I think faith is something that is several levels higher than belief, not easily noticeable, and has a certain flexibility, but the "fundamentals" and definitions of it do not change much.
The magical effect of this thing is not on the surface, but on the inside.
Its "effectiveness" is not something that can be seen in the short term, but the result of long-term execution.
Especially when faced with temptations of interest and life-or-death decisions, a person's faith can be seen most clearly.
Unfortunately, before the environment changed, many people relied on faith to support their 996 work culture, internal competition, and striving.
Nowadays, when it comes to faith, it is often met with sighs or even disdain and indignation.
- The true believers are few, and most people's faith is imposed from the outside.
Emerson once said:
Two things I detest: talented people without faith and ignorant people full of faith.
These two types of people make up a large proportion of society.
The former corresponds to those who destroy fairness with refined selfishness and the hated "few profiteers," while the latter blindly follow the crowd.
Sadly, the former often manipulates the latter and deceives them.
And what they gain is not the resistance and rejection of the latter, but the latter becoming supporters of the former, becoming a passionate group of fans who cheer for the former.
The cruelty and interesting aspect of this society is that the vast majority of people do not have faith, only belief.
And their belief often deviates, allowing them to sway, have double standards, have different arguments in different situations, and argue unreasonably.
I don't know if this is a trend or a helplessness and sadness.
Many people's so-called faith is highly dependent on external things.
They pursue not being good themselves, but being better than those around them.
It's not about being wealthy, but being wealthier than those around them.
They don't care if they are happy or not, but they passionately and crazily chase after something that others think will make them happy.
If others think I'm awesome, I'm wealthy, and I'm happy, then even if I'm actually living a miserable life, my life is considered stable and victorious, and I have face.
In reality, most people's faith is like paper, easily torn and shattered.
Their main focus is on where there is profit. They will go wherever that is, regardless of sincerity, seriousness, or bottom line. Those who have faith are considered foolish, idealistic, and naive.
- The reason for the collapse of faith is that the truth has been concealed.
There is a lyric that goes, "The outside world is wonderful, the outside world is helpless."
I believe that the majority of people, when they were young, had a perception that there are many opportunities and unlimited possibilities for our future.
But is that really the case?
After I graduated from graduate school and talked about the various difficulties I encountered in finding a job, many people would be surprised and say:
A master's graduate from a prestigious university is having a hard time finding a job? How is that possible?
I am speechless because in their eyes, if you graduated from a prestigious university, you are a genius, or at least you must have countless opportunities, with the doors of various well-known companies wide open to you.
However, I want to say that unless you are in that position, you will never understand the feelings of the person involved.
If you want a stable job, even if your major is just one word off, you will be screened out and not given the opportunity.
You will be limited by your background, education, major, age, appearance, height, environment, and other people's "arrangements."
So I want to say that the reason why many people's faith collapses is because the truth has been concealed.
You think you have many opportunities, but it's not true.
Any good opportunity has various "obstacles" set up to screen you out, and you always fall short. You think it's because you lack ability.
And our society is a society with a very broad sinking market.
The path to move up is extremely difficult and not transparent enough, while the path to move down may not require you to walk at all.
You think your future is promising just because those spiritual consumables, those "beliefs," are created by capital to feed your impoverished brain, to continue to be consumed and exploited.
Your poverty is designed, and so is your faith.
When you have worked hard in a circle and realize that you have entered a strange loop, a huge scam, your faith naturally collapses.
- The belief that can sustain your vitality is the true belief.
Some people say that a person is actually a combination of over 100 pounds of flesh and a bunch of ideas.
Of course, ideas include beliefs.
In reality, the kind of belief you have often determines the kind of life you will lead.
Because a person has their own magnetic field, if your magnetic field is polluted, you will attract things that are likely to be polluted and unreliable.
If your magnetic field is clean, you will attract people and things that can appreciate you and resonate with you.
Roughly speaking, belief is like a feather duster that can help you brush away the dust on your soul at any time.
Belief is when someone threatens you with a gun, and even if you are scared, you still dare to persist in that shining thing.
In fact, the set of beliefs that we have been taught is not very meaningful in real life.
The only thing that can keep us alive and make us better and better is the belief that can support our vitality, the thing that will never change.