Over the last few centuries, there have been some powerhouse intellectual figures who have thrown their weight against the Christian faith. Whether Voltaire, Hume, Nietzsche, Marx, Darwin, or Russel, many have brought various charges against Christianity. Of course, not to be forgotten is the great psychologist Sigmund Freud.
One of Freud’s primary themes was that the truth that people claim is rationally adhered to is, at its roots, merely a crutch to cope with their uncertainty and helpless state as an insignificant human being. Famous for his ultimately reductionistic thinking, he cast doubt on the integrity of rationally held religious beliefs. This, of course, raises the question of whether or not religious views are adopted merely to fulfill a subconscious need or if there is a validity to an objective, rational approach to faith.
Sometimes Freud is Right
Before pushing against Freud’s ideas, it is important to recognize that he is not always wrong. There are clear examples of people using faith as a medication against the overwhelming effects of existence. This is true both at a personal and historical level.
For instance, a common trend among religious believers within the evangelical tradition, is to frame their confidence in their faith through their own personal testimony. While a perfectly fine thing to do for oneself, if used as a form of apologetic for the faith, this method can quickly devolve into a form of proclaimed faith as wish-fulfillment. “Yes, many people don’t believe in God, but look how well this works for me!” Of course, that is a rough framing, but I have heard many testimonies that could be interpreted fairly from an unbeliever as at least appearing to align with Freud’s basic ideas.
Further, there are historical case studies that can be cited which directly express believing in Christianity in spite of the evidence against it, merely to be able to live. The famous Russian author, Leo Tolstoy, is the classic case. I will never forget reading Tolstoy in my philosophy class as part of our section of reading on whether God exists or not.
Tolstoy was used as an example of what it looks like to believe in God in the modern world. He was not very convincing. His argument could be roughly summed up as, “I believe in God, in spite of what rationality says about the world, because I’m trying not to kill myself.” Tolstoy is an excellent demonstration of why some people have chosen to believe in Christianity for Freudian-like reasons.
More Than One Way
Of course, the way of Tolstoy is far from the only way to choose religious belief. It is one type of response to the intellectual doubt that the cross-pressures of modern thought life can create, but it is not the only type. Nor, is it even the most common response. In his book, Fool’s Talk, Os Guinness discusses the typical response that people have “when life becomes a question mark.”
This happens for a variety of reasons, whether intellectual, emotional, or relational, something has come into the picture which presses against a person’s meaning and worldview structure. This creates a real felt need for answers. And, at this point, Freud might want to step in and say, “There it is! Your so-called quest for truth is predicated on an internal need for safety and security.”
However, that misses the entire point of what has happened, especially when we are talking about intellectual doubt. Critically, the person in question had safety and security, and yet, it was questions and the need for answers that led to the possibility to disbelieve. The very origins of the search for truth are founded on the ability to let go of a secure subconscious state of being. As Guinness puts it:
But Freud and his friends have jumped in too soon. The fact is that at this stage no one believes anything. Questions and needs do not create faith. No one believes because of questions and needs. Rather, the effect of questions and needs is to make people disbelief. They no longer believe whatever it was that they believed before, because what they used to believe no longer answered their questions. Questions prompt them to become a seeker, and they then set out to search for better answers.1
We need to be careful about assuming that all of our actions are steered to comfort. As Tolstoy shows, this can be the case, but it could easily be argued that life can be much easier if one rejects Christianity and embraces a hedonistic atheism. “Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die” (I Corinthians 15:32). It is reductionistic and overly simplistic to believe that all, or even most, journeys toward faith are merely the result of seeking the most internally peaceful form of wish-fulfillment on the market.
Modern Distraction
On that point, with the societal decadence that defines our current Western moment, it is not hard to argue that it is much easier to indulge in distraction and pleasure than to seek truth if we are looking for an irrational form of escape. Which is easier when faced with intellectual doubt: Embark on a years-long journey of study, contemplation, reflection, and discovery, not knowing where you will land? Or, feeling the discomfort of thoughtful existence and relentlessly drowning those thoughts in an endless and easily obtainable stream of entertainment, pleasure, and distraction?
Why would anyone choose to question life? Why would anyone entertain hard questions? Why would anyone read a challenging book or listen to a podcast arguing for an opposing worldview? There are many reasons, but seeking a Freudian form of escape seems like the last possible one. There are just too many other options out there in our digital and decadent world.
Conclusion
The most likely reason that people have and continue to believe is that they have thought it through. This occurs to varying degrees, of course. Nevertheless, both the journey to faith and the journey of faith are hard roads. Questions come at every turn. Doubts arise both in season and out of season. But, so do answers.
The early, though waning success of the deconstruction movement demonstrates both sides of this coin. It shows how questions and doubts can both lead away from faith and lead to more robust faith. No matter where one lands, the journey generally occurs with reason close at hand. No matter the level of doubt. No matter the feelings of fear. Countless believers have navigated these matters with reason shining a light on the road of truth.
Notes
- Os Guinness, Fool’s Talk: Recovering the Art of Christian Persuasion (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2015), 235-36
Further Reading
Moore Thinking 
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