A difference between belief and faith?
OP - June 14, 2014, 03:45 PM
So, I'm not sure if this is an original thought or not, but I can't recall ever hearing this distinction being made in religious terms. I'm wondering if there might be a difference between: 1) a religious belief - something that a person holds to be true because it is the only way they can understand their existence and their environment, and 2) Religious faith - something that people completely recognize to be far fetched and nonsensical, but hold out in trust that their God is somehow going to make it all make sense.
Allow me to illustrate with some examples that got me thinking about this in the first place.
Particularly when I lived in Saudi Arabia but also among Muslims here in the states, I found that many Muslims believed in Allah and could not fathom a way that he could not exist. Allah explained things in their world model. Questions like where do we come from, who created the sun, who sends down the rain, etc, are answered by the conclusion that there must be a god. The world does not make sense to them without it. They believe in Allah the way that we believe in gravity or electricity. Even if they can not identify him independently, he is a part of their understanding of the world.
On the other hand, you have apologists like Hamza Tzortzis, Yasir Qadhi, even Usama Hassan who must fully understand how unnecessary Allah is as an explanation. Many modern Muslims may also fall into this category. They don't need Allah to make sense of their world, but they still have faith that he exists. Some may even be setting aside their doubts because they have faith that somehow, Allah is going to come through and prove himself eventually.
I liken this second category to what might happen if two friends catch themselves in a really desperate situation and one of them says, "I have a plan to get us out of here, but you have to trust me." Whether or not the second friend actually believes the plan will work, he can still have faith that his friend's cleverness, skill, speed, or what have you will end up saving them both from the situation.
Essentially, people who believe in god hold it to be true as a matter of understanding and fact. People with faith in god might realize why it all sounds like nonsense, but they are going to trust it anyway in hopes it somehow turns out to be true.
What do you all make of this difference?
I wonder if both could be considered iman billah.
Topic: A difference between belief and faith?