How can Christians have "Blind Faith" for religion but not for...?

Question

the natural world of cellular and multicellular life? How can one believe what is in text, and then not believe what is textbooks?

Please understand - it’s not the "blind faith" that I have an issue with, it’s the incongruence in application of the “blind faith”.

For example, I have a Christian co-worker who is a wonderful man - he can tell me about his Christian belief system and talks of his blind faith. But when any discussion about life science and/or mainstream information comes to light about less than appropriate governmental/corporate/global actions, his immediate response is, "I need to see proof"...

I find it so very interesting that one can have such strong "blind faith" for religion with the requirement for proof of everything else...

What are your thoughts?

THANKS FOR THE ANSWERS....

Answer 1

My first thought is 1 Thessolonians 5:21-22: "but test everything; hold fast what is good, abstain from every form of evil".

I believe that "every form of evil" would include not dilligently seeking out what is true, whether that be theologically or in any other area of life. If your friend has a "double standard" for seeking truth, then I would see this as misguided at best, perhaps sinful.

I would add though, that the terms "true" and "truth" and "proof" can be tricky. For example, if my best friend told me something, I would likely believe it without "evidence", even if it were rather unbelievable otherwise, just on the basis of my experience with my best friend and his/her integrity; in contrast, if I heard the same "something" on the news or the internet or from my worst enemy, my skepticism would be understandably higher, at least initially. Our "standard" for proof is invariably tied to our life experiences--thus, your friend may feel the Bible or the Christian faith has a better track record than the sources they have heard describing science, politics, etc.. Also, something can be "truth" without being "true"--for example, I find a great amount of truth in the themes and even the story types (genres) presented in the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, even though Middle Earth and the characters, etc. do not exist---thus, there is a difference between what is true (in the sense of what literally happened) and truth (what we understand to be reality and how we believe that we should live in that reality).

Hope this helps!
In Christ,
Christine

PS--By implication, I'm gathering that your friend has some concerns regarding science in general, perhaps evolution in specific? A good resource (in my opinion) for understanding science and the Christian faith is the American Scientific Affiliation at www.asa3.org. May be worth a look for you and/or your friend?

Answer 2

Why would you consider his faith blind? Faith comes by hearing, and experience. Faith has levels believe it or not, and you can tell the level of ones faith by his or her patience and character during times of trouble. This faith can be based in a higher power or in your own abilities or even others you depend on. But faith is never blind. Your faith is based on your natural abilities and education and the life experience you have had. His faith is like yours except that he trust in God to guide and lead him down the right paths in life. (through the bible and prayer and fellowship with others) Much like you, he has identified himself in this world as a believer. You believe also, the things you believe have holes and unanswered questions but at no time do you call yourself a blind believer in what science and technology are revealing. You, like him, have a foundational belief and filter out things that threaten to shatter that belief system. The true christian, the solid man or woman of God would be able to listen to your beliefs and the scientific evidence that you know and be amazed and awed by the discoveries that this world is making at such an astronomical pace. At no time does science or world news threaten the existance of God. The oldest arguement unbelievers make can be quickly dismantled by simply reading the bible. ie.. how can the world only be five thousand years old? yet God clearly never said any such thing in His word. He told Eve that she would now suffer during childbirth... This indicates that Eve must have had children prior to this time or God would have said .. And now you will bear children and that will be painfull... He said no such thing, indicating that she had already been bearing children.... This leads to only one logical conclusion, God did not start recording man's and His relationship until after they fell from a right standing position with Him.. Hence from the time Adam fell until his death was x number of years. Yet there is no time line from the creation of Adam until the fall. So all these wonderful discoveries of bones that are over 6 million years old only indicate to me that it must have taken Adam a long time to fall from grace.. Which makes a lot of sense because do you honestly believe he would go over and eat the forbidden fruit the day after God made him? Absurd! So quit thinking christians are foolish believers in a fake bible and man made religion and do what your expecting the christian man to do, listen and learn with an open mind.. Thats all.

Answer 3

I don't go on blind faith in either area. Both as a Christian and as a scientist i am very conservative until I have thoroughly investigated a subject, and gathered available evidence. Then I weigh the evidence carefully before committing myself. As a result I am slow to accept new ideas, but I don't make too many mistakes once I decide what is right. That's why I am Catholic, and that's why I enjoy my research.

Answer 4

Christianity, to me, has nothing to so with "blind faith".

Its faith based on objective facts, such as the prophesies in the Bible and Jesus fulfilled about 109 of them.

The most important was the He rose from the dead.

I find that a correct view of science and always agrees with a correct view of Scripture.

First Corinthians chapter 15 talks a bit about this.

Pastor Art

Answer 5

I don't have blind faith. And as far as the natural world, I also don't need blind faith. I look at ALL the science, which is why I know some things, like evolution, are BS! They cannot be true, because there is way too much scientific evidence in opposition.

Answer 6

i agree that is it not blind faith. Faith is the substance of the things hoped for; the evidence of things not seen. Faith works in 2 realms-- the future and the unknown. Bible prophecy shows us that God is outside of time. Daniel prophesied many things. He predicted that Babylon would be conquered by the Medes and Persians, who then would be conquered by Alexander the Great. He was extremely accurate, and it has been proven that Daniel did write the book of Daniel AND that he wrote it about 250 years BEFORE Christ. The book of Daniel is included in the septuagint..... look it up in Wikipedia

Answer 7

Why would a good person like you say want to have blind faith in your negative information about government, etc? Most of that garbage is just that, garbage. Your equating blind faith in good with blind faith in evil.

Answer 8

The world is in darkness of understand the Word of God until they receive the Lord in their life. Once you receive Christ, the Words are full of Life and understanding. The only way you can see the Truth is in this manner. This is why people by the thousands are coming to Christ every day. There is something REAL you just have to see for yourself to understand. Good Luck and God Bless

Answer 9

That's our humanity showing that we feel we need proof to know something is real. I have blind faith in God knowing that I can't see him, and I have had discussionsabout life-science, and sometimes I am sceptical about how true it really is, especially in God's scheme of things.

Answer 10

He says he needs to see proofs because his beliefs have already been proved. I say this because I know how it feels, you just know it.
The problem with the so called science is that it isn't so exact as thy say it is... one day they say something, on the next they discover another key fact that destroys all the previous theory.
The science which never changes is the one which comes from the Creator of science, the one which is proved by our own existance.