Encyclopedia of sacred theology - pagina 151

Chap.

FAITH

§ 46.

II]

ereneral meuninef. aiice (yTvoaraa-L'i^ of

127

There we read that faith is "the assurthings hoped for, the proving (e\e7;3^o?)

Thus faith is here taken neither in things not seen." an exclusively religious sense, much less in a soteriological significance, but very generally as an " assurance " and " proving " of objects which escape our perception, either because they do not yet exist (ra iXTri^o/xeva'), or because they do Far from excludnot show themselves (ra /Jbrj ^XeTro/xeva'). of

ing, therefore, a itself calls

more general

our attention to

interpretation, the Scripture

And

it.

as for the

of profane literature in defining this conception

backwardness

more

exactly,

the above-quoted saying of the Pythagoreans shows that the idea of taking

up

faith as a link in a demonstration

entirely foreign to the ancients

;

and

was not

this appears stronger

from what Plutarch writes (Mor. 756, 5), " that in divine things no demonstration (aTro'Setfi?) is to be obtained," and that it is not needed, " For the traditional and ancient than which it is not possible to express faith is sufficient still

;

nor discover a clearer proof but this is, in itself, a sort of underlying common foundation and support for piety," ;

words

—

Avhich, although limited to the

domain

of religion,

and

rather used in connection with tradition, nevertheless betray a definite agreement with the teaching of

place faith as the

ground

Heb.

xi.

1,

and

of certainty over against " assur-

ance."

Neither the etymology of

mous with

it

Trib-rt?

and the words synony-

in other languages, nor the use of these words,

prove any obstacle in the

way

Faith with the root-idea of nection with the derivatives

of this general application.

ireCOco

(to persuade),

and

in con-

TTicrTo?, Trta-roco, TreiroCOrjcn'^, cnret-

deco, a'TTeiOrj';^ and aireCdeia, points etymologically to an action by which our consciousness is forced to surrender itself, and to hold something for true, to confide in something and to obey something. Here, then, we have nothing but a certain power which is exercised upon our consciousness, to which it is forced to subject itself. Upon our consciousness, which is first unstable, uncertain, and tossed about, a check is placed which puts an end to uncertainty. There is a restraint im-

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