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Added: Tuesday, 17 November, 2009, 07:56 GMT 07:56 UK

Faith is the result of common sense, conscience and a gleaning there is more to this great universal stage of order and consciousness than what appears to the limited 5 senses

Faith is the recognition that this all has meaning and purpose along with the wisdom of conscience/empathy which leads to understanding and well being

Nihilism leads to moral disorder, meaninglessness and misery

Faith connects you with the very real Spiritual source behind life, which gives peace materialism cannot.

AgreenTree OfLife, UK

Added: Tuesday, 17 November, 2009, 07:44 GMT 07:44 UK

I think the point is to reduce religious interference in the life of non-practising people. We live in a world where religious thinking tries to impose a way of living as though we were in the Middle Ages, regardless politician attempts to match social claims (gay rights, abortion, religious freedom, Human Rights ...). So, what about an encounter between secular and religious representatives, to put this thing right to their eyes and stop them telling us how to live our lives?

Pablo Pucilowski, Valencia (Spain)

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:49 GMT 22:49 UK

"I am glad that in the free-thinking world Atheism is becoming more and more dominant"

Yes, you’re right. It’s a much better place we now live in with our free thinking, free speech, violence, crime, drug abuse, me- me self centred attitude. It must have been horrible to live a few generations ago, when people had respect for one another. Funny how the demise of our society appears to be directly proportional to the decrease in the popularity of religion.

Mark, Sandbach

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:49 GMT 22:49 UK

Human activities are not bad in themselves, but only become so when humans are bad while doing them. Many people blame all the world's ills on religion. The worlds ills are down to the behaviour of mankind in the round: greed, violence, pride, prejudice, hatred. These vices are not caused by religion but they do utilise religion as a vehicle, just as they utilise all forms of human activity as a vehicle if people allow.

Martin Smith

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:47 GMT 22:47 UK

Faith is like the human spinal cord extended at the posterior (internally) as a tail but of no use now externally. Thanks HYS for showing I am not alone saying 'no' to religion and god.

[ganessa], London, United Kingdom

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:44 GMT 22:44 UK

Faith to me is faith in yourself that how you act and interact with others is pretty much according to how we would like to be treated by others. I'm aware that that tenet forms the basis of probably more than one religion, but you don't really need to subscribe to any of them to work that one out, or do you ?

Tombo 53, Retto Ghetto

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:43 GMT 22:43 UK

Faith is about relationship, not ritual. The "proof" that God is real comes by witnessing the real change in the hearts of mean, cruel people who have become tender and loving after an encounter with Jesus Christ. It is about knowing Him relationally and through reading the Bible which tells us God is love, that He does not seek to harm us, everything He does is for our benefit, to lift us to a better place in life. Read the Book - meet the Man - and personally find out the answer. He is risen!

Matt Dixon, Kill Devil Hills, NC USA

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:40 GMT 22:40 UK

I read many of the comments concerning religion, and the most outstanding impression I got was the level of sophistication of the answers from the Brits. Most expressed that religion and religiosity are two different items, with which I totally agree. Religion has caused more harm and good than any other institution man has devised. Religion is important and this conference stresses that, but the most religious people I know are not church members. I wish more people thought the same here.

David Morgan, Newark, Texas

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:40 GMT 22:40 UK

..
However, my view is that science also depends on faith for it's belief system, especially in quantum physics. It's all about probabilities, nothing is proved 100%, therefore faith in these theories is required.
No-one actually knows one way or the other if there is a creator, life after death etc.
.
Farside Alien, Dark Side Of The Moon

Square 1:
The only absolute Truth you absolutely know.
It has nothing whatsoever to do with "thinking" and can never be conveyed. But you knew that.

Descartes, Des Moines

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:26 GMT 22:26 UK

As an atheist I just wish the religions that have caused so much cruelty, conflict and hypocrisy would all just go away. It would all be so laughable were it not for suffering that has been caused by their interference in the lives of the peoples of the world. As it is only a belief engineered by man why do they still treat it so seriously? Is it because old habits die hard.

Ivan Martin, Hertfordshire

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:22 GMT 22:22 UK

I thought this was about interfaith week. I am all in favour. I think this is a good idea.

I do however object to atheists claiming science when most scientific discoveries over the past 500-years were by 'men of faith!'

This hijacking of the achievements of these great men [and women] is preposterous.

Athiests support science but please do not plagiarise the work of believers and claim it as your own.

roger hayes, gt yarmouth

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:22 GMT 22:22 UK

Interfaith week is really important in the context of shrill voices claiming that sharia arbitration -- under British law -- to settle disputes in the UK means a push for sharia law.

These same shrill voices are unaware that the Jewish community has been able to use Jewish religious arbitration for years -- under British law -- and this is no push for Bet Din law.

It'll help in the War on Ignorance we need to fight.

Phosgene Gasse

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:16 GMT 22:16 UK

I have concerns over individuals who follow faith blindly beleiving from preachers of all faiths that what they are saying is the correct and proper way and to not beleive them you arnt part of "their" religion.

The problem i have is that people who place their faith totally with a single faith without researching or understanding that faith. Religions across the world have fanatics willing to kill themselves in the name of faith based on what someone else has said.

That is the true power.

andrew, chesterfield

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:14 GMT 22:14 UK

As always they have excluded the athiests whose faith is there is no faith and the agnostics who don't know if they have faith or not.

Annie Glypta

Added: Monday, 16 November, 2009, 22:10 GMT 22:10 UK

When the Spanish conquistadores invaded the Americas they brought their own faith on the point of a sword and overthrew the faith(s) of the natives, bloody as they were, to force them to accept a foreign faith about a hangman father who killed his own son. While the secular power reduced the indigenous peoples to slavery the Church reduced their bodies to ashes as heretics if they did not convert to the 'True Faith'. Today the poverty of that new 'faith' can be seen in the Andes. It's all rot!

Ortega, Medellin