568. Belief and Faith

The difference between Belief and Faith is that you may believe a thing (whether or not it is true) one day and change that belief the next without there being any practical change in consequences, while, if your faith in something changes, then your whole way of living will change. For example, if you lose your faith in the theory of flight, you would never again board an aircraft. If you simply cease to believe in the theory as a mere intellectual exercise or position, it need not stop you from flying as your mind will tell you that while the theory is incorrect, something else is allowing 'planes to fly - you can see them. In other words, Faith is much stronger than Belief. Beliefs are mere opinions whereas Faith relys in part on proof and is and is the foundation of how we live our lives. It is wiser to base your life on solid faiths in real things than on fey and futile beliefs.

564. Philosophy and the Scientific Method

"It appears to me that those who, in proof of any assertion, rely simply on the weight of authority without adducing any argument in support of it act very absurdly. I, on the contrary, wish to be allowed freely to question and freely to answer you without any sort of adulation, as well becomes those who are in search of the Truth." - Vincenzio Gallilei, father of Gallileo Gallilei. The lesson here is to verify everything by experiment rather than simply accepting the conclusions of the so-called experts. In life, philosophical, material, scientific and financial you should follow the rule never to accept or reject blindly any proposition given but to attemtpt to put it into practice for yourself and see what the actual effects are.

369. True Facts

A fact cannot be considered to be true unless the means by which it was obtained can be presented and verified.