Expert: Marco - 9/13/2011

Question
Hello, Mr. Marco. I'm need of your help. As a child, I was a very religious Catholic and had a close relationship to God. Throughout my teen and young adult years, I've gone in and out of Lord's life unfortunately. I'm at a period rightnow where it's been the hardest for me more than ever to have faith in him again and find my way back. I have several questions: What is the scientific explanation that heaven exists rather than our energies just linger around on earth? And how can heaven exist when it can't be seen? Does everyone go to heaven and what's the proof in either yes or no answer. I recently read a book called "conversations with God". The book makes alot of sense and answers lots of complicated questions, but the thing that bothers me most and makes me not want to try to be this good person or a person of integrity and morals is that there is no hell. Everyone goes to heaven no matter what they've done in their life. That the purpose of our soul is to be reminded of life, that there is no good or evil. It's US who define what's good or bad. Please have some great answers because I SOOO long to find my way back to Christ.

Answer
Dear Jane,

God loves us infinitely and He desires to lead each of us to the eternal life  and to the true happiness. But God is perfectly Holy and Good; God cannot tolerate evil because evil is uncompatible with His good and holy nature.
Heaven in fact is not a place, but it is a state of the soul, a condition of full happiness, inner peace, true love in communion with God.
So, we cannot go to heaven as long as we are not completely purified from our sins and sanctified; we cannot be in communion with God if we still have evil desires.
Our sanctifcation is necessary for us to go to heaven.
God desires to sanctify us, but He has given us a free-will, so God needs our consent in order to purify and sanctify us. God respects our choices and therefore God cannot santify those who do not want to be sanctified and purified, those who do not want to stop sinning, those who do not want to live a holy life.
These are those who go to Hell; Hell is in fact the state of the soul who has been abandoned by God; their existence is completely empty, without happiness and hope.
Those who are completely sanctified when they die, go directly to heaven, without passing through purgatory.

This is what Paul writes (even if he do not use the word "purgatory"):

1 Cor 3:10 According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.
1 Cor 3:11 For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
1 Cor 3:12 Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble;
1 Cor 3:13 Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.
1 Cor 3:14 If any man's work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1 Cor 3:15 If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

Paul describes two different cases; the man who will receive a reward and the man who will be saved "yet so as by fired" and "suffer loss".
Since suffering cannot exist in heaven, this suffering will require an addictional transitory phase in the afterlife, not necessary for the man who will receive a reward. This phase has been later called purgatory.


I think that faith cannot come only from logic, because to have faith in God means to trust and love God.
I think however that logics and science prove the existence of our soul and the existence of  God and that there are many rational arguments strongly supporting the christian faith.
The explanation of these aguments is rather long and Allexperts allows only to give short answers. You can find such arguments  in the following site

http://xoomer.alice.it/fedeescienza/englishnf.html

where  I analyse the incongruencies of the materialistic conception of the mind, on the basis of our present scientific knowledges about brain and matter.
This analysis points out how the laws of physics  prove that the   brain cannot generate consciousness, which existence implies  the presence in man of a unbiological/unmaterial element. The problem of consciousness is then strictly connected to the one of the existence of the soul and, consequently, the existence of God.
In the first article entitled “Mind and brain...” you can find a general discussion of the mind and brain problem from a scientific point of view.
In the second article entitled “Scientific contraddictions in materialism”
you  can find an explanation of the fundamental inconsistencies of  the  typical arguments used by materialists, such as the concept of emergent, macroscopic or holist property, complexity, information, etc.
In the section called “FAQ: answers to  visitors' questions” you can find the answer to many typical questions, such as "Are there any scientifically proved miracles?", "Does the existence of the universe imply the existence of God?", "Can science explain God?", "Can science establish which is the true religion?", "Can science explain consciousness in the future?", and many others.

I hope this may help you,
Please ask again if you need some clarifications or have other questions.

Your brother in Christ,

Marco