I was attended an online church meeting recently, when a speaker paraphrased Alma 32:21<\/a>, saying that faith is hoping for things we can\u2019t see but that are true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve seen this usage before. For example, take this quote from the Gospel Principles<\/em> manual:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faith is a \u201chope for things which are not seen, which are true\u201d.<\/p>\u201cChapter 18: Faith in Jesus Christ<\/a>\u201d, Gospel Principles<\/em>, 2009, p. 101.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or this quote from a member of the Seventy:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hope is another important particle of faith. Alma told the humble Zoramites that faith was not a perfect knowledge of things. It was a \u201chope for things which are not seen, which are true\u201d.<\/p>Ringwood, M. \u201cFaith, Hope, and Relationships<\/a>\u201d, Ensign<\/em>, Jan. 2013, p. 56.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or this quote from a CES educators broadcast given by a member of the Twelve:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These teachings highlight three basic elements of faith: (1) faith as the assurance of things hoped for that are true, (2) faith as the evidence of things not seen, and (3) faith as the principle of action in all intelligent beings.<\/p>Bednar, D. \u201cSeek Learning by Faith<\/a>\u201d, Liahona<\/em>, Sep. 2007, p. 18.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or the entry for \u201cfaith\u201d in the Bible Dictionary<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faith is to hope for things which are not seen, but which are true, and must be centered in Jesus Christ in order to produce salvation.<\/p>\u201cFaith<\/a>\u201d, Bible Dictionary<\/em>.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

(Joseph B. Wirthlin quoted this entry in a 2002 General Conference talk<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Or the entry for \u201cfaith\u201d in the Guide to the Scriptures<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faith includes a hope for things which are not seen, but which are true.<\/p>\u201cFaith<\/a>\u201d, Guide to the Scriptures<\/em>.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or the entry for \u201chope\u201d in the Index to the Triple Combination<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

faith is to hope for things not seen which are true,<\/p>\u201cHope<\/a>\u201d, Index to the Triple Combination<\/em>.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or this article from The Friend<\/em>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faith is hope for things that we cannot see but are true. We believe that Jesus Christ is our Savior, and we trust Him to help and guide us.<\/p>\u201cArticle of Faith 4<\/a>\u201d, The Friend<\/em>, Apr. 2011, p. 22.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or this article from The New Era<\/em>; although, this is technically paraphrasing Ether 12:6 (not Alma 32:21), which doesn\u2019t even include the phrase which is true<\/em>, or even just the word true<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faith is hope for things that are true but not seen.<\/p>\u201c55 Truths in the Book of Mormon<\/a>\u201d, The New Era<\/em>, Sep. 2017, p. 25.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Or this entry from a 2004 CES teacher resource manual for the Book of Mormon<\/em> curriculum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Faith is a \u201chope for things which are not seen, which are true\u201d.<\/p>\u201cAlma 30\u201335<\/a>\u201d, Book of Mormon Teacher Resource Manual<\/em>, 2004, pp. 165\u201373.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

And so on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I bring this up because there are couple of issues with this usage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

First, it\u2019s an incorrect reading of the text. This verse never says that faith<\/em> is hoping for unseen but true things. Actually, it never defines faith<\/em> at all. Let\u2019s look at the actual text:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now as I said concerning faith\u2014faith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things; therefore if ye have faith ye hope for things which are not seen, which are true.<\/p>Alma 32:21, The Book of Mormon<\/em>, p. 289.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

See? If you look carefully, the verse doesn\u2019t actually say that faith is hoping for things which are not seen but that are true. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What it does<\/em> say, however, is that if we have<\/em> faith, we hope for unseen but true things. In other words, faith is what motivates us to hope for unseen but true things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using this verse as seen in the sources above is problematic. Obviously, the verse doesn\u2019t actually say what the people quoting\/paraphrasing it say it does. However, there\u2019s another reason why it\u2019s problematice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which brings me to the second issue I have with this issue: it\u2019s impossible for us to know that an unseen thing is true.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking of knowing<\/em>, let\u2019s look at the first half of Alma 32:21, as quoted above: \u201cfaith is not to have a perfect knowledge of things\u201d. Alma differentiates between faith<\/em> and knowledge<\/em>. In fact, he expands on that a bit earlier in some previous verses:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yea, there are many who do say: If thou wilt show unto us a sign from heaven, then we shall know of a surety; then we shall believe. Now I ask, is this faith? Behold, I say unto you, Nay; for if a man knoweth a thing he hath no cause to believe, for he knoweth it.<\/p>Alma 32:17\u201318, The Book of Mormon<\/em>, p. 289.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

To Alma, knowledge<\/em> and faith<\/em> are separate. If you know<\/em> something, you no longer have faith<\/em> in it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I put my slippers on my feet, for example, I know they are on my feet. I can remember placing them on my feet, I feel them on my feet, and I can see<\/em> them on my feet. I have no reason to have faith in something I can see.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And the ability to see (or not see, in this case) appears to be a critical component of faith<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Take this other scripture:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And now, I, Moroni, would speak somewhat concerning these things; I would show unto the world that faith is things which are hoped for and not seen;<\/strong> wherefore, dispute not because ye see not, for ye receive no witness until after the trial of your faith.<\/p>Ether 12:6<\/a>, The Book of Mormon<\/em>, p. 509.<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Moroni realized that not being able to see something is critical to being able to having faith in it. There must be an unknown component involved in faith. Otherwise, as Alma said, it\u2019s knowledge, not faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And surely, it works the other way: if we cannot see it, then it\u2019s not knowledge.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I have no memory of putting my slippers on my feet, if I can\u2019t feel slippers on my feet, and if I can\u2019t see<\/em> slippers on my feet, then I have no knowledge that slippers are on my feet. I don\u2019t know<\/em> that there are slippers on my feet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I can believe that there are slippers on my feet. I can be confident that there are slippers on my feet. I can hope that there are slippers on my feet. My belief, confidence, and hope can be unbelievably strong, even. But I will never know<\/em> that there are slippers on my feet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s likewise for spiritual matters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s no way for us to know<\/em> that God exists. Well, unless God appears before us, I suppose. Until that happens, God remains unseen, and as such, we can only hope that God exists\u2014have faith.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because until we see<\/em> God, it\u2019s never knowledge. And spiritual experiences don\u2019t count as seeing<\/em>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Using spiritual experiences as proof of God\u2019s existence assumes that God exists and was responsible for those experiences. But then we\u2019re back to still lacking proof that God exists and was responsible for those spiritual experiences. That\u2019s fallacious; specifically, it\u2019s called circular reasoning.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI know God exists because He sent me spiritual experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whether those experiences were feelings, coincidences, or something else, none of them are actual proof that God exists, let alone was the source of those experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Same goes for things like \u201cI know the scriptures are true.\u201d or \u201cI know that I will see my loved ones again when I die.\u201d There\u2019s no evidence for these things, so one\u2019s understanding of them can\u2019t be based on knowledge: one can\u2019t know<\/em> them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which isn\u2019t to say there isn\u2019t value in assigning spiritual matters to God. My point here isn\u2019t to say that God doesn\u2019t exist. For just as we can\u2019t know that God exists, we can\u2019t know that God doesn\u2019t<\/em> exist. The same lack of evidence failing to prove God\u2019s existence also fails to prove God\u2019s nonexistence<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One can conclude that God doesn\u2019t exist because of lack of evidence, but that conclusion is made without proof. Perhaps the person who concludes this does so because the lack of evidence is compelling enough to convince them. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I find the lack of evidence for the existence of Bigfoot, for example, compelling enough to not believe in Bigfoot. Others might take a similar approach for their conclusion regarding God\u2019s existence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other hand, one can conclude that God does<\/em> exist despite the lack of evidence, but that conclusion is likewise made without proof. As noted earlier, perhaps that conclusion was reached because of experiences this person classified as spiritual, which then they assigned to God, even though there is no evidence that God exists nor that God was responsible for those experiences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, as I said, there still might be value to a person to believe<\/em> that certain experiences came from God or hope<\/em> that God exists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Again, my point isn\u2019t to prove that God doesn\u2019t exist: that\u2019s not something that can yet be proven.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My point is that we can\u2019t say that we know<\/em> God exists. This is currently an unknowable conclusion. And since we can\u2019t know God, we can\u2019t know whether God is true<\/em>. That\u2019s where the above framing of Alma 32:21 falls apart.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For if faith truly is hoping for things that are unseen but are true<\/em>\u2014as presented in the sources above\u2014yet we can\u2019t know that unseen things are<\/em> true, then faith is impossible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just as saying God exists because your spiritual experiences came from God is a circular argument, so, too, is the claim that faith is hoping for things that are unseen but are true. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After all, how do you determine something is true before you have faith in it if you can never see it or otherwise verify its existence? You have to have faith in its truthfulness? Then how do you determine faith in that<\/em>? How do you determine the truthfulness of the truthfulness of God\u2019s existence (or the Book of Mormon, or the First Vision, or any other spiritual certainties)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, just to sum up, saying that faith is hoping for that which is unseen but true is not only a misreading of the text, it\u2019s logically unsound and makes no sense.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hoping for things that are unseen but are true isn\u2019t faith. Let me explain why. Continue reading Is faith hoping for things which are not seen, which are true?<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4048,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false}}},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"yoast_head":"\n