Faith in Christianity
Within Christianity, faith, in one sense, is often discussed in terms of believing God's promises, trusting in his faithfulness, and relying on God's character and faithfulness to act. Some denominations believe in the New Covenant and in the doctrine of salvation by faith alone (sola fide). According to most Christian traditions and denominations, Christian faith requires a belief in the resurrection of Jesus, and the Agony in the Garden which Jesus states is the plan[1] of God the Father.[2][3]
Since the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century the meaning of the term "faith" has been an object of major theological disagreement in Western Christianity. The differences have been largely overcome in the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (1999). The precise understanding of the term "faith" differs among the various Christian traditions. Despite these differences, Christians generally agree that faith in Jesus lies at the core of the Christian tradition, and that such faith is required in order to be a Christian.
Some of the definitions of faith in the history of Christian theology have followed the biblical formulation in Hebrews 11:1: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen (NKJV)".[4]
Christian faith builds on Old Testament faith because the promises of the Old Testament are accepted as being fulfilled in the ministry, suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.[5]
Eastern Christianity[edit]
Noetic faculty[edit]
Faith (pistis) in Eastern Christianity is an activity of the nous or spirit. Faith being characteristic of the noesis or noetic experience of the spirit. Faith here being defined as intuitive truth meaning as a gift from God, faith is one of God's uncreated energies (Grace too is another of God's uncreated energies and gifts).[16] The God in Trinity is uncreated or incomprehensible in nature, being or essence.[17] Therefore, in Eastern Christianity, God's essence or incomprehisibility is distinguished from his uncreated energies. This is clarified in the Essence-Energies distinction of Gregory Palamas.[18]