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  Sunday, 03 November 2019
  4 Replies
  464 Visits
Is having faith seen as important in Gnosis?

Can having faith and trust in self help conquer doubt . If I pray and belief that my prayers will be answered I see results during the day that are amazing. But if I don't let go to the possibilty that my prayer can be answered then is this ego blocking it?
4 years ago
·
#20137
Accepted Answer
Study this lecture on real faith, which is very different from mere belief: Faith

"If thou canst not make thine own self what thou desireth, how shalt thou be able to fashion another to thine own liking. We are ready to see others made perfect, and yet we do not amend our own shortcomings."
—Thomas à Kempis

4 years ago
·
#20165
"For the last few hundred years, this word faith has been mistreated. Beginning in the thirteenth and fourteenth century, the monks of Christianity — who were also the primary teachers throughout Europe and then elsewhere — began to change this word and began to use it in a way that does not correspond to its actual meaning. Now, seven hundred years later, after many generations of this effort to change the meaning of faith, we all have a mistaken understanding of the word. It is very difficult for us to break that and really understand practically what faith actually means, what it actually is.

In simple terms, faith is not belief.

If you ask most people what is faith, they say "It is what I believe. I have faith in God so I believe in God.” This is wrong. Faith is not belief. This is the change that was made by Christian monks and priests over many centuries. In an effort to spread their teaching, to spread their doctrine, they corrupted the use of this term. This is a very important understanding that we need in Gnosis. In reality, faith is the same as how we use the Greek word Gnosis. It means truth, knowledge from experience, something that we have confirmed through our experience that is true. That is what faith means.

In ancient times when someone gave their pledge or their oath, they gave their word, they would say, “I give faith that this is true.” In other words, they can be trusted, because of their faithfulness. This is also why nowadays we still have one shred of the original meaning of faith in the English language: that is when we say an adulterer is unfaithful. It means they have been “untrue,” dishonest, disloyal, and broken their word. They have lied. They have gone against what they said was true. They cannot be trusted. To be unfaithful does not mean you do not believe! Immediately, that shows us that faith does not mean belief. Faith relates with trust, experience, conviction, honesty, fidelity, and truth.

This is a very important term to understand, especially when we are trying to study spirituality. Without faith, there is no spirituality. Without faith, you cannot have Gnosis. It is impossible. Faith and Gnosis are synonymous. They are the same thing. To have faith is to have experience, to trust, to have conviction, and to have knowledge. Therefore, when a Gnostic says “I have faith,” they are not saying “I believe.” They are saying “I know.” In this way, faith means knowledge.

To understand this a little better, we can look at what Samael Aun Weor said.

“Those who have true faith do not need to believe. This is because genuine faith is living knowledge, exact cognition, and direct experience.” - Samael Aun Weor, The Great Rebellion

This statement is very profound like many of the statements that Samael Aun Weor has made. You cannot read it superficially. You have to go deep into the words to understand precisely what he is expressing.

Those who have true faith do not need to believe. This is exactly the conflict that people have now. People think belief and faith are the same thing. When we read this first sentence it causes an immediate contradiction in our mind. “What do you mean if I have faith I do not need to believe? What?” That contradiction causes us to do one of two things: we either do not believe what he is saying — do you see that? It is because we do not know what he is saying. Or, we skip it and ignore it because we do not understand it. That would be a mistake.

Faith is Living Knowledge.

This phrase “living knowledge” is also very important. Knowledge in Hebrew is Daath, which is the hidden sphere in the Tree of Life. It contains all of the mysteries of self-realization. It is the science to create the soul, the science to experience the nature of what is. That science and that knowledge is not in letters, it is not in books or in any school or any group. It is not acquired by following any person. It makes no difference what school you believe in or disbelieve.

Real knowledge, Daath, Gnosis, is alive, it is a living intelligence that resides within every living thing, but it cannot be known by the superficial mind, or by any belief. It is not a theory. It is not a topic to discuss or something to accept or reject. It is something to one lives. That is why it is faith. It is something living. It is something you need to know and experience, taste and touch yourself. Exact cognition. Meaning, true faith is a way of mind. The way mind functions. The way the soul works through the vehicle of mind."

"If thou canst not make thine own self what thou desireth, how shalt thou be able to fashion another to thine own liking. We are ready to see others made perfect, and yet we do not amend our own shortcomings."
—Thomas à Kempis

4 years ago
·
#20148
From the Forum Rules:
Posting

2. When an instructor replies to you, be sure to read what is recommended. Oftentimes (most of the time), the instructor will not say specifically what is being pointed out, and is relying on you to develop your ability to read intuitively and reach inspiration. The instructors alway seek to help you grow. You may not see the meaning of the answer immediately: meditate and reflect on the answer.

Joyful in hope, suffering in tribulation, be thou constant in thy prayer.

Benedictis, qui venit in nomine Domini. Osanna in excelsis.

"Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest!"

4 years ago
·
#20139
Thank you for your advice, but for now I am staying away from reading longer articles, etc. For freedom from being too confused. I am asking questions this way so I don't "go down the rabbit hole" so to speak. Could you help me without my having to read this article on faith?
4 years ago
·
#20137
Accepted Answer
Study this lecture on real faith, which is very different from mere belief: Faith

"If thou canst not make thine own self what thou desireth, how shalt thou be able to fashion another to thine own liking. We are ready to see others made perfect, and yet we do not amend our own shortcomings."
—Thomas à Kempis

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