God is real to those who choose to believe in him/her/it. To people who choose not to believe, then God might be classed as an invention.
As it is neither possible to prove or disprove that God exists then there can be no definitive answer. Some people believe that God was a necessary invention.
Man is the most intelligent life form on Earth. Human beings are able to question, think and speculate. Death and dying are difficult for people to accept and the finality of this act is upsetting. In order for people to be able to come to terms with death, religion can offer a happy outcome. The ‘promise’ of eternal life or heaven, after death here on Earth, is a powerful force. Human beings possess the ability to think and reason. Man’s awareness or consciousness of life and the world around him brings with it an acute realization that life here, on Earth, is finite.
Distinguish between fact and fiction
Although man possesses the ability to rationalize and be able to distinguish between fact and fiction, we also have a need to believe in a happy ending; much like a fairy tale. This need to be positive about life and even more positive about death means that there is always hope that everything will turn out fine. God provides man with this hope. Believing that God is real enables a person to be comfortable in the ‘knowledge’ that when they die they will live on with him in heaven.
The Catholic faith teaches blind faith
To people with an unwavering belief in God, then, of course, he is real. The Catholic faith teaches blind faith. Blind faith requires that one must believe without questioning their beliefs. Blind faith requires no scientific proof.
One might say that if God is an invention then he must be real. The wheel was invented for everyone to see, so there is proof that it is real. There is however no visible proof that God exists, and here lies the problem. In the physical world if something is real then one can see it. If the wheel had been invented on paper, but not yet built then is it real? One might argue that until it has been physically produced it cannot be real.
Father Christmas
Father Christmas or Santa is ‘real’ to children and is also an invention. Reality and invention can become blurred. The concept of God will remain a complicated issue for as long as man inhabits the Earth.
Spirituality, faith, and religion are of course not connected to the real physical world. In this realm anything is possible. One cannot prove that God or an afterlife exists. However, the thought or belief in such things is, in itself, a beautiful concept. If in the future it is proved that there is no such thing as God, then people would probably still cling on to their beliefs. Beliefs, real or not are important to the individual.
Mankind will probably always have a need to believe in the ethereal. Like children, adults gain much from believing in the seemingly impossible. As long as there is always the possibility that something else, such as God exists, then people’s imaginations will continue to be inspired.
