Can you lose faith?

Question

I don't think anyone can "lose faith". A lot of people get blamed for "losing their faith". Let me explain, if you stop believing on let's say Jesus, then you must believe in something else like "there's No Jesus". Belief = Faith. I think it's important for everyone to have FAITH not religion. You "lose religious affiliations" would be the right terminology.

You can't really believe in nothing, you're are still believing there's "nothing". Therefore you still have your faith in "nothing"

In conclusion, you can't "lose faith" .
If you had faith that you'll get a raise and not you "lost your faith" you didn't really lose it, you switched positions. I don't know if this makes sense.

Answer 1

I can say regarding my own experience that I have faith in God, but have lost faith in religion as a mechanism for finding a path to God.

Its an interesting question and I think the answers will reflect more on the lens the posters see the world rather than any kind of absolute truth.

Some people's faith requires an objective approach whereas other people's faith demands that everyone else's faith either agrees or is wrong. Who is to claim this kind of absolute correctness? - Those that rely on an inflexible and absolute truth.

Either way, by your definition, within which I must frame my answer, I think that you cannot lose your faith even though the direction of it may change.

Answer 2

Sure it makes sense - you're just talking about two different phrases that mean exactly the same thing. Faith is belief, like you say, so not believing in something is the same as believing in the opposite of that thing. You don't lose faith, you redirect faith.

To get more specific, however, faith is belief in something that cannot be proven. So in the case of Jesus, you can believe that Jesus died for our sins and rose to Heaven, or you can believe that Jesus was just some guy and did not rise to Heaven, or you can believe that no such man ever existed, but there is really no way to prove any of these scenarios. However, if you had faith that your boss would give you a raise this year and then discovered that your company is already over budget and losing profits, then you know that it is fiscally impossible for your boss to give you the raise. It has been proven, and faith is nullified, so in that sense one can indeed "lose faith."

Answer 3

Interesting but I am afraid not exactly right. If you say faith = belief. We can support that. But belief = faith is false because faith has a narrower definition from belief.
Among the definition of faith is belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence. i.e. belief in God. I could say I have faith in the existence of God. Even though I have not seen God nor have proof of the existence of God, my statement would be right. I could also say I believe I am typing on a keyboard. I don't need faith to convince myself I am in fact typing on a keyboard. I can see the keyboard and my fingers touching the keys.

I am no philosopher, but perhaps you need to refine your thinking a little bit...on the other hand, perhaps it's mine that needs a little bit of refinement...you think? You be the judge, after all you're the philosopher, I am just your average guy.

Answer 4

well i believe your right that that sense where faith is transferred from one idea to the next but i think the meaning behind hat statement is as you said "lose religious affiliation" but instead of saying is so frankly i guess they decided to tone it down and say you're losing faith in god so it doesn't come off as possessive like, "you're losing faith in our god" that seems to then separate the person and god even more. with this idea of one religious possessiveness, the saying becomes a bit clearer. it is thought that the godhead within the religion is all knowing and all good, that their word is the best right. and the followers have this idea so to them only that word is good nd everything else is nothing. so when a person starts joining another faith they see it as a loss of good or absence of good because they are moving away from the light sort to speak, and to further you move from the light the darker it gets; and as it goes darkness is an absence of light. so bad or contrary ideas become lacking this goodness which they see their god holds.

Answer 5

What I believe faith is, is a word to describe the unseen but still believe and have a sense of the higher purpose. Earth is a planet that did not create itself yet, it lives and exists around us. As human beings are unique so are their beliefs and experiences. Free thought is beautiful and why take away faith, in a world where humanity anticipates death, that exists now on this planet Peace to all my human race

Answer 6

You are right in the sense of "changing our position" but belief and faith are not equal. You can believe something but not have faith in it. Perhaps you believe you husband really is a good man, deep down, and will stop beating you, but you don't really have faith that his change of heart will happen in your lifetime.

In your name, is the 17 silent? Love you, Sammy

Answer 7

faith

faith [fayth]
(plural faiths)
n
1. belief or trust: belief in, devotion to, or trust in somebody or something, especially without logical proof
2. religion religion or religious group: a system of religious belief, or the group of people who adhere to it
3. religion trust in God: belief in and devotion to God
Her faith is unwavering.

4. set of beliefs: a strongly held set of beliefs or principles
people of different political faiths

5. loyalty: allegiance or loyalty to somebody or something


[13th century. Via Old French feid from Latin fides “trust, belief” (source of English confide and fealty). Ultimately from an Indo-European word that is also the ancestor of English federal.]

keep faith with somebody or something to be loyal or true to a person or promise
on faith without demanding proof
Encarta ® World English Dictionary © & (P) 1998-2004 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.

Can you lose faith? yes. Some don't believe in anything. (Nilist)

Answer 8

You never completely lose faith- you just lose faith in certain things and that faith transfers over to something else.

Answer 9

I stay home with my kids, but if I did utilize daycare I wouldn't pull them out for several reasons. First one is the kids get very connected and attached to their providers, so this would cause unnecessary problems. Also, assuming just as the hetero daycare working will refrain from making out with his/her spouse, I assume the homosexual daycare worker will as well. I am choosing to homsechool as well, and not to convert society to my way of thinking, but to protect my children from children that are raised by parents who couldn't care less what they watch, do, engage in, etc. Hope this helps from the perspective of a born again Christian :-)

Answer 10

you can lose faith in one thing and find faith in another. so you can lose faith in something but still have faith in something else.