OBJECTOR: Catholicism is a dangerous religion because it depends solely on faith. Its beliefs are not based on reason and in some cases are even contrary to reason. No reasonable human being could be a Catholic. To depend on this kind of baseless faith is tantamount to superstition, and superstition is always dangerous.
Furthermore, Catholicism is dangerous because it restricts the freedom of individuals to live their lives. Catholics tend to follow the herd mentality with obsequious deference to a pope who tells them how to do everything—from worshiping to what to believe to how to brush their teeth in the morning. Whatever the intentions of its adherents, the Catholic religion squelches human freedom. Therefore, it is dangerous.
CATHOLIC: Let me first address the idea that Catholic dogmas and beliefs are not based on reason. Just because a truth is beyond the capacity of human reason does not mean that it is contrary to reason. Catholic doctrine is made known to us by revelation and is beyond the capacity of human reason. That does not mean that it contradicts reason but rather that it transcends reason. You cannot use reason to prove that someone loves you; the truth of someone’s love transcends reason. That does not mean that love is somehow contrary to reason.
OBJECTOR: You just proved my point by saying that Catholic doctrines transcend reason. That is just a clever way to avoid admitting that they are not reasonable. By making Catholic doctrine seem above reason, the Catholic Church fosters superstition.
CATHOLIC: Actually, far from fostering superstition, the Church condemns it because it takes our attention away from the worship that we are to give to God alone.
OBJECTOR: Maybe the Catholic Church doesn’t intend to foster superstition, but it nonetheless does so by depending solely on baseless faith for assent to its dogmas. Superstition is a consequence of teachings not based on reason, even if it is an unintended one.
CATHOLIC: It might help to clarify the Catholic understanding of faith and reason. Catholics should not depend on baseless faith. The Church encourages the use of reason because reason and faith are not mutually exclusive, as people sometimes assume, but rather complement one another. Pope John Paul II states this in his encyclical letter Fides et Ratio. Either reason or faith by itself is weakened by the absence of the other.
OBJECTOR: I agree that reason is important, but I don’t see how the Catholic Church can say its teachings are in accord with reason when, as you have stated, Catholic dogmas are beyond human reason.
CATHOLIC: The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that God gives us external evidence of revealed truth that accompanies the internal working of the Holy Spirit (CCC 156). To go back to the example of a human lover, even though the truth of a person’s love transcends reason, you can use your reason to look for signs that someone loves you. Such signs might include what he says to you and how willing he is to sacrifice for you. In the same way, God gives us external evidence of his revelation so that we can see that it is rational to believe it.
OBJECTOR: So you’re saying that the Catholic Church wants us to be reasonable, but it still squelches people’s freedom when it requires them to believe its teachings. Is that reasonable?
CATHOLIC: One who chooses to be Catholic should accept what the Church teaches, but this in no way hinders freedom. Does a teacher squelch freedom when he requires his students to believe that two plus two is four or that the earth is round? Of course not. He is trying to help his students arrive at truth.
OBJECTOR: Maybe it is possible to view the Catholic Church this way, but ultimately the hierarchy asks its members to accept its dogmas on faith, even if they do not understand them.
CATHOLIC: It is true that the Church teaches truths that are beyond the capacity of human reason and that do require faith. This faith, though, makes Catholics more free, not less, because both the intellect and the will participate in a higher level of reality than reason alone is capable of reaching. This perfects the intellect and the will and enables a person to experience a fuller realization of personal freedom (FR 13).
OBJECTOR: If the Catholic Church believes that faith makes its members more free, it should respect the freedom of people to disagree.
CATHOLIC: It does. The Church does not force anyone to believe what it teaches. In fact, the Church insists that faith is a free act, so nobody should be forced to believe something against his will (CCC 160).
OBJECTOR: I don’t understand how the Catholic Church can claim to be so committed to freedom when it tells its members how to live their lives. This definitely hinders freedom. A teacher might tell his students things he believes to be true, but he does not require his students to change the way they live.
CATHOLIC: I think that you and I have different ideas about what freedom is. Freedom is an inner disposition whereby one chooses a path out of one’s own will, not an imposed will. True freedom consists not in an abundance of choices but in the will’s ability to master its own acts. For example, an alcoholic is not free when he is given more choices of alcohol to choose from. His freedom is made greater by having his will master his acts. The Church’s moral guidelines are intended to strengthen the mastery of the will over its actions (CCC 1734), allowing a person’s will to choose a path rather than having outside forces dictate how he lives his life.
OBJECTOR: But when the Catholic Church tells its members what to do, an outside force is dictating how they are to live their lives.
CATHOLIC: Let me use a different analogy. A doctor is not hindering his patients’ freedom when he tells them how to live their lives. He is trying to free them from the effects of unhealthy practices. Just as a bad diet weakens the body, so sin weakens the will (CCC 1459). Because sin prevents us from having the fullness of life, the more we avoid sin, the freer we become. True freedom is being able to live life fully.
Why is this so? In part because a person using his will to master his acts is strengthened by progress in virtue, knowledge of what is good, and self-denial (CCC 1734). Sin lessens the ability of our wills to master our actions, but living in the way the Church calls us to strengthens us in virtue, knowledge of the good, and self-denial. This process begins to free the will from the effects of sin and increases the power of the will even more.
OBJECTOR: Even if I were to agree with that, it seems to me that Catholics care only about following the rules. I don’t think moral rules should be at the center of anyone’s life.
CATHOLIC: Unfortunately, some Catholics do seem to focus more on the rules than on the reasons for the rules. The Church teaches that its moral guidelines are not the purpose of life but a means to a loving relationship with God. Just as a person who diets without understanding the goal of a healthy life is missing the point, so also a Catholic who views the Church’s commands as mere tasks to be completed is missing the point of why the moral law exists in the first place.
Nevertheless, without moral guidelines, we would not be able to reach that end, so the moral guidelines are essential. A doctor tells patients to eat healthily not for the sake of eating healthily but to bring them to health. But without a healthy diet, the patient could not become healthy. In addition to strengthening the will, following the Church’s moral rules makes us freer because those rules lead us to God, the source of all true freedom. To be open to God is to be truly free.
OBJECTOR: It does seem that we have different views of freedom. I still think that true freedom means being unfettered by external rules. Even though you try to paint the Catholic Church as respecting human freedom, I think it would do better to leave off espousing moral guidelines altogether.
CATHOLIC: I hope you will consider the reasons and analogies I have offered. I believe that you will find the Catholic notion of freedom to be more compatible with what is good for human beings—because it is based on reason.