Faith = Openness to Truth = Trust in God

I like one of the things that the Rev. Barbara Brown Taylor had to say in a recent PBS interview. She's an Episcopal priest whom Baylor University named as one of the 12 most effective preachers in the English language. Here's her comment that struck me:

Having been brought up with a definition of faith as adherence to a set of beliefs, I have more and more begun to turn instead toward a definition of faith as openness to truth, whatever truth may turn out to be.

I would add that openness to truth goes hand in hand with trust in God. When we recite the Apostles' Creed or Nicene Creed, the very first thing we declare is our trust in God: "We believe in one God ...." If we trust in God, we won't shrink from truth, whatever it may turn out to be.

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--D. C.

Comments

[Louise]

I absolutely agree with the Rev. Brown Taylor's comments. Love rejoices with the truth, grace and truth came through Jesus Christ, and so on. People can smell phoniness a mile away - and it stinks! They can see through forced smiles and our awkwardness when we attempt to show the world the face we think we should be showing. If we haven't anything genuine or positive to say it is best to keep quiet - if we have something wonderful to share (e.g. our experiences of the goodness of God) then we can't help but say it as it is - that kind of testimony keeps people's attention for hours. I experience it frequently.