Faith is trust, hope and belief in the goodness, trustworthiness or reliability of a person, concept or entity. It can also refer to beliefs that are not based on proof (e.g. faith that a child will grow up to be a good person) . Religious faith is a belief in a transcendent reality, a religious teacher, a set of teachings or a Supreme Being. Generally speaking, it is offered as a means by which the truth of the proposition, "things will turn out well in the end," can be enjoyed in the present and secured in the future. Religious faith appeals to transcendent reality, or that reality which is beyond the range of normal physical experience (e.g. the future). Transcendent reality, in this view, constitutes a realm which is off limits to material measurement and other rigors of scientific inquiry such as falsifiability and reproducibility. Most atheists and some agnostics criticize religious faith as superstition, categorizing it with other forms of belief that are not based on observable material things.

Informal usage of the word ''faith'' can be quite broad, and the word is often used as a mere substitute for ''trust'' or ''belief''. The English word is thought to date from 1200–50, from the Latin ''fidem'' or ''fidēs'', meaning ''trust'', derived from the verb ''fīdere'', ''to trust''.

Some critics of faith have argued that faith is opposed to reason. In contrast, advocates of faith argue that the proper domain of faith concerns questions which cannot be settled by evidence. This is exemplified by attitudes about the future, which (by definition) has not yet occurred. Logical reasoning may proceed from any set of assumptions, positive or negative. In this view, faith is simply a positive assumption.

Epistemological validity of faith

There exists a wide spectrum of opinion with respect to the epistemological validity of faith. On one extreme is logical positivism, which denies the validity of any beliefs held by faith; on the other extreme is fideism, which holds that true belief can only arise from faith, because reason and physical evidence cannot lead to truth. Some foundationalists, such as St. Augustine of Hippo and Alvin Plantinga, hold that all of our beliefs rest ultimately on beliefs accepted by faith. Others, such as C.S. Lewis, hold that faith is merely the virtue by which we hold to our reasoned ideas, despite moods to the contrary.

William James believed that the varieties of religious experiences should be sought by psychologists, because they represent the closest thing to a microscope of the mind—that is, they show us in drastically enlarged form the normal processes of things. For a useful interpretation of human reality, to share faith experience he said that we must each make certain "over-beliefs" in things which, while they cannot be proven on the basis of experience, help us to live fuller and better lives.

Fideism and Pistisism

Fideism is not a synonym for religious belief, but describes a particular philosophical proposition in regard to the relationship between faith's appropriate jurisdiction at arriving at truths, contrasted against reason. It states that faith is needed to determine some philosophical and religious truths, and it questions the ability of reason to arrive at all truth. The word and concept had its origin in the mid- to late-19th century by way of Catholic thought, in a movement called Traditionalism. The Roman Catholic Magisterium has, however, repeatedly condemned fideism.

Faith in world religions

Bahá'í Faith

In the Bahá'í Faith, faith is ultimately the acceptance of the divine authority of the Manifestations of God. In the religion's view, faith and knowledge are both required for spiritual growth. Faith involves more than outward obedience to this authority, but also must be based on a deep personal understanding of religious teachings.

By faith is meant, first, conscious knowledge, and second, the practice of good deeds.

Buddhism

Faith (Pali: ''Saddhā'', Sanskrit: ''Śraddhā'') is an important constituent element of the teachings of the Buddha—both in the Theravada tradition as in the Mahayana. Faith in Buddhism derives from the pali word ''saddhā'', which often refers to a sense of conviction. The saddhā is often described as:

a conviction that something is

a determination to accomplish one's goals

a sense of joy deriving from the other two

While faith in Buddhism does not imply "blind faith", Buddhist faith (as advocated by the Buddha in various scriptures, or ''sutras'') nevertheless requires a ''degree'' of faith and belief primarily in the spiritual attainment of the Buddha. Faith in Buddhism centers on the understanding that the Buddha is an Awakened being, on his superior role as teacher, in the truth of his Dharma (spiritual Doctrine), and in his Sangha (community of spiritually developed followers). Faith in Buddhism is better classified or defined as a Confidence in the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and is intended to lead to the goal of Awakening (bodhi) and Nirvana. Volitionally, faith implies a resolute and courageous act of will. It combines the steadfast resolution that one will do a thing with the self-confidence that one can do it.

As a counter to any form of "blind faith", the Buddha taught the Kalama Sutra, exhorting his disciples to investigate any teaching and to live by what is learnt and accepted, rather than believing something outright.

Christianity

Faith in Christianity is based in and on the work and teachings of Jesus Christ. In this way Christianity declares not to be distinguished by its faith, but by the object of its faith. Faith is an act of trust or reliance. Rather than being passive, faith leads to an active life aligned with the ideals and the example of the one being trusted. It sees the mystery of God and his grace and seeks to know and become obedient to God. To a Christian; faith is not static but causes one to learn more of God and grow; it has its origin in God.

In Christianity faith causes change as it seeks a greater understanding of God. Faith is not fideism or simple obedience to a set of rules or statements. Before the Christian has faith, they must understand in whom and in what they have faith. Without understanding, there cannot be true faith and that understanding is built on the foundation of the community of believers, the scriptures and traditions and on the personal experiences of the believer. In English translations of the New Testament, the word faith generally corresponds to the Greek noun πίστις (''pistis'') or the Greek verb πιστεύω (''pisteuo''), meaning "to trust, to have confidence, faithfulness, to be reliable, to assure".

Ethical Culture

Ethical Culture is a humanist religion that centers on living an ethical life. With its emphasis on human worth and dignity, it asks that all actions elicit the best in others in order to bring out the best in the self. The faith is in the interrelatedness of all people and in an improvable future in this world.

Hinduism

''Śrāddha'' (ITRANS: shraddhA) is translated as faith in Sanskrit. All schools of Hindu philosophy posit that consciousness (''ātman'') is distinct and independent from mind and matter (''prakṛti''). Therefore, Hindu faith is based on the premise that logic and reason are not conclusive methods of epistemic knowing. Spiritual practice (''sadhana'') is performed with the faith that knowledge beyond the mind and sense perception will be revealed to the practitioner.

The schools of Hindu philosophy differ in their recommended methods to cultivate faith, including selfless action (''karma-yoga''), renunciation (''jnana-yoga'') and devotion (''bhakti-yoga'').

In chapter 17 of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna describes how faith, influenced by the three modes (''guṇa''s) lead to different approaches in worship, diet, sacrifice, austerity and charity.

Swami Tripurari states:

Faith for good reason arises out of the mystery that underlies the very structure and nature of reality, a mystery that in its entirety will never be entirely demystified despite what those who have placed reason on their altar might like us to believe. The mystery of life that gives rise to faith as a supra-rational means of unlocking life's mystery—one that reason does not hold the key to—suggests that faith is fundamentally rational in that it is a logical response to the mysterious.

Islam

In Islam, faith (''iman'') is complete submission to the will of God, which includes belief, profession and the body's performance of deeds, consistent with the commission as vicegerent on Earth, all according to God's will.

Iman has two aspects:

Recognizing and affirming that there is one Creator of the universe and only to this Creator is worship due. According to Islamic thought, this comes naturally because faith is an instinct of the human soul. This instinct is then trained via parents or guardians into specific religious or spiritual paths. Likewise, the instinct may not be guided at all.

Willingness and commitment to submitting that God exists, and to His prescriptions for living in accordance with vicegerency. The Qur'an is the dictation of God's prescriptions through Prophet Muhammad and is believed to have updated and completed the previous revelations that God sent through earlier prophets.

In the Qur'an, God (Allah in Arabic) states (2:62): "Surely, those who believe, those who are Muslims, Jewish, the Christians, and the Sabians; anyone who (1) believes in GOD, and (2) believes in the Last Day, and (3) leads a righteous life, will receive their recompense from their Lord. They have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve."

Judaism

Faith itself is not a religious concept in Judaism. Although Judaism does recognize the positive value of ''Emunah'' (generally translated as faith, trust in God) and the negative status of the ''Apikorus'' (heretic), faith is not as stressed or as central as it is in other religions, especially as it is in the faith possessed Christendom. It could be a necessary means for being a practicing religious Jew, but the emphasis is placed on practice rather than on faith itself. Very rarely does it relate to any teaching that must be believed.

In the Jewish scriptures trust in God - Emunah - refers to how God acts toward his people and how they are to respond to him; it is rooted in the everlasting covenant established in the Torah, notably Deuteronomy 7:9 (The Torah - A Modern Comentary; Union of American Hebrew Congregations, NY 1981 by W. G. Plaut)

"Know, therefore, that only the LORD your God is God, the steadfast God who keeps His gracious covenant to the thousandth generation of those who love Him and keep His commandments"

The specific tenets that compose required belief and their application to the times have been disputed throughout Jewish history. Today many, but not all, Orthodox Jews have accepted Maimonides' Thirteen Principles of Belief. For a wide history of this dispute see: Shapira, Marc: ''The Limits of Orthodox Theology: Maimonides' Thirteen Principles Reappraised'' (Littman Library of Jewish Civilization (Series).)

A traditional example of Emunah as seen in the Jewish annals is found in the person of Abraham. On a number of occasions, Abraham both accepts statements from God that seem impossible and offers obedient actions in response to direction from God to do things that seem implausible (see Genesis 12-15).

"The Talmud describes how a thief also believes in G‑d: On the brink of his forced entry, as he is about to risk his life—and the life of his victim—he cries out with all sincerity, 'G‑d help me!' The thief has faith that there is a G‑d who hears his cries, yet it escapes him that this G‑d may be able to provide for him without requiring that he abrogate G‑d’s will by stealing from others. For emunah to affect him in this way he needs study and contemplation."

Sikh

Sikhism, the fifth-largest organized religion in the world, was founded in 15th-century Punjab on the teachings of Guru Nanak Dev and ten successive Sikh gurus, the last one being the sacred text Guru Granth Sahib. The core philosophy of the Sikh religion is described in the beginning hymn of the Guru Granth Sahib, }}

Guru Nanak, the founder of the faith, summed up the basis of Sikh lifestyle in three requirements: ''Nām Japō'' (meditate on the holy name (Waheguru), ''Kirat karō'' (work diligently and honestly) and ''Vaṇḍ chakkō'' (share one's fruits).

Faith in other spiritual traditions

Meher Baba

Meher Baba described three types of faith, emphasizing the importance of faith in a spiritual master:

"One of the most important qualifications for the aspirant is faith. There are three kinds of faith: (i) faith in oneself, (ii) faith in the Master and (iii) faith in life. Faith is so indispensable to life that unless it is present in some degree, life itself would be impossible. It is because of faith that cooperative and social life becomes possible. It is faith in each other that facilitates a free give and take of love, a free sharing of work and its results. When life is burdened with unjustified fear of one another it becomes cramped and restricted....Faith in the Master becomes all-important because it nourishes and sustains faith in oneself and faith in life in the very teeth of set-backs and failures, handicaps and difficulties, limitations and failings. Life, as man knows it in himself, or in most of his fellow-men, may be narrow, twisted and perverse, but life as he sees it in the Master is unlimited, pure and untainted. In the Master, man sees his own ideal realised; the Master is what his own deeper self would rather be. He sees in the Master the reflection of the best in himself which is yet to be, but which he will surely one day attain. Faith in the Master therefore becomes the chief motive-power for realising the divinity which is latent in man."

Support of faith

William James and others have defended faith, claiming that life is ultimately impossible without it. These philosophers held that life is full of evidence gaps that can only be negotiated with leaps of faith. James held that any belief that assists in an individual's functionality is good and should be maintained, even if it is unprovable or even nonsensical.

Criticism

Some rationalists argue that religious faith is irrational and see faith as ignorance of reality: a strong belief in something with no evidence and sometimes a strong belief in something even with evidence against it. Bertrand Russell noted, "Where there is evidence, no one speaks of 'faith'. We do not speak of faith that two and two are four or that the earth is round. We only speak of faith when we wish to substitute emotion for evidence." In the rationalist view, belief should be restricted to what is directly supportable by logic or scientific evidence.

Evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins criticizes all faith by generalizing from specific faith in propositions that conflict directly with scientific evidence. He describes faith as mere belief without evidence; a process of active non-thinking. He states that it is a practice which only degrades our understanding of the natural world by allowing anyone to make a claim about nature that is based solely on their personal thoughts, and possibly distorted perceptions, that does not require testing against nature, has no ability to make reliable and consistent predictions, and is not subject to peer review.

See also

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Apostasy

Crisis of faith

Delusion

Dogma

Faith and rationality

Fowler's stages of faith development

Incorrigibility

Lectures on Faith

Life stance

Major world religions

Pascal's Wager

Religion

Religious belief

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Religious conversion

Rationalism

Spectrum of Theistic Probability

St. Faith

Saints - Faith, Hope, and Charity

Simple church

There are no atheists in foxholes

Truthiness

World view

|}

Notes

Further reading

Sam Harris, ''The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason'', W. W. Norton (2004), hardcover, 336 pages, ISBN 0-393-03515-8

Hein, David. "Faith and Doubt in Rose Macaulay's ''The Towers of Trebizond''." ''Anglican Theological Review'' Winter2006, Vol. 88 Issue 1, p47-68.

Stephen Palmquist, "Faith as Kant's Key to the Justification of Transcendental Reflection", The Heythrop Journal 25:4 (October 1984), pp. 442–455. Reprinted as Chapter V in Stephen Palmquist, Kant's System of Perspectives (Lanham: University Press of America, 1993).

D. Mark Parks, "Faith/Faithfulness" ''Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary''. Eds. Chad Brand, Charles Draper, Archie England. Nashville: Holman Publishers, 2003.

Marbaniang, Domenic, ''Explorations of Faith''. 2009.

Poetry & Spirituality

''On Faith and Reason'' by Swami Tripurari

Baba, Meher: ''Discourses'', San Francisco: Sufism Reoriented, 1967.

Classic reflections on the nature of faith

Martin Buber, ''I and Thou''

Paul Tillich, ''The Dynamics of Faith''

The Reformation view of faith

John Calvin, ''The Institutes of the Christian Religion''

R.C. Sproul, ''Faith Alone''

External links

Patheos - unaffiliated educational resource striving to be the premier online destination to engage in global dialogue about religion and spirituality

Epistemics of Divine Reality, studies in rationalism, empiricism, and fideism

Martin Luther's Definition of Faith

John Calvin on Justification by Faith from The Institutes of the Christian Religion

The Skeptic's Dictionary entry on Faith

Rational Christian Faith Versus Reason

Catholic Encyclopedia entry on Faith

Faith in Judaism chabad.org

Faith from the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia

Pew Research Center Reports on Religion

Faith News & Religion | Times Online Articles and comment about faith issues and religion from The Times

WFN | World Faith News Worldwide

Category:Belief Category:Spirituality Category:Religious belief and doctrine

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birth date	January 20, 1966
birth place	Seattle, Washington, U.S.
occupation	Actor, comedian, director, art collector
yearsactive	1997–present
birthname	Rainn Dietrich Wilson
spouse	Holiday Reinhorn (1995–present)
religion	Bahá'í }}

Rainn Dietrich Wilson (born January 20, 1966) is an American actor and comedian. He is primarily known for his role as the egomaniacal Dwight Schrute on the American version of the television comedy ''The Office''. He has also directed two episodes of ''The Office'': the sixth season's "The Cover-Up" and the seventh season's "Classy Christmas".

Early life

Wilson was born in Seattle, Washington, the son of Shay Cooper, a yoga teacher and actress, and Robert G. Wilson, a novel writer, artist, and business consultant who wrote the science fiction novel ''Tentacles of Dawn''. Rainn showed the book and read from it on Jimmy Kimmel Live March 22, 2011. Wilson attended Central Middle School and Shorecrest High School in Shoreline, Washington, where he played the clarinet and bassoon in the band. He transferred to and graduated from New Trier High School after his family moved to Wilmette, Illinois to serve at the Bahá'í National Center. Wilson has a theatre background from Tufts University and the University of Washington, and has taught acting classes. He holds an MFA from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts and was a member of The Acting Company. While acting in theatrical productions in New York, he drove a moving van to make ends meet.

Career

In addition to his starring role on ''The Office'', Wilson appeared as the eccentric Arthur Martin—the intern at Fisher & Diaz Funeral Home—on HBO's ''Six Feet Under''. He has also appeared in ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, CSI'', ''NUMB3RS'', and ''Entourage'', in the latter portraying a sleazy entertainment journalist based on Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News. Wilson guest-starred as a murderous baseball fan in an episode of ''Monk'' entitled "Mr. Monk Goes to the Ballgame". He appeared in the "Coyote Piper" episode of ''Charmed'' as an alchemist named Kierkan. On February 24, 2007, Wilson hosted ''Saturday Night Live'', becoming the second cast member from ''The Office'' to host (after Steve Carell). During the 2007 FIFA Women's World Cup, Wilson appeared in ads for the 2007 United States women's national soccer team as public relations manager "Jim Mike." Wilson has made a guest appearance in two episodes of the Cartoon Network's Adult Swim-bloc series ''Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job''. Wilson has also appeared on ''Reno 911.''

His film credits include ''Almost Famous'', ''America's Sweethearts'', ''BAADASSSSS!'', ''Galaxy Quest'', ''House of 1000 Corpses'', ''Sahara'', ''The Last Mimzy'', ''Juno'' (in which he played convenience store clerk Rollo), ''The Rocker'', and ''My Super Ex-Girlfriend''.

Wilson starred in the Fox Atomic comedy ''The Rocker'', released on August 20, 2008. His 2009 films include ''Bonzai Shadowhands'', which he co-wrote and co-produced; ''Renaissance Men'', which he wrote and is co-producing; the DreamWorks Animation film ''Monsters vs. Aliens'', for which he voiced the villainous alien overlord Gallaxhar; and ''Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'', in which he played a university professor.

Wilson wrote in-character as Dwight Schrute on his NBC blog, "Schrute-Space". In June 2008, Wilson confirmed that he no longer writes the blog.

SoulPancake

Wilson founded the website SoulPancake. Since its launch in March 2009, it has had over 1 million visits, and has been featured on Oprah Winfrey's Satellite Radio Show.

Personal life

Wilson is married to writer Holiday Reinhorn. They met in an acting class in college and married on the Kalama River in Washington. The couple have a son, Walter Mckenzie, born in 2004, and they currently reside in Agoura Hills, California. They have three pit bulls, Oona, Barry, and Pilot. He and his family are members of the Bahá'í Faith. A short film inspired by his character in ''The Office'' was selected and shown at the 2009 Dawn Breakers International Film Festival in Zurich.

On Bill Maher's ''Real Time'', Wilson described himself as a diverse independent, voting for Republican, Green Party, and Democratic candidates. Wilson's charitable works include fundraising for the educational organization The Mona Foundation.

Wilson and his father, both art collectors, buy and sell fine art and represent contemporary artists on their website, www.rrwilsonart.com.

Filmography

Films

''The Expendables (2000 film) ''Almost Famous'' ''America's Sweethearts'' ''Full Frontal (film) ''Wheelmen'' ''House of 1000 Corpses'' ''The Life Coach'' ''My Super Ex-Girlfriend'' ''The Last Mimzy'' ''The Rocker (film) ''Monsters vs. Aliens'' ''Hesher (film)

Year	! Film	! Role	! Notes
1999	''Galaxy Quest''	Lahnk
1999	The Expendables'' ||	Newman
2000	|	David Felton
2001	|	Dave O'Hanlon
2002	Full Frontal'' ||	Brian
2002	|	Barney
rowspan="2"	2003	|	Bill Hudley
''BAADASSSSS!''	Bill Harris
rowspan="2"	2005	|	Dr. Watson Newmark
''Sahara (2005 film)	Sahara''	Rudi Gunn
2006	|	Vaughn Haige
rowspan="2"	2007	|	Larry White
''Juno (film)	Juno''	Rollo
2008	The Rocker'' ||	Robert 'Fish' Fishman
rowspan="2"	2009	|	Gallaxhar	Voice only
''Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen''	Professor Colan
rowspan="3"	2011	Hesher'' ||	Paul Forney
''Peep World''	Joel
''Super (2010 US film)	Super''	Frank D'Arbo / The Crimson Bolt

Television

''Charmed'' ''Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'' ''Monk (TV series) ''Six Feet Under (TV series) ''Numb3rs'' ''Saturday Night Live'' ''Tim and Eric Nite Live!'' ''Reno 911!'' ''The Office (U.S. TV series) ''Family Guy''

Year	! Show	! Role	! Notes
1997	''One Life to Live''	Casey Keegan
rowspan="4"	2001	|	Kierkan	Single episode
''When Billie Beat Bobby''	Dennis Van De Meer
''Dark Angel (TV series)	Dark Angel''	Phil
''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''	Guy in Supermarket
2002	|	Janitor	Single episode
2003	Monk'' ||	Walker Browning	Single episode
2003–2005	Six Feet Under'' ||	Arthur Martin	Thirteen episodes
rowspan="2"	2005	|	Martin Grolsch	Single episode
''Entourage (TV series)	Entourage''	R. J. Spencer
2007	|	Host	Single Episode
rowspan="2"	2008	|	The Psychic	Single episode
''Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!''	Bobby Stoan
2009	|	Calvin Robin Tomlinson	Single episode
2005–present	The Office'' ||	Dwight Schrute	Every episode
2010	|	Dwight Schrute	Single episode; guest voice actor

References

External links

SoulPancake.com

Category:1966 births Category:Living people Category:American bloggers Category:American actors Category:American film actors Category:American television actors Category:American Bahá'ís Category:New Trier High School alumni Category:New York University alumni Category:The Office (U.S. TV series) Category:Tufts University alumni Category:People from Seattle, Washington Category:Actors from Washington (state) Category:University of Washington alumni Category:Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series Screen Actors Guild Award winners Category:Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series Screen Actors Guild Award winners Category:20th-century Bahá'ís Category:21st-century Bahá'ís

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