Why I Believe: An Interview by a Respectful Skeptic

The Gospel account of Jesus walking on water is an extraordinary story. How could a sophisticate like you believe in such a thing?

I believe the account because my First Communion Catechism taught me to pray: “O My God, I believe all the truths which the Holy Catholic Church teaches, because You have made them known.”

You believe because “the Church” teaches you? Don’t you believe the Bible?

Both. I believe the Church because Christ founded her and entrusted His revelation to the Apostles, whose faith she has preserved and handed on through the centuries. Without the Church’s apostolic Tradition and authoritative discernment, we would not know with certainty which books belong to the canon of Sacred Scripture. The Church is the authoritative guardian and interpreter of the living Word of God. The Magisterium presents the truths of the faith to every generation. The Church is always ancient because she reaches back to the time of Christ. She is always new because she helps us wrestle with the problems and questions of every age.

But is faith reliable?

Most of our knowledge is based on beliefs. Accepting the authority of others is not irrational or unreliable; it is practical and unavoidable. We trust doctors when they prescribe medications because they have studied medicine. Jurors rely on credible witnesses. We need not repeat the scientific method to validate every belief. Human progress is built on the foundation of many beliefs. Catholics trust the testimony of witnesses whose teaching extends back through the centuries to the Apostles.

How does Catholic faith differ from the summation of religious beliefs?

Catholic faith is comprehensive; it is not merely a collection of beliefs. The deposit of faith is coherent. But the formal rejection of essential Catholic doctrines can reduce faith to a fragmented system of beliefs. A faithful Catholic distinguishes between the unchanging truths of the faith and mutable ecclesial disciplines.

Is the totality of faith reasonable?

Faith and reason are completely compatible because Jesus Christ is the Word made Flesh. He reconciles God and man, faith and reason, religion and the truths discoverable by human reason. Truths of faith cannot contradict truths established by sound reason and science, because God is the source of all truth. The Resurrection of Jesus is reasonable, but as the central mystery of our faith, it is also beyond our complete comprehension.

Okay, you have confidence in the entire machinery of Church teaching. But you haven’t said why you accept the entirety as true.

Faith is impossible without the mysterious grace of God. God draws people to the Catholic faith in different ways. The beauty and order of creation attract some. The witness and goodness of faithful Catholics attract others. Still others—like me—are fundamentally attracted by the reasonableness and coherence of Catholic moral teaching. Faith, impelled by God’s grace, accepts the entirety of essential Church teaching.

How does reason sustain you in your faith in Jesus through the Church?

When I consider the Ten Commandments and the precepts of the Natural Law that theologians have articulated in relation to them, I cannot help but marvel at the consistency, coherence, integrity, and beauty of Catholic moral teaching. We worship God freely. We delight in obedient and happy families. We deplore the taking of innocent human life from the moment of conception. We celebrate the sacrament of matrimony. We do not need to be slaves to impulses that degrade our humanity. Despite changing social pressures over the centuries, these moral truths remain constant.

But the world often hates the precepts of Catholic morality as constrictive impositions.

The study of Catholic morality is ultimately the study of human freedom. Many Catholics have died rather than abandon the moral teachings of the Church. They understood that freedom does not mean doing whatever we desire. True freedom means the ability to choose what is good: happiness in this life and in the life to come.

Many people are not highly educated in Catholic theology. Is the faith inaccessible to them?

The essential truths of the faith are accessible to all. Little children pray the Act of Faith. God’s grace not only joins faith and reason, but is responsible for our attraction to the faith from the beginning. Christian love is the crown of faith. The demons know the entire faith better than we do. But they are devoid of charity.

What do you make of the many controversies in the Church over the last fifty years?

Why stop at fifty years? The great G. K. Chesterton once wrote, “A man was meant to be doubtful about himself, but undoubting about the truth.” Our confidence is not ultimately in ourselves, but in Christ and in the truth He has revealed. St. John Chrysostom himself warned of the grave responsibility of Church leaders: “I do not think there are many among Bishops that will be saved, but many more that perish.” (Homily III on the Acts of the Apostles)

You haven’t satisfied me as to why an intelligent man like you believes the fantastic stories of the Gospel.

The Apostles’ Creed is central to Catholic teaching and provides a framework for understanding the whole of history, from Adam to the end of the world. Grace does not replace reason; it elevates and perfects it.

I believe because the Catholic Church, by Divine guarantee, preserves and proclaims the revelation of Jesus Christ.

I believe because I have encountered a coherent, compelling, and comprehensive account of reality in the Catholic faith, rooted in reliable apostolic testimony and sealed by the blood of the martyrs.

Jesus promises, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.” Astonishing!

Therefore, I believe that Jesus turned water into wine, cured the sick, walked on water, preached the Good News, suffered for our sins, and rose from the dead.

Everyone faces this fundamental question: What is your worldview, and how do you justify your beliefs with reason?