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Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion pp 647–648Cite as

Faith

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Faith, fides in Latin and pistis in Greek, can be understood within a spectrum ranging from the content of a particular set of beliefs to the act of trust, usually in a particular community, doctrine, or Deity. In fundamentalist religions, the understanding of faith leans toward an emphasis on the content of belief, especially one’s assent to a certain set of beliefs. In these contexts, faith has a noetic quality and is fixed within boundaries to define what is inside or outside its scope. To assent to the appropriate propositions of religion means to have faith, and to be outside these limits is to be unfaithful (or an “infidel,” a term which derives from the Latin root of fides).

On the other side of the spectrum, faith is simply characterized as synonymous with trust, an attitude of believing, and thus refers more to the act of trusting than to the specific content of one’s beliefs. Within this pragmatic emphasis, the psychological effects of comfort and release from anxiety and...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pastoral Care and Counseling, Boston College School of Theology and Ministry, 140 Commonwealth Ave, Chestnut Hill, MA, 02467, USA

    Philip Browning Helsel

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  1. Philip Browning Helsel
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Correspondence to Philip Browning Helsel .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA

    David A. Leeming (Emeritus Professor) (Emeritus Professor)

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Helsel, P.B. (2014). Faith. In: Leeming, D.A. (eds) Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6086-2_228

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6086-2_228

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6085-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6086-2

  • eBook Packages: Behavioral Science

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