being virtuous

In my last post, I talked about "a virtuous education" and forgetting to explain one of the most important point which is what is this "virtue." I had been thinking about this one big question between the relation of virtue and faith, and had it discussed with some friends as well. I prefer to use the word "faith" here rather than just simply "religion" because people could have a religion without really having a faith in God. Religion is just the identity and faith is the essence. Well if one ask what faith is, I just take this description written in Hebrew 11:

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God's command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible." -- Hebrew 11: 1-3

It is certain that a real faith will produce virtue. However does that mean no faith will produce no virtue as well? It depends on how do we see this "virtue." People such as Confucius has been frequently called one of the virtuous man ever alive on earth. Indeed his teaching is really wonderful and many of them is parallel with what the Bible teaches us. There are virtues in which individual could attain without any need in having a faith in God, however there are also virtues which God bestowed on those who believe in Him.

Many of us may have heard about what is called the four cardinal virtues: prudence, temperance, justice, and fortitude. By being prudent, one is able to take a proper decision and to think out what one's is doing and what is likely to come of that action. By being temperate, one is able to control himself, going the right length and no further, in drinking and in all other pleasures. By being just, one is able to take a proper moderation between self-interest and the rights and needs of others, it includes honesty, give and take, truthfulness, and so on. By being fortitudinous, one is able to confront fears and face dangers. 

Beyond these four cardinal virtues, there are yet other virtues which are argued to be attainable through faith. The first is "charity," in which the current word has already lost its original meaning. "Charity" in this sense is love, it's not just the emotion, it's also not the feeling, but "that state of the will which we have naturally about ourselves and must learn to have about other people" as CS Lewis put it. Loving ourself is easy, of course everyone by their nature or "instinct" will love themselves. Loving others as we are, and even loving our enemies, are we able to do that without God who enables us? Confucius said, "what you do not want others to do to you, do not do to others," but Jesus said do to others as what you want others do in you.

The second is "hope". The view of the eternal soul brings hope for our current short life here in earth. Our faith on Jesus and His promise give us an assurance of the eternal world to come and everything that we are doing here on earth is not in vain. We do not live merely just for instant pleasures, hedonism, or materialism; we do not live as in everything will end when our life here on earth ends! We know what we are here for, we know what we are called for, and we have hope to return back to our Father in Heaven.

The third is "faith," yes faith in itself is a virtue. In his work titled "Concluding Unscientific Postscript to Philosophical Fragments," Søren Kierkegaard wrote this beautiful remark about his faith:

"If I am capable of grasping God objectively, I do not believe, but precisely because I cannot do this I must believe. If I wish to preserve myself in faith I must constantly be intent upon holding fast the objective uncertainty, so as to remain out upon the deep, over seventy fathoms of water still preserving my faith."

CS Lewis in his book, "Mere Christianity," also wrote several interesting points of faith as a virtue. The summary of which you can find it here, and scroll to the last point.