What is Faith? Trust and Belief Without Evidence.

• We meet at 99 Parkdale Avenue across from Tunney's Pasture. Please be on time to be let in between 6:45pm and 6:55pm.

We practice faith everyday in the many things we do, in the people we know and strangers we have never met.

Faith is defined as confidence and trust in a person or thing; it is belief that is not based on proof or understanding. We go around assuming things will just work, that when we are on the road, all drivers will abide by the rules and that when you sit on a chair in a restaurant, that it will withstand your weight and keep you safe. A person of religion believes their faith will guide them through life and salvation; their faith gives them meaning, purpose and happiness. We mostly trust and believe what experts (doctor, engineer, astrophysicist, pilot) tell us.

We have faith in our institutions, religion, our governments, our experts, our currency and each other.

So, what is faith?
What do you have faith in? What don't you have faith in? And why?
Is Faith Unreasonable? Is Faith contrary to reason?
St Aquinas argues that Faith and reason are never in conflict with one another; do you agree?
Is faith a valid path to truth or an obstacle to rational inquiry?
Why do some people accept faith in many secular situations but not in religion?

What happens when we stop having faith in our institutions? What will it be like to live in a world without faith, in our institutions, in religion, in each other?

What is Faith to you?