If you believe in your religion because of evidence, do you really have faith?
If you're one of those people who says "We know the Bible is true because..." and then goes on about how there's no transitional fossils, or how the Bible predicted scientific discoveries before they were made, or how some people found the remains of Noah's Ark up on a mountain somewhere, in what sense do you actually have faith?
The whole point of faith is believing in something even though it might be false. Faith is an emotional conviction which isn't predicated on rationality. When you try to defend your religion intellectually, you are essentially admitting that you think it needs to be defended, which means you DON'T actually have faith in it, or that you are on some level ashamed of what you believe and are trying to make it make more sense so you don't look stupid. Spirituality should go beyond the petty desire to look smart in front of your peers.
?2014-05-06T16:07:00Z
We have faith because of the evidence. We have faith things are real. Because I have seen how the chair is constructed I know it will support me when I sit on it. If the chair was on toothpicks I would not have faith in it. This is why many people leave atheism as there is no evidence to it. See video below.
Faith comes first and its actually a gift from God we do not produce faith its given to us.
For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.(Eph 2:8-9)
How are we saved? By grace. Through what? Faith. Where does faith come from? It is a gift of God not of works. Why? So that no one can boast.
But you make 3 HUGE mistakes. Certainly a Catholic rejects your view entirely.
1) Faith MUST HAVE A BASIS 14 if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. 15 We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. 17 If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied.
The writer of the Gospel of John even gives it as his sole goal !!
"30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name."
2) The existence of GOD is not to be held AGAINST REASON
The existence of God and other like truths about God, which can be known by natural reason, are ===> NOT ! <==== articles of faith, but are preambles to the articles; for faith presupposes natural knowledge, even as grace presupposes nature, and perfection supposes something that can be perfected. Nevertheless, there is nothing to prevent a man, who cannot grasp a proof, accepting, as a matter of faith, something which in itself is capable of being scientifically known and demonstrated.
Summa theologiae Ia, q. 2, a. 2, ad 1.
3)You turn real belief INTO SIN because you reject the separatiion of Intellect and Will. The greatest student of Faith in history was clear about that :
“No one who believes must believe; belief is by its nature a free act.” (49)
“[B]elief can never be halfhearted. […] There may be plenty of compelling arguments for a man’s credibility; but no argument can force us to believe him.” (35)
“Newman is forever stressing […] the one idea that belief is something other than the result of a logical process; it is precisely not ‘a conclusion from premises’. ‘For directly you have a conviction that you ought to believe, reason has done its part, and what is wanted for faith is, not proof, but WILL.’” (35-36)