TEC said:
How about faith based on HOPE? Is that "blind faith", or does HOPE suffice as a rational basis for having faith?
I wasn't thinking about hope, no. Hope might give a person a basis to seek out something. But as a SOLE basis for that something, I do not think so.
Thanks for your answer, which, not surprisingly, seems to disagree with the description found in the Bible.
Since this IS an ex-JW website, let's look at how JWs define faith (using Heb 11:1):
http://watch002.securesites.net/e/20090501/article_01.htm
What Is Faith?
HOW would you define faith? Some equate it with blind belief. Influential American essayist and journalist H. L. Mencken once called faith “an illogical belief in the occurrence of the improbable.”
The Bible, in contrast, describes faith as being neither blind nor illogical. God’s Word says: “Faith is the assured expectation of things hoped for, the evident demonstration of realities though not beheld.” — Hebrews 11:1 .
A Title Deed and Solid Evidence
At the time of the writing of the Bible book of Hebrews, the Greek term translated “assured expectation” was commonly used. It often appeared in business documents and carried the idea of a guarantee of future possession of something. Therefore, one reference work suggests that Hebrews 11:1 could be translated: “Faith is the title-deed of things hoped for.”
If you have ever bought an item from a reputable company and then waited for it to be delivered, you have exercised that type of faith. The sales receipt in your hand gave you reason for faith in the company from which you bought the item. In a sense, that receipt was your title deed, your guarantee that you would receive what you purchased. If you had lost the receipt or had thrown it away, you would have lost the proof of your claim of ownership. Similarly, those who have faith that God will fulfill his promises are guaranteed to receive what they hope for. On the other hand, those who do not have faith, or who lose it, are not entitled to receive the things God promises.— James 1:5-8 .
OK, does anyone see a problem there?
The WT compares a concept (faith) to a physical tangible item (a receipt) that relies on faith, but is NOT faith.
Faith is NOT the tangible piece of paper (as if a receipt); instead, the receipt serves as a symbol of the company's commitment to honor the sales/delivery contract, which is backed by the judicial system, with the threat of being sued in small claims court if the company fails to deliver the item.
The receipt isn't magical, in-and-of itself: the receipt RELIES ON FAITH in the legal system, which applies to ALL transactions, whether the seller simply giving the buyer their word and a handshake, or if they write/sign a contract and the seller gives a receipt (courts vastly prefer when parties put sales transactions in writing, which gives a judge something tangible to evaluate in a dispute over a transaction).
So faith, in practice, is analogous to a intangible non-physical invisible receipt (one that only the holder can see). Hence, all you have left is having faith in in the concept of FAITH, a circular definition if there ever was one!
So the first part of Hebrews 11:1 breaks down to, "faith is having faith that the things you hope for will actually happen". That IS blind faith.
Some state that the Bible is the "assured expectation", so the tales found in the Bible are the basis of faith. So imagine that: the ancient document which offers the concept of faith and defines it ALSO serves as the assurance! That concept is completely unsound, putting all one's eggs into the same basket.
The WT continues:
The second expression at Hebrews 11:1 , translated “evident demonstration,” carries the idea of producing evidence that contradicts that which only appears to be factual. For instance, the sun appears to revolve around the earth— rising in the east, moving through the sky, and setting in the west. However, evidence from astronomy and mathematics reveals that the earth is not the center of the solar system. Once you become familiar with that evidence and accept it as true, you have faith that the earth revolves around the sun— despite what your eyes tell you. Your faith is not blind. On the contrary, it gives you the ability to see things as they really are, not merely as they seem to be.
They've gone slightly bonkers, twisting the words "evident demonstration" into meaningless gobbedlygook as if to make the point that you cannot trust your observational powers, that what you see may NOT be true.
Hebrews 11:7 fills in what is meant by giving the example of Noah:
By faith Noah, after being given divine warning of things not yet beheld, showed godly fear and constructed an ark for the saving of his household; and through this [faith] he condemned the world, and he became an heir of the righteousness that is according to faith.
Noah had the benefit of God telling him directly, so God's words to Noah WERE the evident demonstration, and the "realities not yet beheld" WAS the Flood. The rest of us (well, most of us) have no benefit of hearing voices or orders from YHWH.
So the second definition offered in Hebrews 11:1 also is a non-starter, requiring "blind faith" in lieu of the clouds parting and God making his presence known to reinforce the faith.
