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    #1

    Faith/Trust

    I'm really struggling with the idea of faith right now. I am always looking for "proof" but I feel that faith is important and shouldn't require proof. I don't really know how to let go and just... trust, I guess. I feel like I'm always seeking answers and that it's only walking me in circles. I feel directionless. And I'm not a very patient person to just wait it out. I feel like this struggle to have faith and trust is at the center of it.

    I think a lot of this may also be tied up in fear that I have. I've always had trouble with anxiety/fear of the unknown. I strongly believe that there is a supernatural element to this world. Not something out of a story book but something substantial. On one level, I can acknowledge this as something natural but beyond science. On another, it terrifies me and I have no idea why. And I think this affects my ability to have faith.

    So, I guess I'm wondering if anyone's been in a similar place and how they coped/overcame it.
    We are what we are. Nothing more, nothing less. There is good and evil among every kind of people. It's the evil among us who rule now. -Anne Bishop, Daughter of the Blood

    I wondered if he could ever understand that it was a blessing, not a sin, to be graced with more than one love.
    It could be complicated; of course it could be complicated. And it opened one up to the possibility of more pain and loss.
    Still, it was a blessing I would never relinquish. Love, genuine love, was always a cause for joy.
    -Jacqueline Carey, Naamah's Curse

    Service to your fellows is the root of peace.
    Tags: None
    #2
    Re: Faith/Trust

    I think real faith does require proof. If it didn't, I'm not sure how reliable I would think about it.
    But that's just me.
    Satan is my spirit animal

    Comment

      #3
      Re: Faith/Trust

      I've experienced the proof of my beliefs, but I didn't start really seeing it until many years after I started opening myself up to it. Be patient.

      Comment

        #4
        Re: Faith/Trust

        I generally go with the line, "Faith is a choice, not a gift." I keep Faith because the alternatives irritate me on one level or another. Flip-side is I can be half decent at doubt so this particular choice has to be reconsidered and reaffirmed more often than I might like.
        Life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

        Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

        "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

        John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

        "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

        Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


        Comment

          #5
          Re: Faith/Trust

          It's tricky because even when there is proof, how do you recognise it as such? There must then, be a balance between faith and proof. I have faith that my partner would never cheat on me. There is plenty evidence that he isn't, but I can't prove it. That's no reason to stop having faith in him though, is it? Yeah, there are those who have jealousy/commitment issues, who let this conundrum get the better of them to the point of constant fear of rejection (often causing the very thing they fear in the end), but that isn't healthy. My love gives me faith.

          Not a perfect analogy, I know, but I'm just trying to illustrate the point that faith shouldn't be reliant on evidence. If you love your gods, if you adore your path, then faith shouldn't be too hard to find.
          夕方に急なにわか雨は｢夕立」と呼ばれるなら、なぜ朝ににわか雨は｢朝立ち」と呼ばれないの？ ＾＾If a sudden rain shower in the evening is referred to as an 'evening stand', then why isn't a shower in the morning called 'morning stand'?

          Comment

            #6
            Re: Faith/Trust

            I used to struggle with the concept of faith. I think more people than not have struggled with the idea of faith and trust at one time or another. It is difficult to have faith in something "blindly" as someone would call it, however, I have discovered that there is no need for faith per se when it comes to spirituality. When something rings true for you, you know it is real - you truly feel that there is no doubt about whatever it may be (a certain Energy in your life, Spirit, God, or Goddess, or even path in general). Whatever it is you are struggling with to believe in, stop the struggle. Relax (as hard as that may be sometimes, I honestly understand from experience), and when you find your niche, and find your spiritual companions (or they find you as it seemed to have happened to me more often than not) you will just simply feel so at home with the idea that you will be going along with your journey and beliefs and spiritual feelings as if it is a part of you, not something extra that you have to whip out faith you just don't feel naturally. You will know, truly and surely, that you are what you are and know what you know because that is your reality. At a certain point, you just are what you are because there is no other way to feel than what is naturally right, and there is no need for additional aspects in concerns to faith and trust because you just know.
            "What spiritual path do I follow you ask? I'm me, and you're you. What can be more perfectly beautiful than that?" - Charmed Fool (me)

            Comment

              #7
              Re: Faith/Trust

              Faith doesn't have "proof" but there are reasons to have faith. What I mean by that is "proof" is objective. It's the same to you as it is to me and it is to the guy in the next town. But reasons can be intensely personal and subjective. While you may not be able to PROVE those reasons to anyone else, you have them and they are the foundation of your faith.
              "The doer alone learneth." -- Friedrich Nietzsche

              Comment

                #8
                Re: Faith/Trust

                Thanks for the advice guys!

                MaskedOne: Can I ask how you reaffirm that decision?

                Jembru: I get that analogy. My fiance and I have been together for 6 years, and I trust him explicitly, even though I really don't have "proof" that he hasn't cheated on me. Though... the fact that we've openly discussed adding another member to our relationship prolly helps.
                We are what we are. Nothing more, nothing less. There is good and evil among every kind of people. It's the evil among us who rule now. -Anne Bishop, Daughter of the Blood

                I wondered if he could ever understand that it was a blessing, not a sin, to be graced with more than one love.
                It could be complicated; of course it could be complicated. And it opened one up to the possibility of more pain and loss.
                Still, it was a blessing I would never relinquish. Love, genuine love, was always a cause for joy.
                -Jacqueline Carey, Naamah's Curse

                Service to your fellows is the root of peace.

                Comment

                  #9

                  "No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical." -- Niels Bohr

                  Comment

                    #10
                    Re: Faith/Trust

                    Why follow something doubtful when you can follow something with certainty? Always follow the path of proof.
                    [4:82]

                    Comment

                      #11
                      Re: Faith/Trust

                      Originally posted by Dumuzi View Post
                      Why follow something doubtful when you can follow something with certainty? Always follow the path of proof.
                      I believe this will all my heart. The problem is not the evidence. The problem is the equipment studying the evidence. It's always faulty.
                      Satan is my spirit animal

                      Comment

                        #12
                        Re: Faith/Trust

                        Originally posted by Dumuzi View Post
                        Why follow something doubtful when you can follow something with certainty? Always follow the path of proof.
                        There are many assumptions involved in deciding what constitutes "proof," assumptions that ultimately reflect the person's take on the nature of being. Many prefer to pretend this is not the case, but an unspoken and unexamined assumption is an assumption nevertheless.

                        "No, no, you're not thinking; you're just being logical." -- Niels Bohr

                        Comment

                          #13
                          Re: Faith/Trust

                          Originally posted by Dumuzi View Post
                          Why follow something doubtful when you can follow something with certainty? Always follow the path of proof.
                          My standard of 'proof' is above known human capacity to meet either through direct sensory experience or through known science. Minds are easy things to deceive. In the absence of absolute proof, I take alternate options. Plus, most of my important beliefs operate relatively well even if I've got 90% of the details about the universe insanely wrong.
                          Life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

                          Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

                          "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

                          John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

                          "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

                          Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


                          Comment

                            #14
                            Re: Faith/Trust

                            Originally posted by MaskedOne View Post
                            My standard of 'proof' is above known human capacity to meet either through direct sensory experience or through known science. Minds are easy things to deceive. In the absence of absolute proof, I take alternate options. Plus, most of my important beliefs operate relatively well even if I've got 90% of the details about the universe insanely wrong.
                            Direct sensory experiences can be totally fooled.
                            Optical Illusions, Videos, Images, Brain Teasers and more!
                            http://www.moillusions.com/
                            We are your main source for optical illusions, brain teasers and more. We offer every type of illusion that you can possibly think of!


                            Face it. We as humans suck at the basic idea of proof.
                            Satan is my spirit animal

                            Comment

                              #15
                              Re: Faith/Trust

                              That was my point. Our senses can be defeated and science has limitations in what it can prove. Sorry, if my phrasing left that unclear.
                              Life itself was a lightsaber in his hands; even in the face of treachery and death and hopes gone cold, he burned like a candle in the darkness. Like a star shining in the black eternity of space.

                              Yoda: Dark Rendezvous

                              "But those men who know anything at all about the Light also know that there is a fierceness to its power, like the bare sword of the law, or the white burning of the sun." Suddenly his voice sounded to Will very strong, and very Welsh. "At the very heart, that is. Other things, like humanity, and mercy, and charity, that most good men hold more precious than all else, they do not come first for the Light. Oh, sometimes they are there; often, indeed. But in the very long run the concern of you people is with the absolute good, ahead of all else..."

                              John Rowlands, The Grey King by Susan Cooper

                              "You come from the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve", said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth; be content."

                              Aslan, Prince Caspian by CS Lewis


                              Comment

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