Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Faith is confidence or trust in a person or thing; or the observance of an obligation from loyalty; or fidelity to a person, promise, engagement; or a belief not based on proof; or it may refer to a particular system of religious belief,[1] such as in which faith is confidence based on some degree of warrant.[2][3]
The term 'faith' has numerous connotations and is used in different ways, often depending on context.
Stages of Faith Development
James W. Fowler (1940-2015) proposes a series of stages of faith-development (or spiritual development) across the human life-span.
His stages relate closely to the work of Piaget, Erikson, and Kohlberg regarding aspects of psychological development in children and adults. Fowler defines faith as an activity of trusting, committing, and relating to the world based on a set of assumptions of how one is related to others and the world.
James W. Fowler (1940-2015) proposes a series of stages of faith-development (or spiritual development) across the human life-span. His stages relate closely to the work of Piaget, Erikson, and Kohlberg regarding aspects of psychological development in children and adults. Fowler defines faith as an activity of trusting, committing, and relating to the world based on a set of assumptions of how one is related to others and the world.
Stages of faith 1.Intuitive-Projective: a stage of confusion and of high impressionability through stories and rituals. (Pre-school period)
2.Mythic-Literal: a stage where provided information is accepted in order to conform with social norms. (School-going period)
3.Synthetic-Conventional: In this stage the faith acquired is concreted in the belief system with the forgoing of personification and replacement with authority in individuals or groups that represent one's beliefs. (Early-late adolescence)
4.Individuative-Reflective: In this stage the individual critically analyzes adopted and accepted faith with existing systems of faith. Disillusion or strengthening of faith happens in this stage. Based on needs, experiences and paradoxes. (Early adulthood)
5.Conjunctive faith: In this stage people realize the limits of logic and, facing the paradoxes or transcendence of life, accept the "mystery of life" and often return to the sacred stories and symbols of the pre-acquired or re-adopted faith system. This stage is called negotiated settling in life. (Mid-life)
6.Universalizing faith: This is the "enlightenment" stage where the individual comes out of all the existing systems of faith and lives life with universal principles of compassion and love and in service to others for upliftment, without worries and doubt. (Middle - late adulthood (45-65yrs and plus)[4])[page needed]
No hard-and-fast rule requires individuals pursuing faith to go through all six stages. There is a high probability for individuals to be content and fixed in a particular stage for a lifetime; stages from 2-5 are such stages. Stage 6 is the summit of faith development. This state is often[quantify] considered as "not fully" attainable.[5]
As there is no centralized teaching for Muslims. You will probably have to get the opinion of every Muslim and find out how we each define faith.
While generically the English definition of faith is belief without proof.
That is forbidden to Muslims.
My understanding is that we are not to believe anything unless we our self have found reason to believe. We as individuals have the responsibility to check all things. We are not to have "Blind Faith: we are to Trust in what we know, not belief. I Trust Allaah(swt) will do what he has said he will do. Faith is Trust not belief
My question is:
1. What is the relation between faith, believing, and beliefs?
2. Is 'faith' at the most fundamental level the same in all religions?--Continuum
1. What is the relation between faith, believing, and beliefs?
Knowing, that the Only God has always known existence, and that God is uncreated.
2. Is 'faith' at the most fundamental level the same in all religions?
As there is no centralized teaching for Muslims. You will probably have to get the opinion of every Muslim and find out how we each define faith.
While generically the English definition of faith is belief without proof.
That is forbidden to Muslims.
My understanding is that we are not to believe anything unless we our self have found reason to believe. We as individuals have the responsibility to check all things. We are not to have "Blind Faith: we are to Trust in what we know, not belief. I Trust Allaah(swt) will do what he has said he will do. Faith is Trust not belief
Note faith is beliefs as a result of believing in something without proofs.
If Muslims do not agree with the above, then,
It is ridiculous to say faith is not belief but trust.
Faith is beliefs, trust, confidence as a result of believing in something based on the Muslims confidence of his own evidence and conviction in relation to the Quran.
This definition of faith should be acceptable to a Muslim.
The point is faith, i.e. beliefs, trust or confidence is based on the mental process of 'believing'.
The critical element here is 'believing.'
The mental process of believing is generic to all humans which is almost as basic as breathing and thinking.
Therefore all humans [normal] by default engage in believing without exceptions.
Agree?
The mental process of believing is supported by a mental faculty that is specific for believing just as there are faculties for instincts, emotions, intellect, reasoning, etc.
This mental process of believing generate states of mind as faith, beliefs, trust, confidence, and convictions.
There are two main groupings of faith, beliefs, trust, confidence, and convictions, i.e.,
1. Empirical beliefs -Science and other justifiable knowledge
2. Non-empirical beliefs/faith - religious, spiritual, supernatural and others.
Faith related to Islam is one type of religious beliefs, trusts, confidence and conviction.
Within Islam 'faith' beliefs, trust, confidence are dealt within two senses;
1. Strict = eeman [faith, beliefs] qualified to the 6 pillars of eeman
2. Loose = eeman [faith, beliefs] used in the wider and loose sense.
Agree?
If not, show me where I am wrong with the above sequence of reality and logic?
When I am driving down the road I have faith my [brake will] work if a child runs out into the street.
Naturally there will be a varying degree of faith depending upon circumstances.
Your degree of faith will depend on the following;
1. Your knowledge of the mechanics of your car.
2. It is winter [ice on the road] or summer.
3. When did you last change your brake discs
4. The model of your car and model of the brake discs
5. Your own driving ability
6. Your age - older mean slower response
7. The road is downhill or uphill
8. Past experiences of making emergency brakes
9. You have drank alcohol
11. Your driving style and average speed
10. ..many other factors
Therefore there are varying degrees of faith and you cannot have blind faith [100% confidence] without taking into consideration the above factors.
Thus if you have just change your brake discs from a reputable mechanics and your car is reasonable new, it is obvious your degree of faith is higher [even though you don't express it] than if
1. you have not change your brakes for umpteen of years and you have not look at it;
2. coming downhill from a mountain top 2000 meters of winding roads,
3. It is middle of winter.
Naturally there will be a varying degree of faith depending upon circumstances.
Your degree of faith will depend on the following;
1. Your knowledge of the mechanics of your car.
2. It is winter [ice on the road] or summer.
3. When did you last change your brake discs
4. The model of your car and model of the brake discs
5. Your own driving ability
6. Your age - older mean slower response
7. The road is downhill or uphill
8. Past experiences of making emergency brakes
9. You have drank alcohol
11. Your driving style and average speed
10. ..many other factors
Therefore there are varying degrees of faith and you cannot have blind faith [100% confidence] without taking into consideration the above factors.
Thus if you have just change your brake discs from a reputable mechanics and your car is reasonable new, it is obvious your degree of faith is higher [even though you don't express it] than if
1. you have not change your brakes for umpteen of years and you have not look at it;
2. coming downhill from a mountain top 2000 meters of winding roads,
3. It is middle of winter.
These are all factors in faith rather than degrees of faith.
It is ridiculous to say faith is not belief but trust. Faith is beliefs, trust, confidence as a result of believing in something based on the Muslims confidence of his own evidence and conviction in relation to the Quran.
This definition of faith should be acceptable to a Muslim.
These are all factors in faith rather than degrees of faith.
You blatantly ignore and denial the truth. I can understand why you are doing this, i.e. due to confirmation bias to ensure your faith remains intact.
But the truth must prevails somehow regardless of how blind you are to it.
How can you be so ignorant?
The factors impacting on something will always change its degrees or intensity.
The above are factors that will influence one faith by varying its degree, i.e. degree of faith.
Degrees of faith is the same as confidence levels, degrees of trust and the likes.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
