ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS ABOUT ATHEISM OUR LADY OF VICTORY FEBRUARY 28, 2016
INTRODUCTION Roots of Modern Atheism French Enlightenment Modern Atheism Our Response
ROOTS OF MODERN ATHEISM Scientific Method Growth of science led to disregard of non-scientific methods for arriving at truth Individualism & Subjectivism Rejects authority à Self-interpretation of the Scriptures Deism Christianity without doctrine, churches, public revelation Supreme Being, right and wrong, afterlife of reward or punishment Divine Watchmaker Permits existence of God, but pushes God to the side Transition to Atheism Edward Herbert
ROOTS OF MODERN ATHEISM Idealism Regression to Platonism and his concept of ideals Separation of mind from world à Separation from reality Separation of mind from body Mind uses body Senses cannot be trusted George Berkeley Empiricism Reaction to Idealism and emphasis on reason Placed emphasis on senses for acquiring knowledge Search for practical information as opposed to eternal truths Does it work; is it useful? versus Is it true? Leads to extreme pragmatism, utilitarianism, positivism John Locke, David Hume, William James
ROOTS OF MODERN ATHEISM Fideism Blind faith Eventually, faith opposes reason Pantheism God everywhere God is not in world; God is world God is life force in world Scientists today continue to search for the God particle of atoms Giordano Bruno & Baruch de Spinoza
FRENCH ENLIGHTENMENT French culture dominated 19 th century Diderot, Voltaire, Rousseau s Encyclopedia Radical rejection of religion (Absolute) Primacy of reason and scientific method Secular Culture and State American War for Independence British versus French heritage Alexis de Tocqueville s Democracy in America
MODERN ATHEISM Materialism Only reality is material universe Deny existence of spiritual: God, angels, souls, free will Difficulty with altruism, friendship, charity, mercy Atheistic materialism à Communism Rationalism Anything that cannot be known with certainty is false Anything spiritual opposes reason, so it is false Misuse the truth-finding power of reason to deny ultimate truth God
MODERN ATHEISM Scientism Scientific method is source of truth If it can t be measured, observed, or experimented not truth Modern science has made progress, but that doesn t exalt it as only source of truth Evolutionism No need for Intelligent Designer to explain human life Lots of Catholic misconceptions Human race did not evolve from dead matter Popes and Big Bang Relativism Einstein and relativity - theory of invariance Speed of light is the same, invariant Everything is relative even science. Relativity, Uncertainty Principle & Chaos Theory applied to modern society
MODERN ATHEISM Relativism Tsunami of everything previous coming together Truth cannot be known à moral relativism Moral relativism You can do whatever you want, so long as it does not hurt me. Denies moral absolutes Nietzsche: You have your way, I have my way. As for the right way, it does not exist. Denial of truth Results Abortion Divorce
CATHOLIC RESPONSE Pursuit of Truth à Belief in God Proof of Existence of God unmoved mover first cause argument from contingency argument from degree teleological argument ("argument from design ) World of relativism today does not accept truth
CATHOLIC RESPONSE We are building a dictatorship of relativism that does not recognize anything as definitive and whose ultimate goal consists solely of one's own ego and desires. Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger Homily 18 April 2005
CATHOLIC RESPONSE Transcendentals One True Good Beautiful
CATHOLIC RESPONSE The truth comes to rule, not through violence, but rather through its own power; this is the central theme of John's Gospel: When brought before Pilate, Jesus professes that He Himself is The Truth and the witness to the truth. He does not defend the truth with legions but rather makes it visible through His Passion and thereby also implements it. ~ Pope Benedict XVI Light of the World
BEAUTIFUL CHURCHES Make beauty visible!
BEAUTIFUL LITURGY
BEAUTIFUL MUSIC
BEAUTIFUL LIFE
BE BEAUTIFUL! BE A SAINT! CHANGE THE WORLD!