January 28

According to Wilken, faith, or the consideration of faith in order to consequently decide it is useless, is inevitable. He quotes, “A desire to know the truth of things has been implanted in our souls and is natural to human beings,” and this describes how curiosity and thought about a higher being is inside all of us, and this desire will eventually manifest itself. Seeing and experiencing the world around us naturally causes us to wonder how everyday phenomena and Earth’s wonders are possible and why they and we exist. This brings into question who designed the increasingly complex world that surrounds us. Humans inherently have a desire for the truth, so throughout our lives, we will inevitably come across the enigma of if a higher power gave us life and every object that exists. Faith is beneficial because it gives life a purpose and a comforting meaning. Although the absence of definite proof can be discouraging, faith revolves around a trust in a higher being without having the complete truth. Without faith, the world around us can seem bleak, and life can seem meaningless. Augustine says “Nothing would remain stable in human society if we determined to believe only what can be held with absolute certainty,” and I think this holds true. Augustine also equates practicing religion to learning a new skill in that “it involves practices, attitudes, and dispositions and has to do with ordering one’s loves.” Skills are beneficial as means and in themselves because you develop yourself as a person and become a generally more complex, well-rounded person, especially faith as a skill. Faith improves one’s ability to love as well as being making a person more mindful and self aware. Faith is also valuable in binding people together through thoughtful conversation and making a community of worship.