Bertrand Russell

[LL LL]





"What is faith? We may define “faith” as a firm belief in something for which there is no evidence. Where there is evidence, no one speaks of “faith.” We do not speak of faith that two and two are four or that the earth is round. We only speak of faith when we wish to substitute emotion for evidence. And the substitution of emotion for evidence is apt to lead to strife, since different groups substitute different emotions."

— Bertrand Russell, Human Society in Ethics and Politics (1954), Ch. VII: Can Religion Cure Our Troubles?, p. 213 

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First published in 1954, Human Society in Ethics and Politics is Bertrand Russell’s last full account of his ethical and political positions relating to both politics and religion. Ethics, he argues, are necessary to humankind on account of the conflict between our intelligence and impulse – if one were without the other, there would be no place for ethics. Our impulses and desires are equally social and solitary. Politics and ethics are the means by which we as a society and as individuals become socially purposeful and moral codes inculcate our rules of action. The two parts of this essay (Can Religion Cure Our Troubles?) were originally published as articles in the Stockholm newspaper, Dagens Nyheter, on 9 and 11 November 1954.

[SibTiger]

Isn't "faith" also required when there is limited or insufficient evidence? 

[Rupert]

On Tuesday, May 9, 2023 at 8:32:15 PM UTC+2 SibTiger wrote:

Isn't "faith" also required when there is limited or insufficient evidence? 

Of course not. When there is limited or insufficient evidence, your degree of confidence of belief is proportioned to the strength of the evidence available. It's totally fine to just suspend judgment on something if there's insufficient evidence to resolve it one way or the other (notably, on the question of whether this space-time continuum has or had some kind of intelligent creator). So no, it is totally possible to form a set of reasoned beliefs about the world, suspending judgment when insufficient evidence is available, without needing to bring faith into it.

[LL LL]

👍

On Jun 7, 2023, at 1:52 AM, Rupert <rupertmc...@gmail.com> wrote:



On Tuesday, May 9, 2023 at 8:32:15 PM UTC+2 SibTiger wrote:

Isn't "faith" also required when there is limited or insufficient evidence? 

Of course not. When there is limited or insufficient evidence, your degree of confidence of belief is proportioned to the strength of the evidence available. It's totally fine to just suspend judgment on something if there's insufficient evidence to resolve it one way or the other (notably, on the question of whether this space-time continuum has or had some kind of intelligent creator). So no, it is totally possible to form a set of reasoned beliefs about the world, suspending judgment when insufficient evidence is available, without needing to bring faith into it.

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[LL LL]

👍

On Jun 7, 2023, at 1:52 AM, Rupert <rupertmc...@gmail.com> wrote:



On Tuesday, May 9, 2023 at 8:32:15 PM UTC+2 SibTiger wrote:

Isn't "faith" also required when there is limited or insufficient evidence? 

Of course not. When there is limited or insufficient evidence, your degree of confidence of belief is proportioned to the strength of the evidence available. It's totally fine to just suspend judgment on something if there's insufficient evidence to resolve it one way or the other (notably, on the question of whether this space-time continuum has or had some kind of intelligent creator). So no, it is totally possible to form a set of reasoned beliefs about the world, suspending judgment when insufficient evidence is available, without needing to bring faith into it.

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