Fyrenza

most people do feel a need to have some understanding of the world around them and they believe all sorts of things to explain it

science

religion

philosophy

mysticism

take your pick

cardboard adolescent

no thanks

Double X

Same here. I highly doubt they will find out any answers in my lifetime...so just live happily and stick to what you like.

The Unfan

Faith is believing something with no rational evidence or proof. Sure, scientists believe in science, but they don't have faith in it. Science gives rationality and proof. In fact, we have the opposite of faith in science, we have skepticism. When science is wrong its a good thing and well celebrated. When we discovered we were wrong about the Earth being flat it wasn't faith shattering, it was fact finding and a neat discovery.

Fyrenza

actually

ask the person on the street how electricity works and chances are they wont be able to tell you

but with faith (a belief in the trustworthiness of the idea)
day after day
they reach out to flip a switch and expect a light to come on

they also have faith in their ability to make the decision and in the decision they made
in this case to use electricity in their house rather than gas

their decision wasnt based on knowing exactly how electricity works

it was based on having first-hand knowledge of the effects of electricity in their home

thats what i was trying to say about all of us having faith in something

simplephysics

I'm not too convinced.

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The Unfan

I see. So more of a "trusting belief" than "a faith".
Which is how I typically think of the word being used. Its an easy assumption and confusion on my behalf, especially since this is a fairly religious natured conversation.

WaspStar

No, that's "reasonable expectation." If I've learned from experience that a light comes on when I flip the switch, I can reasonably expect the light to come on the next time I flip the switch (unless the bulb's burned out or the power's out or...).

Similiarly, I don't have "faith" that the sun will rise tomorrow; based on my experience, I reasonably expect it to.

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Inuzuka Skysword

I believe in God/Jesus because I believe in Jesus's philosophy. For the most part, I do believe in a God with no proof at all, and it is entirely 100% faith. I was brainwashed by my parents into the religion of Christianity and have gone through its various forms such as, fundamentalism, having apathy towards reality, and where I now stand, in love with the religious truth of the Bible.

I look at Jesus's message and find it to be, perhaps, one of the most revolutionary of all time. It goes against all odds, applying pacifism, control over even ones wrong (at least what his opinion of what was wrong) thoughts, and the attraction to a life that is found in giving it away. Jesus is against coercion, and wants selflessness in his followers so that we may bring back the world to "shalom." This shalom is peace with all relationships, people, the environment, etc. Basically, the state of the "garden of Eden" (a story not meant to be taken literally.) While it is utopian and idealistic, I find it to be the only message that presents the message clearly. The God of the Old Testament, unlike what some people believe, was a peaceful God who did not do the things the Jews said he did. In the OT the Jews blame him for their punishments, for their victories at war, etc. These, however, were accounts written by the ethnocentric Jews at that time.

So, I believe in God/Jesus because I believe in his message

WaspStar

Isn't the idea of "believe in me or you're damned to hell" a form of coercion?

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