I have been pondering this distinction as of late. We use the terms almost interchangeably, but what does each word really mean, and can you have one without the other? My take thus far is, you can have Hope, but you do not need to have Faith. Hope is understanding that whatever your current circumstance are, they will eventually change. You can work towards increasing your odds of initiating that change, but it is still just dependent on the random events changing. Faith on the other hand, appears to me to rests more on an acceptance of whatever that change is to be. Or to put it another way, more reliant on the concept of predestination. What do you think?
Both seems to me really different. Hope is "waiting" for things to be better. Faith is believing in some moral value so hard they rule your life and you rarely doubt of it.
This issue was covered on this blog so chances are all comments will be repetitive http://www.jeremybinns.com/2012/10/03/what-is-the-difference-between-hope-and-faith/
So, what does that tell us? No, it doesn't tell us to have blind faith and just believe, believe, believe. No, Jesus was much smarter than this. Actually, if you read carefully, you will see Jesus was kind of joking and uses "reverse analogy". Obviously, even the most faithful man on planet Earth cannot dump a mountain into the see. So, what's the moral of the story? That is very hard to have faith and to be in doubt is a normal human condition, not to be ashamed of. Even for the very basic things like walking, talking or breathing, one cannot always be sure that they will happen as they should.
Hope is the belief that any wrongs are strictly temporary. That the individual will find a way existentially. Faith is the belief in a greater purpose. That a way will be presented from external forces. Faith can exist when all hope is gone. Hope can exist when all faith is gone. They both are a psychological defense mechanisms for perceived ruts in growth that have been ingrained into the human experience to keep us going. They are as crucial to an enjoyable life as love and trust.
Hope dies last, haven't you heard of that? My grammy was stuck in bed for years. Shortly before she died, she stated "I want to live so strongly". And sure enough, her wish was granted but for the other side, not here in this broken body.
Na, that's the new American redefinition of hope. hope in original English hence KJV terms, is expectation not maybe but it will. all you are really saying there is you want something other than what you have and maybe you will get it. it seems you are a consumer you've been taught that want is hope, therefore because you want you expect. it can seem a blurry line but marketers desire that to be muddy waters hence your pondering. faith is (trust/belief), and that could be in anything, in reference to the expectation of anything. and in that context you have the expectation of what you have placed your faith in, or on, will be fulfilled (hope). once fulfilled, its not faith anymore nor hope, it is the satisfaction in the fulfillment thereof. a teenager tells his buddy that he likes some girl, his friend tells him to not be afraid and talk to her. hence he places his faith in what his friend has told him and ACTS with the expectation of success. hence without the ACT according to the faith there is no hope (expectation)
I'm not talking Biblically, though you are welcomed to cite a Biblical reference to clarify. I'm looking for a philosophical definition instead of a theological one. No, I'm not necessarily referring to materialism, but rather circumstance, although to some degree they could go hand in hand. I'm very much intrigued by the Buddhist principle that all suffering is caused by the desire of things. While I certainly do not have what it takes to be a true monk and forego all physical pleasures, I certainly can understand that much of my anxieties stem from some preconceived notion of having control over circumstances. Hope to me is more of a mathematical odds game, i.e. what can I do to better my circumstances rather than be a victim of the Fates. What you seem to be describing in your analogy of faith is more akin to encouragement, a morale booster, cheering on. It does little to truly illuminate his own self worth if the outcome turns out to be the opposite of what he expects. He is still relying on an outside force for validation. Maybe, just maybe, that might be the difference; hope is mathematical, and faith is more anthropomorphic?
