Would It Convince You?

"If they will not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead."

These are the words spoken by Abraham to the rich man in today's Gospel. The rich man is languishing in hell, and begs Abraham to send for man, Lazarus, to his father's house so that his brothers will be spared from the same torments. To us, these words may seem strange. We may think, "I know if I saw someone rise from the dead, that would convince me." But, would it?

God is often challenged and questions in our society. This is nothing new. Benito Mussolini, the Italian dictator during World War II, once challenged God to strike him down in front of many of his supporters to prove His existence. Mussolini took the fact that he lived as evidence that his atheism was correct, and that God did not exist. In our own lives, we often do the same thing. "If God exists, why did you let my grandfather die?" "Cancer in children, what's up with that God? Why don't you miraculously heal them? Then I'll believe."

But, would we? When we recognize a true medical miracle, or chalk it up as a fluke? If God did strike someone down, would we not simply say it was a freak lightning strike? The bottom line is, faith has to be present for miracles to be effective methods of conversion. In the Gospels, Jesus heals the sick, drives out demons, makes blind people see, deaf people hear, and raises the dead to life again. Yet, throughout the Gospels, the people still demand that Jesus gives them a sign that he is indeed the Messiah. Despite all the good works in front of them, they still do not believe. They still are not convinced, even with supernatural occurrences right before their eyes. If there's one thing history tells us, it is that humanity hasn't changed much in 2,000 years. We still can't recognize God's work without faith.

We have a Church that has survived for 2,000 years, through persecutions, heresies, schisms, and scandals. We have Scriptures and the Sacred Traditions passed on from the time of the Apostles to the Pope and bishops of our Church. Men and women still come to Catholicism seeking the answers it can give to the questions in their lives. If all that isn't enough to convince you, you probably aren't going to be convinced if you're struck by lightning, miraculously healed, or if someone rises from the dead.

"To those who have faith, no explanation is necessary. To those who do not have faith, no explanation is possible." – St. Thomas Aquinas