Is Faith Built on Self Deception?

Question

I'd like to know that if belief in several contradictory irrational concepts is required of a member of a religious group, is this faith therefore built on self-deception?

And if this is the case, does faith rely on an ignorance of multiple perspectives, an ignorance of uncomfortable logical pathways that exist.

I see that many choose to ignore to entertain the thought, but is this not in direct contradiction to carrying a truth seeking mind?

Is comfort the highest ideal of many? And by comfort I mean persisting in a worldview that encourages ignorance, by setting up assumptions that the search for all else outside the claims of a particular religion is futile.

If it is termed as futile, then people will persist in not investigating ideas from different perspectives and will use the rules of a religion as the critera for accepting or refusing to accept the logic that may exist outside it.

This is nothing more than an ignorant denial rather than a coherent knowledge inclusive search for the truth.

Answer 1

Yes!

Faith is not about what you believe; it's about what you can make yourself ignore -- Dharmanator

Answer 2

Ironically, it appears your entire question is founded in self deception.

Faith is the principle motivation to act in all intelligent beings. If we waited to do something until we had certain knowledge of all related truth, we'd never accomplish anything. For example, do you wait to turn on a light switch until you have personal knowledge that all the required mechanisms are in perfect working order?

In both science and matters that relate to God, we usually don't discard our models of reality unless we have a better one. We try to patch it up as best we can, but frequently there are unanswered questions.

It's true that some people check their brains at the door when it comes to God. It's also common for people to deceive others through logical argument that doesn't seem quite right to the listener. It's easy to be deceived unless you use both faith and reason together. If that's all you're getting at then I agree.

Personally I've been fortunate enough to discover a great deal about God using both my mind and heart together. If you're able to overcome your own self deception, perhaps you'll discover some very valuable information.

Answer 3

Yes, I think so.

Some people have faith out of what is supposedly a personal experience with God, but that's not faith anymore - it's "proof." Of course, it's not really that, either, since they can't prove that it wasn't a hallucination or dream.

On the other hand, to have faith, it seems that you must have faith. This is what Christians tell us. I don't think I can put aside my rational thinking for even the PROSPECT of faith, especially since I was raised to do so and rejected it.

Someone mentioned that we have faith in all the things we do, including turning on a light. We assume, based on consistency, that the light will turn on, but in reality we cannot know this without checking every component beforehand. This is a type of faith, but it is not the same as faith related to God because it deals with what we CAN perceive and the patterns that we recognize in those perceptions. We have REASONS.

I'm agnostic, but I am drawn very much to Buddhism because it encourages us to abandon faith. Eventually, even those things we perceive that rely on the smallest bit of faith (like the light) can be let go as we embrace what is permanent, which is not "God" as Westerners define it.

Self-deception exists on many levels, but what you're getting at is one of its greatest forms.

Answer 4

1. I would like to know what "several contradictory irrational concepts" you're talking about.
2. What associates the "belief of ..irrational concepts" with members of religious groups?
3. What makes you think that all "religious" groups subscribe to the contradictory concepts?

What if belief was based on several logical and rational concepts, supported by well thought out and intellectually sound reasoning?

Would faith then be built on truth?

What if one's own ignorancy prevented them from understanding the truth due to their limited understanding of logic, a lack of information, or their prejudices and biases?

Answer 5

In a way, you're absolutely right. To believe concurrent, contradictory ideas can only be done by deluding yourself.

However, to believe that human logic is infallable, and that if something is a logical fallacy it cannot exist, that belief is also a form of delusion.

There is nothing wrong in believing in the human intellect. To have faith in one's own ability to discern the truth of the universe is an admirable ambition, but not necessarily a very logical or realistic one.

As time passes, we discover new things. But those things were always there. Nobody invented gravity or electricity or fusion. They were always there. But we were simply unable to see them. And to believe in God is sort of like believing in nuclear fusion in the 12th century. There is absolutely no proof of its existence. All science up to that point do not indicate that something like fusion makes any sense at all. And yet you come out of nowhere and say that the sun isn't a giant burning wooden sphere, but that it's actually made out of gas that is burning without the presence of oxygen. And if someone asked you how does the gas not all burn away? How does it not just float apart? What answer could you give? You don't know about gravity. You, like everyone else, think that gasses float about. You don't know about the properties of subatomic particles. But you believe in fusion.

There is no reason to assume that God cannot be discovered. We just haven't discovered him as a person yet. But it isn't fair to condemn someone who believes in God or a religion as illogical. He believes. Logic didn't come into it. Or at least, not the kind of logic you're talking about. The only question is whether the one who believes is right or wrong. And I don't even think that it is something we can definitely prove to be wrong.

Sorry for getting so carried away. I guess mine is just a point of view, that's all :)

Answer 6

Quantum mechanics has many apparent paradoxes, but you accept it is true all the same, Schrödinger's cat, Hinesburg's uncertainty principle, and the apparent contradiction of the particle/wave duality of light notwithstanding. Why then do atheists assume that religion must be simple to understand in order for it to be true?

In light of Zeno's paradoxes, is physics built on self-deception? If that last question of mine makes no sense to you, then consider how your question must sound to a religious person.

This is a typical atheist assumption: that religious people must not have thought about their religion, or must not have noticed the same difficulties that the atheists have noticed. A rather condescending and tiresome assertion by atheists, I might add.

Answer 7

You used too many useless words in that, it's not even "humerously satisfying"....

Faith keeps us going when everything else falls against us. Faith is built on the belief and knowledge that God exists and faith is the strength to keep that flame going inside of us regardless of the people in the world that find no other interest than trying to simply prove us wrong with little or no satisfaction when we quite fankly DON'T GIVE A HOOT. We belive in God and will continue to say so because in our hearts and spirit we believe that. And no atheists words are going to change that.

Answer 8

Poor Glorious, you frequently get criticized by others who claim that something is always so.. but whose to claim /any/ knowledge with certitude? One can only be absolutely sure of one thing (I think): their own existence. His/her own action and its effect(s) is always based on deception. This has something to do with logic, and how some things are more probable than others. So how do I differentiate between faith and hope? Probability + luck (arbitrary contingency).

Anyway, I think I'm getting off-track... I agree that (and it is rather unfortunate) religions tend to advertise ignorance as a happy outlet to a "true path" (particularly illustrated by the Catholic Church creating a list of forbidden works of literature). But let us be logical: you know, that characteristic humans are /wonderfully/ adept at, and thus, it can be seen that a creator(s) would have granted us with this ability. Also, it should be reckoned that we are granted amazing senses and this reasoning ability to derive facts from a changing world.

Excuse me for a tangent: humans are creatures of doubt. We exist by our fellow comrades without a thought telepathically communicated (I'm pretty sure o_O).

Okay, back: I feel faith must be confined to constituents of the world. Lofty ideals existent only in thoughts are only possibilities, indeed based on deceiving one's senses of rationality and logic.

Answer 9

I think you misunderstand. Faith is not logical, and cannot be. Faith is trusting that something is so.

You can have faith and still be seeking truth. You can have beliefs and be a scientist. Just because some people of extreme faith (i.e., unable to think without it) are against such things doesn't mean everyone of faith should be so labeled.

Answer 10

Because of the great variety of "faiths" in the world, there is certainly no single answer. I believe that at one end of the spectrum, yes, faith can be completely based on self deception. And, at the polar opposite end of the spectrum, it can be based on complete selfless enlightenment.

You decide who the "many" are that you are talking about, and let the chips fall where they may.

Answer 11

Self assurance is the way I would describe it. Your conscience is not scientific--do you have trouble accepting love--advice--criticism--adulation. These things are not scientific--they are the things that makes a person whole. Faith in self is not scientific. If you depend totally on science then you are cheating your self.