I find faith to be a bit confusing. Not faith itself, exactly, but why it is perceived as such a desirable trait. Why is it so noble and laudable to have faith? In almost all other area's of life, we encourage critical thinking and rationale, but when it comes to religion it's suddenly preferable to have faith. We see even here on this forum that many consider those who have faith to be superior to those who do not. Why is that? What makes it such a desirable characteristic to be able to believe very strongly in something you can't prove one way or the other? I'm not in any way trying to put down people who have faith, it simply something that I can't quite get a grasp on. If I think about it rationally from a human standpoint, it seems to me to be a tool that would be used in an attempt to control people, by painting those with faith as good people and those without as bad.
xxclaro
I have not read anything past this point in the thread so surely someone else has answered this by now. But here is a stab at it.
Let's say that you were wrongly accused of a heinous crime. There were only two people involved in the crime, the perp and the victim. And you have no evidence to prove your innocence. There is circumstantial evidence to implicate you, however. Just play along for the sake of argument.
As the weeks before the trial mounted, you began to notice that some of your friends and even family members were distancing themselves from you. But there were a few souls that stood by your side through it all. They never wavered in their belief that you were innocent. They had no proof of innocence, just their faith in you.
At the trial it was proven by DNA evidence (or by whatever means) that you could not have committed the crime. Some of those who doubted you came back and offered their congratulations. Those who stood by you throughout it all never left your side. Now, tell me, how much value would you place on their faith in you?
Interesting scenario Landrum, thanks. I suppose its hard to say how I would react, until it actually happened. Still, the right reaction, in my mind, would be to not hold their doubts against them. My wife likes watching crime and forensics shows, and many times you see family members or friends absolutely refuse to believe the person accused could have done what they are accused of. They have full faith, one could say. Often, they are proved wrong.
Can one really fault someone for having doubts? It is impossible to know the mind of even a mere human, which always leaves room for doubt. I don't think its fair to hold that against someone. To know the mind of a God would then be completely impossible, if we cannot even know fully the mind of those closest to us.
I realize everyone is different and their minds work in different ways,which will cause different reactions to certain situations. Some people will expect you to have full faith in them and never doubt anything they say, responding negatively if any doubts are displayed. A reasonable person, I think, allows for some doubts, especially if they can see that there is evidence that puts them in a negative light. A God who is all knowing should then certainly be able to understand a mere human having certain doubts and questions, without needing to condemn said human to eternal torment for not having complete,unquestioning faith. But, that's just my opinion, I don't really expect anyone else to necessarily see things just as I do. I do enjoy reading others opinions and thoughts on the matter though, so thanks for putting that up.
I understand your concerns. And in no way was my little scenario a correlation with the faith that one has with God. Nor was it meant to represent the way HE deals with people whose faith wavers. It was just one example of how faith might be given and interpreted by a human being.
I will say this, and by the way, it is not aimed at you. I am a Christian believer. One thing that a lot of people do not understand is that to be a believer is not choosing the easy path. As humans, we are filled with doubts and concerns that plague us our entire lives. Each and ever day it is a struggle to maintain one's faith. Those who tell you otherwise are either fibbing or lack imagination.
I think that God fully understands the human condition and knows that we will have dips and valleys along our ways. Perhaps He puts some of those in our way. Who knows? But to be a Christian is an every day struggle and not an easy path at all. Maintaining faith is a full time job.
Humans struggle with the concept of time. Ask anyone to define it and they will stumble over their words. He does not have that problem. Our lives are so important to us and the clock is ticking and worries over work, health, you name it, assault us from every angle.....and the clock keeps ticking. Life is a pressure cooker. Faith is work. It's hard. Being a Christian isn't for sissies.
With all that said, I do believe that God loves us and cares deeply for us and our worries as well. We just can't wrap our heads around time and if we do stray but come back, He welcomes us as if we never left at all.
My words are a feeble attempt to explain some of my thoughts. Not enough coffee in the system yet, I suppose.
