Do Humans inherently know God?
The Westminster Confession of Faith declares that the chief end of man is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever. At the time it was written, few Westerners had any real doubts as to which God it referred to. Today it is a different story entirely. The sheer number of religions confuses people when it comes to truth claims. So is it possible to discover which concept of God is true and which religion is true? We think it is. Let’s begin by finding out what we can know at the intuitive level. There is a particular fact that no one, not even the most diehard atheist, can logically deny. The vast majority of men and women throughout history have believed in God. It is probably also true that the majority of the greatest thinkers among humanity, including scientists, have believed in God. [1] In light of this, one might argue atheism is little more than an infected blemish on the face of history. [2] The famous psychologist Carl Jung once observed that the “idea of an all-powerful divine being is present everywhere, if not consciously recognized, then unconsciously accepted. Therefore I consider it wiser to recognize the idea of God consciously; otherwise something else becomes god, as a rule something quite inappropriate and stupid.” [5] Even if skeptics and others say that they aren’t certain of God’s existence or that they disbelieve in God, they still know He exists. One reason the Bible spends no time arguing for God’s existence is because it really isn’t necessary. In the material below we have provided sufficient examples from Sweeney’s book to illustrate our point. Collectively, they show the raw power of the intuitive knowledge of God, even when such knowledge is perverted into mysticism and pantheism. Famous writer Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., who describes himself as a rationalist, still believes in God. Even though he judges God’s performance as “quite heartless,” declaring we have “a lousy God,” he nevertheless says that he believes in “pretty much the Unitarian God, where spring is celebrated and where there is a feeling of something terribly important going on in the universe, something unified, an awareness of that”. [6] Actor Richard Chamberlain, known for his roles in “Shogun” and “The Thornbirds,” declares, “We are pieces of God.” [7] Star Trek producer Gene Roddenberry has said, “As nearly as I can concentrate on the question today, I believe I am God; certainly you are; I think we intelligent beings on this planet are all a piece of God, are becoming God.” [8] Actor Martin Sheen replies, in response to whether or not he prays, “Only when I get in trouble.” Asked where he directs the prayer he says,- It just goes. I feel like I’m making contact. I don’t feel that I’m talking to myself when I pray. I don’t think people who pray do, do they? If they’re really praying, they are in touch with Another, which I think is God, or part of God, or at least the presence of God in us. [9]
- As I got into the creative business, then I realized that creativity and God were connected, directly connected. Whether you believe in God or not. You had to believe, if you believed in creativity, you had to believe in some creator. And if you believed in some crea-tor, where do you end up? You must go to that prime creator, which has set our universe in motion. Things are too ordered in the universe to be the result of chaos. There is no way you can get away from the fact that there’s got to be some sort of divine idea to the whole thing. [10]
- It’s very mysterious that one man, being of sound mind, can give his life for another. I think that kind of love, that kind of inherent goodness speaks very loudly for a good God. And so with all the problems, I personally have always felt that my relationship to God is that of a son who writes lots of letters. He never gets a letter back, but he keeps hearing reports from mutual friends of what his father is doing. And his father seems to be taking the attitude of “look, trust me, I’m taking care of you.” And I do trust him, I trust God very definitely. There have been so many personal interventions in my life. [11]
- To me, proving the existence of God is not important because everybody believes in God no matter what they say…. When you look back over your life, carefully, you remember all kinds of moments when you felt God near you; when you felt that somehow or other you lucked out; when you got something you didn’t deserve. [12]
- I must admit that I’m really not very religious. I do believe in God, but I don’t really follow it as well as I probably should. I’m not into it like some people, but I believe in God and sometimes in my life I have asked him to help me when I thought I really needed it. That’s happened to me many times, and I think he’s helped me. I think he’s been great to me. God’s been good to me in my career. I feel like he’s trying to look out for me, you know, maybe more so than the average guy. [13]
- I was a 20-year-old kid; the other two men in the plane were dead, and flames all over us. Of course, I cried out to God to save me. I remember floating in that rubber raft in the middle of the ocean and yet… feeling that God was going to help somehow and that I was going to live. [14]
- The mere existence of that cell should be one of the greatest astonishments of the earth. People ought to be walking around all day, all through their waking hours, calling to each other in endless wonderment, talking of nothing except that cell. If anyone does succeed in explaining it, within my lifetime, I will charter a skywriting airplane, maybe a whole fleet of them and send them aloft to write one great exclamation point after another, around the whole sky, until all my money runs out. [17]
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