Why Do People Believe in God?

14 Aug 2026 32 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , ,

This is not an attack on those of you who believe in some sort of creator or supreme being.  Despite the fact that Atheists are often attacked for their beliefs, I have generally been very tolerant towards anyone who wants to talk to their God whoever or whatever that may be.  Of course, that does not mean that I do not hypothesize why anyone would believe in the idea of a God.  A being that cannot be directly seen, touched, or empirically verified naturally raises skeptical questions for many people, me included.  To answer this question, I have had several different insights.  Many of these go back to my early days of rejecting God the Father.  Here are a few of my beliefs on the enigmatic question of “Why does anyone believe in God?”

  • The Need for Comfort:

People who feel helpless want to believe that someone is out there who can help them.  God can serve this role because believers often see God as omnipotent and omniscient—both all-powerful and all-knowing.  God is more powerful than any superhero created by Marvel Comics.  If I can only make an intimate connection with God or indeed make him MY GOD, then I can tap into his infinite power to help provide for my needs.  Perhaps it is to give me back my health or to provide wealth or to smite my enemies.  MY GOD will help me when I ask him to through the intercession of what are called prayers.

  • The Search for Meaning:

People often rely more on emotion than logic or reason.  People are swayed more by stories than by facts or data.  They want to believe in a supreme being because they cannot think of any other reasons for how the universe or humanity was created.  Rather than relying on something that sounds as incredible as the Big Bang Theory or The Theory of Evolution, they want to believe that there is some type of purpose in creation.  Einstein did not want to believe in Quantum Physics because he did not want to believe that “God played dice with the universe.”  Humans have a need for a logic of sorts to describe our purpose for being here, but it is not a logic of science. 

  • The Power of Culture and Upbringing:

Everywhere you look there are allusions to God.  In God we Trust on our coins.  One Nation Under God in our Pledge of Allegiance.  Our leaders say prayers to a God before beginning major political events.  We sing endless songs extolling the wonders of God.  People are taught from infancy that God will take care of you if you only believe in Him.  As a Catholic, I learned to pray before I went to sleep at night:

Now I lie me down to sleep and pray the Lord my soul will keep,

If I should die before I wake, I pray the Lord my soul will take.

Amen

I have several friends who had pancreatic cancer.  Many of them prayed or had friends and relatives who prayed for their remission or cure.  Not one of them lasted more than six months before dying of this horrible disease.  I can cite a litany of other times when God has failed to intervene on humanity’s behalf, but it would not make one iota of difference. 

Deeply held beliefs—especially those formed in childhood—can become extraordinarily resistant to change, even in the face of contradictory evidence.

People want to believe that God helps humanity.   People want to believe that God is kind, compassionate and full of infinite love and patience. 

  • A New Perspective on Why People Believe in God:

History is filled with brilliant scientists, philosophers, theologians, and ordinary people who have wrestled with these same questions and reached very different conclusions.  The existence—or nonexistence—of God has resisted definitive proof for thousands of years.  Perhaps that is one reason the debate has endured for so long.  It reminds us that, regardless of our convictions, intellectual humility is appropriate when confronting questions that may ultimately lie beyond our ability to answer.

Lately, I have had a different perspective on why people believe in God.  If my other reasons are less than charitable, this one is I believe more complimentary toward humanity.  As I reflected on my earlier explanations, I gradually realized that none of them fully captured why millions of thoughtful people believe in God.  There seemed to be something deeper involved.

I began to realize that it would take a very egotistical person to say that “I don’t need God” or that “Science can solve all of our problems.”  It is a little like the ancients who wanted to believe that the Earth was the center of the universe or that the Sun revolved around the Earth.  It might just be the height of egotism to think that creation revolved around human beings or that God revolved around human beings. 

I once wrote that God did not make man in his image, but that man created God in his image.  Regardless of which way it was, humility and humbleness would dictate that we do not make humanity the center of the Universe.  I don’t have any answers to why we are here or even what I am doing here.  I have made my own purpose in life.  I have not had any divine callings.  I have never heard the Voice of God or any other voices for that matter.  I sometimes pray for my friends or humanity only because it can’t hurt.  Perhaps, there is a benevolent God listening to my prayers.  I would give you a hundred to one odds that is not the situation but greater minds than mine have reached different conclusions.

The realization of our own limitations and frailties may just be the most powerful motivator for a belief in God.  Who among us would have the audacity to say that they can prove “God does not exist?”  Who among us would have the audacity to judge God by the state of the world?  Who among us could say that other people were “stupid” for taking the time to pray to a God? 

Maybe God is not a crutch so much as a recognition of our own limitations and frailties.

Whatever your reasons for believing or not believing in a God or Divine Presence, I hope you find peace and tranquility and compassion for others in your beliefs.  If there is a God and he is a loving compassionate God who cares about human beings, than surely he would want you to demonstrate the same kindness and love towards others.  This includes everyone and not just people who belong to the same church as you do.

My Final Will and Testament – Convictions – Reflection #3

12 May 2024 4 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,

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Last year at my 40th Demontreville Retreat, one of the exercises that we were given by the Retreat Master included a very challenging set of thoughts.  The worksheet for the activity was labeled as “A Testament.” I took the worksheet and instructions home with me.  It had fourteen tasks or reflections to complete.  I did not desire to complete them during the retreat.  It is now almost a year since my retreat, and I have decided to make the mental and emotional effort necessary to complete this “Testament.”

I am going to complete one or two reflections every other day for the next few weeks.  I would love it if you would do these tasks along with me.  If you would like to share your thoughts, that would be great, but I am not expecting anyone to do so.  I would like to know if you find any benefit in completing these activities.

The worksheet started with these instructions:

Imagine that this is the last day of your life on earth.  In the time that you have left, you want to leave a “Testament” for your family and friends.  Each of the following could serve as chapter headings for your “Testament.”

  1. These are the Convictions that I have lived by.

I do not like the sound of the word Convictions.  I think I have lived by too many Convictions in my life.  There are of course two somewhat very different meanings that can be attached to this word.  Dictionary.com provides the following two definitions.  Let us look at these for a second.

  1. A formal declaration that someone is guilty of a criminal offense, made by the verdict of a jury or the decision of a judge in a court of law:  “She had a previous conviction for a similar offense”
  2. A firmly held belief or opinion:  “She takes pride in stating her political convictions”

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Regarding the definitions, one can see where a person might have some anxieties about the first association of Conviction with jail and prison.  I assure you that this is not where my anxiety comes from.  I am pretty sure it stems from the second definition.  “A firmly held belief.”  When I look back upon my life, I have had too many firmly held beliefs.  Behind my back, I know that I have been called “A know it all” many times.  I am still a very opinionated person as any of my readers can probably attest.  However, I would like to think that seldom if ever do I get into robust arguments any more with other people.  I even gave up trying to convince Trump supporters who include veterans, evangelicals, businesspeople, college graduates, relatives, and friends that Trump is a total scumbag with no morality or ethics.

I am trying hard to find any Convictions now that I am so dedicated to that I let them rule my life.  All of the great quotes, aphorisms, metaphors, analogies, theories, and ideas that I know of would fill an old encyclopedia Britannica.  But not one that I can think of would I waste five minutes defending.  I think that there are pro’s and con’s to everything in life.  For every up there is a down.  For every night, there is a day.  For every light, there is a dark.  For every right, there is a wrong.  Perhaps, Ecclesiastes comes as close to a Conviction as I want to live with today.

“For there is no lasting remembrance of the wise, just as with the fool, seeing that both will be forgotten in the days to come.  Alas, the wise man will die just like the fool!  So, I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me.  For everything is futile and a pursuit of the wind.” — Ecclesiastes 2

Is the above a Conviction or is it simply a belief?  Not sure it even matters.  Everything we do is blowing in the wind.

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One story I like very much was told by OSHO about a mighty king who died.  This King believed that he was the greatest King on earth and also that he was the greatest King who ever lived.  The King died and found himself in the realm of the Golden Mountains.  These mountains were higher than the Himalayans and more vast than the entire Asian continent.  Here the King met the Caretaker of the mountains.  The Caretaker gave the King a magic pen and told him that he could write his name in the mountains.  This was permitted because he was a mighty King.  A few days later the King came back to the Caretaker and complained, “I have walked for many miles through the Golden Mountains and everywhere I went to sign my name, some other person had already signed their name.  Who are all these people?”  The Caretaker replied, “These are all the other mighty Kings before you who died.”

  • “Convictions are more dangerous foes of truth than lies.”
  • “Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.”
  • “Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.”

I would rather live by a set of virtues and values than a set of convictions. 

Next Reflection:    

  1. These are the things that I have lived for.

 

Four Remarkable People on a Quest

03 Sep 2018 3 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

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Part 1 – The Meeting

Once upon a time, there were four remarkable men.  Well, actually there were two remarkable men and two remarkable women.  A confluence of circumstances brought them together in perhaps one of the strangest coincidences in history.

Jamal was from the north.  He was one of the highest scorers to ever take the Mensa Genius Examination.  When he was only four years old, he developed a program to block credit card companies from calling his parents on their cell phones.  When he was seven years old, he developed a new form of cryptocurrency which was impossible to hack, easily transferred, had high usability and presented a respectable means of acquisition.  The currency was so popular that Jamal became a billionaire when he was 15 years old.

Isabella was from the south.  She graduated when she was 12 years old from the University of São Paulo with a Ph.D. degree in Physics and Philosophy.  She burned through required credits like a hot knife going through butter.  She had no problem paying for her tuition since she was hired by the University of São Paulo physics department to help with a particle research project they were undertaking, while she was earning her degree.  When she graduated, half of the physics departments in the world tried to hire her.

Li Na was from the east.  She was born in Chengdu, a sub-provincial city which serves as the capital of China’s Sichuan province.  She was the only child of an older couple who really wanted a boy.  Li Na learned to play soccer, baseball, table tennis and hockey at a young age.  She wanted to please her parents.  She was an excellent athlete who competed in all four sports in the Olympics.  However, her athletic abilities were far overshadowed by her intellect.  Li Na had mathematical abilities that rivaled any mathematician in history.  She could take any number and give you the square root of the number down to 1000 roots without a calculator or even an abacus.

When Li Na was fourteen years old, she decided to tackle all six of the remaining Millennium Prize Problems set by the Clay Mathematics Institute in 2000.  Li Na was able to solve all six of them within a month, but she decided it would be unfair to accept the prize money as the solutions were so easy.  She therefore rejected the prize and kept the solutions to herself.  Corporations all over the world engaged her with solving problems that defied normal mathematical solutions.  She gave her money back to her parents to help support them and to put into savings.  No one knew what she was worth, but it was assumed that she was a mega millionaire.

Elijah was from the west. He was born in California in a commune that practiced a form of communal marriage.  Elijah was never sure of who his father was, and he seemed to grow up with several mothers.  At an early age, Elijah showed a talent for music.  When he was three years old, he taught himself to play a violin.  At four, he learned to play an oboe and at five, he learned to play a harp.  When he was six, he took first place in the Menuhin Competition beating out every other contestant regardless of age.

As remarkable as his talent for playing music was, Elijah’s skills and abilities in the area of composing music were even more incredible.  He had written six operas, twenty movie scores and five symphonies before he was 16 years old.  Orchestras all over the world were playing his compositions when most people did not even know his name.  Elijah hated publicity and avoided any of the usual celebrity events.  He donated most of his money to help other aspiring musicians.  He was well known among musicians and performers for his humility and kindness towards others.

cafe-wrenEach of our four remarkable people were into their middle years when by chance they met at a small cafe and restaurant in a town called Luck in Northwestern Wisconsin.  Luck is a small town of about 1200 residents, which in its heydays was the home of the Duncan Yo-yo.  In fact, it was once known as the Yo-yo Capital of the world.  Sadly, Yo-yo’s had declined in popularity and so had the fortunes of Luck in terms of prosperity and jobs.  Now perhaps, the high spot of Luck was the Wren Cafe.  A place that had excellent food, good beer and a unique ambiance imbued by its extremely creative owner Stephanie Lundeen.

The café is well known to locals and to many of the cabin people who come up on the weekends to enjoy their sojourns from the “big city” of Minneapolis.  Li Na, Elijah, Isabella and Jamal were each brought there by friends who were locals and who knew that the Wren was a very good place to eat.  The Wren being a small place and small towns being where everyone knows everyone, introductions were soon flying like falling Wisconsin snow.  Our four remarkable people sensed that a new chapter in their lives was about to begin.

Thus, at 12 PM on a cool summer day in Luck Wisconsin, Li Na, Elijah, Isabella and Jamal experienced a nuclear fusion of intimacy.  The result was like a billion tons of dynamite going off at once or the largest fireworks display in the world.  The talent that each had was like a magnet that created an instant bond between the four.  Finding other people of comparable abilities and demeanor was something that they had only dreamed about.  They all found the rapport and affinity they had for each other to be amazing.

After an hour or so of rapid conversation intermixed with more general discussion with others in their parties, our four remarkable people decided to meet again when they could have more time to discuss their lives without anyone else present.  Unbeknownst to their friends and families, Li Na, Jamal, Elijah and Isabella all had serious inner doubts that they had never been able to share with another living soul.  Each believed that they had found some kindred souls with whom they could share their secrets and perhaps find some piece of mind.  They agreed to meet again at the Wren the following week.  It was a week they knew they must spare from their busy lives.

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Part 2 – Four Doubts

For several years now, Jamal had begun to feel that there was no meaning to his life.  He had even contemplated suicide because he felt that he had nothing left to live for. The world did not seem to have people that cared about anything but their new smart phones or how fast their Internet speeds were.  Life was one vast merry go round with people constantly jumping on and off and reacting to whatever the current fads and trends were.  Nobody cared about anything but how much money they had and how many things they could buy.  Jamal desired to know if there was a true Purpose in Life or if life was simply meaningless.

Elijah had many of the same feelings as Jamal.  Elijah no longer found value in anything in life.  Everything he had ever owned or purchased soon became worthless in his mind.  The best yachts, cars and homes that anyone could buy could not make him happy.  Fame and talent and beauty all seemed to fade over time.  People were fickle.  One minute they loved you and the next minute they loved somebody else.  Elijah knew what it was like to be famous and admired but it had lost any value to him.  He thought that being known as the greatest musician in the world would satisfy his inner longings.  Even though he had obtained this goal, it did not seem to provide the value that he had hoped for.  Elijah longed to know if there was any true Value in Life or if everything was really worthless.

Isabella had once believed that there was a hidden truth to life that remained to be found.  She had studied physics and philosophy thinking that they would lead her to this truth.  She had spent many years searching for this truth.  However, every time she found a truth, she soon realized that it was also a lie.  The prophets and great religious leaders had always taught that “The truth will set you free.”  Isabella could never find the talisman that would set her free.

She desperately wanted to believe that there was some truth to existence and that life was more than just a series of lies and deceptions.  She had a desire to find this truth, but she had become increasingly discouraged.  Each day she read the news and only found “Fake Facts” and deceptions masquerading as truth.  The world seemed to have misinformation and disinformation but no truth.  Isabella wanted to find the Truth of Life.

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Li Na was another tormented soul.  A brilliant mathematician, she could not discover a single constant in life.  Every time she thought she had found a concept in mathematics that would provide such a constant, Godel’s Incompleteness Theorem would rear its ugly head proving still again that it is impossible to find a complete and consistent set of axioms for mathematics.  If mathematics had no constants, how could life have any constants.  Was is simply true that death and taxes were the only constants in life?  Li Na wanted to believe that there was more to life than simply death and taxes.  Li Na desired to find the one Constant in Life that would really make life worth living.  If she could find this constant, she believed that it would put her soul at rest and she might find true peace on earth.

Part 3 – The Doubts Unfold

To Be Continued:  I will publish the next part of this story when it is finished.  I appreciate your patience. 

Time for Questions:

What do you think so far?  How do you like the four people in the story?  Have you ever shared similar doubts?  What did you do about them?  What do you believe about life?

Life is just beginning. 

“Doubt as sin. — Christianity has done its utmost to close the circle and declared even doubt to be sin. One is supposed to be cast into belief without reason, by a miracle, and from then on to swim in it as in the brightest and least ambiguous of elements: even a glance towards land, even the thought that one perhaps exists for something else as well as swimming, even the slightest impulse of our amphibious nature — is sin! And notice that all this means that the foundation of belief and all reflection on its origin is likewise excluded as sinful. What is wanted are blindness and intoxication and an eternal song over the waves in which reason has drowned.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche, Daybreak: Thoughts on the Prejudices of Morality