BellaOnline Forums Religion and Spirituality Philosophy Is Blind faith a good idea?

I THINK WE HAVE TO BELIEVE IN SOMETHING AND LOVE SOMETHING IN ORDER TO BE HAPPY AND HAVE MEANING IN YOUR LIFE, SOMETIMES THOUGH I THINK MAYBE WE MIGHT BELIEVE IN SOMETHING THAT MIGHT NOT BE TRUE LIKE SAY�RELIGION� WE FIND COMFORT IN IT AND WOULD RATHER NOT QUESTION WHETER OR NOT ITS TRUE NOT SAYING ITS NOT TRUE, I BELIEVE THE CORRECT OPINION ON THE RELIGION VS SCIENCE ARGUMENT IS NOT HAVING ONE NEITHER SIDE HAS REAL SOLID PROOF I ADMIRE THE SIDE OF SCIENCE FOR NOT SIMPLY ACCEPTING SOMTHING AND BLINDLY FOLLOWING PERSONALLY IM MORE INCLINED TO BE ANTI-RELIGION ALTHOUGH I WAS ONCE A REBORN CHRISTIAN AND WHILE I TRULY BELIEVED IN IT I DID SOME CRAZY THINGS TO GET OTHER PEOPLE TO BELIEVE IT TOO (

I believe to do anything blindly, without reason, without question, without a search for "truth" (however you want to define that) is sheer folly.

As I studied the human body, the specialized systems, the mechanics of the endocrine system, the vascular, lymphatic, skeletal, nervous systems, how all these separate systems depend on each other, I have to believe in some kind of genius. Maybe omnipotent power. Either way, it's safer to believe in a religion and possibly go to heaven, than not and possibly go to hell...

Believing in anything, no matter what it is, because it is safer seems like the worst reason to me. Believe what you will, but, please, believe it because you have examined it, examined yourself and your reasons for that belief.

Of course, our systems are interdependent, our families, villages, cities, states and countries are interdependent. This makes no presumption of any omnipotent power. The world must be that way to survive. And we made it so

DSNNM: Suppose, for the sake of discussion, that there is a God (whether or not you currently believe is immaterial to the discussion as we're assuming a theoretical position). If God asked you, why do you believe in me, do you believe he/she/it would prefer you to answer:
(a) because... I don't really know why... I just do
(a) someone said I should
(b) I'm afraid I might go to hell (or suffer some severe fate, etc.), if I don't
(c) because I have been told of you, have searched for you, have questioned and debated the value of you, and believe with all of my heart/soul/whatever that you exist and have a place in my life.

LYNN B.
I would answer "Because I have seen your miracles."
I couldn't say what answer would be prefered.
PONDLADY
I have a hard time, thinking we were an accident of any kind. I would rather believe that once the genetics were in place, free will took over. I would rather believe that we were designed to evolve to where we are now. That having a conscience and being able to love was a part of that design. Although mankind is able to "create life", we cannot create the components that are needed to create that life. Blind faith is never really blind. All the answers are there, you just need to ask the right questions. Some people say, we are only given what we can handle, and that those that fail, chose to do so. God or no God, the sugestion of one instills inspiration to succeed and that is "the safe way". Without an answer to "Is this all there is" what would inspire us to do right by others, help victims of hurricanes, raise our children, or even get up in the morning? Sorry for being so winded...

We see the sun rise and set. That was once a "miracle." But now we've accepted/believe that its merely a result of the orbit of the planets.

Whether you are seeking to find "God" or seeking to find the link between pigs and elephants, the way a quest to belief works is this: We've seen or been told about it, we've questioned and debated why it happens, we've gained understanding, we assign it a personal value and finally we come to full acceptance/belief.

To leap from "seeing" to "believing" without also exploring, questioning and growing has little value. What would you gain by it other than the ability to say to someone "I believe."

The greatest philsophers of "God" (Jesus, Mohammad, whomever--pick one, it doesn't really matter) tell us that blind faith is dangerous. We are instructed, if we are believers, to seek understanding and to question our realities--not to follow like sheep.

Is "God" necessary for "moral" behavior? No. We create our own morality, based on personal and societal norms and values.

Is "God" necessary for inspiration? Again, no. Many people find inspiration in simply being alive.

Whether or not "this is all there is," to me is unimportant. We live, we die, the world goes on.

Ah, the old "argument from design" followed by the coup de grace of Pascal's Wager, eh?

Hiya folks, I've just taken over as Philosophy editor and I see we've got some lively philosophising going on already. I think I'm going to like it here.

Bear with me for a month or so till I get the site re-organised a bit. I'll post again soon with my plans for the first phase of that but I wouldn't be surprised if it includes the father of modern western Philosophy... whoever that might be. <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

The greatest Gurus Of India have said that never accept any body as your Guru without finding out first. Do not go by words alone. Have no blind faith.

Ticker,
So you are saying you once were saved and now you're lost?

I don't think that blind faith is a good idea because it can hinder a person from thinking for his or her self. Blind faith can also lead to fanaticism. Since religion can often have contradicting and confusing elements, blind faith can lead a believer astray instead of improving his or her life.

As this is the philosophy forum, I think I'm fairly safe....

'Blind faith' to me is blinkered thinking'...
That is to say, even acknowledging that other creeds exist, but refusing to learn from, or of, them, and resolutely remaining with a single point of view, even though legitimate challenges might exist....

I would welcome Christians discussing Buddhist teachings and philosophy with me, but unfortunately, to date, dicussions with Christians - both here and on other boards has resulted largely in discussion focussed solely on Christian religious belief... a bit one-sided really, to say the least....
This has been because, inspite of my inviting them, Christians have declined any invitation on my part to learn more about Buddhism, and have apparently resolutely refused to entertain the idea of even examining Buddhist teachings in a small way.
Nobody has yet seen fit to offer me an explanation, so I can only surmise or assume, that there is a fear there; a reluctance to engage in such discussion because they are afraid of learning something that may possibly influence them in another direction.

That is not, and never will be, my intention.

If their Christian faith is strong, then nothing can harm it, surely...? But broadening the mind and understanding other ideologies can surely, only be constructive?
If perchance they are persuaded that there are more facets to the Spiritual Divinity they hold so dear, then surely it can only serve to make them more 'complete' individuals, rather than people who practise 'Blind faith'...?

Jesus says we live not by sight but by faith.

Pardon?

Didn't he also say that there are none so blind as those who will not see?
Perception and understanding can only be complete if you take in the whole picture...if you (generic) just look at a pixel, instead of standing back and taking in the whole panoramic landscape, then your (generic) perception and understanding of anything is going to be narrowed and flawed...
In order to be able to assess and comment on the view, we first need to be able to see it in totality, before meriting the right to comment....

Do you(specific) "see" what I mean?

...Nope, I guess he didn't....Sorry.

The origins of the phrase, although mildly altered, can be found in Matthew 13:13
13:13 "Therefore I speak to them in parables: because they seeing, see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand".

Jeremiah 5:21 "Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not"

Isaiah 6:9-10 " And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear you indeed, but understand not; and see indeed, but perceive not.
Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart."

This saying has its roots in the Bible, specifically Jer. 5:21 (King James version): "Hear now this, O foolish people, and without understanding; which have eyes, and see not; which have ears, and hear not."

But it still underpins my point....
I still maintain that in order to be able to assess and evaluate a discussion, you need to 'see' the aspects from all sides....

How can you say that the Bible is the only book that does that? Have you read other scriptures? or asked others? I agree with Bible when it says - " Seek and you will find", but not with your other statement.

I don't think that the Bible is the only book that read its readers heart. There are other books, religious or not, that can touch the reader's heart.

There are a lot of contradictions in the Bible and you can find them even if you are are not looking for them. The Bible was written by men from different times and with different perspectives, so there are bound to be contradictions.

What was the period during which Bible was written?

I'm with Alexandra on this. TexasDave has a point about finding what you're seeking in the Bible, but I contend that that is because the Bible is inconsistent and sometimes deliberately vague, with both positive and negative messages mixed together. Thus, if you are blinded to the problems in the Bible, you will seek out only the good parts and will try to blend them into some sort of cohesive message to live by. If, on the other hand, you are blinded to the potential good in the Bible, you will end up seeing only the negative messages and will end up with the impression that the Bible is outdated, hateful, and only useful as a tool to hypocrites and control-freaks.

The truth is somewhere in the middle. It is actually a group of philosophical teachings and moral rules that paint a picture of Judaic societies over two-thousand years ago. Some of these teachings and rules still hold up today, while others seem archaic and even barbaric compared to modern day standards of morality and civility.

If your vision of it is either painted all white or painted all black, you're not seeing the full picture.

I think the first Bible was written about 50 to 100 yrs. after Jesus was crucified.

In actual fact, the first accounts of his life were written after this period, you are right. The Bible itself, as a comprehensive and inclusive recognisable document of that name, did not appear until 382AD.

These two sites are very interesting.

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Oh nice articles indeed but

1st Century AD: Completion of All Original Greek Manuscripts which make up The 27 Books of the New Testament.
315 AD: Athenasius, the Bishop of Alexandria, identifies the 27 books of the New Testament which are today recognized as the canon of scripture.
382 AD: Jerome's Latin Vulgate Manuscripts Produced which contain All 80 Books (39 Old Test. + 14 Apocrypha + 27 New Test).
500 AD: Scriptures have been Translated into Over 500 Languages.
600 AD: LATIN was the Only Language Allowed for Scripture.
995 AD: Anglo-Saxon (Early Roots of English Language) Translations of The New Testament Produced.


I guess if Roman imperator didn't accept the Christianity on that time, this religion hasn't been so spread in the world.

perceptive comment Babak. I love the use of the word "Imperator" which is to an extent correct, because in both Latin and Italian, it's "Imperatore". English has transformed this title into "Emperor".

Trying to help, not criticise....!

I bear in mind that if I spoke your language as poetically and well as you speak mine, I would be so blessed!

Tanks Alexandra
It's so delightful to see compliment from some one like you I think but in Persian language we tell imperator too.
If you interest to learn Persian language, it's my honor to be at your service! If ask, tell you my phone number for sure!

More like to see your comment about emperor decision?

Safer? Hell is part of a belief, not a fact. Do you actually think that there is a place of everlasting fire?

Where is it located?

God is part of a religion that has convinced people that he is an invisible man in the sky who watches everything that we do, every minute of the day. God has a special list of things that he does not want you to do. If you do any of these things, he has a special place full of fire, smoke, burning, torture and anguish, where he will send you to live and suffer, burn, scream, and cry forever until the end of time�.But he loves you. Does this actually seem right?


We learn from Chrisianity that it is o.k. to sit and do nothing when someone is in trouble, being killed, or starving to death. Witness all of the children that are kidnapped raped or killed. God does nothing. I know of people who have nothing to do with the belief in any God who treat their children better than God. These fathers would give their life for the safety of their children, Yet God is content to just do nothing while his children are raped, killed, die of some cancer or virus that He himself created.

Is blind faith a good idea?

Well lets ask the Branch Davidians that died in the fire.

Lets ask the cult members who commited suicide with their leader to meet the mother ship on the other side of the Hale Bop comet.

Lets ask the followers of Jim Jones cult who moved to South America and who followed their leader when he told them to drink poison and die.

OH WAIT, we can't ask them, their blind faith led them to their death.

NO, I don't think blind faith is EVER a good idea.

This post makes me smile. As I read it, everyone (well almost everyone) has pretty much kept the air of the conversation centered around religion. Now I am not sure if this is because this forum falls under the Religion and Spirituality channel (duh) or if it is because everyone is associating faith with religion.

I believe earlier I read much conversation around the "Seek and ye will find" quote from the Bible; and what was taken into consideration in the comments was the way in which people view the Bible. For instance, they will find what they are intending to look for in the Bible when they read it (whether it be positive or negative). Now although I hate to use descriptions such as "positive" or "negative", the "seek and ye shall find mentality" should not be applied solely to religion or the Bible. It is really much more expansive than that and applies to every area of your life.

TexasDave spoke about Jesus' quote of living by faith and not by sight. This really goes back to the idea that whatever you are looking for is what will present itself. What determines what you are looking for is represented by what you have "faith" in (and I don't mean your chosen religion). I really mean your beliefs which are then translated into faith.

Blind faith is never a good idea; it is very restrictive to your natural abilities. It might be more useful to use your faith as a tool for directing your gaze to whatever you are desiring to see.

i agree blind faith is never a good idea no matter the reason!! we have to think and learn and then if we believe that it is true and not harmful to us or to others then have faith. I dont blindly believe in anything. I have to learn for myself ...but on the same hand I am blindily trusting my own judgement about what is true and what is not....

I know freebubbles...isn't it funny the way faith works. I guess the question can now evolve into exploring the nature of faith...is it inherently blind? What do you guys think?

I think to some degree you have to take a leep of faith no matter what it is. but I dont think it has to be blind blind faith. like i have faith in myself and my own judgement but i also know that i am limited and have my weaknesses. I have learned mostly through trail and error what i can do and what i cant so I have a reasonible amount of surcureity that i can put faith in myself and my judgement. but to put my faith in lets say the belief that the sky is falling tomorrow so we all have to dig wholes and barry ourselfs..... that would take blind faith and a big amount of .... i dont know what!!!

I'm new over here, but -- blind faith is a matter of shutting off your brain, imo. I am an agnostic, raised that way, and if a deity ever deigned to introduce him/her/itself to me, with proof of divine powers, then I could certainly believe.

I cannot BELIEVE in something "just to be safe" -- that isn't belief, that is hedging your bets in your actions, but belief? That has to be deeper.

I believe my husband, son, parents love me -- but I've seen much evidence to back it up. And if there is a deity that is mean-spirited enough to punish me for not believing in something that I've no evidence for, I don't think that deity would be worthy of worship. So the safety argument falls there, too, for me.

I believe in some things that my dh doesn't -- because I have more experiences to back it up, that he hasn't shared. He didn't grow up in my home. I can't explain these experiences -- other than that it is probably explainable by science that hasn't been appropriately studied as of yet.

I dont think anyone should believe in anything just to be on the safe side. to me this is hypocritical. It is like saying "Ok God I believe your up there and you love me and will save me if i believe but I am going to do what i want and if some other God comes along and bullies me with something worse then hell I will be forgeting you and believeing in the other God but I may just believe in everything that comes my way just to be on the save side."!

(note comical injections....)

Comical injections noted, as well as run-on sentence! :-)

Kind of like a fair-weather friend, eh?

sorry I was in a hurry!

Let me first start by giving Ms. A a warm welcome to the philosophy forums. Welcome!!
I think it is rather interesting that you mentioned the need for evidence to back up your beliefs. You are not unique in this and although many people air their beliefs as though they are hedging their bets, they really have had some sort of experience that reinforces their beliefs to them (even if it is done subconsciously).
I myself do not "believe" in blind belief, the brain simply does not work this way and the many layers of your mind prevents this...belief is only perceived as blind to the observer the one who believes.
Again welcome to our forums

My belief structure, to be brief, is to not have belief in anything unreasonable without sufficient proof, commensurate to the level of the claims being made. The many claims that I've heard in the name of religion make me doubt the claims therein, and therefore the basis for their "blind belief" in the Christian God. Nor, do I believe in any other deities, for the same reason.

I need proof -- incontrovertible, reasonable proof, proof that can be reproduced in a scientific manner. With regards to religion (Christianity in particular), the level of proof just doesn't cut it for me.

That is my take on "blind faith".

I noticed something strange a long time ago: sometimes a person can believe something with their heart that they don't believe with their mind. I have experienced this myself. I have also found that sometimes you're not aware of what you really believe until some situation reveals it.

Beliefs can occur without being aware of it but there is always some reason for the belief.

I think that 'blind belief' is unwise I do agree that sometimes you realize you have something going on 'inside' that does not match your brains idea!

This could be for many reasons. People are all different too. Some are more aware of spiritual things, others more grounded in the physical.

But I think even biblically, it is not taught that one should have blind faith, unless under particular circumstances, or direct obediance to God. If blind faith was the case, many are deluded! One would be unwise to have blind faith for God to pay a bill, and spend the bill money cos they think he will cover it 'in faith!' I know people who do that Sometimes God may ask some one to walk in that way, but that can be dodgy and can led to denial of reality and abuse of poor God!

I belive in God, because inside my self I know he is, it makes logical and emotional sense to me. But I know others, inc my family do not belive in that. I think you are right Diana, and I too, have had that happen quite a few times. There IS always a reason behind it. Can be quite scary too!

Nicola: Do you think of yourself as a mystic -- someone who knows God (or a Force or Power) through personal experience and not based on rational thought? I myself am a mystic because I had a personal experience that is the basis for my beliefs.

I think Blind Faith is different than being a mystic. Blind Faith seems to be an assertion that you are going to believe something because it would be smart or there is some reason to believe you would benefit from it. It's like trusting in someone without proof of their trustworthiness because you need someone to trust.

Getting back to the original question, Is Blind Faith a Good Idea?: I don't have a problem with it as long as it doesn't hurt that person or others. But it's not something that I would do unless there were no other option.

I would not call my self a mystic, no, I am only saying what I belive and what has happened to me personally. No question of just rational thought. When I thought out christianity, I did think it was logical, personally.

But my experiance of God was definate, both through seeing Angels and other wierd stuff. When I was really, really ill, dying, I Heard an audiable voice, so loud I turned around to see who said it, and no one was there. It said I would be seriously ill, but would not die. And I was. Doctors told me just how serious the situation was, just after that voice told me.

But Blind Faith,you are right yes, I think that that can sometimes be when a person is in denial of truth possibly, as I said about the bill paying. I agree that I would not want to go blindly into anything myself though.

I agree!

I do not think 'blind faith' is advantageous for anyone. I consider myself a very spiritual person - yet, when I say that people preconcieve that I am something I am not. They assume a certain description of my belief based on their own belief system. To me, spirituality means exploring your own inner feelings and looking at all options available to find what brings you harmony, peace and balance in your life with nature and all creation. I also call myself a Christian because I believe in Jesus as a great Spiritual Leader. I believe that the Native Americans also had (and still do) great Spiritual Leaders. I also have a strong affinity to Native American beliefs and teachings and use herbal remedies, have respect for all nature and believe that my ancestors can and do send messages or help to me when I ask, as the Native American does. I believe there is a God, whom I pray to, as the Native American prays to The Great Spirit whom many feel is the same as God. This belief system of mine was developed over many years of research and study of religions and other belief systems. I was raised to believe a certain way, but did not adopt that belief blindly. I am now at a place of peace and acceptance with my beliefs but did not arrive here with blind folds on.

I think there are some situations in which blind faith can be a good thing. For example, in medieval times, Christianity had a civilizing effect on the masses.

But of course in those days, it was also often the cause of much suffering and death.

yes Diana I agree. I think it was more the fear plus superstition, tradition, control and legalism regarding the church.

I guess I must be blind in a certain way but I have a hard time having faith. Especially blind faith. I just have a knowing and I live in expectancy of what I need and want. A while back I lost my job that paid $16.50 an hour. Since that time there is a far greater sense of peace in my home as I see that I don't have to kill myself going to a job that sucks. I see a greater peace in our Cairn Terriers and our parakeets and ourselves. I try my best daily to live in the flow of the universe and what I have found is that in that place all things flow to me. To me the universe is that great river of life that flows wherever it wants and has no height, depth,or width as the human mind would judge but is all, around, and in all. I am not wealthy as far as money goes but I have a wonderful and beautiful partmer, plenty of food, bills are paid, I have what I want and am very content to just BE. Since I lost my job my worries about money have ended because I rest in the knowing that all is truly well in the universe and with me. Abundance is emminent if we just BE. Blessed Be