"faith"

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Why "faith"? Why not "religion?" Why not "Christianity"? Why not "conservative Christian values"?

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Monday, 13 June 2005 02:28 (twenty years ago)

In what context? I mean a hindu has faith but is not a chrtistian; a scientist has faith in the peer reviews and research of his colleages, and hes not religious; and so on...

― Trayce (trayce), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:31 (twenty years ago)

I meant "faith" as in the buzzword often tossed about by neocons. Obv. the word itself can be used very freely but I'm wondering what the precise motives behind terms like "people of faith" is about.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Monday, 13 June 2005 02:32 (twenty years ago)

I guess it would be nice.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:33 (twenty years ago)

I am not typing the next line ;P

― Trayce (trayce), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:36 (twenty years ago)

Put your tiny hand in mine, Trayce.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:37 (twenty years ago)

Before that river, there comes an ocean

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:41 (twenty years ago)

because people want to congratulate themselves, duh

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:43 (twenty years ago)

and because it describes some of the process of religion, which involves lots of continuous affirmation

― gabbneb (gabbneb), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:45 (twenty years ago)

Please reconsider this foolish notion.

― moley, Monday, 13 June 2005 02:52 (twenty years ago)

My mum's funny like this about faith, to get back to the topic at hand. She often says things like "I dont need proof to be a christian - I just *believe*, I just have faith". Like it is this amorphous quiet reassurance in something Other looking out for us.

Me, I prefer Faith In Chaos, to steal from Aronofksy.

― Trayce (trayce), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:54 (twenty years ago)

Oh and err, baby, I'm your man. Or something.

― Trayce (trayce), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:54 (twenty years ago)

I think too maybe saying "people of faith" is trying to be all inclusive of other religions and beliefs (not that they really seem to do that really). I'm reminded of the Simpsons episode where Rev Lovejoy says something about faith in god being for everyone "be they christian, jew, or... other" as he looks at Apu, who snaps "hindu! There are 500 million of us you know."

― Trayce (trayce), Monday, 13 June 2005 02:56 (twenty years ago)

"miscelleaneous", or thereabouts, actually

― kingfish maximum overdrunk (Kingfish), Monday, 13 June 2005 04:04 (twenty years ago)

That mightve been it yeah.

― Trayce (trayce), Monday, 13 June 2005 04:10 (twenty years ago)

"People of faith" is in the running for most noxious phrase of the century. It's not trying to be inclusive! It's trying to bully people into shutting up and accepting whatever cockeyed worm-ridden spiteful ignorant polluted little notion someone is trying to ooze into the public realm, by giving it a patina of holiness. Iff they're the people of faith, then obviously de facto hey presto everyone else is...faithless! Whores of babylon. Adulterers in the eyes of the almighty. What bugs me the most is how played this whole shtick is. Like they think the whole entire population flunked 9th-grade history.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Monday, 13 June 2005 04:49 (twenty years ago)

gabbneb OFF the mark. wish it were that disingenuous.

but LC, the question containeth its own answer - "people of faith" is a neatly inocuous euphemism for "people with a very specific not-merely-conservative-but-radical-right political agenda." It's doublespeak intended to be easily misread by everyday religious folk as "people like us."

After reading the "legislating morality" thread I was almost moved to post on the other really insidious/darkly ingenious aspect of the phrase - the way it appropriates the tools of identity politics to apply a discourse of resistance to the "struggle" of radical-right elites (and their foot-soldier/dupes). And it works, since their grass-roots folk really have come to perceive themselves as an oppressed minority.

God help us all.

― rogermexico (rogermexico), Monday, 13 June 2005 04:57 (twenty years ago)

Like they think the whole entire population flunked 9th-grade history.

No one ever lost an election underestimating the ignorance of the American public.

Alexander Hamilton to thread.

― rogermexico (rogermexico), Monday, 13 June 2005 05:02 (twenty years ago)

http://www.yoursongscollectibles.com/michaelgeorge-0001.jpg

― Paunchy Stratego (kenan), Monday, 13 June 2005 05:05 (twenty years ago)

The people, sir, are a great beast.

― Alexander Hamilton, Monday, 13 June 2005 05:12 (twenty years ago)

(I'm not the only one who has that whole ablum on my hard drive, right? RIGHT?)

― Paunchy Stratego (kenan), Monday, 13 June 2005 05:14 (twenty years ago)

It's doublespeak intended to be easily misread by everyday religious folk as "people like us."

That, but even more, I think it's aimed (effectively, apparently) at intimidating their opponents -- who might not be quite willing to call themselves "people of faith" but are flummoxed about how to effectively rebut without alienating this great assumed mass of people who would identify with the phrase.

BUT...The religious right is overplaying its hand by a factor of (my estimate) at least three. The assumed mass doesn't exist. (See Schiavo, Terri.) It'll take a while, but people will eventually figure that out. Even the Democrats, probably.

― gypsy mothra (gypsy mothra), Monday, 13 June 2005 05:15 (twenty years ago)

Lord willin'

― rogermexico (rogermexico), Monday, 13 June 2005 05:18 (twenty years ago)

Insh'allah

― rogermexico (rogermexico), Monday, 13 June 2005 05:19 (twenty years ago)

malakah salaam

― kingfish maximum overdrunk (Kingfish), Monday, 13 June 2005 05:21 (twenty years ago)

mecca lecca hi mecca hiney ho

― j blount (papa la bas), Monday, 13 June 2005 06:17 (twenty years ago)

Now it comes with Carnage Visors.

― Ian Riese-Moraine: exposing ambitious careerists as charlatans since 1986. (East, Monday, 13 June 2005 09:55 (twenty years ago)

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