An Article of Faith

I’m putting all my faith in you. I have faith we can do it. I honestly don’t have much faith in that working.

How many times a day do you think ‘faith’ is invoked in statements like these?

When asked what ‘faith’ is, people tend to describe it from their perspective. Some say it is trusting in someone or something. Others say faith is hope that something will happen. Faith has even been described as diversely as believing in something to knowing you can act and someone will be there to support you.

Even the experts are not in complete agreement. The Oxford English Dictionary includes fourteen definitions for ‘faith.’ Merriam-Webster has four. They both state faith “implies certitude even where there is no evidence or proof.” Trust, belief, certitude.

We could presume almost everybody associates faith with religion or a belief in God, or a belief in a god, a divine being, or a universally supreme being. We can also presume almost everybody at some time puts faith in their contemporary acquaintances. Although invoking faith most recently describes a feeling of trust, whether in a divine being or in a fellow human, etymologically it follows two paths and began either as a word to describe a physical compulsion or restraint, or to persuade or prevail upon.

It is not uncommon for words to switch meanings, but it is odd when you think about a word we now use to “imply certitude even when there is no evidence or proof,” began as ‘let me compel you to do or believe in something.’

Sometimes as we go through our day, we may run across those who still favor the fourteenth century definitions. When your boss says, “I have much faith that you can do this,” don’t you feel more compelled to complete the assigned task and complete it successfully! Likewise, when someone says, “I don’t have much faith that you can get this done by then,” aren’t you more than a little discouraged and feel your chance of success is slim?

We go back to an earlier statement, “When asked what ‘faith’ is, people tend to describe it from their perspective.” Perhaps this has diluted the true meaning of the word, that is, ‘certitude even when there is no evidence.”

When taken in that context, the word ‘faith’ is one of the most powerful words we can use. It is not difficult to consider faith when considering a devoutly religious or thoroughly spiritual person, for indeed that is what religion is – a conviction, a belief in someone (or something) without personal experience. Can we really, though, upon saying, “I have faith that he will do what he said he can,” put such a trust in a president, governor, quarterback of the local football team, company CEO, or chairperson of the local homeowners’ association?

Faith is the ultimate compliment you can pay anyone. It would be if it was not tossed around in the same way “I think you can,” or “I hope you can,” or even “You better do.” When you say, “I have faith you can,” and you really mean it, you can lift someone’s ability and performance to unknown heights. You aren’t saying, “I have no reason to think you can,” in a bad way. You are saying, “There is no one I trust more with this and I know you can.”

Likewise, you can negatively affect someone’s performance with a poor use of ‘faith.’ If you say to somebody “I’ve lost faith in you,” you are telling that person that you have no reason to believe they can’t or won’t succeed, but as far as you’re concerned, they can’t and they won’t. Even when meant as a type of encouragement as in, “I don’t have much faith that it can work, but try anyway,” you might be planting the seed that failure is expected and there is little they can do to avoid a negative outcome.

Thinking, hoping, knowing, even wanting are not bad things. You can think someone is capable. You can hope someone is capable. You can want someone to be capable or know on past performance that someone is capable. When you want to express sentiments as these, use these words.

Save your faith for that which is truly not understandable, not known, not proven, but you know in your heart, it is the right thing to do.