(March 5, 2013 at 6:44 am)EGross Wrote: Trust and confidence are probably better terms when used in a secular sense, while faith and belief as better applied to the religious experience. Thanks, Esquilax, for the distinction.
I don't think I can do without any of these words. Each conveys something distinct though trust and faith probably come closest. So I'm not willing to give over "faith" and "belief" to purely religious purposes. I prefer "faith" to describe my regard for the basic value this life has for me and for the value of remaining open to what the intuitive mind may sometimes come up with. It is the religious use of "belief" which truly bastardizes that word. "Belief", I feel, should be reserved for that which you find reason to believe. The religious use turns it into a muscular sort of wishing or self hypnosis.
