What is faith? Or what kind of faith do we talk about when we
deal with matters of faith in Christianity? The answer will be neither easy nor
simple. But we have to consider complexities involved with the concept of faith
because no word or concept is made out of context. When I wrote my book, A Theological Introduction to Paul’s
Letters: Exploring a Threefold Theology of Paul (Cascade Books, 2011), one
of my concerns has to do with the familiar notion of
faith. The following is an excerpt from my book, page 64:
Excursus: “History of
Faith”
“The Hebrew word for
faith is emunah (for example, Hab 2:4: “The one who is
righteous shall live by faith”), whose basic meaning has to do with faithfulness,
fidelity, or steadfastness. All of these involve a person’s cost and time, as
Abraham paid such a price in living his lifelong journey of steadfastness to
God. In the New Testament, the Greek word for faith is pistis,
whose basic meaning also has to do with faithfulness, fidelity, or commitment.
… One of the problems in English translation is that there is no equivalent
English verb for the Greek verb pisteuo, whose noun is pistis (faith).
The closest thing in English might be a form like “faithize.” … …
For more, read A Theological Introduction to Paul’s
Letters: Exploring a Threefold Theology of Paul (Cascade Books, 2011), p.
64. Visit the book information page too.
