FAITH
What really is faith?
One little boy in Sunday School was asked that question and quick as a flash he replied, "Believing something you know isn't true." And I don't know what you feel about it. I often thought that that's what faith was.
It's believing something that you know with your mind isn't true. It's some kind of overdrive that you push in with a button of some kind in your mind or your emotions. Or, somewhere as "they" say down in your heart, to get you to accept something that you know with your intellect could not possibly be true. And so many of us, in this world today are sceptical of the whole idea of faith, because we think of it as something not connected with the ordinary processes of the mind at all. It's actually opposed to the convictions of the intellect. And so many of us who have been through some kind of education and especially some kind of scientific education, get the idea that to have faith you have to in some way close your mind, or put your intellect to sleep, or ignore the conclusions of science and research.
That's absolutely ridiculous. Faith is not that kind of an irrational thing at all. Faith, in fact, is something that you and I exercise every day in our lives. And we've exercised it from the very moment we were born. I suppose it's true that your mother even encouraged you to feel that we could trust her when we lay in her arms. And we learned day by day that was true, she would not drop us, that she was reliable, and we could put our faith in her arms.
Faith vs Religion :
All religion is based on faith, but not all faith needs to be religious, at least in the sense of requiring adherence to a recognized religious persuasion.
Faith and Blind Faith:
Faith is believing in something with no evidence.
Blind faith is believing in something with no evidence and NOT allowing any form of evidence to effect your faith.
I will use religion as an example:
Faith - I believe the bible is God's word.
Blind faith - I believe the bible is God's word and it does not mention evolution or the big bang, therefore both of them must be wrong (regardless of any chance of a re-interpretation).
There is a difference between faith, belief, and trust :
Faith is believing the truth. For faith to be faith, we must have a reason to believe.
- Belief is an element of faith but not the whole.
- Trust is nearly the inverse of faith, and God requires it as well as faith. It is believing in spite of the evidence
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Many people think faith is acting like something is so when it really isn't so, and if we do that long enough, then it will become so. But that's not it at all. Faith is real.
Hebrews 11:1 says:
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."
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Many other prophecies have been fulfilled pertaining to the nation of Israel. Jeremiah the 16th chapter appears to be a prediction regarding the Jewish persecution at the hands of Adolph Hitler in Nazi Germany. Verse four tells us that "They shall die gruesome deaths, they shall not be lamented nor shall they be buried, but they shall be like refuse on the face of the earth." In addition to the predicted persecutions of the Jews, their ultimate deliverance is also foretold in scripture. We are told that the nation of Israel would ultimately be restored to never again be uprooted. (Zechariah 14:16) (Amos 9:13)(Daniel 12:1) and many more!
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Declaration of Faith (Shahaadah):
Fundamental to a Muslim's spiritual life is the declaration of faith (shahaadah). Here you can explore the deeper meaning of the declaration: "There is no god but Allah, and Mohammed is the messenger of Allah."
This Shahadah, or testimony, when recited by a person of sincerity, sound capacity and without any mental reservations, constitutes the first major requirement for being a Muslim. Through this public profession of faith, the individual becomes part of the Islamic community. To become a Muslim, one need only repeat the Shahadah three times before witnesses.
Of parallel importance and in accordance with the Shahadah is the The Six Articles of Faith. These are belief in unity of one God, belief in Angels of God, belief in Scriptures of God, belief in all the Prophets of God, belief in a general Resurrection and the total submission to the will of the Creator and acceptance of fate - be it good or bad.
Almighty Allah says in the Glorious Qur’an
It is not righteousness.
That ye turn your faces.
Towards East or West;
But it is righteousness.
To believe in Allah,
And the Last Day,
And the Angels,
And the Book,
And the Messengers;
(Al Qur’an 2:177)
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BHAGWAD GEETA :
The most popular amongst all the Hindu Scriptures is the Bhagwad Geeta.
Bhagwad Geeta mentions
“Those whose intelligence has been stolen by material desires worship demigods” that is “Those who are materialistic, they worship demigods” i.e. others as deities besides the True God.
(Bhagwad Geeta 7:20)
It is mentioned in Bhagavad Gita
“He who knows Me as the unborn, as the beginning-less, as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds...”
(Bhagwad Geeta 10:3)
the most important impact of Hinduism has been on the evolution of society. According to traditional Hindu belief, there are four stages of a human life (Āshramas), which are the stage as a student (spent in celibate, controlled, contemplation under a teacher), householder, retirement (gradual detachment from the material world) and finally asceticism to find Moksha. Society was classified into four classes, called Varnas – teachers and priests (Brahmins), warriors, nobles, and kings (Kshatriyas), farmers, merchants, and businessmen (Vaishyas) and the servants and labourers (Shudras). This classes slowly evolved to extremely rigid castes and sub-castes, setting in place an exceedingly oppressive hierarchy over the course of history. Most reform movements in the 19th and early 20th century addressed a number of these issues, and modern Hinduism is far more liberal, though the principles of caste and class still tend to become important in issues of marriage and social norms and politics. |
THE BUDDHIST FAITH :
1) Faith is the inner inspirational energy that draws and opens us to confidence in the Buddha’s teachings. Something just clicks within us and we feel a deep and comfortable familiarity with the dharma that gives us the conviction that we with all beings can “wake up” and realize our inner potential.
2) Faith denotes the time-honored process of practice, in which one has personally verified the teachings through investigation (reading, listening, attending gatherings etc.), experimentation (plenty of practice), analysis (reflection), and all this is crossed checked with the experiences of other practitioners covering a span of 2,600 years. The Buddha said, “Don’t believe because I tell you so…” First, one must try it out and see or not see the results of the process in one’s life’s experience.
3) Faith signifies the spiritual journey or the evolutionary natural path of the Buddha’s teachings that take us into an exciting adventure of inner and outer exploration, in which we will progressively encounter more peace and liberation, and the warm and open heart of boundless life and light.
4) Faith does not mean “looking up to” something outside of us in fear or for comfort, but instead means entrusting ourselves to the total dynamic of life and light itself, symbolized as Amida Buddha, which is our true nature. This entrusting faith (shinjin) is a pure and open awareness without any subject or object or belief in any set of concepts. It relates to the Sanskrit word prasada which means “tranquility, stillness and purity” of mind and heart.
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Sikhs Believe About God and Creation?
Sikhs believe in one creator inseparable from creation. Part and participle of one another, the creator exists within creation pervading and permeating every aspect of all that is. The creator watches over and cares for creation. The way to experience God is through creation and by meditating inwardly on the divine characteristic of the manifest self which is in tune with the unmanifest and illimitable, creative infinity known to Sikhs as Ik Onkar.
The Sikh scripture, Guru Granth Sahib, makes references to demons mentioned in Vedic legends primarily for illustrative purposes. There is no belief system in Sikhism which focuses on demons or devils. Sikh teachings center on ego and its effect on the soul. Indulging in unbridled egoism may render a soul subject to demonic influences and the realms of darkness which abide within one’s own consciousness.
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Sufism :
Sufism, which is a branch of Islam, teaches the personal and mystical worship, and union with Allah or God. It was formulated in opposition to the formal, legalistic Islamic theology of the ninth century AD.
Unlike Muhammad who decried the worship of sheikhs as saints, and declaring Allah the only deity, the Sufis believe that knowledge of the Path to God comes only from master teacher, who attain saintly blessedness (baraqa). The devotees once worshipped these men publicly, making pilgrimages to their tombs and petitioning for their intercession. Love is most important Sufis conceive God as the beloved and man as the lover According to Ibn Arabi, no religion ranks higher than the religion of love Love is the source and the essence of all creeds Therefore, a Sufi thinks that all the evil thoughts which breed dislike, hatred and religious division and prejudice must be replaced by love When he has come to his last stage of enlightenment, his self is annihilated in the complete sense This is the stage when he comes closer to God, and naturally he becomes a servant to God's people. |
Bahai'i :
The Baha’i faith was founded by Mirza Husayn Ali, in the nineteenth century Persia, who was later given the title of Baha’u’llah – meaning the Glory of God. His compatriot, Sayyed Ali Muhammad Sayyed, who later was given the title of ‘Bab’ or ‘the Gate’ prepared the way for the coming of Baha’u’llah – the Promised One. Baha’u’llah called upon his followers to be standard- bearers of unity based on love for their fellow men. He affirmed the belief in only one God whose essence is beyond the understanding of His creatures. The qualities of God such as His love, knowledge and power however are reflected in the Founders or Messengers of world’s great religions, each of whom established a religion that was suited to the needs of the time. The Baha’i faith considers Abraham, Moses, Krishna, Zoroaster, Buddha, Jesus, Mohammad, and Baha’u’llah himself as among the Messengers of God. This particular claim appears to be the strongest point of contention between Bahai’s and the followers of other faiths.
parlance, the Circle of Zikr is the garden of Paradise. Practice of Zikr includes fasting, night vigils, restraint in speech, compassion for created beings, remembrance, reflection, living on permitted things and avoiding forbidden things.
The followers of Jalaluddin Rumi, known as the Mevlevis, or Whirling Dervishes perform a Zikr ceremony which externally appears as a dance. Internally, it is a meditation on Allah. As they turn, they sub vocally repeat the Name. A musical
Zikr is known as sama. Zikr which is always performed in a dergah is for the first time being brought into the open with the album ZIKR by mystic Master Anandmurti Gurumaa herself.The opening track call of the heart calls for utmost attention of the listeners as this can be the beginning on the path for those who are drunk with Love.
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Jain :
The three fundamental tenets for Jains are: Right faith, right knowledge and right conduct. A pursuit of these goals involves modest living, and prescribed behavior such as non-violence and stringent vegetarianism, and also various rituals and acts of devotion ( puja). The worship of images of mortal teachers or Thirthankaras (divinities) is common among Buddhists, Hindus, and Jains alike, but the approach of the Jains to the Tirthankaras differs from that of the other groups.
To the outsider the most obvious mark of the Jain's concern with non-violence is seen in Jain food. Jains believe that living beings may be possessed of one, two, three, four or five senses (human beings have five senses and the special faculty of the human mind). Our human body is necessary to enable us to clear out the karma from the soul, or jiva, by right conduct. To support that body we must take nourishment but we can reduce to a minimum the violence and anguish thus caused to other beings by restricting our diet to the one-sensed forms of life. Thus Jains will avoid all food except that derived from plants (which have only one sense, that of touch). Even then care is taken because plants can be hosts to teeming microscopic life, some more than others. Jains avoid root vegetables which have always been believed to contain many minute beings. Certain Indian fruits of the fig family have also been forbidden from ancient times. |
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Faith has no meaning in a court: (Frontline)
The first of the five pillars of Islam is the profession of faith in pronouncing of the words that "There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His Prophet". JUSTICE Rajindar Sachar, former Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, has emerged as one of the most critical voices against the Ayodhya verdict. The author of the Sachar Committee report, which documented the poor conditions of Indian Muslims, says the judgment delivered by the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on September 30 follows no legal precedents and has done injustice to the Muslim community by rewarding the Sangh Parivar, whose constituents demolished the Babri Masjid. Excerpts from the interview he gave Frontline:
The Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute is not just a religious dispute but has occupied political imagination in India for the past two decades. How do you perceive the verdict?
The judgment can be summed up in two words: Crime piece. In 1992, a crime was committed. The Babri Masjid was demolished. But assume that the crime was not been committed and the matter had gone to court. Do you think the court could possibly, under any circumstances, order that the land be divided? Frankly, the grounds on which the organised Hindutva plaintiffs went and asked for land, they should have been thrown out on the grounds of remediation. You see, the masjid was there since the 16th century. They filed the suit only recently [in historical periods]. The Limitation Act dictates that a suit could be filed within a period of 12 years from the date of dispute. Legally speaking, the Sangh Parivar does not have a right even if a temple had been demolished to build the Babri Masjid, as the masjid existed before the period of limitation. |
Umar Kayyam :
The Islamic Poet Umar Kayyam, who lived in 12th Century, is a non-believer, who said that there is no heaven or hell elsewhere or an afterlife, but the beautiful life we could live is here in the earth itself. Mao, the father of Communist China, said that the capitalists and landlords used religion as a drug to freeze the brains of the labourers and agriculturalists. |
EVR Periar :
If not there is no Bakthi (devotion to god) in the life and conduct of human beings nothing is going to be lost; but if character is not there, every thing can be said as lost. Having faith is a personal matter and in no way it affects others, but if the character of an individual is not good it will affect others in the society. That is what Periyar insisted all along.
There is no place for god where there is no fear or greed. It is this blind faith of god that has divided people creating so many divisions. That is why Periyar emphatically said that there is no god.
Thus, Periyar started the Self-Respect movement, with the aim of establishing a casteless society based on complete equality. Eradication of social evils, promotion of rationalism, and freeing the society from the shackles of superstitions and blind faith in God and religion were high on his agenda. Ensuring social justice for “Shudras” (non-brahmins) by way of reservations in educational institutions and in government jobs was an important objective for him. Periyar made it clear that such reservations should continue as long as castes exist.
Among the people who don't care for religion, and have no faith in it, there are so many who have realized their natural talents and powers, risen to high positions and utilized everything in their possessions for the welfare of the society. It is absolutely meaningless to say that a man can realize his latent powers and be of service to his society only with the help of religion. It is equally meaningless to say that to develop a man's character and to enable society to be disciplined, religion is necessary. |
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