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The main problem is that most don’t know the difference between faith, reasonable expectations, and hope.

Most people use them interchangeably. When most people say they have “faith” in something, they really mean “reasonable expectations.” To me, faith means, belief “without evidence” or “lack of evidence.” It clearly states in the Bible:

Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

—John 20:29

This is the work of a con; it is superstition. It is how someone sells you snake oil. Trust me! It is never a good thing.

Someone might say they have “faith in someone.” It is a common expression but it should not be blind faith. Their “faith” should be earned based on reasonable expectations. If someone is constantly disappointing them: missing deadlines, showing up late, and avoiding responsibility, then perhaps that faith is unwarranted and their reasonable expectations should be that they are not to be trusted and need professional help. One could also call it misguided faith or faith with a huge dollop of hope that often leads to disappointment. Eventually, you must accept reality (or in the case of the religious just deny it or create your alternative reality).

One can have a reasonable expectation that:

1. The sun will rise tomorrow.
2. Your car will start.
3. The plane you’re on will not crash.
4. Covid-19 vaccines are 95% effective.
5. And that the laws of physics will apply today, tomorrow, and have not changed over millions of years.

These are based on probabilities based on prior evidence–not faith without evidence. It’s just a lot easier to use the shorter word “faith.”

Scientists are eager to prove any scientific theory wrong, and over the centuries, many have fallen to better theories. The point here is that it’s a common Apologetic argument, that the reason to believe in God, miracles, and prayer is faith. And then they argue that science is also based on faith. That’s not accurate. Science is based on reasonable expectations, peer-reviewed research, and obtaining the same results from multiple studies. The scientific method is the hallmark of finding the truth. If the data does not support the theory we change the theory—not the data. We don’t “move the goalpost” so that no amount of new information will falsify our foregone conclusion.

Asking you to believe anything on faith and not the evidence is the mark of a con. And when their faith is challenged, they often Blame the Victim. The reason their prayers were not answered was because they didn’t believe enough or pray hard enough. It’s criminal.

One thing about probabilities is that you don’t have to believe in them for them to be true.

1.         Just ask the 99% of people dying from Covid-19 in the USA (July 2021).

2.         Or the one-fifth of adults who die from heart disease—the number one cause of death in the United States.

3.         Or the people who don’t wear seat belts, or helmets on a bicycle or motorcycle, or exercise daily.

Probability requires no faith; in fact, I would call it the opposite of faith. It operates on reasonable expectations and a smidgeon of shit happens.

Hope: I can hope that I find love and happiness and that my children will be healthy. That is not faith. Hope is optimism for the future. You can be optimistic but plan accordingly. False hope, like faith without evidence, is not a good thing. It will lead to disappointment or denying reality.

One could argue that if the doctor tells you that you have a 10% of surviving cancer then that would require faith. Ten percent of the population will beat that particular type of cancer. That’s simply a ten-percent probability. The odds are not in your favor and it would be recommended that you plan for the worst, but you most certainly can hope for the best.

You can hope that you are in that ten percent and, by definition, it has to be someone—it might as well be you. That is hope and a reasonable expectation based on science. While you might say that you have “faith in the doctors” you really mean you have a reasonable expectation that they are competent. Again, based on probabilities, some will be incompetent.

Probably hundreds, if not thousands of tragic, unfortunate, or simply rare events happen every day throughout the world. With 7.9 billion people, that should be expected. A one in 7.9 billion event should be unbelievable and appear supernatural. It is not. It’s probability.

To summarize, always be aware of how most people, particularly those of faith, misuse the term “faith” and that for a non-believer, it most clearly means: faith without evidence (or proof) or blind faith.

In summary, faith, reasonable expectations, and hope are separate things—but often used interchangeably and confused. Religion is based on faith and cannot be disproved; science is based on reasonable expectations and the scientific method.