Do not be astonished to see simple people believing without argument. God makes them love him and hate themselves. He inclines their hearts to believe. We shall never believe, with an effective belief and faith, unless God inclines our hearts, and we shall believe as soon as he does so. (380)
I was most interested in Pascal's final thoughts on the way in which we come to know God. Until this point, the discourse had stressed the sound proofs of Christ's existence in terms of Scripture passages and prophecies that have been fulfilled. Now, Pascal tells us that the truest way of knowing God is via some internal inclination. While this certainly seems to be the most genuine form of religion, it is entirely separate from the other methods that had been described. Are they alone sufficient ways of knowing God? Is the man whose heart is inclined by God more religious than he who believes due to Scripture and prophecies? (These may seem like questions that Pascal has answered in the conclusion. I'm wondering if in doing so he has rejected or built on and perfected his earlier thoughts?)
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