Answering Atheists and Pro-Choicers

[A GRAMBUS post.]

…Woke up with a story on my mind from last winter and saw a parallel train of thought for those who might call themselves atheists and/or pro-choice.

Last winter I was sitting in my daughter’s family room surrounded by windows overlooking the backyard, enjoying watching the play of those in the room as well as those playing in the snow outside.  All of a sudden Anna, about 7 years old, playing inside, let out a scream, staring outside, and cried, “That’s my Pookey Bear!”  Outside I could see Noah, her cousin, smashing a 2-foot high miniature snowman.  “I made that!  He’s my Pookey Bear!,”  Anna--screaming with tears streaming.

Her mom, of course sprang into action, calling out the back door a reprimand toward Noah, and calling him in.  I could tell by Noah’s face and knowing his otherwise good character, for a boy of 8, that he was clueless as to his fault, as his tears began to become visible.  I tried to explain to my daughter that he was not the malicious type and that he just didn’t understand the gravity of his actions at the time.  His mom, my other daughter, was not present at the time to defend him, as he was in my charge. So not only was I speaking my heart about what I saw happen, but I felt it my duty to take up his cause.  So, with two cousins heartbroken and emotionally upset, the adults in charge came to the conclusion that Noah had come upon the lumps in the snow with sticks (arms) coming out at different angles and seen it as a small hill to be conquered (from behind), whereas we from within the house had seen the cute little face and semblance of snow body Anna had carefully constructed on the side that faced the windows.  My daughter and I explained to Noah that snowmen, no matter how big or small, were always made by someone, and you had to have the permission of that person to change, alter, or destroy it.  A mound of snow so carefully constructed has to be respected as someone else’s creation, because naturally snow just falls to the ground and does not form into shapes except by some person’s hand.  He understood then, and apologized.  Anna put on her snow garb and, with the help of her friend set out to make her Pookey Bear again.

Now I’m sure some of you have seen the parallel already.  For the atheist, the message is: It is obvious to people who are Christians, who sit within the house of God, that any person/human being, so wonderfully and complexly constructed, is not just a product of chance in this world… this universe.  And, for the pro-choice people, the message is:  Every person so carefully and thoughtfully constructed is created in love by a loving God, who genuinely cares for the wellbeing of that creation.  Just because we did not see the face of that new miniature creation hidden in the womb, did not mean that with closer examination it wasn’t there.  It was in the DNA and only took time to become visible.  But, wait!  In this day of high tech fiber optics, we HAVE seen the face of that new creation as early as 3 weeks—when you can also detect a heartbeat, by the way—before most women even know they ARE pregnant.  So, what is our excuse now?  If an 8 year old boy can understand the heartache of his 7 year old cousin over the destruction of her creation, why can’t we understand the heartache of our God—yes, our God, Creator of all things—when we destroy life in the womb?  Or, when we say, “It was just a glob of tissue,” when we have EVIDENCE of it being so much more? ...the very beginnings of a new person, created by God himself, with the cooperation of a woman.  We have scientific evidence of what has heretofore been hidden, and yet people still reject the truth.

In this analogy, the recreation of the snowman by its maker (Anna) is paralleling the way God sent Christ to recreate us back into His own image after the fall of sin.

And, what shall we say to those who say we have no evidence of the existence of God? Well, let's use the evidence of life in the womb as a window of understanding.  Just because we didn’t have scientific evidence of life (a living, heart-beating, human being) in the womb before the presence of cameras and audio equipment that could detect it, did not mean it was not a baby in the making.  So too, just because some people have not, to their satisfaction, seen/heard/experienced evidence of God’s existence, is that proof that He does not exist?  What evidence are they looking for?  It's all around us.  King David expressed it this way in Psalm 19:

But, in addition, we have historical proof/evidence that Jesus (who came to show us the Father/God) really did exist in time.  We also have the very words of Christ written by eye-witnesses, that have been handed down to us in the Holy Scriptures/the Bible—The Old Testament, pointing us to Christ the Redeemer, and the New Testament giving witness to the actual coming of the Savior into the world.  We have the writings of the Early Church Fathers who were the first generation of those disciples of the Apostles themselves.  And, more close to our history today, there is evidence that many of the Saints through the ages have seen visions/apparitions of Mary, the Blessed Mother of Jesus, (try Googling “Our Lady of Guadalupe” or “Our Lady of Fatima”—where the 3 shepherd children were also taught prayers by an angel) or Saints who have seen the child Jesus or the Divine Mercy Jesus, (see Saint Faustina).  The Divine still breaks through to the Human world.  God is active in the lives of men and women, when they acknowledge/believe Him and His Word.

It all comes down to whether people will accept the evidence, whether that evidence be scientific, or natural (in nature), or spiritual.  Bottom line, I think that most people who do not accept the evidence of God and the miracle of human creation, refuse to accept the truth, because it might mean they would have to change their mind-set or life-style in some way.  They think their search for happiness and pleasure and fulfillment in life is hindered by God, when those are the very things God offers us:  true joy, pleasures forevermore, and transformation into the best person you can be.  It all comes down to TRUST.  Do you trust the God who made you to know what will truly fulfill you?  Will you trust that He loves you enough to give you a free will to choose Him? Will you believe that the very things you are seeking are the things He has to offer you, and you didn’t even know it?  ...Or, will you continue to believe the lies of the enemy that the pleasures of this world (that are ultimately empty and unfulfilling) are all there is?

The heavens declare the glory of God;the sky proclaims its builder’s craft.One day to the next conveys that message;one night to the next imparts that knowledge.

It goes on to say that even without uttering a “word” or “speech” nature speaks to us of who God is, and every person on earth, no matter what their language can understand it.  So nature itself—the plants, animals, the seas, the celestial universe—all with one voice, one constant message, is ALWAYS telling us of the existence of God, if we listen.