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In this thread I would like to briefly review three common heresies regarding the natural knowability of God, and why they are faulty and contrary to Church dogma:
1. Fideism:
Fideism (using it quite broadly) maintains that faith and reason are in opposition, and that faith ought to be favored in a way that very often excludes natural reason.
Fideism (using it quite broadly) maintains that faith and reason are in opposition, and that faith ought to be favored in a way that very often excludes natural reason.
This epistemological view can lead to one thinking that we cannot know God naturally, i.e., we cannot know the existence of God through natural human reason from the consideration of created things, but we can only know God’s existence through faith by divine revelation.
The Catholic Church teaches God is both an object of natural reason and supernatural faith. Consequently, we can know God’s existence mediately via reason from his effects, viz. creation. “And from every effect the existence of its proper cause can be demonstrated,
“so long as its effects are better known to us; because since every effect depends upon its cause, if the effect exists, the cause must pre-exist” (St. Thomas Aquinas, S.T., I:2:2, “Whether it can be demonstrated that God exists?”). Faith does not contradict reason;
faith harmonizes with faith. Reason lays the foundation, and faith completes, fulfills it.
2. Agnosticism:
Agnosticism can be divided into two categories: strong and weak. Weak Agnosticism would concede that God’s existence could be proven, but they themselves have not been personally convinced of it - that is, they are not sure whether God exists.
Agnosticism can be divided into two categories: strong and weak. Weak Agnosticism would concede that God’s existence could be proven, but they themselves have not been personally convinced of it - that is, they are not sure whether God exists.
Strong Agnosticism holds that the existence of God could never possibly be demonstrated, and thus we could never know whether God exists or not - ergo they are not sure whether God exists, but for a different reason than the weak Agnostics.
Strong Agnosticism is obviously heretical. For as stated above, the existence of God can be known with certainly through reason from the effects of God, as by an effect we can proceed to the knowledge of its cause.
Regarding weak Agnosticism, one cannot remain any sort of Agnostic for the remainder of his life without fault, since the existence of God is obviously intelligible in nature to all human beings.
“For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God as shown it to them. For since the creation of the world, God’s invisible qualities - his divine nature and eternal power - are clearly seen, being understood from the things that have been made:
“so that men are inexcusable” (Romans 1:20). To remain an Agnostic is to assert that God’s existence is not easily recognizable, which is plainly false, and implicitly accuses God of falsehood.
3. Atheism:
Atheism is the rejection of God’s existence. As mentioned, the existence of God is ascertainable, to the extent of complete certitude, with unaided reason as the principle of cognition, and created things as the means of knowledge.
Atheism is the rejection of God’s existence. As mentioned, the existence of God is ascertainable, to the extent of complete certitude, with unaided reason as the principle of cognition, and created things as the means of knowledge.
All men know the existence of God, according to Holy Writ. Atheism is not an intellectual objection to God’s existence, but a moral one. Atheists, according to divine revelation, ultimately know that God exists - like all men - and is founded on fundamental dishonesty.
Atheists are Atheists, not because God has failed to sufficiently reveal himself to them, but because they hate him. Atheists will not be able to plead ignorance before God.
To summarize, all three beliefs mentioned here are ultimately rejections of what God has specially revealed to humanity and the infallible teaching of the Magisterium.
First Vatican Council (1869-1870):
“If anybody says that the one true God, our Creator and Lord, cannot be known with certainty in the light of human reason by those things which have been made, let him be anathema.”
“If anybody says that the one true God, our Creator and Lord, cannot be known with certainty in the light of human reason by those things which have been made, let him be anathema.”
