Unintentional rejection of God

[BornInMarch]

The Catechism of the Catholic Church states the following: “Since Christ died for all, and since all men are in fact called to one and the same destiny, which is divine, we must hold that the Holy Spirit offers to all the possibility of being made partakers, in a way known to God, of the Paschal mystery. Every man who is ignorant of the Gospel of Christ and of his Church, but seeks the truth and does the will of God in accordance with his understanding of it, can be saved. It may be supposed that such persons would have desired Baptism explicitly if they had known its necessity.”

This confirms that adults who have not heard the word of God can still go to Heaven if they lived righteously. But what about adults who have heard the word of God but who, through no fault of their own, remained unconvinced? There are adults in the world who live righteously and who respect the gospel, but whose thought processes prevent them from believing in it. Some even state that they honestly wish they could believe, or are disturbed by their inability to believe.
While it may seem obvious to us believers, it isn’t obvious to everyone. Not everyone had the good fortune of being raised by in faith, or of feeling God’s presence and being able to recognize it, or of seeing miracles. And you have to admit that things like a man raising from the dead are incredible - it wouldn’t be celebrated if it was easy or common. And indeed it can seem too good to be true (as shown by the Apostle Thomas wanting to feel Jesus’ scars).

If they die and tell God “I would have worshiped you if I knew you existed”, would they truly be barred from Heaven?

Support for your answer - Catechism links, quotes from Priests, etc - are encouraged.

 

[fhansen]

All wrongdoing, i.e. sin, requires that certain conditions be present involving: the degree of knowledge we have regarding the gravity of the act, and the deliberateness of our consent. A variety of circumstances can mitigate ones culpability, including bad experiences with Christians, for example, varying levels of intelligence and maturity, strong cultural taboos, or simply not grasping whats been heard. In any case Scripture says God judges by the heart. He knows better than we do exactly what motivates us.

 

[BornInMarch]

This is a satisfactory answer, and what I was thinking too.

 

[Vico]

…
If they die and tell God “I would have worshiped you if I knew you existed”, would they truly be barred from Heaven?
…

There is hope but not assurance of salvation for those that are not baptized (of water, blood, or desire). For those that are baptized, they must also depart this life “marked with the sign of faith”.

Catechism

1250 Born with a fallen human nature and tainted by original sin, children also have need of the new birth in Baptism to be freed from the power of darkness and brought into the realm of the freedom of the children of God, to which all men are called.50 …

1257 The Church does not know of any means other than Baptism that assures entry into eternal beatitude; …
God has bound salvation to the sacrament of Baptism, but he himself is not bound by his sacraments.

1258 The Church has always held the firm conviction that those who suffer death for the sake of the faith without having received Baptism are baptized by their death for and with Christ. This Baptism of blood, like the desire for Baptism, brings about the fruits of Baptism without being a sacrament.

1259 For catechumens who die before their Baptism, their explicit desire to receive it, together with repentance for their sins, and charity, assures them the salvation that they were not able to receive through the sacrament…

1261 As regards children who have died without Baptism, the Church can only entrust them to the mercy of God, as she does in her funeral rites for them. …

1274 The Holy Spirit has marked us with the seal of the Lord (“Dominicus character”) "for the day of redemption."85 "Baptism indeed is the seal of eternal life."86 The faithful Christian who has “kept the seal” until the end, remaining faithful to the demands of his Baptism, will be able to depart this life "marked with the sign of faith,"87 with his baptismal faith, in expectation of the blessed vision of God - the consummation of faith - and in the hope of resurrection.