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Taylor Ashby's avatar

I get tripped up on this part “When you understand that God means ‘Truth’”…seems like very much a flattening of the concept of God. Though it makes the framework much easier to follow IMO.

Or perhaps I’m asking the question of what do you mean by Truth?

Great post, I think the way these ideas are explored is truly unique. Quite a feat at this stage of the internet.

Mark Neyer's avatar

This is a good question and requires a follow up!

AG's avatar

Faith is exactly this capacity to hold beliefs to a degree beyond their actual justification. For some people this is harder than others, which is why many reasoning types born into a faith will often spend inordinate amounts of effort attempting to manufacture evidence for their beliefs. On the other hand, reasoning types who convert to a faith seem to usually justify their newfound beliefs on grounds of spiritual intuition instead of logical justification.

Mark Neyer's avatar

You’re definitely noticing a real pattern: people do spend time trying to reinforce their beliefs. Do you think it’s possible for someone to not have any faith?

AG's avatar

It seems to me that everyone is running a sort of Pascal's wager by trusting things like their existence and continuity, senses, rationality, and so forth.

Mark Neyer's avatar

Yeah, that’s how I see it, too. Faith is unavoidable, it’s just a question of what you place your faith in, and whether you recognize it as faith.