How to conciliate Faith and Reason?

[lylebr]

First of all, id like to apologize for my english, cause im not a native.

I heard that the Catholic church condemns both Rationalism, which is excluding faith and valorizing only reason, and Fideism, which is only faith and no reason.

If faith disturbs your reason, then there is something wrong with your faith and you should review it.
If reason disturbs your faith, maybe there is something wrong with your faith or you are reasoning wrongly.

Church says both must be friends, and one cannot exclude each other.

But Nowadays, I was thinking about my beliefs, and it’s hard to me. Sometimes Im thinking I’m losing my faith everyday, when I start reading about skepticism, and science and all this things.

I don’t know what to do anymore, it’s just too hard to me, everyday I tell to myself: "I should not believe in something which comforts me if it is not true, i have to know if it is true or not. If my faith is a lie, then my religion is a lie, and i shouldnt keep praying for it.

I’m sure that if I keep my faith how I am doing, it gives me peace of mind, and gives me hope and all that stuff.

But everyday, everytime this question bites me: “You shouldnt believe in something who comforts you. Try to find a way if it is true or not.”

I don’t know anymore what to do, I think I’m losing it. If God could just give me a signal to keep believeing on him. Church says both reason and faith must go together, but what if the faith has not a good reason?

Thank you, I would like you folks could help me.

 

[DavidFilmer]

Your question is similar to one that we hear from time to time: What must I believe to be Catholic?

The answer is (surprisingly), nothing.

If you find yourself in a position where you are having trouble believing anything then you are not necessarily a “bad” Catholic. This is called a “crisis of faith,” and it is something that many Catholics have experienced (even great Saints of the Church). Disbelief itself is not a sin, because belief is not an act of the will (we can’t make ourselves believe something).

To whatever extent that we are in disbelief of Church teaching, we must realize this is a fault that we should strive to correct. We should realize that the Church is in a better position to know the truth about God than we are, and we should strive to reconcile ourselves with Her teaching. This might be done in prayer, spiritual council, study, or Catholic Answers Forums. We cannot simply be complacent (or obstinate) in our disbelief (this is when disbelief becomes sinful and spiritually destructive).

There are hundreds of people on this forum who would be very happy to help you work through these issues - many of us have been in the same situation (myself included).

 

[katy]

Yes, many people (me included) have had problems with this. I believe it may be God calling you to a more mature faith. Right now I am reading a book titled Where the Conflict Really Lies. It is by a philosopher who also seems to know quite a bit about the physical sciences and shows how reason and faith actually go together quite well. I don’t know if it is in your native language. There are other books and most likely online sites that show how faith and reason are very compatible. Perhaps a priest could refer you to something helpful–someone who can help you in your best language? Most of the early modern scientists, Newton and such, were people of faith and saw no problem.

 

[Verbum]

Hi, Lyle,

Harmony between faith and reason does not mean that you must be able to explain everything that you believe. It means 1) that reason helps us to understand what the teaching actually is and 2) that it helps us go deeper into the teaching and its applications to our lives.

More importantly, reason can provide a philosophical background for the teachings of our religion. For example the philosophical concepts of substance and accident applied to the Eucharist shows that this doctrine does not go against reason.

You are right in saying that, if there is a conflict between faith and reason then either we don’t understand the teaching or are not reasoning correctly. In the same way, if science and the bible contradict each other, either we don’t understand the bible or the sclence (or the science is wrong.)

We do not accept the teachings of the Church because we understand them but because they are truths revealed by God, and God cannot be wrong. Furthermore, faith is not something that we “get”; it is a gift of God. When we are baptized, we are asked what we desire, and we answer “The gift of faith”. We must pray for it. Like the person in the gospels, we must pray, .“Lord, I believe; help my unbelief.”

Verbum