In an age of rapid scientific advances, one question remains: do we still need the hypothesis of God?
And what if, instead of opposing science and faith, the scientific approach itself could bring us closer to the divine?
The Rational Pilgrim is a space for reflection for those who seek something to believe in without giving up thinking — without closing their eyes, without forcing their minds to accept answers that no longer make sense.
You may have found yourself thinking:
- Just because we don’t yet know how to explain something doesn’t mean we should place God there by default (the so-called “God of the gaps”)
- How can the idea of an all-powerful and all-knowing God be reconciled with the reality of evil and suffering in the world? (the problem of evil)
- Belief is not a choice. How could I believe in something my mind and reason are not convinced is true? Even wanting it deeply would not change what I know inside.
- If every religion claims to be the only path to God, yet we are also told that God judges each person according to their circumstances, would it then be better to know nothing at all in order to be “saved”? (sometimes called the argument of salvific ignorance)
- Why am I asked to accept biblical passages as unquestionable proof, when I am not even convinced of the reliability of a text that has been transmitted, altered, and interpreted for nearly two thousand years?
- How can some central teachings of the Church — such as the idea that God cannot forgive without the shedding of blood — be reconciled with Jesus’ own teaching to forgive others unconditionally?
If any of these questions have ever crossed your mind, then you are in the right place.