Is God real or a figment of our imagination? By Bernalt Velasquez

The other day an atheist told me that the reason why religion came into existence is because humans have a fear of death and suffering, and a longing for purpose and meaning, thus we use our imagination to create God (or religion) so that it may ease our fear of death and suffering and give our lives some purpose and meaning. Here is a quote from an article in the New Scientist that captures this atheistic thought:

"It turns out that human beings have a natural inclination for religious belief, especially during hard times. Our brains effortlessly conjure up an imaginary world of spirits, gods and monsters, and the more insecure we feel, the harder it is to resist the pull of this supernatural world. It seems that our minds are finely tuned to believe in gods. Religious ideas are common to all cultures: like language and music, they seem to be part of what it is to be human. Until recently, science has largely shied away from asking why…The origin of religious belief is something of a mystery, but in recent years scientists have started to make suggestions. One leading idea is that religion is an evolutionary adaptation that makes people more likely to survive and pass their genes onto the next generation."

This is a common thing that atheists and agnostics tell me. They also say that religion is for the weak - people who cannot bear the "truth" that God doesn't exist. Atheists love to use this to argue against the existence of God, but I believe that you can easily turn it around. I think that a healthy fear of death and pain, and a longing for meaning and purpose is something that God gave to us in order to seek Him; it doesn't have to be a weakness or some negative characteristic. It is a "natural spiritual hunger." Just like we have our physical hunger for food, we have a spiritual hunger to make sense of life by seeking The Transcendent. Would someone call me a weak and deluded if I wanted to eat food after not eating for a week?!! Just because we seek to know what will happen after we die and what life is all about, it doesn't mean that we are weak; we are just spiritually hungry. Every man and woman is endowed with this characteristic. It was placed there by God. It is not a weakness; it is perfectly normal. By denying the existence of God is analogous to starving yourself. What do you people think about this? I am eager to read your comments on this matter.

Thanks and God bless!