We explain what faith is and where this concept comes from. We also explain what faith is according to Christianity and Buddhism and what philosophical faith is according to Karl Jaspers.
“Christian faith is the act of voluntarily believing in the divine nature.”
What is the faith?
Faith is the belief in the truth of an entity or a certain statement for which there is not or is not needed sufficient evidence to turn it into rational knowledge.
Many times Faith is related to the belief in an entity that transcends the material plane.as is the case with the monotheistic god of Christianity, Islam and Judaism, or as is the case with the belief in the cosmos as an energy.
In most cases, Faith relates and applies to a religious and supernatural contextsuch as a religion or a set of beliefs. In these cases, faith implies the adherence of the person who practices it to divine revelation.
In general, faith is the belief in a god (or God, as in monotheistic religions), or in the doctrines or teachings of a religion. Those who believe in more than one god are considered polytheists.
Some dictionaries maintain that faith is a word with multiple meanings, so finding a single meaning for the concept is difficult. The word “faith” has its origin in Latin faith (“loyalty” or “trust”), which was the name given in Roman mythology to the goddess of trust, daughter of Saturn and Virtus.
Key points
- Faith is a belief in a truth or set of statements for which there is no evidence and no need to prove it.
- In general, the word “faith” is associated with religious beliefs: one has faith in a practice or a set of beliefs regarding a divine entity.
- Faith in one god is the faith of monotheistic religions. Those who believe in a set of gods are considered polytheists.
Etymology of the word “faith”
The term “faith” comes from the Latin faith. Faith means “trust” or “loyalty” and is the equivalent of the Greek pistis (πιστις), which translates as a noun-verb hybrid.
In Roman mythology, Fides was the goddess of trust, daughter of Saturn and VirtusIn Greek mythology, Pistis was the personification of good faith, trust and reliability. In many stories she appears alongside Elpis, who is the personification of hope.
In the case of pistisis a term that has no exact equivalent in Spanish. It most often appears in ancient fragments where, by context, it can acquire a verbal or adjectival meaning. This makes its translation complex. When its verbal form is taken, which is pisteuois translated as “believe”. When its adjectival form is taken, which is pistosis translated as faithful. For this reason, every time the term appears pistiswhether in its verbal or adjectival form, it is assumed that one is speaking of an act of faith.
The Christian faith
Christian faith is the act of belief that the believer carries out based on his own desire and his own will as a consequence of an act of God’s goodness.This means that faith is a gift from God, it is a grace. For there to be faith, the grace of God is necessary, which moves the hearts of his faithful to direct them to him.
That faith is a consequence of God’s grace means that, in the Christian faith, the person responsible for the believer’s faith is God. However, this does not mean that it depends exclusively on him, but that it is the responsibility of each person to make grace manifest. Each believer can voluntarily depart from the faith.
In his major work, the Summa TheologicaThomas Aquinas (1225-1274) defines faith as an act of the understanding that assents to divine truth through the will. This will is moved by God through grace. Thus, faith has four basic dimensions:
- Faith is knowledge because it is an act of understanding.
- Faith is a knowledge of the truths concerning God.
- Faith is a consequence of one’s own will to believe.
- The will to believe ultimately depends on allowing God’s grace to manifest itself.
From these four dimensions of faith, which involve its relationship with knowledge, will and grace, three types of truths emerge:
- The truth that is reached only by reason. These are the knowledge that are not necessary for salvation, such as scientific or mathematical knowledge.
- The truth that is achieved only by faith. These are the knowledges that are not achieved through natural forces, such as the Holy Trinity.
- The truth that is only achieved through faith and reasonThese are the knowledge that are necessary for salvation and that depend on the use of reason and the exercise of faith, such as the immortality of the soul or the existence of God.
Philosophical faith according to Karl Jaspers
Karl Jaspers (1883-1969), German philosopher, maintains that faith is not an irrational actThis does not mean that faith is a universal knowledge, but rather an act of self-conviction linked to the value of knowledge. This means that faith is composed of an act of conviction and an act of knowledge.
Faith, as Jaspers understands it, is called “philosophical faith,” and the content of its knowledge (what one believes in) takes a backseat because conviction is more important. In self-conviction, the subject confirms a certain knowledge for himself.and that is why it is not universally valid knowledge.
There are two aspects of philosophical faith:
- Subjective aspectIt is the assent of the subject, faith without object, without content of faith.
- Objective aspect. It is the content of faith, what the subject affirms. This is the thesis or the affirmed dogma.
These two aspects of philosophical faith interact with each other. Faith is always faith in something. However, faith is neither an objective truth not determined by the subject, nor a subjective truth not determined by the object. It is faith that determines truth, on the one hand, and truth that determines the object of faith..
Faith according to Buddhism
In Buddhism, Faith refers to the serene commitment that is assumed when practicing the teachings of Buddha.. It is also assumed that faith is the commitment to trust in the enlightenment of higher beings such as other Buddhas or the bodhisattvaswho are those who want to become Buddhas.
While it is true that Buddhist faith does not imply blind trust, it does require a certain degree of trust.especially in spiritual attachment to Gautama Buddha (the first Buddha who lived in South Asia during the 5th century BC). Thus, faith includes the knowledge that the Buddha is an awakened being, that he is a teacher, that the dharma (his teachings) are true and the community should be trusted (Sangha).
References
- Jaspers, K., & Díaz, G.D. (1968). Philosophical faith in the face of revelation.
- Aquino, T., Viejo, F.B., Ramirez, S.M., Martinez, A., & Colunga, A. (1947). Summa Theologica (Vol. 1). The Catholic Publishing House.
- New Testament. Christianity Editions, 1987.
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