Faith and Belief: The Difference Between Them

by Wilfred Cantwell Smith

Drawing on a wide variety of religious traditions, Cantwell Smith addresses how, why, and with what implications our understanding of the terms faith and belief has altered with time.

Genres: Religion, Spirituality, Nonfiction

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Wilfred Cantwell Smith (July 21, 1916 – February 7, 2000) was a Canadian professor of comparative religion who from 1964–1973 was director of Harvard's Center for the Study of World Religions. The Harvard Gazette characterized him as one of the field's most influential figures of the past century. In his 1962 work The Meaning and End of Religion he notably and controversially questioned the validity of the concept of religion.

Reviews

[Carlo · Rating 4 out of 5]

For those who care at all about the way history shapes language, or who have a sense that there is something deeply wrong with how we (Americans? Western Europeans?) speak about matters of “faith” and (or Cantwell Smith might say “vs.” here) “belief” - this book is for you! Somewhat tedious in places for me, but his attention to historical detail is first-rate. The crux of the matter: it is only today that we conflate faith with epistemological beliefs. For Cantwell Smith, it is entirely reasonable to have a deep life praxis of faith regardless (?? This remains a question for me) of what goes on in ones epistemic life. To see how, read this awesome paradigm challenging book!