Faith,Christianity and Existentialism
While there are at least four definitions of faith in Merriam Webster, the one that sums up all of them is: “Faith: a firm belief in something for which there is no proof: complete trust
If there is a profound effect modern science has on the thinking process of the average person; it is the notion that you must have proof to define reality. Since so much of what we believe that determines how we conduct our lives is based on assumptions, where does that leave us?
For one, I hope less dogmatic in our opinions.
Perhaps, the most important act of faith many of us make is to believe in God. Then we take our belief in God one more step. We choose to believe in a specific religion. In my case, I chose Christianity.
I am sure all of us have definitive ideas of how religious faith affects our individual lives. I would like my faith to be unconditional; however, I often do not live up to its ideals. To complicate the issue, I have always suffered doubts about my beliefs, but choose to continue to believe. Why?
For one, what Jesus was and preached makes sense to me. When I divorce religion and a belief in a loving God from his message, and keep only the moral, ethical message - it is difficult to reject the intrinsic goodness of his philosophy.
It also makes sense as a practical approach to life – in much the same way as our existential philosophers do. Existentialism can find no meaning or reality in existence other than the obvious suffering that all living things must endure. This is clear through our daily observation. We witness every day the obvious fact that we will die - and that all other living things share the same fate.
Our only recourse is to find meaning in suffering. Is this not what Christianity does? For me, it reinforces what I learn from my experience. Every day I observe the process that all life travels – life, death and resurrection.
And in the resurrection and newborn beginnings of life, we find hope and meaning that suffering created.
Brother Franco
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