"Faith", such a broad word with many interpretations. What does faith mean?. I think we immensely downplay the importance of the word, "faith". Is faith the warm fuzzy feeling inside of an evangelical? Or, better yet, what is the grounds for having faith? Is it just a belief? We will present two types of faith and categorize the proponents of each view to their rightful category.
Most people would associate faith with a deity of sorts. Faith is much more than that, and faith is a diverse word, so that explains the ambiguity. Faith, according to Dictionary.com, is a belief that is not based on proof. This is flawed on so many levels, and we fail to notice. There are four types of faith, but-for this blog-we will focus on two. Blind faith: this is how non-theists see theists. If you don't believe me, read the definition from the most popular dictionary via internet. Blind faith would be the equivalence of an individual moving to NYC to start a new life. There is no knowledge in that, but, on the contrary, it is literally just a wish, and we call this blind faith.
The other type of faith, which is hilariously omitted by dictionaries, is warranted faith. This is what I believe Christianity is. Warranted faith is a step in faith based on empirical data, logical reasoning, and perennial pertinent truths. For example, everyone who reads this blog expects to wake up after you go to sleep tonight. It is inevitable. If you didn't assume such things, you are either terminally ill, insane, or lying. Furthermore, consider this example, when driving down the road, it would be preposterous to expect, and I mean before any warnings occur, that you would be hit by oncoming traffic. No one does this.
Now, I know we might seem to be comparing apples to oranges, but stay with me. Christian faith, on an individual basis, is warranted, and, to them, there is no doubt about it. There is so much evidence, data, and truth of God. A notion of The Creator not being empirically evident just is non-existent. There is a certain time when warranted faith transcends the definition of faith and becomes knowledge. In the same way the driver has warranted faith that the oncoming traffic will stay on his side of the yellow line, or the same way we set alarms at night to wake us up in the morning, everything in life takes faith, and Christianity is no different. To us, the rationality, and the inherent expectations of these things are in a direct correlation with faith in God.
So, faith in God is not just a mere, "belief". It is knowledge. In other words, knowledge is derived from experience, and, if I claim to have experienced God, you can either call me a liar or deem it truthful. And, if you say I have not experienced God, you are calling millions of people liars.
Inspired by Alvin Plantiga's "Warranted Christian Beliefs"
Most people would associate faith with a deity of sorts. Faith is much more than that, and faith is a diverse word, so that explains the ambiguity. Faith, according to Dictionary.com, is a belief that is not based on proof. This is flawed on so many levels, and we fail to notice. There are four types of faith, but-for this blog-we will focus on two. Blind faith: this is how non-theists see theists. If you don't believe me, read the definition from the most popular dictionary via internet. Blind faith would be the equivalence of an individual moving to NYC to start a new life. There is no knowledge in that, but, on the contrary, it is literally just a wish, and we call this blind faith.
The other type of faith, which is hilariously omitted by dictionaries, is warranted faith. This is what I believe Christianity is. Warranted faith is a step in faith based on empirical data, logical reasoning, and perennial pertinent truths. For example, everyone who reads this blog expects to wake up after you go to sleep tonight. It is inevitable. If you didn't assume such things, you are either terminally ill, insane, or lying. Furthermore, consider this example, when driving down the road, it would be preposterous to expect, and I mean before any warnings occur, that you would be hit by oncoming traffic. No one does this.
Now, I know we might seem to be comparing apples to oranges, but stay with me. Christian faith, on an individual basis, is warranted, and, to them, there is no doubt about it. There is so much evidence, data, and truth of God. A notion of The Creator not being empirically evident just is non-existent. There is a certain time when warranted faith transcends the definition of faith and becomes knowledge. In the same way the driver has warranted faith that the oncoming traffic will stay on his side of the yellow line, or the same way we set alarms at night to wake us up in the morning, everything in life takes faith, and Christianity is no different. To us, the rationality, and the inherent expectations of these things are in a direct correlation with faith in God.
So, faith in God is not just a mere, "belief". It is knowledge. In other words, knowledge is derived from experience, and, if I claim to have experienced God, you can either call me a liar or deem it truthful. And, if you say I have not experienced God, you are calling millions of people liars.
Inspired by Alvin Plantiga's "Warranted Christian Beliefs"
