny and seemed insignificant.)

Is atheism scientifically plausible? But science is the pursuit of truth. And if the truth is not perfect, what is it? Is it worth seeking? Where shall we seek it?

Let’s ask with St. Thomas: “How can we know the way?”

And let’s listen for the response.

“Jesus saith to him: I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father, but by me.” (St. John 14:6)