Belief and Faith

The metamorphosis of the word `belief` and its relation to religious `faith`

In the New Testament , the words faith (pistis ) and belief (pisteuein ) are derived from the same root . The latter is a verb form ' associated with the former (Marthaler , 1993 ,

. 21 . Faith ' in the Gospels connotes the trust and confidence that arise from accepting the person of Jesus and his claims , says Marthaler (p . 21 As Christian thought developed and as the New Testament was translated into Latin and later into English , two different words were used for faith ' and

for belief . In this usage , faith ' and belief are closely related but also distinct . In Latin , pistis ' was translated as fides , pisteuein ' as credere . Faith ' is often associated with the body of truth to be found in the creeds , the teachings of the church ' and in scripture (Hardon , 1975 ,

. 33 ) In Christian thought , faith ' stands for the assent of the mind in co-operation with the will under the influence of grace and a free gift of God (Hardon ,

. 35 ) The above quotation was from the Catholic Catechism but many Christians , Orthodox , Protestant and Catholic see faith as God 's free gift to which people respond . Many Christians believe that individuals may accept the gift of faith or exercise free will and reject this . Calvinists ague that individuals cannot refuse the gift of grace , because this is only bestowed by God this on those whom he predestined for salvation

Faith , writes Marthaler , is an undeserved gift ' It...