I think that when we receive value from something (in other words, we feel valued because of something or someone else) then we are believing that that other thing (or other someone) has the ability to actually give us that value. We have faith that that thing or person has the authority, or ability, to ascribe value to us.
Here's an example.
John Doe meets Jane Smith. As they build a relationship he comes to the point of telling a friend of his, "She makes me feel great! It's like when I'm with her I'm alive in a way that I wasn't before. Because of her I'm walking on clouds." (or something like that.) He feels valued by her. He feels more valuable because he is with her and has a relationship with her. And he has faith that she is able to impart this value (he's experienced it), he has faith that she will continue to impart this value (he hasn't experienced it, but he believes it rationally), and he has faith that this new valuation of himself that he's experiencing thanks to her is really true about him and truly from her (that's probably a more irrational bit of faith). [I think I managed to get all of your faith definitions in there, Darryl.]
Of course, John having faith in Jane begs the question, is Jane trustworthy. Is she worth putting faith in. Can she really provide value in the way that John thinks she's providing it.
So let's assume that Jane isn't worth putting faith in (mostly because I think it helps to think through the faith and value connection). Imagine that John finds out Jane has been cheating on him with Jimmy. (I decided to keep rolling with those J names.) At this point, I think he's got a few options:
1) He's going to continue to receive his valuation through Jane, which means he's going to feel like crap. He's going to wonder what he did wrong. He'll probably engage in some sort of self flagellation and deprecation. He hasn't lost faith in Jane. Instead he's accepted a negative valuation of himself.
2) He's going to reverse his faith. He'll no longer believe that Jane has authority, or even an ability, to determine his own worth. Rather than recognizing that he probably shouldn't have put so much faith in her in the first place, he'll instead take on a negative faith regarding her. Not only does she no longer have any ability to give value to him in any way, but she'll never be able to. Despite experiences that show that she can indeed make him feel valued, he will reverse his belief regarding her to such an extent that even what she can do is no longer accepted as being possible.
3) He's going to lose his faith. He'll realize that Jane was not where his faith should have been put in the first place, and that she also should not have been his chief source of receiving value. He may still be able to recognize that she has some ability to make him feel good about himself, but he's more sober in his view of her and recognizes her more clearly for who she truly is.
The next question that pops into mind is which comes first, the faith or the receiving of value? Perhaps it's the faith first, because we have to take that first step into a relationship (whether it's accepting the job, going on the first date, or praying your first prayer). Perhaps it's a mustard seed size of faith that begins it all in the first place. But putting that bit of faith in something enables the opportunity to get a response. Is this thing worth putting my faith in? Then, when value is received through that bit of faith-putting, the faith increases.
What do you think? Is this a reasonable connection to make between faith and value? Does it make more sense of what faith is or just confuse the issue?
I still don't think this makes value as aspect of faith. As described, John gets a sense of self-value based on whether his faith in Jane was well placed or misplaced. That's an aspect of any action a person takes: your sense of value is based on how well you live up to your own expectations. And when you misplace trust, you look down on (devalue) yourself more than if you trusted someone who managed to be worthy of it.
ReplyDeleteSo I still don't see the value portion of faith as you've defined it. I still maintain that they are two separate things, with value being the result of faith and not an intrinsic part of faith itself. No more so than your credit rating is an aspect of owning a credit card: the credit rating is the result of the card and not an aspect of the card itself.
it could be a separate thing, but it's so closely linked that i think that looking at what you find value through helps to determine where you've put your faith.
ReplyDeleteinteresting...
ReplyDeleteI agree with Darryl that these are two separate things, and I agree with Meg that there is a link...
but when you say, Meg, that "looking at what you find value through helps to determine where you've put your faith", my logic machine makes strange beeping sounds because this doesn't apply to each and every X in which I have put my faith. I agree that if I rely on X to give me a sense of value, then I am putting my faith in X (that's what relying on it means); but there are plenty of other Xs in which I put my faith but I do not derive a sense of my own value from them - I put my faith in my car mechanic to fix my car but he doesn't affect my sense of my own value.
sorry, I tend to do this hair-splitting thing, especially on Wednesday afternoons.
p.s. love the crazy cat image :)
Haha! I get accused of doing that all the time. :)
ReplyDeleteoh right, so that's where I know you from? the secret meetings of the pedants' society? (oops, should I have... oh well, I haven't said where we meet, so I guess we're safe)
ReplyDeleteIxnay on the eetmay.
ReplyDelete