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"A Leap of Faith"



"Leap of faith - yes, but only after reflection"       - Søren Kierkegaard

"Much of Kierkegaard's authorship explores the notion of the absurd: Job gets everything back again by the virtue of the absurd (Repetition); Abraham gets a reprieve from having to sacrifice Isaac, by virtue of the absurd (Fear and Trembling); Kierkegaard hoped to get Regine back again after breaking off their engagement, by virtue of the absurd (Journals); ... the Christian God is represented as absolutely transcendent of human categories yet is absurdly presented as a personal God with the human capacities to love, judge, forgiver, teach, etc." (excerpt from Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy - emphasis mine)

Just what does Kierkegaard’s ‘leap of faith’ mean . . . especially if we consider that, as he also postulates, religion is ‘absurd’ [or as the dictionary says, ’inconsistent with the plain dictates of common sense’]

 We often hear people talking of the need to take that “leap of faith”, but rarely if ever hear it in context with the rest of the quotation from Kierkegaard “…yes, but only after reflection”.

So, I asked, “Just what is this faith that we are suppose to have? We all understand what the verb ‘to leap’ means. So the problem comes up when we look at the meaning of ‘faith’. This definition resonates with me: “ to have 'faith' is to be trustworthy and faithful to God.” (Quoted anonymously) And surely that reflection Kierkegaard refers to is to allow ourselves the time and space to ask ourselves this very question: “Is this action one that is shows trust in my understanding of where God is leading?”

A ‘leap of faith’ is taking a particular path or way of action, although there are risks involved, although the outcome is unsure, although it might make no practical sense, because it is where we feel our God is urging us to go.  If we look at having faith as being trustworthy and faithful to God, the ante goes up! To be trustworthy and faithful means to be a follower of God that is both deserving of trust, and reliable.

So a ‘leap of faith’ is only possible when you trust God to such an extent that regardless of whether something makes ‘sense’ to the rest of the world, you do it, because not to would negate your trust in God. Where this ‘leap of faith’ will take you will then be consistent with your concept of God, of the God you are faithful to.

Comments

  1. AnonymousFebruary 5, 2014 at 11:13 AM

    I will never hear the phrase "leap of faith" again without thinking of your words and that wonderful illustration. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. terry dranitsarisFebruary 5, 2014 at 6:35 PM

    A' leap of faith' is something I have done several times in my life and I have never regretted it .I am thankful that I took a look at the reflection. Sometimes I couldn't consider the reflection I just had to do what I had to do to survive. I don't advocate this, I think if you are as a person going to take a huge leap of faith there is a lot to consider and reflect. It depends upon your circumstances in life. Not all people have this luxury as I call it. Mind you it is much better to weigh things in the balance before taking a leap of faith. There is an illustration in the scriptures that says if your going to build a house who first does not sit down and calculate the cost. Do you put the foundation into sand. Or a firm foundation. Well the wise person will most assuredly put it into the solid fountain because he stopped to reflect, He thought of the results should for example, let say a storm a terrible wind storm were to occur. Well its logical the home on the sand wouldn't be able to remain firm in those conditions, he didn't reflect before he took that leap of faith to build his home. All to often in life we can do the same thing, not only in our Christian lives but day to day living. So I think it is okay to consider the words the Søren Kierkegaard used, it is important to reflect. Not everyone is a lucky as what I have been. Mind you I think its also a good idea to seek out advice just in case you have cold feet or better still don't take a leap of faith at all..Ask yourself is it so important. Or can I wait and do this with help or with someone at my side.

    ReplyDelete
  3. AnonymousFebruary 6, 2014 at 10:04 AM

    Maybe you could replace the word faith with trust and say that we should take a leap of trust. After all, isn't it harder to trust than believe?

    ReplyDelete

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