Interesting little piece by Stacey Lawson called "What is faith?" on the Huffington Post. What I like about the brief article is that she doesn't equate faith with religion. Rather, she addresses the apparent conflict between faith and "rational" thinking.
Lawson:
"Faith seems not quite natural to the modern mind. Mind is rational while faith is irrational. Mind is logical; faith illogical. Mind is doubtful while faith is doubt-free. We are more committed to the calculations of the rational mind, than to the holistic wisdom of spirit. When we put more stock in the workings of our rational mind than on discerning a deeper truth beyond the intellect, faith seems relegated to a precariously irrelevant position."
I agree, Stacey. But what exactly is faith? Wishful thinking? Hopefulness? Belief? No, faith is the precursor to knowing, and knowing comes not from the mind, but from the body and from our feelings. The more connected we are emotionally, the more those inklings of faith turn into knowing.
A while back, I posted an excerpt from a class I taught on "gut feelings," in which I talked about how our "second brain," located in our solar plexus, is where our best and most certain decisions are made from (http://fullpermissionliving.blogspot.com/2008/01/gut-feelings.html). When we "feel" the rightness of a choice, we don't second guess ourselves, but when we "think" our way to a decision, the potential pros and cons can consume us for great lengths of time without ever leading to a feeling of certainty.
Here's Stacey Lawson again:
"Faith is the decision to step out of ego and deny its claim on a finite reality. Faith is about possibility. It is utter positivity. An unknown sage once said, 'God does not ask about our ability, but our availability.' Are we available to believe in something higher than our own ego-mind? Are we available to trust in a pervading wisdom that can know and do everything? Are we available to suspend doubt and disbelief and live in utter positivity? I leave you with these questions of faith."
I'll leave you with a quote from "Mr. Spock," in one of the later "Star Trek" movies, "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country." By this time in the saga, Mr. Spock, who was the ultimate exalter of logic throughout the early years of the series, had experienced life and death and rebirth, and he had also discovered the value of feelings. When a young Vulcan he is mentoring criticizes some behavior as "illogical," Spock scolds her by saying: "Logic, logic and more logic! Logic is only the BEGINNING of wisdom, not the end!"
Yeah! Live long and prosper!
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