Is it a faith or believes a church tries to give us?
462389
Church dont try to give you nothing, they try to take something from you its up to you what you give them. You don't need church or religion to find God but church and religion needs you.
722363
is this a fear of churches??
60063
Take your church with you, in your deepest heart...it is but the manifestation of your seeking and finding the truth of you.  You are loved unconditionally whether you enter a church, or not.
20475
They really are getting rich, you have to give them credit for that.  \n\nSome scams are successful, and no one can really do anything about one that calls themselves a church.
908125
Faith is not faith until you do question it.  However, as the faith grows the number of times we question it becomes less.  Let me give an example.  This is not from the area of religion but rather bridge building.  My friend Mike was taking Engineering at university.  As part of one of his courses he had to build something.  Mike decided to build a bridge.  When he was finished he had built a suspension bridge over a 30foot deep ravine.  It was only a foot bridge and since it was made with cables it often swayed in the wind.  When he was finished, he asked all the neighbours to come over.  The question he asked was something like this,  "Who has enough faith to walk across the bridge?"  I was not the first volunteer.  If the bridge broke, it was 30 ft straight down. After my first time across I said a little prayer of thankgiving.  Now I think nothing of running and even jumping up and down the bridge.  I have faith that the bridge will support me.  \n\nNow we come to the second part of faith.  It needs what I call "Constant Maintenance Questioning".  If we go back to the bridge,  every year I ask Mike if he has painted the cables above ground and tarred the cables that are underground.  I realize that cables rust.  If they are not maintained, one day the cables will rust through and when someone is on the bridge it will fall.  They will go down 30 ft.  They may even die.\n\nI have found that most people embrace the first questioning of faith.  However, they do not  follow up with that "Constant Maintenance Questioning" that is needed to have that faith grow and develop.
677426
First understand that faith isn't easy.  Every believer at one point or another questions their beliefs.  If you don't like the bureaucracy in the Catholic Church, you may want to try a new denomination.  Try attending a "non-denominational" church. Last I would suggest that you talk with someone in the church about your concerns, they can offer insight and help you with your doubts.  Best of luck and God bless.
661727
You mean like transubstantiation? Faith?
350203
Absolutely. Any religion that needs to twist their own words and beliefs in order to 'recruit' people to gain power are corrupt. Religion is man made remember, and God(or the Gods as I believe) is love. Christianity and the church have been so twisted over the centuries that they have now completely lost their grip on reality. They should try going and sitting in a field and meditating on nature instead of putting so much focus on the church. Life isn't about a big building with a spire, its about understanding. The catholic church in particular is one of the richest and most powerful institutions in the world? How did they get there? By helping the poor? I don't think so. By taking money, keeping it and recruiting new followers by twisting, turning and having an answer for everything. I'm not going to apologise if this offends anyone - If ya cant stand the heat ....
458034
i am catholic but i believe most of what you said especially the end part. people trust catholicism for the same reason they trust any other religion (i don't know why i follow the religion i am just guided) people use religion because they have weak minds and hearts. there is nothing wrong with this but religion gives them somethin to hold onto. someone in history i believe it was Marx or Stalin said the church was the "opiate of the masses"
1033410
If the Church has an income from books, tapes and so forth yes.\n\nBut if the Church is being supported by those that attend through offerings then I would have to say NO.
587250
Because that's what the Bible says so Jesus worshippers have to believe it even if the evidence says otherwise.  They call it faith.
846721
You bet! And vice versa. \n\nMy faith and my gods want me to ask questions. We grow by asking questions and seeking answers. Most of the time asking questions leads to more questions, but it's been my experience that asking questions and having doubts can strengthen faith.
555940
Faith is not logical.
945860
in a word: yep\n\nthe whole point of a religion is to get people to buy in on your belief system most likely gaining their obedience and (in the case of some unscrupulous cults and spiritual leaders) access to their piggy bank
445739
No. Absolutely not. The fact that I have a strong faith is a personal decision. What anyone else chooses to believe in is entirely up to them, and I do respect that. I wouldn't be living the way my faith requires if I were to push it onto someone else. I respect their beliefs the same way that I would want someone to respect mine. (Lutheran)
1175357
No.\n\nTo accept faith is to distribute the logic behind reason.\n\nReason is merely taking what lies before us and describing how it got there correct?  \n\nAll we can know is what we know.\n\nBut what about what we cannot know?\n\nIf reason suggets that all things arrived from something. faith is accepting that you didn't put it there.  Someone else did.\n\nUsing reason and faith, always that element of faith, we find hope and aspiration.  Contentment.\n\nReason always leads to more questions. \nFaith brings you to a solution.
547788
well, faith is all about being able to believe in something without physical proof of it existing. logically, that doesnt make sense. but, thats what faith is about. anyone can have faith in something when its right in front of you with the answers spelled out. but to be realistic, the bible doesnt explain everything. and it contradicts what we know is scientifically proven. but thats just it, you've independantly thought about this, and questioned it, you obviously werent brainwashed into anything. and if you want to believe in it, it sounds like you're ready. if you decide not to, thats cool too. i can understand that.\n\nto me, faith is about saying "i believe theres more to existence than what we understand right now".